Weekly wisdom #15

All of it. However silly, trivial or fruitless an idea might seem in the moment, treat each passing notion as one of potential; part of a process. By putting pen to paper – that is, by always having pen and paper to hand – you can explore each spark of creativity in an entirely organic way. #Nofilter. 

Apart from being incredibly cathartic, the act of capturing flowing thoughts while they’re fresh in our minds prevents us from shutting down concepts that could ultimately grow far greater than the seedlings they originate as. 

Don’t overthink, don’t overanalyse. Record what you see, what you feel, what you experience. Our stream-of-consciousness is messy and unpredictable – our notebooks should reflect that. As I expanded on here, actively using your hands triggers a more open, less self-conscious outpouring of ideas and inspirations.

Whether these ever leave the confines of your notepad or not, you’re quite literally making your mark, in a deeply personal and individualised way. You’re documenting yourself and your thinking process visually, distinctively. 

And who knows where that could lead?    

Issues that Matter: stand up for slow journalism

Indiegogo Campaign from Matter Magazine on Vimeo.

To me, switching off from my near entirely screen-oriented life with a good coffee and a good read is the ultimate kinda luxury. No doubt, I'm not the only one who cherishes those ever-rare moments of disconnected down time! 

Though the digitally dominated sphere has certainly had its negative ramifications for the print world, there's simultaneously - and happily, for me - been a refreshing resurgence in high quality, carefully curated creative publications. It's within this realm of top-notch, tangible reading material that Matter Magazine (founded by my achingly astute and straight up lovely friend Annie Fairchild) is firmly positioned. A first class amalgam of beautiful design, photography and academic essays, Matter is a creative crusader for slow journalism amidst our fast news culture. 

So: this is an unapologetic shout out to a very praiseworthy project that can only keep running with a little (monetary) lovin'. For its upcoming issue, 'A Lens Inverted - Essays on Great Britain,' Matter is raising funds via Indiegogo - with sweet perks for the benevolent backers. 

This is a different sorta post for me, and by no means paid promo. But I've seen firsthand the integrity, passion and damn hard work that goes on behind the scenes, and that sh*t deserves support. 

♥ CONTRIBUTE HERE ♥ 

A visual diary: 5 days in Amsterdam

Coffee, culture, design, travel, (really) good food; there's not much more needed to plant a bigger smile on my face. No surprise, then, that my fresh lil trip to beautiful Amsterdam - accompanied by my equally beautiful soul cousin Ellen - was pretty hard to top.

Five days filled with five of our favourite things, in uncannily likeminded company, was exactly the relaxin' remedy required to push us through our holiday workloads and remind us that there's always a very nice light at the end of the uni tunnel. 

With the unsurpassably cool Volkshotel as our beloved base - couldn't big it up enough - and adopting the "traveller not tourist" mantra throughout, we more than happily accepted our self-set mission to hit upon all the off-the-tourist-beaten-track gems we could manage, together fashioning a tailor made trip that got us springing out of our (impeccably designed) bed each morning.

Usually kickstarting with a quick jog around the local park and side streets, our days - as is proper, in my books - were structured around a foodie/coffee schedule which more or less looked like: coffee > breakfast > coffee/tea > lunch > coffee/tea > dinner. Some say excessive, I prefer gastronomically curious (the gorgeous eateries and caffeine hang-outs are pretty innumerable). Of course, not without slotting in a spot of sightseeing, culture jaunts and retail treasure hunting, too! 

Rather than drag ya through every (Amster)damn day, I've forged a petite but sweet list of particularly lovely spots - which I guess functions as an informal mini guide - should you ever find yourself in the darlin' Dutch capital. Scroll down if you fancy! 

The accommodation:

Volkshotel

♥ Places we went and loved ♥

All the Luck in the World

ANNA+NINA

BAUT

Baskèts

Betty Blue

Blackbirds

The Breakfast Club

Charlie + Mary

COTTONCAKE

CT Coffee and Coconuts

De Hallen

De 9 Straatjes

Dr. Blend

EYE (film institute)

Felice Home of Brands

Foam (photography museum)

Gathershop

Hutspot

Jordaan district

KOKO Coffee & Design 

Lot Sixty One Coffee Roasters

Moooi

Omelegg

Paper Planes

Scandinavian Embassy 

Six and Sons

SLA

SPRMKT

STACH

WE ARE LABELS

*photos ft. me were taken by Ellen McNeelance, all others mine!*

Weekly wisdom #6

Today: Don't sweat the small stuff. There'll always be things out of our control - that's just how life works - but keep your cool, you've got this. 

Yes to less stress. 

#BLOGGERBAZAARBERLIN

This weekend, Berlin-based bloggers and fashionistas alike flocked to cool cultural venue STATION Berlin, to take part in the latest Blogger Bazaar. Having previously graced Munich, Hamburg, Berlin and Frankfurt, the much-hyped event returned to the German capital for a summer party style bash. 

Hatched with the intent of "bringing together bloggers, people and brands", the Blogger Bazaar was a neat opportunity to meet a bunch of likeminded folk from the Berlin blogging community, get inspired and snap up some stylish goodies in the process. 

STATION's bright industrial interior was thronged with rated fashion/lifestyle bloggers and their stylish stalls, as well as a resident DJ and free refreshments courtesy of Vitamin Water, Häägen-Dazs and Ciroc vodka. 

Super modish Bonnie Strange of THE SHIT SHOP, Claudia Zakrocki of cloudycloudy, CATS & DOGS' Ricarda Schernus, Modeschopf and the This Is Jane Wayne crew (to name a few) were all present, selling their top-pick products at majorly discounted prices. Granted, much of their wares were most likely freebies to begin with - a clever wheeze - but it was still a smart means of minimising waste and simultaneously nabbing a beauty bargain or two. Brand new Chanel nail polish for 1€, you say? And the complimentary tote goodie bags were a pleasant little addition too.

Material haul aside, the well-orchestrated fashion function offered - above anything else - a welcome chance to connect and communicate with the Berlin blogosphere in an offline context; the digital domain is a great platform, but we've gotta remember to keep it "real" every now and then too.