Spiral Findings

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Wardrobe Reinvention

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I recently shifted my home from the East Coast to the West Coast.  The weather is much better, the culture is different, and consequently the attire is a bit different too.

I’ve been trying to figure out how to change up my wardrobe to be less East Coast professional to more West Coast chic because dressy trousers don’t work out here.  I want to have a simple closet with a few favorite pieces that I can wear regularly, not a ton of clothes that I don’t wear or that don’t feel great to wear.

Some ideas I had or people had shared with me regarding refreshing my wardrobe:

  • Flip through some style magazines like InStyle, Vogue, etc. to see what’s in fashion and what appeals to me.
  • Try things on at my favorite stores and see what looks and feels good.
  • Work with a fashion consultant at my favorite stores or try Nordstrom’s Personal Shopper, making sure to tell them what types of clothes I want to wear and for what purpose.

Approach 1:

Today, I tried flipping through style magazines while I was at the local Target.  There are less magazines there than I expected.  I didn’t find this particularly helpful and didn’t see fit to bring any of the magazines home.  Things look great on the pages of a magazine or on the rack at a store, but they may look completely different on me.  So, as much as I liked this idea, I think I’m going to just end up having to stick with my other two approaches.

Approach 2 & 3:

Next steps are to find a couple stores that I like, and when I’m in the mood, go try things on.  I find that you have to be in a “trying on clothes” mood, otherwise you’ll just think everything looks terrible or not want to experiment.

I also want to pick a day where I’m feeling a bit adventurous and try Nordstrom’s Personal Shopper.  Maybe I can convince a friend to go and we can do it together.  That might be fun.

Have you ever reinvented your wardrobe?  How did you go about it?

 

Talk to Yourself

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Have you ever found yourself talking to yourself?  Why did you start doing this and what were you doing when you started it?

For me, this sometimes happens when I’m trying to walk through everything I need to pack up before I go on a trip…clothes, check, computer, check, shoes, check, passport, check, jacket, check.  I even have a pre-travel checklist to make sure I don’t forget my toothbrush again 🙂

I’ve found other reasons to consider talking to myself, or journaling with myself as Andrea Schroeder talks about on her most recent blog post about self doubt.  Sometimes when you write something down, or talk it out, it brings clarity to the discussion.

Have you ever had the experience of how the act of simply talking about something gave you clarity about the path forward?  What current project or problem are you working on that could use a little talking through or journaling out?

Procrastination Paralysis

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I’ve got a lot on my mind and my metaphorical plate right now, or at least it seems that way.  I’m sure I know that the process of just starting and working through the stuff on my plate one by one would be the best way to get ‘er done…

…but alas, sometimes I end up in the paralysis of procrastination.  I don’t know why this happens for me and although there are many great articles on this topic and why others experience it, I just haven’t found my way through yet.

This article I found recently was particularly inspiring and I wanted to share it with you – the author talks about her journey to believe that her self-worth is inherent and not tied to how many things she gets done.  In fact, it takes you away from what you actually value because you focus on being productive versus engaging with people or things in your life that make you happy.

Spaaaaaahhhhhhh: Soothe versus Zeel

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A week or so ago I got a notice that one of the services I was using to schedule massages was getting acquired.  MassageNow had been acquired by Zeel and instead of booking free spots at local spas akin to a HotelTonight for spa treatments.  However, with the acquisition, the model has changed and now Zeel is offering services more similar to Soothe than what MassageNow used to provide.  It’s an interesting change, and one that I’ll be interested to dig into as I try out the service and compare it to Soothe.

Here’s what I have learned so far:

  • Zeel costs a bit more than Soothe.  In San Francisco, a 60 minute Swedish massage starts at $110 with an added 18% tip, whereas Soothe costs $99 and tip is included for the same service.
    • (Update from 12/2018)
      • Prices have increased since this article was written: 129 + tip for Zeel and 119 + tip for Soothe for a 60 minute massage.
      • Soothe claims they never included tip as part of the service despite earlier messaging to the contrary.  They now support tipping in their mobile app.  Their site/app is a bit confusing about the tipping.  Zeel has always included an automatic 18% tip.
      • A membership service is available with both companies.  This reduces the per massage price by 20%.
  • Zeel operates from 8am to 10:30 versus Soothe’s hours of operation of 8am to 12am midnight, which might be nicer to get you relaxed and ready for a nice sleep.
  • With Soothe, you suggest a start time for the service, whereas with Zeel, you suggest a window of when you would like your spa service, i.e. start as early as 7pm and end by 9pm.  I imagine this gives Zeel more flexibility for scheduling appointments versus Soothe’s model.

If you’d like to try these services, feel free to use the following promo codes and you’ll get some $$ for your service!  I’ve tried Soothe and plan to try Zeel though I’m not sure I’ll be interested in sticking with them if their service is more expensive by at least $10 + tip each time.  $100 is just a more palatable option.

Zeel Promo Code: $20 off your visit

Soothe Promo Code: $20 off your visit

Note: I will also get a benefit if you use these codes.  I hope this gives you an incentive to try something new and please feel free to share your experience in the comments section.

Update:

I tried Zeel this evening and I wanted to give a little update on the experience I had with this service versus Soothe.

  • (+) It was one of the better massages I’ve had, maybe in the top 5 or so regarding quality of massage.  The massage therapist knew what she was doing, responded to my feedback, and really made sure I had a relaxing experience.
  • (-) She indicated that there is an option to request sheets if you don’t have any extra of your own, which I will definitely be doing if I use them again.  I don’t like the idea of paying more and then having to do laundry as well.  It adds to the overall cost of the massage which isn’t factored into the price.  Definitely a negative that can turn into a positive next go around.
  • (+) She brought lavender aromatherapy scent to help clear my sinuses and make the experience more enjoyable.  This was used when face up and my nose was congested.  It really helped and felt super relaxing.
  • (+) She asked if I wanted my eyes covered when face up.  It is a small thing, but definitely makes the experience more spa-y for me, and it was nice that this was an option.
  • (-) She used cream versus oil.  For some this might be better, but I prefer oil massages.
  • (-) She brought her own music, but it was playing on her phone or something which would ding when she got a message.  She noticed that and said she needed to figure out how to turn that off.  It was a bit distracting, but thankfully didn’t happen that much that it affected my experience.
  • (n/a) Apparently there is an option where they give you a table for free, in exchange for a regular service at a discounted rate.  This seems to be a monthly subscription program.  Not for me but might be appealing to people who have space for a table and are having regular treatments.

Anyway, I’m not super wild about the higher price, but I wouldn’t rule them out because the quality of my massage was really good.  If I can request the same massage therapist, and I can take advantage of promotions, I might consider doing this 2x yearly.  If they were cheaper, I’d be likely to use it more frequently.  I’m glad I tried something new – it was a good learning experience and a good experience in general 🙂

Spaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!

Speed Reading

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I had a friend lend me a couple fun books this week, which was nice and got me out of my comfort zone of reading the same type of content day after day.  This week I flipped through this book called Remember Everything You Read by Stanley D. Frank.
The first thing I noticed when getting the book was an intense resistance to reading it. This was mostly because I’ve been trying to adopt a more minimalist philosophy and speed reading seems like the opposite of slowing down and being more mindful of what is capturing my attention.  Thankfully, my friend said I probably only have to read the first chapter or so of the book so I figured what the heck if I don’t like it I’ve only read 25 pages.
The two other takeaways I had from the book were my current reading speed based on the test reading and a different way to take notes.   Although the book seems more geared to students in school, I definitely can see some application in my daily life when I’m reading complex documents or I want to note some information that I’ve been reading in a more intuitive way for comprehension.
I’m glad I gave the book a shot.  I learned some things about myself and a few new reading tricks.  Sometimes it’s good to get out of your reading comfort zone.
What book have you read that challenged you or was out of your comfort zone?