From Category: lifestyle
The past several months haven't been easy. From juggling multiple classes and working part-time, balancing relationships and school and work and life, it was difficult for me to find the time to spend for myself, to heal from past scars, and to work on striving towards becoming a better version of me. The experiences I've had these past several months have certainly taught me lessons and shaped some aspects of who I am, but it isn't enough to fully realize what I can be capable of.
It has been one-hell of a journey the past several months since moving to New York City. I've worked through three jobs, moved and lived in two different places, and I've seen people come and go these last nine months. I recently ended a relationship – a relationship that's made me the happiest since I left the nest to live on my own. But there were certain parts that also made me realize that maybe I should focus on my own self-growth.
I decided to create this series known as "A Rising Flower" which will chronicle my journey to self-growth and use it as a platform for my readers to hold me accountable, since I've been pushing myself for a while to go on this journey to build healthier habits and work on improving my overall mental health wellbeing. I noticed that parts of myself are toxic from holding onto certain memories, from trauma of my last relationship, from neglecting to take care of myself.
As one of my closest friends told me, no one will be there for you except yourself. Be your own helping hand. Be your own source of happiness instead of having to rely on others. It was a problem with me - I did things with the hope and aspiration that I'll feel validated. I put people's needs before my own, a habit which, unfortunately, people have taken advantage of. It obscured my own image of myself and my self-worth.
I started off my own journey to self-growth by reading more pages of a book that I've been meaning to finish reading for a while, "Minor Feelings" by Cathy Park Hong (a really interesting book, which is worth a post discussing the idea of having "minor feelings" and the experience of being Asian/Asian-American). I read for maybe half an hour before bed. I journaled my thoughts and reflected on what happened and wrote down what I was grateful for. I went grocery shopping and bought ingredients worth three different dishes and made a new recipe (spicy salmon bowl which was 🤌). I bought myself flowers that were the colours of Autumn and arranged them in my apartment's living area. And now I'm getting back into what I love doing and always enjoyed - writing and creating for my blog.
This blog has been by my side for six years and has documented my growth and evolution since I started it. It has seen my ups and downs, my previous attempts at starting my personal growth journey, my changes in my career paths, my travels, my art, what I've read, my interests. It embodies who I am. And this is another chapter to my story that I hope you, my readers - new or loyal - will enjoy and hopefully be inspired from as well.
11.07.2021
Amidst the spread of COVID-19, the novel coronavirus that started in Wuhan, China and has now spread across international waters, igniting a global pandemic, people are pushed to remain indoors and distance themselves from the outside world.
As a person who has done social distancing all her life, I would say I'm an expert in being comfortable in isolation and being away from the people and the outside world. If you know me, I had formerly worked as a freelancer writer working from the comforts of my own home. And even when I did get a job where I did have to go outside and socialize, I still managed to always remain withdrawn to my room like the introverted hermit I am.
Sooo, since we're currently in an outbreak and people are 'self-quarantining' by staying at home, I decided to share a few helpful tips to make the hermit-lifestyle more comfortable and easy - especially for those who aren't used to staying at home for a long period of time.
This time of self-isolation can be used for a time of introspection. I've always stressed how important and impactful journaling can be and can help lead a more mindful life. Ever since I got into planning and bought myself the Happy Planner, as well as the Passion Planner (let me know if you want to see a review!), I've been spending most of my time writing and journaling my days and thoughts.
There's not many to do when you're confined in your own home, but look for opportunities to be grateful for some of the little things or learn something new, whether if it's about someone you're in quarantine with or perhaps something about your house/apartment, and write them down! Not many notice or realize some of the things that happens around us in our own homes.
As a person who has done social distancing all her life, I would say I'm an expert in being comfortable in isolation and being away from the people and the outside world. If you know me, I had formerly worked as a freelancer writer working from the comforts of my own home. And even when I did get a job where I did have to go outside and socialize, I still managed to always remain withdrawn to my room like the introverted hermit I am.
Sooo, since we're currently in an outbreak and people are 'self-quarantining' by staying at home, I decided to share a few helpful tips to make the hermit-lifestyle more comfortable and easy - especially for those who aren't used to staying at home for a long period of time.
Reorganize your closet
Now that you have time in your hands, utilize this to deep-tidy areas of your house you hadn't had time to do. Take your closet for example - it's a place in your room where you pick your clothes and throw in your clothes. If you're like me and tend to get disorganized, my closet can accumulate mess and a pile of clothes hidden in the corner you didn't even know about.
But the closet can be an infinite storage space for anything - if you make the space. Reorganize your closet and make room for your other things you've been meaning to store. A great example would be bags - my room is littered with my graphic totes and tiny pin-covered backpacks and I had nowhere else to put them but at the end of my bed.
So I bought new hangers, hung some of my clothes, and made space at the top shelf to neatly store my bags.
Journaling
This time of self-isolation can be used for a time of introspection. I've always stressed how important and impactful journaling can be and can help lead a more mindful life. Ever since I got into planning and bought myself the Happy Planner, as well as the Passion Planner (let me know if you want to see a review!), I've been spending most of my time writing and journaling my days and thoughts.
There's not many to do when you're confined in your own home, but look for opportunities to be grateful for some of the little things or learn something new, whether if it's about someone you're in quarantine with or perhaps something about your house/apartment, and write them down! Not many notice or realize some of the things that happens around us in our own homes.
Catch up with your TBR
If you're like me and you've been stockpiling books, ever expanding their bookshelves, but never reading those books, use this free time to read! If you have a list of TBR (to be read) books, then catch up! I will be posting a book recommendations list soon!
BAKE!
If you have left over flour, sugar, or chocolate chips, then let's bake! I downloaded the TASTY app on my phone, which is an app that provides recipes along with one of those fascinating and aesthetically-pleasing cooking videos we see on the Instagram. They list the ingredients you need, in which you can purchase from your phone and then pick up at your nearest Walmart! Cooking and baking has never been easier thanks to this app! Give it a try and become your resident's cook.
Facetime a friend
Confinement can make you feel lonely. Keep in contact with your friends, coworkers, and your families! Uplift each other, provide support and help for one another - this a very tough time, as lives are at risk, businesses are closing, people are forced to stay at home, and cities are going on lockdown. Talk about movies, video call whilst watching a movie, bake together, cook together, do mukbang, do on-nomi (what Japanese refer to as "digital drinking"), and be yourself.
Let me know if you have any other tips and ways to adapt to the life of self-isolation!
3.19.2020
This October, I've embarked once again on a creative pursuit - HAPPY PLANNING! I've been recommended by a friend to buy the Happy Planner, a cute and colorful planner that's easily customizable with the mushroom cut paper and discs and the endless collections of stickers and accessories they provide.
This is truly an amazing product that has kept me busy, productive, and creative this past month and here's why:
Pre-designed templates
Unlike bullet journaling - which was formerly my way of planning my week - the Happy Planner comes with a variety of pre-designed pages which you could add into your planner. Although there's not complete creative freedom with a blank canvas, it's a much more efficient way to make my plans in a creative way when you don't always have the time to sit down and design elaborate templates.
Some pre-designed templates that I have is the budget tracker, where you can write down all the items you purchase to keep track of your spending and a bills tracker on the other side and a homework schedule so I can stay on top of my school work. Other pre-designed templates that they provide also includes health and fitness, social media manager, and project planners.
Easily customizable
A habit of mine I want to maintain is being creative! And the happy planner helps me with that by making it so easy to personalize your planner in your own unique way. Because their planners are disc bound, you can simply insert and re-insert pages. I love adding little notecards that say "Think Happy Thoughts" or "Stay Sharp" which I came in the student sticker and accessory bundle.
I also bought the hole punch, meaning I can insert any page I want! I could add in my class syllabus, printable meal planners, literally anything.
Keeps me productive and organized
As a working college student, I have a lot of homework, projects, tests, and appointments. For me, being the writer that I am, there's nothing better than jotting down my to-dos and organizing my thoughts to paper. The Happy Planner helps me keep productive and organizes my mind. My mind is a clutter box, and writing it down in my happy planner clarifies them, making it easier to go through my checklists and get things done like a boss.
All in all, the Happy Planner has integrated itself as an essential item to my daily life. It makes me feel like a boss, always checking in my Stay Cool planner to view my spread for the week and making appointments, plans, and schedules.
It's something I highly recommend, especially for moms, students, teachers, managers, and basically anyone who wants to be a badass bitch and get shit done. Because this will definitely change the way you organize your life.
This is truly an amazing product that has kept me busy, productive, and creative this past month and here's why:
Pre-designed templates
Unlike bullet journaling - which was formerly my way of planning my week - the Happy Planner comes with a variety of pre-designed pages which you could add into your planner. Although there's not complete creative freedom with a blank canvas, it's a much more efficient way to make my plans in a creative way when you don't always have the time to sit down and design elaborate templates.
Some pre-designed templates that I have is the budget tracker, where you can write down all the items you purchase to keep track of your spending and a bills tracker on the other side and a homework schedule so I can stay on top of my school work. Other pre-designed templates that they provide also includes health and fitness, social media manager, and project planners.
Easily customizable
A habit of mine I want to maintain is being creative! And the happy planner helps me with that by making it so easy to personalize your planner in your own unique way. Because their planners are disc bound, you can simply insert and re-insert pages. I love adding little notecards that say "Think Happy Thoughts" or "Stay Sharp" which I came in the student sticker and accessory bundle.
I also bought the hole punch, meaning I can insert any page I want! I could add in my class syllabus, printable meal planners, literally anything.
As a working college student, I have a lot of homework, projects, tests, and appointments. For me, being the writer that I am, there's nothing better than jotting down my to-dos and organizing my thoughts to paper. The Happy Planner helps me keep productive and organizes my mind. My mind is a clutter box, and writing it down in my happy planner clarifies them, making it easier to go through my checklists and get things done like a boss.
All in all, the Happy Planner has integrated itself as an essential item to my daily life. It makes me feel like a boss, always checking in my Stay Cool planner to view my spread for the week and making appointments, plans, and schedules.
It's something I highly recommend, especially for moms, students, teachers, managers, and basically anyone who wants to be a badass bitch and get shit done. Because this will definitely change the way you organize your life.
with love,
nicole isabel
10.29.2019
As part of the annual and very special day that is International Women's Day, I wanted to create a post dedicated to all the women who constantly inspire me since the beginning of my advocacy of feminism. Their strong work ethic, powerful personas, and progressive achievements motivates me, as well as help me shape myself into the independently strong and determined woman I am strive to become.
I've noticed the progress of female recognition where it's becoming more and more prevalent - from Cardi B's historic win at the Grammy's, to the women of the 116th Congress. Seeing their persistence and hard work, I hope to follow a similar path of achieving my dream and, therefore, inspire other young women like me! Here's to women and all their hard work!! 🍾
Audrey Hepburn - Not only was she a famed actress well-known for her portrayal of Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany's, but she also dedicated her later life to her role as UNICEF's Goodwill Ambassador. Additionally, during WWII, she performed ballet to raise money for the Dutch resistance. She's charming and effortless with a timeless beauty - a legend and icon I strive towards becoming.
Catriona Gray (Miss Universe 2018) - To me, personally, Catriona Gray embodies the powerful feminine. Her beauty, elegance, and commitment to making a difference is a true inspiration to young women all over the world. From watching her interviews, she's articulate and intelligent with a cute and charming personality! As a bicultural Filipina, her story and experience in rediscovering her Filipino roots came through to my heart, which is why I chose her on my list.
Mary, Queen of Scots - After watching Saoirse Ronan play the role of Mary Stuart in her new film Mary Queen of Scots, I instantly fell in love with the historic Queen. Her persistence and drive to reclaim the throne of Great Britain certainly served, for me, as an incentive to become a strong-minded individual.
I've noticed the progress of female recognition where it's becoming more and more prevalent - from Cardi B's historic win at the Grammy's, to the women of the 116th Congress. Seeing their persistence and hard work, I hope to follow a similar path of achieving my dream and, therefore, inspire other young women like me! Here's to women and all their hard work!! 🍾
Catriona Gray (Miss Universe 2018) - To me, personally, Catriona Gray embodies the powerful feminine. Her beauty, elegance, and commitment to making a difference is a true inspiration to young women all over the world. From watching her interviews, she's articulate and intelligent with a cute and charming personality! As a bicultural Filipina, her story and experience in rediscovering her Filipino roots came through to my heart, which is why I chose her on my list.
Mary, Queen of Scots - After watching Saoirse Ronan play the role of Mary Stuart in her new film Mary Queen of Scots, I instantly fell in love with the historic Queen. Her persistence and drive to reclaim the throne of Great Britain certainly served, for me, as an incentive to become a strong-minded individual.
I wish you all a positive, warm, and loving International Women's Day.
Who inspires you?
3.08.2019
Christmas is a time to spend precious moments with your loved ones and celebrate the most wonderful time of the year. You end each year with kindness and generosity, a quality expressed through sharing gifts, spreading cheer, and giving love to your family and friends. But one thing you mustn't forget this Christmas (or in any time of your life) is yourself.
I sometimes feel that during this holiday, we stress so much about giving to others that we get lost and forget ourselves. Self-love is perhaps the greatest form of love anyone can ever have and, personally, I believe it reflects the love you give to others. The more time and adoration you treat yourself with, the more you'll be able to do the same for others.
With the burdening pressures and obstacles of society and interpersonal relationships, I think that loving yourself is a challenging goal to achieve. Luckily for you, I've compiled a list to help with this journey. I'm no expert, but these are some of the things that I'd occasional do if I felt like I didn't give myself a little lovin'. For me, they provide a new and optimistic outlook on life - they might do the same for you!
The Coffee of Contemplation
Every morning, after eating my breakfast I make myself a cup of coffee, step outside to the garden, and drink it as I bathe myself in the morning weather. I don't have my phone with me, not even a book - I just sit, drink, and let all my thoughts simply dance and float as time moves.
I like to consider this a form of meditation because you're just being in the moment. A lot of stress and anxiety comes from worrying thoughts about the past, future, or stuff going on in our daily lives. Rather than contemplating about the negative aspects of your life, try observing everything around you. For me, there's a few trees in my back garden and, living in Florida, we get a lot of lizards which I like to just watch scurry around or do a weird mating dance.
When you wake up in the morning, cook yourself a nice breakfast and make yourself a cuppa and sit outside. Listen to the cars, watch the birds, enjoy nature. Enjoy this peaceful moment to yourself.
Curl up with a Book
There's nothing more relaxing than indulging yourself in a good book. This is something I do as much as I can - when I'm waiting in the car for my sister at school, during a road trip to the shops, or before going to bed. Getting lost in the stories will make us forget about everything, ourselves, and the world around us and pulls us into a whole new dimension.
To help you get into this habit, set a goal. Since it's almost the end of the year, pledge yourself to finish at least ten books by the end of December; make it three, four, fifteen - whichever you feel comfortable with.
Free your creative prowess
Expressing yourself in a healthy and creative way is such a cathartic experience. When I'm feeling particularly stressed, I like to let out my worries through writing. If you're a regular reader on my blog, you'll notice I write poetry - it's my creative way to express myself.
Whether it's painting, drawing, writing, photography, fashion, or maybe even science or coding - free yourself with creativity. Through these creative pursuits, perhaps you might discover something about yourself you didn't know about, maybe even discover that you have a genuine talent or passion in something...
FRIYAY SPA DAY!
I've recently finished my finals week, so I've been treating myself with what I like to call "Friyay Spa Day" where I prepare a feast for one and pamper myself with baths, facials, a glass of water (because y'all need to stay hydrated), and some Netflix and chill.
Fill up your tub, get some scented candles going and a bath bomb ready to fizz it up. Get a book or your computer/phone with Netflix and some snacks and drinks. Mask up your face and sink into the bath - unwind and enjoy.
Play dress-ups
This is probably one of my favorite self-love moments - DRESS-UP! Creating new fashion looks is what I love to do, mixing and matching different textures, patterns and styles and playing with a bunch of accessories. Most of the fashion look-books I curate are results of these fashion experimentations - maybe you could create one too!
Try out some styles you've never worn before, go thrift shopping and find bold garments to create avant-garde looks; organize a fashion show for your friends or family. With Christmas just round the corner, do something Christmas themed! Maybe you could design and make your own clothes from scratch if you wanted to.
Looking at yourself in all these styles and clothes that you love and then showing them off in look-books and self-organized fashion shows will surely boost your confidence and make you fall in love with yourself.
Learn something new
Nothing is more rewarding than achieving a goal; it improves productivity and makes you feel accomplished. Before this year ends, try learning something new. Try learning a language, learn how to code, sculpt, make origami. For me, I'm learning the piano. So far, I've learned to play some of my favorite piano pieces such as Debussy's "Clair de Lune" and the classic "River Flows in You" by Yiruma.
Sign up to a class, or teach yourself through books or YouTube (which is how I learned to play the piano lol). Remember to take baby steps and set goals: for example, you could promise yourself to learn all the basic vocabulary of Spanish in three days, or you could learn how to play the first part of Für Elise by the end of this week. Trying new things enriches and improves your mind - plus with all these new skills you're learning, you're gonna look cool and amazing.
And this is my list of self-love activities you could try this Christmas. These are things that I personally do and that works for me; some of them may not work for you, some of them might do. All in all, it's not up to me to tell you how to love yourself so go out there and find your path, live and enjoy your life. 💛
I sometimes feel that during this holiday, we stress so much about giving to others that we get lost and forget ourselves. Self-love is perhaps the greatest form of love anyone can ever have and, personally, I believe it reflects the love you give to others. The more time and adoration you treat yourself with, the more you'll be able to do the same for others.
With the burdening pressures and obstacles of society and interpersonal relationships, I think that loving yourself is a challenging goal to achieve. Luckily for you, I've compiled a list to help with this journey. I'm no expert, but these are some of the things that I'd occasional do if I felt like I didn't give myself a little lovin'. For me, they provide a new and optimistic outlook on life - they might do the same for you!
The Coffee of Contemplation
Every morning, after eating my breakfast I make myself a cup of coffee, step outside to the garden, and drink it as I bathe myself in the morning weather. I don't have my phone with me, not even a book - I just sit, drink, and let all my thoughts simply dance and float as time moves.
I like to consider this a form of meditation because you're just being in the moment. A lot of stress and anxiety comes from worrying thoughts about the past, future, or stuff going on in our daily lives. Rather than contemplating about the negative aspects of your life, try observing everything around you. For me, there's a few trees in my back garden and, living in Florida, we get a lot of lizards which I like to just watch scurry around or do a weird mating dance.
When you wake up in the morning, cook yourself a nice breakfast and make yourself a cuppa and sit outside. Listen to the cars, watch the birds, enjoy nature. Enjoy this peaceful moment to yourself.
Curl up with a Book
There's nothing more relaxing than indulging yourself in a good book. This is something I do as much as I can - when I'm waiting in the car for my sister at school, during a road trip to the shops, or before going to bed. Getting lost in the stories will make us forget about everything, ourselves, and the world around us and pulls us into a whole new dimension.
To help you get into this habit, set a goal. Since it's almost the end of the year, pledge yourself to finish at least ten books by the end of December; make it three, four, fifteen - whichever you feel comfortable with.
Free your creative prowess
Expressing yourself in a healthy and creative way is such a cathartic experience. When I'm feeling particularly stressed, I like to let out my worries through writing. If you're a regular reader on my blog, you'll notice I write poetry - it's my creative way to express myself.
Whether it's painting, drawing, writing, photography, fashion, or maybe even science or coding - free yourself with creativity. Through these creative pursuits, perhaps you might discover something about yourself you didn't know about, maybe even discover that you have a genuine talent or passion in something...
FRIYAY SPA DAY!
I've recently finished my finals week, so I've been treating myself with what I like to call "Friyay Spa Day" where I prepare a feast for one and pamper myself with baths, facials, a glass of water (because y'all need to stay hydrated), and some Netflix and chill.
Fill up your tub, get some scented candles going and a bath bomb ready to fizz it up. Get a book or your computer/phone with Netflix and some snacks and drinks. Mask up your face and sink into the bath - unwind and enjoy.
Play dress-ups
This is probably one of my favorite self-love moments - DRESS-UP! Creating new fashion looks is what I love to do, mixing and matching different textures, patterns and styles and playing with a bunch of accessories. Most of the fashion look-books I curate are results of these fashion experimentations - maybe you could create one too!
Try out some styles you've never worn before, go thrift shopping and find bold garments to create avant-garde looks; organize a fashion show for your friends or family. With Christmas just round the corner, do something Christmas themed! Maybe you could design and make your own clothes from scratch if you wanted to.
Looking at yourself in all these styles and clothes that you love and then showing them off in look-books and self-organized fashion shows will surely boost your confidence and make you fall in love with yourself.
Learn something new
Nothing is more rewarding than achieving a goal; it improves productivity and makes you feel accomplished. Before this year ends, try learning something new. Try learning a language, learn how to code, sculpt, make origami. For me, I'm learning the piano. So far, I've learned to play some of my favorite piano pieces such as Debussy's "Clair de Lune" and the classic "River Flows in You" by Yiruma.
Sign up to a class, or teach yourself through books or YouTube (which is how I learned to play the piano lol). Remember to take baby steps and set goals: for example, you could promise yourself to learn all the basic vocabulary of Spanish in three days, or you could learn how to play the first part of Für Elise by the end of this week. Trying new things enriches and improves your mind - plus with all these new skills you're learning, you're gonna look cool and amazing.
And this is my list of self-love activities you could try this Christmas. These are things that I personally do and that works for me; some of them may not work for you, some of them might do. All in all, it's not up to me to tell you how to love yourself so go out there and find your path, live and enjoy your life. 💛
Have a great holiday!
All the best,
12.10.2018
I decided to take a month off of writing to focus on school and getting my life together, so I apologise for the lack of content over the past several weeks! But, during this past September, I've found and tried out new products that I've been loving recently. From trying out fake lashes to reaching for cult-classics, here are my September Favourites.
MAKEUP
From left to right:
- Petite cosmetics lashes in "Feminist"
- Maybelline's Great Lash mascara (a cult-classic and new favourite)
- Cetaphil Moisturiser (great for my dry skin)
- Neutrogena healthy skin anti-aging perfector in 30 light to neutral (it is a moisturising retinol treatment that contains sunscreen 👌)
- wet n wild photofocus foundation in "Bronze Beige"
OTHER
From left to right:
- Victoria's Secret Fragrance Mist, Temptation (lol)
- Bath & Body Works Peach and Sweet Tea Body Lotion (with shea and vit E)
- Secret deodorant lol (I've been sweating so much lately and this has helped)
- NeilMed Saline wound wash (I've been using this to clean my pierced ears and earrings and has helped with preventing infection).
Do you also use any of these products mentioned? If so, let me know what you think!
9.30.2018
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