Nol’s Morning Skincare Ritual

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Cleanse

ARCONA Toner Tea Bar

My morning is by far my busiest and most anxious producing time of the day. The copious amounts of coffee I intake probably doesn’t help, but I am never giving that up.

After a lot of self-reflection in the last year, I have learned that a lot of my axiety can be curtailed by simply putting effort in being present. This however is much easier said than done.

I have an innate tendency to plan, hoping to get ahead of problems before they arise, and this way of thinking starts immediately from the moment I get out of bed. And so, any second I can take to slow down is cherished like pure GOLD.

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Monday through Thursday I try to be up by 6am. For the first two hours I try to tackle any emails I missed while sleeping. Doing this in the morning is so efficient because most people are not awake yet, and I don’t get trapped in back and forth replies.

After emails, I get my calendar organized so that the rest of the day is just about executing.

Tone

ARCONA RASPBERRY CLARIFYING PADS™

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Eyes

EYE DEW®

After a quick hour workout at my happy place, Equinox in Williamsburg or in my living room through Equinox+ (Equinox’s streaming service), I get a moment to myself—my skincare ritual.

Not a routine—a ritual. Not only does it allow me to slow down, it makes me feel like I am taking care of myself (which we just don’t do enough).

I take my laptop into the bathroom with me and play some Sade classics. Among my favorites include “Skin,” “Keep Looking,” and “Flow.”

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As a real estate agent, it is very important that my clients know I care about what I look like and that this will permeate into the sale or purchase of their home. I want my clients to know that I take my self seriously, that I care about aesthetics, and that I do my research.

All of this manifests itself into my skincare ritual.

Over the years I have experimented with an extensive array of skincare products (from the most expensive to the most “granola”), and I think I have finally nailed it.

Serum

Dr. Barbara Sturm SUPER ANTI-AGING SERUM

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Hydrate

MAGIC WHITE ICE®

My current favorite product is Dr. Barbara Sturm’s Super Anti-Aging Serum. It feels like I am dipping my face into a recevoir of hydration.

Arcona on the other hand, I have been a devoted fan of for over a decade. The brand is known for cold-pressing their products (so that its powerfu ingredients aren’t destroyed by heat), and small batches (to keep them fresh and assure the potency of active ingredients).

My favorite product in the line is their Raspberry Clarifying Pads. These babies wil not only keep you skin clear of any breakouts, they are pure magic when it comes to clearing any dark spots.

Now if only they could get rid of the anxiety…

May you be well nolies,

-nol

Tips From The Ultimate Travel Couple for Working Remotely During The Pandemic

Like many New Yorkers, my husband Santino and I started working fully remote in March when the Pandemic first hit the city last year. Our 600sq ft East Village studio that was once perfect for our fast-paced city lifestyle was no longer ideal. Balancing work call schedules and cooking three meals a day in our small space became a bit difficult. After four plus months of quarantine, we needed a change of scenery badly! 

You see, our relationship is one that has been built around travel and it’s one way we bond as a couple. Before the pandemic we had contemplated working remotely while traveling abroad—it was somewhat of a dream of ours that for one reason or another had never materialized. Suddenly, however, all things aligned and we had the perfect opportunity! Our apartment lease was up, we were still working remotely, and travel became possible to certain destinations. After extensive planning and research, we decided to put all of our possessions in storage and bought a one-way ticket to Portugal.

“Our relationship is one that has been built around travel and it’s one way we bond as a couple”

To Santino and I, travel represents much more than just a vacation. It is important for our personal development and growth as well as a way for us to experience the world together as a couple, which I believe makes us stronger. The Pandemic helped us understand that travel is a large part of our wellness.

As Santino will tell you “when I am traveling my brain’s filters are off, my senses are more acute, and I feel myself processing everything at a higher capacity -- colors are brighter, sounds are clearer, and smells and tastes are so strong they can’t be forgotten years to come. Once I experienced this for the first time I felt truly alive and have been chasing the feeling successfully ever since.” 

Our love for travel lies in the planning process. As a luxury travel agent, I work with one of the most discerning clientele out there. They expect me to wow them and help them discover some of the most unique places and cultures one could imagine. Furthermore, in a world that is so fragmented, I find that the travel industry continues to play a key role in healing our world from the turmoils that we have faced recently. The more we know about the world around us, the more we want to protect it. 

It can be as simple as studying the subway maps, finding a great bakery, going grocery shopping like the locals, or sitting down and people watching while you enjoy a coffee. All of these things may seem mundane but that’s what fascinates me because it reminds me of our humanity and seeing this helps keep me grounded on what is really important. 

Here are our tips if you are considering to travel:

• Stay Flexible 

• Research, study, learn - Reading books on a certain destination before travel always helps me understand the place on a deeper level  

• Open your mind and take time to enjoy the journey

Have a Homebase

We made the town of Cascais, in Portugal, our home base. My mother’s side of the family lives in this incredibly charming town on the Portuguese riviera. Man! Southern Europeans really know how to live! Not only were we able to immerse ourselves in Portuguese culture, but we were also able to spend time with family and have a great office set up where mom’s home-cooked breakfast was always available. Thank you, Patricia!

During our three months in Cascais, we planned our travels on weekends, holidays, and around our work schedules. We were able to spend time exploring the countries of Portugal, Italy, Greece, and Spain. After Europe, we headed back to the U.S and then down to my home country of Colombia where we made Bogota our home base and traveled around the country exploring the incredible biodiversity. 

Follow Protocols: Research, Research, Research!

Traveling during the pandemic came with new challenges. We wanted to ensure that we followed all protocols, but these vary not only from country to country but from one city to another, so researching our destination was crucial! IATA is a great tool for information on COVID restrictions but it's always important to check the country's official government website for the most accurate information and very important to keep up to date with protocols as you are traveling since things change fast. 

Shop Local

Once we were well informed on the situation and took all necessary precautions, we tried our best to support local communities, which meant choosing independently owned restaurants and shops. I’ve experienced the impact of the pandemic on the hospitality industry first hand so it was important to us to support as much as possible. While walking around Santorini and Venice without hordes of tourists was a lovely experience, Santino and I remain cognizant that many local economies that depend on travel are struggling.

Choose Nature

After three exciting and impacting months in Europe, we headed back to the U.S to spend time with Santino’s family for the holidays and to hit the slopes of Colorado and Utah. With the ski season cut short last year, we were eager to get back to skiing and enjoy the mountain air with fewer crowds as pre-holiday skiing is usually pretty quiet.

If you’re the kind of person that loves travel, you should be the kind of person that loves nature. Why? At its core, traveling is about experiencing new things, however, most people perceive it to be related to other countries and cultures, where they could dive into their food/drink scene, or go to see a show, art exhibition, or perhaps some live music. But, being surrounded by nature can get this same stimulation.

In this case, foreign cultures are not people, but countless species of flora and fauna. Instead of brushing up your French or Spanish, you could go on a hike and listen to the sound of the wind blowing the trees, water rushing down a mountain stream, or try to mimic the sound of the birds seeing if you could get them to call back.

Instead of going to the coffee shop to sit and people-watch, go tour a coffee farm. Instead of navigating a city’s subway system, look at a trail map and plan a day hike. Instead of going to a wine bar, go tour a vineyard. Instead of going to the new seafood restaurant or in town, go on a fishing trip. Instead of leg day at the gym, go skiing. Instead of going to the aquarium, go scuba diving. The list goes on and on.

Not only will these experiences give you a deeper appreciation and understanding of what you love, but they will take you out of the city and closer to nature, which is even more important now than ever given the pandemic. 

Be Patient 

It is important to remember that long-term traveling can be stressful and requires lots of meticulous planning. It is sometimes not as glamorous as portrayed in social media!

Back in college both Santino and I were part of Semester at Sea, where we had the opportunity to circumnavigate the globe while studying on-board the ship and stopping for field studies in countries throughout Asia, Africa and Latin America. One of the most important lessons we learned on Semester at Sea was to stay flexible and be patient. No matter how much you prepare and plan you must be ready for the challenges of traveling that are sometimes out of your control. 

Wrinkled clothes from living out of suitcases, dealing with flight changes and visas are all part of travel logistics and must be well thought out, while still maintaining flexibility and a positive attitude – but if you manage it properly it is an amazing and rewarding journey! 

While sharing our travels via social media we received many messages from people interested in doing a similar travel experience and I would recommend for anybody who feels travel could improve their wellness to take the steps and do it! 

We are not sure when we will head back to New York and for now, we are enjoying every moment of traveling including the not-so-glamorous ones. We have learned so much every day that we travel about our needs as a couple, as individuals, and about our needs within our built environment. We will certainly be incorporating some of what we saw abroad into our new  sanctuary!

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About Valentina & Santino:

Valentina is a Luxury travel agent at Marchay, a membership-based luxury travel collective and agency. You can follow her on Instagram @varobayo

Santino is a Senior Media Director and globetrotter who spends his days chasing nature and exploring foreign cultures. He is one of the co-creators of @exotictoilet

Tips On Decluttering From An Unexpected Source: A Luxury Personal Shopper

A couple of months ago, as I was trying to close a sale, something that I can’t get off my mind happened. I was trying to sell these two gorgeous, limited Chanel runway pieces to my client Ronnie. Successfully, I was able to persuade her to buy the same bag but in two different colors. Both were pretty exclusive, and in my opinion, she needed them both.

However, during negotiations, she hinted to me that she was trying to purge and edit her closet. I think I swiftly reacted with an internal dialog of “what the fuck”; but, externally, expressed a politer version of, “don’t be silly, you gotta have it.” In hindsight, I wasn’t computing what she really wanted, or clearly deciphering the philosophical aspect of what really was happening. She wanted one of the items NOT both—and, perhaps, moral support for decluttering not just her closet, but also her own life. 

Our tango of sorts was solely engineered by the tension of my passion and performance going head-to-head with her gut desire to start cleansing. In retrospect, I wasn’t able to see through the philosophical lens, but rather, only transact an incredulous state of shock. I was flooded with thoughts, such as “how dare she not buy more” or “cant she purge another time?”

As I look back, I admire her truth. I recall not selling as much to her after that point because she held firmly with her position and desire. Now more than ever, I can relate to this topic of decluttering on so many levels as I have started to act on it in my own life. I am not just talking about the trivial aspect of cleaning my room, but also cleaning and reorganizing my mind. 

Part of this process has led me back to therapy. It is important for me to understand the why behind my behaviors and assess if they are in alignment with my own moral compass. The same thing can be said for tips to declutter. 

I am getting rid of items I haven’t worn in the past year or two, things that were a one-hit-wonder, and/or items lying around that are collecting dust and not being used. 

Before you start to throw everything away (which most certainly is not the purpose of decluttering), consider the following: 

1. Are you starting in the right place of operation? Meaning, are you starting within yourself to declutter your own mess before you get to the piles of debris lying in your room, living room, office, or wherever?

2. Pause and take inventory. Stop and address the issues of “clutter,” acknowledge what doesn’t serve you, and court what does.

3. Make amends, and insert more attributes that create joy and not wasteful disarray.

I am a collector of fashion, but I’m reminded of the intention behind my cumulative ways... It’s my passion and it brings me joy! However, even I can get carried away and this year I truly have been purging, not only my physical space around me but also my own personal vessel. I am getting rid of items I haven’t worn in the past year or two, things that were a one-hit-wonder, and/or items lying around that are collecting dust and not being used. 

Simultaneously, I am purging my own system. I am eliminating harmful indulgences or nasty habits that overall drain me or are not beneficial to my well-being. I encourage you to do the same. Be patient with yourself and the process. IT IS A PROCESS. Don’t beat yourself up for having arrived to where you are with your consumption, materialism, clutter, unhealthy habits of whatever nature, etc. Just be aware and act on it little by little. 

Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither were the beliefs that haven’t been serving you. It took time to learn them and it will take time to unlearn me - and, then, swap out for healthier and mendable practices. It’s all in due time, but, at least, acknowledge it and get the “wheels” turning. You can do it! I believe in you! 

About Cole:

Cole Clemens is an Assistant Buyer and the Head of Sales at Two Minds, a boutique in The Meat Packing District. He has been working in the fashion industry for over a decade.

You can follow him on Instagram @coley777, or visit his professional page @curatedbycoley.