Life Lately – Early Fall on the Lake

09.25.21

It’s been a minute since my last check in and now that things are quieting down I thought I’d share some updates. This Life Lately is packed with pretty photos and some light musings on the following range of topics:

  • Findings from my instagram hiatus What 3 months off the app has shown me.
  • My rough and ready closet organization PLUS tomorrow’s closet sale info!
  • A favourite lake scene & garden harvest Including 3 recipes I’ve been making on repeat.
  • Wood shed progressI know you’ve been waiting with baited breath.
  • The cat and the corgiOf course!
  • Late summer blooms & early fall tones & texturesBecause it wouldn’t be a life lately otherwise!

Quite the odd group of topics but such is reality. Read on for a peek into some of the highlights of life lately!



Findings from My Instagram Hiatus


My time off of Instagram has been nothing but positive. These months away from the app have been incredibly liberating and eye-opening in many ways.


3 Key Findings

1 | My business faired better than anticipated. Thanks in large part to you, my amazing readers that continue to show up to this little corner of the internet and trust my recommendations. I truly couldn’t do this without you!

Learning that my work relies less on the app than I thought was a huge eye-opener for me. This has given me a new perspective on Style Bee and the ability to see my role as a creative in a whole new light. That saying, “Couldn’t see the forest for the trees.” is so fitting.

2 | The FOMO fades but it takes discipline. After a couple weeks “off” but still checking-in, I realized that to fully detach I needed to delete the app. That’s when the positive changes started. Not only was it good for my mental health but my productivity has also been given a boost. I shudder to think of all the time I’ve wasted on mindless scrolling.

3 | Life FEELS better when I’m not using Instagram. This is the one folks. The realization that’s really forcing some change in my behaviour and future plans.

I refuse to look back in 5+ years, only to realize that I spent my 30’s tailoring my life, work, and goals to the whims of an algorithm living in a little glass brick. Which bring me to, what’s next…



No, no, I’m not going off Instagram altogether, but I will be using the platform very sparingly. For now, it’ll simply be a way to keep my followers updated on what’s happening on Style Bee and share bits of video content. It still has some positive elements and I want to reach as many folks who are interested in the pursuit of timeless style and intentional living as I can.

If you’re here, you’re in my digital happy place, and I can’t thank you enough for joining me!



MY ROUGH & READY CLOSET ORGANIZATION


Not exactly the massive walk-in closet that you’re used to seeing from influencers. No wall of shoes, dedicated bag shelves, massive selfie mirror, but I’m working with what I’ve got and this is the honest situation. T-shirts, loungewear, undies, socks and jeans are all housed in an old chest of drawers in another bedroom. So I grab my base layers and then head in here for sweaters, coats and shoes!

This is possibly the best my closet storage will be until we finish renovations next year. For now, I’m enjoying the open concept for easy visibility. These wire shoe racks make for easy knitwear access and my trusty IKEA clothing rack is still going strong, 6 years on!



CLOSET SALE INFO

I’ll be listing a handful of my fall and winter pieces tomorrow, September 26th, on DEPOP starting at 9 am ET. International shipping will be available and all orders placed on Sunday/Monday will be shipped on Tuesday, September 28th.

There are lots of capsule closet and slow fashion gems (read: ES, Only Child, Jamie and the Jones) in this batch and they’re all in great condition and ready for a new homes!

Follow me on DEPOP for first access.

It’s my first time using the app so fingers crossed it all goes according to plan!


Now onto the rest of this life lately.

Less talk, more photos!



A FAVOURITE SCENE OF THE LAKE


The lake is getting quieter with the onset of colder weather and I’m not complaining one bit. Nothing is more peaceful than when the water smooths to glass as the sun goes down.



THE GARDEN HARVEST


I don’t know why and I don’t know how, but the deer graciously allowed our garden to thrive this year. Maybe next summer they’ll decide otherwise, but for now I’m very grateful. The kale has been more prolific than I could have ever hoped and my first attempt at growing eggplants has been a success! I’ve eaten enough pesto to practically turn green but I’m far from over it yet.


I’ve been making these three recipes a lot:

Pesto Chicken with Zucchini Noodles

Eggplant Parmesan

Lemon Garlic Kale Salad

I mix in some hot pepper to give everything a little extra bite!



SHED PROGRESS

I know, I know, you’ve been on the edge of your seats waiting to see the wood shed take shape. Well buckle up folks because she’s got walls and a roof and the wood is going in! I’m saving the big reveal for when all the wood has been stacked and the final touches are done but here’s how it’s coming together.



THE CAT


Miss Miss, as I called Evie most of the time, has been fairing as fine as any feline could hope to in this life. After her requests to explore the outdoors are met (she wears a little harness so the chipmunks don’t end up as lunch), she takes her morning sun on the window ledge of the Muskoka room. Then proceeds to to retire to the bedroom for her day of arduous napping.



& THE CORGI


This little 10 year old fella has been living his best life. Snooping through the woods, hopping aboard for boat rides, snoozing on whatever bed or couch (or person) suits him best. Not much for this little prince to wish for!



Dobby has been my best little sidekick and joins me for morning coffee on the dock, boathouse office days and walks along our quiet, tree-lined road. Come to think of it, I’m probably the sidekick seeing as he’s clearly the star of the show.



LATE SUMMER BLOOMS


I’m loving all the fuchsia petals and pretty purples that have been out in recent weeks. Seems my fellow bee’s are fans as well.



EARLY FALL TONES & TEXTURES


The real fall colours are just starting to come in but I can already tell it’s going to be a beauty. I’ll just need to dodge the golf-ball-sized acorns while I’m out exploring with Dobby.




Thanks for tuning in folks.

I hope your autumn is off to a beautiful start. Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

Leave me a comment here!

  1. Elizabeth says:

    So interesting to read about your break from Instagram, because I did the same thing over a year ago after I realized I was spending more time browsing and less time creating. I heard an interview on CBC Radio with a California professor of computing who pointed out that if you’re producing good work, people will find you. I’ve kept my blog and sell my work on Ravelry, and that’s pretty much the extent now of my online activity. No change at all in my customer base.

  2. RyaL says:

    Lee! The photos are lovely – would you mind telling me what type of camera you use? Or is it your iPhone? Regarding clothes -you’ve really helped me pare down my wardrobe and think twice about an impulse buy. Quality over quantity! Thank you, Lee!

    • Lee the Bee says:

      I’m so happy to hear that Ryal! Thanks for letting me know 🙂 All the photos in this post were taken on my iPhone 11 Pro Max and edited with VSCO. I just use the A6 filter (it desaturates and ups the contrast) and adjust exposure and sharpen as needed.

  3. Kirra says:

    This was a pretty inspiring post to read! I love blogs so am always happy to visit your website. I would also like to cut back on my Instagram/Facebook use, don’t post much just bla bla scrolling – do thanks for the nudge!
    The lake looks really lovely and of course I love seeing your cat & corgi updates! Congratulations on the veggie harvest and woodshed build, look forward to seeing more (and the frozen lake in winter!?!).

  4. Cate Fry says:

    When you said that you weren’t going to allow your life and work and goals to be ruled by an algorithm, it was like the heavens opened up and the angels sang. Thank you! Lately I’ve been focusing on growing traffic to my (mostly ignored) blog and growing my (pathetically tiny) IG following, and I heard a piece of advice about how often and how much I should be posting to IG (eight stories per day, etc.), and it made me think – if I’m spending that much time creating and posting content on social media, how am I ever supposed to find the time and the focus and mental energy to do the actual work, to make the contribution I want to make? It’s insane and I was in a funk worrying about how I could succeed without playing that game. I know I need to do what feels right to me and not adhere to some arbitrary standard, but it was so helpful to hear you say it, too and to hear that your success hasn’t been impacted by walking away. I’m glad for you, and inspired.

    • Lee the Bee says:

      Ah Cate! I’m so happy that sentiment resinated with you. I had a similar epiphany as I was telling a good friend about all the “best practices” of instagram and how quickly it gets overwhelming when she asked me a simple question, “What if you just didn’t do all that?”. I had to stop and think and realized, of course it’s within my control to decide how I use the app. There’s this collective mindset that catering to the algorithm will grant you exposure but in reality good content will always find its way around. Focus on that and doing what you love and the right folks will find you! Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this and have a great week! xo

  5. Lia says:

    Yay so happy you’re enjoying the lake. We moved to a rural area to start a farm and it’s been great.

    Random assortment of questions:
    1. Have you noticed any “grid” marks on your sweaters from storing on metal shelves? Our new-to-us house has a closet with built-in wire shelving bleh and I’m always worried about that.

    2. Are there a lot of different directions you can go on your walk? Our rural area is beautiful but I’m struggling with only have a few different walk options vs our prior small town and city life when there were endless route variations.

    3. Have you noticed that the link to comments at the bottom of your posts stopped working? I noticed it a few months ago and forgot to mention. If I click on the link that says “10 comments”, it jumps me to the top of the post and not actually down to the comment section

    • Lee the Bee says:

      Hi Lia, That’s so exciting that you’re starting a farm! What an adventure! Great questions:

      1 – I haven’t had them on the shelves very long, however, that’s a good point. I might cut some white foam board to the size of the shelf and put that down first so there is a flat surface.
      2 – Same situation for me. One route essentially. We’re lucky to be near lots of great trails nearby though.
      3 – I didn’t realize that was happening, such an odd glitch. Thanks for letting me know, I’ll investigate!

      Enjoy the weekend and fall on the farm! xo

  6. Abby says:

    Your lake life looks serene and lovely. I too took Instagram off my phone and haven’t regretted it. I’m grateful for the role it played in my slow fashion journey (it’s how I found your corner of the interweb, after all), but I don’t miss it either. Life *does* feel better without it. Good for you for maintaining your business and brand on your own terms! You continue to inspire.

  7. Chris says:

    So glad you’re back, Lee. I look forward to your new posts and maybe a resumption of hte style jurnal? Life on the lake is very sweet.

    • Chris says:

      Oh my typos – resumption of the style journal that would be….

    • Lee the Bee says:

      Haha the typo struggle is very relatable so no worries! The Style Journal is back, only I’ve scaled back to Mon/Wed/Fri for now instead of daily. If you haven’t explored the posts from August/September, have a look. Thanks for being here Chris! xo

  8. Stephanie says:

    Really enjoyed this post and your writing in general. Your take on blogging and the fashion industry as it relates to instagram is so refreshing! I’m not sure if I’ve missed this, but I would love to see a post on how you store clothes in your current makeshift closet. IE: I noticed you roll some of your sweaters, others are folded, etc. I always struggle with how best to store my sweaters! Folding seems to leave odd wrinkles and hangers pull the shoulders 🙁

  9. Andrea says:

    I’ve deleted and re-added different social media apps over the years and it does feel good (I deleted FB years ago with zero regrets!)

    I have a question about a previous closet post, I bought a Jenni Kayne sweater (thanks for the discount code 😉) but after two wears its significantly pilled. All I’ve done is sit at a desk. I’ve emailed them but haven’t gotten a reply. Would you say this is normal for their cotton sweaters? I bought a cardigan. It was a significant investment for me so I’m a bit disappointed.

    Thank you! You look super cute in the baseball by the way!

    • Lee the Bee says:

      Hi Andrea, so liberating right? I’ve been meaning to delete FB, just need to get everyone’s b-day in my calendar lol.

      I don’t have any of the JK cotton sweaters yet, but pilling is pretty common on any soft knitwear. I would just run a sweater comb (probably available locally too) over the areas with pilling (brush gently, upwards) and that should take care of it. I have to do this on all my knitwear from time to time. It’s just the nature of the fibres sloughing off. Hope that helps!

      Thanks for tuning in and have a great weekend! xo

  10. Gunn S says:

    Love this peek at your life at the lake! What beautiful surroundings, I felt my pulse going down just looking at the pictures.