B&W Firsts

This year, I've done a lot more exploring than I've done in a while.  I must admit, I love it a lot.

Here's a little compilation of my explorations in black and white:

Jamaica for the first time

First time in the craziest book store 

In line for a new concert

First time on a plane with friends

First MoMA experience

  

Kate Nash and D. Wing

puddle walking in creepers… first and last time

roller skating in a new part of town

-Matéa

Exploration of Vegan Eating

As I'm sure you all know, this month's topic is on exploration. For my article, I decided to write up on my exploration of vegan eating. Personally, I'm mostly pescatarian, so I decided to take it a step up and explore eating vegan for one week. 

vegan |ˈvēgən, ˈvejən|

noun

a person who does not eat or use animal products: I'm a strict vegan | [ as modifier ] : a vegan diet.

Being vegan means not eating animals as well as animal products. That means no (cow/goat/etc) milk, honey, eggs, etc.

Although I only ate this way for a week, I felt that it taught me a lot. It helped me especially realize, "what are we putting into our bodies?" as well as having benefits I instantly noticed; high energy, eating healthier, and being more food smart. 

Eating this way kept me constantly energized (more so than eating how I did before) and after eating, I never felt gross. It made me aware of the things I was putting into my body, and what the heck is in the processed food we eat? Whenever I had to try eating something, the main components of my meals were always fruits and veggies. I never felt sluggish. 

Some observations I made was that finding packaged things was difficult. A lot of things would have hidden ingredients in them, like powdered milk / egg etc. Because of this, I ate a lot more natural/clean/raw food which I think largely contributed to feeling so amazing. Because I had to think about what I was eating, it helped cut out mindless snacking. Looking at the ingredients in things closely too made me realize what on earth are we eating and putting into our bodies?! The majority of ingredients were unpronounceable. 

There were some negatives to eating vegan though. Eating out in restaurants was difficult. I received negative criticism of my decision from peers at school (and even my family, at times!) Finding food in the grocery store was difficult, and often the prices were ridiculously overpriced and had a massive difference between that of the non-vegan foods. 

At the end of my experience, my mom mentioned how she noticed while I was eating vegan, I was being so much more mindful and interested in the things I was putting into my body. 

Over the weekend, me and my mom took a trip to the LettuceLove Cafe in downtown Burlington. (Ontario, Canada). The restaurant is 100% vegan and gluten free, as is the bakery also owned by the same people around the corner. They had a diverse, lovely looking menu. I ordered the "Goddess Bowl" which was insanely delicious. My mom ordered the "Grilled Portobello Sandwich" and we shared avocado fries. We also got a cupcake, brownie, and cookies from the bakery. The food was so delicious and flavourful. 

    

If you have the ability I highly suggest checking your city for a vegan restaurant! 

Overall, I think this experience was a big success and made me much more aware of my food consumption. Because of my current living situation, I will continue being pescatarian for now, but I'm going to try and cut dairy out of my diet more and will probably do occasional weeks of vegan eating. 

If you're looking to try new foods, just want a healthy eating experience, or are interested in both the health and moral benefits of eating vegan, I definitely suggest trying eating vegan for a week. You won't regret it!

Some awesome vegan eaters to check out:

Essena O'Neill - Ally Sheehan - Freelee the Banana Girl - Ellen Fischer 

Check out this tumblr I set up for some yummy vegan recipes! (grapefruit-slices.tumblr.com) (Suuuupppaaaa easy!) 

- ♡ Alex ♡ 

Introduction: A Cooking Class From the Past

Recently while trailing through my home in search of trinkets to display in my room, I stumbled upon a floral green box marked "Recipes". It was a very vintage box, and it was filled with guess what? Recipes. Apparently, they belong to my great grandmother, and they are a collection of all the recipes she ever made throughout her life. Some are magazine clippings, recipes from scratch, and even some family traditions, which made me think that this box was definitely a recipe for exploration. Many people around the world have boxes just like mine, with recipes from people just like my great grandma, and in this feature I plan to add to the mag, I want to explore them all. So, each month I or someone else from the magazine is going to make a dish using a recipe from the past. I can't guarantee that they will all be winners, but I can guarantee that they'll be a lot of fun for you and for us to explore. So, find your own old recipes and dig in! Explore the past and explore your appetite.

Happy Eating, Laurel

Book Recommendations for the Month of May

"If you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking." -Haruki Murakami

It's true that books offer lots and lots of different perspectives, but the most important one that they offer is your own. When you sit and read a book you either like what it says and what it talks about, or you don't. Or maybe you're somewhere in between, and you like one thing about it but not something else. You may never have thought about it, but really, when you like and hate and feel all and any emotions towards aspects of a book, you're telling yourself something about yourself. And if that's the case, then when you read books you're embarking on an exploration of yourself. So, as May is exploration month, I thought I would share a few book recommendations to get your exploration going. 

"Journey of Awakening: A Meditators Guidebook" by Ram Dass

Now, I know that this seems like a strange thing to read. Many of you are probably thinking that you don't meditate, and you aren't interested in meditation. Well, neither was I. I didn't meditate when I started reading this book, and I don't meditate now. Strange, right? But it's not, and here's why. Although this book is technically about meditation, it focuses so much more on simply life than on any meditation techniques or methods. I found this book in my grandfather's library back when we were clearing out his things shortly after he passed. I was able to choose any books I wanted, and I chose this one as one of them for some reason unknown to me now. Well, eventually, I got around to reading this book. I just picked it up off my shelf and thought "I'll take a stab at this book now." Why? I don't know. But what I do know is that it was honestly a great book. Ram Dass focuses on life at its core, and the real things we desire out of it. Although he does touch on meditation at least once or twice a chapter, the overall feel of the book is not that of a guide book but rather an introspective journey. It gets you thinking about yourself, your life, and your wants and needs, and it offers a spiritual perspectives from all religions. So, if you ever wonder about yourself, read this book to find the answers. And who knows, maybe you'll find a newfound interest in meditation! (Although I still haven't found that, yet.)


"In Praise of Love" by Alain Badiou

I read this book back at the beginning of the year, and I still remember most of it today. And my memory is absolutely terrible, so that should say something about how amazing of a book it is. It's a short one, but I'll say that it is incredibly interesting. In keeping with the theme of the month, it is an exploration of love. Sounds like a big topic, right? How could anyone explore love in depth in what you've just been told is a short book? I'm still trying to figure out how Badiou did it, but it's been done. He sums everything up simply and yet in depth, and he never skips a beat on telling it like it is. This book is perfect for anyone who cares about love in any way shape or form, or just gets curious from time to time.


I hope you give at least one of these books a chance and that all of you try to dive into the depths of your preferences and opinions through a mountain of books and enjoyment! Keep Reading x Laurel 

Exploring Nails and Rings

Since this months theme is Exploration i thought i would make a post on exploring a few minor parts of fashion so you can stand out and hopefully this will influence you to step out of your normal drab fashion habits and explore something new! I picked two things to focus on today which are your nails and bling!

Nail Care
Instead of picking at your nails and biting them when you're bored, start taking pride in your nails. Here are some quick tips to keep your nails healthy and strong!

• Moisturise your hands often including your cuticles which will stop them from cracking and peeling
• Do not pull at hangnails (those annoying little bits of skin at the sides of your nail), instead gently cut them away as not to rip the cuticle. 
• Eat foods rich in Vitamin A such as apricots, broccoli, carrots and cheese. Drink a lot of fresh juice and water to keep your nails hydrated and prevent them from becoming brittle and dry. 
• Put nail hardener on your nails. It's just like a clear nail polish except it helps prevent your nails breaking. With your nails breaking less, your nails will grow longer. 

Once your nails are healthy and strong, you can shape them! Personally, at the moment I'm loving almond shaped nails as they elongate your hands and make you look feisty!



Once shaped you can apply colour! Here are some nail trends I'm loving at the moment

ALEXA CHUNG EYES


PLAIN BLACK


HEARTS




PASTELS


Accesorise; you can never have too much bling
At the moment double stacked rings and layering necklaces is right on trend, but a lot of people are too scared to try it as it seems a bit too out there. Be confident in what you wear and if wearing lots of rings and necklaces makes you feel good; wear them! Explore different ways of layering your necklaces to find something that is perfect!

This is @_belindaliana_ rocking this trend as daring to be different. Her layering of necklaces is eye catching against her plain tee and her rings are absolutely gorgeous. Quite a few of these pieces are from http://www.lovisa.com.au/. It has a lot of incredibly cheap jewellery and they have some really neat rings and necklaces.
Stay away from lots of chunky necklaces and instead use lots of fine necklaces with dainty little charms. You can find tons of these at etsy https://www.etsy.com/market/layered_necklace. The likes of Kate Moss and Kate Hudson and many more have already latched onto this rapidly growing trend.
  



Hope you guys enjoyed and remember to explore new trends and even look through your mums old jewellery and you never know, you might just find the perfect statement piece!

Olivia xxx

Exploration

First of all we would like to apologize for all of this being so confusing. We will now be posting every month on weekdays. Thank you all for sticking around !

This month our theme is exploration:

Exploration ex¦plor|ation

1. The action of exploring an unfamiliar area

We explore and discover new things every second of the day and that is why we have devoted this month to this wonderful theme! We hope you will like the articles we have prepared for you this month.

Enjoy, 

The Untypical Girl Gang :)

Health: How Juicing Rejuvenates You

re·ju·ve·nate [ri-joo-vuh-neyt]

verb (used with object), re·ju·ve·nat·ed, re·ju·ve·nat·ing.

1. to make young again; restore to youthful vigor, appearance, etc.

(from www.dictionary.reference.com/browse/rejuvenate)

Rejuvenation is basically the act of restoring vigor and/or energy being restored into someone or something. One thing that most teens face is a sense of constant fatigue; being mentally and physically drained. Whether it`s caused by school, family or any other type of stress, it`s so unhealthy and prevents us from doing our very best. How many of you want to be those type of people who seize the day or go out and do exciting things? What about the type of people who go on runs every morning and work out? There`s one easy solution to this and surprisingly, it`s not too hard. Juicing. Drinking natural juices from fruit and vegetables is so good for you and gives you that boost of energy you need. Fast food and ready-to-eat, microwavable foods are so bad for you and lack those vitamins and minerals that you need to function. You can drink a whole entire basket of fruits and veggies in literally two bottles of juice, how great is that? It`s also so easy to digest since it`s all liquid.

Pros: GLOWING SKIN. ENERGY. CLEARER MIND. LESS HEADACHES. MAYBE EVEN SOME WEIGHT LOSS (if you`re into that.) 

Cons: You`ll probably have to pee a lot because your body is detoxing and flushing out the toxins... but that`s about it.

Juicing is such a healthy way to lose weight as well, if some of you are looking for a beach bod or that nice summer body. And glowing skin? Who doesn`t want that? Well, no more nagging – let`s get started!

What you need:

·         juicer (mine was $76 since it was on sale!)

·         bottles/containers (I like to use mason jar styled cups, haha)

·         fruits and veggies

·         cutting board and knife

Optional:

·         water

·         yogurt

·         tea

·         flax seed

·         blender

So the reason I didn`t specify what fruits and veggies to get is because I don`t believe in having set recipes for this. I think it should be unique and personal! So this recipe says put in a whole cucumber, apples and carrots. Ew, maybe you don`t like cucumber or carrots are nasty. And suddenly half of the recipe is gone. Then you try to find another recipe and maybe this week, pineapple is really expensive or you couldn`t get your hands on kale. Honestly, go out, find what you like and experiment!

TIPS:

·         Adding banana or mango will overpower your juice so you can sneak a whole tomato or some carrots in there and you`ll barely taste it.

·         Don`t mix greens and reds, oh my baby Buddha. They`re complimentary colours so mixing them will turn your drink into an ugly brown so avoid that! (Unless you`re fine with it and you have an opaque bottle.) This means that if you have strawberries, mango and watermelon (random), don`t go putting in cucumbers and kale in there also (at least not too much for colour change.) but it might be okay if you sneak a banana in a blueberry and cucumber juice to hide the cucumber.

·         If you do choose to find recipes online, you are more than welcome to substitute ingredients: ie) oranges instead of carrots, tomato instead of pears, pineapple instead of grapefruit, etc.

·         You can make it into a smoothie by juicing regularly, but then adding yogurt and using a blender to mix it all together!

·         Add flax seed to your juice if you want some protein.

·         Adding water can thin out your juice if it`s a little too thick or if the flavor is too strong.

·         You can also add some tea to make it more relaxing: I like to use the teas from Bentley’s (from Winners and Marshalls)

 My Recipe!: Summer Blush

Ingredients: (For 2 bottles of juice)

·         Half to a full container of strawberries

·         1 – 2 sliced mangoes

·         1 apple

·         1 – 2 bananas

·         1 tomato

·         Half to a quarter of a cucumber

·         A small handful of baby carrots

I wash all of my fruits and veggies in cold water then I cut the stems off of the strawberries, slice up the mangoes and the apple, peel the banana, and slice the cucumber. There`s really no order so shove them all into your juicer and watch the magic happen.

Go back to the tips if you want to spice up your juice and voila!

There are so many options and I dare anyone who decides to juice to post a picture and your own personal juice recipe! Have fun~

♡ - jj 

Spring Favourites!

1. Skirts are really on trend at the moment and the gorgeous subtle asymmetric pleat wrap tennis skirt is perfect for the Spring season. pair it with a cute crop or tuck in your favourite tee!
2. The sugar crush body wash by Soap&Glory is definitely a must have for this Spring! it will not only get you ready for the fresh new season with the fruity citrus scent but it will get you smelling like Spring too!
3. These absolutely adorable bralettes from Forever 21 come in a range of sweet Spring colours and will go perfectly under any cute sheer tee or tank top! they're a must have for this Spring!
4. Spring means sun and sun means sunglasses so its time to grab a pair of Forever 21's half frame sunglasses to top off any outfit!
5. The herbalism cleanser by Lush is an exfoliating detoxifying scrub that's perfect for oily or problem skin so if you need a fresh start for the new season, pick up this herby product! 
6. The velcro platform sandal is an absolute essential for this season because of course, Spring is the best time of the year to be strutting around in some comfy and extremely comfortable sandals (at an affordable price!!! perfect right?)
7. The mask 0f magnaminty is a great way to get your skin feeling fresh for Spring with the gorgeous scent of peppermint, this mask is filled to equip your skin for Spring as you can use it not only on your face but the rest of your body too! 
8. The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides is the perfect read for Spring! Just imagine sitting under the sun on a picnic rug sipping on your favourite drink and reading though the infatuating novel. It is sure to help you get the most out of Spring!
9. Since Benefit is like the most amazing brand ever created we've found the sweetest new product that just screams Spring! Its the Posietint, a gorgeous little cheek stain that comes in the most bright colours to light up your face! 
10. Now that dungarees are a trending style in the world of fashion at the moment you have to get your hands on Topshop's MOTO short Denim Dungarees! they are the perfect item for sunny Spring weather to pair with your favourite tee and some cute boots or sandals
11. Garnier's Double care treatment is sure to make your Spring amazing as well as your hair of course. Apply it to your hair to give it a luscious Spring shine! 

Current Trends

It's finally spring time! That also means new trends in fashion. So I've decided to gather my favourite trends here in this post.

birkenstocks

It might be called the worlds most ugly shoe, but I am starting to love them -guilty! They are so simple and very comfortable. Because they are so basic, you can match them with everything! Definetely a musthave this season!

white socks

When you think about white socks and sandals, the first thing that probably comes to your mind is a german tourist. But, the fashion scene has adopted this tourist cliche look. And I must admit that Nadja Bender rocks the look! 

pearls

Pearls are THE accessory you have to own this spring! If it's a necklace, some stick earrings or a bracelet, everything will go! I am especially fond of the earring from Sophie Bille Brahe (picture above) but my wallet doesn't really appreciate it :(

holed denim

The holes don't belong to punk anymore, no. Everyone are diy'ing their jeans. I did it on a pair of mine and it adds a little edgy detail to a classic or girly outfit. So get to your scissors girls!

tie a knot

Again a trend that adds detail to an outfit. Tie a sweater, shirt, jacket, anything with sleeves by your waist. It's super trendy and makes a boring outfit interesting. 

- Sonia xx

A playlist

A playlist to listen to when you need rest or when you want to watch the clouds pass by.

1. Demon Host - Timber Timbre

2. Baby - Devendra Banhart

3. Waterfall - Josephine Foster

4. Myth - Beach House

5. Kiss - Scout Niblett

6. Soft Skin - Mountain Man

7. Daydreaming - Dark Dark Dark

8. Misread - Kings Of Convenience

9. Ongeveer - Eefje de Visser

10. July Flame - Laura Veirs

11. Sea of Love - Cat Power

12. Palms - Jana Hunter

- Quirine

Bliss

Journaling is one of my favorite pass times.  I love to just sit down with an empty page and a pen in my hand and write whatever I feel like writing.  No one can judge you for writing your thoughts, right? :)

Since this month's theme is rejuvenation I thought I'd share some ways that I personally relieve stress and feel new. But this time, journal style.  There are so many stressful things going on at this juncture in my life.  School, keeping up a social life, drama, whatever.  So of course I have to come up with ways to just cool down and bliss out.

Hope my handwriting is legible enough x

P.S. I wrote this before we decided to do post every other month, so it says it's "almost spring" hehe k 

xx, téa

Good Vibes

                Being sad sucks. It’s unavoidable but that doesn’t make it suck any less. In fact that probably makes it suck more. Fortunately humans have had this problem for a while now so there are plenty of ways to deal with it. As one depressed teen to another here are some ways to help you feel better.

                In your room

There’s usually plenty of stuff to do at home for most teens. Most of the things that people want you to do happen out of your room or bed. Some things that don’t take you out of your inner sanctum are

-Cleaning your room

I know this doesn’t sound appealing, especially if you feel shitty but even just making your bed can help you feel more clear and organized.     
 

-Reading a book or playing a videogame

Escapes from reality are always nice. Stories will always be there for you. In some cases like skyrim you get to create your own character and they can be whoever you want. Immerse yourself in them or the story that you choose and just get away for a while.

-Watching something

Same concept as before just with a time limit. When I feel shitty and I don’t have the energy to put into anything I just find something to watch (usually Parks and Rec) and let it make me laugh or cry or just make me feel like the world isn’t so dark and I am not alone.

-Wrapping up

Sometimes bundling yourself up in all the blankets you own and just not getting out of bed can be really cathartic. I don’t know why I just know it works.

               

                Around the house

Lots more options open up when you leave your room such as

-Baking something

Cook. Cook anything. It is one of the most satisfying feelings to have made something and it’s only fair that you should get to consume it. I make some wicked brownies and let me tell you it is fantastic.

-Laying outside

Get yourself a blanket and enjoy the day. Whether you make a fort on the porch or a picnic in the backyard or even lay out on your roof, just enjoy the outdoors. Appreciate the sunlight and any other element you may encounter.

-Art

I mean this in the broadest sense of the word. Write a story or poem, paint a picture, draw your cat, sing, dance, take pictures, and anything else that could ever be classified as art. Like cooking it’s a form of creation as well as self-expression and can help vent some of those negative emotions.

Out in the great wide world

It can be scary out here but it’s well worth it.  Some options if you feel well enough to venture out some things you could try are

-Walking

Walking gives you plenty of time to think as well as lots of exercise and outside time. Your feet can take you lots of places.

-Running

Walking’s faster and often less desirable counterpart. When I run I usually just run until I can’t breathe and at that point I’m usually too tired to be sad. Also any sort of exercise can cause the release of endorphins and it just makes you feel good when you’re done. Even if it does feel shitty while it’s happening.

-Talking to friends

Find some way to communicate and hang out with them if you can. Friends will almost always be the best solution to feeling bad. They have helped me through many of my rough patches and they are also most of the reason that I’m not quite dead yet. Friends are fantastic.

               

                General Solutions

You can always just listen to music or find a nice quiet place and calm down. Meditation is good for some people, some like to drink tea. Some people need to be alone and others need to talk it out. Honestly it’s up to you and only you to determine what is best for you. As long as it helps and it’s not dangerous or detrimental to your health go for it.

                                                                                                               

                                                                                             Chin up, Baker

run away with me

x Sophie

Interview With Bones Blogger

This month i was extremely lucky to interview the amazingly talented Isabella! She is the owner of my favourite blog http://bonesstyling.blogspot.co.nz/ and her instagram is http://instagram.com/bonesblogger. She is an amazing girl and her style is out of this world. She steps out of the box and her quirky sense of fashion has obviously been noticed by thousands. On with the interview!

QUICK FIRE 6
Name: Isabella
From: Aussie
Age: 14
Fave food: Japanese
Fave designer: Zimmerman / sass and bide
Best place for bargains: Target

In one sentence introduce yourself
Hello my name is Isabella, and I am the owner of Bones Blog.

When did you first start up Bones Styling?
I first started bones on the 24th of March 2013 

Whats the story behind the name?
The name bones comes from idea of what the fashion industry is doing to girls of our generation. They use models that are all made of bones, creating an unrealistic idea of what a perfect body is to teenage girls.

What's the favourite item in your wardrobe at the moment?
My fave item in my wardrobe would be my satchel that my brother and sister bought whilst my brother was in London ( with my sister obviously ) for my birthday. It's brown and leather and it has my name at the front which I love ! It's from The Cambridge Satchel Company

List your top 5 essentials:
-funky earrings
-statement bag
-ballerina skirt
-denim jacket
-knit cropped top

What's on your wishlist at the moment?
On my wishlist at the moment.... Wow, would be a blush pink trench coat!

You're going to the movies with your friends, you don't want something too formal but you don't want to be wearing sweat pants, ya know? So what's your ideal outfit? 
When I'm going to the movies I always get cold ( alwaysssss), so basically I never wear jeans because jeans are not comfy to sit in for long periods at a time so I would go with a comfy ( fabric ) shorts, with a plain tee, jewelry to dress it up a tad and my denim jacket.

What is the key to creating unique and stand out outfits?
Always buying funky pieces that I know I will wear ! I am a huge fan of funky jewelry so I am always keeping a keen eye on the lookout ! When it comes to clothing I always ask my self
-will I wear this ?
- where can I wear this?
- what can I wear this with ?

Where do you see your blog in a year?
Wow ! Hopefully bigger and better than ever ! I hope to work with some more companies along the way and interview some more amazing and inspiring people ! I also hope that my style grows with my blog.

Thank you sooooooo much for your time Isabella, it has been amazing interviewing you!
My pleasure!!! Thank you so much for having me on your magazine! I love reading the articles!!! Xx

Here is a wee sneak peak into Bella's amazing blog!

                               

Thanks for reading babes!

Stay Stylish,

Olivia xx

The Earth Laughs In Flowers

A few short quotes I've collected and edited that make me feel special and I hope you feel special too because it was so unlikely that you would come to be, but you did, and that in itself is amazing. ♡ Ana Bilokin

all photo creds go to their respectful owners xx