Inspiration | Island & Hills

Category: Inspiration (page 1 of 2)

February 8, 2016 / 0 Comments

I&H Guides: Clear Skin

For the last ten years, I have struggled with moderate acne and sensitive, combination skin. Solving these skin problems has been one of my biggest recurring resolutions, with no lasting results… until now. After eight months on a strict, prescribed regimen, I can happily say that my skin is clearer and healthier than it has been since puberty.

#iwenttosleeplikethis

My goal for this post is to help others dealing with the same issues save some of the time (and money) I wasted (and avoid the mistakes I made along the way).

If you suffer from acne (or know of someone who does), here are my tips for clearer skin:

WALK OUT OF THE DRUGSTORE AND INTO THE DERMATOLOGIST’S OFFICE

I have spent hundreds of dollars on skincare products with hopes that I would land on that “miracle” treatment that would solve all my problems. For a long time, I foolishly believed that dermatologist visits were not affordable and would do little to cure my acne. It wasn’t until I found a dermatologist in New York (and visited her consistently) that I started seeing lasting results. I have pretty basic health insurance and each appointment costs me $40 out of pocket. She prescribed me two topical treatments (Aczone and Tazorac) that were a bit pricey, but have saved me so much in the long run. So step out of the drugstore aisle, click out of the millions of tabs open on your desktop, and stop trying to self-prescribe the perfect formula; there are professionals who will do that for you.

December 31, 2015 / 0 Comments

2015: Year in Review

As we move forward into 2016, we’d like to say a quick thanks to everyone who has supported us in our first year. Since our launch date this past June, we have accumulated over 4,800 total views on Island & Hills, with readers in more than 59 countries. We are so blown away by these numbers and truly appreciate your readership and feedback. We have tons of new content in store for 2016 and can’t wait to share this next chapter of Island & Hills with you all. Wishing you & yours a fantastic new year!

Sincerely,

Aditi & Maddie

December 14, 2015 / 0 Comments

I&H Spotlight: Rachel Koretsky

Meet Rachel Koretsky, 23, the Founder and CEO for her startup upace. We talked to Rachel about the exciting new fitness app, and what it’s like to be an entrepreneur and leader in her career.

Maddie: What is upace?
Rachel: upace is a management mobile and online app to help individuals find the optimal time and resources to live a healthier lifestyle. The software will allow the university to analyze data that will assist in meeting campus needs. Our mission is to help students find fitness resources on campus at the right time to fit within their individual needs. In fact, that is how we created our name – find your pace.

M: Describe your role.
R: I am the founder and CEO of upace.

December 8, 2015 / 0 Comments

Wish List + Resolutions

I have had a lot of deep thoughts about mortality lately. Probably not the cheeriest way to kick off a post about the holidays, but I’ve promised authenticity on I&H, and that’s where my head has been these past several weeks. These thoughts started with the attacks in Paris, made worse by the threat on New York City, and the shootings in Colorado Springs and San Bernardino. I was taking my life for granted before these events. Now, my frame of mind is different.

December 4, 2015 / 0 Comments

December Favorites: LA

DECEMBER 5TH – LOS ANGELES HARBOR HOLIDAY AFLOAT PARADE

This holiday tradition has been around for over 50 years and features elaborately decorated boats. The Battleship Iowa hosts guests to watch the event with cocoa, cookies, carolers, cocktails, and a visit from Santa.

DECEMBER 10TH – HOLIDAY HAPPY HOUR @ LA ZOO LIGHTS

Starting at 6:30pm, guests can enjoy a heated private lounge with complimentary snacks, wine & beer. There are even special holiday cocktails for purchase. What’s better than Christmas lights, animals & booze?

Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/la-zoo-lights-holiday-happy-hour-21-tickets-1895847029

December 2, 2015 / 0 Comments

Get Inspired

A wise woman once told me “fake it ’til you make it”; I’ve found that one of the best ways to do this is through consistent study of other people’s work. When making a living in a creative field, it’s important to gather as many sources of inspiration as possible. While Instagram, Pinterest and Tumblr can all be good starting points, I have compiled a handful of my favorite “alternative” inspiration sites. The need for visual inspiration isn’t exclusive to designers. The next time you’re stuck on a problem, idea or brainstorm, take a break and explore; designspiration.net has an incredible search function (type anything in — or search by color! — and you’ll get results). Friends of Type and Fonts in Use are amazing for the typography junkie and rookie alike (they’ll make you look at type differently). Oh Beautiful Beer has been a longtime favorite (and secret dream job) of mine. See the full list below:

The Pattern Library

The Dieline

Designspiration

Friends of Type

Fonts in Use

Nowness

Oh Beautiful Beer

What inspires you? How do you get “unstuck”? We want to know in the comments below!

November 3, 2015 / 0 Comments

Wake Up Call

Yesterday, this (ironically) viral video caught my attention:

(If you’re looking for cliff notes of the video, click here for the back story and then keep reading).

I had never followed Essena O’Neill’s accounts, but was struck by the honesty, vulnerability and power in her message.

I’ve talked with a lot of friends in recent months about how isolating New York can feel. You walk onto any subway car during rush hour, and it’s as if we’re all cyborgs — glued to our smartphones, headphones in ears, doing everything we can to zone out the rest of the world. We’re together, but completely alone. And I’m guilty of this as much as the next person; it’s so much easier to engage in the virtual world than it is to engage in our physical world. But what kind of impact is this having? How is this shaping us as people?

October 6, 2015 / 0 Comments

I&H Spotlight: Madhulika Banerjee

Madhulika Banerjee is a 24-year-old graduate student in Arizona, working on getting her Master of Science in Cellular and Molecular Medicine. I recently spoke with her about her degree, her research in working to solve colorectal cancer, her recent international experience in medical school in India, and how she stays motivated while maintaining her rigorous schedule.

Aditi: You’ve got two more years at the University of Arizona, and you’re also working on some research. What do you like about it and dislike about it?
Madhulika: It’s a small department, which is nice because it creates an intimate environment between not only my peers but professors as well. It’s definitely a difficult program though. It’s like mini-prep for med school. My program focuses on viewing what’s inside the human body at a cellular and molecular level and relating it back to the medical field. That might include relating things to different disease presentations, drug discovery, or experimental research, just to name a few.

A: What do you hope to accomplish after you graduate?
M: My end goal is to finish masters and get into med school. As I’ve gotten older I’ve definitely realized that it’s incredibly easy to fail at a goal but it doesn’t mean that you stop dead. My back up plan is to apply for a PhD, either in the same department at my school or maybe a different place, doing cancer research. I’m not sure yet what type of doctor I would want to be once I complete med school. Sometimes it’s easier to identify what you don’t want to do. I know I don’t want to be a surgeon or an OBGYN.

September 23, 2015 / 0 Comments

I&H Spotlight: Locke Hughes

Meet Locke Hughes, 27, a Senior Editor at Greatist.com living in Manhattan. We picked her brain on how she turned her passion for health, fitness and journalism into a successful and fulfilling career.

Maddie: What’s your day job and your responsibilities there?
Locke: I’m a senior editor at Greatist.com. We’re a health and wellness startup on a mission to help people think about health in a different way—namely, that healthy equals happy (no six-pack required). Our content is science-backed, expert-approved, and totally down-to-earth. You won’t find any talk about cleanses, crash diets, or soul-destroying workouts here (unless it’s to say how crazy they are). On a typical day, you’ll find me pitching new story ideas, assigning articles to freelancers, top editing articles, overseeing fitness photo shoots, and writing (the fun part!).

M: Tell me a little bit about your career trajectory. How did you end up as a Senior Editor at Greatist?
L: It’s probably a familiar story. After graduating from the University of Virginia with an English degree in 2010, I came to NYC, spent a month job searching while sleeping on a friend’s couch before I found a freelance position at O, The Oprah Magazine (and an apartment). Then I took another freelance role at Seventeen, and finally a legit job as an assistant to the editor-in-chief at Woman’s Day Magazine. After that (people move around a lot in the publishing world!) I moved to Shape to be an online assistant editor, where I eventually became the senior social media editor. Last year, my former boss from Shape approached me about coming to Greatist, where I am now. Moral of that story: Meet with anyone and everyone! I originally connected with my now-boss five years ago when I bought her a coffee when I first moved to NYC. I stayed in touch, and eventually she helped me get my job at Shape, then ended up hiring me at Greatist! You never know where a cup of coffee may take you.

September 15, 2015 / 0 Comments

How to Host

If you live in a big city, you have likely held the position of “host” at some point or another. Whether it be friends or family, hosting can feel stressful; the unspoken expectation is that you serve as your city’s unofficial ambassador of fun. You’ve lived here for six months now, what do you mean you don’t know the best place to get Turkish food on a Wednesday? (Hold on, let me check Yelp…)

All this aside, if you love and care about the people that you’re hosting, you genuinely want to show them a good time. This past weekend I hosted one of my best friends from college, Colleen, for a quick 24-hour trip; here are the things I learned from her stay (along with the several other hosting duties I’ve had during my time in New York):