Could Be Better

In our July 2019 episode, we have a summer surprise! Special guest host Bob Brink fills in for Rob while he recuperates from a solstice cold. Bob, who also happens to be J.’s husband, is a fine wine buyer and hospitality expert. He’s also not a regular BHG magazine reader, but you know what, sometimes an honest outside opinion is refreshing…like the Sandy Bottom, a watermelon-flavored signature cocktail. We talk frankly about hot d... Read more

t's LGBTQ Pride Month and Rob and J. search desperately for some signs of gay life in this month's magazine. Though there's little to be found on the pages, there's plenty of love at the bottom of their cocktail glasses (thanks to the strawberry basil smash cocktails, lifted from the recipe section). J. explains why this episode was delayed and shares a very painful housing-related memory. Rob gets tongue-tied over a supergay font ... Read more

In this episode: Deception! Lies! Big baskets! Secrets revealed! But even those might be another deception. As Rob pours Kentucky Derby mint juleps made gayer with lavender and berries, J. digs up memories of a childhood dinner gone horribly wrong. (This is the Food Issue, after all.) We discuss what charities really want (NOT your #KonMari non-joyful items), what no one wants (Grandma’s silver trays), an instant classic color sche... Read more

If you listened to our April 2019 episode, you heard us discuss the "New Neutrals" article, about redefining what a neutral color is and how to make any color a neutral (in theory.) That led us to a sidebar conversation that didn't quite fit into the main episode (hello, tangent!) but did show our pop culture side. We'll be back with our May 2019 full-length episode very soon! Music by Bensound.com.

Kids these days... In our April 2019 episode, we become art critics, in that it's the Art of Color issue and we're highly critical. How many Tags For Hate can one episode handle? Apparently pink is here to stay (baloney is so on trend right now), beige is back (thank you Gen X), anything can be a neutral, and the most exciting thing about spring is cleaning your toilet. Oh, and the Could Be Better Department of Outdoor Living reall... Read more

This month we make sure you're a real trendoid by dissecting our most (and least) favorite so-called trends from BHG's Trend issue. We're dubious about '70's glam (curate it, please), all-in on mural wallpapers, and totally over a certain color--this time, even the #houseplants get in on the action. Rob is only here for the zoodles, while J. does something unconventional and has to get something off his chest. And which of these tr... Read more

Welcome to Season Two of Could Be Better! If a certain #3 magazine is still pumpin' out issues, we're still pumpin' out episodes. Just in time for Valentine's Day, Rob brews up a red signature cocktail to get your blood racing: a Mid-Hudson Mule. They do pack a kick, because it takes us about three sips to start talking dirty about the February issue. Though lacy envelopes don't do it for us, we do fall for a white-on-white room (d... Read more

To celebrate our one-year anniversary, we recorded our January 2019 episode live at the Crafted Kup Coffeehouse in Poughkeepsie New York! And because we had a captive audience (and a timer!) we touched on a only a few highlights from the BHG magazine, instead of letting ourselves ramble for hours. Guests got to see the pages with us in a slideshow--which you can also check out on our website! We also asked for listener submissions ... Read more

Happy holidays, party people! Here’s our gift to you, a special bonus episode to tide you over while we take a little Christmas break (there’s a lot of eggnog and pom-ginger shandies to drink). We’re also putting this out there because we won’t have a new episode later this month since we’re talking about the January issue (which already arrived in our mailboxes) during our LIVE episode taping on January 18th. And boy, do we have a... Read more

Oh, the irony! We've been looking forward to the December issue all year, and then when it arrives (super-late, for Rob) we get...more pink. Can we please declare a new It color for 2019? J. and Rob unwrap a holiday surprise when Santa reveals the hottest seasonal decorating trend: not using red and green. Stuff your stockings with thumbprint cookies, pom-poms, pom-ginger cocktails, water bottles (sooo romantic!) and clothespin dol... Read more

In our November 2018 episode, we switch things up and hang out at J's house, where green is a neutral. We tried hard but we could not find many tags for hate in this issue of Better Homes & Gardens magazine! Maybe it's because we both love Thanksgiving so much. Maybe it's because the issue was mostly about the food (though we did do a fun recipe tasting at J's house--check our YouTube channel for that)! Never fear, we managed t... Read more

In the October 2018 episode of Could Be Better, we try to be a little nicer, a little more helpful, and a little less judgy. But that's no fun so we quickly devolve to our usual cocktail-fueled opinions. Though the cover of this month's Better Homes and Gardens mag has us hopeful for autumn color--and the Halloween features are on point--our time machine has us trapped in the horrors of 1970's design. Dark colors, spider-thin stair... Read more

In our September episode, we plant the seeds for fall with a new focus on decor. (Foodies, don't worry: check out our YouTube channel for our monthly recipe tastings). Rob mixes up a signature cocktail inspired by this BH&G issue's global flair (a Chocolate Spice martini) but J's excited by this month's Editor's Letter: cue another dramatic reading! In this Stylemaker issue, white walls reign supreme, purple is a neutral, ... Read more

In our August 2018 episode, the magazine leaves us thirsty (only one beverage recipe, and it’s plain ole iced tea) so Rob creates his own signature cocktail–the Salty Be-otch–inspired by this month’s paint can lid hues. After sampling another array of excellent foods from Chef Tim, J. confesses that he forgot his magazine…and it’s all downhill from there. Before the pitchers of peach-flavored cocktails run out, we discuss hazardous... Read more

In this bonus episode we're featuring two segments from our July 2018 episode taping that didn't make the cut (because we can't stop blabbing). These are a little more design-y in nature, and they share a few common themes: white on white (on white...) kitchens, "rustic" wood and a little more womp-womp talk about our least favorite big-name designer (guess who). Plus, Rob picks out a decor trick that he knows J. will totally, tota... Read more

It's the summer/gay pride issue we were all waiting for (and didn't get in June). We hit record on a 100-degree afternoon as Rob pours us a berry lemonade martini inspired by the "Burger Bash" feature. Tim serves lighter-than-they-look snacks by the pool before we escape the heat to the cool confines of our recording spot. The lemonade has us in high gear before we even get past the Editor's Letter and we wind up with our naughties... Read more

The new what? In this segment from the June 2018 episode, Rob and J. own up to confused feelings about "The Natural Life" feature on page 116 of the Better Homes & Gardens June 2018 issue. Meet the forager family behind the Insta account Fox Meets Bear and decide for yourself if their style is 1980's "Country Living," an update on Victorian naturalism, trapped-in-the-70's-Woodstock--or do we have it totally wrong? (J. provides ... Read more

In this episode of Could Be Better, it's time for Gay Pride Month, but something's a little amiss. There's only one rainbow in the whole issue, the recipes feature low-alcohol cocktails, and the Editor's Letter leaves us filled with regret. We're determined to make it #werk, however, so we plow on while sipping this month's signature cocktail, the Tito's Smash (courtesy of the back cover...we're making a real difference, girls). We... Read more

This episode is extraaaah! Here are two segments that didn't make it into the main May episode: our convo about the Before & After segment, and a featured food article (with gorgeous wallpaper-worthy pics by Con Poulos). The main theme of these two "cut" bits. Call us the Hardy Boys, because we finally solved the mystery of why most men photographed for the magazine have to untuck their button-down shirts. Plus: stacked tiles, ... Read more