At Home Spa Day

Self care, self quarantine – am I right? While we won’t have a real spa day anytime soon, we might as well through one of our own in the mean time! Here are some great things to make sure you do during your upcoming self care spa day.

Hair Masks

Because what says, “It’s a self care spa day” quite like a hair mask? I’ve been using Lush’s Retread for years and absolutely love it. I’ll use this hair mask every other or every time before I wash my hair. On spa day occasions, I break out the big guns with the coconut oil. A nice oil concoction while relaxing through the rest of the spa day activities is a MUST.

Acupuncture Mat

A fun, relaxing torture device. Acupuncture has many benefits, I’ll let you Google that on your own, so I love incorporating this into a spa day. H*ll I incorporate it into every day. Fifteen to twenty minutes laying on this mat, focusing on breathing, listening to calming music (or nothing) is the definition of at home spa.

Tea Bank

It’s not a successful spa day without some great drinks. Oddly enough, one of my favorite parts of a spa day is relaxing with a hot glass of tea before my treatment even begins. I’m a tea-fanatic so welcome to my personal stash. I have a wide spectrum of teas and others in my organizer and some loose leaf teas in the back. My favorite teas for a spa day are the Chamomile with Lemon and the Dandelion Root.

Nail Strengthener

For me, my nails aren’t a priority. I don’t want to pay for someone to do them and I don’t really want to keep up on a nail polish that just chips everyday. That’s why I focus on growing healthy long nails with this polish. You apply every other day and it helps to strengthen my nails to the point where they are beautiful au natural. 

Rolling 

I’m a rolling fiend and a don’t discriminate when it comes to my rollers. I bought this jade roller / gua sha about a year ago and I absolutely love them! They are nice for a spa day or even just day to day. It’s definitely a self care day when I break out my ice roller, a gift from my mother (thanks mom!). It’s so cooling and great for de-puffing, aka hangover cure (again, thanks mom).

What are you doing during your spa days at home? Leave me some ideas below in the comments!

Design Digs

Trends are fun but are fleeting. While they entertain us for a bit, and it’s always fun to jump on board for awhile, what I’m really drawn to are innovative design details. A spin on classic details that don’t belong to any specific design aesthetic and aren’t tied to trends. Those are the design moments that will really stand the test of time and continue to inspire you within your home for years to come. Here are some design details I’ve been very into as of late.

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  Image via Cambria

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  Image via Leclair Decor

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  Image via Black Birch Homes

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  Image via Studio McGee

Built-ins Built Better

I cannot express to you how in love I am with this detail. It’s far less costly than it appears to be. This method really makes a statement. It’s a rich, custom detail that shows true thought to each and every detail. We have seen floating shelves in the design world for YEARS; and, while they are great and very much the aesthetic in some homes, this full trimmed out look gives the appearance of a seamlessly gorgeous shelving detail without compromising the modern flow.

And it doesn’t stop in woodwork, I love how Cambria used quartz to get this look. I absolutely love using unusual materials in new applications and taking the quartz from the countertop, up the wall, and onto the CEILING. Such a great design detail and I hope to see more of this being utilized in the future!

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  Image via The Lifestyled Company

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  Image via The Lifestyled Company

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  Image via The Lifestyled Company

Tile Install That Truly Inspires

I’d be lying if I said shower designs have become rather mundane to me lately; that was, until I saw this new install pattern being used! This elongated subway tile has been showing up in kitchens, but this application of taking it vertically in showers has been very inspiring. That paired with the horizontal runs – that we have seen used with either a tile or a thicker grout line. Such a great unique twist on an area I was less than inspired to work with. It’s safe to say I’m anxious to use this install with a client soon.

What design details have been inspiring you lately? Drop them in a comment below!

How To Manage Stress

Hello you, and welcome to inside the mind of an Obsessive Compulsive Designer.

It’s a stressful time we are living in right now. With everything being broadcasted 24/7 about what is happening in the world and the normal stressors in everyday life, sometimes it all can become a little much. In my personal life, 2017 has definitely taken a stressful toll on my health. Earlier this year I became crippled by it until I found a few extremely helpful tips for conquering any stressful situation thrown my way. Everyone gets stressed, it’s unavoidable, so let’s all learn how to properly deal with stress and come out the other side a more positive calm person.

Breathe

The first thing I try to do when faced with a stressful situation is breathe. I’m easily worked up and prone to anxiety so breathing is crucial to focusing my mind. When breathing is not helping, try focusing on your breathing by using meditation. I love meditating before bed every night to calm my mind and prevent stress. Calmer heads will always prevail; so, take the time to breathe before stressing yourself out.

Detox

Depending on where you are with your life and what is stressing you out, this will mean different things to you. Whether you need a detox from technology, toxic people/situations, or even food (No, this isn’t a diet post. The food we eat has a large effect on our mental health.). In my case, a good technology detox helps me immensely. It is so easy to become overstimulated in the culture we live in. A detox from technology now requires conscience thought. I always feel better when I lock myself in my room with nothing but a book and have a relaxing night without a screen being shoved in my face.

Take Things in Stride

I’m a big believer in a clean and healthy mindset so you know I had to mention this. When encountered with a stressful situation, it’s so important to take things in stride. Don’t let stressful or unpleasant situations get you down. Keep your mind positive and try to find the best in every situation. Everything happens for a reason and finding the positive in everything will help you realize that. If you have searched through your mind for a positive aspect of a current stressor in your life and cannot think of one, just think that this may be teaching you a lesson or guiding you in a different path. Take everything in stride and you’ll live a much better life!

Leave me a comment below and tell me your go-to stress management tip!

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Favorite Posts This September

Hello you, and welcome to inside the mind of an Obsessive Compulsive Designer.

Ugh, I’m beginning to see that the months go by faster and faster as the year goes on. I cannot believe this month is already gone! October is going to be a VERY busy but VERY fun month. I have so many exciting things to share with you so be sure to stay tuned. As for this month, take a look at my favorite posts from September!

DIY Air Freshening Bouquet

I feel like fall and DIY’s go hand in hand. Tackle this easy and cute DIY this season!

5 Helpful Tips For Cleaning Your Makeup Brushes

A chore no one likes to do; but, oh so important!

Everyday Makeup Look Under $20

Check out this super simple and fresh makeup look. And yes, you read that right, it’s all under $20!

Juice Beauty Stem Cellular Lifting Neck Cream Review

Skincare is my absolute favorite and this product deserves to be shared again!

Leave me a comment below and let me know what you’d like to see in October!

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3 Tips To Stay Organized During The Busy Months

Hello you, and welcome to inside the mind of an Obsessive Compulsive Designer.

School just got back into session. The holidays are coming up. We are starting to get less hours of sunlight. Needless to say, it’s a busy time of year! I can’t stress enough how a well maintained organizational routine is key, especially this time of year. Here are three major components on how I stay organized throughout the year.

Google Calendar

My saving grace! I love planners and journals for the occasional desire to physically write things down. However, most of the time, I love using a digital planner. I love the ability to switch things around and mess up an entry without having to erase or cross something out. It keeps my whole thoughts together and gives me the ability to move things around. Love! I plug everything into my calendar from what blogs to write, pictures to take, and when to actually post my blogs. However, I use my calendar for much more than just blogging. I use it to keep track of personal appointments, bills, and even planning out larger projects. You can color code, assign times, set up alarms, and so much more. I’m so glad I switched over to Google Calendar! They even have an easy to use app so I can get notifications on my laptop and phone. I highly recommend!

Carefully Scheduled Timers

Having an iPhone spoils me. It’s as easy as, “Siri, set a timer for….” I like to set timers for reminders of when I need to start working on things; as well as, using the timers to tell me when I need to stop doing a task. It can be tedious at first but once you really start getting into this habit, it will really start to boost your productivity. It will start to show you how long tasks actually take and how quickly you can get them done! It’s a great self-accountability habit to get into. It’s important to work and get things done but it’s equally as important to rest. Having an alarm to tell you when to quit will help act as an outside voice to really tell your brain to stop.

Set Routines

I’m a creature of habit and a stickler for routines so you know I had to include this. I have certain things that I like to routinely do every day or every other day. Keeping to a schedule helps balance all the different events going on in my life. For those who are new, I have a full time job and also push to post four blogs a week. That’s a pretty full schedule and I like to make sure it all works into my routine! If you aren’t a routine person, using timers will actually help get you on a scheduled routine. Once your mind can settle on a routine throughout your day, you’ll rest a lot easier and be so much more productive.

Leave a comment below and tell me how you stay organized during these busy months. I’d love to hear!

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How To Grow Your Blog Following

Hello you, and welcome to inside the mind of an Obsessive Compulsive Designer.

It’s one thing to start blogging your thoughts all over the internet; but, if you want to grow your following and reach a wider range of people, you definitely have to up your game. If you follow my blog religiously, you’ll know that I’ve done a 5 Most Important Tips For New Bloggers post before. Today I wanted to get more in depth for how to grow your blog, no matter how advanced of a blogger you may be. It’s always great to continue learning and growing so I hope you all enjoy these tips below!

Passion, Purpose, Persistence

I always like mentioning this in my blogging tips. If you aren’t liking how something is turning out or you aren’t passionate about the subject you’re writing about, don’t do it! Skip a post because skipping it is much better than keeping your schedule with an insincere post. As you grow as a person, you may find that the subject you started blogging about five years ago just isn’t a passion anymore. Ditch it and rebrand! Don’t be afraid to stay true to yourself and your interests because that will always pay off in the long run!

Use Your Angle

There is an over saturation of people willing to express themselves on the internet. It’s true! Want to start a beauty blog? Done a million times. Turning vegan and want to blog about the journey? You’re not the first. But don’t let any of that get you down! You need to find a special twist to put on your blog that can help you define a more specified following. Try beauty blogging on a hair-thin budget or your journey as a vegan for working moms. Your place in life, no matter what it is, will give you a unique angle on the over saturated media. Give it a try!

Get Involved

Donating your time and effort can help everyone out. Try getting involved in a charity or drive. Blog your experience and what charities you choose to support. It will benefit the charity you donate to, benefit your readers by educating them to some great causes, and will benefit you by tagging the charity in all your promotions (they love hearing wonderful things from people and are more likely to help promote your post). It’s a win, win, win situation that everyone can get behind!

Unique Ideas, Views, Experiences

Remember what I said about over saturation? Writing with unique views or about strange things will help you stand out against the many on the internet. If your lifestyle gives you access to a plethora of odd opportunities or experiences, write about it! People love learning about different things and living vicariously through others.

Personality

Don’t be ashamed of your quirky antics or the important things that make you, you! People love to hear your personality come through in your blogs. If you cuss like a sailor with no remorse, you’ll find an audience who finds hilarity and truth through the vulgarity. If you’re absolutely obsessed with something and find a way to make almost anything relate to that subject, you’ll gain people most like you who share your passions. Don’t hide your true self!

Leave me a comment below and tell me what tip benefits you the most!
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Tips For Starting Your Mornings Off Right

Hello you, and welcome to inside the mind of an Obsessive Compulsive Designer.

I don’t know about you, but I have never been a morning person in my life. Mornings have always been the worst part of the day for me. However, I’ve learned to make these tips a routine staple and they’ve definitely made mornings a much more pleasant experience. I highly recommend incorporating some in your morning routine!

Make sure your alarm is out of arm’s reach

Start a morning tradition that gets you excited to wake up

Do all the tedious stuff the night before – outfit selection, packed lunch/snacks, pack your bag

Get a routine in place 

Natural light always helps – open the blinds

This wraps up my week-long series for all you working girls out there. I hope you enjoyed reading as much as I loved writing them. Leave me a comment below to let me know if you enjoyed this mini-series and if you’d be interested in seeing more in the future!

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Job Search Tips & Tricks

Hello you, and welcome to inside the mind of an Obsessive Compulsive Designer.

You didn’t think I would leave this topic out, did you? It’s not fun to talk about, let alone have to go through it. One of the most stressful tasks is finding and applying for a new job. It’s definitely not a fun task but I think this list will help ease the stress of job searching! I think all you graduates looking for your first job will benefit from some of these tips.

Trial & Error

The first cover letter or resume you make, will be far from your last. You’ll discover a constant cycle of doing and redoing these documents for every place you apply. Not every job you apply for will want, or require, the same set of skills or background so you’ll find yourself needing to constantly customize your documents. Spending the time to personalize your documents to the specific company you’re applying for will earn you major points. Showing them that you took the time to look into their company and you understand exactly what they are looking for is a great way to lock in an interview.

Organization

I have an Excel document from past job searches that I found EXTREMELY helpful. I would type in the company, person’s information in charge of hiring, the date I sent in my resume, a date to follow up with them, the interview dates, and a date to send thank you’s, etc. It was my life-line while job searching. I highly recommend going the extra mile to keep yourself organized. That way you make sure you don’t miss any steps along the way.

Thank you

This is a great way to lock in some extra points. Consider sending a thank you email immediately following your interview (because odds are, you are one of many interviews that day), mail a handwritten thank you, or even dropping of some thank you goodies. All are great options and will definitely help you to stand out from the rest of the applicants.

Persistence

This is key. Persistence shows dedication to their company and will keep you somewhat near the top of their inbox. This is why I make sure to keep some columns in my organizational chart to make sure I’m following up every week or two with potential employers. The difference between persistence and annoyance is often a fine line but when done successfully, will increase your odds.

Be Bold

If you receive the dreaded rejection email saying something basic like “we are going in another direction”, this opens the door to one last opportunity you have with that company. Be bold and ask them what you can do better for next time. Even if you aren’t going to apply for any more positions within that company, it’s great information to better yourself and help you lock down the next job!

Leave me a comment below and tell us if you use any of these tips yourself!
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How To Beat A Nasty Cold By Drinking

Hello you, and welcome to inside the mind of an Obsessive Compulsive Designer

Yes, you read that right. Drinking your way to better health. Sadly, it’s not the drinking you might have in mind. Alcohol is probably the last thing on your mind if you’re battling a tough cold. However, I have a few drinks that will help you kick that cold’s a** and get you back to normal in no time!

Emergen-C

I like to mix these into a small glass of water and just chug it on the spot. Don’t get me wrong, these taste great! I just don’t need to waste an hour slowly drinking a large glass of water. I much rather get the vitamin C in my system right away. This drink will definitely help you boost your immune system so if you even feel a cold coming on, grab yourself some of this.

Traditional’s Throat Coat Tea

This is some of the yummiest tea I’ve ever tasted and it feels absolutely amazing on sore throats. It really did soothe my throat and help suppress my cough which is major when you’re trying to fall asleep!

Water

SOOO original, I know. But seriously, this will help tremendously if you are drinking water like none other. Flush all the bad stuff out of your system and be sure to stay hydrated.

Leave a comment below and let us know what your go-to cold remedy is!

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Tips For Organizing Your Important Documents

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I’m still trying to figure out how exactly to adult, but I’d love to share what I’m learning along the way. One of the first topics I wanted to touch on was what to do with all those bills and important documents you’re accumulating. It’s not glamorous by any means but it will definitely help out. Keep reading to learn more!

Separate

It seems like a no-brainer; but, I mean separate to the point of insanity. More work now will make you a much happier person down the road when you need to find something. Take, for instance, if you have to pay for some things with your own money for work like material, gas, food, etc. Creating a folder for all of those receipts will end up being a nightmare when you go back and try to look for one specific thing. Try keeping a folder for each! It seems excessive but your future sanity is worth it!

Folders for recent

To make everyday life easy, I like to keep folders in this nifty little organizer for all the recent documents that may pile up. Anything that I may need in the next month or so will go into these folders so they’re easily accessible but still organized.

Accordion binder for old documents

Once a month or two has gone by, I’ll go in and purge any documents that are not needed anymore and file away important ones that don’t need to be kept so handy anymore. I like to use this accordion binder (you can find these at any store that sells office supplies). This accordion allows me to keep massive amounts of files in one location. I like to use a different accordion every year to help from jam packing one binder full of a few years. If you need to go back and find a document from a couple years ago, it’ll be a much better help if you know exactly which binder you put it in.

Smaller accordion binder for receipts

I do the exact same thing with receipts. I find that receipts pile up much easier than documents do so I like to put them in their own binder to manage the clutter better.

File away – in a safe preferably

One of the most important steps, finding a safe place to put all of this valuable information in. I recommend a safe or a locked desk drawer.

I hope you enjoyed today’s post. Let me know down below in the comments how you organize your bills and documents.

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5 Gifts She Actually Wants For Valentine’s Day

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As if figuring out what to do for Valentine’s Day wasn’t hard enough, finding your significant other the perfect gift is nearly impossible. I’ve compiled a pretty solid list of some great choices for your lady that is sure to make her Valentine’s Day the best!

Diffuser

These essential oil diffusers are on the rage right now and for good reason. They are very calming and smell absolutely amazing. Get her a great set that includes the diffuser and a few different oils. I recently picked one up that is a diffuser and humidifier that I’m in love with. I’ll provide the link here.

Relaxation Kit

Another great gift would be a pamper kit. Get her a cozy blanket, some lotions, and maybe her favorite face mask. Don’t know what lotions or face masks to get her? See which ones she is using now and is running low on! If you want to really impress her, take a picture of the current products she is using and take it to your local Sephora. They will be able to recommend something new for her that will work well with the products she already has!

Book Her A Massage

If she isn’t big into pampering herself, book her a massage or facial appointment. They’ll make sure that she gets pampered plenty and is a great gesture for your Valentine’s date.

Tea/Coffee Sampler

For your drink connoisseur, explore the idea of getting her a sample set of her favorite drinks. Teavana has great sets for the tea lover in your life. Starbucks is a great place to go to for your coffee lovers. It’s a great way for her to find a new go-to drink and helps you out if you don’t remember what her current favorite is.

Precious Memory

Pick a picture from your guys’ past, frame it, and write her a little love note about your fond memory together. I guarantee that she will appreciate this gift more than anything else you could buy her. This gift shows the most thought and consideration. Best part is that it’s super simple to throw together last minute and doesn’t take much time or effort to construct.

When All Else Fails

Not great at reading signals or remembering what she mentioned she wanted? Check her Amazon cart! 🙂

I hope you found some great alternative gifts besides your standard flowers and chocolates that she will really love. Comment below what you want for Valentine’s.  I wish you all a great Valentine’s Day!

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5 Tips To Stay Creatively Inspired

Hello you, and welcome to inside the mind of an Obsessive Compulsive Designer

I often find that the winter months are the months where I lose a bit of creative spark. Something about the unpleasant cold just shuts my brain down! Here are a few tips I like to practice to force those creative juices back to my brain.

Surround Yourself with Creative Positive Individuals

This is something you should always do (get rid of toxic people). Once you surround yourself with these lovely individuals, I think you’ll start seeing an increase in your creative potential. Positive creative people often immerse you in their passions, activities, and engage you in creative conversation.

Use Social Media

There are so many great sites out there with so many creative people. Pinterest, Twitter, Youtube, and various blogging platforms will seriously get you motivated toward creativity. I love binging on social media posts when I’m in need of a little inspiration.

Get Away From It All

On the opposite end of the spectrum, sometimes all the social media can get a bit overwhelming to the point of a creative rut. If you’re finding this to be true with you, take a break. Go for a walk, just shut down all your technology, or go for a quiet drive in the middle of nowhere. I think you’ll be surprised how inspirational our surroundings can be once we shut off all our distractions.

Take the Time for Brainstorming Sessions

Taking five or ten minutes out of your day to just sit with yourself and do some serious brainstorming is great for powering through a creative rut. Often times, when I do this, I’ll find myself sitting with my thoughts for well over ten minutes. Once the creativity starts flowing, it’s often hard to stop!

Keep an Idea Journal

Keeping a journal or, for you tech junkies, an open note app on your phone will be a great help when you get a random spark of creativity. There’s nothing worse than having a stroke of genius but later forgetting it because you didn’t take the time to write it down.

I hope you enjoyed today’s post and got something useful out of it. Leave a comment below about how you power through a creative rut!
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