Mindful Living

Have some trips coming up (for business or pleasure)? Want to know how to glide through the airport, not break a sweat on a road trip and in general, enjoy the act of traveling — the actual getting from one place to another — a bit more? Take a page out of the notebook of travelers who never seem mussed or frustrated with these stress-less secrets.

Everyone knows a homebody. (And if you don’t know one, you definitely are one.) Homebodies aren’t boring and they’re not necessarily shy. They just know hanging around the house can be pretty awesome. Here’s why… Homebodies love spending time at home and so they naturally put a lot of effort into making their home a great place to be. That might manifest through calming colors, lots of comfortable seating or even just plenty of snacks.

We tend to think of beauty as being mostly subjective. But if you were to ask a random sampling of 100 people what the most beautiful cities in the world are, you’d probably get a lot of very similar answers. A lot of people might name San Francisco, or Paris, or Prague. But you probably wouldn’t garner a lot of votes for Frankfurt, Germany, or Houston, Texas. What makes certain cities more beautiful than others? And why is it that newer cities often tend to be the ugliest of all?

Nothing I can say here is gonna make your breakup not suck. Sorry. But there are some little tricks that will ease the sting and help you get back to normal (or better than normal!) faster. You already know this stuff in your heart, but you probably need to hear it anyway. If you’re living together, you need to stop. No excuses.

Recently, Adrienne wrote a post on 10 Things to Do in 10 Minutes Before Work to Make Coming Home Much Nicer. As someone who works from home, I know that it can often be difficult to draw the work/home line. So if you work from home, here are 10 things that you can do to clearly delineate your time. 1. Keep set hours.

In Houston I had a house that was almost 1,000 square feet, with two patios and a balcony off the bedroom and a washer and dryer and more closets than I knew what to do with. And then I sold it, and got rid of almost everything I owned, and moved into a 260 square foot apartment in Manhattan, the smallest place I’ve ever lived since I lived in a college dorm. And you know what? I’m a lot happier.

I studied architecture in college but somehow managed to avoid reading that seminal work of city planning, Jane Jacobs’ Death and Life of Great American Cities. Until I moved to NYC, and a friend challenged me to read it for an impromptu book club, and I started taking Jane with me on the subway and suddenly the secrets of this great city, and of all great cities, were laid bare before my eyes.

You know that confidence is key when you’re getting dressed in the morning or giving a work presentation, so why do so many people lack confidence in the choices they’ve made in their homes? The next time someone admires your decor, try this. I’ve recently noticed that almost every time I give someone a compliment, they immediately start telling me what’s wrong with their space and what they plan to change. Whyyyyy?

I love to walk into my home and see all the color and pattern I’ve stuffed into every corner. I love drowning in my stacks of books. Seeing the art I’ve collected over the years, a visual record of my evolving tastes. I love the way my couch hugs my back when I cuddle up with my cat and throw blankets. It’s my most favorite place in the whole world. But as an introvert, my home can sometimes be more than just a retreat.

October was a month full of travel for me; I think I only spent one or two nights at home at a time. It was equal parts exciting and exhausting, but I’m happy to be back home—for good this time. Funny enough, an extended vacation away from your apartment can actually teach you a lot about how you live your life at home. Here are three things you’ll only discover once you’ve spent some time away.

Home — and what makes it one — is different for all of us. But there are some universal truths that when taken to heart (and kept in mind), make the home we do have that much more enjoyable. These nine truths about home — how to make one and love the one you have — are the kind of simple truths that sometimes slip our busy minds. But they’re lessons worth returning to and remembering. 1.

If there’s anything worse than having a noisy neighbor, it’s realizing that you are the noisy neighbor. Nobody goes around intending to be overheard by strangers, but then one day a neighbor knocks on your door and complains about the sound of your footsteps on his ceiling or says he can hear you singing to your cat, and then there’s nothing to do but tiptoe around in socks and worry that all your neighbors hate you.

There are a lot of opinions flying around in the world, and if you’re not careful, a well-aimed one can smack you upside the head. Family members think they know best, friends always pipe up, and today’s media provides ample opportunity for even strangers to give feedback on photos you post online. In the face of all that, how to do you deal with other peoples’ opinions about your purchases, decor, or home choices?

Time management, of course, aims to help us make the most of our time. As the cornerstone of time management, clocks can help us stay in control of our time. Let’s take a closer look at how you can place clocks in your home most strategically. How Many Clocks Should You Have?

I’ve had two guests come to my new apartment since moving in a couple of weeks ago, and before they had the chance to compliment the space on its many positive attributes, I apologized (because it wasn’t fully furnished yet — ridiculous, I know). It’s a bad home habit I’ve cultivated over time, and one I’d finally like to break this year.

Imagine this scenario: you are hanging out one night with a group of friends, and someone suggests you all hop in the hot tub together — naked. Would you strip down at the drop of a hat? Or would you rather string yourself up by your toenails and be forced to watch Carrie Underwood’s live version of The Sound of Music? Your comfort level —whatever it may be — probably has its roots in your childhood.

This year, I’ve been asking myself, “What are you waiting for?”. A lot of people my age get stressed out at the holidays because either we’re not where we thought we would be by now, or we’re not where our parents thought we would be.

It’s been only a few weeks since I made the big move south to Atlanta and meeting new people and making friends with the neighbors is very high on my list of things to do. I’ve just moved from a city I love, where I had a circle of friends who lived within 5 blocks, so to put it bluntly, I’m having a difficult time adjusting. I’m struggling with making new friends and meeting my neighbors.

How many times have you returned home from a fantastic vacation, only to hear yourself telling someone that you’re so exhausted you need another one to recover? The pace of modern life is making it increasingly difficult for us to switch off, and time away from home can end up being just as stressful, albeit more fun, than our everyday lives. Read on for some tips on how to really unwind on your vacation.

What’s the difference between a house and a home? A house is a structure you live in that provides for your basic needs and safety. A home is a place that provides you mental and emotional support, a place you look forward to being in to get away from the outside world. Do you feel that way about your home?

I love the way our world is changing. Gone are the days where you were either a work-outside-the-home mom or a stay-at-home mom, when rare was the woman who didn’t fit into one of those categories exclusively. With the integration of technology and innovation into our work and home lives, there are so many possible combinations of working environments for moms (and dads!).

Minimalism certainly isn’t for everyone. In fact, it probably isn’t for most people. But in the words of Francine Jay, thinking like a minimalist can be “a fun little thought-experiment on what’s truly necessary.” If you want to play along, here’s her list of 15 pieces of furniture that you may be able to live without. Be forewarned: this list is probably going to strike you as extreme.

Sometimes small-town life can get you down. Everyone’s going to West Elm, or Anthropologie, or heck — even Target, and you can only dream about being close enough to one of those stores to be able to casually drop by. Well, I’m here to remind you of ten reasons why living in a small town can really rock.1. Trendy design is hard to find.

Dear Beaten-Up, Broken-Down, Ugly Old Plaid Couch: Thank you. As long as I’ve had a couch, you have been my couch. Your ugly, unmatchable plaid-ness has been my curse and my great joy. Now that the time has finally come to replace you, I find I can barely bring myself to do it. What will my living room be without you? What will I be without you? We’ve been through so much together. When my proud parents brought me home from the hospital, you were there.