The Simple Sophisticate - Intelligent Living Paired with Signature Style

"Cozy living is about creating an atmosphere of warmth, contentment, and pleasure within your home and in your life. It is increasing your awareness of and focusing on embracing the simple, everyday moments to rise above problems, release stress, enjoy friends and family, and to appreciate all you experience." —Melissa Alvarez, author of The Simplicity of Cozy: Hygge, Lagom & the Energy of Everyda...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #226 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  |  YouTube  |  Spotify Imagine you are walking upon a balance beam in a gymnastics center. Imagine your core is tight, your shoulders are back, your chin is parallel with the beam and your legs are engaged. And your eyes are focused not down, but at your desired destination - the e...

  "Times of transition are strenuous but I love them. They are an opportunity to purge, rethink priorities, and be intentional about new habits. We can make our new normal any way we want." —Kristin Armstrong, three-time Olympic gold medalist - road cycling   As September arrives I find myself torn between the schedule I love during the summer months and the rigorous schedule I know that awaits me...

"One of the greatest challenges we all face is to find a happy balance between the opportunities that are available to us, the media-implanted urge to have them all, and our own desire to keep focused on the things that really matter." —Elaine St. James in Living The Simple Life: A Guide to Scaling Down and Enjoying More Momentum is a powerful source of energy, and even though I am far from being...

  Next Monday, on September 3rd, the fifth season of The Simple Sophisticate podcast will begin.   The first four seasons have covered topics on living your best life, whether that was about self-care, lifestyle, health, decor, travel, relationships, or anything that involves living the simply luxurious life, bien sûr ! With now 223 episodes complete, of which there were 22 interviews with guests...

  "The French have a special word for it, La Rentrée; in English it is simply referred to as 'Back to school'. However we choose to call the September post-vacation return, and no matter how far our schooldays are behind us, few would deny that this really is the moment in the year that shouts 'new beginnings', ushering in a renewed sense of resolve and purpose that has far more potency than any J...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #222 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube  | Spotify     The Earful Tower podcast is hosted by Australian journalist Oliver Gee. Kicking off in early 2017, The Earful Tower  is a weekly, seasonal show primarily based in Paris documenting Oliver as he learns about all things French.    Currently kicking off his fo...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #221 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube  | Spotify   "The endless challenge no matter where any of us lives is to choose what we take from all that our surroundings have to offer and put it together in a way that creates our own happiness. I am so glad I was willing to take it on. A person doesn't have to move...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #220 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube  | Spotify "It seemed an advantage to be traveling alone. Our responses to the world are crucially moulded by the company we keep, for we temper our curiosity to fit in with the expectations of others…Being closely observed by a companion can also inhibit our observation...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #219 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube  | Spotify "Your environment, where you live and how you shape your surroundings, is the biggest, most important and most impactful thing you can do to favor your own happiness." —Dan Buettner, The Blue Zones of Happiness Have you ever said to yourself - if only I lived [...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #218 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube  | Spotify "A nail is driven out by another nail; habit is overcome by habit." ― Erasmus While traveling during the past four weeks in France, I found that I was finally able to default in conversation to a handful of expressions to, on the most basic level, demonstrate I...

The final episode taped in France during my travels shares a few memorable moments I had the opportunity experience, and as I had the opportunity to stay at author, blogger and photographer Sharon Santoni's home in France, I wanted to share a few images from the cottage I called home for a few days in northern France. ~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #217 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate : ...

As my travels continue in France, Part Deux of the travel musings-themed episodes is shared today as I recorded the episode while walking in the country amongst vineyards, olive trees and under the brilliant blue sky of Gordes, Provence. Be sure to tune in as I talk about topics that have been on my mind these past few weeks. Some have to do with travel and some have to do with everyday life and h...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #215 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube  | Spotify "It's worth the effort." —Patricia Wells (The following episode was taped while traveling in Provence, France, using a handrecorder. Please excuse indulations in volume.) The legions of birds and their signature melodies, the playful butterflies that promenade...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #214 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube  | Spotify Today's episode is over one hour of Q & As. Questions from TSLL readers and podcast listeners and answers from me, Shannon. :) This annual episode began last year, and was so well received (the most downloaded episode of the year), it has returned. I do hope yo...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #213 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube  | Spotify "Alone, we can plumb local markets and examine their wares closely. We can breathe in and relish the flavors in a sauce, or the coolness of a pitcher of cream. We don't necessarily take time to do these things in the presence of company, particularly during liv...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #212 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube  | Spotify Lessons learned and applied. Often it is what we have done in the past that informs us how to do a similar task better in the future. Whether the mistakes were small or large, upon reflection we can be reminded of what didn't work, then examine more closely why...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #211 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube   | Spotify In America we have the story that ... your sex drive evaporates. ... Nobody wants to sleep with you, but you don't want to sleep with them either. ... And it turns out that that is really much more of a cultural story than a biological story, and ... people's...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #210 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube "It is always the simple that produces the marvelous." – Amelia Barr You react in anger when a moment of frustration arises only to have to take more time (once you realize you shouldn't have reacted in such a way) to apologize and rebuild a relationship. The best decisio...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #209 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube "Your home knows your past, it directs you toward your future, and it gives you the comfort of ritual. There is nothing on the planet that knows you and nurtures you like a home. You simply need to give it the tools to take care of you." — Home Sweet Maison: The French Ar...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #208 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube "Health is the outcome of the small choices you make on a daily basis." —Dr. Frank Lipman, author of How to Be Well: The 6 Keys to a Happy and Healthy Life The pillars of a healthy life have been enumerated by many an expert, but it was in Frank Lipman's book How to Be We...

"If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need."  — Marcus Tullius Cicero Claude Monet's gardens at Giverny, Butchart Gardens near Victoria, Canada, or the grounds of Versailles in France. Each and many more outdoor masterpieces which utilize the gifts of Mother Nature to enchant visitors are as glorious as they are intimidating to those of us who are curious to welcome similar...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #206 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube I am all about simplifying life's daily routines and events, and especially when our schedules become full, our time is precious. As of late, my spring has been bursting. From finishing TSLL's 2nd book , finalizing my summer travel plans, preparing my students from AP tes...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #205 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube "Today's accomplishments were yesterday's impossibilities." —Robert H. Schuller I was recently watching a documentary on Julia Child, and prior to meeting Paul, falling in love with French food and becoming the revolutionary figure she became in the food industry, there w...

~The Simple Sophisticate, episode #204 ~Subscribe to  The Simple Sophisticate :  iTunes  |  Stitcher  |  iHeartRadio  | YouTube The Harvard Business Review pointed out in 2011 that there are many networks we each need in our lives to be successful. Looking at this concept from a business perspective, HBR shared that a manager and leader needs three networks to be successful:  operational, developm...