Watch the video to get your first homework assignments, hear about starting your very own RADICAL SELF LOVE BIBLE & find yourself a totem!
RADICAL self-love & stardust,
Tags: the playgirls guide to radical self love,
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Awesome Gala!
Holy pavé necklace batman. I think this will be fun!
Oh sweetheart you are so adorable
Going to find my self-love book now :)
xx
“Trying to be perfect is what got us all in this mess in the first place” Ha! So true. I have the perfect notebook lying around, so now I’ll just have to look for something to put on that first page!
You have a fabulous weekend! My promise is to be more confident in my abilities. To stop doubting everything that I can do.
Excited to see how this series unfolds!
YAY!!! This is sooo much fun! I just wrote my title. I’m quite shy to share but imagine it being absolutely RADICAL!
LOVE THIS :) And your accent is adorable hehe
*****
By the way! I’m not much of a graphic designer, but I think it’d be absolutely darling if maybe someone(s) put together some RADICAL SELF LOVE desktops?? Because I’m sure there are plenty of people like myself who are never far from their laptop/computer, and that’d be a perfect totem/reminder :)
*****
I Am So Excited To Start! Hmmm, Now What To Write On The First Page?! This Was Such An Amazing Idea, I Can’t Wait To See What Comes Next.
Ps: I Love Your Outfit :)
So crazy! When you first presented the radical self love idea, I felt inspired to buy myself a heart shaped necklace as a totem!!! I even emailed you about it!
I love this idea. I can’t express how nice it is to hear you talk, Gala. You have such a lovely way of speaking and an adorable accent. Love love love.
everytime i hear it your accent gets me! :)
i spent way too much money yesterday but will find things i already own in order to do my homework, headmistress!!
Michelle — I would love if someone did that! If anyone does want to make some wallpaper, please email them to me so I can share them with everybody!
Althea — I know! You’re totally psychic! Love loves!
Think I might try this, have always been skeptical about self-love but why not! Things can only get better, right?
I am so excited – I have a pink mini moleskine which will be perfect and I am just going to buy something pretty to be my totem. Thank you so much for this, came at the right time xx
Alrighty then, I have my journal…a composition book. My quote “Slow down and the things you are chasing will catch up to you” My daily reminder…a heart necklace I bought myself at tiffany’s!!! Looking forward to this journey.
uhhh all i can say is I’M SO EXCITED
Hey was just watching this and what you said at around 2:04 struck me as I just wrote something similar to that in an e-mail to a friend of mine. I’d spent about 20 mins writing out this long anecdote, my browser closed and I lost the entire thing so I had to re-write it. I’m hoping with the background story the context of what I wrote will make a little more sense:
“I’m disappointed in this version compared to the one I lost but I’m going to forge ahead and send it anyway. I think it’s important to commit yourself to the things you create even if you aren’t proud of them, part of life is being humble.”
Your mistakes are a part of what makes you, you. Embrace them as you do your success!
Fantastic job as always Gala. See you soon!
OMG.. what happened to your accent, girl? Our wee kiwi Gala is disappearing into a real mix of American twangs… cute as anything – won’t be long tho’ before they won’t know where you’re from!
Interesting idea…. shall give this some thought!
Im looking forward to starting this too. So excited to see what everyone else is doing…. I think i already have what im writing as my first page xoxo
Great idea…Amazing Video
It is time to go to bed here in my little country, but this video just made me soo excited about the whole project that I don’t think I will fall asleep anytime soon.
Thanks Gala. Again, for everything you do. You are amazing!!!
Excellent class, Ms. Gala!
I picked out a notebook with symbols of jeweled hearts on the pages and drew on it with pink and black ink.
My totem is going to be am amethyst heart!
Here’s my mantra:
Roses are red,
Violets are Blue
I vow to love me
& everything else too!
I cant wait to do this, a have the perfect notebook and as my totem I’m going to draw a heart on my inner wrist.
YAY!!!!
Your accents so funny now, being a NZér i can hear how its changed. Big LOL :)
This video made me really happy! :) And I think my yellow naipolish helps as well. __ So, I’ll try to find a pretty self love-bible for myself and I’ll probably go to a drugstore on Saturday, so I might buy a lipgloss and draw a heart on it or something. Or eyeshadows that I really like and that I’m going to wear all month. Because the thing is, people tell others who have problems with biting their fingernails that they should try naipolish to get rid of that problem, so maybe eyeshadow is gonna help me get rid of the tics I do with my tics (and that’s also the main goal this whole month – getting rid of my tics).
So good luck and an incredible weekend to all of us!
xoxo
Erm … the tics I do with my tics? Haha, of course I meant “I do with my eyes” :D It’s late for a little girl like me :P (9:35 PM)
I put your Radical Self Love text header on my livejournal. :]
Wow, I dont have a house right now, as I’m currently wandering around, so I cant carry too much stuff…this means the moleskine i use as a diary is becoming my Bible! It will be a bit mixed up inside, but that’s something i love and that makes me feel more fulfilled somehow :) so all good!
And since I’m going to Berlin on Sunday (and hopefully will be there for some months) I’ll try to get something as a totem there! But first I’ll make a special Radical Self Love Playlist on my mp3 player…and stick a heart made of mini-diamonds on my camera…cuz i cant really spend much money and probably wouldn’t find anything cute enough to be worth buying :)
Still have to think about my affirmation though…mmmmmh….
Sounds great dear! You are adorable. :)
i love that you made a video instead of just writing it out :]
i’m pretty excited about this! i already have a blank (pink!) moleskine lying around which would be perfect for the first part of homework. as for the totem, i would love to get a heart-shaped ring, but i’ve been spending too much money as it is, heh. maybe i’ll just stick a little heart to the tube of my lip balm or sew one into the gloves i wear almost daily now… or something totally different, i don’t know.
I love what you’ve said about perfection..brings to mind one of my favorite Jane Austen quotes..” Pictures of perfection make me sick and wicked.” Maybe I’ll incorporate it into my mantra. Adore you!! xoxo
I just happened to have a Moleskine Cashier as well – so we have matching notebooks ^^
the first page says “I Promise to love myself. I will accept all my pieces and parts then find the greatness in all of them. I will make fantastic mistakes and love myself despite them forgive myself for all of them. I will know myself better than anyone else can.”
this is my background for the month: www.explodingdog.com/dumbpict5…
i still have to find something that i can carry with me :D i want to find a bird pin or ring.
Yay I am doing it too.
I’m super pumped about this! Good gracious it has been a while since I’ve had homework… have to find a radical self love bible now!
Gala you are so cute that for the first few minutes of the video I wasn’t concentrating on what you were saying because I was too busy checking out how cute you were! For serious!
I love the idea of having a symbol of some kind and I love notebooks, they are like my secret addiction, & after watching this vid I feel inspired to participate this month now. Pretty shallow reasons, hey. I reckon I’m pretty happy but some extra self-love wouldn’t hurt. Do you think it matters if I don’t have any concrete goals for the month?
Okay, I have a problem; I’m trying to participate in Radical Self Love month on a cell phone, due to stolen macbook :( I can’t view the video, can anyone give me a brief synopsis? E-mail it to me if you want or have the time, thank you! And thank you Gala, I am so excited about this project!
Gala,
This “Radical Self-Love” month is exactly what I needed; my deepest and sincerest thanks for bringing this to fruition for all of us.
I actually made my totem right after watching your video; a round piece of craft mirror glued to a piece of ribbon, which I’m wearing on my wrist. Underneath the mirror, I drew a heart with a black marker. I didn’t think that during the very first exercise I would reach some catharsis, but it was such an emotional experience, I cried.
I can’t wait to see how the rest of this journey unfolds.
I think I am going to keep 2 copy’s of my bible. One notebook form which is portable and I can easily write things in it while I am unable to access a computer. The other one I think I will post on my blog so I can share it with the world. I need to trust people more, so I think opening up like this might be a good way to start. I already have an idea for my totem. I am going to take a picture of my boyfriend while he looks at me through what I call “Heart-o-vision”. Take your hands, form a heart (I prefer the wrists together bottom of the heart more than the thumbs together, but that is just preference) and hold it up to your eyes like a pair of binoculars. It was something I did at the start of the relationship (about 3 years ago) and it always makes him smile!
Good luck and have fun with this everybody!
This is my current desktop:
media.smashingmagazine.com/cdn…
And there are a bunch of others with hearts here: www.smashingmagazine.com/2010/...
I still thin it would be cool if someone came up with really nice and sparkly wallpapers for this project n_n.
I’m going to put heart stickers in my Moleskine planner, my notebook and my laptop. I’ve been thinking about sticking one in my car as well (I spend a lot of time there) but I don’t know about it.
Anyways, I can’t wait for the next RSL post!
Lovely! I stitched together some notebook paper into a pretty blank card.
I am a stationary pack rat and have too many pretty cards that I never truly enjoy, until now!
I’m thinking of braiding myself a bracelet as a reminder. It will be like a “BFF summer camp” gift to myself ;D
I loved and was really inspired by the Anais Nin quote you posted the other, have been reading her work lately, and think that’s the kind of perfect I’m attracted to, want to be around, and really want to embody.
So…the first page of the Radical Self-Love Bible looks as follows:
I can be, I will be, I am her:
“I am an excitable person, who only understands life lyrically, musically, in whom feelings are much stronger than reason. I am so thirsty for the marvelous that only the marvelous has power over me. Anything I can not transform into something marvelous, I let go. Reality doesn’t impress me. I only believe in intoxication, in ecstasy, & when ordinary life shackles me, I escape, one way or another. No more walls.” ~Anais Nin
I can be, I will be, I am: *Independent *Confident/Self-Loving *Outgoing *Wild/Brave *Positive *Successful
For some reason, putting in “successful” was a really big challenge for me. I didn’t want to include it. But I think that’s why it was so important and I saved it as the finale. I also have those words on sticky notes posted to the front door of my apartment and am currently looking for a totem. I’ve wanted a rose quartz bracelet for a while (I’m into crystals and rose quartz supposedly attracts love from self and others) but, being low on cash, I may just stick to putting a piece of paper with “I carry your heart with me, I carry it in my heart.” in my purse/pocket.
I absolutely love this! and perfect timing too, because i have this moleskine notebook at home and i was trying to figure out some use for it. ^^ so, this is perfect.
also, a few days ago i dug out this gold necklace that i got from my godparents a long time ago, and it has this sparkly pendant, and i also added to it a pendant my mom gave me and one i bought myself. So i have a sparkly pendant to remind me to be the light, a little sun to remind me to shine, and a snow flake to remind me to be exceptional. i think i like the symbolism of it, so i’ll make that my totem. i love this totem idea.
i’m excited! Thanks Gala.
Dear Gala,
Thank you so much for this video! Life lately for me has not been going as planned, and I have been very hard on myself for that. Perfection and competitiveness keeps screwing with my self-love, and what you said in the video on minute 2:05-2:40 really touched me. I am ready to let go and not hate myself when things are not as I wanted. I am drawing with a sharpie a red heart on my wrist everyday (maybe Ill get it tattooed?) as a reminder.
You are a true inspiration.
Love you.
I’m super hyped about this month! I have also uploaded a wonderful screensaver for my computer & have doodled hearts all over my notebooks (& used hearts instead of dots on i’s whenever I can!). I hope you have a wonderful weekend too!
This video actually had me thinking, deep thinking… Maybe it’s because I’m tired.
Anyway, I have a notebook sitting on my drawer since a long time, these days I was thinking about what to write in it… and this may be the time to start.
It’s pretty, small, black with jewel design on it…
i’ll think about this… and the totem too… even though I feel silly! (but this is a thing I have to work on, right?)
This is so exciting! I’ve just written the following in my notebook:
My story will be one of love. May this be just one blessed chapter.
Now off to find a totem…
I am so excited to begin the radical self-love project.
My mantra for the month is something I stumbled upon a few weeks ago.
“Be you. Find you. Be happy with that.” {{http://weheartit.com/entry/1070040}}
Again, I cannot express how much oodles of love I have for this marvelous idea.
Thank you much Gala.
I’m so in :) This video was exactly what I needed to hear. I grabbed a notebook and started doodling hearts all over the first page. This month is going to be awesome :)
Gala-
really looking forward to this, as I have been completely neglecting me recently!
thank you
I am going to get a little heart tattoo on my wrist. I am in Hawaii and wanted to get a tattoo while I was here anyway, so I am gonna get it done the day I leave :)
Yay, finally tasks and new routines! I dug up a notebook and will try and get a good mantra tomorrow on my three hour train ride. I got really inspired and made a bracelet for my totem. I’m not a heartsy, sparkly girl but I had a little faux antique silver heart charm I had raided from my moms jewelry box, so I put it on two leather bands and a chain and paired it with a scarab and a small vertebra. I guess I’m more.. macabre or something ^^p
While putting it all together I thought of maybe making the totem as a heart shaped henna tattoo as well, so I’ll share that as a tip for Camila and Briar and everyone else.
yay this sounds like fun. i’m thinking about just drawing a heart on my hand.. but we’ll see. :)
Before the Radical Self Love surprise I bought myself a black coral cuff – it has dashes of briliant red in it & is kind of tough but delicate – I was completely drawn to it! (Normally it’s shiny & glittery things that catch my eye but…) So! This coral cuff will be my totem for the month and probably beyond!
I have already worked out a bunch of techniques that will really help me consolidate this month as the most magic so far!
Love the video too – you are so shiny and like an angel :)
I actually have a heart tattooed on my ring finger to remind me of my best friend (who I lovingly call my wife lol). We are absolutely nothing alike and make the most unlikely pairing of friends, but she is alas the best friend I have always wanted. She loves me for exactly what I am and more importantly, what I am not. My promise to myself for this month is to love myself the way that she loves me, for exactly who I am. And everytime I see my tattoo (my totem) it will be a wonderful reminder to do just that. Thank you so much for the extra push to do this!
headmistress gala! I love it! Totally looking forward to do my homework assignment:)
Gala, you are so incredbly cute! I love the video and also love your necklace. xox
i think i will make myself a rose quartz pendant, or at least keep a nice smooth rose quartz stone in my pocket. not only can i use it as a reminder, but it actually can help to open the heart and aid in self acceptance, and hopefully, ultimately some radical self love!
ps. i just finished listening to the 1st love & sequins and i just have to say… thankyou! looking forward to listening to the next one.
gala, i LOVE it when you do videos! i remember watching your v-logs way back when….you are such an engaging speaker on-camera, it makes me feel as if you are conversing with me :) love the video and can’t wait to start the journey!
I have this lovely unicorn journal that I found in a thrift store…what a treasure that’s I’m going to use for my radical self love book. For a totem, I think a darling red ribbon worn as a bracelet will suffice.
Gala this is such a gorgeous idea! I have my pink moleskin ready and a heart shaped necklace :) Born prepared I think! Where did you get that beautiful necklace from?
My radical self love bible is a bright green moleskine notebook. On the first page, I actually wrote out a facebook wall post that my friend Hanne wrote me:
“Dear Michelle, I just want to tell you that you’re so pretty and you’re so awesome and I just love reading your facebook because it’s one of the good ones and I love that you say the world is too much for you because I get that feeling all the time. and I miss you and I can’t wait to put all your books on my shelf and have fancy cupcake parties at my house and tell all my guests, ‘Oh ya, I know the lady that wrote those. She’s fucking bomb.’”
I used that to just remind me that there are lots of people who care about me and love me, so I should care about me and love me too. And I’m using a bright pink and silver bracelet as my totem.
It appeared in my youtube inbox when I went on youtube- I love it!!
I’m not going to get into details but my first page is about learning to forgive myself for the mistakes I’ve made and focus on becoming the person I know I’m capable of being. My totem is a charm that my uncle gave to me when I was born, it’s a small heart and in the center of the heart is a unicorn head (no wonder I’ve always loved unicorns). Anyway, my uncle recently passed away and I’ve decided this is the perfect opportunity to bring the necklace out of the jewelery box.
I’ve been following your blog for about a year now and you’re so inspirational! i want to do this. i have a bunch of moleskines i’ve never used before, all empty. perfect. i also have some of those bracelets with inspirational sayings so that’s probably my totem. or i’ll make myself a friendship bracelet.
i just want to be happy with myself. i always doubt myself in everything i do and put myself down. i want to be okay with who i am, no matter how weird i am or accepting the fact that alot of people don’t understand me. i want to love myself, in a sense.
Totally unrelated to everything awesome you said above, but.. I can’t get over how insanely pretty you are :|
You absolutely have to make more videos!
Gala, I think youre so amazing and I absolutely love your blog! I recently heard about it through a youtube video (specifically from Liane on the FiveAwesomeGirls channel) and I’ve been reading it nonstop ever since. I’ve gone back and read some of your older posts and some of your most popular ones too. I was having a bad night the first time i read your page and its definitely made me feel better!! i’m really excited about radical self-love month (i went to the store to get a cute lil journal and a totem right after i read this post!) thanks for the inspiration:)
“I do my thing and you do yours. I am not in this world to live up to your expectations, and you are not in this world to live up to mine. You are you and I am I, and if by chance we find each other, then it is beautiful. If not, it can’t be helped.”
This Is a reminder that I shouldnt hinge my emotions on what other people do or think. If I concentrate on myself it will fall into place. Im so psyched to find a totem!
A couple of years ago I went through a period when I felt that nobody loved me, then realised that all that matters is I love me, and got a heart tattoo on my wrist with my initial in it, to remind me forever to love myself! It doesn’t always stick though, so I’m excited about radical self love, there’s always so much more to learn.
My quote for this year is “angel headed hipsters burning for an ancient heavenly connection to the starry dynamo in the machinery of night” because it just sparks so much of energy and searching and a desire to know, and that is how I feel this year is going to go.
xx
I am SO excited!! And I can’t wait to get started! I think I will take a sharpie & draw a heart on my inner wrist & wear my red heart-shaped sunnies whenever I go out :)
This is when I love having a thing about always having a ton of journals. Seriously, I think I buy them weekly. I’m just going to have to pick out a favorite…It may end up being my one that has the quote “You must be the change you wish to see in the world” or “Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself”. Oh the decisions… As far as the totem, I know my little sisters have tons of sparkly heart stickers, so I may have to steal a page and plaster a bunch of those anywhere I can get away with.
my notebook’s first page reads:
“i am not a whiner, nor am i a complainer: i am a creator. i accept and invite love into my life, and i am capable and willing to give it back.”
the first things that came to me. hopefully it will do me some good.
I love this Radical Self Love idea.
I made my totem/reminder tonight.
I added some hearts made with construction paper and love to my wall of random things.
Here is a picture:
i26.photobucket.com/albums/c10…
sigh you’re so magical lady! I love the blonde hair on you with blue accessories.
I started the new year aiming to work hard with my magical powers; fixing problems, helping people etc. I still feel low and stressed out every once in a while but it’s not as big as it used to be and I know I can’t reset my brain just like that. So this project is such an inspiring thing, and a WONDERFUL idea! I will feel so much better by the end of it, I just know it :)
I ordered a couple of glass vial pendants; one for my boyfriend which I will fill with cute things, like tiny snail shells and a sigil of strength.. and one for me, my totem! I was wondering what to do with it :P I will put a little crystal my best friend gave me in it and other things which I find lovely.
Thank you Gala. Mwah!
Gala, – I adore your videos, BUT that took about 40 mins for me to load (still on ancient dial-up as living in the NZ wop-wops!)
PLEASE PLEASE PLEAAAASE for this Self-Love month is there any chance [if there’s gonna be all videos] can you summarise in text?!
My mum won’t let me use the phone line for this long each day :P
x Thanks!
Tasj
“Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that, and living alone won’t either, for solitude will also break you with its yearning. You have to love. You have to feel. It is the reason you are here on earth. You are here to risk your heart. You are here to be swallowed up. And when it happens that you are broken, or betrayed, or left, or hurt, or death brushes near, let yourself sit by an apple tree and listen to the apples falling all around you in heaps, wasting their sweetness. Tell yourself you tasted as many as you could.”
— Louise Erdrich
Gala this might be your best idea yet!! I am so, so excited!! I already have a journal for the year so that’s what I’m going to be using. One of my new year’s resolutions was to journal more which hasn’t worked out so far :/ so hopefully this will be an incentive!!
Everyone has such great ideas as well!
Flower mash I love the bracelet idea! I think I’m going to do that as well!
And Elizabeth your wall looks so cute!! I love how you did the flower with the swirl.
I like the heart as a totem idea. I’m going to use a crown, as a reminder to treat myself like a queen. :]
i have a red string as a bracelet with a little feather in it my roomie made…i never ever liked dumbo the movie but someone once said it was like dumbo’s self esteem feather…and i sticked with it…and since then it’s been sort of my totem…i might get something else too especially for this:)
ps. i love that you’re using the word totem…i love that word:)
I cannot believe what perfect timing this is! Thank you so much, Gala! I am very ready to get out of this mess I have been living in and begin anew. I have been in such a self crisis for so long, that I am amazed at the blessings that are coming my way to help me. Much love to you, Gala!
I think I’m about to buy this:
www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?...[=tags&includes[]=title
as my totem!
Thanks, Gala, you are an inspiration
Thank you, Gala! This is going to be amazaZING! All you luscious ladies, good luck on your journeys! We’re all in this together! mad love!
Your Simply Brilliant.
I am filled with such excitement! It’s clear that we all could benefit from doing something like this – I know I definitely need more self love.
There’s a book (Not in his image) with an afterword by Derrick Jensen where he talks about how we’re always being told to love others and treat everyone else well, but there’s rarely anything in our lives acknowledging that before any of that can happen we must first love ourselves. I think it’s such an important point – that there is little self love, and that most people don’t even know how to begin.
Thank you so much for doing this Gala. It really means more than anyone can say.
I’m going out to hunt down heart shaped crystals, rose quartz and amethyst.
I’m going to put them inside my bra, next to my heart.
Right now l’m living to live my life better after years of abuse and neglect. This comes at a perfect time for me!
So incredibly excited about this Gala, thank you so much for thinking of this. Is another Love & Sequins podcast also in the works?
hemingway would have been like
I write this as a promise. This is a promise of self-love.I’ll give this a shot. I think I’ll use my Japanese album moleskine. I can’t think of a totem right now, but I’ll be snowed in all weekend with my jewelry making supplies.
This is a cool idea, it’s so true how you can pick whatever you do in your life. You have a choice every step of the way how you will react to things, how you want to feel, the kind of person you want to be.
But the best way to be a self loving person is to consciously drum it into yourself. This notebook is the perfect way to do it and avoid looking like a loony babbling “I love me!” over and over again!
“Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”
I’m so excited to start this!
Awesome!! I have the perfect journal for this: www.papayaart.com/product.jhtm…
As for the quote, I’m liking this one from one of my favorite Shakespeare characters—a brilliant, ballsy, sweethearted-beneath-a-whiplash-wit woman:
“Then there was a star danc’d, and under that, I was born.”—Beatrice, “Much Ado About Nothing”
Now I just gotta find me a totem and I’m all set :D
Aww you are even cuter when you speak than when you write! I am so excited about this month. I have written my pledge in my red faux snakeskin journal. Time to go totem-hunting x
About the idea of Radical Self Love wallpapers: Maybe that’s considered cheating, but when Gala wrote her first post about this I thought this font-y picture (http://galadarling.com/images/10/02/rsl.jpg) was so goddamn beautiful and such a reminder, that I just took it and put it as my wallpaper. Works for me! (And for Mac-nerds, you know when you turn off the computer and everything on the screen disappears except for the desktop picture? Eye orgasm. I seriously restart my computer sometimes just to see it.)
I’m using my New Moon journal I got for Christmas! I love it and it will be perfect for this project =)
“I pledge to love myself for everything I am. From my imperfect body, goofy attitude, to my amazing and captivating laugh. I pledge to love me for me, not for who others want me to be. I pledge to loosen up and have fun! I pledge to let down some barriers. I pledge to be more confident. I pledge to flirt and talk to guys. Finally, I pledge to love life.”
Working on the totem. =)
I’m totally on board with this, and I’ll be using a small black Moleskine cahier that my very best girl gave me for Christmas.
I chose my totem, too. Last year I stumbled upon an antique shop on my travels and pondered how all of those items ended up there, instead of as heirlooms. I don’t have any grandparents, and I have always been a little sad that nothing special has been passed lovingly to me. I bought a small black cameo brooch to wear, and I pretend to myself that it has been in my family for years, and that someone who loves me very much has given it to me. For the month of February, I’ll wear that treasured brooch as a reminder that I am indeed loved, first by myself.
Gala, you are adorable. I’m really excited about doing this. I actually have a heart tattoo on my wrist which I got almost 4 years ago with the intentions to remind myself to love myself, most of the time it doesn’t work. And before our homework assignment, madam Headmistress, I was actually working on a bracelet for myself which is going to have a really gorgey hot pink heart locket, I can’t wait to finish making it this weekend. It’s going to be such a great totem for me! I’m still trying to decide on what to use as my radical self love bible; I have one pink notebook I could use, but I also have a really teeny tiny cute $1 diary I bought from Target that has a unicorn on it, I’m just not certain there’ll be enough room in it? Decisions. Anyways, that’s the end of my life story, haha. xx
I am really excited to start this… I have this terrible (for me) habit of taking care of everyone else, making sure their healthy, happy and their world is still turning, before even considering how I feel, or how my world is, and I have neglected myself for far too long. I made the New Years Resolution to take better care of myself, and make this year all about me, and what I want to accomplish, and do what makes me happy… I think I could use a little help in the self love department, so this is a fabulous way to begin.
Wow you can hardly hear the kiwi in your voice anymore!! Adopted New Yorker?
Gala, I love you. No, I REALLY love you.
Off to do my homework!
I don’t know why but I got all teary in the last 20 seconds of this video, I think it’s because I know this project is something that I really need right now.
I love the mouse ears. Where did you get them? I also love your new accent – such a beautiful mix of New Zealand and New York.
omg I’m totally down with self love, but more importantly (or perhaps just as important), what blue sparkly thing are you wearing!? As a Pisces I desire to look like a mermaid at all times and it looks positively inspirational!
My first page says
“After heartbreak we tend to look for someone to mend what the previous person has broken and somehow get the idea that only that next person can mend our broken hearts and make us happier. We think we need that person to find ourselves. I’m going to break with that thought in this upcoming month. I will start to love myself, mend the broken heart with my own bandages and I vow to see the world, myself, and others in a completely different light from now on.”
Now I just need a totem : ) This is great Gala!
you never cease to amaze!! Brill idea! I’m incredibly excited. Your enthusiasm is addicting. :D
I’ve never participated in anything like this before, but I think now is the time. I’ve been suffering from these darn insecurities for too long! I draw a lot of inspiration from the movie Penelope, so my first page (when I pick up a notebook after work tomorrow) will simply say “I like myself the way I am.” When I was a little girl, my dad used to have me stand in front of the mirror and proclaim “I like myself!” I hope that seeing it every day will help make it true again.
I just bought a great small pink/purple notebook and wrote on the first page
´fit and active´
which is the name of my fave tea (green tea with apple).
It stands for staying fit and beautiful (ive lost quite a bit of weight over the last months and am still getting used to my new body), and being more active. i have a hard period at work ahead, where i will have to work alone most of the time and this will keep me motivated! Also, it stands for making more time for my friends, family and hobbies and less for random internet surfing.
I bought a postcard with a heartshaped cloud on it as a totem. Think i will put it on my computer.
I am so excited about this!!
My two best friends gave me a beautiful woven journal for my birthday in May and I haven’t had the opportunity to use it for anything worthy yet, but now I do!! I know that they will be so proud of me when I tell them what i’m using it for.
My main mantra for this month is to love me for me, to be more confident and not care as much about what other people think; I have sworn to myself to live with no regrets.
I am so proud of everyone who has decided to adopt this increidble project, and thankyou Gala for your most beautiful and inspiring idea yet. Kisses xx
I’ve made my own totem/reminder!
Here it is
i152.photobucket.com/albums/s1…
I’ve skipped studying this morning to make this (I deserved it U_U), I made the sparkling pure-white heart, and wrapped also the lampshade-crystal, because “I sparkle” that’s my line for my Bible (the black thing under the necklace) because I need to really and purely love myself, and I also have the key to do it on my own!
faabulous. i need this right now. it’s not brand new as ive worn it loads recently but i think this relatively new topshop necklace is perfect for my Radical Self Love totum! what do you think lady?
www.flickr.com/photos/rocknrol…
You are so adorable Gala!
I’ve been trying to love myself more for the last few years and I’m getting there!
I have to say, this is perfect timing as I’m going in a different direction this year. Actually, it’s still the same direction, but let’s say I’m walking a different way. Like skipping instead of hopping or something… :D If that makes sense…
At first I wasn’t sure what to write, but two of the things I read in other comments struck me and so I decided to go with those. Thanks for the inspiration ladies!
My totem is a heart shaped mirror I got for my birthday. When I got it I couldn’t put it up because my room was a mess and my desk was covered in stuff. I recently tidyd my room up properly and today stood the mirror up on my desk. Funnily enough when I’m standing directly in front of it it reflects my stomach and thighs two areas of my body I am most critical about, but it is difficult to be unhappy with anything that is displayed within a red heart! I am so looking forward to this month! Thanks Gala!x
My bible is a handstitched leatherbound journal from India (Ganesh is etched on the front and all the paper is handmade).
My totem is a little silver windchime with a red heart in the middle that my brother bought for me in Japan :)
I wrote a long prayer/promise to myself in the journal (I’ve been using it a little bit to write prayers to the Divine which still fits in with this, imo). I cried as I wrote it! This is going to be a very powerful month Gala!
Gala, 2 things:
1. I’m digging outs a notebook from my stash of unused beauties, and brainstorming about hearts.
2. This may sound weird, but your voice came as a shock! I had imagined you to be husky and deep-voiced for some reason! (Also, I love your mashed-up accent – mine is a mix of Australian and English and people are always wondering where I’m from.)
xx
“I have a tendency to write things in notepad on the computer and go over and edit the things I say to make myself sound better even if it’s just me who’s going to read it, even if I know that I’m not going to save it. I do it sort of like a diary. I’m always trying to perfect myself at the first try. What Gala said was right, “trying to be perfect is what got us into this mess in the first place”. I don’t love myself at all. I’m always trying to perfect myself, get frustrated and then hate myself. I’d like to be a positive person, not the kind that’s annoyingly positive about everything, but someone that can see the sunshine behind the grey clouds. I think that I’m always trying to be loved by everyone but that I can never be because I’m not a happy, positive person. I can’t be loved by so many people when I don’t love myself. I’d like to love myself enough to start to take pride in my appearance, to love the things I have instead of trying to feed happiness by buying more “stuff”. But mostly I’d just love to be happy and bright. :)
I promise to love myself and my life. To love it enough to improve it. To love it enough to recognise that even though it won’t be perfect, (perfection is boring) it has no limits.”
I’m a jewellery designer (I’ve already started with my promise to myself – I used to cringe at the thought of calling myself a designer because I felt that the title was above me, but I design jewellery!!!) so I’m going to create my own totem, I’ll post a link to the picture when I’m done :)
Good luck girls, if anyone would like a buddy for motivation or chats, get in touch :) x
I already complemented Gala on her fantastic idea so now I would like all of the rest of you to be included in my sincerest appreciation.
You are all wonderful for diving into this with such excitement and dedication, this in itself shows great Self Love already! In my opinion each and every one of the self love comments beams out love to everyone who reads it too.
I watched Galas video and paused it on her first assignment, went and got a deep bloodred Moleskine that I got as a present from a dear friend + my favourite pen (I happened to have bought one spare a long time ago) and wrote:
I have chosen this month, February of 2010, to be the first month in my radical self love life.
I will crank up the volume of my self lovin’ and I will have fun doing it and toss out any demands on perfection.
So anyhow I am on my first day of not drinking and my daughter showed me this.Already i had me a little toy my baby kids gave me just jokingly its a monky small with tiny feet…i saw the feet and said wow babies feet are so cute! I was almost going to give my kids up yesterday cause I wanted to give up!!!!! My kids love me and yay I get it :)
I have a few tiny notebooks around, but they are all partially written in w/ to do lists and random stuff. I was thinking of reusing one of them, but I might just buy a new one for this project… we’ll have to see.
I’m not sure what I’d write in my “bible” but I will let you know when I come up with something… maybe a quote from one of my favorite writers like Wilde or Hunter Thompson, or something, along with a little bit of my own words too.
:D
As for a totem, if I cant find find anything material, I think I will just draw a tiny heart in pen or marker on my hand or arm, to remind me.
I am excited for this! I was in kind of a mini rut last semester but this semester I am going to work to make myself and my life better, even just a little.
YAY LOVE!
I am excited to try this project as well. You are such a positive person. I put myself down a lot which is something I should stop doing, perfect project to help me with this. Thanks for the idea.
My totem is a silver heart shaped necklace with a key hole in the center and key dangling from a chain..
My dedication says “This is where the magic happens..”
Gala, It was neat to see you on video. You’re so adorable!
I happen to have the exact same Moleskine notebooks as you, so I’m going to use one of those for my Radical Self Love Bible. I’m not sure what my totem will be yet, though butterflies are my thing. We’ll see!
And thanks for doing this. I really appreciate it.
More videos of Gala! PLEASE!!!!
This is my totem, it’s forever imprinted on my arm: twitpic.com/j65kj – a reminder to be more loving toward myself was the reason I got it tattooed :D
Oh and yeah, I need to remember that my self love bible shouldn’t look perfect. I am a bit of a perfectionist when it comes to the look of my notebooks/journals/lists… if it doesn’t look right I want to tear the page out and start again.
Hey dollface – nice to hear your voice again! I have a heart bracelet I wear a lot, that’s what I will use.
It always amuses me when I’m reading writers who encourage their readers to write things down – I can understand that it is completely natural and normal to you if you ARE a writer, but I’m not. So this is my note-to-the-teacher (headmistress!) saying the dog ate my writing gene, and I will be thinking and talking about this, but my Art Deco sparkly notebook will remain nothing more than a receptacle for to-do lists and snippets of choreography.
I have the gorgeous notebookto hand and the promise to myself for february 2010 is as follows: ‘Be brave and courageous in all I do’. Simple but It is going to be LIFE CHANGING.
Gala, this is absolutely delightful. I love when you make videos b/c you are so adorable, and you just cheer me up. Back when you did the “respond with love” post, I drew a lovely heart on a post-it note, and I ghetto laminated it (covered it w/ clear packing tape), and I still have it sitting on my desk at work. It reminds me that when I’m dealing with difficult people and situation, I need to keep love as my main motivator. Now with your inspiration I get to spend a month directing that same loving attitude toward myself, and you know what? I need it! Thanks for doing this. :-D
This is such a good idea. I’m really impressed. I’ve been on your blog for a while but this has made it officially one of my favorites.
I’ve decided to make a blog dedicated to my radical self loving. Tnx for inspiration. Can’t wait for the next part :D
xoxo
LOVE your video and ACCENT. Holy F.
Homework timer time.
Well I went and bought a 2 pack of moleskines! A hot pink and a light pink and my Radical Self Love Bible is going to be the hot pink one. I wrote “ This month I am going to show myself how capable I am of making amazing things happen and that nothing is impossible.”
My totems..well I put a big heart wallpaper on my laptop and my cellphone!
i45.tinypic.com/16jgg48.jpg
from my local hippy shop, which I am in love with right now, the note book is handmade paper and isn’t “perfect” which I like and smell faintly of incense, the ring was the only one I tried on that fit perfectly :)
now… what to write…
I decorated a plain moleskine (I actually have notebooks from the same set you referenced) and wrote this newly realized TRUTH:
This is my new transformed soul, beauty, destruction, creativity, joy, and love.
This girl is not the girl you think you see, but the girl that is.
With appropriate use of markers and highlighters for bolding and emphasis.
My “totem” will be simple – thin colored ribbon tied into a bow. I’ll paste some on the cover of my notebook and to integrate bows into my everyday ensembles. I just need to get some glue.
Hi Gala!
I just wanted to share my bible that I made out of two of my own photographs and some scrap paper. (Tutorial on my blog, too!)
www.flickr.com/photos/jaimefot…
Loving it!
xoxo, Jaime
love the vid!!!
xxx
I wasn’t going to play along with this, but then completely unbidden I was given a small blue leather “talisman” from a new friend… and get this, it has a small blue glass heart button on it, which is soft and smooth and seems to want to be “pressed”. So, maybe I should do this, why not.
Chose a very tiny blue pocket-sized moleskine for this, and writing in a blue pen. My little mantra is:
sovereign love
I have this gorgeous NZ designed and made notebook that a friend gave me for my birthday. On the front it says “You’re lovely” in ribbon writing. I figured that was a pretty good start for my radical self-love bible.
In the front I have written:
“To love myself, increase my creative output and become rich and happy. I will use my own capacity for love and happiness to improve the lives of those I love. I will be a successful writer and my success will bring joy to others.”
Now, must track down a totem.
Can’t wait for the next homework assignment!
Okay Ms Gala,
Homework done. Fabulous new notebook, check, inspiring mantra, check, totem (new anklet with a little teeny heart no less), check.
I never thought I would say this – but please please please can we have more homework now?
When I turn 16, or maybe a little older, I will get a small, simple black tattoo of a heart on my left hip and that will be my totem.
For now, however, I will search high and low for something to use. I’ve never been more excited for a month!
i promise not to sabotage myself. to let things come naturally and not fight them. i guess, to not be afraid. to be a fierce bitch and show people that i am amazing. (im SUCH a gay man!0
word for word. :)
This is going to be great!
Thanks again for this, Gala!
My mantra is:
I allow myself to be my best self & support myself as I continue to grow, love myself, & love others.
my self-love journal is a cute little polka-dotted notebook with an owl (my “kindred” animal) on it, which i am going to write in with a red pen (no apologies! no self-editing!).
as for mantras, i am leaning towards something about fortitude…maybe about having it when possible and accepting when it is impossible…we shall see : )
Update: I bought an amazing little notebook with a picture of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum’s courtyard, which is full of blooming flowers, plants and old Greek and Roman art. Inside the notebook I think I am going to write something to the effect of,
“Always try to see the beauty in everything, and in yourself. Life is beautiful, and so are you!”
my self love journal is in the form of a blog that I haven’t visited in ages. I am working on my mantra and still working on my thought process, but…I started! heehee :) I make mistakes and plenty of them, but I refuse to apologize. This is so much fun, already!!
ahh american! listen to the way you say ‘saaft’ (er- ‘soft’) and ‘humwork’ sorry had to say something. its interesting and funny!
this is really nice.
“i promise to let myself be happy in the here & now. i won’t second guess. i will be confident in my extraordinary-ness and not be afraid to let others see it.”
i just found a phrase on internet that fit me and can be a mantra in a sort of way…
“ i have a problem of low self esteem which is really ridiculous when you consider how amazing i am “
and my totem will be my Octopus necklace because it reminds me that i am an artist curious and passionnate with a lot of interest and passions.
im still working on getting myself a notebook but i did take a hot magenta crayon and drew a heart on one of the few things i absolutely look at everyday..my mirror. that may sound kinda conceded but part of loving myself is making sure i look presentable even when i dont feel like it. if i look good, i feel good!
I have been drawing a big red sharpie heart on my hand every day and I put a giant sequined sequined heart nippie on my mirror after use.
I’ve picked a moleskine for my bible.
I tend to buy everyone else really good, sometimes expensive gifts but I feel guilty about buying myself anything that isn’t totally essential. So to start off the self love thing I treated myself to my first ever moleskine (which I’ll write in with my swarovski pen :D), and a gorgeous heart ring. what did everyone else choose to be their totem? xx
I love this entire idea! I have a bunch of empty Moleskines lying around so I’ve decided to use one of my unused Volants. I still have to find a totem but I have written my manifesto:
I promise to look deep within myself to discover who I really and and who I really want to be. Whatever or whomever I find, I vow to love wholeheartedly. If I find things that I do not like, I vow to accept them gracefully as a part of me, even as I strive to improve them and become someone better. Self-love does not start with hate, but with acceptance.
I knew there was a reason I keep lots of empty notebooks handy!
Ooh but I don’t know what to do for the prayer/promise!!
www.flickr.com/photos/fluffybu…
I tried finding some place that sells crystals thinking I’d get myself a rose quartz as a totem, no such stores seem to exist around here so I decided to draw a heart on my wrist for the month of February instead. When I’m bored, sad or insecure I often draw on myself to calm down, to feel more grounded and secure so I thought it would be a fitting totem!
My manifesto is: May I never be complete, may I never be perfect. Instead… May I laugh, love and live with passion, beauty and magic in my heart. May I be content.
It’s a play on a quote from (one of) my favorite book(s), and I have tired to incorporate the second part as a morning prayer, easing the wake up process and reminding me to infuse the day with positive energy from then on!
I pledged to be Perfectly Imperfect & accept that fact.
i will love myself actively rather than passively.
how awesome to finaly find somthing that exites and interests and inspires me hehe , you are great gala!! and so am i xx
Hello Gala,
Just to let you know that I blogged about your Radical Self Love project on my website this afternoon. Beautiful mission! The link to the post is here; www.eleanorjane.co.uk/blog/201…
Eleanor