Desk Tour: Aja Frost & Aliza Sir
The team behind 'Platonic Love' shares their spaces!
Welcome to Desk Tour, a series where I interview creative folks about their desks and workspaces. In case you missed it: Andi Bartz’s Desk Tour from last time. Scroll to the bottom of this post for the full catalog of Desk Tours.
This week, in a very special edition of DESK TOUR, we’re getting two tours for the price of one! I’m very excited to share a look inside the work habits and spaces of
and , the duo behind the newsletter . In addition to being one of the most aesthetically pleasing Substacks I follow, Platonic Love is a creative and thoughtful exploration of motherhood, friendship, and more. I enjoy Aja and Aliza’s recommendations and perspectives so much, and I was so honored to be featured on their popular Links We Sent Our Friends series recently. Without further ado… let’s dive into how and where Aja and Aliza work!
OM: Describe your workspaces.
Aja: During COVID, my fiance, Sam, and I both worked at our dining room table — which was, unsurprisingly, bad for both our productivity and harmony.. We moved out of that place about a year ago. I was so excited to find the home we live in now, because it has a small room on the first floor that I immediately claimed for my office. I went a little bonkers on Facebook Marketplace and bought, in one weekend, an antique bookshelf, a mint recliner from the 70s, a lamp, and my pride and joy: this desk. It’s such a large and comforting presence in the room.
Aliza: My husband and I live in a two-bedroom duplex with our son, Jude, outside Cambridge, Massachusetts (about a 15-minute drive from Aja’s place), so my workspace is actually in my son’s nursery. When he’s at daycare, the room is my office. On nights and weekends, it’s his room. Jude will be two in September, so that’s about how long we’ve had the arrangement — sometimes I worry about the crib or Jude’s stuffed Curious George toy being visible behind me on a Zoom call, but for the most part, the setup has worked really well.
OM: What are your three favorite items on your desks right now?
Aja: My friend gave me this pink goblet from Madonna Inn, a famous hotel in my college town. This beautiful stained glass piece is by Soeun Lee; I’m obsessed with her work All my random knick knacks go in this retro swivel organizer from Ebay (there are a bunch more if you’re into it!)
Aliza: Sharpie felt-tip pens. I’m ruined — I haven’t used another type of pen in three or four years! Some favorite photos: Me, my mom, and my sister with baby Jude at the beach; a picture I snapped of my husband, Sam, and Jude on our first trip as a family together to Brooklyn The stack of children’s books in the corner that we read with Jude in the mornings and at night; some recent favorites are Hooray for Birds nd any classic Curious George.
OM: Do you keep anything specific at your desks that you use as inspiration to stay creative or positive?
Aja: Whenever I need a mental boost, I pick up this little toy. We got it from a vending machine in Tokyo (so many unique vending machines!) last year, and it reminds me of how bowled over with wonder we were the entire three-week trip.
Aliza: I have a note that Aja sent me on Galentine’s Day last year hanging over my desk. It was such a thoughtful gesture, and one that reminds me how much I appreciate our friendship and creative partnership. But when I need to do my most creative work, I’m usually not at my desk. I love the ambient noise of a coffee shop or other public space — and I write all of my longer essays longhand first. I’d been toiling over this piece about my recent fertility complications for a while… Then I got on a cross-country flight to California, pulled out my notebook, and the story poured out of me.
OM: Is there anything you absolutely HAVE to have at your desks/workspaces or you can't be productive?
Aja: I’m very old-school about taking notes — I really don’t like typing them. I have a big stack of Moleskines (all inexplicably half-used) near me for jotting down notes at all times.
Aliza: I know this makes me sound old, but my ergonomic chair is crucial. After those first few weeks of working at home during COVID, largely seated at my kitchen table, I felt like I’d aged 25 years.
OM: Is there anything you'd change about your workspaces? If so, what?
Aja: It doesn’t get a ton of natural light, because some very big, thick bushes grow outside the front of the house. But those bushes also keep it so nice and cool inside, even when we’re deep into a humid Boston summer, and during the spring, when the bush sprouts berries, there’s a constant parade of birds that I love to watch… So I guess ultimately, I wouldn’t change anything!
Aliza: My dream is to have a dedicated room where I can bring creative supplies into my traditional workspace to entice me to use them more — like paints and photos and other collage materials. Right now all those things live in a storage container under my bed, but one day! I’d also like to do a better job of keeping my phone away from my desk. That’s been easier said than done… Maybe I need a small toy, like the one Aja mentioned that often helps give her a mental boost.
OM: Describe your ideal work days at your desks.
Aja: My energy peaks in the morning, so I like starting around 8 AM. The most productive mornings are when I’ve done my morning pages — three pages of longhand, stream-of-consciousness writing — and taken a long walk, both of which help me process all the flotsam and jetsam floating in my mind: I need to order those hooks for the bathroom. What if we partnered with a local bookstore to do a Platonic Love silent reading party? I’ve still never gone to a Tanglewood concert. Next summer. Shit, did I reschedule that meeting? By the time I get to my desk, I’m focused and ready to dive in. My ideal day includes just one or two meetings (enough to give it some structure, but not so many I get sick of staring into Zoom), but my typical day usually has four to five hours of calls. After a meetings-heavy day, I meditate for a few minutes, run a quick errand, and/or do a TikTok session — all of which reset my brain again before I start my evening.
Aliza: Having a child in daycare means that — regardless of whether I just got into a flow — if I’m responsible for evening child care that day, I’ve got to close my laptop by 4:51 PM to make it down the road in time for 5:00 PM pick-up. But the clear division of time and boundaries can be helpful for someone who, admittedly, can find it hard to tear myself away from the computer. The ideal day at my desk is one where I hit my flow, get just enough checked off on my to-do list, then close my laptop for the evening and spend time with my family.
OM: Where can people find you on the internet?
Aja & Aliza: Aliza and I write platonic love, a newsletter about friends, by friends. Earlier this year, we launched the Friendship Training Program so we could help other people (and honestly, ourselves) form new relationships and deepen existing ones. We also share personal essays, like this one and tips on making life easier/more fun, like this one.
Note from Olivia: The one word that comes to mind for me when I think of both Aja and Aliza’s unique workspaces is warm. The image of Aliza surrounded by her son’s favorite books… the color and detail in Aja’s piece of stained glass, sun shining through… the tiny toy she uses to remind herself of the wonder of the world. It all just felt so comforting to me to see and read about. Aliza and Aja’s workspaces, though different, are both excellent reflections of the energy they bring to their newsletter.
is such a warm, cozy hug of a space on an often dark and depressing internet, and it doesn’t surprise me that Aja and Aliza’s offices feel much the same.Be sure to check out the past editions of Desk Tour:
PS: One last thing before I go… you can order my first novel NOW! I appreciate your consideration, time, and support immensely.
A portion of July’s subscriber proceeds will go toward the Center for Reproductive Rights, which is currently working to build, enforce, protect and defend legal protections for reproductive rights around the world (including in Florida, where I grew up, and there is currently a 6-week abortion ban).
This was so much fun! 💛
Olivia, I love this series! Bringing warmth and personality into our work spaces is so important. The desk tours give me so much inspiration! 💗💗