Niche delights
Niche delights that sprinkle enjoyment to daily life.
Silver & Crystal Dish Ware
I laugh at my 24 year old self adding houseware to my wedding registry since my dream was to have the ‘Crate and Barrel’ home. The ideal transitional design (traditional and modern mixed) was the peak of interior design for me at the time. Now I glance at my plain white Crate and Barrel bowls in the kitchen cabinet and skip over to select a silver bowl to put my ice cream in and pour my Poppi into my crystal wine glass. It’s more exciting to use on a Thursday evening.
Golden Hour Walks
In 2018, I discovered golden hour was a coveted time of the day for influencers. I was at a lovely vineyard wedding and the sun was at the right position to awash the outdoors in a warm orange-yellow light. All of the iPhones came out to capture that moment as I stood by perplexed then understood. From that day on, I paid attention to notice how the sun hits in different areas of my home in different seasons. The intensity or softness. I found myself seeking walks during that time. There’s a peacefulness that I experience during the golden hour morning and evening walks. The awe of the new day beginning and reflecting upon the day that unfolded.
Fiction Books
Not revolutionary by any means, however I’ve read an embarrassing about of self-help books. Maybe it’s the rite of passage of being in your 20’s or I had too high of expectations to find that golden nugget of advice to fix my insecurities. Turns out, all you need is 3-5 self-help books. Max. Beyond that, it’s the same advice in different flavors. I also wonder if we are just too self focused these days and the best cure is, stop paying so much attention to yourself, simplify and apply. So getting off my soap box… introducing fiction books to experience enjoyment in reading again.
Framing Film Photos
Once again, I have moved away from the dream of Crate and Barrel Transitional Interior Design and focused more on making my home feel like a reflection of my life and energy. I remember being so strangely against personal photos at home in fear of ‘ruining’ the look. What ‘look’? The look of a perfectly styled home fit to be in a magazine? Psh. One of my favorite pastimes is looking at a hallway of family photos and I want to bring that feeling in my own home.
Typography
Pinterest’s algorithm is good. Suspiciously good because I have found myself into a rabbit hole of fun Typography. My job requires me to be on my computer majority of the day. The same old Ariel, Times New Roman or Calibri font used to craft an email, powerpoint, or instant message. The only special effects are to either highlight, bold, or have red text in hopes that the person 2 timezones away understood the context of your message. Lately, I’m gravitated towards to the playfullness and colorfulness of Typography. Using old film movie stills as inspiration and applying it to my personal photos.
Re-Experiencing Movies
I recently watched a video Why don't movies look like *movies* anymore? It really highlighted the nagging feeling I’ve been having when watching new movies or tv series. I’m just not as engaged by the visuals or enlightened by monologues. I have heard this theory of most movies and tv shows nowadays are made to be watched in the background while scrolling on your phone or on your laptop. An example from that video was ‘The Parent Trap’ (1998) and I remembered the scenery and music from that movie. So that’s on my to-do list to re-watch amongst many others.
Daily Statement Jewelry
My personal style had quite of a journey. Now as a new mother, I used the opportunity to really refine what do I truly enjoy wearing on a daily basis and challenge past fashion identities. The reality is, I do not care for patterned tops and bottoms. I love beautiful saturated solid colors. At times it can feel plain, hence daily bold earrings and bracelets. Specifically Silver. It does not take a lot of my mental energy to pick out a piece. It is the easiest way for me to feel chic and put together without ruminating over the plainness of my solid color outfits.
Easy Bake Desserts
Remember the Easy Bake Oven? It’s like that but with a beautifully designed cookbook and an real adult oven. For the longest time, I had an dream version of myself baking. Beautifully crafted deserts sitting in the center of my table next to a vase of flowers. Reality is, I do not follow written instructions well and add ingredients that ‘feel’ right rather than the correct measurements. I have also found, I do not particularly enjoy the kitchen clean up afterwards. All of the tiny bowls and spatulas and measuring cups piling up irks me. I recently baked a Lemon Turmeric Tea cake and it was simple, delightful and tasty. Not too sweet and not too bland. The best part, there wasn’t an elaborate list of instructions for me to follow and a major clean up waiting for me afterwards. I could be a baker, just a type of baker who bakes foolproof cookies and cakes.
xoxo,
Tatiana