As you may well know, I am a huge fan of Book of Deer. They have the most quirky designs with the best quality—something that I've only longed after for years. In 2016, I finally took the plunge and purchased one of their items from their Country Kitchen collection—on major discount. Lo and behold, it comes with this skirt thrown in there for free—thank you, Eilidh! You wouldn't believe how excited I was. It has the smoothes silky quality to it, absolutely breezy and with cute little details like the mitten pocket and ribbons at the back. It has been my favourite thing to throw on the past couple years—although I mostly wear it around the house—as it is so easy to put on and take off. It always garners a plethora of stares and puzzled looks, often with comments on the particular mitten pocket, but I don't mind. It's also the perfect length for me, making it appropriate for pretty much any occasion. Afterwards, I purchased two more items—although, unfortunately, from all four items, only two still remain intact and in perfect condition, with one being lost to the abyss and one other damaged considerably. Hopefully, this one will stay with me for years and years in the future.
Last week my friend Jess was in town and we promised to see each other. We wanted to go see some kind of artistic event when we met up—hitting two birds with one stone and all, y'know—but almost nothing of note seemed to take place last Friday. That was when I told her about this installation by Sejauh Mata Memandang. As you might know, SMM is an ethical brand from Indonesia—which I have loved in the past—and now they are launching their newest collection, inspired by Timun Mas—a Javanese folklore. To celebrate their launch, they're showcasing this 3-month-long installation at Senayan City. To be honest, I've come here by myself before, but Jess doesn't mind and would love to see it herself too. It is actually contained to one rather small room of golden labyrinth made entirely of fabric. Once you enter, you are led down a narrow path surrounded by strips of eggshell cotton, shined from above with warm, yellowish light—creating a golden effect. There are four smaller rooms within the maze: one with a big screen showing the animation of their Timun Mas book, one with two walls of mirrors facing each other, one with the photos of their lookbook and the last one was their store. It was a short visit, but a sweet one indeed.
Hand-me-down top + purse // old hat + socks // MKS shoes // Book of Deer skirt // photos by Jess
Some of my favourite highlights from this installation includes the cozy beanbags in the screening room—as well as the blue, jellyfish-like air conditioner; the mirror room—because it is clearly there for great photo ops; the various nooks within the maze—with small beacons of light among the relative darkness; the fabric book of Timun Mas—hand-embroidered!—and, lastly, the lookbook video in their store. To be honest, I didn't intentionally forget to take as many pictures of the installation as humanly possible. I just had too much fun chatting and catching up with Jess—we haven't seen each other in 4 months. But, in hindsight, I find it the right decision. This event is free-of-charge and will still be there waiting for you until 8 January 2019. I think it will do them a great injustice to reveal all on the internet, while most of you are probably able to go see the installation for yourself. Of course, if you don't live in this country, but want to see the installation yourself, I hope their hashtag will help you navigate through the labyrinth.
Since 2013, I've been trying to change my lifestyle in two aspects of my life—fashion and waste. In truth, I suppose, these aspects are closely linked, as they both appeal to the consumer side of me. I suppose, then, you can also say that I've only improved in the way that I organise and live my life, in regards to my principles. Many, many people have asked me numerous questions which boils down to the one ultimate puzzle in their minds: How do you adjust your lifestyle to fit your goal? In all honesty, it is simple: you need only to know where your priorities lie. However, of course, that is much easier said than done. That's why, today I thought I'd share some simple tips that have helped me get through my lifestyle changes, so that you may be able to make a change too.
Do Your Research
Before you can dive into anything, of course, you need to know exactly what you need to do to change your ways effectively. Find out as much as you can about the aspect of your life you'd like to change. If you want to be able to manage your money better, figure out where to start and how to go about it. If you want to live a healthy lifestyle, find out what that entails. Learning exactly what you need to do helps you break down your task, understand it and stick to the changes that you're making. However, you don't need to have a "complete knowledge" on whatever aspect you're working on, before going forward with the change. You can and should keep educating yourself about the subject matter while living your new lifestyle—as this kind of information evolves all the time.
Allow Mistakes
The most important thing to remember about changing your lifestyle is that it's a process. You're not going to be able to give up anything cold turkey nor will you excel at something right off the bat. It's unrealistic and simply cruel to expect yourself to adapt to change instantly. It's okay to slip up once in a while, it's okay to have weak moments now and then. This concept—this lifestyle—is new for you, it's okay to make wrong decisions as you try to figure it out. It is only through mistakes that we learn about ourselves and how to best adjust our methods to make our lifestyle change, specific to us. It is how we find out what works and doesn't work for us, to reach our goals. So long as we use it as a learning experience and are determined to truly change, mistakes are good.
Get a Support System
Making such a major change in our lives is hard. Really hard. And sometimes we need someone—or a village—there to help us get through it. Ask your friend and/or family to join in your quest. Create a fitness group with your colleagues, cook weekly meals as a hangout plan with your buddies, get your family excited about waste sorting. Or, if there's no one in your life who seems interested in your goal, join a forum or a Facebook group—they have one for pretty much anything out there. Something as simple as a hashtag can open up your world to a whole other group of people. Getting support systems in your life—especially amongst your peers—can really help you feel motivated and may get you new information that'll help you keep with your resolutions. It's true what they say, there is strength in numbers.
Mind Your Own Business
One of the hardest parts about changing your lifestyle is how different it may still be with the people around you. You may have been accustomed to a certain way of life, before you decide to change it. However, when you change, your friends may not want to do the same. As a result, often there feels to be a certain friction among friends. You may feel forced to go back to your old ways or, at least, a tad uncomfortable with it. What you need to remember is that your life is none of their business, just as their lives are none of yours. If your friends try to coerce you into spending money, you've decided to send to savings, kindly ask them to respect your decision and decline the offer—or propose another option. Similarly, if your friends choose to buy from a store you don't approve of, don't give them a lecture about whatever reason you may have—and simply give out opinions when asked. Live and let live, you know.
Remember Why
When all of the above is said and done, there is only one thing left to do: stay committed. Whether it be to a spouse or to a principle, commitment is hella hard. Even if your lifestyle change is as simple as resolving to wake up early every morning, there may be days when you find that utterly impossible and even close to refusing to do it anymore. However, you must have a reason why you want to undergo such change. You must have a goal you want to achieve or an outcome you expect from going through with this change. What is it? Remember it and always keep it in your mind. Commit to it and know that you can reach it. Of course, if the reason is no longer applicable to you, you can discard the lifestyle, but make sure you won't regret it.
I hope this has been helpful for anyone thinking about changing their lifestyle. Also, check out my video down below to see how my relationship with others have changed along the way too!
Wow, it's been a long while since the last time I posted a recipe on this blog. The truth is, I haven't planned on doing it anymore, but this week I was somewhat beat and haven't had the time to come up with more well-thought-out content. So here you go! I actually posted about this breakfast—although in a less aesthetically pleasing way—on my Instagram story on Tuesday. One of my uni friends commented that she thought it looked really good, despite the fact that I thought it didn't look appealing at all. (Half-)jokingly, she asked for the recipe, although I'm not sure anyone would really need one, since it's really exceedingly quick and simple—plus, highly customisable. It has, in fact, been my go-to breakfast menu lately when I'm feeling lazy or rushed or have nothing else on hand. Also, I'd like to say that this recipe is vegan. You can obviously substitute some of the ingredients with non-vegan ones, but I prefer the vegan version. Without further ado, enjoy!
Ingredients
4 tbsp. oatmeal
6 tbsp. soy milk
1 tbsp. peanut butter
1 tsp. basil seeds
1/2 large avocado
leftover mangoes (optional)
Put the oatmeal in a bowl, add in basil seeds and soy milk and mix well
Pop the bowl in the microwave and heat it up for approx. 1 minute
Take out the bowl, add in peanut butter and mix well
Add avocado and mangoes on top
Serve while it's warm!
Tips: You can use any kind of milk you like—soy milk is a personal favourite. Basil seeds are much easier to find in Indonesia, but if chia or flax seeds—or any others—are easier to source locally for you, feel free to substitute them. Basil seeds don't have to be soaked beforehand, once they are mixed, they expand quickly. The avocado I had on hand are of the super variety—significantly bigger than regular avocados—so half is more than sufficient. I also happen to have leftover mangoes on hand, but feel free to omit or substitute it with other fruits—I usually use grapes, persimmon or strawberries. My soy milk is stored in the fridge, so it's pretty cold when I just take it out. That's why I heat it up in the microwave—unfortunately, I'm not sure about the temperature of my oven—but feel free to skip this part if you prefer it a bit chilly. Lass es euch schmecken!
It feels like it's been forever since the last time I updated you on what's been going on in my life. Well, it's mainly because things have been rather hectic lately. There's the midterm, which is going on this week and the next—and I avoided for the whole day yesterday. There's the internship hunting, which is a requirement for my next semester—and I can't wait! That's pretty much it, but they entail a great deal of details that needs to be taken care of. For starters, in order to apply for internships, I need to reorganise my portfolio and edit my CV. However, I do get a bit of down time this weekend—hence being able to run away from my responsibilities yesterday. Something else that happened quite recently is that I'm pretty much home alone—with my housemaid—as the rest of my family is now out of town for my Stepbro's wedding. A bit bummed that I don't get to join them, but my elation at being free at home overshadows it. My plans this weekend, by the way, include waste sorting, going to the waste bank, grocery shopping, have my shoes repaired and, obviously, finish my midterm assignment—it's due on Monday!
Old dress (worn as top) // hand-me-down blazer + pants + purse // MKS shoes // Sadhu earrings (giveaway!)
A few things about today's outfit, if I may. First of all, this blazer was stolen from my Stepmom's wardrobe—although I think it must've belonged to my late mother. It looks so gorgeous that I just had to have it. Also, wearing it makes me feel so much like my Mum—she used to wear blazers like this all the time. It's so lucky that this one is plaid too, which was so in earlier this year! Second of all, can we please talk about these gorgeous statement earrings? They are a pair I won from Sadhu's giveaway last Halloween. I've been so in love with their products for a while, so it felt literally like a dream come true to have won them. I've never worn dangly earrings before, so it felt very ticklish when I first try them on—and I couldn't stop moving my head around to jiggle them. They are made mainly in Bali—with the base made in Japan—by repurposing clam shells from clam farms and rattan. They didn't sponsor me, but they might as well have, because I absolutely love them! They're also ethical, so make sure you check them out.
Fun fact: there's a guy sleeping under the tree behind me and I deliberately tried hiding him, but he can be spotted in one of these photos. Can you see him?
