Last week, I had the opportunity to attend Real Simple Magazine’s third annual Beauty + Balance event. I was so honored to be invited + thrilled to be a guest! Aside from the list of fabulous sponsors, I loved the message behind this event. Beauty + balance are two things that essentially go hand in hand and weigh so heavily on females. Two things that we not only strive to achieve, but struggle to maintain.
Take a peek at some pictures that I snapped …+ the important message that I took home with me…
The event took place at the Andaz Hotel on 5th Ave in NYC, and was so spectacularly designed, coordinated, and managed. With a history in event planning, I can certainly appreciate a well executed party! 🙂
I was greeted by so many friendly faces + escorted to my first treatment; a threading appointment with Wink Brow Bar. I had my eyebrows threaded about a year ago, but have been maintaining them myself [apparently I failed to maintain even brows. Thankfully, I’m all situated now!] 🙂
After Wink, I moved into the Laura Gellar studio! I was seated with Christina, and she gave me the most wonderful mini-makeover. Doing your makeup is fun, but getting your makeup done …a whole nother level! 
My appointments were a little backwards, because once I was so nicely put together, I had to change and head to a Pure Barre class!
Having never taken a barre class before, I assumed it’d be a step up from yoga. I thought I could handle it no problem, but oh my gosh was I wrong! I survived the class, but left feeling like complete jelly. Though sore, I have to say that I did enjoy the workout!
I changed back into my clothes + headed to the cocktail hour! 
The cocktail hour featured some delicious hors d’oeuvres, three[!] pink signature cocktails [made with Tito’s vodka], and a group of incredible women. I may have enjoyed all of the above a little too much, since I didn’t snap any photos! 🙁 
On the way out, they distributed Chobani flips to-go + the most legitimate swag bag I’ve ever received in my life…
I’m so grateful to have been invited to an event like this! While the treatments, treats, and freebies are wonderful, I am even more appreciative of the mental takeaways. I went home that evening with my wheels spinning. I contemplated the roles that both beauty + balance play in my life and wondered if I was managing them well? Naturally, I turned to my roommate Lauren.
In addition to being a LCSW who works primarily with youths + young adults focusing on issues such as depression, anxiety, life transitions, etc – Lauren is also [in my opinion] one beautiful + balanced individual. I seek her advice on nearly everything + always find her insight to be valuable. So I wanted to pick her brain about the subject…
Right off the bat, she said something that stuck with me…
If you really dissect it, “beauty” stretches far beyond all of the exterior elements [makeup, clothes, hair]. Beauty encompasses much more. Two key components? Ones health + ones happiness. So how do you attain those things? Self-care. How do you make time for self-care? You have to create the balance. *Click*
In life, you have your necessities + your pleasures…and it’s possible to burnout if you find yourself sitting heavier on either side. So how do we achieve balance so we can remain beautiful beings? Here’s what Lauren suggested:
1] Find your sanctuary. Where do you find yourself during your happiest moments? Is it your bedroom? The gym? The comfy chair in your living room? The beach? The salon? Your parents home? Wherever it is, you must make time to spend time in those places.
2] Book an appointment with yourself. Sometimes making time seems near impossible, but Lauren suggested actually scheduling in your personal time. She likes to look at her calendar every week + set aside at least one night for herself. No plans, obligations, or commitments. For her, that one night is used to recharge however she chooses to do so. 
3] It’s okay to say no! I’ve gotten better at this in recent years, and it makes a world of difference. If there’s something you don’t want to do, a place you’d rather not be, or an event you’d prefer not to attend…just say no. It’s okay to pass on optional activities! The time you’re devoting to these things could be the “free” time you can’t seem to find.
Creating a balanced life is no easy task [and I don’t even have children yet]! But self-care should not be neglected.
Your version of self-care is surely different than mine, but a few things that I do to feel good include: painting my nails, applying a face mask, buying fresh flowers, taking a bath, cleaning my living space, watching a movie alone, or spending time with the special people in my life. Any of the aforementioned will instantly help me to feel beautiful, happy, organized, and…balanced.
The main message is, if you handle all of your responsibilities + still take time to do things that make you feel good on the inside, you’ll create an inner happiness that will radiate on the outside. In turn, making you a better worker, a better friend, and a better person. It’ll make you a beautiful + balanced individual.
Agreed.
How do you find balance in your busy life?
What do you to unwind?
XOXO
Amazing post as always!! I love it!! Great tips love!! It is so important to keep a balance…and hard to remember haha! What an awesome experience and I am so happy you got to go!!
Thanks love!! Such a fun event + and even better message. Balance is so hard to find! Especiallyyyy when it comes to blogging! It can really be all consuming, I need to remember to step away sometimes.
Love this post with all of the gorgeous pics!
Thank you so much for reading, Alissa! XOXO 🙂
How as threading? I’ve never had it done, but it’s such an interesting concept. Laura Gellar makes some gorgeous makeup. I love having my makeup done too. It’s so relaxing! Saying no is so freeing. It’s hard but so worth it sometimes. I unwind my painting my nails. I really have to focus to avoid getting polish everywhere and it relaxes me because I’m only thinking about that one thing and not 2987 other thoughts that are usually swirling around in my head.
I love love love threading!! I did it for the first time last year + was so impressed by their precision! It took a few appointments to get my shape straightened out, but I’ve just tried to maintain with tweezers since. I didn’t realize how uneven they had gotten [!!], but I’m going to try to get better about going. Getting your makeup done is so nice! I’d never used Laura Gellar products before, but the concealer and foundation she used on me were incredible!! She had a gorgeous shadow palette too. And I love that you love mani’s as much as me — it is so therapeutic to paint your nails! I’ve had so much practice at this point that I refuse to go to the salon, I’m so picky + convinced I do them better lol.
Me too! I go to the salon and get them shaped and filled in, but I always paint them myself. If they do it, I have to come home and fix it so need to waste their time and mine.
Hahaha!!
OH gosh Amanda, what a lovely, touching and INSPIRING post. I agree 1000% with everything you wrote. I was so lost and out of balance for so long I struggled to find myself when I feeling crappy. I am starting this journey and its hard, especially with my lifestyle I have too many responsibilities, and not enough time. I wrote about how I started blogging and I touched many of these points there, and while I was starting my journey. Thank you being such a lovely woman and for sharing this very inspiring information. We can only strive to be better with ourselves and others.
Aww, thank you so much, Jani! I’m glad you enjoyed it! It’s so hard to find balance with everything we have going on. I’ve definitely struggled in the past with this, but I’ve gotten much better about making time for myself, [quitting my job helped with that a bit LOL] but a lot of women still struggle — and shout out to the Moms!! It’s definitely hard, but recognizing that you need to be aware of the balance in your life is a great first step! It can all seem overwhelming at times, but take care of yourself and keep up all of the hard work, girl — you are going wonderful places! 🙂 XOXO
Beautiful pictures – it looks amazing! x
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Thank you! XOXO
This post was amazing! Blessed to know both you and Lauren. Keep balancing, you are doing a wonderful job <3 Love you gf! XOX
Thank you beautiful!! So glad that you enjoyed! Doing my very best to stay balanced with this crazy life lol!! 😉 Sending lots of love right back to you! XOXO
What a wonderful post! I am blessed to know both you and Lauren. Keep going GF! XOXOX <3
This is a great post and I totally agree that true beauty comes from within. I’ve had many times where I’d be so happy with my makeup, clothes, etc but look at pictures & notice that my smile wasn’t showing true happiness. Sometimes I get so focused on getting 1,000 things done that I forget to take care of myself until it’s too late and I’m overworked. That’s something I’ve really been paying attention to is taking breaks for myself & realizing that it’s okay if I don’t get everything done in one day. It can be difficult, but health and inner happiness is the most important.
It’s so true! The majority of the time I feel the most beautiful when I’m around the people I love or am doing something I love! When you’re happy from within, it really doesn’t matter what the heck you look like. [Although, most days I do love to get dressed + do my hair/makeup! haha But I do that because I actually enjoy it lol!] It’s just finding the right balance for everything, and really living your life…really enjoying your life! The most beautiful people that I know aren’t models, or super fit, or perfectly put together all of the time. They’re the people who work hard, make time for themselves, make time for others, and are just so clearly happy with their lives. They’ve found their balance. I love being around those kinds of people! 🙂
Amen to all of these! Me-time is so important and you have to do things for yourself too…. Balance is literally the key to success in every aspect of life 🙂
100%!!!! 🙂
I really need to schedule in some regular me-time. It’s difficult when you’re in a relationship and live with your partner. They’re always there, and although you love them to bits, sometimes you feel like you need just a little bit of space, haha!
Oooh I totally understand! Maybe try to get out for a bit. Spend some time in a coffee shop with a good book. Or take a bath…and lock the door LOL!
The bath idea will definitely come in handy in winter! 🙂
Love your blog! Looks like you had a lot of fun (I’d be dead after a workout like that, too!)
I loved absolutely everything about this post! First, it was so much fun to read about your experiences at the event. I can only imagine how incredible it is to experience something like that!!! Who knows, maybe someday! 🙂
Secondly, I needed this entire message. As a new’ish’ mom, I definitely don’t take enough time for self-care and beauty. I’ve struggled a lot this year with making time for myself… and refilling the cup, so to speak. I have been drained, and I just haven’t made time to feel good about my appearance. I’ve been really trying to fix that, and this blog post reminded me that spending time on myself is a GOOD thing (not a selfish thing). 🙂
So cool! All such good ideas!
Thanks girlie!!! 🙂
Thanks for this awesome post ,beautiful pictures and great tips