The Gratitude Dress

Hi!  Since we are now into the winter mantra ‘gratitude’ I thought it would be fun to feature some of my favorite gratitude quotes, along with this upcycled dress (for sale on Etsy!) that has its own gratitude mantra on the tag (!)

This tan/ white/ black dress is upcycled from 4 gently used, prewashed sweaters in the softest blends I could find, has slits on the sides & is super cozy & warm- whoever gets it will be lucky!

By the way, have you started on your gratitude journaling?  How’s it going?  Here are some quotes to inspire you:

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Thanks for exploring gratitude!  Check back for more ponderings & handmade sustainable & ethical fashion items featuring this season’s mantra.

You can shop more Mantra Made Clothing here.

Gratitude Apps for Your Phone

What if, when things felt a their absolute worst & your life circumstances seemed unfair, you challenged yourself to find something good, something that you’re thankful for in the midst of the chaos?  Could you do it?

What if, when you were having a horrible day, you could open an app on your phone that looked like a calendar, click on yesterday & look at only GOOD things- things you recognized in your life & felt lucky to have?

Research has shown people who steadily practice gratitude become 20-25% happier.  Today I’m sharing some apps you can install on your phone that will help you begin a  gratitude practice- I say practice because you better believe it will take effort(!)  Gratitude doesn’t just come to you, you have to put in the energy & time- like working out, only instead of managing your body you’ll be managing your mind!  And you WILL see results.

I have been trying this out for about 3 months now and I can tell you from experience it’s the antidote for “why does everyone else have it better than me!!!??”  

Try it out for a few weeks & see if it doesn’t cause a little ripple in your thought waves!

iPhone

• Gratitude Journal- the original
  • easy journaling format
  • sends you friendly daily reminders so you don’t forget
  • lets you add photos
  • lets you export to PDF
  • lets you share to social media
• Gratitude Journal- the life changing app
  • Calendar & bullet point views
  • One entry per day- encourages you to just focus on TODAY
  • customizable & sharable
• Gratitude Rock
  • Ocean sound plays in the background
  • Customizable background photos/ font
  • Add up to 3 photos a day, can email text & photos
  • Read daily inspirational quotes, save quotes to a clipboard
  • Daily alert w/ 25 different sounds to choose from
• The Gratitude Habit
  • Teaches kids gratitude w/ cartoons & games
  • Fun for adults too
  • Great for families
• Happier
  • lets you share your mood & responds w/ uplifting quotes
  • encourages you to pause for meditation breaks
  • lets you share/ capture something positive using your voice
  • lets you connect with a community of other Happier users.

Android

• Attitudes of Gratitude Journal
  • Includes the prompt “Today I’m grateful for…”
  • Nice clean layout w/ photo
  • Lets you set a daily notification/ reminder
• Happiness With Sri Sri
  • Promotes the happiness program developed by world renowned humanitarian Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
  • Practical tools- assessment of your mood, measures how much time you spend with family/ friends
  • Powerful quotes from Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
• Gratitude Tarot
  • Features a tarot deck of cards w/ names like “2 of kindness”
  • Poetic interpretations on each card to get you questioning gratitude on a deeper level
  • Includes a journal & lets you save card readings in the journal

Windows Phone

• Gratitude journal- this is the one I use.  It’s simple & gets the job done.  Includes a calendar & a journal entry/ notepad.  Lets you save all entries and refer back to them by clicking a spot on the calendar.  Also has a link to the daily weather on the homepage which I thought was cool.

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Thanks for checking this out!  And keep in mind these are just a few that caught my eye.  There are SO many more apps which you can explore further here.

Interested in Mantra Made Clothing?

Here are some dresses I made w/ creative mantras on the tags & gratitude is one of them (the black & white one)!  These are for sale!!  If you’re interested in purchasing one you can contact me at tara_kimes@yahoo.com or purchase via Etsy here.

Winter Mantra: Gratitude

It’s time to roll out the new seasonal mantra!  This winter my intention is to spend more energy thinking about what it means to be thankful & practice a greater awareness of the good things in my life- gratitude.  Are you ready to dive into gratitude with me?

My fascination with gratitude started one night when I was sitting in the woods at a peaceful hermitage/ artist retreat enjoying a long conversation with a couple like-minded souls. One friend explained that gratitude is often misunderstood. The tendency is to give up because it feels so superficial…we think it takes something big & miraculous to truly be grateful for.  When in reality, the magic happens when you start focusing on the little things…ordinary  things in your day to day life that are going right.

Keep in mind it’s perfectly OK to let yourself feel frustration, anger, & irritation with what life hands you- that’s called being human(!)  But also let yourself notice the little joys of being human.  There is tremendous power in savoring a warm cup of tea, taking in the fresh morning air, & appreciating the friendliness of a coworker. And what’s really cool is the more you practice it the more it grows!

Here’s a gratitude word cloud to get you started:

Stay tuned…in the next post I’ll share some gratitude apps you can install on your phone. Get ready to jump start your gratitude practice!

50 Ways to Slow Down

Thank you so much for joining me this fall in practicing the slow down mantra!  It was insightful & definitely self-reflective & I hope you guys had similar experiences with it.

Also, I loved hearing your favorite ways to slow down.  Here are some of the ideas you shared:

• Relax by a campfire with friends
• Sit on the porch w/ a warm drink & read or watch the kids play
•  Sit still with a cup of coffee or go for a walk & try to use all five senses
• a soft gallop through the field on an ear-pricked pony
• Shut my eyes and play meditation music, breathing regulated
• NAPS
• Yoga or reading a book for fun
• enjoy a hot drink!

Although I did not get to blog about every single slow down tip, I did compile them all into a GIANT LIST so here ya go, 50 Ways to Slow Down:

1. Add 1 to 2 teaspoons of grass-fed butter or coconut oil to your coffee.
2. Turn down the radio/ music while driving.  ALL the way down.
3. Find a book that you love- a real, actual, physical book- and read it.
4. Lie in savasana pose, aka “corpse pose” for 5 to 10 minutes.  
5. Call a friend instead of resorting to social media.
6. Make yourself a home cooked meal.
7. Lie down & let your thoughts wander without judgement…be lighthearted toward yourself.
8. Make yourself a cup of tea. 
9. Practice a few minutes of yin yoga.
10. Journal.
11. Treat yourself to a hot foot soak after work.
12. Listen to experimental music.  
13. Allow yourself to cancel plans or let go of an obligation.  
14. Sit outside & just observe nature.
15. Color.
16. Try meditation.
17. Take a slow walk.
18. Iron you clothes.
19. Make yourself a green smoothie.
20. Do gentle neck stretches in the morning before work.
21. Make your own granola bars.
22. Listen to flute music.
23. Visit a library.
24. Play a record
25. Read an article about mindfulness.
26. Practice a few minutes of alternate nostril breathing.
27. Take a nap.
28. Use a relaxing aura mist at work. (my favorite one)
29. Try a few minutes of self-massage (I recommend this book written by my yoga teacher)
30. Make something DIY. (Pinterest is GREAT for inspiration!)
31. Practice listening to others for 24 hours.
32. Prep & make soup.  Stir/ cook/ chop/ wait/ enjoy.
33. Spend some time with someone several decades older than you.
34. Schedule a creative play date w/ yourself.  Use your imagination!
35. Treat yourself to an organic bubble bath with candles.
36. Go to a Tai Chi class.
37. Prep, chop, & enjoy a big salad.  Make your own dressing.
38. In traffic, see if you can let people over into your lane or pass you without it annoying you.
39. Instead of travel apps on your phone or online maps, look at a globe.
40. Open doors for people.
41. When walking behind someone slow, pretend you’ve got their back & are walking with them.
42. Set an intention before going to bed to remember your dreams in the morning. Reflect & ponder over it when you wake up. Let your thoughts wander.
43. Have a long leisurely breakfast with a neighbor, friend, or family member.
44. Enjoy a movie marathon.
45. Watch the sun set.
46. Watch the sun rise.
47. Look through old Sears Robucks catalogs from the early 20th century.
48. Pretend you don’t have a phone for a day.  Unplug.
49. Read a novel or poetry written in a much earlier time period or century.
50. Notice your own road rage or annoyance in traffic for 24 hours.  Challenge yourself to have a sense of humor.

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Thanks for reading!  Stay tuned for winter’s mantra gratitude.