WHY AREN'T YOU DATING YOURSELF TOO?

cool things i've been up to!

i've been sewing a lot!

so far, I've made, a tote bag (so, so cute, but I gotta wash it so the marking chalk washes off) and I'm currently working on a makeup pouch! I want to make cute summer tops and scandi shorts and pants, basically my whole wardrobe!

i started my sourdough starter

literally this sunday but, at first she died :( because I forgot I live in tropical weather and fed her as if I was in England or something

BUT then I found a different guide and I'm following it and she's thriving, I can't wait to make foccaccia!

i'm rewatching friends

honestly I love it but also rewatching i'm like guys, that is unhealthy lol, such a funny show but i can see it was the 90s (the fits are on point tho)

i'm daydreaming about my future home

i want a white house, with blue shutters...

no just kidding, but I do want a classical house in the countryside with a big garden and to have my own homestead with chickens and cats and carrots and a ton of natural light from the windows and a crafting studio for me

I'm trad-curious like, I want that nature connected life, not the 1950's mindset crap

things I wanna do!

i want to start a garden!

i still don't really know how my living situation will be because of my first year of college yet, but as soon as I do, I want to start a little vegetable garden, i want to hone my homesteading skills

i want to learn to knit

I spent over $60 on YARN, and I haven't used it! tbh it's cause the sound of yarn like existing makes my sensory issues go die but aaaaa I wanna make sweaters, honestly w my headphones on it should be fine but, I just love sewing rn!

i want to exercise again

guys the senior slump is real, like I'm blogging in school rn, and it's like I go to school and since i don't work nor rest I get home drained and feeling unaccomplished :( honestly i want to get my life together but school is such a roadblock! I can't wait for college to have calculus and physics and chem all day long, so that I can come home to my books and my sewing and my gym yk? anyways, I have access to the gym on my street now, and since summer is back, we can use the a.c, so, it's an easy way to get back in it

i want to take better care of my body

in disordered eating recovery, i think that exercise and nutrition wise (at least my relationship w both), i've got it covered, but i've been biting my nails again, and i don't like it, but i can't seem to stop, i just gotta break the inertia of it, if i get up and do my nails, i wont bite them

i think that's it, i lololoooove yapping, so expect these kinds of posts from me!

xoxo,

sofi

💕💕💕💕

Your current and future self is determined by:

• What you eat

• Who you spend your time with

• How you treat your body

• What you read

• What you listen to

• Who you follow

• What you think about

• How you invest in yourself

Upgrade your inputs, upgrade your life.

start romanticising your reading

TLDR: choose your read, curate your space, and engage with the text

About three years ago, I was in the biggest reading slump. It was so bad that it had gotten to the point where I couldn't even read one sentence without picking up my phone to doom-scroll. At that point, I genuinely thought I could never ever get into reading again.

However, when I started romanticising my reading, I was able to finish a whole book in just one week. By romanticising my reading, it was no longer a chore, instead, it felt like an enjoyable experience where I could get lost in the emotions of the story.

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"How do you even romanticise reading?"

step #1 - choosing your read

pick something short and easy to read - a short story, a poetry collection, a graphic novel, an old favourite or comfort read

judge a book by its cover and pick something with a cover-art that interests you

pick something that matches your mood/feeling, here are some of my recommendations: want something gothic and eerie, filled with old secrets? We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson want something bittersweet and nostalgic with heartache? Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi want something empowering and thought-provoking? And Still I Rise by Maya Angelou want something whimsical and soft, filled with dreamy illustrations? Anne of Green Gables: A Graphic Novel by Mariah Marsden, illustrated by Brenna Thummler

step #2 - curate your space

replace your main lights for ambient lighting - fairy lights, candles, salt lamps, mushroom lamps, warm coloured LEDs

turn on some background music to build atmosphere for your book - 90s jazz for classic books, orchestral music for fantasy books

have a drink or snack that you love - I recommend an iced mocha or matcha for summers, and hot chocolate or green tea for winters

sit somewhere comfortable or somewhere that builds atmosphere - I have my bed next to my window which means it's comfortable when I read and I can also hear the crickets during summer nights

step #3 - engage with the text

use coloured pens or markers to highlight or underline your favourite quotes, and you can even assign different colours to different emotions

stick custom bookmarks or themed stickers to mark meaningful chapters or sections

start a collection jar with paper notes of your favourite quotes that you can read at the end of the year - you can write down the page, chapter, and book so you can always go back to where these quotes came from

jot down your current thoughts and feelings about certain chapters and sections so you can revisit the book in the future to see how your thoughts and interpretations have evolved over time - I like to date these annotations so I know exactly when I wrote my annotations

Remember that progress is still progress, even if it's small 🧸

25 screen free activities

do a puzzle

play an instrument

sew

draw and doodle

go on a walk

read

clean your room

write a story

paint

bake

scrapbooking

make a bracelet

garden

candle making

origami

photography

meditate

paint your nails

host a game night with friends or family!

do your makeup

write a love letter

collect rocks, flowers, etc. outside

cuddle with your pet!

visit the library

take an everything shower

Distance yourself from the people that you don't want to become

Las Posas Mexico

studying feels like a dream 🍁☕️

A Mini Guide For : How To level Up Your Confidence

1. Reframe Your Fails into Fuel - Instead of letting setbacks crush you view them as training moments. Everyone messes up but confident people use those experiences to learn and improve. Next time you face a challenge tell yourself "This is an opportunity to grow" and watch your confidence soar.

Celebrate Your Strengths - Don't wait for someone else to pat you on the back. Recognize and appreciate your own talents and accomplishments. Make a list of things you're good at big or small and revisit it whenever self doubt creeps in. Remind yourself - I am awesome at speaking and doing conversations and that's something to be proud of!

Fake It Til You Make It "in the Right Way" - This one gets a bad rap but here's the key don't pretend to be someone you're not. Instead act confident even if you don't feel it completely. Stand tall, make eye contact, and speak clearly. This outward projection can trick your brain into feeling more confident and over time it can become genuine

Compete Against Yourself, Not Others - Ditch the comparisons! Social media and societal pressures can make us feel like we're constantly falling short. But true confidence comes from focusing on your own journey, not someone else's highlight reel.Track your progress and celebrate how far you've come and set goals that challenge you to be a better version of yourself.

Focus on "what you can control," not the rest: Can't control others' opinions? Let it go. Focus on your strengths and actions and how you want to show up in the world Be your own boss.

Be patient with yourself and know your self more so that you can know in what areas you need to develop more , Message me if you guys want that sheet to know about yourself more 🥰

How do I stop comparing myself to others and how can I feel fulfilled on my own without needing anyone else's validation?

hiii<3 i feel what you're going through, trust me i do. here are some of my tips that specifically worked for me + at the end i'll include some more recommended things to read/ watch.

how to stop comparing & feel fulfilled without needing anyone else's validation

how to stop comparing yourself:

start focussing and thinking about yourself more. lol ok i realise that may sound like "become self absorbed" but i suppose, to some extent, that is what im saying. you're becoming too interested in others' life around you if you find yourself comparing. its time to focus on you and up levelling yourself to the best version possible.

comparison = wanting their life style, yes? so when you find yourself comparing to others in your life, realise that its because you envy something that they have. maybe its money, popularity, prettiness, intelligence, etc. so its like a signal in your brain which is telling you: "i want this. but i dont have it." so now what can you do, work hard to get it.

focus on what you have. i read a quote once (i think its by Oprah Winfrey) and it goes: "if you focus on what you don't have, you'll always have less. but if you focus on what you do have, you'll always have more." instead of looking at other's lives and thinking "i dont have this, i dont have that", look at your own life and think "i have this, i have that."

feeling fulfilled without needing anyone else's validation:

self love. self love. SELF LOVE. self love will ALWAYS be the answer to this. learn to LOVE yourself. and if you dont, ask why!! i have a whole guide on how to develop self love HERE. Stop looking for love in others, GIVE YOURSELF THE LOVE FIRST!!

It’s you over them. Always. Always always always. Always choose you over them. If they want you to do something but you don’t, then you say “no. I will not do that” it’s scary? Oh boohoohoo, suck it up. Because if you are constantly doing stuff that others ask you to just for the sake of pleasing them, you are disrespecting yourself in the worst way. You are basically saying that what they want is more important than what i want and need. Ew. Don’t do that.

extra resources:

a guide to develop self love & confidence (by me)

vanilla's opinion🍰 edition 1: dealing with hate & not caring about what others think. (by me)

ways to stay unbothered (by @pastel-charm-14)

Self validation (by @prettieinpink )

Tam Kaur's youtube channel

Thewizardliz youtube channel