April Wrap Up
4/28/2019

April Wrap Up



April and Autumn arrived with a flurry of changes, a bit of a "we are quarter of the way through 2019" existential crisis-just being honest here and thus things were a bit chaotic and busy but in the best kind of way. Though I definitely found myself reassessing self-care and the like midway through the month and I am glad I did. Anyway, you may have noticed my 'favourites' post has been given a bit of a makeover. Partly because the idea of just a post full of 'things' felt a bit gross, partly because I want to mix things up and try something new. Yeah, so April wrap-up, let's dive in...

Five Things I Loved:

*Spring x Ali Smith: Another blissful homage to all the things I love about Ali Smith's work. And one of my extremely generous friends sent me a signed copy which I am still not over. Read my musings about the book and Ali Smith's genius in general here

*Exfoliating Swipeys x Go-To: Who is surprised to see these here? Nobody? Thought so. I use these three times a week-as directed to give my skin a bit of a szush and a brighten. Unlike other acid products I have tried, these don't feel overly harsh or abrasive. In fact, they're incredibly gentle and a treat to use. Myself and my face love 'em.

*Lonely Lingerie: My love of Lonely lingerie is well documented around these parts. I love everything about the brand; from their inclusiveness when it comes to sizes, the diversity in their advertising+social media imagery, to the genuinely lovely experience of going in store to browse and purchase. Not to mention the quality of their garments and the care+detail in each piece. I've already decided I need some of their swimwear in my life next Summer. Anyway, recently I treated myself to the Maeve bra and Odette. Both quite different designs, both incredibly comfortable and supportive to wear. I think I'm going to get another colour of the Odette because it is that comfortable too.  

*The Act (limited series on Lightbox): Omg this series. Who remembers the viral Buzzfeed article about Gypsy Rose and Dee Dee Blanchard? I remember reading it equal parts fascinated and horrified so when I saw that Hulu had made a new series re-enacting Gypsy and Dee Dee's story, the same feelings returned. The women are portrayed by Joey King and Patricia Arquette, the latter who is unrecognisable as Dee Dee and gives an incredible performance. The whole show is a psychological mind-maze and leaves you feeling uneasy and unnerved. I'm not going to lie. It's such a good watch though. I highly recommend it. 

*Love+Fear x Marina: Last year was the year of rediscovering Lana Del Rey and 2019 seems to be the year of rediscovering Marina, formerly Marina and the Diamonds. Her new double-album debuted in full this week and it is heaven. Handmade, ha I am so punny. I feel like this will be my new go-to at work when I want to zone out.

Five Good Things:

-Solo Outings: Long weekends are my fave because Auckland clears out and it's quiet and blissful everywhere. It's usually these times that I try to go a bit off the grid myself and I love it. So for my solo-date arvo I went to the Auckland Art Gallery and visited the Guerrilla Girls exhibit which I loved as well as Pacific Sisters. Both are free entry and well worth the look. The gallery is free to NZ citizens too, you just need ID to get in. I followed it with coffee+a bit of a Ponsonby Rd jaunt to acquire the latest The Gentlewoman and groceries (less exciting tbh) before heading back home. Utter. Utter. Bliss. 

-Between Two Books x Stylist Magazine: The lovely Leah, one of the co-founders at Between Two Books asked me if I wanted to share a book recommendation for this article and I was so honoured+excited to be included. To the point I sent screen-shots to people who were like "?? Sophie, risque book cover-I am confused". Anyway, I am still proud as punch to be a part of this so if you want to see my review, it's the one about Eve's Hollywood x Eve Babitz and you can read the whole article here.

-Reassessing Self Care: Ah self care, you really slipped to the backburner didn't you? And it showed. I always, always know now that if I don't prioritise this my mental wellbeing suffers. I become unsettled and tired and it gets ug-ly. So mid April I made some changes. I have pamper Sundays-that's just one thing. I've also reinstated daily (ish) diary writing. Ok some days it is just a bullet pointed list but I try to not dwell on it-so long as I write something. I've also been reading a lot because that also falls to the wayside when I am feeling 'eh' and going for walks and talking to the professionals, well professional. Yep.

-Meeting Zoe Foster Blake and trying all the Go-To bits: I've already yammered on about Go-To's arrival in NZ but when the email came through about an in-store event celebrating the brand and bringing skincare queen+writing wordstress Zoe, I was in. Side note: Zoe is just as lovely and sparkly and perfect-complexiony in real life. It was a good evening w/ my girl Lucie-who also let my disorganised self raid her makeup bag. Thanks Luce, you are the MVP. I also got to hang out in the Beauty Lab and try all the Go-To things. Well, most of 'em. I particularly loved the Face Hero and the Very Useful Face Cream. 

-Music: I'm about to sound like a right luddite but my new phone plan came with free Spotify Premium, which I used to have ages ago and my god. Game. Changer. I am sure 99% of my phone usage now is Spotify. Go ahead, laugh at me. I have two playlists of my own I rotate fairly heavily but I also dabble in whatever the heck I fancy and whatever my friends recommend to me. New discovery: Two Door Cinema Club. I love 'em. Also loving all the throwback 00's music playlists-for the memories and the cringe-inducing moments c/o my tra$h tastes. I love it basically. 



Books I Read In April:

/ Daisy Jones & The Six** x Taylor Jenkins Reid, review here.

/ Spring x Ali Smith, as above.

/ Notes To Self x Emilie Pine: Gut-wrenching, honest and incredibly enlighening prose. Read it and prepare to weep. In the best way.

/ The Audience x Peter Morgan: I don't read plays all that often but I wanted to read this one so I could decide if I should go see this at the ASB Theatre here in Auckland. I am a major The Crown fangirl and noticed that some of the dialogue from this play closely mirrors scenes shown in the series. Particularly exchanges between Churchill and the Queen. Anyway, now I want to see this so fingers crossed I can make it happen.

/ Three Poems x Hannah Sullivan: What is it with me and reading books that are emotionally heavy? These poems made me cry. Dang it Sullivan. In all seriousness-read, beautiful work.

/ The Built Moment x Lavinia Greenlaw: A volume that deals with loss and grief and rebuilding. Exquisitely written, as is the norm with Lavinia Greenlaw. I love her writing. 

-What have you loved during April?

**Review Copy


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Spring in Translation
4/24/2019

Spring in Translation



Ali Smith's seasonal quartet is slowly taking full shape. Ideas are fleshed out, twisted and prised wide open. Covers standing vibrant in all their David Hockney gloriousness. 

Spring, the paperback was pressed into my hands. It promised to bring change and contemplation. Renewal and reformation. It is never lost on me that the seasonal quartet will always starkly contradict whatever is reflected season-wise here in New Zealand. I read Winter in the height of Summer, pages warped by the sun, for example. Spring was read in the early stages of Autumn. It will remind me of early mornings on the way to work. The sun beginning to rise and me trying+sometimes failing to keep my eyes open. 

It is a book further considering loss and political climates and art and the 'radiant disruptors' as Olivia Laing so aptly puts it. It pays homage to Katherine Mansfield, the "little savage", Charlie Chaplin, Rilke, Tacita Dean, among others. Florence Welch even receives a subtle nod. Cue me photographing said passage and excitedly sharing it around. 

It makes sense to have read Spring alongside a book about literary translation. Mining texts for meaning, ideas and repeated motifs. Smith's seasonal quartet reflects the seasons in the time we presently live in. They leave us to mull over the here and now but moreover what they represent thematically in Smith's literature. For her characters, real and imagined. Moreover, the seasonal framework naturally wraps itself around the recurring themes and motifs throughout Ali's work.

And maybe unearthing meaning in the pages of my books is the new mood. I will keep you posted.

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Go-To Mecca
4/17/2019

Go-To Mecca



My favourite, no-fuss, no frills skincare brand has finally come to NZ! Well, we could always acquire Go-To skincare online but now it has arrived in good ol' New Zealand and Australia Mecca stores. Huzzah.

To celebrate, I wept-ok I didn't, but I did book in for Zoe's little whirlwind visit to Auckland to launch the brand. It was a night of learning-I visited the beauty lab to try all the skincare bits 'n bobs and of course fangirling. I am the ultimate Zoe Foster-Blake fangirl after all. Zero shame here. Good times-it was the icing on top of an otherwise 'eh' week so it has that going for it too. So today I thought I'd run you through what I picked up and also some extras I have tried that you should check out. This post is in no way sponsored but I have received some Go-To product before for review so those are asterisked up below. Anyway, bits...

The New (To Me):

Exfoliating Swipeys: These are filling the exfoliating void in my skincare regime and I love 'em. For an exfoliating product they are super, super gentle which I love. I know a bit of tingling with products like this is kinda part and parcel but I don't like my skin to feel tight or to be stinging after using an exfoliator. They also have a subtle, citrussy scent which I am here for. Pro tip: Follow up with an SPF because these do contain an AHA (alpha hydroxy acid) which may increase your skin's sensitivity to the sun and with our less-than-lovely ozone layer, that ain't a good thing. 

Transformazing-Ahh the ol' sheet mask. I will be honest, I don't love them. I appreciate them but I don't love 'em. This one's being saved for a Sunday pamper sesh so it cannot be reported on yet. Anything promising to make my skin look amazing is going to get my attention though.

The Tried 'N True:

Super Handy*: Side note, Sophie-get more of this. You need it at work for your dehydrated, hand-sanitised mitts. Narcissistic to-do lists out of the way, I love this hand cream. Similarly delightfully citrus-fragranced as per the swipeys. A dream to use, sinks in-none of that greasy leftover residue that some hand creams seem to cause. You cannot go wrong. And it's in a convenient tube for traveling with.

Pinky Nudey Lips: All this and a hint of tint. Basically this does what it says on the tube. Your lips will be hydrated, soft and nourished. One product to keep things in check this Winter. For. Sure.

-Have you tried Go-To before? What do you rate+recommend?

*PR Sample (way back when)



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Daisy Jones & The Six
4/10/2019

Daisy Jones & The Six




Ahh 1970, a time of jumpsuits and denim and music festivals. Also a decade of groundbreaking music. It is the latter where Daisy Jones & The Six* comes in.

Admittedly on first sight the cover won me over. Daisy Jones looks like the lovechild of Stevie Nicks and Florence Welch. This novel unfolds like a long-form magazine interview. Think the q and a’s of Vanity Fair or Rolling Stone. Each band member of The Six share their reflections and anecdotes. Their remembrances on the music they made, relationships formed and broken, themselves. And it feels so real.

Granted Taylor Jenkins Reid was inspired by one Fleetwood Mac and their Rumours album sessions. Seriously though, Daisy Jones & The Six come alive. I found myself wanting to look for more Daisy Jones interviews. Stopping short of googling her and cruelly remembering she is a mere myth. An amalgamation of a time and a place. A badass, independent female artist leaving her mark on musical history.

To say I loved this book seems trite but I did. The way it drew me in, the way I fleetingly became invested in the intertwining threads of The Six. The way Daisy Jones loudly climbed into my head, sprinkling darkness and light and love. Read this. Savour the experience. Put Rumours on repeat and then open these pages. You are in for a ride.

*Review copy
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Five Things: April
4/06/2019

Five Things: April


Hello there, Happy Saturday! It's been a hot minute hasn't it? I do apologise for that, and probably owe y'all an explanation. Right now I don't feel entirely ready to and that's ok I guess; self-boundaries and the rest but I will just say my ever-constant mind is giving me a bit of grief. It happens now and again but it is what it is. Sorry to be a bit of a downer in the intro but anyway. It is April! One quarter of 2019 almost gone, in-sane. Today we have some beauty news, book+writing news, TV watching and a bit of life maintenance...

Go-To Mecca: Did ya see what I did there? I don't have Zoe Foster-Blake's outstanding wit but I try. I'm rather stoked that her brand of peachy, good-for-the-skin bits are now in Mecca across the lands, ok Australia and New Zealand. If you know me, you'll know I love their hand cream and pinky-nudey lips+the silk pillowcase. I'm keen to try the exfoliating swipeys, zincredible and the cleanser. Basically all the things. So yass, if you want your Go To Fix or just your aesthetically pleasing peach coloured packaging with humour and pizzazz, look no further.

Reads: Seeing as I've not been writing much, I have been doing a bit of readin'. Oh yeah and my commutes are great for that. So much time. So many words and songs. Firstly I have to recommend Notes to Self x Emilie Pine. Gut-wrenching, honest and enlightening prose. I've also been reading poetry volumes. I revisited this gem and inhaled Lavinia Greenlaw's 'This Built Moment' which tackles loss and rebuilding. And now I am reading Three Poems and loving it. All about the poetry right now.

Queer Eye S3: Can you believe!? As mentioned above, my mind is inflicting a lil' bit of chaos upon me and this show is the tonic. If you want uplifting viewing, inspirational stories, all the positivity, JVN, Karamo, Antoni, Tan and Bobby-here y'all go. They are back! I always put Queer Eye on when I need a tearjerker slash mood raiser all in one convenient package. Get amongst. 

Auckland Writer's Fest: It's nearly that time of the year again. Yass! If you want some insider info, head here to listen to the Papercuts ladies in discussion with Anne O'Brien, festival director. Also the full programme is available here. I've bought a couple of tickets already; one to the Ockham Awards night and another to Alexander Chee's session on the Sunday but I do have a longer list to work through. There's also a host of brilliant free sessions in the mix too so I really recommend giving the full lineup a perusal. Friday in particular looks like a good time. PS-Students, tickets are $12 for most sessions for you-lucky bunch! 

Bringing back self care: Ah, that ol' buzzword. I know some people cringe at the mere mention but my gosh has it been lacking around these parts lately. From here on in I am going to make more of an effort to be kinder to myself. Whether that's going for regular strolls during the work day, making a habit of writing for myself regularly, pamper Sundays (bring back the face mask & bath combo S), Headspace (I miss this app in my life), solo outings and the like. Small things but all can make a bit of a difference I figure.

*What have you been loving lately?

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