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 reading time: 12 min





CREATIVITY [noun]  The use of skill and imagination to produce something new or to produce art. The ability to create.

Hello fellow creator,

if you are a writer, I am sure you have experienced some form of the infamous writer's block along the way. Have you ever sat down to write but felt completely drained and uninspired? Perhaps not just once, but it happens quite often? Do you feel that no matter how many times you sit down to write, the words don't seem to want to come to you? Do you feel disconnected from your own creativity?

I know exactly how you feel.

And don't worry, there is a way to get out of a writing slump, or even a "chronic" – or rather, more deeply rooted – creative block. In fact, there are several ways to do that, and today I want to share with you 7 easy but essential ways I use to overcome writer's block and activate my creative energy. Some of these tips may sound ridiculously basic, but if you don't actually do them, they won't work!

 reading time: 4 min




5 years ago on International Women's Day I published a blog post titled "Who Run The World?" where I shared 6 women who had an empowering and inspiring influence on my life including authors and other public figures as well as my mum.

Today I want to add 6 more women to this list, who are all very different, although m
ost of them are in fact "influencers". All of those amazing women have had a great impact on me, especially during the past year, and continue to inspire me. If you were to ask me which "celebrities" I would like to meet – these are the ones!

I also want to invite you to treat this as an old-fashioned TAG, and share your own list of women – whether it's someone famous or someone from your family – that you look up to, or that have inspired or influenced you in a positive way!


Here are 6 (more) women that inspire and encourage me:



Louise L. Hay – Having read her book "You Can Heal Your Life" twice as well as having listened to her audiobooks "101 Power Thoughts" and "Love Your Body" numerous times, it is not an exaggeration to say that Louise Hay has been living in my mind rent-free for the past year. I admire her outlook on life, and the fact that she died peacefully in her sleep at age 90 (as opposed to other self-help authors that died from cancer in their forties ...) is merely one of many reasons why I trust her advice. Her work has helped me more on my path of self-healing than any other books I've read so far.




Hitomi Mochizuki – If you are looking for the big sister you never had, Hitomi will be there for you with infinite honesty, rawness and spiritual insight. This beautiful earth angel never ceases to inspire me and remind me to play, to take care of my inner child as well as my adult needs, to be my full honest vulnerable self, to act out of love, to set healthy boundaries, to enjoy the sensual world by being fully present in my body, and to make love to life. To me, she embodies self-inquiry, healing, and connection (be that with nature, in fulfilling friendships, or through sacred sexuality).




Adriene Mishler – Speaking of a wise big sister ... Better known as Yoga with Adriene, this lovely lady has accompanied and guided me on my (yoga and spiritual and life) journey for almost exactly 10 years now! I absolutely love that her yoga videos have evolved from being more goofy and upbeat (which made me connect to her in the beginning, and I love this aspect of her, too) to her unapologetically letting her spiritual beliefs and wisdom seep into her videos. Adriene (and Benji of course!) has taught me to trust, to listen, to notice, and to blanket myself in love. And of course to "find what feels good" by staying present in my body :)




Galatea Van Outersterp (aka The Authentic Observer)
– I've mentioned Galatea on my blog before because I adore her wonderfully articulated and thoughtful videos on all sorts of topics, from books and movies to aspects of society. She is smart as hell and not afraid to make bold statements that others might not agree with, while being open for discussion. Her videos are always thought-provoking (and sometimes also provoking), and while I do not agree with every single sentence she says, I hugely respect her views on the topics she discusses, and I find her way of embracing femininity as a strength and not a weakness without reducing "femininity" to a certain set of desirable traits (unlike others) very inspiring.



Rachel Maksy
– No, this is not Angelina Jolie. Although it is certainly Lara Croft, cosplayed by the talented Rachel Maksy! Honestly, there's nothing crafty Rachel cannot do, from creating awesome pieces of clothing, make-up, painting, home-renovating and paper-mâché-ing to needle felting. Her artistic skill and creativity combined with her humour always makes me want to be a better human, basically 😂 Oh, and she has an amazing sense of aesthetics, both in her video editing and in her overall style.



Joanna Kyu (aka Joannas Essentials)
– Joanna has always promoted a natural, nourishing way of living, but her more recent videos take it to another level. Especially her videos "From Blogger to Living Offline in Nature" and "Natural Living & Building in the Jungle » A Return to Nature" have had an eye-opening effect on me, and have stirred up the urge in me to get away from the desk, away from the mobile phone, and live in a more rural, simple, close-to-nature and actually sustainable environment outside of the European bubble I'm currently stuck in. Not sure what this will look like, but the ball has started rolling ...


Also, I've heard from several people that apparently what you aspire and admire in others is already within you! The argument is that to see something in another person, you have to already know what it is / have experienced it before. So I guess somewhere within me I already am stunningly creative and talented, smart, wise, articulate, unabashedly feminine, sensual, in peace with myself and life itself, admirable, free-spirited, wise, empowered, embodied, and sustainable. Awesome!  😁


 

♥

Maisy


 reading time: 4 min



March is such a dull month, at least where I live. Rainy, cold, grey. And just not very inviting to spend much time outside if you ask me. Instead, spending time in the kitchen, baking a sweet little somethin-somethin and watching a movie sounds much better, don't you think?

If you need a bit of brightness in your life right now, these lemony Earl Grey cupcakes are just the thing for you!


There is still an illegally small amount of muffin / cupcake recipes on my blog! I mean, I do love cake, and especially layered cream cake such as my Vegan Black Forest Cake A LOT, but if you think about it, cupcakes are basically miniature cakes, soooo ... I need to make more cupcakes!

A
nd since my dad is a big black tea fan, I decided to make him these delicious fragrant Earl Grey cupcakes with a light lemon buttercream frosting.

Years ago – literally, YEARS ago – I stumbled across these Vegan Earl Grey Cupcakes from It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken, and immediately I made a mental note to make these for my dad some day. Well, this day finally came true on Father's Day last year, which is bad enough – but I never actually got around to publishing them on my blog! I know, I know, it's bad. Shame on me.

But let's talk about these cupcakes now.

I love the citrusy bergamot flavour of Earl Grey that is best combined with vanilla and something milky (such as my Vegan London Fog 😍), but I'd never used it for baking before. The muffins itself turned out great and they are light and fluffy thanks to the pastry flour I used (spelt type 630 here in Germany). The key to these Earl Grey muffins is making a strongly steeped MILK with several teabags (or spoonfuls) of Earl Grey which you can then use in the batter. It gives the muffins a lovely floral and unique distinct "tea" taste as well as a pretty caramel colour, and it's just perfect when paired with vanilla essence and lemon buttercream frosting! I also added a bit of orange zest to compliment the bergamot, similar to the Lady Grey tea (which by the way you could also use in this recipe instead of Earl Grey!).

The perfect little sweet treats for teatime, special occasions such as Father's or Mother's Day, or just everyday dessert cravings :)

 

VEGAN EARL GREY CUPCAKES with lemon buttercream frosting

Preparation time: 45 mins
Main ingredients: flour, Earl Grey, vegan butter, lemon
difficulty level: easy
makes: 12 cupcakes
suitable for: vegan, lactose-free, wheat-free, nut-free, yeast-free

Ingredients

Batter:
3 Earl Grey teabags (or 3 tsp loose Earl Grey tea, using a tea infuser)
1 cup soy milk or almond milk
1 3/4 cups spelt pastry flour (I use type 630)
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
1/3 cup raw cane sugar
1/4 cup vegan butter or margarine
2 tsp vanilla essence
1 tsp fresh organic lemon zest
1 tsp fresh organic orange zest


Frosting:
3/4 cup vegan butter or margarine, softened
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp fresh organic lemon zest



Instructions

Preheat oven to 180 °C / 350 °F. Line a cupcake tin with paper liners, or lightly grease for a more eco-friendly alternative.

To make the batter: 

Start by making the Earl Grey milk. Place soy milk in a small saucepan, and add 3 Earl Grey teabags or loose leaf tea. Bring to a light boil, then turn off heat, and allow to steep for about 10 minutes. Once the milk is tea-infused, discard teabags.

To a bowl, add pastry flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and a pinch of salt. Whisk to combine.

In a seperate mixing bowl, beat sugar and vegan butter or margarine until light and fluffy, using an electric mixer (about 3 minutes). Add lemon zest, orange zest, and vanilla essence. Beat again.

Gradually add the flour mixture while working the batter with the electric mixer.

Lastly, add the steeped Earl Grey milk. Mix well until you reach a smooth batter. Do not overmix your batter!

Scoop the batter into your prepared cupcake tin, dividing the batter evenly between the 12 cups. Transfer the tin to your pre-heated oven and bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and allow the muffins to cool in the tin for 5-10 minutes. Then remove the muffins from the tin and transfer them to a wire rack to continue cooling. 

In the meantime prepare the lemon buttercream frosting.

To make the frosting: 

In a clean bowl, whip vegan butter using an electric mixer until soft and fluffy. Slowly add in powdered sugar. Cream together. Add vanilla essence, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Whip until light and fluffy.

Once the muffins have cooled completely, fill your buttercream frosting into a piping bag, and frost each cupcake with a buttercream swirl. Decorate with lemon slices if you wish, and serve to your tea loving guests. Enjoy!




 ♥

Maisy

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Well, hello! My name is Maisy (pronounce: macy) and I’m the creative spirit behind this blog. You are welcome to join me on my journey to a more natural, slow-paced & healthier life!

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