Rachel Kurzius

The trendiest TVs are tiny, old and in your kitchen Nostalgia for the aesthetics and phone-free days of the ’90s is driving the mini trend.

For my latest, I looked at the resurgence of the "kitchen TV" and what it tells us about our hunger for nostalgia and physical media. Here's a gift link: wapo.st/46TOSfr

TV trends have hustled in one direction: toward ever bigger and flatter screens with the highest possible resolution.

But now, a humble, boxy, tiny-screened TV dares to ask: What if we dust off a different path? And what if that path leads us to the kitchen?

How the play kitchen has evolved to reflect our changing tastes — and values From its centuries-old start in European dollhouses to the Instagram-friendly culinary suites of the modern day.

For more about the evolution of the play kitchen, and how DIY is really parents' way to play, too, check out my latest piece. Here's a gift link: wapo.st/4pP2amf

Sometimes I look at a play kitchen and I am amazed at how detailed and plain NICE it is. Like ... nicer than my real kitchen.

Turns out, they've mirrored the design tastes of parents and the broader culture for centuries. The biggest change? Now they're marketed to all kids

Sadly, don't expect an open house or a tour if you're not pre-qualified, so my story might be the closest you get to seeing the compound. Gift link here: wapo.st/46EUtY7

The late, great David Lynch's stunning enclave in the Hollywood Hills is for sale for $15M

"The family’s strong desire is that the next owner protects, preserves and honors what David created."

The property has buildings designed by 2 generations of the Lloyd Wright fam

This thread & responses are so funny -- they've inspired a story for the
@washingtonpost.com

Have you found anything wild or noteworthy in your kid's room? Send me a reply or email Rachel.kurzius@washpost.com if you're open to chatting. ty in advance!

Honey oak is back in our homes. Just don’t call it honey oak. As the gray cabinets of the mid-aughts start to chip, it’s time to revisit the warm woods of the ’90s.

I explored the resurgence of honey oak in my latest, which also touches upon home flipping and how they just don't make 'em like they used to. Here's a gift link: https://
wapo.st/3V9Ye1m

Honey oak, aka the warm wood from the '90s, is back in a big way .... Just don't call it "honey oak."

Designers tell me people are hungry for a natural look. They're done with the Great Grayening and seeking warmth.

Why Gen Z conservatives love the ‘Reagan Bush ’84’ tee Despite shifts in the Republican Party, Gen Z conservatives still embrace the Reagan Bush ’84 tee as a symbol of their values and a nod to American nostalgia.

“Reagan is still a vibe." The shirts speak to a moment of total Republican dominance and nostalgia, plus they're less confrontational than MAGA gear. Here's a gift link to my piece: wapo.st/47LWfHY

They weren't alive in the 80s but they love to wear the "Reagan Bush '84" t-shirts.

I saw frat bros in the 2010s in these tees. Now, the younger members of a totally changed GOP still don them. I wanted to know why!

Still cannot believe I got to read Buddie fan fic over the NPR airwaves. Dreams really do come true!

A look at how fan fiction is changing publishing and reading NPR's Scott Simon talks with Washington Post reporter Rachel Kurzius about fan fiction, which is changing publishing —from books inspired by "Twilight" to an award-winning take on "Huckleberry Finn."

ICYMI: I appeared on @NPR.org to chat about the power and pleasure of fan fiction.

Ended up entreating the iconic Scott Simon to allow more whimsy into his life. Hope you're taking that advice, Scott! www.npr.org/2025/08/16/n...

Thank you so much!

Home stagers decorate a house in hours. Here are their tips for yours. Hang the art last!

I spoke with stagers and learned a bunch of tips and tricks you can use while nesting in your own home. Here's a gift link: wapo.st/4fa7VWy

Last week, I watched the team from Sub Urban Staging transform an empty DC rowhome into a space brimming w/ furniture, art & the kind of baubles that make a house feel like a home in mere HOURS.

Stagers do a unique job, but they also have tips for all. Gorgeous pics by @valerieplesch.bsky.social

Thank you so much!

Fan fiction is everywhere, if you know how to look Writers who were once relegated to the internet are reshaping traditional publishing. It’s partly thanks to their infectious, generous passion.

In my latest, I argue that fan fiction ultimately represents the primordial soup of storytelling, pushing forward the bounds of the stories we can or would like to tell. Many thanks to @jacob.brogan for editing. Gift link: wapo.st/44QrnEn

Fan fiction used to be a scarlet letter for writers trying to get traditionally published. Now, it's a bona fide pipeline.

But as fic becomes more and more mainstream, how exactly do we define it? And what makes it so alluring? (Art by Emma Kumer)

The people who can’t stop talking about vacuum cleaners The world of vacuum forums is heated, helpful — and tells us something about the state of modern appliances.

“There’s something about vacuum cleaners that really gets people talking," one expert told me.

For my latest, I tried to figure out what. Here's a gift link: wapo.st/44mvdn9

illustration of various vacuum heads on a carpet. get it ... vacuumheads?

People LOVE to discuss and, let's face it, fight over vacuums online. Other appliances just don't seem to inspire the same level of passion

These debates reveal something about changes in business models, expectations of cleanliness and what we look for in a modern appliance

Secret listing? Banned? Why Zillow isn’t showing you the whole market. The Compass lawsuit against Zillow shines a light on pocket listings and other lesser-known tactics from the real estate world.

Compass, a major brokerage, sued Zillow this week over the forthcoming ban, accusing the site of violating antitrust laws.

In my latest, I explain what's going on with all this. Here's a gift link: wapo.st/46cehSQ

Picture of a bungalow with parts redacted, which comes from the story

I heard we're talking about stuff that starts with the letter "Z" today, so...

Zillow is a behemoth in the real estate world, so you might think you can find every home listing on there. But there are exceptions: off-market listings and a forthcoming ban on some listings

We’re all addicted to Zillow now Forget house hunting. Real estate listings are all about gossip, escapism and scoping out your neighbor’s bathroom renovation.

I explored why we're all so addicted to online home listings in my latest story. Here's a gift link: wapo.st/4jrazbg

The best source for gossip online is ... Zillow!

Online home listings offer drama, escapism and the digital equivalent of rifling through someone's medicine cabinet.

It's no wonder that Zillow saw a whopping 2.4 billion visits to its site for the first quarter of 2025

Seeking sources for a fun Post story about home listings!
-Love to look at listings/send them to pals/scope them out before visiting someone?
-Felt anxious sharing listings you're eyeing bc it felt too revealing?
-Other stories welcome!
Email rachel.kurzius@washpost.com / msg me

Martha Stewart and the show chicken breeder she took under her wing How a Gen-Z animal obsessive and a domestic powerhouse formed an unlikely friendship and a new business.

This is a story about Martha's relationship with animals (def stick around for her talking about hooding falcons with her mouth in Dubai) and it's also about the unlikely relationship -- and now biz partnership -- between her and Ari.

I hope you'll read it! Here's a gift link: wapo.st/3SIZ8Ay

Martha and Ari wearing accidentally matching blue hued shirts

Me interviewing Martha and Ari

One of Martha's chow chows hangs his glorious head out of the window of the Suburban

When Martha Stewart gets a new cat or dog, the first thing she does is bite it on the mouth — “hard,” she specifies. “And it squeals. It knows then that I am its mother.”

I learned this when I met Martha and her protege, a wunderkind animal breeder named Ari Katz, recently

The corporate quest to make better toilet paper Can perforation be perfected? Those toiling in the world of toilet paper R&D are trying.

Here's a gift link for my latest story, where I explore how toilet paper companies seek the "perfect dispensing experience" wapo.st/3XSsHmi

a photo I took of the wavy edges of Charmin Ultra Soft TP

"Do you realize that toilet paper has not changed in my lifetime?” George Costanza once said.

Welp, George got it a little right and a little wrong. After learning that it took Charmin 5 years (!!!!) to innovate its wavy edges, I simply HAD to learn about toilet paper R&D