Weekly Obsessions

WE’RE BACK with Weekly Obsessions, hey HI long time wow.

The Umbrella Academy – A new Netflix series that has me all like “This is so weird” “I like them” “This is weird” “OMG WHAT” “Wait…. how?!” “SO WEIRD” “He’s my fave” “WHAT IS HAPPENING” ….. So yeah. It’s kind of superhero-y. Very well written. A little creepy? Definitely weird. You should probably watch it so we can talk about it, thanks so much.

Trader Joes – I don’t shop there very often, so every time I do I’m reminded how wonderful it is. They have so many fun foods. But the biggest perk is they have a great flower selection to brighten up my cold winter heart.

Maggie Rogers – Heard it in a Past Life – If you haven’t listened to Maggie’s debut album, what are you waiting for. Honestly. Go go go. This girl can sing and write and also tear out your heartstrings and also make you want to go hiking. I don’t know, probably not, but I felt that once.

Argan oil – This is actually a “multiple months” obsession, but I love this stuff for my face and hair. I am in a DEEP season of postpartum hair loss and have been massaging my scalp with argan oil to hopefully combat that. And, it’s a great detangler! The only detangler I will use now! Try it, it makes you feel earthy.

None of these are sponsored, you’re very nice and cute for thinking that.

Thanks for being here on this random fun blog that has no real point except to ramble about my life to someone other than my 5 month old. 😉

Weekly Obsessions

- Stephanie Leave a comment

PRISMS
Prisms add an extra dimension and layer to photos (see above). I’d experimented with friend’s prism twice before and always wished I had one. So instead of the continued wishing, I just went ahead and got one (only like 20 bucks on Amazon)! It’s definitely not to be used all the time, but in certain, artsy situations it’s a fun way to add some more interest. It’s basically a big light-bending experiment. I want to learn more about the techniques before I add it into my portrait sessions, but it will happen eventually!

STOK
This coffee company‘s cold brew was on one of my weekly obsession lists last summer, and guess what, they stood the test of time! I never leave the grocery store without a bottle.

PUBLIC ART
Oh my gosh. I am doing some research for a photo project about the area’s best and most colorful public art murals, and YOU GUYS! Boston is WAY more full of them than I originally thought! Check out this WBUR blog post I found. It helped me do a lot of my research and I am so excited for my photo project in August.

That’s it for this week. Happy Friday!

Weekly Obsessions

- Stephanie Leave a comment

WOAH IT’S BEEN A MINUTE

I’ve been saying to myself, ‘Man, I wish there was a way I could share all this good stuff I’ve been listening to, doing and finding without having to post on Instagram like every two seconds.” Then it hit me. WEEKLY OBSESSIONS! It’s been so long since I’ve done one of these! Let’s get into it.

MUSIC:
BRAXTON COOK: I don’t consider myself a knowledgable jazz music fan, but even knowing next to nothing about the genre, I know this is good. I know it’s legit and inspiring and soooooo great to listen to when you need an extra boost of hustle for your work day. I know it makes sense to my ears. I love this guy’s work!
Dear Evan Hansen Soundtrack: yes, emotions, amazing, yes, love, so good, omg, this. amen.

Professional Basketball:
Nate and I watched both nights of ESPN’s 30 for 30 special on the Boston Celtics vs. LA Lakers rivalry. Up until now I’ve only ever been a college basketball fan, but this documentary showed me that I genuinely love the sport in general (not just college version of it) and will most likely become a Celtics fan in the near future.

Ancient copies of the Natick Bulletin (the local newspaper):
I spent probably an hour last week looking at old maps and reading the June 1883 and June 1931 copies of the Natick Bulletins at the library. It was SO interesting. And so crazy to see the old ads for businesses that are STILL around & the ads for businesses that are long gone, streets that are still the same, ect. The column called Natick Locals really made me laugh. It was a list of “Mrs. So and So is summering at the Cape” – and we thought telling people where we are at every moment is a new concept. And rent was $7 a week! :O I’ve always had a thing with learning the history of a place I live in. I don’t need to know any of these things, but I feel like a better citizen when I do. I want to know more. I want to know why THAT building is the town hall and where the first fire station was and who originally lived in THAT gorgeous house, you know? Maybe I’m weird. 😉

Summer Sunsets:
Needs no explanation. Top 3 most favorite parts of summer (other 2 are ice cream and swimming 😉 )

Weekly Obsessions

- Stephanie Leave a comment

END OF SUMMER KAYAKING
Nate and I didn’t do as much kayaking as we would have liked this summer due to travel, busy weekends and general “it’s way too hot for this” vibes. This past weekend was sooooo fall-y, though, that we went kayaking two days in a row! We even got to catch the most perfect sunset up in NH.

CIDER SEASON
With the end of summer comes the beginning of cider season. Being the adventurous humans we are, Nate and I have tried a couple new brands recently. My personal favorite has been Citizen cider, while Nate has been digging Stowe’s product. I also want to give a shout out to Lookout Farm‘s new cider, it’s good and luckily they are located just up the street from us! I’ll definitely be supporting local this season. 😉

CASTRO + CARLY RAE + ARIZONA
My three music picks for this season are pretty different from each other! Castro is a singer-songwriter sibling trio who have honest lyrics and impeccable harmonies. Carly Rae Jepsen, I believe, is the unofficial queen of pop, and ARIZONA has some serious electronic beats that are a perfect addition to your running playlist. Listen to my fall playlist with jams from all these artists here!

Have a great week!!

WEEKLY OBSESSIONS

- Stephanie Leave a comment

It’s been just over a year since I started blogging for fun again (affectionately known as fun-blogging 😉 ) and I wanted to celebrate with a Weekly Obsessions post! Here are some of my recent favorite things!

Sparkler Inspiration Shoot – I always have 2-5 photo shoot ideas wandering around in my head and sometimes I actually get to make them come true! This one was based on summer, sparklers and pure best friend fun. Go to my photo blog to see!

STOK cold brew – I discovered this cold brew recently and I can’t get enough! Buy a jug of it at the grocery store (for the price of one Starbucks iced coffee!) and you’ll be in cold brew heaven for at least a week! Bonus, pour some into your ice tray and have coffee ice cubes, too 🙂

Saltbox Kitchen – There are way too many awesome, delicious restaurants in my surrounding area that I haven’t tried yet! Luckily, yesterday I stopped by Saltbox Kitchen for lunch and it was the best place to eat I’ve been to in a while. The best part is they use all their own, locally-grown veggies! Maybe I should set a goal of eating at one new restaurant per week. Metrowest Boston peeps, where else should I go?

The end of July – July has been SO hot and a lot busier than normal, and I’m a little relieved that it’s ending soon. Just being honest. August is bringing a couple weekend trips with friends and hopefully not-constantly-in-the-90s weather, so I’m looking forward to that!

Stephanie Rita

creative life in New England