Really Pretty Good

2000's are coming back and I have lots of thoughts!

I never knew what to wear while pregnant, what to buy ahead of time, what would change postpartum, and I feel like everyone said something different so I really couldn't decide what to shop for and ended up just feeling really BLAH the whole time I was pregnant, but then felt pretty good postpartum once I did some shopping. So I do not have the answers for others since it's true that everyone is different, but I thought it might be helpful to share what worked for me in case anyone else is trying to figure this out for themselves either with pregnancy or postpartum! Or if you are just curious for the distant future or as a friend.  A few of my favorite maternity and nursing friendly pieces: https://shopmy.us/collections/226601

Figuring out dinner is the worst! Here is what is helping me.
https://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/
https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/
Leftover Stickers: https://shopstyle.it/l/cfaN0
Thermometer: https://shopstyle.it/l/cfaO3
Planning App: https://www.notion.so/
Instacart ($10 off for both of us): https://inst.cr/t/63a3f03a5  


Feeding your baby is such a personal and complicated process to navigate! So many surprises and things outside of your control, so much pressure to do it a certain way from others, so time consuming at the beginning, and feels like such an important thing to get “right.”  I truly believe what is best is different for each parent and baby but I know it can help to hear other people's experiences, so that's what I'm sharing today!  I hope you enjoy this episode whether you are simply curious or if you are gathering info for a future child! Here is my blog post with details on the breast pumps I have: https://reallyprettygood.com/blog/breast-pump-round-up Baby products I'd register for again: https://reallyprettygood.com/blog/baby-gear Follow me on Instagram: https://instagram.com/reallyprettygood

Welcome back to really pretty good podcast! I am so happy to finally be starting Season 3 after such a long time off, I think about 6 months off. I've been missing it and eager to come back but as most of you know I had a baby at the beginning of this year and so I've been adjusting to the huge life change and until now have felt pretty much in survival mode or like I just really needed to focus on learning how to be a mom. But I think I'm finally feeling a little bit more settled into the new life and a little bit more able to think about creative things again so I'm happy to be back to share more! And on that note I thought the perfect way to come back would be to update you on the last 6 months and share some of my postpartum experience. We left off on quite a lot of motherhood topics while I was pregnant so we are picking that back up for now but throughout this season I do plan to share a mix of both personal, motherhood journey and also some creative thoughts and commentaries on creative things happening in culture like fashion shows and trends and our usual stuff. So before I get too chatty let's dive right into postpartum. I am planning to make this a 2 part series because as I was planning I realized I have so much to say about our breastfeeding journey that it'll be better to make that it's own episode for those who are interested. So in this episode I'll focus mainly on the physical recovery, emotional and identity part of postpartum, and touch on our experience with sleep and sleep training!  So without further ado, I give thee, The first six months of my postpartum experience.

Special episode after some time off to share the story of my son's birth! 

This is going to be the last episode of season 2 before I take a break to welcome little baby into the world. I did plan to go a few more weeks before wrapping up the season but I have realized it is getting harder and harder to have the mental capacity for everything I'm committed to at the moment so we are going to wrap up just a couple weeks early so that I can focus on the rest of our prep!  So with it being holiday season with lots of fun hosting and parties and things happening I thought a fun topic to end on would be some ideas for hosting a low cost, low stress, but memorable and fun gathering. I think hosting is one of the most fun things ever but when we see all the high end Pinterest parties on social media it becomes kind of easy to mix up priorities I think. You know I am all about aesthetics and I do think aesthetics are important and make a big difference, but what I mean by mixing up priorities I think is just that sometimes it feels like we need the really amazing expensive decor pieces in order to create an ambiance but there are actually so many great ways to make the aesthetic vibe that you want to create a really great party feel without having the Pinterest parties that act so casual about spending thousands of dollars on a small friend gathering. So I wanted to share some of my ideas that I've gathered over the years of hosting for what in my opinion makes a party truly memorable when you're working with a tighter budget.

Today we are chatting all things nesting before baby arrives: Nesting rage Baby's room plans —  biophilic design, grandpa aesthetic but modern twist Paint color and what I've realized about painting What else I've been doing around the house Transitioning into mostly SAHM and realizing nesting is kind of my job now and how that feels    Glucose test update Links: Sweet or Savory Podcast -- Nesting Rage All The Past Biophilic Design Episodes Grandpa Aesthetic

I'm going to share all about my second trimester experience and my baby shower which was this past weekend! I'm in the last week of the second trimester so we are entering the home stretch. And the second trimester was pretty different from the first so I hope you enjoy this little update for some easy listening today! Do Birth Classes Help? Blog Post My First Pregnancy and Miscarriage First Trimester Blog Post 60. Gender Reveal and Testing Old Wives Tales 56. Finding Out We Are Pregnant and First Trimester Experience

Last Year's predictions: Episode 23 Ugly Dress TikTok: @carol.ine3

This week's episode is a quick and cozy list of some ways you can decorate for fall if you haven't already. I struggle to decorate for fall and have it end up feeling really impactful, so I thought others might be in the same boat and maybe could benefit from a little brainstorm list of decor ideas in case it gives you any inspiration for your own house. I'll focus on indoor because for outdoor I'm just going to assume we are all doing the pumpkins and mums thing, and if you live in a warm climate maybe you're going with fake plants or you're willing to replace them throughout the season. I think the three keys to decorating for fall are dried plants, earth tones, and hygge. So here are some specific ideas for how to implement those three things and make your house feel ultra autumny. String Lights Non-Fall Colors Inspo @thekwendyhome Clean Beauty / Low Tox Living Episode (#57) The Little Book of Hygge

Sharing my thoughts on the underwhelming fashion month that was Spring/Summer 2024! Neon green (Elie Saab, Kate Spade, PatBo) Metallics (Ralph Lauren, Prada) Big applique lace (Valentino, Georges Hobeika) Red for the neutral girlies (Kendall Jenner in Shiaparelli) 50s volume hair etc (Versace, Shiaparelli) Giant Sequins (Carolina Herrera, Proenza Schouler) Drop Waists Not as much of the big poofy stuff I saw last year (Last Year's Giambattista Valli) and not as much satin/taffeta as last year

So to explain this episode about fashion let me start off by saying that it's the start of the football season and last year around this time I made an episode called How To Care About Sports because I always feel like I'm missing out on the conversation this season of the year and even though I don't naturally care about sports I realized there's a part of me that kind of wants to because you know, if you can't beat em, join em.  So my friend who is an editor at FOX Sports came on and joined me to give her perspective on why sports are interesting to watch and kind of gave me the 411 on how to find interesting relationships among the players and character stories to care about so that it's a little bit more like reality tv for me haha. And I admittedly have enjoyed it more since then and have followed some players or players' wives on instagram and I might even try to watch some games this year on my own to see if I can become genuinely interested by the time of the SuperBowl.  So, all that to say, it is ALSO the biggest fashion season of the year right now, so I think all the sports fans out there deserve an episode about how to care about fashion and fashion month. I'm sure there is some cross over of people who care about both already, and if you follow my content I probably don't have to convince you to care about fashion haha, but I actually thought it could be a fun chat even if you do like fashion already to share some of the ways I like to make it even more interesting to follow fashion month besides just “oo pretty dresses.” So whether you love fashion already or are just waiting to send this episode to the sports lover in your life and say “hey I listened to your episode now you listen to mine,” I hope this episode leaves you inspired to find extra entertainment and enjoyment in the fashion world! I would personally think of three subtopics of fashion that I find interesting: high end fashion events, influencers and celebrity style, and trend cycles. I think the easiest place to start is with those high end events, so let's go through the fashion schedule which is the order and location of fashion shows and fashion month that is usually about the same year after year, and then we can talk about celebrity style and then trend cycles. Episode 38: How To Care About Sports

We are on a 2 part mini relationships series because last week was our anniversary and we haven't done a ton of relationship content on the podcast but I feel like I always have thoughts about it so I thought this was a good excuse to bring it to the pod. So last week I shared the 5 best pieces of marriage advice we've gotten so far in our marriage that have helped us the most, and this week I wanted to go back further in time and share dating advice I would give my former self. I feel like I would do things so differently if I could go back in time and I've been thinking about this topic a little bit knowing I will be raising a son, and just thinking about what I will tell him when the time comes for him to be dating, so here are 5 things I would tell my past dating self or my future dating son.

Today is a cute special episode because yesterday was my husband's and my wedding anniversary. We've been married 7 years now which feels kind of crazy mostly because I feel like we're not old enough to have been married that long, even though we are in our 30s now. I thought it would be kind of fun to do a little relationships episode in honor of our anniversary and share 5 of the best marriage advice I feel like we've received over the years or that has helped our relationship the most. And then I'm planning to do another episode next week on a similar topic but it'll be things that I would tell my younger self before I was married, when I was dating.  Even though 7 years does feel like a long time in some ways, I know we still have a baby marriage compared to so many older wiser couples that have been together for decades, but I thought it could be nice to share some of the advice that we have gotten from some of those older wiser people and I think pretty much all of these apply to any type of committed relationship even if it's a friendship even though I'll be talking in the context of marriage. So if you love love or are curious to hear some of the things that have helped us over the years, this episode is for you, hope you enjoy!

oday is kind of a random episode but I just thought it would be a fun one because I found this list in my notes from a couple years ago and thought it was hilarious and would make a good podcast episode. And that topic is: home decor styles for each enneagram. So I think most of you are familiar with enneagram but if you're not it's like a personality test that people go really deep into and actually get certified in and everything and it's probably overhyped in some ways but it's actually one of my favorite personality tests because I think it's actually been helpful to me in my life and relationships.  So there are 9 numbers and I'm not going to get into the details of enneagram here because that's a huge topic, but if you aren't familiar with them I'll give a brief overview of each one as we talk about them but this episode will be funnier to you if you're already familiar with enneagram and are thinking of people you know that fall into each number. Even though this episode is mostly just for entertainment I hope it inspires the creative side of you a little bit and gives you some ideas for home decor as well. So let's jump in. Follow me on instagram: @reallyprettygood Show notes for each episode: reallyprettygood.com

As you can see from the title I am officially revealing the gender of our baby, but this is going to be a 2 part episode because I thought it would be fun to go through some old wives tales around gender before finding out the gender for ourselves. So for the first half of this podcast, you'll hear me from a while ago when I was 15 weeks pregnant, going through the tales and adding up the points for either boy or girl, and at the time I didn't know which one it was. Then for the second half, I'll reveal what the gender is, since we just found out, and I will share a little bit more about our gender reveal party and some of the fun details we included for that.  So I hope you enjoy this pregnancy update and have fun seeing if the old wives tales are correct! 

Today I thought it would be fun to chat about a new fashion trend I have been seeing everywhere for the last several months, specifically ever since Sofia Richie's engagement and wedding, and the trend is being called “old money” style.  I think this could also be described as Upper East Side Style or basically it's like east coast wealthy preppy style. I feel like there's a conversation you could have about whether or not this is problematic to strive for, but, deeper cultural issues aside, I'm in the camp that on the surface level at least it is a very pretty style and I aspire to wear more of it. ” meets “I'm still fashionable and feminine.” And just in general, whenever it becomes trendy to be more preppy, I am a fan, because my personality is preppy, so all the ultra relaxed, didn't try too hard, casual styles are not as natural for me to get into. So let's jump into a 3-part chat about old money aesthetic: First, diving more into what the trend is and why I am enjoying it, second, what items I would shop to put together a capsule wardrobe that is the old money aesthetic, and third, how I think the look can be achieved without the actual old money budget. Curvy Old Money Inspo: @stylebyrhiannon Plissé Sofia Richie Wedding Cutest Satin Amazon Dress inspired by @theegreatgabs Shop My Old Money Selects

Since we are in August now and wrapping up the summer, I thought it would be fun to lean into feeling I used to always get during August in my childhood and do a back to school for grown ups episode.  I'm not literally talking about grown ups going back to school, but you know that energy you would get as a kid in August that was like a mix of being excited for school supply shopping, getting all of your new things organized, learning about your upcoming schedule and overall kind of looking forward to a new season with new structure? I always loved summer vacation of course and I still love summer but there is something kind of comforting about this time of year in my opinion because it naturally comes with sort of that like nesting anticipation organization energy and looking forward to cozy season beginning, unless you live in Southern California where it doesn't usually get cozy until November haha but I usually like to pretend it's cold outside starting in September even though that its actually the hottest month here in my experience. I am probably feeling it a little extra for two other reasons right now — 1 obviously the pregnancy has me feeling extra anticipation and change and wanting to get organized, and 2 here in the entertainment industry we have had a series of strikes with the writers, and now the actors, and so a lot of people's work is kind of on hold while hopefully some new rules are negotiated. So it feels like a very interesting pause and transition right now in lots of ways. Anyways. I wanted to make a list of some ideas for ways to lean into that back to school nostalgic type of feeling this month and take advantage of the season and make it a little extra fun. So if you are feeling the same or looking for some ways to feel a little bit cozier this month, this episode is for you. Dayuse.com Resortpass.com

Aromatherapist: @scienceofessentialoils Toxicologist: @dryvonneburkart More Holistic Health: @ParsleyHealth Traditional Doctor: Ask your own doctor Certifications / Orgs: EWG OEKO-TEX Greenguard Certified Clean at Sephora Target Clean Beauty Products: ⁠Clean Nail Polish Reviews⁠⁠ First Aid Beauty Hyaluronic Acid Serum & Eye Cream Summer Fridays Vitamin C CC Me Serum Youth To The People ILIA Beauty Super Serum Skin Tint ILIA Beauty Fullest Volume Mascara rmsBeauty MERIT LAWLESS The Little One Palette Odele Sensitive Shampoo, Conditioner and Body Wash ZOYA Nail Polish (10-Free) Olive + June Nail Polish (7-Free) CND Vinylux Long Lasting Top Coat (7-Free) Home Products: Tuft + Needle Mint Mattress Dyson Formaldehyde Air Purifier Any OEKO-TEX certified bedding from Target Nuna Uppa Baby Pottery Barn Low Tox Line Didn't mention in this but I like for EO: Revive Essential Oils or Eden's Garden Essential Oils Cleaning Products: Seventh Generation Branch Basics I'm not really going to dive into any controversy, I'm just going to share what my approach is after a few years of debating how to approach it all and hopefully offer some ideas for you if you have a similar view to mine. The topic is low tox living, and how to find good products that are as close to non toxic as possible, like clean beauty, non toxic cleaning products, and dealing with off gassing from things like paint and furniture and mattresses. So first I'm going to share how I've kind of settled into the view that I have on all of this, and then I'm going to share some things I look for to help me make decisions when I'm shopping with this in mind, and some of my favorite products in those three categories: beauty, cleaning products, and home products. And again, this is an area that you can go so much deeper and it's interesting because people tend to feel very passionate about anything that has to do with health, so you may disagree with me and I also might change my mind in the future, but I just think that because there is soooo much conflicting and sometimes overwhelming information out there that it might be helpful to hear where I've landed which in my mind is kind of a middle ground, or hopefully is a bit more realistic for someone who wants to have a generally low toxin lifestyle but isn't willing to spend all of their mental energy and time on it either.  If you're interested in a deep dive instead of this surfacey podcast, I would recommend talking to three people: a holistic doctor, a traditional medicine doctor, a certified aromatherapist, and a toxicologist. I can link some resources for people I have followed at various times for some of those things. But I think it's good to hear from lots of different perspectives and then you can decide what you think based on what they all share. I am none of those things and this podcast is primarily for entertainment, so this is obviously not medical advice but glad you are here for a chat!

Sharing all about my first trimester pregnancy experience -- the hard parts and the fun parts! I know everyone says this when they announce their pregnancy, but I'm excited and kind of relieved to share and not have it be a secret from the internet anymore.  So I'll give you all the updates today on everything so far and will probably be making some more content around pregnancy here on the podcast as well as the rest of social media throughout the pregnancy. I'm going to try to keep it fairly positive content overall because I feel like there is a ton of negative pregnancy and motherhood content out there, which has affected me negatively, although I will say this episode starts off with some deeper, more stressful stuff because I had a lot of anxiety this first trimester. Hope this is a fun listen for anyone who loves babies and a helpful listen for anyone going through their first early pregnancy experience. Episode 4: USE COLORFUL FOODS TO FIX PAINFUL PERIODS WITH FUNCTIONAL NUTRITIONIST VANESSA Follow Julie on Instagram & TikTok: @reallyprettygood  Follow Julie on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

I was thinking about this this morning for some reason and I am here to defend 7 things that we collectively as a society have deemed to be either “bad” or “unnecessary luxury” that I'm gonna go ahead and say is not as bad as it's made out to be. And as usual, this is just for fun, and maybe I'll change my mind in the future. I also realized as I was making this list that really all of these things can be good or bad and it depends on your own personality and mindset so I'll leave it up to you whether you should continue to feel guilty or not.

Today I thought it would be fun to have a quick chat about my personal style and clothing rentals. I was looking through past episodes to see what people listened to the most out of curiosity and almost all of the top episodes were fashion-related, and it's one of my favorite topics too! We've chatted a lot already about how to find your own personal style on previous episodes so I'll link some of the relevant ones below in case you missed any of them, but for today I thought I could just give an overview about me specifically and what I think my own style is because I'm sure it could change in the future but over the past year I've felt a lot more settled into a groove with this, and maybe it will give you some inspo or just be a nice little fun escape for your morning!  I also will touch on my experiences with renting clothing because whenever I mention that I do that every month it's usually a little conversation starter and people have questions about it, so I'll just share a few things about that too and why I've been liking it! Other Fashion Episodes: Episode 3: Find Your Timeless Style Episode 24: Cool Girl Style & Thrifting Tips Episode 42: Fashion Details You Didn't Know You Cared About Episode 9: Summer 2022 Trends Rent on Nuuly (affiliate) Rent on Rent The Runway (affiliate) What I would shop this summer⁠ Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood  Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

I thought I would share some of the things I've been doing to try to get re-inspired and help myself out of this burnout slump that is so easy for us to get into. And by the way there are other reasons to be in burnout… I think perfectionism is a big reason as a whole, life transitions, not accomplishing goals as quickly as you expected, having unreasonable expectations from someone else that you can't meet, just overall being physically exhausted… so many ways burnout can sneak up on us.  One thing that I have learned though is that burnout is not always a sign that we need to completely stop and change paths completely. Sometimes that can definitely help, like if you did listen to that episode with Lindsay, for her that ended up being a really great option to make a pretty big life change. But other times that's not possible or it's just not the best choice. So I've been learning that it can be ok to push through that burnout feeling and try to really problem solve around it vs what I used to do which was always give up on things or change gears and run with my emotional momentum. Okay so let's jump into 5 things I'm doing to help myself get out of burnout mode. Episode 14: Lessons From Burnout and Tips To Recover with Lindsay Brown The Joy of Movement by Kelly McGonigal (affiliate link) Follow Julie on Instagram & TikTok: @reallyprettygood  Follow Julie on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

Karen Haller FRSA is a leading international authority in the field of behavioral color and design psychology. Karen's area of speciality is in Human-Centred Design and how our relationship with colour, design and nature affects and influences us, as well as how businesses and designers can use it to influence positive behaviour and well-being. She consults, collaborates and creates with companies who want to investigate social problems and seek new ways to improve human experience in balance with nature. Karen also authored bestseller The Little Book of Colour: How to Use the Psychology of Colour to Transform your Life (out in 14 languages). Karen trains design professions in colour and design psychology and will be creating online courses for people who are looking to discover how to use colour in their everyday life, how to feel more comfortable - and confident - using, choosing, wearing and surrounding themselves with colour. Karen's work been featured in the Independent, The Times, Glamour, The London Design Festival, and more. We talked about what things affect how we perceive color, why we might disagree with someone about what color something is, the actual psychological effects of different colors on our minds and bodies and how we can use color in our outfits, environments and even in business to hack our emotions and wellness. And for those of you who feel like you're just a neutrals person, we also touched on where neutrals can be used too.  If you're interested in using color in your life or life a good psychology hack, I think you'll enjoy today's episode. Karen can be contacted via her websites: Free design industry e-book https://karenhaller.com/free-10-myths-ebook/ Colour & Design courses https://karenhaller.com/courses/ Consulting https://karenhaller.com/   Little Book of Colour https://thelittlebookofcolour.com/ Free first chapter https://thelittlebookofcolour.com/free-chapter/   Or on Social Media Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karen_haller_colour/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KarenHallerColourAndDesign LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenhaller/ Follow Julie on Instagram & TikTok: @reallyprettygood  Follow Julie on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

A highlight reel of the first year of the podcast! Here are links to the full episodes of those highlighted in this one: 31. BIOPHILIC DESIGN, BIOMIMICRY, & TIPS FOR DESIGNING INTERIORS WITH A NATURAL FLOW, WITH LANDSCAPE DESIGNER SETH VAN DER LINDEN 3. HOW TO FIND YOUR PERSONAL TIMELESS STYLE WITH FASHION BLOGGER KATRYNA 25. HOW TO CREATE VIDEOS THAT MAKE PEOPLE CRY, WITH SEBASTIAN GOMEZ 21. HOW TO CREATE ENGAGING CONTENT & TURN ANYTHING INTO A GOOD STORY: HOW MARISSA MEIZZ'S STORYTELLING MADE A CAREER OUT OF ONE VIRAL MOMENT 4. USE COLORFUL FOODS TO FIX PAINFUL PERIODS WITH FUNCTIONAL NUTRITIONIST VANESSA 36. CONTENT PLANNING, SONGWRITING, WORKING AS A COUPLE, AND BUYING A HOUSE WITH ALYSSA & AJ RAFAEL Follow me on Instagram & TikTok: @reallyprettygood  Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

This week I've been planning an episode coming up that will be with a very special guest on our one year anniversary of this podcast. I can't wait to share more but for today, with the one year anniversary being only a couple of weeks away, I thought it would be a fun time to start reflecting on the past year and to share everything I've learned from podcasting for the year and my tips for anyone else who has considered starting a podcast. Podcasting has become more popular and I think it's kind of a buzz topic right now because our impression is that it's blown up so much. I actually checked some stats on this because I was curious and was kind of surprised that that's only kind of true. So according to ExplodingTopics.com which says they got their data from Podcast Index, Podcasts boomed in 2020 and the number is still growing, but growth has actually slowed down quite a bit since 2020. Some numbers actually showed podcasts are down since the end of 2021, especially if you look at podcasts that are still active vs what exists (https://www.thepodcasthost.com/listening/podcast-industry-stats/). Some other stats: Half of all podcast episodes are downloaded less than 29 times in the first week after publishing 90% of podcasts don't get past episode 3, of the ones that last more than 3, 90% quit after 20 episodes, so if you make 21 episodes you're in the top 1% (source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmImNqiZJV8) Podcasting USB Mic I use: Blue Yeti Follow me on Instagram & TikTok: @reallyprettygood  Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

Tonight as I'm recording this, the Met Gala is happening, and this is actually my first time really paying attention to the met gala other than looking at photos afterward but this year I've been watching all of the big fashion events a bit more and in the process learned more details about the Met Gala that I found interesting and I feel like it's always nice to have something sort of shallow and just fun to listen to mid-week so I thought this could be a good topic to dive into today.  NY Times review of the Met Gala Follow me on Instagram & TikTok: @reallyprettygood  Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

Today I thought it would be fun to chat about transitions because I'm in a long transition right now and I think that we are all going through transitions pretty frequently in life. If you work in social media at all there is an extra level of this I think because the trends and algorithms change so often that your business model sometimes feels like it has to change along with that. But even if you aren't in social media, like I talked about in the last two episodes, lots of life just moves and changes very fast these days so I thought it would be helpful to talk through some of the things I'm doing to help myself get through the chaotic feeling that transitions bring and come out the other side in one piece. NVC List of Needs Episode 10: How I Sleep Trained Myself (my nighttime routine) Episode 22 (Using NVC List of Needs for anxiety) Joyful by Ingrid Feel Lee (affiliate) Sandy Hook article 1, Sandy Hook article 2 The Body Keeps The Score (affiliate) Overcoming Trauma Through Yoga (affiliate) Follow me on Instagram & TikTok: @reallyprettygood  Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

Welcome back to another episode of really pretty good podcast. This week in fashion we are just wrapping up NYFW Bridal where we got to see all of the top couture designer's take on wedding looks for this season. I'm actually recording this before the event has happened so I can't speak much to the trends we saw but I will definitely be sharing on Instagram so if you're interested in seeing my thoughts there, you can follow me @reallyprettygood.  But in honor of bridal fashion week I thought what better time than now to bring on a very special guest to the podcast, and that is Bridal Dress designer Carrie Baskaran of Carrie Ann Bridal, who also happens to be my younger sister.  Carrie left her corporate job to design custom wedding dresses full time and then recently launched Carrie Ann Bridal's first full original collection as well which includes 8 gowns, 2 overskirts, 3 veils and 2 casual bridal party dresses that are all classic looks with a twist, inspired by the Midwest bride. Carrie is based in Milwaukee but her collection is available online as well for those of you listening from somewhere else.  I asked Carrie to join the podcast today to have a chat about how she got into her career as a bridal dress designer, her advice for brides who are just starting the process of looking for a dress, her thoughts on bridal trends, and a few little stories about her own wedding dress and love story. If you love love, love dresses, or love eavesdropping on two sisters chatting, I hope you'll find today's episode a nice fun listen! Shop CarrieAnnBridal.com Follow @carrieannbridal on Instagram and TikTok Wedding tips from a Wedding Planner Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood  Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

A chat about how the fashion trend cycle is changing and what I think that means for Summer 2023 Trends Lately I've been seeing a ton of posts about summer fashion 2023 and everyone seems to have a similar sentiment, that this year is kind of a weird one for a variety of reasons which I will get into, and no one really knows what we are wearing this summer. I thought it would be fun to explore this topic here and give you my thoughts on why this summer is a different one, what i think is happening in the world of fashion trends overall for kind of the first time in recent history, what trends I hear people talking about,  mer, and what I plan to wear this summer  I find trends so fascinating because to me they're like an outward expression of what our culture is going through together. So you know how we all know our outfits are an expression of ourselves and our personality and feelings each day. Well, trends are the same thing but for an entire culture. So i think they're interesting to analyze and predict. That said, it's obviously very ok to not care. Especially this year and especially in recent years in my opinion. And just because something is trendy doesn't mean you have to like it and just because something is considered uncool now doesn't mean you have to stop liking it.  What I would shop this summer Episode 3: Find Your Timeless Style Episode 24: Cool Girl Style & Thrifting Tips Episode 42: Fashion Details You Didn't Know You Cared About Episode 9: Summer 2022 Trends Rent on Nuuly (affiliate) Rent on Rent The Runway (affiliate) Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood  Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

The Goodness Of Your Art Project Finish What You Start by Peter Hollins (affiliate link) Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood  Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend! Today is actually going to be the first episode of a new podcast series that I'm excited to share with you. I'm working on a fun personal project and I'll be sharing updates and all about what I'm learning in about monthly-ish episodes on this podcast. I'll still be doing normal podcast episodes but this will be a new series i'm adding in about monthly ish. So here is what my project is, and I'm actually just going to read what I wrote as sort of my intro page about it: I am spending the next year learning about neuroaesthetics, biophilic design, and how aesthetics, both visual and non-visual, can help us as individuals and as a society to overcome wellness challenges. My goal is to become a reliable resource to people and organizations who are interested in improving their own wellbeing and the wellbeing of their patients, employees, clients, and communities. I've been fascinated by this topic for many years, since my personal life story to this point is steeped in design used for mental health. I want to take my passion to the next level and offer services in design and consulting, however I'm personally very picky about which experts I trust and I want to see some credibility from their education and experience, and I realized that my own expertise, though marketed well, is filled with bias and might not hold up under a microscope. I want to really push myself to grow and become an expert in the new field of neuroaesthetics, including educating myself on issues like: Why are hospitals ugly and what challenges go on behind the scenes that have left interior design and patient experience often poorly managed? Why do sex trafficking survivors often return to their abusers, and can research-backed design focused on creating feelings of safety in recovery homes help? How reliable are the statistics around biophilic design and when is it an appropriate solution vs only the solution I like the most? Of course, I also want to dive into the content that is more fun (for me): the research that is less about the limitations and more about possibilities, like why is music so powerful and how can we use it on purpose? Why do I love the color pink? How did sequins become trendy? How can I design the ideal gym for a great workout? How can employees feel more relaxed at work? How can patients recover more quickly with the help of design? I searched for graduate programs and ultimately found only one program in the world that met my criteria for this niche interest: The MSc Psychology of the Arts, Neuroaesthetics and Creativity at Goldsmiths University of London. After a brief internal debate I quickly knew a move to London was not in the books for me right now, but perhaps I could create something of my own. So, I'm beginning a 1 year project. I'm calling it The Goodness Of Your Art Project – A 12 month deep dive into neuroaesthetics, biophilic design, and all the ways aesthetics can increase health, wealth and happiness.

Today I'm so excited to bring on a guest who just completed an amazing project. Her name is Erin Carpenter, on instagram @erinv_carpenter and she and her husband recently finished buying and renovating a laundromat in Charleston which was really needed and used in the community but was in very bad condition. They got to know the community and their needs, turned the laundromat into a stunning absolutely gorgeous space that feels completely new, launched it with a free laundry day and then posted their project on social media where it now has a collective 15M views. I found Erin just a couple hours after they started going viral and reached out right away. Her page has since blown up so I feel very privileged to get to interview her today. We had such a nice chat hearing about the project, the importance of good design and the deeper impact it can have, her design process in general and basically just chatted about how we both love to make things feel cozy and beautiful. I think you'll love this episode if you enjoy decorating or are looking for a way to use your creativity to make your own community better. Before you listen, don't forget to follow Erin on instagram and tiktok @erinv_carpenter and tap 5 stars on this episode. Without further ado, let's jump into my conversation with Erin. Follow Erin on Instagram and TikTok @erinv_carpenter Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood  Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

Today we are chatting about Turning 30 because yesterday was my 30th birthday and I have a lot of feelings about it. I feel like I've gone very back and forth between being excited to enter a new decade and being depressed about how fast life is moving and kind of getting caught up in feeling behind or feeling like my youth is over. I've been chatting with friends who are in this same transition around this time and it's always an interesting conversation to see how everyone feels, so I reached out to my group text of the 7 girls I lived with in college who have all turned thirty in the past year — I'm the baby of the group and the last one to turn 30 this week. And I asked them if any of them wanted to jump on the podcast to chat through this topic, so today I'm joined by two of my college roommates, Jordan and Libby. Libby works in the corporate world in Ohio and is expecting a baby this year, Jordan works at a non profit in Texas, And I am based in Los Angeles area freelancing in the entertainment industry. I'm used to mostly having conversations with others who are kind of freaking out about turning 30 so it was somewhat surprising and refreshing to chat with two people who are actually feeling really great about turning 30 and it was a good conversation to snap outside of my entertainment industry bubble and remember that first of all, 30 is still young, and second of all, aging is a really beautiful amazing thing. So whether you're feeling good or freaking out I hope you find today's conversation relatable and encouraging.  My 30 Before 30 Bucket List (made at age 24 and updated throughout the years) Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood  Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

A deep dive into women's fashion, pattern making and all the details on your clothing that you do care about but don't even realize or notice that you care about until you're wearing something without them. On today's episode I'm joined by Alison Hoenes, a freelance pattern maker and fellow podcaster. Alison shares behind the scenes of how clothing gets designed and made, her tips for understanding fit and how bad fit is a clothing issue not a body issue, her tips for building a wardrobe that fits you, your lifestyle and your values. Check out Alison's podcast (How Fitting) available on Spotify, Apple, and major podcasting platforms and follow Alison on Instagram @alisonhoenesdesign Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

We're back today with another episode for people who are sensitive to their environment and I'm sharing my secrets for how I stay relaxed when visiting ugly and overstimulating places that I can't avoid in life, such as the doctor, the dentist, grocery stores, crowds, airplanes, and movie theaters. I'm on a mission to spread the word about the impact of design so that one day we can all visit these places and they'll be a much more positive experience, but in the mean time, all of these places are super common triggers for anxiety and just collectively disliked places, and yet, we can't really avoid most of them and also it's not a good feeling to miss out on things because the location will stress you out. So here are some of the things I do to make going to the dentist and other ugly places a little less stressful. Episode 1 - Highly Sensitive Person Episode 6 - Overcoming Fear of the Gym Episode 10 - Intro to Biophilic Design Episode 19 - Ways to Use Design for Travel Anxiety and Fear of Flying Episode 22 — How I Went From Having a Diagnosed Anxiety Disorder to Not Having One Anymore Instacart Code for $25 off: MTUPPER1941CA

Mong Up Nails on Instagram @mongupnails Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

Today we're chatting about another necessary evil of creativity and that is, dun dun dun… Taxes. I feel like if there is one thing that creatives universally dread, it's filing taxes. And while it's still pretty early in the year, there are a lot of things to start working on now to make taxes easier as a small business owner or freelancer, so I wanted to bring back one of my favorite guests, Ashley from Pretty Penny Accounting. Ashley previously joined the podcast on Episode 16 to share her tips on budgeting with a fluctuating income and how we can manage our finances and bookkeeping with an untraditional salary. Today Ashley is back to share her tips for taxes and tax prep specifically for creatives. We talked Tax Filing 101, write offs, 1099s and Schedule C's, paying quarterly, sales tax, how to keep information organized and what information to be tracking throughout the year, how to deal with overwhelm, and how to know whether taxes are something you can handle on your own or if you might want to hire someone to help. Loved this conversation and in case you miss this at the end I wanted to just reiterate here because I think it'll help a lot: Ashley does a weekly Q&A on her Instagram @prettypennyaccounting every Monday, so she is a really great resource to follow and ask any of your quick accounting or tax questions and just follow along what other people are asking. She's someone who really understands both the creative small business side as well as of course the accounting side, so she and her firm are a great resource to check out if you still have questions after this episode. Follow Ashley: @prettypennyaccounting Pretty Penny Accounting Pricing Guide HERE Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

I feel like sports are such a huge part of our culture in America and also globally and I've never been a big sports person so I always feel a little bit on the outside when sports things are happening. I see so many people that seem to care so much about how their team is doing and it seems like such a unifying, emotional event that I am kind of jealous of and want to be able to care about too or at least not feel like I don't know how to connect when people talk about sports. So for this episode I brought on my friend Sara Carlson who is an editor at Fox Sports. Sara is super easy to talk to and though she lives deep in the sports world, she totally understood where I was coming from so she was the perfect person to chat with on this topic, and I'm happy to say our conversation totally worked on me! I'm actually looking forward to watching this year's SuperBowl coming up this weekend and have some ideas to keep up with sports in general in a way that I'm genuinely interested in. We talked about: How to get attached to the storylines of players Basic rules of football and how to understand the game What to look for in 2023 Super Bowl Why people get sooooo emotional about games and how can we appreciate that more Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood  Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

Thinking through how to navigate confidence in your online brand when it overlaps so much with your own personal identity! Will share my thoughts on what has helped increase my confidence and then 10 questions to ask to help figure out your personal brand on social media/online. Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood  Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood  Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

AJ and Alyssa are both musicians and super consistent content creators in general. AJ has been doing social media for a living since the early days and Alyssa is a manager at Walt Disney Studios while also creating content on the side. I've always wondered how they do it all so I wanted to bring them on for a little life chat today to talk about everything from their content creation process, their tips for writing music, what bumps they run into working together as a couple, and a little about the process of buying a house in California. This episode is a really nice easy listen so if you're looking for some simple entertainment, tips on creative work, or if you just want to get to know AJ & Alyssa, I think you'll love today's episode, so let's jump in. Formula for the Happiest Song (scroll to the bottom) Listen to the Happiest Song Alyssa @alyssarafael (ig), @alyssaugh (tiktok) AJ @ajrafael (ig, tiktok, youtube) Sweet Or Savory Podcast (all podcast platforms and youtube)

Explaining what exactly creative direction is, why you might want to hire a creative director, the difference between a creative director and an art director and more. Creative Direction is such a fun job and getting more popular, so hope you enjoy! Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

I moved to LA from Wisconsin/Ohio almost 8 years ago! Here are the biggest culture shockers I felt moving to LA and things I find funny/unique about living in LA and some stories from my early days right after moving here. Watch my YouTube Show: youtube.com/@reallyprettygood Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

A virtual New Year's Time Capsule: 20 questions to answer this year and every year. I was inspired by Billie Eilish's new year same interview thing that she does every year. I answer these questions: Name, age, family, job any major events in the last year a lesson from the year something you feel proud of/thankful for/great about from the year a regret from the past year favorite project you did this year go-to meals this year what was your style this year/most worn outfit or clothing item what color and length was your hair best beauty product you bought Best home product you bought A favorite book A favorite movie or show Favorite podcast or blogger/influencers ______ something from the last year that you want to bring into the new year a traditional resolution for this year Plans you are looking forward to this year something new you want to try this year a trend prediction for the new year books / movies /shows on your wishlist for this year Links (some links are affiliate links): Episode 7 and Episode 7.5 on Authenticity vs Vulnerability Online How I make my favorite egg breakfast Summer Fridays Vitamin C Serum MERIT Flush Balm Cream Blush Olaplex No 5 Conditioner ILIA Super Serum Skin Tint WoodPlank Peel and Stick Tiles (Color: Oak) (use code REALLYPRETTYGOOD for 10% off) Joyful! by Ingrid Fetell Lee Never Split The Difference by Chris Voss The Highly Sensitive Person by Elaine N Aron The Joy of Movement by Kelly McGonigal Amber Fillerup on IG Marianna Hewitt Podcast The Power of Moments by Chip & Dan Heath Watch my YouTube Show: youtube.com/@reallyprettygood Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

Download Recipe Card Template HERE. Haha, hope you enjoy this mini episode! Tag me if you make some recipe cards @reallyprettygood Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood Follow me on Pinterest: @reallyprettygood Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!

Episode 10: Intro To Biophilic Design Episode 4 (Seth's Wife, Vanessa): Nutrition for Hormonal Health & PMS Issues Follow Seth's photography on Instagram: @sethvdl Foxterra Design on TikTok (Luxury Backyards): @foxterradesign

Chatting wedding planning with wedding planner, Ashley Ruiz. We talked: Where to start when planning a wedding Tips for organizing events / how she organizes Tips for prioritizing budget Dealing with the pressure to make your wedding the best day of your life Her go-to pep talk for people who are stressed out on their wedding days Her tips to add a special touch Why imperfect events are sometimes better Applying some of these things to a smaller dinner/casual event at home Follow Ashley on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashley.m.ruiz/ Book Ashley to plan your wedding: https://www.ashleyruizevents.com/

Today I'm joined by a very close friend of mine, Megan Nicole, who grew to multiple millions of subscribers on YouTube from her music covers and originals and has been doing music as a career ever since she was old enough to have a career. Megan has gone on tour around the world, played for Michelle Obama, attended the Grammys, the AMAs, and overall just has a really wide experience in the music world, not to mention I just genuinely love her fun, pop sound and colorful, funny, nostalgic music videos. She is such a talented song writer and has been a great support to me in my own career so I know you will love hearing from her! I asked Megan to give us the deep dive on the music industry Including her personal song-writing process, from writing lyrics to choosing a producer, to mixing and mastering to running the business side how much it costs to produce one track (hint: it may be shocking) her tips for musicians who want to make it in the industry what it's like working with her husband who is also a musician How she plans her music videos And lastly all about her new Christmas album that was just released Check out Megan's new Christmas Album: Download Megan's songwriting guide by signing up for the newsletter on her blog: megannicolemusic.com Also wanted to shout out Cooper's Lofi Album which is great for background music/studying/focus: Follow Megan: Spotify: Megan Nicole YouTube: Megan Nicole Instagram @megannicolemusic Twitch: @MeganAndCooperTV Blog: MeganNicoleMusic.com Follow Me: Instagram: @reallyprettygood YouTube: Julie Tecson Blog: reallyprettygood.com Pinterest: @reallyprettygood

I made a list of my favorite beauty, home decor and fashion items. Almost all of them are under $50. I also tried to choose somewhat timeless options and things that I know have been available for sale over the course of at least a few years. so that if you're listening to this in the future most of these Beauty: Dae cactus fruit 3 in 1 styling cream Merit flush balm cream blush thing rms living luminizer highlighter in color magic luminizer Zoya nail polish & cnd gel top coat — colors Adel and Shimmer CND Gel-Like Effect Long Wear Top Coat Olaplex no 5 or no 3 Kosas lipfuel hyaluronic acid lip balm Home Target Studio McGee Stoneware Glazed Plates Classic Farmhouse Stripe Kitchen Towels Flameless real wax battery candles Glass water bottle — veegoal or Contigo Wool dryer balls The Sill, Terrain or Ansel & Ivy for plants Blankets — West Elm chunky cotton knit throw Fashion Belt bag Embroidered sweatshirt on Etsy: "totally iced out" Mejuri jewelry DIFF eyewear sunglasses or blue light glasses Madewell bags nuuly subscription Other: Code Names Artifact Uprising gift card Family photo puzzle Power scissors Boxfox Stocking stuffer ideas: Beanie Card games Chocolate Hair accessories Ornament Socks Lotion Chapstick / lip gloss Mini beauty products

Today is a solo episode with yours truly with some behind the scenes on my new YouTube show and my thought process/strategy around launching something new. I thought it might be interesting to share because this is an area I've grown so much in over the last few years, and I think launching something new like a project you're really passionate about can be kind of overwhelming or at least can feel pretty vulnerable, and I feel like this can apply even to things like starting a new job or life transition or anything new and big that you're sharing with others. I used to rely a lot more on hype and my own energy to get things done and I used to feel more pressure for launches to go really well and I think some things I've learned in the last few years have helped all of that feel a little less intimidating, and also helped me start to become more consistent in my online content as well instead of going back and forth between full steam ahead and burnout all the time. Now it's more of a slow consistent drip. Anyways I hope you find this episode encouraging if you're releasing something new into the world or taking on a big project and have some nerves, have found launches in the past to not be as successful as you hoped, or if you're just curious about the behind the scenes of my newest project, Really Pretty Good, the show, on YouTube. Links: The Really Pretty Good Show The Perfectionism Project

Today is for anyone who wants to travel more, make a living as an influencer, or is curious about both. Today's epsidoe is a chat with Nikki Tomlin, full time travel influencer and photographer who grew her social media over the pandemic and now gets to see the world as a job. We talked about How she went from her first flight at age 16 to full time travel influencer What growing her account looked like from 6k followers to almost 80k How she transitioned from primarily a photo account to including lots of video content with the algorithm changes How she gets aesthetic content while traveling when having to rely on non-photographer friends to shoot for her How she plans her travels Her tips for making traveling less stressful for people like me who want to love it but often feel overwhelmed by the actual travel part As someone who loves the idea of traveling but gets stressed out by the actual process and also a fellow creative, I found this conversation inspiring and I hope you do too! Follow Nikki on Instagram: @nikkiitomlin Follow Nikki on TikTok: @nikkiitomlin Nikki on YouTube Follow me on Instagram: @reallyprettygood Follow me on TikTok: @reallyprettygood Don't forget to Rate, Review, and Share this episode with a friend!