Dopamine darlings #1
Shiny new things to fill the void 🚬
You’re here! You made it to the first Dopamine Darlings.
If you’ve been reading Darlings for a while, you’ll know I often sign off the Sunday Dose with a dopamine darling, AKA a shiny new thing that gave me dopamine—usually clothes, skincare, makeup and food.
Because who doesn’t love inspiration for their next purchase, right?
But Dopamine Darlings isn’t just about mindless consumption in a consumerist world (well, maybe a little).
There are other reasons I love talking about shiny new things:
I connect with people through a shared love of something, and often, it’s a brand or product.
Things (new and old) colour my day and give me something to worship in this secular society of ours.
Brands are imbued with vibes, usually orchestrated by brand people like me. But like all art, and yes, I see branding as art, things take up their own meaning once they’re released into the wild.
I love stories, and stories attach themselves to objects. What makes us buy the things we buy? What was going on at the time?
Also, distraction. And dopamine, obviously.
With all the goodness that shiny new things bring, I’m giving my dopamine darlings an entire section – reserved for paid subscribers because you’re darlings yourselves!
So, let’s get right to it. Here are the darlings I definitely won’t kill. In fact, I’m currently fondling them as I sleep because they light up the darkest parts of me.