how to live like a strawberry girl this summer

a pocket guide to romanticizing your life while being gentle with your body

⋆ editor’s note ⋆

romanticize your life, sis.

romanticizing your life is not about making your life look fake... it is about paying enough attention to the real little moments to realize life does not have to be exceptional (or fancy or luxury or filtered) to be beautiful and worthy.

what i mean is allowing yourself to notice the tiny lil proof of life already sitting all around you at all times: the very threads of your life you cling to and enjoy, i challenge you to start noticing them.

the fruit on your plate, the light on your skin, the outfit that made you feel like yourself, the mirror selfie you almost deleted, that future favorite summer moment that would have otherwise faded away if you had not paused long enough to capture it. remember that.

this is your pocket guide to romanticizing your life, gently, strawberry edition… AKA how to make your life easier to notice, savor, and remember. ♥

…and because i am physically incapable of making a cute little summer guide without also sneaking in some kind of self-trust homework… i also included a downloadable confidence girlie guide from the archive. lets gooooo.

⋆ strawberry theory ⋆

small sweetness as proof

introducing ::

🍓 strawberry theory ::

→ the smallest, sweetest parts of a life often carry more emotional truth than the big obvious milestones.

strawberry theory is my belief that the love is in the details. meaning: small pleasures matter because they are evidence of an abundant, happy life.

a sugared strawberry on a plate, your body in warm light, a photo you took because it made you happy, a color that made you feel something. these tiny things can hold more emotional truth and nuance than the milestones we think we are supposed to wait for. ↓

learn to look for these little proofs of life… sometimes these little proofs tell the truth better the louder milestones we often stay waiting for. i think this is where confidence comes in too, where you decide that you’re willing to participate in life before you feel perfect, or ready, or whatever. that means taking the selfie, even if you’re not at some arbitrary “goal weight” you set for yourself at the beginning of the year. be willing to stop waiting for your life, body, and mood to become ~flawless~ before treating it like something worthy of softness and reverence now, already.

⋆ i turned my friend into a strawberry girl ⋆

i wanted her to feel like a sexy, summery piece of art.

soft, shadowy skin. the ripe color of red. wood floors and strawberries and lace panties... textured, but minimalist. i was loosely inspired by renaissance portrait paintings with fruit. the day-of: it was awesome, the vibe was high and the atmosphere immaculate. that’s what i love about this kind of photography, where you go in with a vision: the fruit is not just a prop. the accent is not just a color. it’s all atmosphere and empowerment and meaning-making.

sometimes romanticizing yourself looks like a strawberry girl photoshoot with the coolest Houston, Texas photographer girlie you’ll ever meet. other times it looks like a mirror selfie in pajamas, or standing in your bathroom filled with self-criticism… and deciding not to delete the photo immediately. sometimes it looks like letting yourself exist and take up space without apologizing. all are actually tiny acts of self-love.

body note :: you do not have to feel beautiful every second to treat your body like part of the story. body positivity and body neutrality can sit at the same table here: some days you might feel hot, soft, powerful, very strawberry girl in the mirror. and other days your body might simply be the place you live, the thing carrying you through errands, summer, lunch, laundry, sleep. all parts of you count.

and you sure as hell don’t have to change your body before documenting your life. PSA: you don’t have to feel confident before taking the photo. if “love your body” feels like too much today, try something smaller: neutrality, or just thank it, dress it comfortably, pamper it, let it rest. you are human. allow yourself to exist as imperfectly as one, we’re all living our life for the first time here. be gentle with yourself. ♥

⋆ strawberry girl scent stack ⋆

smell like a strawberry sweet treat~

layer: lotion first, mist second, body oil where you want shine or softness. the overall vibe is sweet, creamy, and fruity. very serious strawberry girl science:

01 → lotion first
02 → mist second
03 → oil last

the stack ::

🍓 EOS Strawberry Dream Body Lotion
🍓 EOS Cashmere Body Mist in Strawberry Dream
🍓 Cremerie Body Oil in Strawberry Sorbet

this is not about needing products to romanticize your life!! you absolutely do not. however, scent is one of those tiny acts that can make a normal day have more whimsy, and feel a little more yours.

1. 𝚙𝚞𝚝 𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚘𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚊𝚏𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚊 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛

2. 𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚑𝚊𝚒𝚛 𝚋𝚎𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚎 𝚛𝚞𝚗𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚗 𝚎𝚛𝚛𝚊𝚗𝚍

3. 𝚝𝚊𝚙 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚘𝚒𝚕 𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚜, 𝚌𝚘𝚕𝚕𝚊𝚛𝚋𝚘𝚗𝚎, 𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚊 𝚐𝚕𝚘𝚠

(then take a photo of the cute bottles on your bathroom counter because i’m giving you homework later in this article~)

this is the kind of tiny identity shift i love! it’s not demanding you reinvent your entire life by monday morning. it’s just a sensory ritual giving yourself a small cue that says:

i am allowed to feel cared for today.

⋆ romanticize urself without force ⋆

body positivity + body neutrality can sit at the same table

you do not have to feel beautiful every second to treat your body like part of the story. practice reciting these affirmations while applying your strawberry girl scent stack:

♥ for body positivity: my body is allowed to be seen, celebrated, styled, photographed, softened toward.

&

ϟ for body neutrality: my body does not have to be beautiful to deserve care, comfort, sunlight, softness, clothing that feels good, and documentation.

sometimes romanticizing your body looks like red lace and strawberries in warm light. sometimes it looks like a mirror selfie in pajamas. both count.

prompt card download here

⋆ strawberry girl camera roll ⋆

make your life look like it felt

if scrolling through your camera roll doesn’t give you main character of a novel vibes, we’re gonna fix that.

update your camera roll into an evidence album ::

→ for 1 week: take one photo a day of something when you find yourself feeling real joy, peace, or gratitude during your day.

^{starter photo prompts:}

• ^{mirror selfie before you overthink it}

• ^{detail pic of your latest sweet lil treat (coffee? tea? something else??)}

• ^{outfit check (who cares about bad lighting)}

• ^{fruit / snack / yummy plate of food}

• ^{your hand on the steering wheel 💅}

• ^{your legs in sunlight}

• ^{your perfume/lotion/oil products on the counter}

• ^{your rumpled bedsheets after a nap}

• ^{a close up detail of your body you usually ignore}

• ^{a photo you take only for yourself}

click here to download the scorecard for personal use!

the moments don’t have to be big. we’re slowly teaching you to pay attention to the moments we often chalk up to being too small or mundane to matter. but i’ve found that they matter the absolute most, and deserve the most attention.. like a photo memorial in your hall of fame that is your camera roll.

⋆ strawberry girl rituals ⋆

tiny ways to live more this summer

• buy yourself your favorite fruit as your a treat

• make a tiny “summer b-roll” album in your camera roll and fill it with only faceless detail photos of your real life, things, and moments

• wear red or pink this week

• take one self-portrait in a mirror or reflection

• moisturize your body like it belongs to someone you are responsible for caring for

• make a snack plate and plate it like you care

• sit near a window in the daylight for ~8 minutes

• take one photo you do not post

• keep a photo your instant was to delete

• romanticize the errand, not just the location

summer rituals checklist download

⋆ journal prompts for u ⋆

✩ what small part of my life already feels sweeter when i pay attention?
✩ where am i waiting to feel beautiful before i let myself be witnessed?
✩ what would it look like to care for my body without turning it into a project?
✩ what tiny summer ritual would make today feel more like mine?
✩ what photo in my camera roll feels like proof that i was here, soft, alive, becoming?
✩ what does abundance look like when it is small, ordinary, and already within reach?

⋆ little goodies ⋆

strawberry girl companion pack ::

• confidence guide identity shifting booklet

• 7 day photo challenge prompt card

• romanticize your life camera roll challenge scorecard

• summer rituals checklist

⋆ outro from nikki ⋆

you do not have to wait for your life to become impressive before you start paying attention to it. sometimes romanticizing your life is simply choosing to let the small moments count while they are happening.

the strawberries. the sunlight. the mirror selfie. the snack plate. the soft little proof that you were here.

and maybe confidence is not a feeling you wait around for… maybe it is an identity you practice in tiny, ordinary, strawberry-scented ways.

ordinary life was never ordinary at all. 🍓

xoxo,
nikki

tiny reader survey for my first Mini Mag issue 🍓

if you read it, skimmed it, downloaded something, had a favorite section, or have thoughts on what you’d want more of next time, i’d love your feedback~!

especially curious about future themes, digital freebies, colors, and what parts felt most fun/useful to you ♡