ONE // Mulled apple cider chai french crullers

The cooler seasons always get me in the mood for baking. Who doesn’t want to warm their house up and fill it with all the autumnal and wintry scents? I’m down for any recipe with cinnamon. Some other recipes for the oven are iced pumpkin cookies, 5-ingredient honey almond granola, streuseled sweet potatoes, pumpkin chocolate chip bread, and Totoro pumpkin cheesecake bars. If these recipes are too much effort for you, you can do what I did and buy sugar cookie dough from the supermarket (I got Pillsbury’s) and sprinkle it with cinnamon. (I haven’t bought cookie dough since, like, elementary school.) (They actually tasted pretty good.) (Don’t kill me baking snobs.) To top it off, why don’t we have some boozy apple cider.

TWO // DIY terrarium coffee table

You know I love my coffee and my coffee tables. When I first moved into my apartment, I knew for sure that I wanted my room to feel more like a living room than a bedroom, and so I knew I wanted a daybed and a coffee table. Okay fine, let’s be real. I just wanted my room to feel like a coffee shop. Anyways. I love this DIY terrarium coffee table, because you get that greenery, which is pretty much a centerpiece, without crowding the surface of your coffee table. Such a statement! And while we’re talking about the home, let’s move onto the closet. I really like the idea of this 10×10 wardrobe challenge. The idea is to pick 10 items of clothing (including tops, bottoms, and shoes; not including accessories, bags, pyjamas, or gym clothes) and create 10 outfits for 10 days. I think it’d be a good way to jump into a minimal wardrobe without making any drastic commitments… and it’d be a good away of minimising my laundry hah. Another way to spruce up your wardrobe is to DIY a band tee 3 ways.

THREE // Self-belief and the hideous sundress

We hear the phrase “you do you” so often that it’s begun to lost its meaning. And maybe even worse, sometimes it’s said a bit negatively, like to simply placate you. But this little anecdote about loving the hideous sundress, despite what everyone else was saying, was a specific experience I totally identified with. When I was little, I had strong opinions about what I liked to wear and what I didn’t, how I liked to do my hair and how I didn’t, no matter how much my mother or anyone else disagreed. That sort of self-assurance has slowly been chipping away as I’ve gotten older, but I want to find those pieces of myself again. Other little moments of reflection I’ve found inspiring are these thoughts on circumstantial happiness, the story of the hug, allowing yourself to process the world, and giving yourself time.

FOUR // Wales: The Slate Cabin

I love this little cabin and how minimal it is, and yet it seems so cosy. I imagine that the minimal design declutters the mind and allows you to focus on the important things and appreciate the serene coast of Wales. It almost inspires me to get rid of all the unnecessary junk in my apartment and live a nomadic lifestyle haha. For something a little more local to me here in Pennsylvania, I’ve been enjoying keeping up with Lokal Hotel’s developments via their Instagram Stories. Y’all know I love their Old City location (on the blog), but now they’ve also got a new A-frame cabin in the woods just 50 minutes outside of Philly. And since I’ve been loving cabins so much, here’s another one called Forest Cabin, and I’m loving the autumnal breakfast scene. Am I allowed to still be talking about autumn now that it’s December?

FIVE // How to create film-like images in your digital camera

I love how film photography looks but I’ve never used a film camera before and I don’t have one either, so this tutorial is going to have to do for me for now! And since we’re talking about images, why don’t we move onto visual social media platforms? (dat segue doe) Here’s a tutorial on how to hide Pinnable images and here are 15 clever ways to use Instagram Stories. Keeping up a brand and managing all your socials can be time-consuming no doubt, so here are 24 time-saving hacks for busy entrepreneurs. And for all the influencers and entrepreneurs out there, here’s all you need to know about navigating sponsored content online.

What has been your favourite read of the week?

PS: more friday favourites

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ONE // Rose lassi

I’m also loving these rose rose cakes (they also come as cookies), watermelon frosé (frozen rosé), and edible terrariums! Straying from the pink, here are recipes for black sesame sugar and toffee snickerdoodle Totoro cookies and lemon berry mascarpone tarts. For those of you looking for savoury recipes, check out honey butter lemon chicken with asparagus, grilled corn, tomato, and avocado salad with chimichurri, creamy greek pasta salad, and this brunch bruschetta bar. Funny how I find all these recipes, but all I ever make for myself is cereal or some variation of stir-fry…

TWO // Instagram created a monster

Y’all know I have a love/hate relationship with Instagram. I feel like I constantly complain about it, yet here I am, still on Instagram and trying to figure it out. I mean, if I really hated it, I should just quit and shut up and start putting good vibes out into the world, right? I think I need to stop being a big baby and stop being so stubborn. I can’t avoid the fact that despite all its flaws (imho), Instagram is an influential platform, and it’s something I’m going to have to come to terms with if I believe it has the potential to support my blog. This article gives you all the information about the new algorithm and talks about how it started and how to play the game, but it’s up to you to decide what you want to do with that information. I don’t want to play the game, but I will have to develop a strategy. What kind of strategy? Well… I’m still working on that. Sometimes you have to do what you don’t want to do in order to do what you want to do. It’s all about perspective. Maxie offers some tips about how to network if you hate networking. Alexandra Franzen offers a perspective for those who love making art but despise marketing: marketing is making art. It’s all about inspiring and inviting. On the topic of inviting, she also shares some advice about how to find clients and customers: Full heart. All in.

THREE // Boost your creativity

I think some people think that creativity is either something you have or you don’t. But what those people don’t know is that while, yes, those people who just “are creative” probably did start at the beginning already having creative inclinations, but everything from then on was practise practise practise. Corina shares some creative exercises to help you boost your creativity. Megan shares an honest update about how life and business has changed for her and Mike, her husband and creative partner. It’s a learning process that requires hard work. This article from the New York Times offers some words of wisdom as well: “Don’t wait around for creativity to come to you on accident. Be creative on purpose.” As Chuck Close said, “Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work.” On the topic of creativity, check out Wit and Delight’s creative space and A Pair and a Spare’s travel journal ideas (just in time for summer break!).

FOUR // A day in the life: blogger shoot days

Crystalin and Natalie have this awesome thing going on where they do blog shoots for each other; one will photograph for the other, and then they’ll switch. Not only is this a reliable and efficient strategy, but it’s also a very natural one. Because they are both fashion and lifestyle bloggers, they understand each other on a creative level and know what they are looking for. Whilst I’m not a fashion or style blogger, I had a great time collaborating with local fashion and style bloggers in my city (recap here), and since then I’ve been more curious about working with models. I found this beginners guide to working with models quite helpful. Making the models feel comfortable and being able to provide direction when we’re stuck for ideas are two aspects that are important to me when I’m doing a shoot with a model, so before a shoot, I’ll browse Instagram to get posing inspiration. I like this video where Jenn Im shares her go-to Instagram poses and this Buzzfeed article where guys learn to pose like Instagram models.

FIVE // What I ate + a new chapter (vlog)

I randomly found Steph whilst browsing my Instagram discovery page some time a long time ago. She “[lives] a high carb vegan life and [hopes] to inspire others to live a happy and healthy life.” What stood out to me was what a happy and beautiful soul she is. In this vlog, she said something that was so inspiring and resonated so deeply with me that I had to save it and quote it (I’ve included time stamps if you’re curious):

(1:24) In my life I’ve always only really done things for, like, a means of an end, if that makes sense. (1:39) What I’m trying to do these days, in these last, like, six months, is just to do things for the pure joy of it, not necessarily for any outcome, not for any kind of like adulting goal, but just to have some parts of my life that are just purely for enjoyment and for nothing else. (2:33) I just really encourage you guys, if there’s something that you like doing but you’ve always just thought that you shouldn’t do because you’re not gonna be, like, a professional at that or you’re not gonna do that for a living… Who cares? If you enjoy it then do it. That’s, like, what the point of life is, right? It’s just to enjoy the experiences that you’re having.

Another link that resonated deeply with me was this one about how we crowd out happiness and how we shouldn’t. I almost always crowd out my happiness. I stick it in between the miserable stuff in hopes that the miserable stuff will seem less miserable, but really all it does is crowd out happiness. It’s time to flip the script and change my perspective.

What has been your favourite read of the week?

PS: more friday favourites

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ONE // The artist and the storyteller

In the spirit of Valentine’s month, here’s a blog post from Camille Styles’ “It Couple” series, “featuring photographer Kate Zimmerman and professional storyteller Luke Turpin.” They’re way too cute asdfghjkl. Lots of love and also creatively inspiring.

TWO // Dorm decor: starting with the basics

Um, I still can’t get over this dorm room makeover?? As a current college student, I know that the dorm rooms we have to work with are… lacking. When I lived on campus, the only decorating I did in my dorm was a wall of photos I put up with sticky tack, and when the photos started falling, I just pulled them all off and left it blank. I live off campus now and I’ve been more successful at making it feel like home, especially with my bed and coffee table. I don’t have any coffee table books, but I do have a pretty stack of magazines (I’m so adult). The newest edition to my collection was the 11th issue of Boys by Girls, featuring Tom Odell, Cole Sprouse, and more dudes! Anyways, for more interior inspiration, check out The Daybook’s interior update.

THREE // Unicorn hot chocolate

Whilst this unicorn hot chocolate isn’t really Valentine’s themed, it totally could be! It’s pink and magical; is that not festive enough? I think this galaxy glaze and these crunfetti cruffins are in the same vein as the unicorn hot chocolate. I can see them sharing a table at a party.

FOUR // Alignment before action

I can only read or listen to a limited amount of personal growth and self-care content before it gets to be too much for me and then I become very skeptical and think the preacher is full of hot air. It has nothing to do with the content creator and only has to do with me. Anyways, one of many podcasts I listen to is The Lively Show, but I’m not always up to date with her content for reasons explained previously. I was listening to Jess talk about 80% alignment and 20% action, and it really struck a chord with me. This is relevant on so many levels, but also especially to bloggers like you and me who might hit writer’s block once in awhile.

FIVE // How to set up an online portfolio (that will land you the job)

I’m trying to figure out what I want to do this summer. I should have already had this figured out, but… I don’t. In the meanwhile, I’ve been productively procrastinating by thinking of ways I can present my creative work in a way that is professional and visible. I don’t even know if I’m looking for a job on this track, but it’s something I suppose. Some other blogging and business links I’ve found are: do you really need social media to grow your business, 6 ways to brand your Squarespace website, and 30 desirable content upgrade ideas. On the other hand, maybe it’s time to go beyond content upgrades and ask what else? Talk, write, and behave in a braver way, like drinking full strength black coffee. Have better conversations. Tell great stories.

What has been your favourite read of the week?

PS: 10. 09. 08. 07. 06. 05. 04. 03. 02. 01.

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