The 7 Most Useful Purchases I’ve Made Since Quarantine Started (Including Wine)

I’m such a novice when it comes to plants that I don’t have any thumb, never mind a green one. I prematurely bought a fiddle-leaf fig tree this fall (how hard could it be?!) and wound up tossing its bare stem into the garbage three months later. But my succulents seem to be thriving (because I literally don’t touch them). So, I figured this easy-to-care-for prickly pear cactus would be similar. Bloomscape delivered it in a cute grey pot with a saucer that matches my bedroom flawlessly and was able to brighten up my at-home office instantly. And they have a whole plant care section on their site which takes the guesswork out of watering…or not watering.

When weekdays and weekends start to blend together, every night ends with a glass of wine. So, I signed up for this monthly wine subscription service that delivers expert-picked vino straight to my door. All I had to do was take a short quiz and bam, four bottles landed on my doorstep. Best of all? It was much cheaper than a trip to the liquor store.

I love to cook (my family owns a restaurant, so I’ve been around food my whole life). But I have very minimal storage space. That’s where this Our Place pan comes into play. It does the heavy lifting of eight traditional cookware pieces and even includes a stainless steel steamer basket and nesting spatula. Plus it’s non-toxic and looks pretty on my stovetop (when I don’t get to washing it right away).

This air purifier isn’t cheap, but it’s helped me breathe easier (quite literally) over the past few weeks. From the sleek design, the automatic filter replacement deliveries and the quiet white-noise-like sound, I know that I’m getting the cleanest air possible. I live in an old building (I’m a sucker for charm) and my allergies have been a mess this season, but since buying the Molekule Mini Purifier, my sneezing has gone way down. While this portable model purifies spaces up to 250-square-feet, Molekule also makes a bigger version that tackles 600-square-feet.

Some people have their video games, but I have my voice-activated trash can. It not only looks pretty in my kitchen (how many people can say that about their trash can?), but the lid lifts with a simple “open can” command or a swipe of my hand. That means I don’t have to touch any germy surfaces when cleaning up, which caters nicely to my new germophobe tendencies.

I typically buy fresh produce weekly, but during quarantine, I’m trying to stay home as much as possible. I recently tried Daily Harvest, a weekly subscription service that includes some of the best smoothies I’ve ever tried (it’s all about Mint Cacao) along with plant-based soups, bowls, bites, lattes and new flatbreads (the artichoke and spinach is to die for). Everything is frozen at peak freshness, so I’m not even missing my usual produce hauls. P.S. They’re offering an exclusive discount for PureWow readers. Just enter ‘PUREWOW’ at checkout for $25 off your first box.

If I can’t actually be on a tropical island, you better believe I’m going to make my apartment smell like one. I love the entire range of Boy Smells candles (the new Cashmere Kush scent is *chef’s kiss*), but this one in particular transports me to the beaches of Hawaii (thanks to hints of coconut, orange blossom and clove), which is number one on my list of places to visit once we can travel again.