Today I'm sharing my latest minimalist hair routine. I have 3 that I rotate between, and over the last few years, I’ve reduced my hair products to only a few items that really work and I love the results! This routine only takes shampoo, conditioner, 1 comb (or your fingers), 1 treatment (that I only use occasionally), a hair clip & 1 tool. I've linked everything in the description bar of the video below and thanks so much for watching xx Audrey
GETTING INSPIRED: Some Of My Favorite Music Sources For Inspiration
Keeping my life and the possessions within it minimal has helped me immensely over the years. It’s brought me more clarity, focus and a deeper sense of self in a few short years than I had been able to achieve in all the years prior. I have been so happy with the positive impact minimalism has had on my life that I like to apply it to every aspect of my life but one - inspiration.
For me, more is more when it comes to gathering inspiration and as a result of my non-discriminatory approach, I continually find myself inspired by the most unlikely sources. Sure there are the usual contenders like music, books and movies but I’ve also been blown away by the imapct the less conventional ones have had on me as well. Things like a walk in the rain on a gloomy day or the packaging on a loaf of bread at the grocery store. I am always on the hunt for inspiration and I just can’t get enough. I wholeheartedly prefer the real world, full immersion, almost overloaded approach to inspiration to the more secluded and often limiting ivory tower take.
Beyond just my personal excitement that comes from that rush of meaningful inspiration, I also need a steady dose of it in order to do my job - and do it reasonably well. Unsurprisingly, inspiration is one of the most important parts of creating content and as a creative personality, getting and staying inspired is a critical part of what makes me tick. It’s something that I actively pursue every day and has become so integral to how I operate that I have a hard time getting up and starting my day unless I feel inspired.
This constant need for inspiration coupled with my history as a classically trained vocalist for the last 21 years, have helped me narrow in on a few of fail proof sources for inspiration. These sources are perfect for when I may be a little short on time or am just feeling a bit drained, and each of these help ignite my creativity into a full blown fire. Keeping that fire burning has helped me find everything from the nuances and feeling for vocal performances, to a video idea that I’m excited about and over the course of a few posts, I want to share some of these sources with you. Starting with my favorite - music.
Before I share though I want to say that inspiration looks different to everyone and for me and my music background, a large part of this is a mix of both visual and audio. So, in no particular order here are some of my top musical inspirations.
MUSIC - RIVETING PERFORMANCES
Given my music background, I unsurprisingly get most of my inspiration from music. It’s something that I’ve studied and appreciated for years and with very few exceptions, I like it all. When I need a quick release of inspiration I love to watch a riveting musical performance that showcases the incredible work, dedication and talent that goes into being a musician that’s not only brilliant in their technique but also in their musicality - below are some great examples. For vocal performances I tend to be a bit picky but I particularly love Anna Netrebko’s rendition of “O Mio Babbino Caro” - she’s the greatest living soprano in my opinion. Or Cecilia Bartoli’s rendition of “Agitata da due venti” - the greatest mezzo of all time, in my opinion.
MUSIC - JAZZ (THE REAL STUFF)
If I want a steady flow of music to sustain my inspiration without any distraction, I typically turn to jazz - nothing beats John Coltrane or Dave Brubeck. I’ve embedded two playlists below featuring these legends and if you aren’t already, I recommend familiarizing yourself with the other greats, and reading up on a bit of jazz history. It’s such an important genre that is often impersonated poorly and I promise that once you train yourself to hear the difference you won’t be able to turn back.
MUSIC - INSTRUMENTAL & MOODY
If I want some musical inspiration that’s either instrumental only (I like this when I’m writing) or something that will help get me in a seasonal mood, I like to listen to a playlist that I’ve created. I like an eclectic mix and below are two of my favorite playlists.
The Only Makeup You Need (VIDEO)
When I first started downsizing, makeup was one of the hardest categories to tackle. Today I'm sharing how I pared it all back and how a capsule makeup collection helps me stay on track. I've linked everything in the description bar of the video below and thanks so much for watching xx Audrey
Checking In & A Quick Channel & Blog Update
Happy Friday! I hope you’ve had a nice week and are looking forward to the weekend. I recently took an unexpected mini-hiatus from YouTube and the blog because a) I needed a mental break b) I was under the weather and then c) my phone broke. It hasn’t been the best stretch, and for someone that tries really hard to always be optimistic and stay motivated, it’s been a tough start to the year. I’m feeling much better now and I’ll share more about how I worked to mentally & creatively recharge and recenter myself soon.
In the meantime though, I will have a new video on Sunday. This video has a slightly different style and format that I hope you like. I want it to signal a slight shift in what I’m creating as I charge forward for the rest of 2019. When I started my channel I did so with the intent of creating the content that I wanted to see. Content that I felt was largely missing from the platforms I followed, and content that can help inspire and motivate those who consume it. Through every step of the process I always try and stay in tune with where it naturally takes me and I’ve been feeling a shift coming for the last few months that I really want to embrace. So, you can expect to see more lifestyle content centered around how I’m always working to grow beyond just my wardrobe. When I first decided to downsize my life, reduce the clutter and focus on style over fashion years ago it was so that I could enhance my life and create a meaningful experience full of fulfilling memories that I hold far more dear to my heart than any physical possessions.
Also, as with everything in life the tides take us in different and often unexpected places and most recently those tides have been shifting away from blogging. As I’m sure you’ve noticed, blogging across the board has taken the back seat to YouTube and other platforms and I want to make sure I’m using my time as effectively as possible in order to continue to grow what I’ve worked so hard to create. Rather than continue to invest my time and energy into a platform that is fading away, I want to redirect that into valuable time spent on the future of content creation. As a one woman show, it can be a lot to keep up every week and though I’m very lucky to have Jason’s help now, it’s still often unmanageable. I’d rather do 1 thing at 100% than 4 things at 25%. To take control of this shift I’ll be posting less frequently on here, and spending even more time creating videos for my YouTube channel. I am always working to upgrade the quality of my content and offer something to this space that I think will add value. I never want to just add to the noise and instead try to be very intentional and thoughtful with what I contribute.
Before I close this out I also want to thank you for following along, commenting and checking in. I have received so many heart-felt messages and I’m still working to get to all of them - another thing I want to make more time for this year. I promise to get to you soon and I hope you have a wonderful rest of the day.
xx Audrey
