It Was an Ugly Couch Anyway

Elizabeth Passarella is a contributing editor for Southern Living, where she writes the “Social Graces” column. A former editor at Real Simple and Vogue, she has written about food, travel, home design, and parenting in outlets including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Parents, Martha Stewart Weddings, and Coastal Living. Elizabeth was one of the first food writers hired at Apartment Therapy’s The Kitchn, where she wrote daily posts and developed recipes. Her essay “Passing and Repasting,” about her grandmother’s funeral, was included in Cornbread Nation 1: The Best of Southern Food Writing. She lives in New York City.