Spring is feeling rather summery here in the Hudson Valley, but I’m definitely not complaining. Am I the only one who doesn’t realize just how gloomy winter gets until it’s over? Each spring I feel like I’ve been reborn into a brand new human. New goals, new projects, new inspiration…

I know that’s considered the whole point of spring, but it really is a powerful effect. I was basically a stressed out basket case all winter long, and now I’m easing into the warm weather vibe like winter never happened. Actually, can we pretend that?

Anyway, now that the woods are turning green and the temperature is a nice, even 70 °F for most of the day, I’m spending as much of mine outside as possible. And trust me, it just wouldn’t be a chill day outside without a sweet little glass of pink moscato.

Thumbs Up sent me these crazy cute diamond-shaped whiskey glasses to try, but since I don’t do much hard whiskey drinking these days, I decided to test them out with a bottle of summery pink moscato instead. Yes, the ultimate girl drink is my favorite thing to indulge in when I’ve finished hours (and hours) of writing and I just want to unwind.

These little glasses held up to the task, but are they really worth the money? Check out my review below.

I often lament about missing my “creative past”—an era between 1995 and 2009 where I was a veritable powerhouse of creativity. I was writing fiction, molding miniatures out of clay, designing clothes, sketching up characters and even drawing DIY comics…

A lot changed in my life after graduating from fashion school, which isn’t surprising. What I didn’t realize was that the free-wheeling creativity is what I would miss the most from my younger days.

Once upon a time, I would spend day and night on creative projects. It was as natural as breathing. These days, I have an instant pang of “isn’t there something you should actually be doing?” when I attempt to engage in something whimsical.

Growing up also comes with a fat dose of reality, and that distracts us from the all-important sense of joy and discovery that embarking on a random creative adventure can be. That’s why I was so excited to see #The100DayProject pop up on my Insta-feed this April. It’s a 100-day long challenge where participants simply do one creative thing each day.

Some people are doing visual and performing arts, others are writing or making music. When I found it, I decided to try and revive my love of sketching, and I created a separate Instagram account to post my creations each day.

The odds that I’ll actually do this every day for 100 days is pretty slim, but I am welcoming the excuse to take time out of my day and just draw. It turns out that this is excellent therapy—almost meditative.

My drawings are nothing groundbreaking our amazing. I have a recurring theme of pastries and pretty girls in romantic, melancholy moments. I’ve been photoshopping some of the sketches into backgrounds to create a little world.

My long-term idea for this project is to develop it into a series of characters who live in a little imaginary world called Pink Moon Cafe, but I’m not really worrying about how/if I get that far with it.

Another idea behind the separate account is to encourage a message of solidarity through creativity. Drawing and writing have gotten me through some tough times in my life. My creativity is something I know I can always take refuge in when the shit hits the fan. We don’t always remember how powerful a tool self-expression can be, in all forms.

For now, I’m having fun, and I wanted to post this to remind you guys to have some fun too.

So, tell me! What did you enjoy when you were younger? What if you could pick up the habit again? If you need permission to do so, I’m giving it to you now. Creative expression of all kinds can be a form of therapy and a way to rebalance our minds.

Making things feels good. If you want to see more of my drawings, check out Pink Moon Cafe here and follow the account! And be sure to follow my main Insta, Hey Mishka, if you’re not already.

Let me know what you end up doing, and drop me a link to your account if you’re doing the challenge, too!

I’ve got a brand new website and I’m super hyped about it!

My site was feeling a little “off” since I rebranded for winter (here’s a preview of what it looked like—opens in a new tab). I liked the color scheme and the sleek vibe, but it wasn’t really me.

As you guys know well, I’m all about the girly color scheme, pops of pink, and creative accents. I threw sleekness to the wind and tried to achieve all of this with the new site.

The same weekend that I conceived the new design, I did an informal photo shoot on a Brooklyn rooftop, hoping to use some of the shots on the About page. Only a few made the final cut, but I wanted to post them here anyway.

They represent a kind of refresh for me. I felt different that day. I’d just identified some new goals as a writer, and I felt brave enough to infuse my personality back into the thing that represents me as a writer on the internet.

Have you ever done a professional project of some kind with other people in mind? Ominous, judgemental “other people”? I’ve written my bios and designed my websites around this vague idea of what I think my industry is looking for. I’ve always done it that way.

This time, though, I wanted the website to be ALL me. Whether or not it’s glossy or elevated enough, it’s really me. That was so important to me while creating it, and it feels good to say I achieved it.

It did take a long time to rewrite my bio. I tend to cringe every time I look back at things I say about myself (don’t we all?) but at least this “about” page is structured and cohesive.

I tried to include information about my ideal clients, as well as what it’s like to work with me—rather than just blathering on about myself. The aim is to filter out clients who aren’t an ideal match ahead of time and excite the ones who would be perfect.

Anyway, check it out if you want! It makes me smile. I hope it’ll inspire you to infuse more of yourself into your “real world, professional” marketing materials, too.

Oh, and a quick side note: There are a lot of freelance “experts” out there who will tell you a website isn’t necessary for writers, but I have to disagree. I get job leads through my website pretty often. Most of them mention something about it—how the design caught their eye, or they could immediately see my fashion/lifestyle niche shining through.

This may be the Libra in me speaking, but a website is literally a 24/7 streamlined, dynamic snapshot of your services, your personality, your expertise, and your vibe in general. Why wouldn’t you want an all-in-one tool that could attract or deter certain clients right off the bat?

Anyway, I’m not going to get on a soap box right now… but you can get a bunch of tips about growing your freelance writing career over at Day Job Optional.

In the meantime, I’ll be over here sipping bubbly and celebrating this new year/bigger career vibe.

Pinkies up! I treated my mom to tea and scones at Alice’s Tea Cup Chapter II this week, and we were amazed at the cuteness of it all. I’ve been wanting to try this place for years and was excited to find a breakfast deal on Groupon.

The whimsy of this place is next-level, but be sure to sit on the actual next-level (2nd floor) for the full experience. Tall windows, yummy mint green walls, and adorable little tables make this place rather dreamy.

It was fairly empty since we arrived midday. Mom had the day off and I have the perks of the freelance life (choosing your own schedule = midday tea parties).

The next time you need a little escape, but a vacay isn’t exactly in your bank account, hop on Airbnb and find yourself a cute local place to stay! That’s what I did for Valentine’s Day this year and the experience was just as good as leaving town.

Check out this super-cute loft apartment! It had a cozy, lived-in, yogi vibe, which matched the couple who lives here perfectly. I got to meet them briefly before they took off for a Costa Rica adventure.

On a total whim the other night, I took a pair of scissors to my hair and chopped off 6″ or so. Maybe even more! It was getting super long, and even though I was having fun styling it this winter, I felt that cliche need for a change of some kind. It sounds silly if you’ve never done it, but it really does change your life when you lob off this much hair.

The last time I cut my hair into a short bob (way shorter than this) was when I was 25—here’s evidence!

Just like the first time, I felt like I had some heavy energy to shed. Some demons to release. January wasn’t the easiest month, and I sort of felt like I was dragging the 2017 version of myself along for the ride.

Aside from the idea of releasing energy and feeling lighter, I really like how it looks! I can wear it down with bangs or flip it over on my head for a sort of instant hairdo.

I was never really into “doing” hair or figuring out what style works for me. It has all been trial and error. Having long hair often meant just trying it up so I didn’t have to deal with it either way. Even when I dropped a fat stack of cash on balayage last spring, I had no idea how to make it work for me.

So, here we are. Short hair, happy Mishka, and my favorite hat.

A funny, kind of magical thing happened to me recently. After the holidays, right around the time I usually feel the S.A.D. vibes setting in, I opened a newsletter from one of my writing heroines, Alexandra Franzen. For anyone unfamiliar, Alex is one of the most generous, warm, wonderful presences on the internet. She always seems to be giving.

Inside this email, she offered a pep talk to any of her readers who needed it. She admitted that—assuming her lists is in the tens of thousands by now—it would take some time to get to everyone, but she promised to answer each one.

Anticipating my typical winter blah-ness, I hit reply and confessed to one of my writer idols that I tend to feel crappy between February and March. I explained that by then, I’ve  usually lost the glow of the festive season and the sparkle of the new year. Noting that this discouraging part of the year was imminent, I asked her for any advice she had on staying inspired and happy.

I sent off my email, and waited.

I was definitely late to the Downton Abbey train, my friends. I watched an episode or two when everyone was going crazy about it a few years ago (I mean, people are still definitely going crazy about it, which this post clearly proves), but I didn’t get caught up in the fever until I sat down and really watched it this month.

Yup! This month! As of January 2018, I can officially declare myself a crazed Downton Abbey fan. My mother bought the special edition box set and we sat down to watch them together after I arrived in the Hudson Valley this month.

On Christmas morning my dad surprised us with tickets to the Downton Soiree & Exhibit in NYC this month, so we shopped for 1920 style dresses and accessories and sped off to the city last night for this amazing event.

The soiree was a cocktail party with in-costume wait staff (they looked right out of Downton Abbey) and endless champagne (which was partook in generously, obv).

The exhibit was a combination of museum-style displays of props and artifacts from the show—costumes, love letters, instruments used in the house—as well as in-depth history lessons surrounding the real Downton Abbey plastered on the walls.

Our favorite part, though, was that you could walk through recreations of the Downton Abbey rooms. From the dining room and servant’s hall to Lady Mary’s bedroom, it felt like stepping into the actual show. How cool is this?

The costumes on display were authentic vintage from the late 1800s and early 1900s. Below, you might recognize who wore each of these outfits if you’ve watched the show.

My crappy phone camera couldn’t even capture how dazzling and sparkly these were. As a fashion design grad and a lover of vintage, I was in my glories.

Before spring cleaning comes with epic New Year’s closet cleanout, am I right?

I’ve been eyeing things that looked like must-have’s during the holiday season—yes, things I bought as recently as November/December—and wondering, “What the hell was I thinking?”

Will I ever wear that crayon red plunge v-neck floor length gown? Did I really need that sequin jumpsuit or the multiple dresses I bought as “options” for New Year’s Eve? Probably not. Also, fun fact: I ended up wearing an older dress on New Year’s Eve anyway.

As I prepare to execute a major refresh of my wardrobe for 2018, I’ve been looking for the best places to donate clothing and textiles. I was surprised to find that, here in NYC, the initiative to reduce textile waste has really grown. I’m sure this is the case in other cities, too!

I also figured that the average consumer isn’t aware of most of these options. The ol’ bag drop off at Sally Army is better than throwing things in the garbage (depending on who you ask…) but there are now other viable options as well.

Read on for a list of places to donate clothing and textiles in NYC this year, and turn that closet cleanout into good vibes and good karma.

…it was worth reflecting on.

And upon reflecting, I realized it was pretty beautiful after all. I just wasn’t paying attention to the good stuff.

See, I usually have a big routine planned for the end of the year. I review accomplishments (my credit score skyrocketed, my freelance income doubled, I paid off my first student loan—yay!).

I imagine the beginning of the year and reflect on how far I’ve come, I look through photos, emails, notebooks… I try to get a picture of the year as a whole and honor it somehow before moving on.

I’m a person who loves holidays, ceremonious beginnings and endings, and marking occasions with bubbly. This year, though, I was feeling lackluster. I didn’t feel excited or refreshed or ready for a new beginning.

I just felt… blah. 

A few days before the new year, I still hadn’t made any grand plans to assess and celebrate 2017. The magic of the holidays had faded and I was staring at my to-do list once more. On top of my list? Assess 2017. Create a blog post celebrating the new year. My enthusiasm flatlined.

Regardless, I wasn’t about to let the year slip away without some sort of recognition. I’m all about celebrating life, dammit! 

On a whim, I had the idea to compile all of my random cellphone videos throughout the year into one clip. You know, the ones you take and don’t even post on social media? It turns out, when you put them all together, they paint an interesting picture of the year. The in-between moments. The days as they flowed together. The seasons as they passed.

I narrowed the clips down and edited everything in sequential order. When I hit export, I held my breath, suddenly very excited to see the finished product. See, as I’d gone through those clips, I had begun to get a sense of the year.

I laughed at random moments I had filmed, like trying to sip prosecco on Krystal‘s balcony on a freezing cold spring day. I remembered the really special moments, like virtually every second spent with my nephew and an amazing writing retreat I had in Woodstock.

When I watched the video, it hit me: 2017 was an amazing year.

There were no major victories. There were more monotonous days than epic moments. But I spent this year with friends, family, and people I adore. Watching the clips and then the finished video filled me with gratitude and dose of reality. Life is always, always worth appreciating and celebrating.

Here’s the video, in case you’re curious…