My Manifesto And Why I Re-Started Blogging

So why did I polish off this little old blog from a few years ago you may ask? Honestly, and you do want me to be honest right? I did not feel like the blogs I have been following (some a few years) were providing me with fresh, truthful and fun content. Obviously there are exceptions, and I will eventually share my list of favorite bloggers, podcasters and YouTubers, but besides a handful of interesting new discoveries my old standbys made me feel like my brain was turning to mush when I read their posts.

I have been a fateful blog reader since around 2011 when I discovered Bloglovin and could more easily track all the sites I followed. Content from the bloggers I followed then seemed genuine, and it some occasions it felt like I was following people's lives. This is more in regards to the lifestyle and fashion bloggers of the time, the personal finance crowd has always been pretty genuine in my opinion. About a year and a half ago things started to change. It felt like a huge tide turned along with fashion, gone were the Zooey Deschanel dresses, in are the skinny jeans and booties. Gone were the kitchy and cluttered bookshelves, in were the blank white walls and sparsely decorated rooms. Not that changing fashion is a bad thing, I like that part of the blog world, but what came along with this new wave that I loathe now more than anything? Sponsored posts.

And that ladies and gents was when things started going downhill fast! Gone were the posts recapping the week, in are the 'made this amazing meal using Blue Apron!' forced ads. And they just kept coming, and coming and coming. Now, I don't really trust any of these bloggers anymore. I started feeling stuck, which seems like a weird way to feel when you're talking about the world wide web, but I was. I have always followed entrepreneurial and personal finance blogs, but I also like fashion and lifestyle design. It feels to me like the two have not yet merged. I like being resourceful and frugal, but I am not into the 'coupon mom' type blogs. Besides not having any kids,  I strive to eat whole foods, and avoid buying packaged foods.

I also have dabbled in reading health and natural blogs, but some of them have a hyper focus on complicated ingredients and elaborate recipes and guides which were just too much for me to incorporate into daily life. With running my own business I only have time for so much, I would love to make chia pudding and make my own deodorant, but if it requires multiple trips to Whole Foods, it ain't gonna happen.

So on this blog I pledge to focus on self employment (because every entrepreneur is obsessed with their business) and easy lifestyle design. I am an extreme minimalist when it comes to some personal things like my wardrobe, beauty routine and cooking (bread & butter, duh). I like keepin' my mind on my money and enjoy tips on how to make things easier and looking good! I want to explore the natural world of making my own beauty supplies, and when I find the easiest and best methods I will share them here, and by easy I mean only using few cheap and readily available ingredients.

Hope you keep on reading on!

Best,
M.

Re-storing Mid Century Coffee Tables

My partner and I love mid-century modern furniture. Fortunately for us Chicago seems to have an abundance of mid-century pieces available in the thrift stores we frequent. The other day we scored big finding several pieces we loved during one of our shopping trips. We bought an awesome table with hairpin legs, a slatted bench, two Paul McCobb low coffee tables and a few other pieces. One of the McCobb's table had some water damage and I finally did what I have been meaning to do for several years, which was to use a pinterest trick to re-store the top wood finish.


There were two tips I found:
1. Mix olive oil with salt and make a thick paste. Let the paste sit over the hardware stains for 30 minutes then wipe.
2. Mix 3 parts olive oil to one part vinegar. Wipe all over wood to remove scratches.

Here is a before photo:

And after:

Needless to say, these results were not exactly what I have been dreaming up these past few years. It does look better so I am thankful for that. On the other pieces that did not have water damage the oil and vinegar mixture worked wonders! I definitely recommend using it and I will continue to do so in the future.

M. 

Hello there!

So much has changed in the past few years, my last post was when I was 25 and today sit here typing as a 28 year old. I have since moved, started my own business and really improved my finances. I am excited to come back to this space to share my daily life and have and use this space as a diary of sorts.

I learned so much and have so many varied interests now. I juice, make smoothies, cook a lot more for myself,  I focus on a more minimal approach to beauty, aspire to have a capsule wardrobe and am really focusing on using less resources for me needs. I am looking forward to sharing all of this on this blog!

Look forward to posting and connecting with ya'll.

Best,
M.