The Magnolia Journal

the magnolia journal

Editor in Chief JOANNA GAINES Editor at Large CHIP GAINES Editor EMILY PABEN | Art Director ALISSA NEELY | Design Director, Calligrapher WHITNEY KAUFHOLD Managing Editor KAILA LUNA | Associate Art Director BILLY JACK BRAWNER | Managing Design Director KELSIE MONSEN Administrative Assistant HEIDI SPRING | Staff Photographer MICHAEL D’AVELLO Staff Stylists REBECCA FLANNERY, ALLI MCGRANE, HILARY WALKER | Culinary Specialist BECKI SHEPHERD MEREDITH SPECIAL INTEREST MEDIA BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Vice President, Group Publisher SCOTT MORTIMER | Executive Account Director DOUG STARK Vice President, Marketing JEREMY BILOON | Director, Brand Marketing JEAN KENNEDY Associate Director, Brand Marketing BRYAN CHRISTIAN | Senior Brand Manager KATHERINE BARNET EDITORIAL Editorial Director JILL WAAGE | Senior Editor CHARIS DIETZ | Associate Art Director ALISHA WILLIAMS Senior Producer AUTUMN WOOD | Production Editor SUSAN MARTINEK Contributing Text Manager KATHLEEN ARMENTROUT | Contributing Copy Editor NANCY DIETZ | Proofreader ERIKA BJORKLUND Contributing…

letter from the editor

Autumn in Texas arrives without warning; unannounced, but welcome all the same. This time of year has long been my favorite. Not only because of the beauty of turning leaves or the long-awaited respite from a heat-scorched summer that the eventual cooler air brings, but also because fall has a way of prompting us to take stock of our year before it’s over. Whether it’s intentional or not, in the fall we start to shore up our footing as we enter the final months of the year. There’s a quiet confidence to this season that, year after year, harvests the promises it made in spring. Fall reminds us how much of its beauty wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for the many months of preparation that came before—the rising of spring…

magnolia report: wholeness

Jo and I have always naturally been on the same page with one another. We operate primarily from our gut—making most of our decisions based on what feels right to us both. That “feeling” or “moral compass” or whatever you want to call it has worked well for us. It’s kept us moving toward the next right thing based on who we are rather than the way that things have always, or already, been done. We operate in much the same way when it comes to our business. As Magnolia started to grow, it was important to us that we put something together, a cornerstone or lighthouse of sorts, that would help guide the work we’re doing. And more than that, serve as a reminder to Jo and me about the…

kintsugi

(kint-soo-gee) noun: “golden repair” When our team at Magnolia Journal came across the centuries-old Japanese tradition of mending broken ceramics with gold, it left an indelible impression on our ideas around pursuing wholeness, and it prompted us to consider how this gracious process of repair might inspire our own journeys toward becoming whole. The origin of kintsugi dates from 15th-century Japan, when artisans and craftsmen were looking for a more aesthetic means to mend broken ceramics. When an object breaks, the kintsugi technique involves using gold dust and resin or lacquer to reattach the broken pieces. Built on the idea that profound strength and beauty is to be found in imperfection, this art form can help shape our own perspectives about the scars we bear. Because all of life is neither entirely broken nor…

crème de la crème brûlée

S’mores PREP: 20 minutes BAKE: 40 minutes COOL: 1 hour CHILL: 4 hours 3 cups heavy cream3 oz. milk chocolate, chopped3 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped6 egg yolks¼ cup sugar1 tsp. vanilla¼ tsp. salt6 Tbsp. coarsely crushed graham crackers1 7-oz. jar marshmallow creme 1. Preheat oven to 325°F. In a medium saucepan, heat and stir 1 cup of the cream, the milk chocolate, and the semisweet chocolate over low until chocolate melts. Gradually whisk in remaining cream. Bring to simmering. Remove from heat. 2. Whisk egg yolks, sugar, vanilla, and salt in a medium bowl until smooth. Slowly whisk hot chocolate mixture into egg mixture. 3. Place six 6-oz. ramekins or custard cups in a 3-qt. rectangular baking dish. Divide chocolate mixture among ramekins. Place baking dish on oven rack. Pour enough boiling water into dish to reach halfway…

piece by piece

Not long ago, our family took a vacation with friends, and someone brought along a puzzle, spilling its pieces out onto a table in the corner of the living room. I found myself noticing how, over the course of the week, people approached the puzzle differently. Some would walk up and quickly find a piece or two before moving on to whatever they were doing next, while others spent hours of focused time putting it together. Puzzles have a way of bringing us together, of checking off boxes for different kinds of people: There are hunters, who love to scour and dig and look for the hard-to-find pieces; there are competitors, who always seem to be racing against some imaginary clock; there are strategists, who spend much of their time sorting…