#my local thrift stores are full of fast fashion these days

[soft-auras]

i won at the thrift today i found some actual vintage and y2k skirts and shorts and a cute knitted cardigan  

[cicada-s]

I looked and it didnt seem like anyone addressed this point so i cant help but step in with some more context here!

All of the replys urging people to shop locally and in garment districts are absolutely right, everyone should do that! Stop giving you money to Big Joann TM and find a craft store near you! But it seems to have missed us that the Reason for doing that isnt finding ethically sourced fabric. Buying offcuts by the pound is not at all supporting ethical production (i know that no one is claiming this specifically - dont do a hostile read here give me a chance lol).

Supporting local business is great! Full stop! But the fabric youre buying there was produced in the exact same sweatshops in indonesia, china, india, and pakistan that go to shein workshops to be made into disposable, single-use garments. The pay, working conditions, etc. are not going to be any more ethical or sustainable.

However by making your own crafts (even if you get the materials from aliexpress!) you are eliminating at least one stage from the cannibalistic ourobouros that is late-stage capitalism, and youre making sure that at least one unethical company (in this case jewelry so claires? Forever21? Where are the kids buying theire nonsense nowadays ?) is not profiting off of your purchasing power, and you are not participating in their control over the system as a whole.

But i hear you saying ah! But it doesnt matter! As OP said you cant claim ot was ethically made when the materials were not Also ethically made!

Tragically, clothing/fashion/fabric production is the quinticencial example of that memefrom the good place where they conclude that there is No ethical consumption under modern day capitalism. There are simply too many stages in development, and we have globalized them so thoroughly that if you arent purchasing from a company that publically documents every single stage in production (which i have had yet to find anywhere close to my price range) Because otherwise its impossible to be sure there wasnt slave labor in there Somewhere.

Where was the cotton/linen/wool farmed? How were the materials shipped? How was the fiber spun? And then shipped again? What was the fiber blended with? How was it woven/knit? Was it crocheted? (Because we currently do not have a mechanical process for crochet! If you purchase a crochet garmet, it was done by hand! Entirely!)

What about the dye process? How about the environmental regulations around dye manufacturers and fabric dyers? How could it have potentially contributed to pollution or to adverse health affects for workers?

Then, and only then, can we get to the problems with shein-style clothing manufacturing.

The attention paid to the conditions of fast-fashion production is disproportionately given to this final stage in the process (not that it doesnt require our attention - obviously the conditions are inhumane, unsustainable, and just wrong in every ssense of the word). But when youre asking the question, where can i/should i look to buy ethical materials for my craft work, it is extraordinarily difficult to aswer even one of the questions from above.

I have a lot of different political/economic opinions from the author of this book (i am a communist, she is an American economist sooooo….) but she gives an amazing overview of the timeline of fast fashion production, and its economic history. So if youre at all interested in exploring that i do really reccomend this:

The travels of a T Shirt in the World Economy - i found a pdf of it here

The point of this was not for me to be super discouraging though! I do not want to discount the power that making your own clothes, thrifting, or buying locally has! All of those things are incredibly significant - it takes money out of the ourborous that is H&M and gives it to your neighbor, or local shopkeeper. What it doesnt do (necessarily) is take it out of the cannibalistic system entirely.

But there isnt a way for us, with our personal purchasing power, to do that. Instead we must use our political power to continue the ongoing campaign to force political bodies to regulate international companies like Shein, like H&M, like forever21. To prevent human rights violations and promote labor rights internationally.

One of the more interesting sections of that book was where the author interviewed a garment worker, surprised by the fact that she repeatedly purchased clothes made in the same sweatshops she was forced to work 16-18 hour days in. To us westerners, that is a very reasonable question! The concept of the ethical ramifications of individual purchasing power is very entrenched here. But the garment worker was taken aback that the author would even think to ask her that - because her individual purchasing decisions mean nothing in the grand scheme!

Companies have successful diverted the blame from themselves, and their deeply unethical business practices, to us! Theyre saying “well youre the one who buys this stuff! Its all of your fault! If you want the people who made it to be paid more than 10 cents a hour, go buy shit from somewhere else!”

And then theyve made it so that “somewhere else” is not only owned by them, so they can keep their profit margins the same, but often literally produced side by side, in the same exact factory, and just given different packaging down the line. And so many of these damn companies own each other that its impossible for the average joe to work out all the red tape, and so Big Joann TM continues to take my money, time and time again.

Basically, just do whatever you can, wherever you are, and support labor rights everywhere, in all cases, without exception. (Except cops fuck those motherfuckers they dont count as labor).

And distrust/discount any label on a fiber based product that claims ethicallity until doing Extensive research to prove their claims. No saying it doesnt exist! Just saying that the standard is extremely hard to reach under current conditions.

Anyway if anyone has made it this far i hope you have a lovely day and craft to your hearts content and dont let Big Joann TM make you feel bad for being unable to afford to buy solely entirely “ethical” materials. They dont really exist, and its not your fault for being poor. Big Joann TM likes it that way.

I feel like something that doesnt get talked about enough is how fast fashion is coming to hobbies as well. Sure, you can sew, knit, and crochet something better than youd buy in store, but good luck finding quality materials

Want a fabric that doesnt fray from being gently caressed? Want yarn thats not 100% plastic and splits if you touch it wrong? Good luck finding that if you dont have a genuinely good crafts store near you.

Go on any thread where people are trying to figure out where to buy fabric. 50% of it is people saying big stores are servicable, online stores work, or the like, and the other 50% are talking about how bad the quality is or how the quality of a website dropped because it was bought out

Were running into a problem where fast fashiob is so integrated into society that even the ability to make your own, comfortable and long lasting, clothes is being threatened by capitalism

[shionu27cosplay]

Cosplay on a Budget

As we all know cosplay can be a VERY expensive hobby, especially if your making your own outfits from scratch. Even if you prefer to buy your cosplays shipping costs can be crazy expensive and quality can be hit or miss. This post will give reads tips to make (or buy pieces) of cosplay for a very affordable price.

Most of my cosplays are relatively cheap. Unless I'm doing a very big project that need specific materials then my budget is almost always under $40.00cad Both my Max and Ellie cosplays cost me around $5.00 to make, so how did I get away with this? The answer is more simple then you may think. 

Picking your Character

First I would highly recommend making a list of planned cosplays (mine is on my Instagram highlights) Characters that you wish/ hope to dress up as in the future [This is purely so you can see all your options for outfit you want to create] I find character from comic and video game to be the most simple for me to cosplay. (not always tho, “Genshin I'm looking at you!”) Pick a character that you already have 1 half of already. (with light alterations)

For example, I already had the pants and shoes for Ellie and Max so all I would have to focus on are the tops and wigs (if needed) Sometimes these parts may need light alterations such as my “MC” cosplay from Mystic Messenger. I had everything for the outfit already, but had to add the yellow circles on the shoulders of the jacket. Don’t be afraid to do small alterations because they can really pull a cosplay together!

Main Pieces 

Pick out the main pieces that makes the character identifiable, usually this is a wig, shirt, coat or even a prop. These are the items that should have the main part of your budget and attention. You would have no idea who I was cosplaying for my MC cosplay if I didn’t have 707′s coat, same with Max and Ellie and there tshirts. So how can I make these piece well on a budget? 

*Thrifting 

Thrifting is something I will always recommend not only can you find cheap fabrics but your cosplay becomes more environmentally friendly (especially with fast fashion now a days) You can find props, clothes and fabric all pretty cheap at thrift stores just keep an eye out. My biggest tip for this, is not to only look at big chain thrift store such as Value Village but also smaller locally owned ones. Chances are, they have stuff that can be a lot cheaper and there can be some very interesting finds. 

*Dollar Stores

The dollar store is great for finding materials for cheap, for example its cheaper for me to buy a shirt at the dollar store ($1.00) rather then a thrift store ($3.00) Keep prices in mind. My main point for the dollar store is that the crafting supplies are cheaper here then Walmart or Michaels. I needed clay and it was way, way cheaper to get it at the dollar store compared to Michaels or Amazon. They also have just a bunch a weird stuff that you won’t even think to use. Please keep quantity in mind tho, Ribbon is cheaper at the dollar store for 1 meter ($3.00) while amazon is a bit more but you get more then double for a $1 more - 5 meters (4.00) so please keep an eye on the size and prices. 

*Online Fabric Shopping  

“Idk about yall but fabric is stupid expensive where I live” There are so many great store online that have unique fabrics for amazing prices some can also send you samples before you place your full orders. My favourite website is “Overseas Fabrics” there quality and customer serves is amazing. 

Tip - Don’t Stress for Perfection 

If your doing a cheaper cosplay don’t be scared to change the outfits design a bit. If your thrifting and you can’t find the prefect shirt don't over stress. Let's say you need a light pink shirt with a vneck line and you find a shirt with an off pink but it's has the prefect neck line; but then you find another shirt without the vneck line but it's the prefect shade of pink. pick which ever you think will work best for the outfit. (I find getting the right colour is better depending on the outfit) The best example I have for this is my Kaori cosplay. The dress cut is off but the colour and flow of the dress was prefect! I usually go by “if I can tell who it is then others will too” Be happy with what you make.

Can’t Sew?

Can't sew, don't have a sewing machine? All good there are so many cosplays you can do without sewing. My Ellie and Max cosplays were all out of my closet except the shirts. The shirts were thrifted and from and dollar store all I had to do was paint the designs on. Don't fret you don't need to be an artist. Simply find an image of the design online, print it out and cut out the design and paint over the cutout parts. Here a very simple tutorial of what I mean. You can use fabric paint but I personally use acrylics because there cheaper. You will have to paint more coats and it may washout but with my past experience, I've never had problems with paint washing out or cracking.

As much as I hate say "hot glue it" hot glue is a great tool. It's cheap (you can get the glue gun and glue sticks at the dollar store) and its time efficient. The only thing I would recommend tho is try and hand sew some parts of it before gluing just to reinforce it. (even if your hand sewing is trash, like mine is) Hot glue has almost always failed me when it wasn't reinforced.

Props and Cost?

If you are interested in prop making or do it as a hobby you may know it can be super expensive. There are so many creative ways to make props cheaply. First it may sound nuts but try cardboard and card stock. There is an AMAZING YouTube channel called "Jette Crafts" he make so many props- weapons, helmet, armor all out of cardboard. Better yet ALL his patterns are free! (only thing I suggest is to use primer and spray paint for when painting. It just looks better[he uses acrylics]this is just a preference tho) If you are new to prop making and are looking for practice or don't know where to start, this is a great spot. Many (not all) of his patterns also work with foam.

Cardboard not your thing or something seems to detailed to make? Try thrifting or used sites (used victoria, kajiji, facebook market, ect) to look for toy sword or guns (I can't make guns out of foam to save my life lol) There are parents all the time giving away nerf guns for free or for super cheap online ($5-$10) . You can sand these done, use clay, glue and other tools to make them look more like the actual prop. The thing that always sells it for me is the paint job. If the colours look similar to the original then you've done a good job. I'm linking a super amazing video here, as an example.

So you don't want to put in the time for cardboard or can't find any bases online, or you just have your heart set on 3D printing your prop. As many know 3D printing can be very expensive, if your buying online. Chances are there is a community printer in your area. There's usually a community printer at high schools, colleges, university's or even libraries! As long as you have the STL files (pretty good site for stl files) you can usually pay a fee and have your item printed. I personally am a part of a cosplay club so I know people who work with printers, but my collage and public library both have 3D printer that people can book. Prices will depend of course so keep it in mind!

Take away

Be creative, cosplay can be expensive but it doesn't have to be. Look in your communities because people give away free stuff all the time. You may not find the "perfect" item but if it brings you joy or spark the creative process, looks similar to the photo or reference, go for it! There are always amazing ideas on YouTube and online for making something cheaper. This post is meant to give people ideas even tho a lot of it seems generic go to as many places as possible to find material. "That's part of the fun"

[tofuandtotebags]

Reducing your ecological footprint as a teen: 5 Easy tips

You want to reduce your ecological footprint, but aren’t sure where you should start? I’ll give you some easy tips to get you going.

1)      Finally start using that water bottle!

Tab water is way cheaper and 100% safe to drink in most first world countries. A plastic bottle can take over 400 years to decompose, so the oceans are FULL of them. You probably have a water bottle lying somewhere around the house, but if you don’t, I can recommend ‘Dopper’ water bottles. They don’t leak, are widely available and look quite cute. Here is a link to their website: https://dopper.com/

2)      Get yourself a lunchbox.

It doesn’t have to be fancy, I mostly use old Tupperware to take my lunch to school.(The school I go to doesn’t have a cafeteria where you can get your lunch, everyone has to bring their own.) Aluminium foil and plastic wrap are single use and thus bad for the environment. A lunchbox keeps your lunch fresh and our oceans clean. :)

3)      Try convincing your parents to do a meatless Monday. (or any other day of the week ;) )

The meat and dairy industry has a massive carbon footprint. It also costs tons of water and food to raise animals. Not eating one pound of beef, saves as much water as not showering for a year. Try making it as easy for your parents as possible to start eating a little less meat. Maybe you can start with substitute meat or make something easy like spaghetti? Maybe you can convince your parents by cooking one of the easier recipes yourself? There are tons of vegan and vegetarian youtubers and bloggers with great, free recipes, explained step by step. I’ll start posting some easy recipes on this blog in the near future too, to help you guys out. :)

4)      Go ‘plogging’ with a group of friends.

Plogging is a Swedish term, it basically means: jogging, but you pick up any trash you find on your way. Put on some rubber gloves, call your best friends and get your butt off the couch. Some communities might even provide gloves and trash bags for you or pick up the bags of trash at your doorstep, so you don’t have to bring them to your local recycling center yourself. Be sure to check that out.

5)      Start thrift shopping and don’t buy more clothes than you need.

Clothing isn’t only expensive, the textile industry creates tons of waste. Clothes in stores like Zara or H&M (fast fashion brands) aren’t made to last long, so you have to throw them away after just a few wears. Fast fashion brands  want you to buy as much clothing as possible, even though you might never wear them. Ecological clothing stores are hard to find, (and ordering online is a bit counterproductive, because of the transportation, which is bad for the environment too) but most cities do have a thrift store. The clothes are cheap, you can find real gems in there, they’re unique and you’re doing Earth a big favour.

Thanks for sticking around till the end of the post, see you next time. :) 

[lindszeppelin]

my mini rant on fast fashion

The fast fashion business can be very deceptive. On one hand they promote their clothing at somewhat cheap prices so it’s affordable to the kind of shoppers they want to attract (i.e. millennials w/o much money to begin with). But on the other hand there is so much wrong with them. The quality of the textiles they use are so cheap, see-through, flimsy, etc that they don’t even last that long in your closet, therefore making you buy more $5 shirts that add up to a lot in the long run. They cut corners whenever they can, scam customers, steal artwork from independent artists and put it on things, they breech labor laws by using poor countries like China and Vietman in order to cut the costs of production. They buy cheap so they can sell cheap. Don’t even get me started on the work conditions in the sweatshops that 99.9% of these fast fashion companies allow on the daily. 

That’s just with fast fashion stores you can go to physically. Fashion sites online that market themselves as affordable such as Yesstyle, Shein, Romwe, and many others are just as worse. These companies more often than not are based in China and they are notorious scams, and the employees are treated just as bad as those that work for major fashion brands. Not only that, but a lot of the textiles/fabrics these companies are using are not that ecofriendly. Lots of Polyesters, silks, blends, and other materials will never breakdown. Most of it will end up in landfills. The dyes they use too are loaded with horrific chemicals that cause a lot of damage. The workers breathe in these chemicals all day, it’s on their skin and clothes. It’s beyond comprehension how nothing is really being done about these serious issues.

But you can make a difference. Change your shopping habits. I know it can be tempting to walk into a mall or go online to Forever21, H&M, Topshop, and buy what you need. But in the long run you’re wasting more money than you are saving it. You’re also more inclined to buy more than you actually need based on a lot of sketchy marketing tactics these companies use in order for you to shop more. So in the end you’re left with a closet full of clothes you may not even wear or they don’t even last long. 

The best thing you can do for yourself and the environment is to shop second hand. There are a lot of great ways to do that. You can support local consignment stores, thrift shops, independent sellers on depop or poshmark. You’re not wasting money because you’re more conscious of what you’re buying, and your coin is going to great businesses instead of greedy corporations. It’s great to buy vintage too when you come across it because it’s a unique piece and the clothing was made in better conditions, with higher quality fabrics. You may even find fast fashion brands in these stores, but you can at least feel better knowing your money won’t be going to those brands directly. Start small and it’ll create a big domino effect. Consignment stores are great to start with since they hand select pieces that are in good quality and with the trends. They’re a little pricey but you get your money’s worth. Places like Goodwill and Savers (Value Village) have much cheaper prices and they have more stock to look through. It can be overwhelming to pick through it all but it’s rewarding leaving with like 20 items for easily 10-15 dollars. 

some good ways to get yourself a little more educated is by watching the documentary The True Cost. Plus a couple of other things:

“Stop Buying Fast Fashion”

“Think Before Promoting These Brands”

“How fast fashion adds to the world’s clothing waste problem”

“Affordable Sustainable Fashion | Conscious Shopping on a budget”

that was a longer rant than i thought it would be but eh

anyway you get my point

/rant

[odetodickhead]

Listen up, punks

I’m getting really tired of the tumblrpunk gatekeepers telling me who I am and what I can and cannot do. I’m getting really tired of being railroaded into groups that I do not belong in. I don’t have to justify myself to random people online who are trying to get me to “prove” my heritage, my lineage, and how long I’ve been punk. I’m laying it out right now, to hopefully end this discourse because all it does is make both sides angry.

I’ve been in the scene as long as I can remember. I go to concerts at the skatepark almost every weekend, I’ve had different battle jackets since I was five (5) years old, and I was eleven (11) when I went to my first protest. All my patches besides two are handpainted, because I don’t have access to other patches. All my clothes are thrifted at this point, and yeah, I don’t have enough money to buy new ones. I have two nice pairs of pants. The others are either full of holes or (surprise!) patched to shit. I live in a very small town, so maybe I’m not the flashy London punx of the 70’s and 80’s, sure, but I am me and I am my town’s scene embodied.

I’m an active member of Food Not Bombs. I don’t go around spraypainting shit and destroying other people’s property because that’s a dick move that just creates problems for other people. I don’t have a Mohawk because it is physically unsafe to stand out that much in my hometown. People have thrown rocks and bottles at me for dressing the way I do. I don’t have political patches on my jacket or pants because of that same reason. I’m broke and also a minor, so I can’t leave and go to the larger shows and shit that some people have access to. We just don’t have that here.

I’ve worked in a music store. I’ve worked in a concert venue. I’ve ran lights and ran sound and set up all the equipment. I listen to the music, if you really want to be elitist enough to yell at me for that. My favorite bands are Against Me!, AFI, and Crass. There. Now you know. My first concert was Tsunami Bomb. My last concert was a local band called Shadowhouse.

Any given day that I’m not in school, you can find me on the streets, either with my friends or talking to the local homeless population. One of my best friends is named Dread Chris. He’s living here for the spring, and then moving on, as he does. He might be back, he might not.

Punk isn’t about any of that, though. Punk is an attitude, and if your heads weren’t so far up your spiked asses, you’d know that. You’ll say punks don’t have to have the jacket or listen to the music to share the ideas, and then backhand that idea out of their heads so fast that they’re left spinning. What’s that one vent? It’s on everyone’s blogs right now. “Its not some fashion show its a movement to support minorities and people in need. Its about listening to music with people who like the same music as you. Not about bullying. Bullying is about as unpunk as you can get.” (thank you, @daddy-albarn)

TL;DR: Bullying. Is. Not Punk. If you’re gatekeeping the community and making people prove themselves to you like some sort of elitist asswad because you’re suddenly the font of all anarchopunk knowledge, unfollow me, block me, whatever. I don’t want you here.

[shesinspain-blog]

The things you think are useless, I can't understand

Well, HI! It’s been a while! It’s now A U G U S T and my last post was in May. So I guess that means we have a lot of catching up to do!

Before I left for Barcelona, I was vulnerable with my friends, often bursting out with “what if I don’t make friends! How long will it take to settle in!” Everyone rooting for me was incredibly optimistic. “Kayla, you’ll make friends in like three days!” One wise colleague paused and said, “probably three weeks, then you’ll have it.” They were all right and wrong. Yes I did make friends really fast, and find a job and apartment within the first month. But if I were answering myself now, I would tell Young Kayla that it takes almost a year. I’m in month eleven now.

My life here now includes

finding my favorite brand of coffee at the grocery store

an entire saturday home, cooking, baking and reading my book

a favorite movie theater where I watched Jurassic World 2

a restaurant that says “welcome back” when I come in

feeling relaxed when I buy produce at the market in Spanish, instead of the horrible sick-stomach nervousness I had when I started 

I had a fantastic hike in June, around the base of Montserrat with a wild apricot tree on the path. I had two bad excursions afterward - one where my logistics were perfectly planned but I misunderstood the kayak rental rules; and another cut short for safety concerns. I have a favorite thrift store chain with specific favorite locations. I sassed a moto driver at a crosswalk. I can usually identify if a text is Spanish or Catalan.

It’s more good than bad. But it’s also been a testament of how settled I am into the city that I have complaints and critiques. It’s really rewarding to see who I am when I am unabashed of my license to live here.

Living here has made me feel more confidence in myself and my choices. When I landed, I had so much trepidation about the “American Stereotype” I was either confirming or creating. I don’t care now; I’m just me. Sometimes this means I don’t know enough Spanish to order medicine at the pharmacy, and sometimes it means I talk too loud. But I don’t hate my accent, my culture or my home the way I used to. There are so many fluid aspects of identity. Being American doesn’t define me, and my international friends see the multitudes I see in them, too.

As for Barcelona, I like to oscillate. I leave my house, direct tourists to the Picasso museum (in Italian!) and see a Cathedral that has been standing for nearly 800 years, adjacent to ancient Roman aqueducts. I have a coffee in my happy quiet place, then hear French, German, Dutch and Polish conversations spattered around me. I go have my lunch on the beach, sunbathing and binging my new favorite podcast.

In the same breath, I’m cursing Barcelona: for the 27th rendition of Despacito I’ve heard today, for the psychotic crying seagulls, for the siesta hours that close my supermarket from 2-4:30 daily. As we all know, I have never been known for planning and saving, so teaching has taken its $ummer toll on me. If only holiday was not mandatory! Now over halfway through, I’ve accepted my living circumstances for what they are. I just really did not put enough thought into saving for these monthS off lol.

In spite of these woes - especially money and otherwise that I’d have in ANY city - I am the happiest I’ve ever been. Not just when I’m crying seeing the Chainsmokers at sunrise (LOL WHO CRIES AT THAT). Sitting speechless and listening to music with friends. Having breakfast in bed (with a movie) on a Sunday morning. Being here has given me so much resolution in being who I am - because no one cares. No one cares if you have a start up, or pink hair, or clothes from Louis Vuitton. No one cares who your parents are, what you studied at school or how old you are. Without this pressure, your friendships and relationships are able to be defined by so many other relevant factors. We are more alike than we are different. It is still so magical to be surprised by the facts I never knew, the stories I never heard, that were waiting behind my Hollywood education of worldly matters.

My perspective on where my life is going and my values has shifted so much. The title of this post is from Steely Dan’s Reelin’ in the Years, which I didn’t even know I liked until I heard it again this week. The song captures a lot of how I’ve been feeling lately. The expected trajectory of my life was so wrong. Using my hard-earned degree to move abroad and teach isn’t useless at all. I can’t imagine my life without this move. There is so much joy, peace and understanding - especially within myself - that I wouldn’t have known if I moved forward in Ohio. 

Mid-June, I decided to take a month off all social media. I did it for a multitude of reasons, but mostly to be more present and mind my *own* business for a while. The beginning was so hard. I was embarrassed by how challenging it was to not check my accounts, or all the times my thumb swiped for my social apps. Now I’d say I’m still pretty quiet and I feel so much better because of it. I saw a friend recently for drinks, and she told me about her mom’s visit to Barcelona, showing me photos on her phone that I hadn't yet seen on instagram. It was old-fashioned and exciting.

Other things -

MADDY VISITED omg my bestie was here for a full week and we did stupid stuff like watch Queer Eye and really cool stuff like barbeques and the Magic Fountain. It was surreal to have her here and do a crossover episode of my two separate lives. We had a freakin’ blast.

I’m getting more and more obsessed with re-entering the kitchen, especially to do pastry??? IDK we’ll see but it’s fun to be excited about something, no matter where it may lead

Books I’ve scarfed down this summer: Brain on Fire, The Underground Railroad, No One Belongs Here More than You, Before the Fall, Like Water for Chocolate, and my current is The Invisible Bridge (NO SPOILEES PLEASE)

I taught some classes for my friend Kelsey and it showed me that I do NOT like teaching in classrooms hahaha I made a 7 year old cry (yikes) but we all really loved playing Ghost in the Graveyard! I learned a lot being there. Sometimes I am good at things, but I don’t know how good I am until I fail in another setting or circumstance. So in a roundabout way it made me become a better teacher for my online angels in China.

My friend Natalie gave me her bike-share pass for a week. For those of you moving to Barcelona, GET VIU BICING! It’s 45 Euro for a full year - unthinkably cheap - and the bikes are so convenient. It made me feel super local and happy to bike everywhere. I really loved it.

Since teaching hours are slow right now, I’m trying to make the most of my time. This includes beach runs, reading, sketching / painting in the city, meeting friends, baking, and even updating my portfolio. I’m looking forward to a chill August ahead of me and more fun in the endless sun.

[dippedanddripped]

I was born in 1995. If you ask some, I am a member of Generation Z. Others will say that I am more of a millennial. No wonder I’ve always felt like I straddled the line between the two. While technically I’m a member of Gen Z, before the time when “generational experts” and marketing firms started targeting my cohort, I played the part of a millennial, doing all the things that those same marketers labeled as being peak millennial behavior. This means: I got my fashion tips from Tumblr, started a style blog on Blogspot, and dressed like every other person my age in middle school (first, at Abercrombie; then, Urban Outfitters and Free People). It wasn’t until college that I even thought to try thrift shopping. Once I had, it was years before I learned the ins and outs of the trade — which days my local Goodwill locations got new stock, what’s salvageable and what’s not, and how much is too much to spend on a pair of vintage Levi’s. Thrifting now feels like one of the most Gen Z things I do, and it’s no wonder: For Gen Z, thrifting isn’t just a way to shop — it’s a lifestyle.

Olivia McCafferty-Cable,17, from Santa Barbara, California, has been thrifting regularly since she was 13. “Thrifting allowed me to find things at very affordable prices that no one else I knew had,” she tells Refinery29. “I like standing out with my clothes, especially at school, because I tend to be a very quiet person, and [thrifting] was a way for me to express myself and push myself outside of my comfort zone.” Hannah Valentine, a 19-year-old from St. Louis, Missouri, doesn’t even remember her first thrifting experience. “Thrifting has been a constant in my life for years,” she says. “I’ll never stop loving the rush of adrenaline that I get when I enter a thrift store not knowing what I’m going to find that day.” While Valentine fell for thrift shopping because of the search aspect, over time, it turned into something else entirely. “Now, I thrift because I want to help save clothing from being thrown away, while also providing an easy and accessible way for people to shop secondhand so that they’re not instead shopping on fast fashion websites,” Valentine says. The way she does the latter is through Depop, an online marketplace where many members of Gen Z have set up shop. (According to The Wall Street Journal, of Depop’s 15 million users in 2019, 90% were under the age of 26.) Valentine’s Depop page is scattered with floral maxi dresses, ‘90s sportswear à la Princess Diana, and retro pins from Steak & Shake. She offers sizes up to 3X and uses her platform on the app to advocate for people with disabilities. “I think of my job as a second-hand clothing rehoming service,” she says.

Another seller on Depop, 23-year-old Monique Miu Masuko, started her thrifting journey in middle school. Ever since her mom told her when she was a kid that buying secondhand was the easiest and most affordable way to stay on-trend, Masuko hasn’t stopped thrifting. Like so many others before her, took her favorite pastime and built a career out of it. Now her Depop shop has 2.8k followers. “[Thrifting] is more affordable, accessible, and eco-friendly — all three of which go hand in hand with sustaining Gen Z’s future,” she says.According to Deloitte, Gen Z’s interest in thrifting could have something to do with having entered adolescence during the recession of 2007 to 2009, when the oldest members of Gen Z were between 12 and 14 years old. Many grew up experiencing financial hardship, and so it makes perfect sense that they’d be searching out economically friendly ways of staying in fashion. Gen Z isn’t the only demographic actively shopping secondhand right now. Fashion search engine Lyst reported that, in September, there was a 104% increase in online fashion searches for secondhand-related keywords like “vintage fashion” and “slow fashion,” the latter of which was responsible for more than seven million social impressions. But they are the largest demographic: An estimated 46% of Gen Z shopped secondhand in 2019, according to Medium, compared to 37% of millennials and just 18% of Gen X. Since Gen Z has matured into its spending power, the resale market has grown significantly. In fact, it’s grown 21 times faster than traditional retail over the past three years to be worth $24 billion in 2019. It makes sense. Unlike millennials, who are said to “seek validation through purchases,” members of Gen Z are obsessed with being different from their peers. Ask the question of “why thrift?” for instance, and it will result in a wide variety of answers. (I’d know, I talked to over 30 of them.)

Some listed being able to look unique and build a more personalized sense of style as one of the reasons for thrifting. Tori López, 24, from Brooklyn, New York, says she found an “inexplicable sense of empowerment and independence” in wearing pieces that felt made for her, even if they were previously owned by someone else. “Wearing ‘one-of-a-kind’ clothing makes me feel special; it makes me feel unique; it makes me feel happy — and if that outfit costs you $30, all the better.” Elena Dunn-Barcelona, a 24-year-old from Harlem, fell in love with thrifting during her senior year of high school because it allowed her to compete with her classmates style-wise “for an eighth of the price,” she says. “I was one of a handful of Black kids at a predominantly white boarding school,” she tells Refinery29. According to Dunn-Barcelona, everyone there wore the same things from the same brands (“Sperrys, J.Crew, Free People, Vineyard Vines, etc.”), none of which her parents were willing to buy for her: “There was no way they were going to hand me $60-plus for a top that would be out of style before the school year was over.” Thrifting made it possible for Dunn-Barcelona to build confidence in her style without overspending. It also allowed her to find options that fit when off-the-rack styles wouldn’t because of her scoliosis. “I have a shortened torso, and stand at only 4 feet and 4 inches, which makes shopping for clothing a constant struggle for me. But after a while, when I’d find cute things that didn’t fit me, I realized that someone else might love them, so I turned it into a business,” she says. Her Depop shop, Mighty Thrift, sells clothing in sizes 0 to 5X and has over 5k followers. By August 2021, she says thrifting will be her sole way of supporting herself.

There is also the matter of the climate crisis looming, which many listed as a major motivation for thrifting. “Thrifting taught me that I can positively impact this world in more ways than one,” Lopez says. “It’s granted me an entryway into a new way of living that feels more productive and purposeful.” She explains that what started as a mode of expression has since catalyzed a more intentional lifestyle, where, across categories, she’s more considerate about her purchases: “Now that I’m older, I find myself frequenting more local businesses, paying attention to companies’ stances on current political issues, and buying quality over quantity.” During the lockdown, many young people took to TikTok for entertainment. In the process they also learned about the damaging effects that fashion — and other powerful industries — has on the environment. Of TikTok’s 800 million worldwide users, 60% are members of Gen Z, many of whom are using their fast-growing platforms to promote thrifting as an alternative to fast fashion and an easy way to minimize waste. The numbers don’t lie: #ThriftStore has 92.7 million views on the app, while #Secondhand has 90.8 million views. “So much of our clothes get worn a couple of times, then head to the landfill, which is really gross considering how many resources go into producing clothes,” says 24-year-old Lily Fulop, the author of Wear, Repair, Repurpose: A Maker's Guide to Mending and Upcycling Clothes and a designer at Refinery29. “We need to produce less clothing, and make use of the clothes that are already in existence,” she says. One of the easiest and most affordable ways to do that is by thrifting: “It saves water, reduces microplastics and petroleum use, cuts down on pollution from pesticides, dye, and shipping... the list goes on.” 

According to Emily Reyes, a 21-year-old living in New York City, Gen Z YouTube influencers like Emma Chamberlain are in large part responsible for showing young people that, unlike what their older family members or friends would have them believe, fast fashion isn’t the only way to find on-trend clothing at an affordable price. The 19-year-old YouTube celebrity — who has 9.6 million subscribers on YouTube and 8.3 million followers on TikTok — is known for frequenting Goodwill. Chamberlain’s thrift hauls, videos in which she goes through the items she recently thrifted and styles them on herself, are among her most popular videos on both platforms. Thrifting feels emblematic of the way that Gen Z prefers to stray from the beaten path — a path beaten to death by millennials, Gen X, and Baby Boomers, that doesn’t even seem to be going anywhere anymore. They want to be independent. They want to save the planet. They also want to save money — and make money. And they want to do it all in a cute outfit, probably one that costs less than $10. Thrifting makes all of that possible. Now that I know this, I look forward to making up for lost time.It's a cliché, but this year was supposed to be our year — full of independence, opportunity, or at least a few weekend afternoons spent with more than 10 friends with fewer than six feet between us. But with COVID-necessary social distancing, a shitty job market, and closed campuses, 2020 hasn't given us much to work with. Past generations have had to deal with a recession, social upheaval, and changing norms: We've had to deal with all of it at once.So, what now? What do we do with our careers, our relationships, and our lives? How do we move forward when we're still stuck in our high school bedrooms? These stories are for us — filled with the resources, blueprints, and people who are finding ways to turn all this garbage into something like lemonade.

[daisychainblogs]

an introvert’s guide to Exeter

Cities and towns can be strange worlds for The Introvert. As locations of a loud, fast, what-shall-we-do-next nature, enjoying everything town life has to offer poses a number of challenges to those of us who would rather sit on a park bench for a few hours than visit Historical Site No.23. But whilst it may be difficult to find the perfect Introvert-Safe-Zone when visiting a town for a short period of time, this does not mean that said safety-zones don't exist.

Having just completed a seven-year-stint at school in the heart of Exeter, my family and I like to think we have discovered the best benches,cafes, and slow-pace- places to successfully showcase Exeter's real personality.

no. 1 – COFFEE.

 (There's a reason its at the top of the list)

Cafe Espresso

Firstly, location. Sitting off the high street, this cafe gets you away from the commercial buzz. Secondly, its entirely unpretentious vibe. Simple and bright, Espresso provides its customers with a causal, homely service: a claim supported by the numerous locals  whom enter to a chorus of enthusiastic hellos from workers on a 15 minute-ly basis. Finally, its food and drink. Toasties, daily specials, cake and coffee. Its all we ever need.

The Exploding Bakery

With a somewhat more 'hip' clientele, this Queen Street based cafe provides its visitors with a slightly more youthful experience. Located just up the road from Exeter College, this coffee shop is a favourite with students on a free or during lunch hours. Always busy and buzzing, its easy to grab a book and melt into the buzz , coffee in hand and delicious food (cheese and cabbage toasties, potato fritters and more in its selection) on its way.

Camper Coffee

Nestled next to the fabulous Real Mcoy (more on which to come) Camper Coffee can be found in Exeter's hub of independence : Fore Street. Whilst Camper's main business endeavour is the supply of rentable Coffee vans for use at events, at its residence in central Exeter, Camper provides a permanently tasty experience. Coffee specialists by trade, anyone looking for their their quality-caffeine-fix will not be disappointed by this townie oasis : founded by hard core coffee enthusiasts, for hard core coffee enthusiasts.

no. 2 – PARK BENCHES

The perfect places from which to sit and watch.

The Quay

On a summer's day, Exeter Quay is an introvert's paradise. Take a stroll along the water's edge (The Coffee Cellar offers a great selection of drinks and snacks to pick up along the way) and out of the city, then settle down on one of the many grassy banks looking out over the quay for a lazy afternoon of people watching. Or, if you're feeling a little less sleepy that day, hire a Pedelo and paddle down the river for a few hours.

Northernhay Gardens

Despite being home to the slightly elicit activities of Exeter's student population, Northenhay gardens are a nice (free) area of green in the centre of the city in which to sit and watch the shenanigans of its regulars. If you're around in the summer, make sure to check out Exeter Phoenix's Open Air Cinema nights. Big Screen In The Park is taken seriously by locals. Go full duvets and hot chocolate or go home.

Exmouth

Although not technically in Exeter, the short half-hour train ride from Exeter Central Station to the coast is an easy way to go see the Ocean during the summer months .Grab some fish and chips and sit on the beach for a bit of sea air.

no. 3 SHOPS

Ignore the usual horde of high street brands, and head straight for Forestreet.

The Real Mccoy

For the the closest thing England has to America's mighty thrift stores  (jealous) have a look at the Real Mccoy. Offering a pretty large variety of vintage clothes and furniture, it can take a while to sift through the items. But stay determined : you might just find that pair of vintage Levi's you've been dreaming about.

Willow Hilson's

For the more up market approach to vintage clothing, look no further than Willow Hilson's Vintage Boutique . With Dresses, coats, shoes and more, many from the 1920's and earlier, this is a shop utterly stuffed with true gems. Always worth a browse (regardless of whether or not you make a purchase) Hilson's shop will have you questioning the generation into which you were born as it reminds us just how hideous modern fashion truly is. An Exeter must.

No Guts No Glory

Home to a friendly variety of house plants, birthday cards, pottery and Jewellery, NGNG is perhaps one of the most aesthetically pleasing justthrowinallthegoodstuff shops in Exeter. All white tile, greenery and wood, this is a shop containing the most important of all indie bitsandbobs.

No. 3 DRINKS

Last but not least – Exeter's pubs

The Hour Glass

A pub often flocked to by Ex Londoners in need of a genuinely decent drink, The Hour glass has that Big City Cool vibe often amiss in small town (sorry Exeter) watering holes. Rife with the young and stylish as they nestle into staircase alcoves and groups of friends gathered around pints upon wooden tables, The Hour Glass has that TV programme feel to it : sit down for a drink here and feel like this is episode 264 of your favourite sitcom.

Tabac

More of a bar than a pub, Tabac attracts an equally cool crew. With a great selection of beer and snacks - humous and pitta bread is ALWAYS a winner- Tabac invites you to a feast with the stars   (hundreds of Hollywood power figures line the walls to gaze down at the hoardes). Come here if you want to fall in love with a guy in the corner as you sip at your perfectly cooled craft beer.

Exeter may be small, but it packs a punch, and its willing to put up a fight. Introverts and extroverts alike -  be warned.

(Many thanks to all of the creators of these wonderful GIFS - all credit to them!)

[beavmcnts-blog]

                                                  AVENIR’S TASK #01: DNA

❝ she was the natural result of a home like hers: confident, strange, credulous, curious.❞

— character’s general information, background, family and more.

( &&. GENERAL INFORMATION )

FULL NAME: isabelle diana beaumont. PRONUNCIATION: izabɛl djana bomɔ̃ (iy-Zae-BEHL dee-ah-NAH BOH-mownt). ALIAS(ES) IF ANY: none. PREFERRED NAME: belle. AGE: 27. PREFERRED PRONOUNS: she/her/hers.

SEXUAL ORIENTATION: demisexual. ROMANTIC ORIENTATION: hetero/demiromantic.

LANGUAGE(S) SPOKEN: fluently there’s english, french, spanish; advanced portuguese; intermediate chinese and latin. NATIVE LANGUAGE: both parents spoke french in her younger years, with maurice not all keen about the usage of english. up to when they moved to america, that is, when belle started being literate in both languages almost equally (which didn’t mean belle felt any less comfortable with expressing herself in english eloquently past the age of five).

OCCUPATION: elementary school teacher and volunteer at the local library. CURRENT RESIDENCE: a small, rather odd looking two store house in the corner of villeneuve street, in avenir. when the beaumont first moved, it was in shambles, so the family built it up and “fixed” it all up together. CURRENT RELATIONSHIP STATUS: single.

( &&. BACKGROUND )

ETHNICITY: french & scottish. NATIONALITY: french-american.

FINANCIAL STATUS: stable, comfortable; definitely not wealthy, nor as poor as she once was. HOMETOWN: paris, france → avenir, united states. PAST RESIDENCE: boston, united states. EDUCATION: she was homeschooled, only joining avenir’s public schools when she entered elementary school, and was told to skip to the 3rd grade. after high school, she went to study on boston university, from where she also got her masters. LICENSE(S) IF ANY: driving, substitute teacher, first aid, riding instructor and TEFL.

( &&. FAMILY )

MOTHER: gabrielle louise ulliac (de beaumont, if asked). HER AGE: thirty upon time of death ; fifty four had she been alive. HER OCCUPATION: graduated in history of art and, with a lifetime of knowledge in marketing and sales, gabrielle snatched a job in a gallery near home as an art gallery assistant, a position perfect for someone as bubbly as herself. a less perfect job she also took whenever they needed extra money was some waitering shifts. by the time of her death, she had just told maurice how she wished to become an art curator someday.

FATHER: maurice de beaumont. HIS AGE: sixty. HIS OCCUPATION: currently, a casual tinker? while enjoying his recent retirement. from a rich merchant to a pauper farmer to a talented photographer to a single father, maurice has all kinds of skills, but since he has not finished his mechanical engineer graduation, he spent his life taking in any odd jobs he could find, the most notable being the one at the local flower shop, for over twenty years.

SIBLINGS: none. PETS: tybalt, a stray tuxedo cat.

( &&. PHYSICAL APPEARANCE )

LOOKS LIKE: adelaide kane. HEIGHT: 163cm. WEIGHT: ~55kg. HAIR COLOR AND LENGTH: brown, more or less shoulder length -- anywhere past that, she cuts it back. even if short (for her past tendencies), she still manages to tie it up, with some strands falling out of the ponytail sometimes. ( x ; x ; x ; x ; x ) EYE COLOR: golden brown. TATTOO(S) IF ANY: none. PIERCING(S) IF ANY: standard earlobes. DO THEY WEAR GLASSES OR CONTACTS?: glasses for eye strain, but she doesn't wear them unless she's writing or grading papers. DOMINANT HAND: she is ambidextrous, but originally right handed. DISTINGUISHING FEATURES: eyes, plump lips, cheek dimples when she smiles.

IF PAINTED, WHAT COLOR ARE THEIR NAILS/TOENAILS TYPICALLY?: mostly blue, black and red on her fingernails; toenails gets either french tips or lighter colors, such as pearl, baby pink, etc. belle is fond of nail art, and occasionally gets it done professionally. USUAL STYLE OF CLOTHING: in her youth, she used to cover up a lot, nowadays she has even wore a crop once -- she dresses classy, yet casual and comfortable, but she has learned that because she’s comfortable doesn’t mean she can’t pick clothes that fit too. she has a lot of white shirts, and lots of clothes with flowery patterns as well as the colors yellow, blue and black; while she’s a big fan of pants and will most likely be wearing one, she isn’t against dresses and skirts, and uses them according to her mood and occasion. as for styles, she has always been big on the more vintage look, and a lot of her clothes come from thrift shops, or/and being adapted by herself, to herself. for shoes, she prefers closed ones, from moccasins / oxfords to boots, heels in some occasions; she wears slippers at home mostly, and hardly ever remains bare feet for longer than a couple hours. and, finally, if you took a look to her wardrobe and tried to fit it into a season, it would be fall, as she thinks it’s the seasonal fashion that fits her best (or perhaps she doesn’t even notice, knowing my girl). ( x ; x ; x ; x ; x ; x ; x ; x ; x ; x ) FREQUENTLY WORN JEWELRY IF ANY: she always has her mother’s ring on her left pinky, along with two or three more -- which ones vary -- but she does wear her old relationship ring often, especially when she “wants to not get hit on”, in her own words. belle also adores necklaces, and used many types, from chokers to golden ones with delicate pendants. as for bracelets, she prefers wrist watches with simple designs.

DESCRIBE THEIR VOICE, WHAT KIND OF ACCENT DO THEY HAVE?: belle’s voice is, before all, warm. people sometimes compare her eyes to chocolate or honey, but it’s also in her voice that her personality triumphs, the tone easily adapting due to the situation and her own sentiments -- when in a mood (extremely good and bad, that is), her voice passionately quickly rises in strength and sometimes pitch as well, contrary to her soft spoken, smooth, careful self. when she was a child whose life surrounded her father, her french accent was evident on how she spoke her r’s, but quickly she managed to fix it, becoming as if a native (which, well, she sees herself as) person from the united states, while in france she has been complimented for her flawless pronounce: parisian, natural and just so fast. she doesn’t fancy herself as a big singer, but when she does, she is a mezzo soprano who prefers to hum and sing to herself rather than to suddenly break into broadway spectacles. SCENT: this session is tricky, not only because i only know like 3 scents, but because belle teaches kids and, as such, she has limitations when it comes to scents, cosmetics and etc so most of the smells in here are not strong, and much more pronounced on her days off, or, generally, when she's away from the school. except, perhaps, the children's own smell -- that childish cologne everyone remembers can impregnate her after a day with the kids, to the point belle barely notices but how nice it smells; also from the school, but not limited to it as those are objects she uses on her days off too, you could probably smell the office materials in her hands: crayons, pens, markers, even the thin pieces of paper from notebooks, and thicker ones from the books she's so passionate about. more or less during lunch, you could probably smell the hot scent of meat, which is her most consumed food; as the rest of the day one could get a few hints of herbs, from the various (some would say too many) cups of tea, and hot chocolate, when she's had enough of caffeine and just wants a little more indulging. for the cosmetics she uses, there are three that probably stand out more: her coconut and honey body lotion; the shampoo (supposedly) made out of lavender, tea and peppermint; and her perfume, or rather, perfumes, as she has at least three brands she's a fan of -- their man difference would be the intensity of smell and the occasion she seems to find them fit to wear -- which main fragrances are blossoms (jasmine, orange, pear and, of course, roses). POSTURE: although she is small in height and frame, such a fact is often only noticed when put in perspective with the room around her -- if only by herself, people would judge belle much taller and confident than she actually is, with her straight back (which she keeps straightening up, after years of habit to fix a small curvature due to the reading books in all positions thing) and an interested look in her eyes. the girl is always standing very curiously and attentively, arms around something and touching likely a book or her own fingers as she expects for her companion to speak up. there are moments, however, in which she looks down way too much, and her cheeks tint with pink due to the overall social nervousness she is still struggling with; even so, they do not take away her grace, which is clear by every step she takes.

( &&. MEDICAL INFORMATION )

BIRTH NAME: isabelle diana de beaumont. BLOOD TYPE: o -. DATE AND TIME OF BIRTH: december 1, 1989; 11:32 pm. PLACE OF BIRTH: hôpital bichat claude bernard, in paris. VAGINAL BIRTH OR C-SECTION?: vaginal. GENDER: cisgender female.

DIET: maurice is a man of many talents, being a father and a decent cooker one of these, but they were not enough to make so he would be able to put out a huge french meal for his daughter every day. so, while belle was taught to eat healthily, it wasn’t unusual for them to have junk food for lunch two to five times a week -- eventually, the only home cooked meals they had was on a sunday, and belle lived on small snacks, bread and fast food. however, due to her father’s health worsening, ever since returning to avenir she is trying to polish her cooking skills and serves a so called traditional home cooked meal for breakfast and for dinner; her lunch is better balanced and very generous these days. belle has never been picky with food though, and she eats everything given, bad for her health or not -- she loves vegetables and stews and meat, especially, and is particularly weak with desserts. also, she is a bit of a foodie, and is always looking for new foods and restaurants. ADDICTION(S) IF ANY: the closest would be chocolate: it is her to go drug for when she's mopey or in need of some boost or just to soothe her sweet tooth. ALLERGIES, IF ANY: none.

DO THEY GET OCCASIONAL CHECKUPS?: once or twice every year? used to be less, but she's trying to set an example for her stubborn dad. EVER BROKEN A BONE? HOW?: she fell off a tree one time and sprained her ankle. ANY PHYSICAL AILMENTS/ILLNESSES/DISABILITIES: she suffers from tendinitis crisis in her wrists ever since she was a teenager, so she always has her tensor with her. other than that, and, immunologically, her health is usually top notch. ANY MENTAL ILLNESSES/DISABILITIES: suffered from stress anxiety when she was about sixteen, and considered herself good enough after completing ten counseling sessions. sometimes when she feels those feelings returning, she tries her methods before going for another therapy session. it’s likely she had (has?) social anxiety at some point in her life, but she was never diagnosed. ANY MEDICATION REGULARLY TAKEN: some basic vitamins, although she can be prone to forget now and then. WERE THEY EVER LEGALLY DECLARED DEAD, BUT WERE REVIVED?: not technically, although the hospital staff was pretty sure such a small child wouldn't be able to survive a car crash when her own mother hasn't -- yet belle seemed just fine, albeit very tired and with some non damaging scarring.

( &&. PERSONALITY )

POSITIVE TRAITS: kind, courageous, determined, hardworking, curious, passionate, quick witted. NEGATIVE TRAITS: stubborn, closed off, grandiloquent, easily dazed/distracted, self-sacrificing, quixotic, biased. LIKES: reading (any sort, though literature, comic books, history, botany and mechanics are her favorites), theatre (she is a big follower of plays and musicals), flowers, traveling, food (eat, cook and research), teaching, kindness and good manners, getting alone time, tybalt (animals in general), her friends and family. DISLIKES: injustice and disparity, being interrupted while reading or speaking, rudeness and disregard for others, being diminished and disrespected, being away from her father, coffee, too much noise.

STRENGTHS: kindness, optimism, generosity. she is also passionate, idealistic and very intelligent. belle is quite sympathetic, and she knows when not to cross a boundary -- that, along with her open mindedness, makes her very good at her job, not to mention on how it all, along with her curiosity, shape her into someone that seems almost too social sometimes. WEAKNESSES: altruist to the point of self disregard: overall, that is belle’s biggest weakness, on how she often thinks too much of others and little of herself. an example would be how she goes out of her way to help others and give up things that matters for herself, another is how she has to bend words not to hurt others. she is also very stubborn, and takes a while and a lot of denial to change her opinions. INSECURITIES: her social skills are her worst ability, even now, and sometimes belle ends up spending more time overthinking than actually getting to do or say something. she can be insecure about her feelings as well (even if, once certain, she will likely not hold back). FEARS/PHOBIAS: losing her father, i believe?

HOBBIES: reading, drawing, any sorts of writing (for her own enjoyment, for work, etc), eating, looking up new restaurants and places, overall research, spending time with her loved ones. DESIRES: belle has so many dreams she has come to tell herself it’s likely she will not achieve them all, but ones that has stuck to her is getting her education (now, she plans on getting her phd in sorbonne, brunel or birmingham) and her career: she may be a teacher now, but she also dreams in dwelling in cafés or bookshops (or maybe even both!). she also wishes to travel very badly, and always has, but right now, her priority lies on her father. REGRETS: she regrets the life she has led in avenir, so reclusive, socially ignorant and perhaps even harsh; she also regrets leaving the town for her studies sometimes. she feels bad whenever she thinks on adam and the what could have beens -- the beginnings and the endings, mostly -- and sometimes she also regrets giving up so much of her life by returning to avenir. SECRETS: she was offered a position in boston university faculty, which would come along with trying for the doctorate of her dreams. belle has never told anyone of this, knowing she would face harsh criticism (especially from maurice). her undying romantic feelings towards her ex could also count -- the secrets she mostly consider as so are the ones she keeps from her father (and, from herself, when she suppresses thinking of it), so there's not a lot one could say in here.

ARE THEY GENERALLY DOMINANT OR SUBMISSIVE?: i’d say dominant, because she's pretty domineering? EMOTIONAL, LOGICAL OR BOTH: both, as she thinks you need heart and mind to make a right choice. BOOK SMART OR STREET SMART: book smart, definitely. ARE THEY MORE INTROVERT OR EXTROVERT: introvert. OPTIMIST OR PESSIMIST: optimistic, with a dash of realistic. SPONTANEOUS OR STRUCTURED: a bit of both? sometimes she ends up jumping at things she shouldn't, but she's often an over thinker. INSTINCTUAL OR LOGICAL: the same answer for the question above! EXPENSIVE OR INEXPENSIVE: inexpensive, extremely so. she is not picky with anything, and she will often choose the less expensive / practical route rather than something lavishly. GENEROUS OR STINGY: i think she's quite generous? belle does a lot of volunteering in areas she takes interest. however, she only gives homeless or beggars actual food, drink and essentials, instead of actually money. POLITE OR RUDE: very polite. ARE THEY A DAY OR A NIGHT PERSON: day.

( &&. SKILLS )

TALENTS: to daze off and tune out of any situation, becoming completely ignorant of anyone or anything surrounding her, which suited (suits) her very well when she wanted to skip social occasions. she also can read and write very fast, with good comprehension, even if she prefers not to do it. belle, too, is able to keep (and/or appear) even headed in stressful moments, and she has an amazing way with wording, which she uses to get out of uncomfortable situations and get her way very quickly. finally, she makes some pretty good beef ragout and dessert souffle (and, recently, her own cheese burger! @x-lostatsea ). ABILITY TO DRIVE A CAR?: well, it's there. she can drive and have a license and did own a car for a small amount of time a few years ago, but it’s just not her thing. at first she has tried to fight the abhorrence maurice has tried to put in her about automobiles, but easily she has realized being in the passenger seat is just so much better for someone like her than to be the one behind the wheel, when she can’t get one bit distracted nor out of the norm (which is the law, in this case). CAN THEY DRIVE ANY OTHER AUTOMOBILE? WHAT?: not an automobile, but she can (and adores!) to ride horses. CAN THEY RIDE A BIKE?: yes, and she much prefers it, sometimes even taking one for work. DO THEY PLAY ANY SPORTS? WHAT?: not if she's not obliged. DO THEY HAVE ANY COMBAT TRAINING? WHY?: it’s been baby steps, but she’s learning self defense from eve ( @velociity ), with training sessions at least once a week. during her childhood, she learned how to swing a bat for classes, but it ended up “being useful” while she lived in boston, although violence is probably the last resort belle will ever take.

( &&. MISCELLANEOUS )

DO THEY HAVE A FAKE ID?: currently, such a thing is unnecessary, but belle was gifted one as a prank on her 18th birthday. ARE THEY A VIRGIN?: no.

WHAT CAN YOU FIND IN THEIR POCKETS/WALLET/PURSE: first of all, belle always carries at least a book with her -- with the “excuse” of her job, she usually has up to five copies, which, along with papers to grade (and plenty of pens, pencils, erasers and markers) and her journal, always weight her bag quite considerably. belle has also learned to always carry a bottle of water and a few snacks in her bag just in case. in her bag, there’s also some wet tissues, a toothbrush and paste, some make up (eyeliner, chapstick, lipstick/gloss, perfume, sunscreen and base mostly), many hair ties, a fresh change of underclothes and some pads. she also has some medicine and some mints, her phone, tablet and its chargers, plus her id wallet and her money wallet; these things are all juggled into two bags: a book one, and another (which does not mean this one won't be carrying a copy of its own, mind you). unnecessary to say, but belle’s arms have gotten pretty strong after so much weight lifting lmao. PLACE(S) YOUR CHARACTER CAN ALWAYS BE FOUND: at avenir: home, the school and the library; the latter, along with cafés and restaurants scattered across the globe, are the ideal places for her. WHAT IS THEIR IDEA OF PERFECT HAPPINESS?: a very busy week, but relaxation in the arms of the ones she loves so they can spend the weekends lazily in bed and reading poems for each other. to add to the perfection, make it a different country every weekend. WHAT OR WHO IS THE GREATEST LOVE OF THEIR LIFE?: platonically there are many, going from her father to her cat to literature, but if we are going to say a person, romantically, as in fitzgerald love of my life, that’s without a doubt adam ( @pasvnebete  ). what the heck, you could even add it as lifes -- which she has considered, but is unable to know as we do. ON WHAT OCCASIONS DO THEY LIE?: “for a greater good”, which is hypocritical since she doesn't believe in machiavelli’s teachings, yet she's not against a white lie here and there.

DO THEY SNORE? very lightly. DO THEY CHEW THEIR PENS/PENCILS?: used to do so only in very extreme stressful moments during her last years of high school and college. DO THEY CHEW THEIR NAILS?: never has. CAN THEY CURL THEIR TONGUE?: yes. CAN THEY WHISTLE?: yes.

DO THEY BELIEVE IN THE SUPERNATURAL AND MAGIC?: well, partially. HAVE THEY EVER CHEATED ON ANYONE?: nope. HAVE THEY EVER BEEN CHEATED ON?: her prom “date” ended up hooking up with someone after belle denied him anything past first base; they “broke up” before the next day. HAS ANYONE EVER BROKEN THEIR HEART?: yes. HAVE THEY EVER BROKEN ANYONE’S HEART?: yes.

ARE THEY SQUEAMISH?: she’s not extremely sensitive, no. HAVE THEY EVER KILLED ANYONE? WHY? HOW?: no, although she “could have blame” in how her mother died -- totally nonsensical, and she is aware of that nowadays. HAVE THEY EVER SEEN ANYONE DIE? WHAT HAPPENED?: no, thank god. ARE THEY A LIGHTWEIGHT?: well, she is not a heavy drinker, for sure. she can only handle her alcohol to an extent before becoming a mess of giggles or/and whines, and much before this phase she already gets red in the face.

[approachingmindfulnessblog]

Day 3 - Veganism/Minimalism/Zero Waste Don’t Have To Be Just For the Wealthy and Privileged

These are three movements I’m taking part in, whether its as a full participant(Veganism) or someone just starting to think about giving it a try(Minimalism and Zero Waste living). I’m seeing a lot of comments, mostly here on Tumblr, about how all three are really hard from people from minority groups, and everything is too expensive and time consuming and geared towards wealthy and able-bodied white people. 

I want to start by saying, I understand where all these people are coming from. There is definitely a culture among bloggers and especially YouTubers of showing off their superior and very expensive fancy equipment for making expensive and complicated vegan, no waste meals, or spending large sums of money on fancy glass jars for storing a year’s worth of some obscure food item bought in bulk. I understand: bulk is pricy, fair trade is pricey, reusable containers and some vegan foods are pricey.

But this frustrates me so much, because neither Veganism nor Minimalism, nor even Zero Waste have to be pricey. They can be. The afore-mentioned gurus are choosing to live their own pricey ‘flavor’ of these lifestyles. 

Minimalism

Take Minimalism, which in my opinion is the easiest for all people to adopt. It’s true, not everyone can afford to go out and buy a new wardrobe that consists of super high quality items that will last a decade, especially right of the bat. But anyone can challenge themselves to stop mindlessly buying things and chasing trends. Anyone can have No Shopping days. Anyone can purge their closet by selling and donating items they don’t use or enjoy. Anyone can clear out their junk drawer, and their folders and their cabinets and under their bed. Anyone can sell or donate duplicates of items that are unlikely to be needed. Anyone can delete old photos and documents they don’t care about off their phone and computer. Anyone can ask themselves why they have 25 drinking glasses if they have only a maximum of 6 people over at once. Anyone can decide to get rid of knickknacks and any stuff that’s not adding value to their life. Anyone can choose to make an effort to stop multitasking unnecessarily and be more mindful and aware of the present moment. Anyone can attempt to cut out extraneous unhealthy relationships.

These are things that go back to the roots of Minimalism, and focus on the goal of valuing relationships with people rather than stuff, and appreciating the few things we do own because we know they actually add value to our lives. None of these tips cost money, and in fact many of them could earn you a little bit of money or save you a lot of money in the long run. What’s more, if you save this money as it adds up (and I’m finding that it adds up fast -- I’ve challenged myself not to purchase anything for 3 months and slowly purge my closet at the same time, and I’m amazed, if slightly horrified, to see that in the first three weeks I’ve saved literally hundreds of dollars by eliminating my mindless shopping habit. I actually have savings for the first time in a long time), when your clothes finally do truly just give out, as fast fashion pieces are bound to do, you now have money saved up that you could spend on a replacement item that is ethically made and of high quality, if you so chose. Bam. You just paid someone a fair wage and you may not have to buy a replacement item again for at least a decade. THAT is how you use Minimalism to benefit yourself and simultaneously make a positive change in the world. Feel like these more expensive items of clothing will never be within your budget? That’s ok! Stick to buying second hand. One side effect of our fast fashion society is a lot of excess clothing that ends up in thrift shops, and its often still in good shape for a hugely discounted price, and when you buy second hand you know no energy or resources are being wasted to make you new clothes. And if you need to buy new clothes to look professional at work, there’s no shame in that. Do what you gotta do. 

Veganism

Now I’m definitely no cook, and I’ve been vegan for just 3 weeks, but I’m already well aware that Vegansim has the potential to be LESS expensive than, say, the traditional American diet. What is cheaper than rice and beans?? Not much. Tofu is cheaper than meat, y’all. Nuts aren’t bad either, especially if you can buy them in bulk (and yes, I know, if money if tight for you buying in bulk may not seem like a viable option because it’s more money upfront. It might take the slight reorganization of priorities, but hopefully things like changing your shopping habits to avoid constantly consuming fast fashion, selling things you never use and replacing meat with the less expensive and plant-based tofu will enable you to spend a bit more upfront and save a lot of money in the long run. Still can’t afford to buy 10 pounds of almonds all at once? That’s ok! Try buying from the bulk bins anyway, even if you’re getting the same quantity you would from a package off the shelf. I’ve been reading a lot of grocery stores’ websites today trying to learn about bulk buying for myself, and it sounds like its always cheaper to take this route. There’s online resources available to help you locate bulk sellers near you if your local grocery store doesn’t sell bulk as well!)

In my opinion, many people get too caught up in the pricier vegan mock-animal products and processed options, and they forget that fruits and veggies, whole grains and nuts and legumes, are all healthy and vegan and readily available at decent prices. Now yes, it’s true that some people who are barely scraping buy will spend a few dollars on fast food rather than buy comparatively expensive fresh fruits and veggies. I understand and I don’t judge. If that’s what you need to do to feed your family, no one has the right to shame you for it. But I believe that most people just don’t realize how affordable Veganism can really be. Before my transition to Veganism, while I was doing research, I stumbled upon Plant-Based on a Budget, a website offering tips, recipes, and even a complete vegan meal plan for an entire week, including a grocery list for that meal plan that costs just $25. That’s less than $4 for a day’s worth of healthy vegan food. Take that, McDonalds. 

Zero Waste

I have to say, I think this one is the least accessible of the three. Of course, that doesn’t mean its unaccessible, by any means. Again, I think we need to go back to the ideals of the movement and stop looking at people who’ve spend tons of money to be able to store their waste in a little jar. We call it ‘Zero Waste’, because that is the ideal we are striving for, that is the dream, but we all know that in practical terms, its really about LESS waste. And we can all work on that. We can all opt to go without plastic straws, unplug electronics that aren’t in use, walk or take public transit instead of driving around town, bring our grocery bags back to the store to reuse on the next visit instead of throwing them away, and recycle our plastics (I realize that some people just really don’t have access to recycling or compost in their area, and while that blows and I encourage you to petition your local government, that is by no means your fault and no one should ever shame you for it). Little things add up big over time, and, yes, this is another area in which investments (or just simple creativity! Forget spending money!) can save you lots of money over time. Does your family use paper napkins at the dinner table? Invest in some cheap cloth ones, or better yet, make your own! Hell, you can just cut an old and seldom used t-shirt into large squares. Who cares what you wipe your fingers on. Zero Waste is an area I’m just starting to learn about, but I can see immediately that the resources online are endless. Spend a little time researching cheap hacks like this from creative and inspired people, and ignore the fools that tell you that all your waste from the last decade should fit in the palm of your hand. The point is to create LESS waste, and the only limit is your imagination. 

Now obviously, as a upper-middle class and able-bodied white girl, I’m speaking from a place of privilege. I’ve done my best to think of low-cost ways to participate in the ideals of these movements for anyone who might be interested, and to dispel this stereotype of costliness, but I understand that my experience is different than that of many others, and I’m sure I missed some pretty important things. Please feel free to comment anything I missed or even message me directly about some obstacle in your way as you try to participate in any of these movements, and together we can try and brainstorm a solution. If y’all think I completely fucked up and missed something big, let me know in a constructive way because I’d love to hear about it and talk about it. 

(I’d also like to add that I’ve heard someone say that there isn’t much clothing available in thrift stores and eco-conscious brands in larger sizes. I have definitely seen L and XL in ethical clothing brands, so I have to assume its just a matter of finding the right brands, but I can try to do some research in plus sizes if anyone is interested. I was really surprised to hear that about thrift stores, I guess because I assumed since we all wear clothes all sorts of sizes would end up getting donated, but maybe second-hand buy/selling apps like Poshmark would be a good resource here? I think most of them let you search specifically by size, which can make it much easier for everyone to find clothes that fit them. Just a thought)

[coughscent1-blog]

I Bought Clothes From Those Instagram Promoted Ads: Here’s What Happened

Back in the day, the only place you could buy a new outfit was from the few stores that lingered on your local high street – or a catalogue. On a Friday night in town you’d be guaranteed to bump in to at least one other girl wearing your same Miss Selfridge dress, because everyone was shopping from the same handful of places (and back then the only person to buy from catalogues was your mum.) It was a simpler time, but with the eruption of the internet and online shopping our fashion needs have erupted beyond belief; rather than having a handful of pieces that you could have on rotation without worrying much about anyone paying attention, Facebook now documents your wardrobe choices and Instagram shows the world how many times you’ve worn than LBD. (I’ve heard from friends that their entire outfit is determined by the likelihood of not bumping into the same people, but the likelihood of being tagged in the same look multiple times. What have we become?!)

The result of this visibility has lead us to being increasingly concerned with having up-to-date and on-trend pieces that can help fill our feeds with fabulous looks; we’ve started to look beyond the high street and the usual online destinations (the success of ASOS often means we’re still wearing the same fab number as someone else!) in favour of stores that are unexpected, unusual or can deliver us unique fashion. I know I’m always trying to find pieces from stores that I know the majority of my peers don’t’ shop in (hello M&S, ASDA and Monsoon!) and take great pleasure in telling someone where my dress is from, like a gem you’ve found rummaging through a thrift store. It’s no surprise that this fast fashion mentality has lead to a plethora of online stores opening their metaphorical doors, delivering on-trend looks at budget price points straight to your door.

I’d been seeing those fashion ads popping up on my Instagram feed for some time, but during a particularly quiet evening (probably when there was very little on the telly) out of interest I clicked through and started to browse. Ream upon ream of beautiful dresses and super cool outfits greeted me at unbelievably affordable prices, and before I knew it I had a basket full of maxis and midis that I knew I’d feel like a total sasspot in – but something made me think twice. It seemed too good to be true (and from my experience that usually means it is) that these fab unique pieces were so reasonable, so I went back for a closer look.

What I instantly noticed was that there was no consistency between the product images: some were inside, some were outside, some were posed, some were street style, some had heads, some were decapitated. It took only a few scrolls for me to realise the brand was using images from around the ‘net that they probably didn’t have permission for, and they probably were replicating outfits that cost a hell of a lot more money than what they were charging. One dress that I spotted on a model that was so obviously Rosie Londoner (she has iconic hair!) was clearly not the same as they were selling, but in the interests of this experiment I bought it anyway – alongside a couple of others. I was cautious to only buy three things in total (which set me back about $70) so that I wasn’t just throwing money away, but I was still super curious to see whether these companies really were delivering great fashion at super affordable prices.

WHAT I ORDERED 

 WHAT I GOT

Skip forward a couple weeks (my lord the package took an age to arrive!) and a little bundle of dresses was waiting for me on the doorstep. Excited to see my transformation from 35 year old greying short-arse into a showstopping model (obvs!) I whipped them out of their packaging and over my head quicker than a Zoella tweet going viral; oh my god they were horrific. Disappointment doesn’t even cover it: they were awful. The material was cheap and nasty, the cut was so bad it looked like a ten year old had put it together during textiles class, and the style didn’t even really match the pictures online at all; don’t even get me started on the inconsistency of the sizing. Utter fail. I’ve nothing good to say about any of them and overall the quality and fit was more than a little questionable – I felt like I was in the middle of one of those eBay prom dress memes you see flying around the ‘net, when some poor Thai man has been tasked with copying a $500 crystal dress for a fraction of the cost.

All in all it was a waste of time and money, as what you see online is not what you get in reality. At all. But what makes it worse is the ‘returns’ process, which prevents you from getting your money back in every which way they can. It’s not as easy as popping the items back in the post with the pre-addressed label (god bless you ASOS!) because you have to let them know you want to return something, alongside your reasons, in advance; not only did it take me a good fifteen minutes to find the site again and track down the email, but when I finally got a reply (in broken English) they wanted everything up to (and potentially including) my first born in order to process a refund.

Product codes, descriptions, photographs, reasons for return… They asked for it all multiple times. They wanted me to keep the items ‘because postage is expensive’, as well as offering ‘coupons’ to spend on more of their random sh*t rather than just taking back the rubbish I’d already been lumbered with. We went backwards and forwards until eventually I just stopped getting a reply; as soon as it became clear they couldn’t palm the unwearable dresses off on me with the promise of more terrible dresses, they just couldn’t be bothered to remain in communication. (This also rather cleverly took me over the 30 day refund period.) So that was the end of that: money down the drain, total waste of time, experiment a complete and utter fail: but all done in the hope of preventing others from experiencing the same.

So if you’re thinking about buying from one of these promoted Instagram stores, do so with a huge amount of caution; the items delivered probably won’t be what you anticipate, and it’s practically impossible to get a refund. They may be using images of glowing and statuesque influencers to sell their wares, but in reality they’re shifting badly constructed and practically unwearable looks in the hope of just keeping your money once you get fed up of trying to get a refund. Stick with what you know, or be prepared to be both frustrated and out of pocket…

And as for me… Anyone got Anne Robinson’s number?

I bought my dresses from OfLike (which sounds like some play on The Handmaid’s Tale) so stay well clear – but there are tonnes of others to look out for too. 

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Source: https://www.hayleyhall.uk/2018/08/i-bought-clothes-from-those-instagram.html

[kelly-lynne]

Happy Earth Day!

*This post has been sponsored by ThredUp. However, climate change is 100% real and that is a fact backed sponsored by SCIENCE. So put that in your composter and plant it.*

A mural in Williamsburg, Brooklyn that I stumbled across this week in NYC

Just this last weekend, people from across the country (and world) converged on the National Mall in DC to protest government ignorance of ecological and climate issues.

The Effects of Fast Fashion

You may think…hey I’m doing fine! I recycle and don’t litter! But, unfortunately, us fashion lovers are part of the issue in a big way. Fast fashion, or fashion that is produced cheaply and widely availably, one of the most polluting industries in the world, second only to petroleum (aka gas).

This year, I’ve made a commitment to be especially mindful of my waste consumption. Sometimes I succeed (hello, beeswax wraps!) and sometimes I fail miserably (carrying around a coffee mug everywhere is super heavy!). Still, as with everything in this world doing SOMETHING is better than doing nothing. For me, making small changes everyday helps me. Once I’ve mastered one change, I move on to the next. Every time that I fill up my water bottle, one less plastic one is in our ocean. Every time I choose to buy secondhand, it means that one less piece of clothing ends up in a landfill ( of the estimated nearly 2,500,000,000 pounds of used clothing that did last year!!!)

While I started thrifting because I was on a very tight budget as a teen, it’s gained popularity among people who would rather use the materials we already have created in this world, than buying new products constantly. Now, I always check ThredUp and Poshmark for items for my Spring and Fall yearly wardrobe updates as a first resource.

Can Sustainable Fashion Be Cool?

ThredUp, one of my fave spots or getting thrifty deals, is collaborating with some of my favorite Instagram accounts to create some super cute T’s (buy them here)! Not only are these T-shirts cute AF but they’re actually printed on secondhand T-shirts…so you know…actually sustainable! I’m definitely eyeing the Julie Houts (@jooleeloren on Insta) one, because I’m a huge fashion illustration geek. Of course, if fashion illustration is not your thing (I see you meme queens, and Mari Andrew Fans) check out the full collection.

These are available RIGHT NOW and as with everything on ThredUp sells out super fast!

100% of net proceeds from the shirts go towards the environmental non-profit Cool Effect, which provides consistent funding to carbon reduction projects across the globe, preventing greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change.

In addition to the net proceeds of each T-shirt sold, thredUP will also donate $1 to Cool Effect for every public Instagram post of artwork from Project re:made using #projectremade and @thredUP up to a maximum donation of $10,000, until May 11, 2018. See more here.  

While you may not be ready to compost at your house, or get rid of your car, choosing to live sustainably is a journey that anyone can start on. How are you making changes this year to be more sustainable and cut down on waste?

Here are a few great ways to start being more sustainable IRL:

Follow an eco blogger or two! They have great ideas and they ACTUALLY try things themselves. You can also check out this blog post, with some of the things I’ve tried this year.

When you go shopping, consider buying a similar product second hand. Sites like ThredUp, Poshmark, and even your local Facebook garage sale are great resources! If you’re looking for a super cheap option, host a clothing swap with your friends! Food+Friends+Mimosas+Clothes = a great Saturday afternoon.

Be mindful. Just the process of actually realizing how much waste you’re creating will help with the journey. Is your downfall plastic straws? Bring a re-useable one with you? Always forget to bring a bag to the grocery store, buy a super small packable one! You got this, girl!

What are you instituting this year to get off to a non-trashy start? Any advice for those looking to get less trashy?

Climate Change is Real and these T’s know it Happy Earth Day! *This post has been sponsored by ThredUp. However, climate change is 100% real and that is a fact backed sponsored by SCIENCE.

[kennethherrerablog]

Need More Money? Here Are 30 Ways to Earn Extra Cash in 2019

It’s simple enough: You. Need. Money.

Now.

But deciding how to make money — or how to make more money — can get complicated.

As Penny Hoarders, we have plenty of experience sharing ways to make bank, and we’ve compiled 30 ways to do it quickly in 2019.

Whether it’s online, offline, at your job or by doing nothing (OK, not nothing, but through passive income), we’ll tell you how to find moneymaking opportunities and how much you can expect to take in.

What are you waiting for? Let’s earn some quick cash!

How to Make Money Online

Although there may be plenty of ways to make money online, that doesn’t mean they’re all worth your time. We’ve researched the effort vs. reward for these online options — from earning a few bucks for completing simple tasks to making enough dough to quit your day job.

Read on for more ways to earn extra cash on the web.

1. Trade Unwanted Gift Cards for Cash

What to do with all those gift cards from well-meaning relatives who either don’t know your interests or don’t take your location into consideration? (Thanks for the In-N-Out Burger gift card, but I live in Brooklyn.)

Sell them for cash (or a gift card you’ll actually use).

The Penny Hoarder’s Branded Content Editor Dana Sitar analyzed five gift card exchange sites that swap for cash or other gift cards.

Although you can make some fast cash this way, know that you won’t get the full face value of the card. Sitar suggests checking out two or three sites to find the best deal.

She also warns people to be wary of fast-cash offers through mobile payment sites like PayPal, which charges additional fees.

How much money can you make? The site Cardpool offered Sitar $21 cash for a $25 Target gift card.

2. Find a Side Hustle on Upwork

Hey there, fast fingers. You might be feeling low with the news that ”typist” is among the dying occupations, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still find a way to make money hitting the keys (at least for now).

Upwork is a freelance site that lets you indicate whether you prefer short- or long-term projects and the number of hours you wish to work. You can narrow your search to specific jobs like “virtual assistant” or “data entry” within categories that include design, writing, administrative support and customer service.

Improve your chances of finding jobs that fit your skill set and fit into your spare time by being as precise as possible in your profile title and focusing on just a few keywords.

You’ll get paid by the hour or by the project, minus a percentage that Upwork charges freelancers.

How much money can you make? One Penny Hoarder earned $40 per hour on Upwork as a virtual assistant.

3. Freelance on Fiverr

Looking to pad your bank account by writing articles, designing logos or translating text?

Check out Fiverr, an online marketplace for freelancers. You can set up your platform for free, but Fiverr collects 20% of the transactions made over the site. Then it’s just a matter of choosing your gig.

Jobs tend toward the creative types, but there’s a wide range of categories, including graphics and design, digital marketing, writing and translation, video and animation and music and audio.

How much money can you make? Pay starts at $5 per project, but Charmaine Pocek told The Penny Hoarder she earned $30 to $800 on Fiverr as freelance writer creating resumes and cover letters and optimizing clients’ LinkedIn profiles. In the past six years, Pocek has added to her to total and has now made $2.3 million from work she’s found on the site, according to Abby Forman, spokeswoman for Fiverr.

4. Teach ESL Online

You love kids, but at a distance — because, you know, those sticky hands. So snag a work-from-home job teaching ESL (English as a Second Language) to Chinese students ages 4 to 12 through services like VIPKID and Qkids.

Both online platforms require a bachelor’s degree, a six-month commitment and the ability to work a minimum of six to seven hours per week. Teachers fill time slots by posting their availability — and since China is on the other side of the globe, your schedule will need to accommodate the time difference. (If it’s 6 p.m. in China, it’s 5 a.m. in New York).

After quitting her full-time job, new mom Kirsten Cherry of Twin Falls, Idaho, found part-time work teaching students through VIPKID.

“I got hired in June. Within two weeks, my schedule was 97% full,” said Cherry, 26. “In the first month, I earned over $1,000.”

How much money can you make? Qkids states on its site that the base pay is $8 per 30-minute lesson, plus attendance and performance incentives. Cherry said she makes up to $22 teaching two lessons in an hour through VIPKID.

5. Test Websites and Apps

For all the sprinters out there, website and app testing could be your path to fast cash.

Start by filling out a registration form with a testing service. Once approved, you’ll receive access to projects as they become available. Testing involves interacting with a site and completing a series of tasks while providing feedback for market research.

Most testing requires you to work from a computer rather than your cell phone, as you’ll speak your feedback out loud as the company records your experience through the testing interface.

Cherry said she tried three different testing platforms and found the most success with Userlytics.

Most tests only take five to 15 minutes to complete, she noted, but you have to be ready to test at a moment’s notice.

“A lot of them I can actually do, as long as I click on them and follow the link on time,” Cherry said. “Sometimes even within 10 to 15 minutes after you get the email, they’re already full; they already have enough tests done.”

How much money can you make? Banking $10 to $20 per test, Cherry has earned $200 for taking a total of 18 tests.

6. Become a Search Engine Evaluator

Use your attention to detail to make money as a search engine evaluator.

Evaluators analyze the relevance and quality of ads and news feeds — think: deciding if those Google search results make sense. The guidelines are fairly strict for these kinds of jobs, and testing can be extensive.

You’ll need in-depth, up-to-date knowledge of the topics you cover and of the web in general, according to Prathima Tothempudi, senior human resources business partner at Lionbridge, a company that regularly posts openings for search engine evaluator gigs. In exchange, you’ll get a job that typically offers a flexible schedule.

How much money can you make? Lionbridge pays $10.80 per hour, Tothempudi said.

7. Sell Free Stuff on Craigslist

The online classified site Craigslist lets you sell stuff for cash, including items you get for free. And you don’t even need to leave the site to find those freebies — there’s a “free” listings section right there on Craigslist. Convenient, right?

Penny Hoarder Steve Gillman picked up six boxes of floor tiles he found for free on Craigslist, then sold them to the first flooring company he passed on his way back home.

How much money can you make? Gillman made $10 off of the pile of tiles.

8. Sell Thrift Store Finds on eBay

Selling your possessions on the auction site eBay is one way to pocket some cash quickly.

You can also make money by buying designer clothes for cheap, then selling them on the site to the highest bidder. If you have an eye for fashion — or at least the most popular labels — you can track down inventory at local thrift stores.

Create listings for your items, making sure to include well-written item descriptions and quality photographs to give your listings a professional polish (and get top dollar). Check out similar items to get a sense of where to set your starting bid, and be sure to incorporate the costs of shipping and eBay’s seller fees into your price.

Penny Hoarder Kat Tretina resold designer jeans by starting with a minimal investment — packaging tape and a scale to weigh packages for shipping — and ended up more than tripling her money.

How much money can you make? Your profitability depends upon what you’re selling, but for working 10 to 15 hours a month, Tretina made $500 to $800.

9. Sell Handmade Goods on Etsy

If you have a knack for crafting, you probably are already familiar with Etsy, aka the crafters’ paradise.

And if you’re considering making the leap from selling your wares at the farmers market to earning your money online as a crafty small business, starting out on Etsy is fairly simple. When you set up your site, you’ll pick a name, choose the items to list (the site recommends starting with at least 10) and set up payment and billing.

The site charges 20 cents for your first item, and you’ll pay transaction and payment-processing fees when you make a sale. To turn your shop into a viable moneymaker, take advice from those who’ve gone before you.

Lena Gosik-Wolfe, who followed up on a successful Etsy store with a second business advising people how they can sell on the crafty site, offered the following tips for ways to make money on Etsy:

Treat your shop like a brick-and-mortar version.

File necessary tax documents.

Design a professional site to attract customers.

Develop a clear, cohesive marketing strategy.

How much money can you make? Your Etsy profitability depends on what you’re selling and how much time you put into your business. Crafter Beth Gates told The Penny Hoarder she made $400 during her first six months selling Southern-style sundries and crochet items. After dedicating more time to her business, she made more than $4,000 in one year.

10. Do Online Transcription  

Those listening skills you honed by eavesdropping on your roommates’ conversations could finally pay off with a job in online transcription.

Transcription jobs usually require an assessment test to gauge your typing speed and accuracy. Depending on the service, you could be listening to a car commercial or court hearings, so find out what you’re getting into before you apply.

Cherry wishes she had known that tip before she signed up for her first transcription gig, which brought in $85.15 over six months for a job that required extensive testing and a lot of studying to follow a strict style guide.

“For that first transcription job, oh my gosh, I spent hours on that, and I got paid so little,” Cherry said. “I wish I would have just, in the beginning, told myself, ‘Hey, this just isn’t going to be worth it. Find something else.’”

Cherry had better luck after discovering the transcription service Rev, which offered a user-friendly platform and more lucrative projects.

How much money can you make? Making 40 cents to 75 cents per minute of transcription at Rev, Cherry earned $87.45 in one month for less than four hours of work.

11. Incorporate Affiliate Marketing Into Your Blog

Hey bloggers, there’s money to be made through affiliate marketing.

The basic process for making money through affiliate marketing goes like this: Write reviews about products on your blog and include a specific tracking link. When readers click the link and make a purchase, you receive a commission.

The more readers you have, the better your chances for making money, so attracting more eyeballs to your site is essential. One way to do that: Pitch articles to other blogs that allow you to link back to your blog.

How much money can you make? The affiliate marketplace ClickBank, which offers products and services to promote in your blog, says commissions range from 1% to 75%. The maximum commission on a single sale is $150.

12. Take Online Surveys

Looking to make a few bucks from a task that doesn’t require much effort? Taking online surveys could be your jam.

After signing up with a platform like Swagbucks or InboxDollars, you’ll select surveys based on your initial application, then answer questions that take an average of 20 minutes to complete.

The Penny Hoarder reviewed six online survey sites, noting that some paid out cash directly while others paid in gift cards or even sweepstakes entries. So do your homework before you sign up.

How much money can you make? Swagbucks surveys pay anywhere from 40 to 200 SB (100 SB equal $1), according to our Swagbucks review. Earn 300 SB to cash out for $3 gift cards to places like Amazon or Dunkin Donuts.

How to Make Money Fast (and in Person)

What if you need money fast and you want to do something that calls for less face time with your screen and more face time with actual, live human beings (or animals)?

Read on for ways to make more money in person.

13. Drive for Uber or Lyft

Need a fun, flexible way to earn money while also meeting lots of new people?

Try driving with Lyft.

Demand for ride-sharing has been growing like crazy, and it shows no signs of slowing down. To be eligible, you’ll need to be at least 21 years old with a year of driving experience, pass a background check and own a car made in 2007 or later.

Best of all, you can do it on your own time. You can work days, nights or weekends — it’s up to you.

Because it’s easy to switch between apps, Lyft drivers often also sign up to drive with Uber.

How much money can you make? We talked to Paul Pruce, who had been driving full-time with Lyft for over a year and earning $750 a week as a driver.

14. Do Household Tasks Through TaskRabbit

You’re the person Aunt Peggy always calls to fix a faucet or assemble a bookshelf.

It’s time you stopped getting paid in oatmeal cookies. (Sorry, Peg).

Instead, use your household know-how to earn extra cash on TaskRabbit, which connects you with clients who need help cleaning their house, hanging pictures and making deliveries. In exchange for getting paid for your work, TaskRabbit deducts a 15% service fee.

How much money can you make? The company has stated you can make up to $2,000 per week — but no cookies.

15. Start a Pet-Sitting Business

If you prefer your coworkers to be the four-legged variety, snagging a job as a pet sitter could be the job you’ve been begging for (as if you thought I wouldn’t go there).

Posting notices on your local social networks will help you find owners in need of walkers, sitters and general companions for their fur babies.

Want to improve your rate of hire as a newbie? Instill trust by snapping a few photos of the pet when you’re with them, then send them to the owner, according to Lisa Peddicord, who has a pet-sitting side gig.

How much money can you make? Peddicord told The Penny Hoarder she made just under $10,000 in 2018.

16. Walk Dogs With Rover

If you’re looking for a flexible, independent way to earn money — and you love hanging out with dogs — Rover might be your perfect gig.

The online network connects dog walkers and sitters to local dog owners through its 4.9-star-rated app, so you don’t have to staple flyers on every utility pole across town.

Rover dog-sitter requirements vary by location. In general, you must:

Be 18 years or older.

Pass a background check.

Have access to the Rover app (iOS or Android).

Here’s how it works: You’ll create an online sitter profile where you’ll answer questions about your experience with puppers and your schedule availability.

You can choose to offer a variety of services, including dog walking, overnight boarding at your home or theirs, and daycare. Boarding is the app’s most popular service, so offering it can get you more gigs. You set your own rates. (Rover keeps a small percentage as a service fee.)

Dog owners will reach out to you. Accept which gigs you want, then start snugglin’ pups. As soon as you complete a service, you’ll be paid within two days.

How much money can you make? Rover says sitters can earn as much as $1,000 a month.

17. Deliver Groceries Through Shipt and Instacart

Enjoy spending money but still need to make some? You can pocket cash if you’re willing to shop for other people — particularly for their food — and drop it off at their homes.

So if you have a keen eye for kiwi or a knack for knowing your knockwurst, you could make bank shopping and delivering groceries for Shipt or Instacart, on-demand grocery-delivery services.

To get started, you’ll sign up for an account, then select your schedule based on your availability. Instacart lets you pick between shopping and delivering or just shopping in-store, so you don’t even necessarily need a car.

You’ll receive orders through the company app and can communicate directly with the customers in case the store is all out of their preferred brand of pickled pig’s feet.

How much money can you make? Instacart shoppers in larger metropolitan areas can make $25 per hour during high-demand times, according to Instacart Boston city manager Nima Zahedi. Shipt notes on its website that shoppers make an average of $22 an hour, and Shipt shopper Destiny Firth told us she made approximately $600 per week (including tips) working 35 hours per week.

18. Sell Your Old Video Games

That old Mario Kart at the bottom of your video-game bin could be making you money instead of collecting dust.

Penny Hoarder Staff Writer Adam Hardy used GameStop’s rather stingy buyback policy to his advantage by swapping store credit for gift cards and maximizing his profit.

How much money can you make? GameStop originally offered Hardy $72.40 cash for his games, but he opted for the $111.14 Shell Gas card instead, which he could then trade on CardPool for $95.58 cash.

19. Become an Airbnb Host

Have a spare room? Might as well try to earn some money by listing it on Airbnb.

If you’re a good host with a desirable space, you could add hundreds — even thousands — of dollars to your savings account with Airbnb.

A few simple steps can make the difference between a great experience and a less-than-satisfactory one. We talked to Terence Michael, an Airbnb superhost based in Los Angeles.

Here are some of his tips:

Break out the labelmaker. “I have the entire house loaded with labels,” Michael says. “They look nice; they’re modern. This helps people feel less helpless.”

Be a good host, and stock your place with the toiletries you’d expect at a hotel — toilet paper, soap and towels. Here’s a little hack from Michael: “I order on Amazon and have it delivered when people are there.”

Be kind to your neighbors. “I say, ‘I’m not going to put anyone here who I think won’t be good for you,’” Michael explains. “And I turn a lot of big groups away, especially in Nashville. I don’t want anyone going to the cops or the city.”

How much money can you make? Figure your potential earnings with this Airbnb calculator.

(Hosting laws vary from city to city. Please understand the rules and regulations applicable to your city and listing.)

20. Rent Out Your Ride on Getaround

It doesn’t seem fair: While you toil away at the office all day, what is your car doing?

Living the sweet life in a parking garage.

Make that freeloader earn its keep by renting out your ride during your workday. (You can also do it on weekends you prefer to stay in and binge watch “The Good Place.”)

Peer-to-peer car rentals let you lend your car and pocket the cash. Getaround, available in New Jersey and 13 cities in other states, allows you to list your vehicle for free.

How much money can you make? Getaround says users can make up to $800 a month.

21. Find Baby-sitting Jobs on Care.com

You can recite the names of every Paw Patrol member, you knew Doc McStuffins when she was just a resident and you can sing every verse of “Baby Shark” — with a smile.

You were born to baby-sit.

If you’re the responsible type and love kids, baby-sitting can be an easy gig to pick up on the side, starting with your own friends and family

And services like Care.com can expand your client base beyond your inner circle — plus, it lets you choose other caregiving options like pet sitting or senior care.

How much money can you make? The average baby-sitting rate was $16.20 per hour, according to a 2018 Care.com Cost of Care Survey.

Make Money on Social Media

You already spend a lot of time on social media, so why not make some fast cash there, right?

Most people who make big money do so based on the size of their audience (hello, Kardashians). But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to make some bank — especially if you have a loyal following that has the potential to grow.

Considering 70% of teenage YouTube subscribers say they relate to YouTube creators more than traditional celebrities, there’s plenty of reason to believe that even smaller social media influencers can attract advertiser dollars.

If you’re among that group of influencers, there are ways to grow your audience, build a professional profile and thus attract more money. Online platforms like Kred, Klear and GroupHigh can help you connect with companies that will pay you to mention their brands to your audience.

Ready for the spotlight? Check out these ways to make money on social media.

22. Stream on Twitch

Your mom was wrong. Playing video games might not be a waste of your time after all.

Cory Michael started streaming his gaming sessions and over four years attracted 29 million people to watch him tackle Destiny and other multiplayer online games. As a result, Twitch accepted his partnership application and agreed to pay him to play.

How much money can you make? Michael explained to The Penny Hoarder that there are three ways to make money streaming on Twitch: tipping, ad revenue and subscriptions. Top Twitch streamers can earn hundreds of thousands of dollars per month.

23. Produce Videos for YouTube

Put that camera phone to work by making some bucks logging your life, times and cat videos on YouTube.

But you’ll need more viewers than your biggest fan (thanks, grandma!) to make money on the video streaming site. To be reviewed for the YouTube Partner Program, your channel must have at least 4,000 watch hours in the previous 12 months and 1,000 subscribers.

Linden Wolbert, who makes a living performing as a mermaid, said she loves teaching kids about the ocean on “Mermaid Minute,” an educational web series she launched on the YouTube channel in 2012. But after YouTube raised the bar for its Partner Program in 2017, “It’s become a lot more challenging,” she said.

To help attract more eyeballs to your site and reach the threshold, the YouTube Creators channel advises vloggers to post new videos consistently and frequently — think Monday through Friday at 3 p.m., no matter what your cat did that day.

Your channel can make money through advertising, subscribers and Super Chats — that’s where fans can pay extra to add a highlighted message to the chat as you live stream.

How much money can you make? Wolbert made four figures a month before YouTube updated its algorithms, but YouTube indicates there are opportunities to earn even more money. Its press page states that the number of channels earning five figures per year grew 50% year over year.

How to Make Passive Income

Even if you don’t have the free time to take on a part-time job, you can still make money by putting in a little front-end work.

It’s called passive income, and we’ve found ways to help you pad your bank account without lifting a finger (or at least maybe not all of them).

24. Earn Cash Back on Purchases With Ebates

Instead of handing over all your hard-earned money when checking out, how’d you like to earn some of that cash back?

Ebates lets you earn anywhere from 1% to 25% on purchases you make at its retailers; (there are 2,500, so lots of options). You can sign up for free using your Facebook or Google account.

By clicking the “shop now” button before you check out, a percentage of the price goes back to your Ebates account.

How much money can you make? On its site, Ebates says you can earn a $10 Walmart gift card or Ebates cash bonus by spending at least $25 and making your first purchase through the site within 90 days of signing up.

25. Upload Your Receipts to Ibotta

You’re already a coupon cutter (right? right?!?), so discover another easy way to make cash back on your groceries with the Ibotta app.

After you sign up for an account, click the little addition sign next to the products you can save on (just like couponing, but without the scissors). Then upload a picture of your receipt, and Ibotta deposits the amount saved into your account. You’ll get a $10 sign-up bonus after you upload your first receipt. Once you reach the $20 minimum, you can cash out through PayPal or Venmo.

Even better, the app isn’t limited to grocery store purchases — you can earn cash back on other shopping and travel, too.

How much money can you make? Penny Hoarder staffer Colleen Rice earned approximately $45 from Ibotta during one road trip by finding cash-back deals on Hotels.com.

26. Invest in Real Estate

Even if you’re not exactly the handy type (hand raised) or you don’t have cash to sink into million-dollar properties (both hands raised), you can make passive income from real estate through online investment options like Fundrise.

For as little as $500, you can join the crowdfunding-style real estate investment platform, which invests in American properties. Learn more in The Penny Hoarder’s review of Fundrise.

How much money can you make? Fundrise has seen historical returns of 8.7% to 12.4%. (Note: As with any investment, past performance isn’t indicative of future results.)

27. Earn Interest on Savings Accounts

Will you get rich quick putting your money in a savings account? No.

But if you’ve been leaving your money to waste away in a traditional savings account with its minuscule returns — or you don’t have a savings account at all — high-yield online savings accounts can offer you at least some passive income.

Varo Money combines traditional banking tools with modern technology to help its customers become financially healthy.

Here’s the best part: Pair your bank account with a Varo Savings Account, where you’ll earn 2.1% annual percentage yield. That’s 35 times — repeat, 35 times — the average savings account, based on a 0.06% average reported by CNN Money.

Varo goes easy on the fees, too. As long as you use one of its 55,000 ATMs across the world, you’ll never pay fees.

Additionally, you’ll pay no monthly service fees, no minimum balance fees, no foreign transaction fees and no cash replacement fees. You’ll just pay any fees charged by out-of-network ATMs and cash deposit fees if you deposit cash in-store through Green Dot.

How much money can you make? If you tuck away $1,000 in an account with a 2.1% annual percentage yield (APY), you’ll earn an extra $21 this year.  

28. Use Credit Card Points

Wait a second, you say, I’m trying to make money, not spend it!

But you do have to spend money on some essentials, right? Like groceries and gas?

I can speak from personal experience that collecting points on these purchases can help you earn cash back and gift cards.

The key to this being worthwhile, though, is that you must pay off your credit card each month. Otherwise, the interest you’re paying on the balance negates any profit you’re making through point accumulation.

How much money can you make? I received $250 in Target gift cards last year by using points I earned on my Mastercard.

How to Make More Money at Your Job

This may seem like an obvious option — you’re already making money at your job, right? (If not, find another job.) But since your employer is already a source for earning cash, why not consider it as an option for making more money?

29. Ask for More Hours (and More Money)

If you’re working a part-time job, one way to make more money is to ask for more hours.

In addition to the extra cash, a full-time position may offer more benefits, like paid time off and health insurance coverage.

Make your case for more hours with a list of current accomplishments and ways you can further help the company, suggests career strategist Emily Kapit of ReFreshYourStep.com.

“You set yourself up for the best chance of success… if you go in prepared and also positioning it as helping the manager,” Kapit said. “You’re going to feel more empowered.”

Check out this article for more tips for turning your part-time gig into a full-time job.

How much money can you make? It depends on how many additional hours you can snag. And since benefits account for 31.8% of an employee’s total compensation, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, be sure to check out this article to figure out your total compensation package.

30. Ask for a Raise

Wouldn’t it be great if your boss just said, “Hey there, superstar, how’d you like a big pile of money for being awesome?”

That probably won’t happen. (And if it does, don’t do the humblebrag thing on Facebook. It’s annoying.)

If you want to ask for a raise, you should first know whether you’re in a good position to negotiate, according to Michelle Tillis Lederman, CEO of Executive Essentials and author of “The Connector’s Advantage.”

“Are you getting good assignments? Are your getting good feedback?” Lederman asked. “What was your performance-review comment? Did you exceed expectations, or did you just meet expectations?”

Before scheduling a meeting with your boss, arm yourself. Check out salary-comparison calculators on sites like Glassdoor, and document your work wins — and the approximate value they add to the company — to prove your worth. And don’t forget to check out what the competition is offering someone with a job similar to yours.

How much money can you make? Chad Busta told The Penny Hoarder he used a competing offer to negotiate with his current employer for a 6% pay raise and the ability to work from home.

More Ways to Make Money

Here’s the thing to keep in mind about making money: No matter what the flimflam artists may claim, you generally don’t make money without any effort.

But instead of dreaming about making a million dollars by posting videos of your cat on YouTube, you can realistically expect to make extra cash by putting in some time and effort.

That’s been Cherry’s experience. She says that by working a few hours every day, she’s earned money to help her family — and to enjoy a few perks.

“If I earn a certain amount of money, I say I’ll give myself 10%, and then I put it toward what I want,” she said. “It just makes me happy that I’m earning something and that I can buy myself a little extra.”

And if you’re looking for even more ways to make bank, check out our post on side jobs to make extra money.

Happy earning!

Tiffany Wendeln Connors is a writer/editor for The Penny Hoarder. Find her on Twitter @TiffanyWendeln.

This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.

The Penny Hoarder Promise: We provide accurate, reliable information. Here’s why you can trust us and how we make money.

Need More Money? Here Are 30 Ways to Earn Extra Cash in 2019 published first on https://justinbetreviews.tumblr.com/

[morrisbrokaw]

How to Plan Your Dream Wedding When You Think Wedding Planning is for the Birds

Let me preface this story with – I have always wanted to get married. Ever since I was little. Since the impressionable age of six when my parents finalized their divorce, I knew from that moment on that life was never going to be the same and I’ve longed for that nuclear family dynamic ever since.

I think from that moment on I told myself that my life would be different. Although my family is amazing, I so deeply wanted to create a family structure that was solid and all in one household. The thought of not driving around to 4 different homes on Christmas just seemed like a dream. The truth is, I’ve always loved love and always believed you can write your own story. No matter what the odds are and no matter what everyone else says. It may sound cheesy but I firmly believe that you can create your own destiny. You pick the players; you call the shots. This is the book of your life and it is up to you to write every chapter.

So fast forward 24 years, to the morning I got engaged at 6:45 am with nearly 100 candles lining the floor all around my living room on my 30th birthday. Kind of a surreal moment. I was blindfolded and while I could feel Muhamed down on one knee proposing I thought to myself Wow, I can’t believe this is happening right now. It was like one of those once in a lifetime moments when everything becomes very slow and still; you can feel your heartbeat in your throat and you wonder if you are acting the right way and saying all the right things. But then you are just straight shell-shocked for 12 full minutes afterward and you keep repeating random comments like “WOW!” “Are you serious?” until you start randomly crying. Sounds about right. That was such a good day, and I’ll never forget it.

I guess this is a love story of sorts but this is mostly a wedding planning story. Because the truth is, I really wanted to get married, but I also very much wanted to elope. If you can believe that. And Muhamed, the one who didn’t quite want to get married apparently couldn’t live without a huge wedding. Go figure. That is life for you. So here we were. Knee deep in planning a gigantic wedding, which was throwing my detail-oriented, perfectionist OCD tendencies into a full-blown tailspin.

And while my wedding is still very fresh in my memory, I want to give you all the best takeaways and learnings I can possibly think of so that your big day can go as smoothly as physically and emotionally possible.

First things first! Pick your venue. I did this right away and it helped set everything in motion. When you pick your venue, you simultaneously set your wedding date and you also figure out what the venue can offer you when it comes to catering, drinks, music and every other accommodation under the sun. So really picking your venue gets the proverbial ball rolling. We decided on Mayowood Stone Barn in Rochester, MN. It was the perfect mix of old-fashioned elegance paired with the rustic outdoors. I loved the European equestrian style and feel of the location which opened up to a huge farm field surrounded by picturesque woods. The staff was also wonderful to work with which was a huge plus.

Next thing to do is find your dress! They say it takes 5 months for design, shipping, and then a couple additional months for alterations. And if I am going to be completely honest with you – finding my dress was an ultimate nightmare. I went to 11 stores. Some women find their dress at the first store, well, that was not me. Give yourself enough time not to feel stressed. I say start early on this one. Also, you will need your wedding shoes before you begin dress alterations; I decided on a pair of Badgley Mischka’s which were comfortable and had just the right amount of sparkle.

Right around the time you say “yes to the dress” (roughly 9 months before your wedding date) is when you should begin interviewing potential photographers and videographers. My good friend Colleen Eversman of 2ndTruth Photography offered to shoot our wedding as a gift which was amazingly kind of her. She and her second-shooting side-kick, Josh Olson Photography, did such an incredible job. I would highly recommend interviewing a handful of photographers + videographers and really taking a peek at their portfolios and pricing packages before you go ahead with your selection. The main takeaway is you want to feel unbelievably comfortable shooting with them. In an attempt to save money, I said no to hiring a videographer which I deeply regret! But I had to draw the line somewhere when it came to our continuous spending. I think in the wild world of wedding planning weighing the pros and cons and asking what is most important to you and your partner helps a great deal when you’re attempting to finalize the plans and make some of those harder last minute decisions.

I would advise that you start your wedding invites and address list asap. This took me WAY longer than anticipated. Perfecting the addresses and invites took me nearly 3 months. I would also highly suggest sending out “Save the Dates” at least 6-8 months before the wedding, some sites even say 8-12 months before. I did not do this and this is one of my biggest regrets. Begin reaching out for all your loved one’s addresses now and compile that list! After I finally sent the wedding invites out (4 months before the wedding) I received several replies that potential attendees already had plans, which totally bummed me out.

I asked my good friend, design maven and colleague at W&D, Judith Marilyn to create my invites. She was striving for a classic bohemian elegance with them and I was so happy with the way they turned out. I loved the feel of the vintage font and flowers.

I highly recommend reading this book at the beginning of your wedding planning journey Love, Lust, Wedding Planning for the Wild at Heart. Because it’s just fun and it gets you in the mood. Molly Guy is hilarious and just an all-around badass writer and human, not to mention a total inspiration to me. But in all seriousness, this book really opened my eyes to creating your very own dream wedding just the way YOU want it. Not anyone else. It reminds you that you don’t need to follow any rules and you can make your big day everything you want it to be. Even if you want something avant-garde like a Batman cake or a bohemian bungalow to hang out in for your reception. Because after all, your wedding should be a special celebration of the unique love between you and your partner and not just a replica of someone else’s nuptials.

Before you send out your invites makes sure you create your wedding website and registry. I made mine on The Knot and it was pretty simple once I actually sat down to do it. The Knot also offers you quite a few project management tools and reminders of to-do items that I would have most certainly forgotten. You can go as deep into the woods with this website as you’d like.

I was lucky enough to have my catering and cake/desserts included in my wedding venue package, but I would suggest seeking these vendors out 7-10 months before your wedding date to be safe. Asking around to friends and family for recommendations was super helpful in finding the right vendors. It’s fun and romantic to experience these tastings with your partner as you craft what your perfect day will look like each step of the way together.

Pick your florist at least 8-9 months out and I would definitely hire at least a day-of coordinator, if not a wedding planner. I went with Maven Events for both and they were phenomenal. Very laid back and easy to work with but when it came to the big day they nailed every minute detail. Their florals and decorations were absolutely stunning, effortlessly classy and beyond beautiful. I cannot say enough good things about Kelly and her team. I received a myriad of compliments regarding the decor, thanks to them. Combining our florist and coordinator was a dream-like experience, too. With wedding planning, it’s helpful to kill two birds with one stone as often as possible, because that means fewer people to talk to and less projects to manage.

Also, if you have time, it’s fun to get crafty with your wedding. I thrifted nearly twenty vintage medicine bottles for each table, Kate then designed the gold table numbers, printed them out on the Cricut and we placed them onto my vintage bottles. This was an extremely rewarding and effortless project which saved us time and money and I’m happy to report they turned out perfect! Muhamed and I also decided to make our own name cards which turned out to be a success but this was rather time-consuming. We bought vintage-looking postage stamp paper from Michaels and I used a calligraphy pen to write everyone’s name in cursive. During the reception, we asked everyone to write us a handwritten note on their name card and place them in the envelope on their table. It was so entertaining reading all of the humorous and heartfelt letters the next day.

Figuring out my hair and makeup was a little tricky for me. I went back and forth with should I save here or should I splurge? In the end, what is a couple extra hundred dollars within a wedding? I would definitely recommend splurging on this one. I think feeling and looking amazing on one of the most important days of your life is 100% necessary. Especially a day that is wrought with extreme nerves and unexpected emotions – looking my absolute best definitely helped ease my nerves quite a bit. When you feel good about yourself that confidence seems to exude outward, so I highly recommend getting a few consultations and going with a team of artists that make you feel the most beautiful you’ve ever felt, and most importantly, the most like you. You should feel like a movie star version of yourself. Anything less is not good enough! I ended up going with my good friend Sal Rodriguez for makeup and local all-star Jen Hughes for hair, I like to call them the dream team, because they really are! If you live in the Twin Cities area I highly recommend hiring these two for your glam squad.

Rewind to 30 days before the wedding. I was officially stressing big time. Every day counts when you are at the month countdown. Every night after work was spent doing something wedding oriented and at this point, my wedding day and my remaining to-do list were beginning to haunt my dreams, ha literally.

Now it was time to write the ceremony, finalize the music, print the table numbers, complete the name cards, create a shot list for our photographer, and I was still following up with people who didn’t RSVP. I was also planning my bridesmaids’ presents at this time. And really taking a close look at timelines (which my coordinator helped me to create.) Another positive aspect about a coordinator is that they educate you on all of the little things that there is no way you would ever know even exist! Like how long the dinner speeches should be, telling your officiant to remind your guests to be seated before they begin speaking and interesting things like when to cut the cake so the caterer has time to slice up the entire cake. Day of coordinators and planners are so worth it! Unless you are hyper-organized, but either way, you will need to hire a helper to set everything up on the day of if you do not have a coordinator. The last thing you want is to feel stressed about anything (besides yourself) on your big day.

Also, a word to the wise, budget smartly friends, because no matter what you do weddings are ALWAYS more than you think they will be, so I highly suggest saving as much as you can, as soon as you can, and possibly having those hard conversations with your parents pretty early on as to how much they are all planning to contribute.

Another experience I want to echo is that planning a first look with your partner before the ceremony really helps release a lot of the nervous tension and built-up emotions before you have to walk out in front of everyone. I felt really calm and at ease during our ceremony knowing that Muhamed and I got to spend an hour together before the wedding. It was also nice to get all our photos out of the way before the guests arrived that way after the ceremony we got right into socializing and sipping on that celebratory glass of Prosecco.

Finally, everyone always says your wedding day goes by in a blur, which couldn’t be more true. After the wedding I found myself searching every crevice of my mind to remember who I talked to and if I got to say hi to each guest. I almost felt as though I blacked out when I couldn’t remember certain conversations, it is such an overstimulating blur but in the best way. After the big day, I thought I’d be relieved that all the planning and stress was finally over, but the first thing that came to my mind that next morning was how I longed so deeply to do it all over again. If I wasn’t so exhausted of course.

It was such a magical day filled with all the people I cherish most in the world. I’ve never felt so much love in one collective space. After fighting Muhamed tooth and nail to elope I had to say those dreaded words to him the next day, “You were right.” I don’t regret the large wedding in the least, it was worth all the stress and every single penny. It was the party of a lifetime that I’ll hold close to my heart forever.

I was so happy that all my beautiful W&D girls came out for the wedding too!

What happens after it’s all over, you ask? Well, I’m finally on to making sure I get out those 250 “Thank You” cards out before the end of August! Another wedding hack, make sure you write down everything you’re gifted as all the presents roll in, from your bridal shower to your big day, there is a 3-month window where all the gifts begin to arrive and if you don’t document everything carefully your long-list of presents can become a bit unorganized and overwhelming.

Well, I hope this list helps a few of you that are currently wedding planning! I would love to hear your favorite wedding memories or any tips and tricks you have for future brides in the comments below!

Here is my top list of resources for planning your personal dream wedding

Must-have wedding book for inspo: Love, Lust, Wedding Planning for the Wild at Heart.

Favorite wedding website to create your website and registry: The Knot

Here are a few different wedding checklists to make sure you have everything covered! I scoured the internet and then collectively created my own. The Knot has a great list too that is catered around your personal wedding timeline: The Only Wedding Planning Checklist You Will Ever Need // The Ultimate Wedding Planning Checklist // Wedding Checklist

      The post How to Plan Your Dream Wedding When You Think Wedding Planning is for the Birds appeared first on Wit & Delight.

How to Plan Your Dream Wedding When You Think Wedding Planning is for the Birds published first on https://workbootsandshoes.tumblr.com/

[argotmagazine-blog]

The Extraordinary Longevity of Ordinary Objects

A couple of months ago, I moved for the first time in five years. What surprised me the most, other than high rent prices in the Bay Area and the extent to which the landscape had changed compared to my childhood memories, was the amount of stuff I had accumulated. I kept a lot of crap, no longer discarding my unnecessary belongings by moving to a new apartment every year, or moving back to my parents' for the summer in between school years. Stuff that I honestly forgot I had. Old lipsticks and eye shadows that had dried out, bed sheets from my dorm life, batteries of all types, so numerous I couldn't tell the difference between the charged one or the dead ones. Old IKEA boxes we had latched onto "for moving" and how we were loathe to get rid of such things, because "We might need it later." It felt expensive and wasteful throwing things away when you can't afford to replace them and might need them "later."

Dust collected in the corners of our towers of belongings, trapping us in a cathedral of forgotten goods. There would be one path in and out, so my wife and I would have to scoot out of one place if another wanted to walk by. Rarely would guests come over, simply because there wasn’t much space for a comfortable visit. When your bed becomes the center of meaning in your apartment, the place where your meals are consumed, words are written, as well as the majority of your time at home, it was not unlike living in a dorm room, with the  feeling that I was in this purgatory of an undergraduate lifestyle.

All this stuff didn't make me happy. It bothered me. I felt like I was kept hostage by all my stuff and couldn't move freely throughout my living space. I would trip and inevitably cause a tower of carefully placed mail, magazines, and promotional keychains cascading to the floor, another mess to tiptoe around and later, pick up. My elbows would brush against another precarious stack invariably five minutes later. No, we weren't hoarders. Just living in a rent-controlled basement studio apartment in San Francisco. The golden handcuffs, where you couldn't move without paying exorbitantly more in monthly rent and having the requisite six roommates to make that said monthly rent. When we found our one bedroom, one bathroom in Berkeley, it felt like an opening for a new beginning. We could finally get our cat, couch, and a coat rack, a mantra my wife and I said to each other while lying in our full size bed. It may not sound like much, but it's the little things that make a difference when you have little space.

I learned where I got it from once my father helped us move. He brought my old space heater that kept me warm when I was child in the early 90s. I couldn't believe my eyes that this rickety radiator adjacent appliance had outlasted our years in my childhood home, kept among the debris of old soccer trophies, swim team ribbons, and sheets of piano music. When I went back to my parents apartment to gather my books that had been patiently waiting for me to have enough room for them five years later, I sorted through the artifacts of their own dreams too expensive to discard; sheets wrapped in plastic envelopes, sustainably sourced bamboo wooden spoons still in their mesh packaging, a Nutribullet in mint condition, and other various "as seen on TV" kitchen gadgets. So many new things just waiting to be used when the older version "wore out."

Clearly this is not limited to my wife and I. As soon as we moved to Berkeley, we noticed new phenomena that people just…left stuff in front of other houses; old cribs, couches, a nonfunctional microwave. Buildings had signs emblazoned with "No Dumping" which finally made sense as we walked along hand in hand amongst the flotsam and jetsam of our street. Why would people just leave things for someone else to deal with, rather than throw them out themselves? I didn’t understand how people could offload their responsibility of stuff on others. However, getting rid of stuff is expensive. Junk removal costs money, city infrastructure for recycling costs tax dollars in short supply. It's easier to throw it away in landfill for those who are not fortunate enough to live in a wealthy city with new and developing recycling programs like San Francisco (for example, you can now recycle coffee cups in SF, plastic lid, sleeve and all).

But first, we needed to get rid of a lot of shit that wouldn't fit in the new apartment. We had old clothes, shoes, appliances, electronics, and tons of promotional items to get rid of (don't ever accept a free tote bag, y'all!). And we wanted to do it sustainably, instead of throwing away everything into landfill. For one, there wasn't enough room as we were moving because our landlord died. Her children were dealing with a lifetime's worth of belongings by cramming everything into the garbage bin week by week. 81 years of living cannot be discarded in any meaningful way with this method. Ultimately, they hired junk removers but when we left; her children still weren't finished. They had just excavated the garage, jaws dropping at the sight of old Elizabeth Arden face cream from 1985, vintage furs moulding in the San Francisco fog, and so many rusted cans of paint. The story of stuff is nothing new. We only take ourselves to the grave, leaving behind our lives in belongings for our descendents to manage.

You've found these formerly owned possessions before in your local thrift store, on the sidewalk, and in your home. We define ourselves by material, what we wear, and how they are signifiers of our identities,, rather than by our actions and what we say. I recall reading "If you're holding onto something out of guilt, get rid of it." There was so much guilt in all the possessions I held onto. The potential of what I could be, who I would be held in the promise of smaller sized clothing, clothes I made for myself that ended up being unwearable, and the things my mother purchased for me, forming me into her ideal image of a daughter. I tried to purge myself of these as I moved to Berkeley, to shed an old skin, so I could grow a new one, tender under the sun.

Textiles, the new frontier for recycling in San Francisco, became easier than ever to rid ourselves of, no longer beholden to the gatekeepers at Crossroads or Buffalo exchange to give us paltry dollars in exchange for our outdated threads. We could just put our clean fabric and unwanted clothes in a clear plastic bag, and it could go in the blue recycling bin. Before 2018, we had to go to retail clothing stores that had a bin for recycled textiles, but the bins would always be full to bursting. After all, fast fashion is a booming and toxic industry, with most synthetic petroleum based fibers taking decades to decompose. The average American throws away 68 pounds of textiles per year. Inundated with messages about our dwindling resources, San Francisco citizens wanted to do their part. But the infrastructure couldn't meet the demand.

With 45 in the White House, the EPA loosening restrictions for air pollution, and Jakarta sinking due the rising waters of climate change, as citizens of the human species we can no longer grant an all access pass to the stuff that comes into our lives. Ideally, everyone's carbon footprint would be zero, there would be no single use plastics, and we would bring our own reusable coffee cups to every café. But that is not the reality. Consumer capitalism encourages us to participate effectively by marketing everything to us. Flyers that withstand the rain have a special plastic coating are now unrecyclable. The advent of online shopping and Amazon have increased the amount of cardboard our local recycling facilities intake every day. As I write this on top of Grizzly Peak overlooking the entire Bay Area, there are rusted bottle caps, cigarette butts, bits of broken glass littering the ground next to my feet. Human brought these with them. And they left them behind.

What do you do with your shoelaces, once you are done with them? The plastic ends of the shoelaces doesn't allow for it to be textile recycled, you can't recycle the plastic coating bits in your home recycling bin. So you throw them away. Teabags with staples cannot be composted, or recycled, so into the trash it goes. What about all those plastic eyeliner pencils you don't have to sharpen but just twist up? So convenient! Yet into the trash bin it goes, because we haven't figure out a way to recycle those either. It goes back to the manufacturer, the research and design process, with items being invented to collect your dollars, short-term profits, and your customer loyalty over the next organization marketing a lifestyle, a way of looking, or even just eating. The brands that are trying, such as Lush Cosmetics, are incredibly popular thanks to their green-washing marketing. Environmentalism is also feminist issue, as the majority of women produce, grow, and feed the world as well as fulfill the roles as nurturers of their families. We will all be subject to rising tides, volatile weather that will harm crop production, affect where humans can live, and what we can eat. But ultimately, stakeholder profits are on the line and sustainability is simply, too expensive and seen as repressing innovation. Just ask Trump.

Every single item of human origin needs to have a method of disposal for it to be considered "sustainable." Despite this fact, during product research and design, the main factor is often marketability, user-friendliness, and built-in obsolescence for when the company wants you to upgrade; not whether the packaging will decompose in a short amount of time or a made from durable materials. Other countries, such as India, are already considering this in their industrial processes. Yet America is heading in the opposite direction and has pulled out of the Paris Agreement regarding climate change. What can we do?

You can start in your very own community. Find the person in your apartment complex who keeps throwing away their plastic bottles in the trash can…or the compost. Strike up a conversation, teach them about recycling or be the person who volunteers at your recycling center. It will change the way you view our mass consumption habits. Clean up your neighborhood by picking up litter with your friends. I promise you, it’s there if you take a second look. Humans did this to the Earth, but we can fix it. Repair items, instead of throwing away and replacing them. Stop impulse-purchasing stuff that will go out of fashion in a season. Do you really need that polyester unicorn headband that you're only using for one outfit? It's not the amount of objects and possessions you surround yourself with that matter, but whether it improves your quality of life. My wife and I were trapped by our belongings in our old home. In some ways, we still are in our new one. Stacks of DVDs, sewing supplies, and other abandoned hobbies when we had time for them have followed us into the new apartment. Yet we still haven't unpacked them because, well, there's no place for them to go.

There is something awe-inspiring that despite our best intentions, our human bodies don't remain on this earth nearly as long as the plastic items that we used. Awe-inspiring and awful in its longevity.

Dust collected in the corners of our towers of belongings, trapping us in a cathedral of forgotten goods, not unlike the Room of Requirement where Draco practiced his vanishing cabinets in The Half-Blood Prince. There would be one path in and out, so my wife and I would have to scoot out of one place if another wanted to walk by. Rarely would guests come over, simply because there was not much space for a comfortable visit. When your bed becomes the center of meaning in your apartment, the place where your meals are consumed, words are written, as well as the majority of your time at home, it was not unlike living in a dorm room, still feeling like I was in this purgatory of an undergraduate lifestyle. 

All this stuff didn't make me happy. It bothered me. I felt like I was kept hostage by all my stuff and couldn't move freely throughout my living space. I would trip and inevitably cause a tower of carefully placed mail, magazines, and promotional key chains cascading to the floor, another mess to tiptoe around and later, pick up. My elbows would brush against another precarious stack invariably five minutes later. No, we weren't hoarders. Just living in a rent-controlled basement studio apartment in San Francisco. The golden handcuffs, where you couldn't move without paying exorbitantly more in monthly rent and having the requisite six roommates to make that said monthly rent. When we found our 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom in Berkeley, it felt like an opening for a new beginning. We could finally get our cat, couch, and a coat rack, a mantra my wife and I said to each other while lying in our full-size bed. It may not sound like much, but it's the little things that make a difference when you have little space. 

I learned where I got it from once my father helped us move. He brought the old space heater that kept me warm when I was a child in the early 90s. I couldn't believe my eyes that this rickety radiator adjacent appliance had outlasted our years in my childhood home, kept among the debris of old soccer trophies, swim team ribbons, and sheets of piano music. When I went back to my parents apartment to gather my books that had been patiently waiting for me to have enough room for them five years later, I sorted through the artifacts of their own dreams too expensive to discard; sheets wrapped in plastic envelopes, sustainably sourced bamboo wooden spoons still in their mesh packaging, a Nutribullet in mint condition, and other various "as seen on TV" kitchen gadgets. So many new things just waiting to be used when the older version "wore out."

Clearly this is not limited to only my wife and I. As soon as we moved to Berkeley, we noticed new phenomena that people just…left stuff in front of other houses; old cribs, couches, a nonfunctional microwave. Buildings had signs emblazoned with "No Dumping" which finally made sense as we walked along hand in hand amongst the flotsam and jetsam of our street. Why would people just leave things for someone else to deal with, rather than throw them out themselves? I didn’t understand how people could offload their responsibility of stuff on others. However, getting rid of stuff is expensive. Junk removal costs money, city infrastructure for recycling costs tax dollars in short supply. It's easier to throw it away in landfill for those who are not fortunate enough to live in a wealthy city with new and developing recycling programs like San Francisco (for example, you can now recycle coffee cups in SF, plastic lid, sleeve and all).

But first, we needed to get rid of a lot of shit that wouldn't fit in the new apartment. We had old clothes, shoes, appliances, electronics, and tons of promotional items to get rid of (don't ever accept a free tote bag, y'all!). And we wanted to do it sustainably, instead of throwing away everything into the landfill bin. For one, there wasn't enough room as we were moving because our landlord died. Her children were dealing with a lifetime's worth of belongings by cramming everything into the garbage bin week by week. 81 years of living cannot be discarded in any meaningful way with this method. Ultimately, they hired junk removers but when we left; her children still weren't finished. They had just excavated the garage, jaws dropped at the sight of old Elizabeth Arden face cream from 1985, vintage furs molding in the San Francisco fog, and so many rusted cans of paint. The story of stuff is nothing new. We only take ourselves to the grave, leaving behind our lives in possessions for our descendants to manage. 

You've found these formerly owned possessions before in your local thrift store, on the sidewalk, and in your home. We define ourselves by our possessions, what we wear, and how they are signifiers of our identities, rather than by our actions and what we say. I recall reading "If you're holding onto something out of guilt, get rid of it." There was so much guilt in all the possessions I held onto. The potential of what I could be, who I would be held in the promise of smaller sized clothing, clothes I made for myself that ended up being unwearable, and the things my mother purchased for me, forming me into her ideal image of a daughter. Yet I tried to purge myself of these as I moved to Berkeley, to shed an old skin, so I could grow a new one, tender under the sun.

Textiles, the new frontier for recycling in San Francisco, became easier than ever to rid ourselves of, no longer beholden to the gatekeepers at Crossroads or Buffalo exchange to give us paltry dollars in exchange for our outdated threads. We could just put our clean fabric and unwanted clothes in a clear plastic bag, and it could go in the blue recycling bin. Before 2018, we had to go to retail clothing stores that had a bin for recycled textiles, but the bins would always be full to bursting. After all, fast fashion is a booming toxic industry, with most synthetic petroleum-based fibers taking decades to decompose. The average American throws away 68 pounds of textiles per year. Inundated with messages about our dwindling resources, San Francisco citizens wanted to do their part. But the infrastructure couldn't meet the demand.

With 45 in the White House, the EPA loosening restrictions for air pollution, and Jakarta sinking due to the rising waters of climate change, as citizens of the human species we can no longer grant an all-access pass to the stuff that comes into our lives. Ideally, everyone's carbon footprint would be zero, there would be no single-use plastics, and we would bring our own reusable coffee cups to every café. But that is not the reality. Consumer capitalism encourages us to participate effectively by marketing everything to us. Flyers that withstand the rain have a special plastic coating are now unrecyclable. The advent of Google Express and Amazon have increased the amount of cardboard our local recycling facilities intake every day. As I write this on top of Grizzly Peak overlooking the entire Bay Area, there are rusted bottle caps, cigarette butts, bits of broken glass littering the ground next to my feet. Human brought these with them. And they left them behind.

What do you do with your shoelaces, once you are done with them? The plastic ends of the shoelaces don't allow for it to be textile recycled, you can't recycle the plastic coating bits in your home recycling bin. So you throw them away. Teabags with staples cannot be composted, or recycled, so into the trash it goes. What about all those plastic eyeliner pencils you don't have to sharpen but just twist up? So convenient! Yet into the trash bin it goes, because we haven't figure out a way to recycle those either. It goes back to the manufacturer, the research, and design process, with items being invented to collect your dollars, short-term profits, and your customer loyalty over the next organization marketing a lifestyle, a way of looking, or even just eating. The brands that are trying, such as Lush Cosmetics, are incredibly popular thanks to their green-washing marketing. Environmentalism is also a feminist issue, as the majorities of women produce, grow, and feed the world as well as fulfill the roles as nurturers of their families. We will all be subject to rising tides, volatile weather that will harm crop production, affect where humans can live, and what we can eat. But ultimately, stakeholder profits are on the line and sustainability is simply, too expensive and seen as repressing innovation. Just ask Trump.

Every single item of human origin needs to have a method of disposal for it to be considered "sustainable." Despite this fact, during product research and design, the main factor is often marketability, user-friendliness, and built-in obsolescence for when the company wants you to upgrade; not whether the packaging will decompose in a short amount of time or a made from durable materials. Other countries, such as India, are already considering this in their industrial processes. Yet America is heading in the opposite direction and has pulled out of the Paris Agreement regarding climate change. What can we do?

First, you can start in your very own community. Find out whom the person in your apartment complex who keeps throwing away their plastic bottles in the trash can…or the compost. Strike up a conversation, teach them about recycling or be the person who volunteers are your recycling center. It will change the way you view our mass consumption habits. Clean up your neighborhood by picking up litter with your friends. I promise you, its there if you take a second look. Humans did this to the Earth, but we can fix it. Repair items, instead of throwing away and replacing them. Stop impulse-purchasing stuff that will go out of fashion in a season. Do you really need that polyester unicorn headband that you're only using for one outfit? It's not the amount of objects and possessions you surround yourself with that matter, but whether it improves your quality of life. My wife and I were trapped by our possession in our old home. In some ways, we still are in our new one. Stacks of DVDs, sewing supplies, and other abandoned hobbies when we had time for them followed us into the new apartment. Yet we still haven't unpacked them because, well, there's no place for them to go.

There is something awe-inspiring that despite our best intentions, our human vessels don't remain on this earth nearly as long as the plastic items that we used. Awe-inspiring and awful in its longevity.

Dena Rod is an Iranian American writer, editor, and poet. They're a graduate of San Francisco State University, where they received a Master’s Degree in English Literature. You can find more of their work in CCSF’s Forum Literary Magazine, Endangered Species, Enduring Values: An Anthology of San Francisco Area Writers and Artists of Color, and the upcoming anthology Iran Musings: Stories and Memories from the Iranian Diaspora (Release Date: 2019).