London is where I go crazy with this. I will spend actual weeks on it (I did lol) - cross-referencing, bookmarking, going through comment sections, building spreadsheets nobody asked for, reading reviews of reviews - until I have a list so specific and so vetted that I trust it completely. This is that list.

Every restaurant, bar, matcha stop, shop, and niche fun activity in this guide earned its spot. This is the actual chic girl’s guide to London - the one I’d hand a friend the night before her flight, not a generic “top 10 things to do” list any tourist can create.

are you ready for the London trip of your life?

When you become a paid subscriber you’ll get the entire guide - not the highlights, but the whole research, organized so you can actually use it. Everything you get:

🏨 The exact hotel I book ever year and why the location alone does half the work for you

🍽️ Every restaurant and lunch spot I found, including the one that needs booking literally weeks out (and what to do if you miss the window) + my holy grail Google Maps list with 800+ food spots I love around the world

🍸 A full bar list for wherever the night takes you, from neighborhood wine bars to the ones you need to book ahead for because they are so chic

☕ Where to get breakfast that’s actually worth waking up for

🍵 My favorite matcha stops mapped by neighborhood, including one doing something I’ve never seen before

🛍️ A full shopping edit, grouped by area so you can focus on the important (aka shopping dream pieces)

✨ The activities actually worth building a whole afternoon around - not just a random touristy stop (including a private 1:1 perfume consultation that you can only get through the right contact and the secret spa by a well-known french skincare brand)

This is the entire research doc (and I’ll frequently update it). Every backup and alternative pick I found along the way is in here too, so if something’s fully booked, you’ve already got a plan B. Yup, it’s really THAT good.

Okay. Let’s get into it. 👇

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Here’s what’s on my moodboard right now.

1. Zebra is the new leo

Leopard had its whole moment (still having it, honestly) but zebra is quietly taking over as the print that feels more chic and more cool right now. The trick is using it as an accent, not the whole room — a zebra bench at the end of a bed, a single zebra ottoman next to an otherwise neutral sofa, one statement chair. It reads considered instead of costume-y, and it works with basically any palette because it’s technically neutral (black and white, hello).

2. Funky kitchenware - the fun is in the details

This is the one I’m most obsessed with lately and need in my home asap. Swapping out boring matched Ikea cutlery sets for something with actual personality - think Sabre’s colorful, mismatched-on-purpose handles - instantly makes a table setting feel like you did it, not like it came out of a box. Same goes for dishware: hand-painted plates, pottery with an actual wobble to it, a plate that just says something funny on it because why not. It’s the difference between a table that looks nice and a table that looks like it has a personality.

(I’ve got a whole separate piece coming on my favorite niche kitchenware and homeware brands - this is just the appetizer.)

3. Fringe, fringe, and more fringe

Fringe is having a real moment and I am fully here for it - on stools, on lampshades, on the edge of a throw pillow, even dripping off a lamp in actual metal chains instead of fabric (have you seen those? SO cool). It adds movement and texture to a room that would otherwise feel kinda flat, and it’s one of those details that photographs so well it almost does the styling work for you. We all love a content-worthy apartment, right?

4. Stainless steel is here to stay - but not how you’d think

By now we all know that chrome & stainless steel is a huge trend this year. I love stainless steel as an actual design object - framed as a passe-partout, used as a moodboard, or literally as a magnet board where you pin up photo strips, tickets, little memories or drawings, anything. It’s such an unexpected, extra-chic way to display the little things you’d otherwise lose in a drawer, and it feels so much more intentional than a corkboard ever could.

That’s the roundup for now - I’ll keep this little series going if you liked it. Let me know which of these you’re already into, and which vibe you’re currently loving & saving.

Lots of Love,
Hannah

If you’ve been here a while, you know I’m a type A girly with a holistic health obsession and a big love for food. And yet, every single day, without fail, the same question would kind of annoy me: what am I actually going to eat today?

Not because I don’t know how to cook - I’ve got a whole repertoire of dishes I already make and love. The problem was never a lack of options. It was the opposite. Too many options, the protein goals I wanted to hit, whole foods focus, writing a grocery list, meal prepping, oh I also want snacks…

So I did what any self-respecting type A girly with access to Claude would do: I built myself a personal nutritionist and private chef. In an evening. And it now lives in my phone.

Why I’m doing this

Firstly - to make my life easier. My husband and I love food. I love cooking, I love hosting dinners. But between the thousands of recipe videos saved across my apps and roughly 567 notes on my phone (I counted, don’t ask), planning our weekly shop and figuring out what to actually cook had gotten genuinely cluttered.

And it’s not just about the mess - it’s about what actually works for both of us. My focus is hormonal health and feeling strong, not weight loss, which means eating ENOUGH, hitting protein at every meal, not skimping on healthy fats, staying wholefood-focused. It also has to be something my husband genuinely likes, made with the appliances I own, ingredients I can actually get, and - ideally - done in under 30 minutes.

That’s a genuinely personalized way of eating. Not something you can google. Not something a generic meal-plan PDF was ever built for. A real nutritionist could build this for me - for a few hundred euros a month, ongoing.

So I thought: what if I just built the nutritionist myself?

How I’m using it

Here’s what makes this different from asking Claude “what should I eat” in a random chat: it actually knows me.

I sat down one evening and gave it a full client intake - the kind of thing a real nutritionist would ask on an intro call. My stats, my activity (weightlifting 2x/week, pilates 2x/week, heels dancing, plus a lot of walking), and my actual goal - build lean muscle, feel strong, support my hormones, not lose weight.

Then it went category by category through what I actually eat - proteins, veg, fruit, dairy, pantry - and I mean specific. Chicken breast yes, chicken thighs no. Bell peppers yes, but I don’t like the green ones. Eggs are fine baked into something, never on their own, because I don’t like the texture. It asked, I answered, it remembered.

Then came my recipes. I listed off dishes I already cook and love, and for the ones I’ve only ever made from a cookbook, I took photos of the pages and sent them over - it read the photos directly and transcribed the recipes itself, swapping out anything I don’t like for an alternative ingredients as it went. I now have a genuinely massive personal cookbook saved (116 recipes and counting), all cross-checked against what I actually like, organized by category so nothing gets lost in the scroll.

And then, the actual magic part: the standing rules. Every recipe comes with macros automatically - calories, protein, carbs, fat - no math, no separate tracking app, it just shows up. Ask for a full week and I get macros per meal AND a running daily total. It also just... gets things a generic AI answer never would. That we only want to cook one real meal a day and want breakfast to be no-cook. That leftovers last exactly one day, not four. That snacks rotate through the week instead of repeating (cause I get bored of them otherwise). That quick “picky bits” aka girl-lunch plates should skew high protein so they don’t accidentally turn into crackers and dips only.

It also helps whenever I need it. I tell it what’s sitting in the fridge - chicken, half a cucumber, some feta - and it builds a meal from that plus whatever pantry basics I’d already have. On demand, it puts together my full weekly meal plan, the grocery list to match, and exact recipes for every meal, mixing in its own ideas alongside the ones I’ve fed it myself. I could even automate the whole thing to run every Sunday evening, so by Monday morning the week is already planned. It’s not a one-time meal plan - it’s an ongoing relationship, kind of like having a chef on call.

(Quick disclaimer since we’re talking health: none of this is medical advice - just something I built for fun and ease. It’s not a replacement for proper medical guidance, so loop in your own doctor for anything health-related.)

Okay, here’s where it gets really good

Behind the paywall, I’m giving you the actual system - not a summary of it, the real thing. Everything you get:

🪜 The exact prompt I pasted into Claude to build this whole setup in one sitting - copy, paste, done. Zero prompt-engineering skills required (if I can write a good prompt, genuinely anyone can, I’m truly not a tech-y person)

📋 My real custom instructions file, word for word - the standing rules that make macros show up automatically on everything, meal plans default to what I actually eat instead of some theoretical number, and leftovers stop getting sized like I’m meal-prepping for a family of four

🥗 My actual food preferences file as a template for you to use - so instead of staring at a blank page trying to remember what you even like, you just fill in the blanks category by category, the exact way I did it

📸 The cookbook-photo trick, step by step - how I turned actual photos of actual cookbook pages into a searchable, cross-checked recipe library instead of a pile of books I never open

🛒 How the grocery list trick works, so your list comes out already sorted by store section instead of you backtracking through the produce aisle four times

🧠 The one framing shift that makes this actually stick long-term - the difference between asking Claude for “a meal plan” once versus building something that just... knows you, permanently

This is genuinely the whole build - the same one running on my own phone right now. All of it.

And if you actually sit down and do this once? You will NEVER have the “ugh, what am I even going to eat” spiral again. Twenty minutes, and it’s done for good.

Okay. Let’s get into it. 👇

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I’ve always had irregular cycles. And when I say irregular, I mean there were times when my cycle was 105 days long. For a big chunk of those cycles I felt like I was permanently stuck in this deep luteal-phase feeling of hell. I felt constantly tired, agitated, heavy, zero energy, zero motivation and everythingggg annoyed me. Imagine PMS, but instead of a couple days it just… doesn’t end lol. (It’s as fantastic as it sounds).

The weird thing was: I’ve always been pretty slim, historically had pretty good skin, my blood sugar markers looked good and my thyroid was functioning normally. I didn’t fit the picture I had in my head of someone with PCOS at all.

So naturally I thought: what the hell is actually going on with my body - and what can I do about it?

The last three years I’ve gone DEEP into the research hole around hormonal health, understanding my cycle and supporting my body as holistically and naturally as possible. I’ve learned sooo much, tried a lot of things and, most importantly, gave my body a lot of time to use what I was doing for healing.

And I’ve come incredibly far.

For the past 12 months my cycles have been roughly between 21–45 days instead of disappearing for months at a time. My periods are mostly painless. My thyroid and glucose markers look great. I get regular blood work done, track my cycles and feel like I finally understand my body instead of constantly wondering what on earth it is doing.

Am I “cured”? Not exactly possible unfortunately. Is my body perfect? Also no. PCOS is something I’m still learning about and managing, and I still have things I want to improve.

But compared to where I started? The difference is remarkable..

So in this article I want to share a little bit about my journey, what I personally changed, what I think made the biggest difference and what I’m still experimenting with. If you’re also interested in understanding your body from the inside out, this might be interesting for you.

Little disclaimer before we get into it: I’m obviously not a doctor. This is not medical advice and I’m not saying that what worked for my body will work for yours. PCOS can look incredibly different from woman to woman. Everything below is based on my personal experience, research and the professionals I’ve worked with. I’m a BIG believer in getting actual data about your own body instead of blindly copying someone else’s supplement stack from TikTok. Get your check-ups, ask questions, do your own research and work with a professional where it makes sense.

Okay first: what actually is PCOS?

PCOS stands for polycystic ovary syndrome and despite the name, you don’t actually have to have cysts on your ovaries to have it. Great.

To get really technical: Ii’s a hormonal and reproductive condition that can show up in lots of different ways. Irregular or absent ovulation is one of the big ones, but women can also experience higher androgen levels, acne, increased facial/body hair, insulin resistance, weight changes, fertility issues or a polycystic appearance of the ovaries.

And this is something I wish I understood earlier: there simply isn’t one PCOS woman.

You can be slim and have PCOS. You can have normal blood sugar markers and have PCOS. You can have clear skin and have PCOS. You can have PCOS without ovarian cysts.

Diagnosis is generally based on a combination of irregular/absent ovulation, signs or laboratory evidence of elevated androgens (like raised TH markers) and/or the appearance of many ovarian follicles on ultrasound, after other possible causes are excluded.

Which finally made my own diagnosis make a lot more sense to me. For me its a really high AMH marker, ever so slightly high Testosterone and an estrogen dominance, aswell as therefore pretty low Progesterone.

But how do you even GET PCOS?

The slightly annoying answer: they don’t fully know.

There seems to be a genetic component and PCOS can run in families, while hormonal, metabolic and environmental factors may all play a role. There isn’t one single thing scientists can currently point to and say: this is what caused your PCOS.

And this is where I get a little woo-woo holistic for some people.

I personally like looking at health from a much broader perspective than just one lab value. We obviously have very tangible physical factors: nutrition, sleep, movement, stress, medications, alcohol, smoking, nutrient deficiencies, our environment and overall lifestyle.
But I’m also fascinated by the relationship between our physical body and our emotional state.

I’ve always loved reading about psychosomatics, which is essentially the idea that our emotional and psychological world can interact with our physical health.

Some of the more spiritual/psychosomatic interpretations I’ve come across around reproductive health talk about themes like safety, chronic pressure, control, femininity that didn’t feel safe to be expressed, suppressed creativity and feeling like you constantly have to perform.

So how do I think I got here?

I’ve asked myself this question sooo many times.

In my head, the more I understand about how my body arrived at a certain point, the more intentionally I can support it going forward.

There probably isn’t one single answer, but there are a few pieces of my history that I personally think are relevant.

I went on the pill when I was 14 years old and stayed on it for around six years. Basically my second natural cycle ever was followed by years of synthetic hormones. Looking back, though, my body barely got the chance to learn what my natural cycle looked like before suppressing ovulation for years.

Then add my entrepreneurial personality into the equation lol.

I’ve been self-employed since I was 17. I have ALWAYS been a go-getter. If I have my eyes and heart set on something, good luck stopping me.

And I genuinely had SO much fun building my businesses. I loved creating, working, launching, traveling, supporting clients and making things happen. The success was immense and I’m incredibly grateful for that chapter.

But I can now also see that my system was paying a price for it. I was constantly switched on. Work. Create. Launch. Travel. Answer messages. New idea. New project. New country. Repeat.

There was barely any actual recovery and deep rest.

At different points my stress markers reflected that, and one of the recurring patterns in my hormone testing has been low progesterone.

Chronic stress on the body (even while you’re enjoying your work) can shoot your cortisol to the sky and cortisol essentially „eats up“ progrestone. 

Your body only ovulates when it feels safe and rested. For that to happen your HPO axis (basically your stress axis that sends a signal from your brain to your body „yup, we’re good“) has to be stable.

A very quick hormone crash course

Before I tell you what I changed, I feel like we need to understand the main characters first.

Estrogen - the building hormone

Estrogen rises during the first half of your cycle and helps build the uterine lining while your follicle develops toward ovulation.

We NEED estrogen. The goal is not to get rid of it, but to have the hormonal orchestra playing together properly.

Progesterone - my beloved chill hormone

Progesterone rises primarily after you ovulate, because it’s produced by the corpus luteum - basically what remains of the follicle after an egg is released.

It supports the uterine lining and the second half of your cycle and its kinda known as the „chill hormone“, that makes you calm.

Testosterone + other androgens

Women absolutely need testosterone too. It plays a role in libido, muscle, bone health, energy and more.

With PCOS, androgen levels or androgen activity can be higher, which is why some women experience things like acne, facial hair or scalp hair thinning.

Cortisol - the stress hormone

Cortisol isn’t technically a reproductive hormone, but it’s one I pay a LOT of attention to because it plays such an important role in our stress response, blood sugar, energy and sleep/wake cycle.

Cortisol isn’t bad either. We literally need it, just in a regulated state.

What should female hormones ideally look like?

One of the biggest misconceptions I had was thinking that female hormones are supposed to stay at one “perfect” level. They’re not.

Our hormones are meant to CHANGE throughout the month.

Very simplified:

Period → follicular phase: estrogen gradually rises while progesterone stays low.

Ovulation: estrogen peaks and LH surges, triggering ovulation.

Luteal phase: progesterone rises after ovulation, while estrogen has a smaller second rise.

Before your next period: if pregnancy doesn’t occur, estrogen and progesterone fall and you bleed.

With PCOS, there isn’t one universal graph that everyone follows. A common issue is irregular or absent ovulation, which means you may not get that predictable progesterone rise after ovulation. Androgen levels can also be elevated and metabolic factors such as insulin resistance can be involved - but again, not every woman has every feature.

Okay. Enough biology class.

Let’s get into what I actually changed.

1. Radical rest

This, in my personal experience, was probably the biggest one in my recovery journey.

I massively cut back on working and building businesses.

I was and still am in the very fortunate position that I could basically stop working cold turkey for a while. And for the first time in my adult life, I had days where I literally just laid in bed and read alllll day.

At first that almost felt uncomfortable because my identity had been so intertwined with doing, achieving and creating for YEARS.

I started prioritizing sleep like it was an Olympic sport. Sleeping in when my body needed it, even if that means a 3h nap mid day. Going to bed early (I’m known as the granny that’s asleep at 10pm at the latest). Not feeling guilty for having a slow day. Not trying to squeeze productivity out of every available hour.

I think we glorify “discipline” sooo much online, but sometimes the most disciplined thing you can do is actually stop.

2. I changed the way I exercise

I used to get personal training 4 times a week and push to my limit.

Now my philosophy is basically the opposite.

I personally don’t do any HIIT, heated workout classes or ice baths. The more research I’ve done about these, the more I learned that they don’t benefit me and my hormones at all.

My body responds SO much better to:

Pilates, strength training and simply walking.

That’s basically my holy trinity.
I want movement to make me feel strong, energized and grounded.

So experiment with what makes YOUR body feel good.

3. Traditional Chinese Medicine

Okay now we enter my beloved holistic girly territory.

TCM (traditional chinese medicine) has become a really interesting addition to my routine. I started it in Bali about 3 years ago at „Bali Healing Center“ with Michelle.

One tiny habit that I always make sure I’m doing? Keeping my feet warm.

No walking around on freezing floors barefoot, socks when I need them, keeping my lower body warm and generally eating more warm foods rather than living off iced smoothies and salads.

In TCM the feet are connected to your womb. When your feet / womb is cold, it can not function properly. It’s basically frozen.
I feel an insane difference when it comes to (not) doing this.

4. Nutrition aka stop being scared of food!

This is a BIG one for so many women. I feel extremely lucky, that I always had a really good relationship with food and my body image.

There is soooo much PCOS nutrition advice online.

Low carb. Keto. No sugar. Fasting. Dairy free. Gluten free. Eat every two hours. Never snack. Blood sugar hacks. Don’t look at a banana after 4pm. It becomes exhausting.

Personally, I focus on nourishment. I eat protein AND carbohydrates. Carbs are not the enemy, especially as a woman you need carbs to actually nourish your eggs.

I focus mostly on whole foods, getting enough protein, vegetables, good fats (avocado, evoo, nuts etc) and plenty of fiber.

Fiber is especially important to me for digestion and regular bowel movements, which are part of how the body eliminates hormone metabolites after the liver has processed them.

I drink plenty of good-quality water and care about filtration and minerals. We have a reverse osmosis system installed, I use electrolytes and I rarely drink out of plastic bottles.
I also drink spearmint tea regularly because there’s some early research around spearmint and androgen activity.

Most importantly: I eat enough.

5. Supplements - but based on MY body

I love good quality supplements. We know this about me haha.

I try to base supplementation around my blood work, symptoms and conversations with the practitioners I work with.

A few things that have been part of my routine at different points:

Inositol: probably one of the best-known PCOS supplements. I take one called Ovacure, which combines Inositol, Chi-inositol and folic acid.

Magnesium: one of my forever supplements. I usually take magnesium glycinate in the evening and personally find it great for my wind-down routine. I take 200mg+.

Zinc: I take a therapeutic dose of 30mg a day right now.

Liver support: detoxes, liver flushes, naturopathic supplements.

And most importantly, I work with practitioners and get blood work instead of guessing endlessly and then adjust my stack and routines accordingly.

6. Reducing my overall toxin load

I ask myself: if there is an easy swap I can make that reduces unnecessary exposure to certain plastics, smoke, fragrances or chemicals I can do?

In my kitchen I mostly use wood, glass and stainless steel. I prefer natural-fiber clothing. I use water filters, including shower filters, everywhere.

I’ve slowly switched a lot of my beauty and household products to more natural alternatives I personally feel comfortable using.

And then there are practices I simply enjoy as wellness rituals that support my body in flushing out toxins: sauna, massages, lymphatic drainage etc.

7. Nervous system support

For most of my life I thought I was just an extremely driven person. Which I am. But I was also extremely used to being switched ON. And once you’ve operated that way for years, calm can almost feel… boring?

So I’ve intentionally built things into my life that bring my baseline down.

Massages, meditation, therapy, long walks, quiet and slow mornings, giving myself space to feel my emotions.

I also sometimes use Loop or other noise-reducing earplugs when I’m in very loud environments because I get overstimulated pretty easily when it comes to noise.

I’ve also been using GABA as part of my own supplement routine, which instantly calms me down (it’s a neuro transmitter, that already exists in your body).

8. I barely ever drink and I’ve never smoked

This wasn’t technically a PCOS change because it was already my lifestyle beforehand, but I still think it’s worth mentioning.

I’ve never smoked and I drink alcohol extremely rarely - like maybe one glass of wine every few months.

I don’t think you have to live like a monk to care about your health, but alcohol and smoking obviously affect far more than just your reproductive system. And because I’m already asking a lot of my body through travel, life and general environmental stressors, these are simply two things I personally don’t feel the need add into my life.

9. Getting actual DATA

Possibly the least sexy but most important point in this entire article.

Test. Don’t guess.

I get regular check-ups with my OBGYN and repeat blood work every few months depending on what we’re monitoring.

Hormones are especially tricky because the same progesterone value can mean completely different things depending on where you are in your cycle and whether you actually ovulated.

So I track my cycle alongside my testing.

One random hormone panel is not the full movie - it’s essentially just one screenshot. Looking at trends over time has helped me so much more.

And the most important ingredient: TIME

I wish there was a sexier answer.

A supplement or a specific morning routine or a 30-day protocol. Something you could buy for 89€ and be done with it haha.

But for me the biggest thing has been time + consistency.

It took me around two to three years of slowly changing things, learning my body, resting, testing, adjusting and then actually sticking to the boring foundational habits. Little by little, my body changed.

Then suddenly I was looking back at almost a year of cycles that were mostly between 21 and 45 days.

Things that once felt completely unpredictable started becoming more predictable. And THAT has probably been one of the most satisfying things ever.

I think we sometimes forget how long the body can take to change after years of doing things a certain way.

I spent YEARS being constantly switched on.

So expecting my body to completely regulate itself after drinking spearmint tea for three weeks would be slightly unfair lol (but also come on, pls hurry up haha).

What I’m still researching: bioidentical progesterone

One thing I’m currently interested in learning more about is bioidentical progesterone because progesterone has remained one of the areas I’m watching closely.

Progesterone is a hormone, not a wellness supplement, and whether it makes sense depends on why progesterone is low, whether and when you’re ovulating, your cycle, symptoms and fertility plans.

Before considering another intervention, I really wanted to see how far I could get by supporting my body through lifestyle first.

Maybe bioidentical progesterone becomes part of my journey later, maybe it doesn’t. I’ll keep you updated.

Where I’m at now

This journey will probably never be completely “finished.”

I feel like I understand my body on a completely different level than I did three years ago. I know when something feels off. I know what my cycle is doing. I know I need more rest than 20-year-old entrepreneur Hannah was willing to admit haha.

The TTC journey is still a year or more away for us, but that was actually one of my motivations for starting to care about all of this before we were ready.

I didn’t want the first time I seriously thought about my fertility to be the month we decided we wanted a baby.

I wanted to give my body time and I’m very glad I did.

If there’s one thing I hope you take away from this article, it’s probably this:

Start learning about YOUR body. Get your data. Build the foundations. Change one or two things. Give them time. See what happens.

Then go from there.

And please remember that PCOS looks extremely different from woman to woman. The things that have been game-changing for me might be irrelevant to your particular case, and vice versa.

I know hormonal health and fertility can be an incredibly sensitive and emotional topic. If you’re in the middle of struggling with yours right now, I’m sending you sooo much love.

And as always, let me know if there’s anything from this article you want me to go deeper on - my supplement routine, hormone testing, cycle tracking, TCM, nervous system work or my whole hormonal-health journey could probably all be their own article.

All my love,
Hannah

Let’s get into it!

the brand concept

My slow fashion label is called Hidden Muse, focusing on elevated everyday wear. I launched with 5 pieces as our core collection and added 6 more over the course of 2025. Every piece is made out of 97%+ natural fibers, made in Portugal and can be mixed and matched with each other. Some pieces can be adjusted by buckles or elastic bands on the inside of the waist, so you can wear it in multiple different ways (e.g. high + low wasted) and our RHEA belt was even a 4-in-1 belt with a double sided belt band in 2 colors + a gold and a silver buckle, so you have 4 ways to wear it. Each piece is a wardrobe stable, elegant, timeless and should not only be comfortable, but also easy to combine.

The name Hidden Muse is an homage to your own inner muse. You should be inspired by yourself and each piece should be your reminder, that you already have everything you need inside of you. Each piece of Hidden Muse is named after a goddess (e.g. Freya, Gaia, Artemis..), so when you wear that piece, you can step into the archetype of the goddess of the earth, the goddess of the hunt, the goddess of the flowy sea and so on.

What’s slow fashion?

As the name suggests, it’s fashion that is produced slower. Small batches, smaller factories, handmade details, natural fabrics, made environmentally friendly, using shorter distance delivery options (land vs sea). The slow fashion term is also pretty broad, everyone has their own scale of how „slow fashion“ looks like for them. There are so many certificates out there, most of them can literally just be bought with money. It’s an incredibly hard market and it’s very nitpick-y from my experience. So for me slow fashion means: small batches, high quality natural fabrics, pieces that are timeless, can be shopped mindfully and worn for years to come.

How much did it cost to set up?

I got this question a lot so let’s immediately get that out of the way. The number of course depends heavily on your size of production (how many pieces + styles you produce), where you produce, how much you spent on shoots, website etc. - in short, its extremely variable. I would say an absolute minimum you need to spend to launch a custom designed (and not white labeled) piece is anywhere upwards from 10k+ including your company set up, marketing, website, legal staff, packaging etc.
I paid significantly more than that and launched with about 50.000€ down.

The 5 Mistakes I made (I probably made more than just 5):

Mistake #1: I launched with too many pieces (& in the same color and fabric)

On launch day I launched with one pair of flowy pants, a pair of shorts, a vest, a blazer and a dress. Three of the pieces were made out of the same fabric and beige color, the 4th piece the same color but a different fabric, the dress was black. Sounds great in theory, as you can wear them in sets (and for me personally it was), but it also had lots of people say, they don’t wear beige or they wished for more color options.

What’s important to understand is: custom creating fashion pieces is insanely expensive. You’re not just paying for production. To even get to a finished piece you have to make a tech pack (a document explaining the cut & fit, exact measurements across all sizes, materials used etc), then you you have to choose fabric (which of course varies in size and sometimes has a minimum count of meters you have to buy), then make the first sample, which usually cost about 3-5x of the production price and you need a minimum of 2 rounds of sampling (I sometimes needed 5), then you have pre-production-samples to confirm the final product and THEN you go into bulk production, with a minimum quantity (usually 100+ pieces per color, can usually divided in sizes).

So if I had to want to produce an additional color, I’d have had to pay for 100+ additional pieces AND samples (as different colors can change the sizing and feel of a fabric).

what I’d do instead, if I had to start again:
focus on one hero product! Our NYX dress is to this day still our number 1 bestseller, since day 1. I loved this dress from the first second, the sample was perfect really early on, it flew off the shelves and sold out in some sizes so quickly. I should have just trusted that instinct and doubled down on that, instead of starting with a big line up & a full collection. Alternatively just focusing 2-3 pieces to begin with to establish a style, then regular small drops of 1-2 pieces like every other month (as continuously dropping new pieces is quite important for the retention of customers).

Mistake #2: Dismissing China as an option

when I created the first samples, I started in Bali, as I was spending half of the year there anyway. I quickly learned that for my type of clothing (structured, high quality, „European“-style pieces), the Balinese were not the best choice. In Bali you don’t wear blazers usually, so a small production, where everything is made by hand is probably not the best choice, I learned the hard (& expensive) way.
I then switched to Portugal, thanks to two amazing women that also have a fashionable and were so incredibly generous in sharing their contact with me. Portugal was great but it’s pretty expensive.

I always said „I’d never produce in China“, mainly because I didn’t do any research and just believed everything about the bad reputation that „made in China“ has where I’m from. But the deeper I researched about this, the less true that statement is. China is yearsss ahead of everyone else, extremely professional, the options are endless, pricing is SO much more competitive. Of course there is a bigger language barrier and things just work super differently, the tax & customs structure is very different, depending on where your business is located and visiting the factory is more of a trip, than traveling within Europe (in my case).

But if I had to do it again, I most definitely would look deeper into China and compare different factories.

Mistake #3: not comparing logistics partners

Uh this is a big one - I flushed SO much money down the drain on fulfillment and logistics. So - to make things cheaper, stocking your pieces yourself and sending them out by hand would make the most sense. As I was traveling constantly, living between Dubai & Bali, with my main audience of customers in Europe, doing that was not really an option. So I was looking for a warehouse & fulfillment center in Germany. I quite frankly had no ideas what to look for so I got creative and ordered from a small German label, looked at their return label address, googled the company and found an old email address I reached out to haha.

The warehouse was located close to Munich, where I’m from and my account manager was super friendly, he helped me a lot and answered lots of questions. The problem was, his warehouse was not specialized for ecom brands, but big distributors like Amazon. They calculate their rates completely different and I therefore was heavily „overcharged“ on storage, the specific logistic partner they used and also their packaging. They also had a super old portal and only email support which made things really difficult, packages were lost constantly and there was little ways to make the customer experience better (like custom packaging etc).

About 9 months in, I switched to a fulfillment that specialized in small ecom brands, cost me literally a third of the one before, Telegram support, my preferred logistics partner and a modern platform. Too bad I overpaid by x3 for 9 months though haha. That money could have been spent on 5+ new pieces that I could have launched. Fulfillment is an unsexy part of the business, but is such a big impact on cashflow.

Mistake #4: not making a production & cashflow plan beyond the initial launch

I didn’t really plan for what would happen beyond the first launch. I was winging every single step, just having fun. Which is all fun and games, if you’re happy to continuously keep „investing“ your money into a brand for funnies. My margins were calculated really well (thank god), but things like planning restocks, sampling new pieces 6+ months in advance, overlapping payments, repurchasing packing materials like stickers, boxes etc, paying fulfillment and VAT, payment processing fees, returns etc where not on my agenda.

A little numbers example: let’s say someone buys a product for 100€, PayPal / Stripe take about 1-3% + 0,30€ for the transaction, it then costs 2€ for someone of the fulfillment to pick it from the shelf and prepare the package. About 2€ are paid for a box, wrapping paper, the thank you card and a branded sticker. It then gets sent out for about 5€ (4,50€ of which the customer paid in our case). Now we have about 94,50€ left, but we also had to pay sampling, production, shipping of the bulk production etc for it. You also can’t forget the VAT you pay for when you sell something. But let’s ignore that for now.

Now if that person returns the piece, they may have to pay the shipping themselves but I have to pay the following: a fulfillment person receiving and unpacking the piece, aswell as checking the piece and putting it back on the shelf costs about 3€. Now I have to refund the customer the full amount (100€), even though I only have 94,50€ left technically. At the end I made about -6,50€ with that order at the bare minimum, while at the same time still have to pay all my invoices just to keep the business running.

The problem with a fashion business like this is also, you have to pay most of your orders upfront. From fabric, to production, branded materials, a website, models, photoshoots and more. Okay to sum it up: make a plan and budget wayyy more than you think you need. If I had to do it again I’d also try to negotiate way harder, inform myself better, compare options and pricing.

Mistake #5: Investing in the wrong marketing strategies

There are so many ways to market your fashion label. I chose to rely heavily on my audience from my personal brand, my email list and I also posted a documentary of creating my label on YouTube (you can watch it here in German). It worked great, the feedback was amazing, the launch weekend in February 2025 brought in about 12.000€ alone. In June I started trying out paid marketing aka Ads for the first time and paid an agency to set up and run my ads on Instagram. We focused heavily on the German market, as our main customer base was there thanks to my personal brand. The problem is: Germans were screaming for chic, more sustainable options in fashion, but didn’t like to spend money on them… we then trailed different markets but nothing really was working in the 3 months I planned on trialing this out. We decided to stop Ads and continue focusing on building my email list and organic reach.

I also tried out influencer marketing on different alleys. UGC creation and small creators were amazing and created beautiful content, but they didn’t convert as much as I hoped they would (all of them were unpaid campaigns on a barter deal basis, but even just sending out product is very expensive for a small brand). I then tried a different strategy and booked a creator with 500k followers, an extremely high engagement rate and that did fashion campaigns regularly. I paid 3000€ and did not get a single sale.

I was crushed… so much money wrongly invested. Now don’t get me wrong, her content looked great but it was on me for choosing the wrong creator. Her audience wasn’t a perfect match and had the same problem as the ads presented: the pieces are beautiful but the audience as not willing to invest in them.

What I would do differently, if I had to start again: focus heavilyyy on organic content, TikTok (as the algorithm is amazing), building my email list stronger, regular email campaigns and making my messaging and positioning even stronger.

Wow that was lot. I learned SO much in the past 12-18 months of actually running a fashion brand and I could talk ages about this topic. So if you have any specific questions, please let me know. As of now the brand is on an indefinite pause, so I can reevaluate what I want to do with it, as I currently don’t have the time, motivation, inspiration or also the funds I’m willing to invest to scale it.

Hidden Muse was such a fun chapter and I don’t regret doing it at all. I’ve always been a „I’ll just figure I out“ type of girl and I’m incredibly proud of myself for doing so. So many people told me not to do it as it’s not a business that brings in lots of cash, it’s so competitive etc and they were right. I have a completely different level of appreciation and respect for small labels, brands that produce a high quality and natural product - it’s SO hard to stay afloat in today’s market.

I hope this article was helpful - some of these insights I never ever shared before. I built my fair share of businesses the last few years. Some went through the roof, some were an insane flop. Hidden Muse falls somewhere in the middle I think, and that’s okay. Thank you for reading this article, it was a long one. See you next time in my colomn „behind the curtain - by Maison Muse“.

Lot’s of Love,
Hannah

August is usually a hot month and personally, I think hotter seasons are so much harder to style - because who wants to just sweat through a chic outfit? To combat the hot temperatures, I love to wear fabrics like silk, viscose, linen and cotton, that feel lightweight and are more breathable. As you’ll learn, I’m not the biggest lover of colors. My strategy is to have a timeless, neutral wardrobe and use accessories like scarves, jewelry, a fun pair of shoes etc to spice up my looks.

Are we ready to shop? Let’s take a look at this months capsule + of course everything is linked for you, to make shopping even easier.

100% cotton boxy white T-Shirt

I feel like the search for the perfect white shirt can be endless. I personally love a heavier fabric, that holds it’s shape, with slightly longer but still short sleeves and the perfect length of hem. I bought this one a year ago and it’s perfect. Super inexpensive, and an amazing quality!

The perfect basic top

I’m a sucker for a good basic and I haven’t come across many tops, that are as perfect as this one. It shapes your body beautifully, I love the racerback cut, it comes it countless different colors and while the price may be slightly higher, let me assure you it’s 1000% worth it. I own it in white, black and brown.

A timeless classic - a silky scoop neck top

A look that never misses is a silky set. The neckline of this scoop neck top is incredibly flattering - I wear it without a bra, sometimes with a lacy bralette but mostly just use a little bit of fashion tape, if I’m worried something might slip. It’s the kind of piece, that easily transitions from day to night. The black version is still on my wishlist, the beige one already has a spot in my permanent outfit rotation!

Silky shorts without lace

The silky short trend has been there for a while, but mostly with a lace trim at the bottom. My style is a little more classic and elegant, so I was searching high and low for the perfect shorts, that have a great shape, are not too short and are not see-through. These ones tick all the boxes!

a fun summer heel

As listed in my “15 steps to make your life more chic“ article - I want to wear heels more! I found these inexpensive ones that combine two current trends: deer print + pony hair. Such a fun way to give your sleek outfit the certain something. For everyone less adventurous: there are multiple colors available like brown, creme etc. (under 60€!)

The dress of my dreams

Another wardrobe favorite that I own in multiple colors: this beautiful flowy maxi dress. A beautiful shape, that hugs your body, adjustable straps and perfect for summer days. I own it in cocoa brown and white.

Fringe scarfs - the accessory of the year

I’m a sucker for everything fringe and I’ve seen these silky fringe scarfs everywhere. Tied around the hips over dresses, pants, or blazers - so chic! While my dream fringe scarf by Maison Magdalena is 350€, I found this inexpensive one for less than 35€ to see if I like the styling. I own it in white and will definitely be purchasing the black version aswell.

It’s a flip flop summer

THE most comfortable flip flops of my life. I got these as a gift and I’ve never worn slides more comfortable. The foot bed is super cushioned, the skin straps are gorgeous and they go with sooo many outfits. If I can recommend you one pair of shoes this summer, it’s these ones.

the classic silky midi skirt

I feel like this year we’ve really been paying an homage to the 90s - midi skirts are everywhere, and for good reason. So many ways to wear it, a classic piece in every wardrobe. This one is on sale for 20€, flowy and just looks chic for day- and nighttime looks.

your new perfect daily bag

So I think there are two types of women: the ones with their whole home in their bag and the ones with their phones, cardholder and lipgloss. This recommendation is one for the latter. It’s a 100% leather bag, looks like the one from THE ROW, but costs 65€. I wear it during the day or at night, it comes with a short and a long strap.

some outfit combinations I’m loving

Alright loves - these are our 10 hero items for this month. Let’s take a look on how I would style them:

all looks would look great with the fringe scarf tied around the waist for a small fun detail. I can’t wait to wear these looks this month.

As always please let me know your feedback and any special request - I’m happy to shop & curate for specific events.

Lot’s of Love
Hannah

Touristy things are great to tick off, but the most fun is had on the niche adventures you found in a comment section, the café that was recommended by a local, the picture spots that don’t have a line of people and the experiences that are only available in that one spot. I kind of became an expert in finding exactly that, but also making the arrival in a new destination less overwhelming.

With my (very type A girly) process I make sure I always have options, wherever I am. I know where to shop, eat, drink, sleep and explore while still fulfilling all my desires of excellent meals, the perfect vacation wardrobe, unique experiences, little pieces I can bring home, beautiful boutique hotels and overall an insanely aesthetic trip.

This is not a “lets go with the flow” kind of trip process (love those but as mentioned, type A here). This is a “let’s get the maximum out of this trip with OUR priorities aka shopping, food, beauty and fun” kind of process. So if you’re not only enjoying the trip, but also preparing it - I’m your girl. Let’s dive into it.

Step 0: the destination (-list)

I always have a running list of destinations I want to go to. So even before deciding on my trip, I have a running list of folders where I save inspiration for all those trips, that eventually happen. My research starts before I select the destination, I just collect data.

Step 1: the data gathering through socials

Okay let the fun begin. I genuinely love TikTok for its algorithm and search optimization. I set up different folders for different destinations like Paris, London, New York etc and every time a video comes across my for you page matching the cities I save it to my folders. Now this is just what I do in my day to day scrolling. If I specifically want to research a destination I usually use the following searches:
”Paris boutique hotels”
”chic restaurants in Paris”
”best ceremonial matcha in Paris”

I try my best to be specific AND broad when researching, because after a couple videos that you liked & saved, your algorithm will learn about your style anyway and only show you videos that fit your vibe. For me that means chic but small 5 star hotels, stylish restaurants that are great for photos, Japanese matcha spots that don’t have 100 flavors but the insanely green traditional matcha and so on. Let the algorithm do the work for you.

Of course you can also research with Instagram, Reels, Pinterest etc, but I find TikTok to be the easiest and fastest, plus I love the visual aspect of it.

Step 2: organizing the findings

Once I feel like I have enough spots & things saved, I write them all down in my notes app to get an overview. If you want to go the extra mile, you can already categorize them into activities, hotel recs, food spots and so on. That way I get an overview if I’m missing anything or need a bit more to do, see and find.

Step 3: Pinning all locations

Now we go into Google Maps and save all those spots into different lists. Each list gets a different emoji, so the spots are easy to differentiate. So my lists are hotel options (🌙), restaurants & cafés (🍽️), bars (🍸), things to do (🎀), matcha spots (🍵) and shopping (🛍️). That way I can even spontaneously check where I am and what’s around me, when I’m already at the destination. Or when I book the hotel I can check which clusters of pins are closest to my researched options. I use the same lists for all options, meaning the things to do list has all spots around the world in it, that I already researched.

Step 4: building your itinerary with Claude

Next thing I do is using Claude to build my itinerary for the trip, so I can get as many of my spots done and checked off on my trip. I give Claude the following prompt + my prepared list.

“I need help planning a detailed day-by-day itinerary for my trip to [city/cities]. Here are my details:

Trip info:

• Dates: [e.g. Aug 21–25]

• Party: [e.g. couple, solo, group of 4]

• Base/hotel area: [if known, or ask to recommend one]

• Budget: [e.g. mix of casual and special, mostly high-end, budget-conscious or specific number]

My daily rhythm:

• Wake up: [e.g. 7am]

• Breakfast by: [e.g. 9am]

• Lunch: [e.g. 12–2pm]

• Dinner start: [e.g. 6:30–7:30pm]

• I need a [e.g. 1 hour] hotel break before dinner to refresh

• Allow [e.g. 15–30 min] travel time to restaurants

My preferences & rules:

• [e.g. Not drinking alcohol - flag mocktail-friendly bars]

• [e.g. I want a different matcha café each day, preferably independent not chains]

• [e.g. One special/splurge dinner per day balanced with a cheaper meal]

• [e.g. No handroll and omakase on the same day]

• [Add any dietary needs, things you always do, things you never do]

My list (add as many or as few as you have - if your list is thin, ask Claude to recommend options that fit your style):

• Restaurants: [paste your list]

• Cafés / matcha / breakfast spots: [paste your list]

• Bars: [paste your list]

• Shopping / activities / experiences: [paste your list]

• Must-dos I’ve already booked: [name + time if confirmed]

What I want from you:
Please build me a full timed itinerary, day by day, that:

1. Groups activities by neighbourhood so I’m not crossing the city unnecessarily

2. Checks opening hours and flags anything closed on the day it would fall

3. Gives me 2 options per meal slot (a primary and a backup)

4. Marks anything that needs to be booked in advance

5. Respects my meal times and hotel break rule

6. Fills any gaps with your own recommendations that match my style if my list doesn’t cover everything

7. Notes anything that’s a detour or off-route so I can decide if it’s worth it

If you need to know my vibe better before starting, ask me a few quick questions first.”

Step 5: make it easy to see at a glance

Claude will create absolute magic here - now I use 2 extra steps to make things easier for me. I either let Claude built a dashboard (see step 6), and / or I paste the itinerary into Chat GPT with the following prompt:

”Create a single-page luxury editorial travel guide from the itinerary below. Do NOT redesign the itinerary itself. Simply transform it into a beautifully designed printable travel guide. Imagine this was designed by the creative director of The Row after spending a weekend in Paris. It should feel like a luxury fashion campaign rather than a travel brochure. Think quiet luxury, architectural minimalism, expensive paper stock, restrained typography, muted photography, editorial layouts and impeccable spacing. Every photo should feel like it came from Fashion Magazine, Cabana, or Vogue Living - not Pinterest or Instagram. The final result should be something you'd happily frame in your apartment. For typography use use oversized elegant serif headlines, modern minimalist sans-serif for body text, generous whitespace, magazine/editorial layout and an architectural grid”

Step 6: a Claude dashboard

This step is especially helpful when you plan back to back trips but either way it’s a good tool to also plan your trip and have an overview. For example I built a euro summer dashboard in Claude Co Work with a calendar overview for all trips, a budget tracker, to do list, reservation & booking list with direct lists, the full itineraries and of course everything is adjustable and editable.

here’s the prompt I used for my dashboard (of course feel free to adjust + make sure you’re using the desktop version of Claude and the cowork function):

“I’m planning a trip and want an interactive dashboard to track it - not a static document, but a live tool I can keep coming back to and editing as plans change. Here’s my trip info (dates, destinations, budget, bookings, day-by-day plans, paste whatever you have, even if messy or incomplete):

[PASTE YOUR TRIP DETAILS HERE — e.g. a rough itinerary, flight/hotel dates, a budget spreadsheet or notes, restaurant reservations you’ve already made, etc. If you don’t have all of this yet, tell Claude what you DO have and it can helpyou fill in the rest.]

Please build this as a single persisted HTML artifact (using your artifact tool, not just a chat reply) with these sections:

1. CALENDAR — a compact month-grid calendar (like Google Calendar) showing every leg/destination of the trip, color-coded by type (e.g. hotel stay, staying with family/friends, flight day, home base). Show the destination name directly in each day tile, not just a color. Make it editable: I want to rename a leg, change its start/end dates, change its category, delete it, or add a brand-new destination, all from a simple form - with the calendar updating live.

2. BUDGET TRACKER — a line-item budget table grouped by leg/category (e.g. one group per city, plus transport). Each item needs an editable label, a details/notes field, an “Estimated” cost, and an “Actual” cost (editable, no janky number-spinner arrows, and it must NOT lose focus or reset while I’m typing). Let me add or remove whole categories and individual line items. Show running subtotals per category and a grand total (estimated vs. actual vs. difference) at the top.

3. TO-DO & BOOKING LIST — one combined, checkable list for both general to-dos (decisions, logistics) and restaurant/activity/hotel bookings — not two separate lists. Each item should have: an editable task name, an editable details field, an optional date (when it needs to be booked by or when the reservation is), a type tag (e.g. Restaurant / Activity / Hotel / Transport /Decision / Other), and an “urgent” flag for anything that fills up fast. Let me search/filter by type and by urgent-only, and add brand-new tasks myself with a simple form. Persist checkmarks.

4. DAY-BY-DAY ITINERARIES — for each city or multi-day stop, a tab per day with a clean vertical timeline (time on the left, stop name + short details on the right). Important: every distinct stop needs its OWN line — don’t bury a second venue in another stop’s description text. If I give you a real address or venue name, look up and include a link to its official website (or a mapslink if there’s no clean official site) so I can tap straight through to book.Flag anything that needs an advance reservation.

5. SAVE / BACKUP — add a visible “Save” button that force-saves everything and downloads a dated JSON backup file, plus a “Load backup” button to restore from that file. Don’t rely on browser storage alone — I want a real file I can keep, in case the browser clears its saved data.

Style: clean, neutral color palette (warm off-white background, muted taupe/brown accents, soft greens/blues for category coding) — nothing garish. Should feel calm and easy to scan, not like a spreadsheet.

Before you build, ask me anything you’re missing — especially exact dates, what “categories” my legs should fall into, and whether I have real venue addresses for the itinerary sections (so you can find real links rather than guessing).

How to use it

1. Fill in the bracketed section with her actual trip info — the messier the better, Claude will organize it. If she doesn’t have a full plan yet, she can say so and answer Claude’s follow-up questions instead.

2. Paste the whole thing into a fresh Cowork chat.

3. Once the dashboard exists, she can keep giving feedback in plain language exactly like we did — “make the calendar smaller,” “add a website link to X,” “split this stop into two,” “I booked Y at this exact time” — and Claude will keep updating the same live artifact rather than starting over.

4. Remind her to click the **Save** button after entering real numbers or checking things off, especially early on — it downloads a backup file that’s the real safety net if the browser ever clears its storage.

That’s it (my organization heart is JUMPING right now lol)

And there you have it - a complete overview for your trip, full itineraries, a good orientation where everything is - no matter where you are in that second, back up plans, at-one-glance daily plans and of course a really cool dashboard to keep track of all trips, spendings and bookings.

I can’t wait to upload my chic girl Paris & London City Guides that I planned with this exact process. I found so many hidden gems and fun activities that you normally would never know of. Stay tuned!

As always, please let me know if you have any questions or specific wishes for articles. And if you read until here AND are a “go with the flow” type of person, just know I think you’re SO cool but I could never hehe.

Lot’s of Love,
Hannah

I LOVE making things look nice and crafting my chic cool girl identity. As a girl in her late 20s I’m of course chronically online and love scrolling on Pinterest and as mentioned - I am a Taurus. So I compiled a list of things and steps that not only upgrade my life, but make it more chic. Let’s get into it:

1)upgrade your sleepwear to silk, cotton etc

I love to be comfortable when I sleep, my bed is my comfort place, but I’m also a holistic health girly. So I asked myself „in what does the chic cool girl version of myself sleep?“. The answer was most definitely not polyester or old dirty shirts that got degraded from everyday outfits to PJ. The chic cool girl version of myself sleeps in natural fibers like cotton or silk, matching sets that are elegant or sexy. I found some great inexpensive options on H&M but if you wanna go the extra way: get some custom made monogrammed ones by brands like Rubi Rose in Paris.

2)high quality bedding & bedsheets

While we‘re on the topic of bed & sleep - upgrade your bedsheets. I exclusively sleep in 100% cotton or bamboo silk or silk. I have matching sets only and also upgraded my pillows, duvet and mattress cover to feel like a freaking cloud or hotel bed. An extra tip: I give my bedsheets to dry cleaning instead of washing it myself, because then it comes back ironed, folded and sorted instead of me having to do X rounds of laundry and iron myself. I also love to decorate with fun decor pillows and a blanket.

3)add funky details to your apartment decor (fringe, animal print, stainless steel etc)

Which brings me to this step. I love a minimalist, clean home with not that much color. I personally love to use decor to spice up an apartment, instead of using paint or colorful furniture that’s not easy to replace once you‘ve seen enough of it after a couple months. Lately I have a big love for fringe, animal print like zebra, stainless steel and organic shapes - all of this screams cool girl to me.

4)collect small things from travels for your apartment like little dishes, a fancy bottle of olive oil, a tray

To make your home more unique I love the concept of collecting little things from all around the world, that can not simply be shopped on Zara home or Amazon. Each piece is a little reminder of a beautiful destination or memory.

5)paint your own dishwear set (cheetah print, fun quotes like „pasta sex wine“)

Instead of getting a generic all white dishwear set, design your own! This can also be a fun activity with the girls. I really have to get on this myself, but I have so many ideas. Most cities offer ceramic painting sessions, where you can choose your own plates, colors etc. - that’s definitely on my summer bucket list!

6)design your own jewelry with a jeweler

Quality is so important to me - I rarely ever by fashion jewelry and instead love to invest in beautiful pieces made out of gold, platinum and diamonds. Again, to me being chic is also being unique and creating things so they are 100% true to you. One thing I started doing is designing my own jewelry and getting it custom made. Both of my rings (engagement + wedding) are custom designed by me, aswell as a beautiful pendant necklace & there are so many wishlist pieces waiting to be created!

7)create a strong capsule wardrobe with natural fabrics & invest in high quality accessories like bags, belts etc

Okay this is a big one and of course a lifelong project I feel like. I always ask myself „how would my chic cool girl self dress“ and go from there. Color theory, body types, fabric education, fit, niche brands, capsule wardrobe systems - so many subtopics & so many posts about all of these will come asap!!

8)wear heels more often!

I loveeee a good heel. Women who casually wear heels are just so chic to me, there‘s something insanely feminine and sexy about it. It makes me feel confident and put together. There‘s this pair of vintage Gucci heels designed by tom ford from 2002 that I’d love to source!!

9)buy from small labels, pieces that not everyone owns

As you probably notice, there‘s a pattern of uniqueness here. A chic cool girl doesn’t follow the masses, she creates her own identity, aura and look. Shopping from niche brands, with unique silhouettes and styles is so chic to me. Let me know if you want a list of my favorite small fashion, shoe & accessories brands!!

10)paint your own large scale canvases / artworks for your apartment

Being creative and expressing yourself creatively is inherently feminine. Just having fun and painting something cool for your home is not only a good activity, but again it makes your home unique, as it’s a one of one piece.

11)buy flowers and make your own arrangements at home

Having fresh flowers in my home always makes me so so happy. But pre made bouquets usually don’t deliver the organic and sculptural look I love. So buying flowers I love and designing my own arrangements is something I love doing, to again express myself creatively but also create something unique.

12)get really fluffy, big bath towels made out of cotton, bonus if embroidered

I can’t even tell you how much of a difference this made to me. High thread count, 100% cotton, extra large bathtowels after a hot everything shower. Bonus points if you have a towel heater!!

13)get custom made suits, clothes, shoes tailored to you, with your initials embroidered somewhere

Okay for this step I have to give a shoutout to my husband, as he gets all his suits, pants and button ups, aswell as loafers custom made & tailored, of course with his initials. Choosing fabrics, cut, buttons and getting everything tailored to your body makes allll the difference and is such a fun process!

14)creating cool covers for your Spotify playlists

okay this is really easy but I love organizing and making things look pretty. A chic cool girl obviously also does that to her Spotify! I love curating playlists for different vibes and each playlist deserves a fun cover, made with Canva or chat gpt!

15)keep your phone organized & minimal, folders with affirmations

I regularly delete apps, sort my apps into folders and all my folder also are affirmations like „I am driven“ for apps like uber etc, or „I’m abundant“ for my banking apps. Rewiring my subconscious step by step!

bonus tip: create a life inspo folder on Pinterest

I‘m a very visual person, so I created a folder on Pinterest where I save lotsss of images of how I envision my life to look & feel like. By now I have over 300 images saved that I love to scroll through regularly and I also started creating a folder on my iPhone in the photos app where I save all pictures I took that look similar to my life inspo folder. This way I can manifest and proof to my brain that my vision already exist!

okay so to summarize - my personal version of a chic cool girl is living life organized, full of uniqueness, being creative and enjoying the comforts of luxury.

What does being a chic cool girl mean to you? I can’t wait to hear from you and let me know if you want a part 2!!

Lots of love,

Hannah