10 Minute Trips: Gratitude

So much is coming together in my life lately. I know it is the result of the hard-ass work I've done in my inner world and the actions I have taken in the outer world but it is all still freaking AMAZING!

Amidst the cray-cray-craziness (and scariness) of some of the things I'm doing, I've had a FLOOD of wonderful things happen - from making connections with people I'll be working with in the future to money showing up out of nowhere; from people wanting to work with me to a whole bunch of peeps subscribing to my newsletter that I had no idea about; from scoring a role that will help high school student connect with entrepreneurship and make a positive impact in the world to positive reactions to my reaching out to others.

So, pack your bags Adventureess, in today's ten minute trip, I'd love for you to join in to the love-fest. Ignore for a moment some of the yukky stuff that is going on in your life and write down a list of things you are grateful for. Make that list as long as you can and just keep writing for 10 minutes!

Start with some of the obvious things you may have going on - great partner, loving mother, money in the bank.

Then look around you and see the little physical things in your life that you love - your hardworking laptop, your favourite pen, the gorgeous colour of your nailpolish.

Think about actions that have happened over the last few days - a smile you got from a stranger, one of your girlfriends calling up to say hi, your puppy waking you up with a lick to the face (and doggy breath).

Then think about the stuff we often over look - clean water, freedom to get educated, the feel on sunshine on your skin.

Just write.
You can't do this incorrectly.
Write from your heart.
Let these things put a smile on your face.
Love the crap out of all that is good.

Maybe you want to introduce this to your everyday. I love writing a few things down on my gratitude list each morning or evening. I often repeat things. Sometimes I cry from the gratitude I feel (those that know me well probably think it is more than sometimes...).

I have a lot of special things in my life. I bet you do too, maybe you just weren't as aware of all of them before....

Make it as you wish Adventuress!
Arienne xo

The Ultimate 2012 Gift Guide

My goodness me, it was a labour of love putting this post together!  I didn’t realise I knew so many fabulous people and their wares! If you like it, please share with others :)

Well it is coming to that time of year again where we are gifting our loved ones with festive presents. I really wanted to support brands and products I've had experience with first hand and those that have some social conscience or supporting business owners that do!

Finding the perfect gift for someone can be a difficult task. What I ask of you is not to give crappy presents! There are some fabulous things out there.

You could make something yourself or give them something thoughtful that will enhance their lives, entertain their faculties or brighten up their everyday.

Recycle, reuse or repurpose items and packaging. There is enough waste out there!

Without further ado, here are my top picks :)

GIFT IDEAS

Candles For Community

CANDLES - CANDLES FOR COMMUNITY

www.zulucommunications.com.au/candles/
Sue has created a special Christmas fundraiser and is selling a beautiful range of 100% soy candles.  She is doing this as a fundraiser for Sunrise Children’s Villages. I helped to pour some of the wonderful candles – they smell divine and come is such a wonderful range.

The Sunset to Sunrise range has been created EXCLUSIVELY for Sunrise and Sue is donating 50% of profits from the sale of candles will be donated to Sunrise.

CHRISTMAS ORDERING DEADLINE IS 5 DECEMBER.

Sweet Pins

HOSIERY – SWEET PINS

www.sweetpins.com.au
One of the most gorgeous women I know is the entrepreneurial woman behind Sweet Pins. Lidia is an Italian in Sydney. I’m looking forward to buying my wedding ‘things’ here!

Sweet Pins is the one-stop-shop for discerning ladies and gentlemen, glamorous brides, pin ups and burlesque queens looking for luxurious stockings and vintage inspired lingerie. At Sweet Pins you will find a fabulous selection of fashion tights and hold ups, seamed stockings as well as garter belts, girdles, suspender dresses and lingerie sets from exclusive brands like Kiss me Deadly, What Katie Did, Dottie's Delights, Gerbe Paris, Playful Promises and more.

Baby Teresa

BABY – BABY TERESA

www.baby-teresa.com
I bought a gorgeous romper, hat and blanket set from this Tasmania based organic cotton range. They were gorgeous and came in lovely wrapping. What I love the most about Baby Teresa is that when you buy a product from their range they give another to a baby in need. Awesome huh?! Buy once – give twice!

MICROFINANCE LOANS – OPPORTUNITY INTERNATIONAL

www.opportunity.org.au
Does someone you know have everything they need but you still want to give them a thoughtful gift? Make a microfinance loan on their behalf. Microfinance is a system of providing small loans to those (generally women) who wouldn’t be able to get finance using traditional methods. They then use these funds to create income generating businesses to help their families and their communities out of the cycle of poverty. You can choose who you want to give your loan to. The amazing thing is that these loans have a much higher repayment success rate than loans given by banks. 97%!

KeepCup

COFFEE – KEEPCUP

www.keepcup.com.au
“Hot Coffee. Cool Earth.” Is their catch phrase. This Melbourne based business create awesome reusable coffee cups that stop you from putting all those one-use cardboard ones into landfills. You can even design your own. How cool earth is that?!

Goddess Guidebooks - Create Your Year

GODDESS GUIDEBOOKS

Create Your Year Workbook 
Goddess Circle

Leonie Dawson is a magic maker! She is a fabulous self-proclaimed ‘hippie’ turned creative business goddess that has a range of e-course and a uber supportive online community – The Goddess Circle. I’ve used her great products and they are truly useful, actionable and inspiring. Sign up to her newsletter too – its part of my authentic business mindfood regime.

The Burial

BOOK – THE BURIAL 

The Burial

I met Courtney when she was part of our 10thousandgirl Steering Committee. She is one fire-cracker of a writer with a heart of gold and is also a social entrepreneur support system with her previous work at the School of Social Entrepreneurs. The Burial is a majestic and poetic novel set in the outback and inspired by Australia's last bushranger, young woman Jessie Hickman. A very unusual narrator tells the story. Perfect holiday reading!

BOOK – ROCK THE WORLD REHAB 

Rock the World Rehab: a 4-step "get red carpet ready" body+mind+heart+soul detox adventure

Nothing to do with drug rehab guys! Denise was one of the absolutely inspiring women I met at Kimberly Wilson’s Paris and Provence retreat this year. She is one amazing, sparkly person – lawyer, Phd, writer, furmama, wife and all round inspirer, her book, Rock The World Rehab, is a four step program to detox your body, heart, mind and soul.

GAME - ALTARS

Altars Game
This game for your iPhone is by The Man. It's awesome, it's fun. It's challenging and addictive! Check it Out!

BOOK – TRANQUILISTA 

Tranquilista

I have been a long term Kimberly Wilson fan, falling in love with her doses of inspiration and musings on bringing tranquillity into your everyday. Her book Tranquilista: Mastering the Art of Enlightened Work and Mindful Play provides valuable tips and tools for embracing your many sides. Plus I love the way she writes – it’s a fun and enlightening read!

Half Beast

PRINTS – HALFBEAST

www.etsy.com/shop/halfbeast
Sarah Gleeson is one talented gal! Graphic designer, illustrator and dog lover extraordinaire, she created Half-Beast to provide customised prints that is one half is your favourite animal and the other half is you. Fun, yes? YES! She is also the designer that helped me with the Life is Crafted templates :)

I couldn’t do this post without including my own lil’ ventures now could I?!

LifeTyped

PRINTS – LIFETYPED

www.lifetyped.com/products-2
LifeTyped are made-to-order typographic prints that help you celebrate life’s moments or inspire you in the now. We do Birth Prints, Wedding & Engagement Prints, Pet Prints and Life Manifestos for you to frame on your wall, nursery or shelf.

Imagine your life’s moments captured in words, honoured as art!

Life is Crafted

DIARY ORGANISER PLANNER – LIFE IS CRAFTED

www.lifeiscrafted.com
The printable planner range is definitely more than just a boring scheduler! It is colourful, inspiring and has a really useful layout perfect for planning and organising what you need to do. Plus there is a big collection of life-enhancing lists and info-collection pages.

Life is crafted. Craft yours!

PLANNER FOLDER – PHILOFAXY ADS

http://philofaxy.blogspot.com/p/adspot.html

If  you are looking for a planner folder to put your diary inserts into check out the Filofaxes on the Philofaxy site! My favourite size is A5.

OTHER GREAT IDEAS…

While these are not so much gift ideas, they are GREAT ideas that you can either get gifts through or keep in mind for yourself and others in the future.

HONEYMOON REGISTRY

Are you or someone you know getting hitched? Here’s a great Honeymoon registry! I’ve started setting my own up. It is thoughtful and easy to navigate!
http://ourhoneymoonregistry.co

DOGGIE RESCUES

So many pets are bought as thoughtless Christmas gifts and abandoned as soon as people realise what a responsibility it actually is (BOO on them). For those who make an educated decision about having a pet, consider getting one that really needs a home, rather than paying with an arm and a leg through pet shops which can source through unreputable means.

We got Zander from Companions For Life based in Portland, NSW. Two Sydney organisations rescuing dogs in need are Monica’s Rescue and J & J Rescue. If you’re looking for a cat or kitten check out the Cat Protection Society who have a no-kill policy.  . Google for an equivalent near you.

OPEN SHED

www.openshed.com.au
Ever tried a new hobby, fell in love, bought everything you needed and then never used the equipment again? Or splurged on a drill and only used it for 12 minutes (which I have now learned is the average time a drill is used in a year). Why not rent what you need from your local community instead of buying things you might not get a lot of use out of? Fabulous co-founders Lisa and Duncan are some of the biggest voices around collaborative consumption in Australia.

ANDABLE

www.andable.com
A fabulous online market place for awesome products. The ‘sugar-on-the-top’ benefit? If you buy an item through their system, 10% of what you spend is given towards a microfinance loan! Winners all round :)

BEAUTIFUL MINDS

www.beautifulminds.com.au
Teenage years can be tough (gosh, sometimes even when you’re older times can be tough too!). My friend Marina Passalaris runs courses for teen girls to help them navigate their inner and outer world. She works magic and the impact it has on the young ladies is transformational giving them tools and skills to handle a lot of what is around them.

THE 10THOUSANDGIRL CAMPAIGN

www.10thousandgirl.com
You probably all have heard about 10thousandgirl from me! I've been deeply involved for a long time, but have taken a small step back in recent months to focus on my projects. Here, we’re all about making finance fun for young women around Australia and inspiring a global ripple effect. Events are on year round!

Please note that three of these are affiliate links – most of them aren't!  Most of you who know me, know that I give a lot to help make good things happen so I really hope you don’t mind!

Candles For Community - Give Good

Today I'm bringing you something that speaks to the heart (assuming you have a warm one... of course you do silly! ;)

I've been helping a girlfriend (this woman is amazing - she gives so much - from being on the ground during the Tsunami aftermath to visiting Cambodian orphanages and plenty in between) out with one of her charity passions  Geraldine Cox's Sunrise Children's Villages in Cambodia.

Two campaigns are being run by this new friend Sue Liu over the next few weeks.

1. Geraldine's Big Book Club and Fundraising Event 

In Sydney, on Tuesday 6th November, I'll be helping out with this intimate evening showcasing Geraldine's adventures and a Q&A. It is such an interesting story - you can get a book from www.scv.org.au

Date:  Tuesday 6 November 2012
Entry price: $69 incl GST  (price includes a glass of champers, grazing plates and a donation Sunrise Children’s Villages)
Time: 6:45pm (for 7:15 start) -  9:00pm
Venue: Berkelouw Books – Leichhardt 70 Norton Street, Leichhardt

BUY TICKETS

2. Candles for Community

Buy gorgeous handpoured candles as Christmas gifts and help a community! Give good, smell good, do good. Make an impact on the recipients with a gorgeous handcrafed gift and on Sunrise Children's Villages, Cambodia with 50% of profits donated. 

I helped to make some of the free gift bonus candles the other day. They smell divine and are so beautifully wrapped!

100% natural soy candles in exotic mosaic glass, glass jars, travel tin and tealights
Delicious flavours: spiced orange, lemongrass, vanilla and citronella
All candles are hand poured to order
Beautifully packaged and ready for giving

BUY CANDLES

More Info

Visit www.scv.org.au for further information and where you can also:
• Sponsor a child for $40 per month
• Make a donation to Sunrise
• Buy a copy of Geraldine’s book “Home is where the heart is” or DVD “My Khmer Heart”

Thank you!

If you can help out please do. Candles make gorgeous presents and it will go even further with Candles For Community.

Make it as you wish SSSs!

A Life Less Ordinary

Found On

Back in the days before The Man danced into my life and I was a single gal, I remember coming across people's dating profiles.

So many of them stated, "I'm just a normal guy, looking for a normal girl..." or some permutation of the like.

My reaction was always, WHO WANTS BORING NORMAL?? WHO WANTS THINGS TO BE 'ORDINARY'??

Okay, so we might not be searching for abnormal, but don't we want something a little different and unique? And I believe this doesn't only go for relationships - it is relevant for life in general. We deserve the best.

I want extraordinary.

 

I want my life full of magic and the 'impossible'. Of love soaring to heights I didn't believe true.

I want to be the best I can be. To experience wonderment and awe in my everyday.

To be and see the spectacular and the fantastic.

So how do we do that?

So much of this has to do with our perception of the world around us and within us. We can make ordinary situations into extraordinary ones with how we engage with them.

For example, you can just see a weed growing in an unlikely place or you can see it and experience the wonder of it being able to grow there. You can accept breakfast in bed with a gracious thanks or you can super appreciate it and shower the giver with gratitude and feel how lucky you are to have that person in your life. Notice the difference?

Appreciate how you react to situations and deal with things. Feel you are capable and pat yourself on the back for accomplishing even the smallest things. See then how it makes you feel! We can take for granted our innate abilities or we can look inside and cheer them on :)

Another thing we can do is raise our standards and expect good. If you are forever expecting little out of life or yourself how will you see when great things come along? Raise your expectation bit by bit. Expect good and you will see more of it around you. Yes it can be challenging but give it a go! Trust me - it is worth it! Can you see the good in that?

Are you with me SSSs?? Make it extraordinary and as you wish!

8 Tips For Going On Retreat

What does the idea of going on retreat evoke for you?

A sense of stillness? Being? Growth? Laughter? Learning? Time? Silence? Connecting? Fun? Awe? Gratitude?

For the retreat I went to recently it was all of the above!

When Kimberly Wilson announced a year ago that she was running an Art & Yoga retreat in Paris & Provence, I was in.

She had me at "I'm.....Paris". So much so that I was the first one to book in (Eager much Arienne?!).

I had a year to plan and organise the trip and I had so many ideas about what I wanted to get out of it. I wanted to connect with Kimberly after following her blog for years and doing a couple of ecourses, I wanted to have inspiration, soak up the French atmosphere and meet some wonderful people.

Going on retreat can be daunting. You don't really know what to expect, you are in an unfamiliar place and you don't know who you'll be going through the experience with. Hopefully you'll have picked something you resonate with so you'll be with like-minded people!

Here is a list of 8 things that will help you to prepare for and on on retreat. Enjoy :)

1. Set an intention

I had numerous intentions, so to make sure I captured them all and infused them with a greater chance of happening, I sat down in a sunny spot and wrote down everything that came to mind. I jotted down what I wanted to have, do and be during the 10 days. Then I took it one stage further and visualised the situations and feelings I wanted to have.

Voila! Intentions set. I did this about a week before I left and it made me even more excited to get there.

2. Let go and have an open mind

Once you've set your intentions let your pre-conceived notions fly away during the retreat. The intentions will be manifesting themselves in your subconscious so trust them to happen.  You could miss some amazing unexpected opportunities and situations if you are holding on too tight to how things 'should' be. Having an open mind will help you absorb and experience all that you need to.

3. Take pictures of the memories

So many things are happening - the people, the activities, the new surroundings - what can you do to help you remember them? Take pictures! You don't want to be constantly snapping away in lieu of actually experiencing the moments, but it is soooooo nice to have pictures of the little and big things that left an imprint. You'll be happy you did later.

4. Engage with others and connect

You will be surrounded by an array of amazing people who on some level are just like you because the retreat resonated enough for them to make the effort to come too. Engage, interact and ask questions. You might find a new friend, business partner or mentor. People are magic.

5. Time for self

Don't forget that this retreat is for you. There may be a lot of sessions going on or people you would like to engage with, but don't forget to take some time for yourself as well. Peace and solitude can go a long way. You need time to digest and absorb your new experiences and learning so make sure you have some alone time each day.

6. Note your Lessons/AHAs each day

Listen up Savvy Shes! This is especially important. Write down 1-3 of your insights, lessons and AHAs at the end of each day. This helps to compound learning and bring it further in your life. It is also a way to share with others what you got out of the retreat when they ask.

7. Be present. Let go of everything else

You are at the retreat, not at the office or at home. Be here. Let go of all those normal distractions of what needs to be done 'back in real life'. If you have to, write it down and then forget about it until you go home.

8. After the retreat

Stay connected with those you connected with. They've had a memorable shared experience with you. I handed around a sheet that everyone put their details on which I collated and emailed to everyone.

One of the wonderful retreaters (Thank you Ms C!) handed this quote out to the rest of us:

On returning from retreat...

Be gentle with yourself as you return to your life after retreat. Accept the people, the problems, the joy and discomfort. Also, accept your annoyance, impatience and judgment (about yourself and others). To bring the spirit of your retreat to your life means to accept whatever comes up, not that each moment of your life will or should be henceforth serene. Welcome back to the world! Marc Lesser, Less: Accomplishing More by Doing Less

  
Above all enjoy the experience!

Kimberly is running another French retreat in 2013. Check it out here

Have you been on a retreat SSS? What was the experience like? What tips would you have for others?

Make it as you wish SSSs!
Arienne xo

Yoga With A View

Our friends Luca and Lidia are amazing people. After getting fed up of losing friends and loved ones to cancer, they decided to REALLY do something about it. Dedicating much of 2012 to fundraising towards cancer research, they have been hard at work organising events around Sydney and Italy.

One of the most mindblowing upcoming events is their Tour of Italy -  running 20 marathons in 29 days in each region of their country of origin. To support them in any way you can please visit Outrun Cancer.

A few weekends ago, they organised Yoga with a View. It was a beautiful Sunday morning at Cremorne Point full of nourishing outdoor yoga, fresh juices and yummy food. They ended up raising $700 toward the cause.

Does this get you thinking about the little things you could do to give back to a cause that is important to you?

Make it as you wish SSSs,
Arienne

Arienne Loves...TiLT #8

 Photo Credit

What am I grateful for today?
Kisses Hot yoga the phone to catch up with friends Doggie dates Crafty People We Heart It (where I source a lot of my images from Scented candles (currently burning Coconut Lime from Ma Butter) Mind over matter My puppy Skype A clean courtyard Gala Darling Coloured pens My organiser '21 days to change a habit' pad from Kikki-K Parking spaces Kisses

What are you grateful for SSSs?

Make it as you wish!
Arienne xo