Hiiiii. Once again I have not blogged for a while, which annoys me for reasons I am about to write about! In my last post, I talked briefly about some advice my Mum gave me- to start appreciating the small pleasures in life. I am always planning/saving money/organising travel plans, which is awesome, but I agree that I sometimes miss out on (and even deprive myself of) the simple pleasures in life. Especially lately, I feel like I have lost touch with these things. I've been under a fair bit of emotional stress and feel like I have been putting all of my energy into certain areas of my life, and forgetting about others. The tricky part is, I can't do anything about that right now, and I know that I have some pretty heavy times coming in the near future. But while I can't do much about it right now (and I don't really want to do anything about it) I can start small. Instead of burying myself in my future plans and goals, I am trying to be grateful for those little things in the present moment. I've been looking back on my old blog posts, and I have realised that is exactly what I have always liked about posting on here. Besides keeping my writing up, documenting my life has always brought my consciousness to the present. So, first new focus- blogging more often!
Getting my creative juices flowing has always been something that makes me feel happy and content. I am trying to do more art lately, but I have been finding creativity in different forms. Flowery forms, to be precise! I have developed an obsession for old jars as vases and odd flower arrangements- usually provided by my garden or the short bike ride from work! Even my mint cuttings have been getting special treatment...
My Australian Natural Honey jar and my Organic Coconut Oil jar are my favourites, but every time a condiment or spread is finished in my flat, another funny little jar is added to the collection. The flowers are pretty random and are basically whatever I can throw together. Suddenly petals and succulents everywhere are catching my eye- I like how I can put anything together and it looks cute in my little flat (especially with these Mexican-style doilies my Nanna gave me!).
The unlikely arrangements have even been an inspiration for a few artworks- nothing spesh, but fun all the same!
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| My little watercolour painting... it doesn't look much next to a Van Gogh print, but they are friends there above my kitchen sink. I want to do more watercolour experiments... |
When I start to focus on this 'small joys' topic, I'm sometimes overwhelmed and feel a bit guilty for the things I truly am grateful for, but tend to overlook. I am grateful for my current working situation (even if I complain about my job sometimes, as everyone does). I am lucky to be working in a job that allows me to be flexible with my hours. Because of this, I can work on my career and I am gaining more and more experience with my writing work each week. I love my Monday's- a day away from my usual work at the hospital and a time to focus on what I would really love to do career-wise.
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| A typical Monday. I sometimes work from home, but I prefer to head into the city to work from a cafe. I am really enjoying my work with writing for different companies. Hopefully one day I will do something like this on a more full-time basis! |
I am also grateful for the benefits I have found in Yoga. I have recently finished another challenge with my studio and I am getting better all the time! I am even looking into some private classes to learn some trickier poses!
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| Excuse my sleepy face, but these are my new yoga tights :) I love them. Me after the Peak Physique Hot Yoga 21 Day Detox Challenge :) |
Since moving into my flat, I have found it hard to find the time (or the funds) to make my own skin products. Luckily, I have found an amazing natural and organic skincare product range called Purnon Skin Simple.
Made in Australia, these local products are really effective. My favourite is the orange sugar scrub, which is really gentle yet also exfoliating and hydrating. I also love the cleanser and moisturiser, both with pure tee tree oil, which has always been my favourite oil when it comes to caring for my skin! While I have never had too much trouble with my skin, a few of my friends have found some awesome results with their skin problems from these products. The best part is, it's affordable and a little goes a long way! I would highly recommend!
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| My beloved Orange Scrub |
So looking after my skin (as well as myself, as much as I can!) has been another focus of late. I want to try and spoil myself in some small way at least once a month. I think lots of yoga, a new hair-do and a shopping trip are due for the coming months! Simple pleasures, right?! :)
