THE WEEK

I hope you’re having an awesome weekend! It’s cold and rainy here and I’m feeling some serious post-vacation sadness. Acclimating to reality after five solid days in Vegas filled with shows, nonstop BFF time and dining at some really great restaurants is proving difficult.

Getting away from the pressure of work over the last week gave my mind a chance to wander and I ended up thinking a lot about female friendships and how important they are to nurture as an adult. It’s easy to let them drift as our days become filled with obligations but I had a big realization:

Once I’d built a solid support system of like-minded women, my life changed for the better. The things I had wanted to accomplish started to finally happen. Friendship is a beautiful thing and I’m so lucky to have these two ladies in my life along with so many other inspiring women who have been by my side through the good and bad. Take the time to tell all those special women in your life how much they mean to you!

I snapped this photo after a Sephora visit. I often skip makeup on a daily basis when I’m at the office but like a full face when I’m traveling and the Venetian location has some great makeup artists. I get overwhelmed with knowing what works so it’s nice to have the products applied by a pro before deciding to buy. I’m wearing the Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk foundation here and it’s a total game changer.

Between seeing Red Rock Canyon for the first time, watching Lionel live in concert (such a good show — highly recommend it!), taking poolside selfies in big hats, making friends at the Chanel boutique, golden shoe shopping, snapping photos of every statue in the vicinity of Caesar’s Palace, stuffing my face with a dozen P.F. Chang’s shrimp dumplings and having late night Siegfried & Roy and Michael Jackson Youtube binges, this vacation was everything I could have hoped for.

Focusing so heavily on client work over the last few months left me with a big creative block when it came to personal projects and blogging. Giving myself the space to have fun and let loose culminated in a list of new post ideas — and that feels good, since it definitely gets harder to write and create after nearly 9 years in this space.

Anyway, I hope things are going good for all of you and that you’re getting a chance to relax this weekend. I’ve been chatting today with family, texting friends and feeling a lot more centered. That’s a much welcome change.

Have a good one – and I’ll leave you with this quote:

“Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it’s a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope, and that enables you to laugh at life’s realities.” —Dr. Seuss

THE LINKS

• James Altucher claims that embracing minimalism can bring you freedom and joy. I especially love what he has to say about email: “For four million years we were “disconnected”. For 20 years we have been “connected”. I have 238,795 unread emails in my inbox. Emails are a suggestion but not an obligation. Love and spirituality and gratitude are found in personal connection. Not in an email response.”

• That one time Prince rented a house from an NBA star, made the fountain flow with purple water and changed the master bedroom to a hair salon? So funny.

• Check out this roundup of the top 75 design blogs.

• 18 inspiring quotes from women about leadership.

• In a way, staying in is the new going out. Sad but true, right?!

• Underwater choreography is so beautiful. I love this photo set.

• All you have to do to make a difference is commit to telling your story as truthfully as possible. It can change lives.

• Where does confidence come from?

• I love this inside look at what it’s like to work at Sephora.

• Vas Jenkatro is creating a poster a day for an entire year!

• When you work at a place that is overflowing with deliciously unhealthy food but are trying to lose weight, photograph all your triumphs and share them to stay motivated.

• Danielle LaPorte shares 9 of the best things she ever did. Random and inspiring.

• Radiohead just made a massive attempt to erase themselves from the internet!

• 6 super cool beauty looks inspired by music.

THE WEEK

What can really be said about this week? Prince died. I’m still in shock and can’t believe it actually happened. It’s so hard to watch the people we look up to, the people who fearlessly push creative boundaries no matter the consequences, leave this Earth.

Without these larger than life personalities, the world feels so bland. And with each passing, it becomes clear that these creative visionaries are human and have ups and downs just like the rest of us — they need people surrounding them who care and can be good, trustworthy friends when times get tough. I don’t know much about Prince’s personal life since he shared so little but I hope he’s at peace.

Thinking back to my one visit to Minneapolis in 2014, I got why he must have loved it so much there. The place was creative, fun and I’ll be honest, cruising on a Pontoon down Lake Minnetonka and visiting First Avenue were the two highlights of my trip. Joey grew up in Minneapolis and I would always laugh at his stories of skateboarding through the parking lot of Paisley Park like it was no big deal but now, I just feel so much sadness, like so many others.

In other news, I’ve had to let go of all expectations of this week because Rocky has also not been feeling well. It’s hard to think of my puppy as being nine now because when I met him, he was a sprightly, excitable three year old. After spending half the day at the vet yesterday and some x-rays, we found out that he hurt his back so I’m on stay-at-home mom duty, typing this post from the floor of our living room next to him to make sure he stays still. Poor little guy.

With Rocky not feeling well, all my project timelines got thrown out but luckily, everyone I work with is awesome and understanding. There’s no sugarcoating things — the last few weeks have been a total rollercoaster. That’s life sometimes and the reality is that not everything is a fun, exciting adventure to be shared on Instagram.

Ah, life. I hope your week went more smoothly than mine! Sending lots of love your way. xo

Photos, from top to bottom: 1. Lowe’s has flamingos! 2. Loving my new office plant from IKEA. 3. Rocky loves the cherry blossoms. 4. Weird statue alert!

THE LINKS

• Remembering 9 of Prince’s most over-the-top, princely moments. My favorite: In 2010, he said, “The internet’s completely over.” Haha!

• Figuring out how much to charge as a freelancer can be tricky but this post breaks it down in easy-to-understand steps.

• Times are changing! The Victoria’s Secret swimwear catalog and line will soon be gone.

• How to rewire your thinking and kick fear in the face!

• Prince, remembered in 11 songs you might not know he wrote.

• Grabr allows you to get anything delivered on demand from anywhere in the world by a trusted traveler that’s heading in your direction.

• Woah! Famous paintings recreated with washi tape.

• How do you define becoming an adult?

• Ha! #feelthekern merchandise is helping raise money for the Bernie Sanders campaign. Gotta appreciate the cleverness here!

• 7 better ways to answer, “What do you do?”

• I love seeing older women not giving into societal pressure and rocking their unique, bold style. So good!

• Before taking on a project for free, ask yourself these 3 questions.