After a Nudge from Aziz Ansari, a First Date

“He was a trooper,” Ms. Davis said. “The fact that he was willing to do that just meant everything.” That December, she moved in with him, into his studio apartment in San Francisco’s Marina District. “We’d talked probably earlier than most would about living together,” he said, adding that Ms. Davis had jokingly resisted at…

The People’s Republic of Shein

PLANO, Texas — There was some desperation in the air at the indoor mall where Shein had opened a pop-up store. A security guard posted at the entrance said that on each of the three days the pop-up was in business, he’d turned down about 20 bribes from people looking to skip the line. Often…

How to Decorate an Empty Space

This article is part of our Design special section on how looks, materials and even creators evolve. I recently relocated and took with me basically nothing. What’s the best strategy to fill up an apartment? Should I buy everything at once? Or wait and build it out? Even if you can afford to buy everything…