ITube, YouTube, we all Tube for... you get the point

As an introvert, someone who lives alone and works from home, I spend a lot — and I mean a lot — of time with me, myself and I.

I'm fine with it most days, but there are those rare occasions (TBH, they aren't that rare) when I need a little company. On those days, I turn to YouTube. 

I started watching YouTube about a year ago when my freelance writing career "took off." Spending all that time at home, alone, writing, was difficult at times and I began looking for quick and easy (also, free) ways to distract, entertain and motivate myself.

Enter Melissa Merk.

My YouTube OG, Merk is a Vancouver native, model and content creator with her own blog and YouTube channel, with just over 460,000 followers. What I like most about her is how she hustles. 

On days when I feel like procrastinating, Merk motivates me to get down to business and do better, which is a constant struggle when you work for yourself. 

She introduced me to iHerb (no, that's not a euphemism for weed), online shopping and Chipotle, so she's pretty much the one to blame for this situation:

  exhibit A: cranium-sized burrito from Chipotle

If Merk is my longest standing girl crush, Aja Dang is my most recent. I stumbled across her (not literally, obvs) a few months ago while researching debt, and more importantly, debt repayment.

Dang used to be a TV host but now has her own website, YouTube channel and a collection of clothing called A Woman's Worth (10% of the proceeds go to Planned Parenthood, which is rad), as well as over $150,000 in student debt!

I'm not saying that to disparage her, by the way. 

She's very open about her debt and it's one of the main topics of conversation on her channel, which is why I relate to it (and her) so much. While my debt isn't quite as overwhelming as hers (praise be) it's something I've been struggling with for years. Watching her videos has helped me focus on paying it off and finally moving on.

 praise be

Side note: I first saw Dang, who's based in Los Angeles, on YouTube three or four years ago when Beyonce's 7/11 came out and she did a tribute to it. I didn't realize it was her until a few weeks ago, when she mentioned her love of Queen B and I put two and two together (hint: it makes four).

Allegra Shaw — who grew up in The Beaches, in Toronto, where I lived many moons ago — is another Canadian that I follow on YouTube. Her channel is close to having 1 million subscribers. Se also has her own blog as well as a sustainable line of clothing called Uncle Studios. 

Shaw has a sick sense of style (including the coolest pair of Balenciaga sneakers) and a wicked sense of humour to match. Her content is really diverse, with videos about beauty, wellness, being a boss bitch and more. 

I actually contacted Shaw once, by email, for an article I was writing for Diary of a Social Gal and she replied within the hour, which I thought was pretty impressive, considering.

 

She also introduced me to HelloFresh (who I had the pleasure of working with two weeks ago) and Gisou, which brings me to my next influencer: Negin Mirsalehi.

Did you see how I just did that? 

Mirsalehi, who runs a bee-based hair product company as well as a blog and YouTube channel, lives in Amsterdam with her boyfriend/business partner Maurits Stibbe and their dog Moosey. She also has the cutest accent. 

She travels the world with brands like Dior and makes one of the best hair products I've ever used: a honey infused hair oil that I ordered, online, all the way from the Netherlands.

The boyf, who isn't impressed with much, still can't get over the packaging. Enough said.

Finally, Allana Davison (who recently moved from Vancouver to Toronto) and describes herself as a "vlogger, blogger and anything-ogger" is another one of my female sources of inspiration and motivation online. 

I started watching her in December, when I was going through a bit of a tough time, and can't get enough of her wacky sense of humour and super super easy to follow makeup routines. 

Thanks to her, I know what primer is (oh hey Smashbox!) and how to highlight... #skills.

I think a lot of people (ahem, men) are quick to disregard YouTube and its rising female "stars," but I for one have learned a lot from it. At 43, I realize I may not be the target demographic, but that doesn't make it any less enjoyable or informative.    

I'd like to add one more YouTuber to this list, the inimitable Jakob of Jakob's thing. He's so cool he only needs one name.

Enjoy!

Blog of a not-so Social Gal

Once upon a time, a very lucky girl (aka: me) got invited to a very fabulous party.

The raison-d'être for the party was the launch of the third edition of the Diary of a Social Gal magazine. Described as "part diary and part social/lifestyle/fashion port," the magazine (and website) are ALL editor extraordinaire Jenn Campbell's creation.

And boy oh boy does she know how to throw a party! 

Not to mention the fact that she, along with yours truly, is dying for "a night out with Chelsea Handler."

But I digress.  

Held at the Ritz-Carlton on hump day, the party featured live music, salt-baked fish and more beautiful people than you can shake a stick at. 

I mention the salt-baked fish not in jest but because I really enjoyed it. Thanks Milos!
 
Plus the Moët. Ahhh the Moët!

The raison-d'être for my being invited to such a fabulous party was my previously mentioned luck. The oh-so-lovely Olivia (aka: Dirty Martini) asked me to go along as her date because she knows of my writing (and fashion) related aspirations.

And my love of Moët.  

After work, and pre-party,I made my way to Indigo for some (very) fresh air and a browse through the fashion section. While there, I surreptitiously overheard 2 Fashion Police wannabes rip into Alexa Chung's "It" book, suggesting it be named "Shit" instead.

 alrighty then!

After the rude awakening, I headed back to my office to get ready. 

"Am I really glam enough for a Social Gal party?" I pondered anxiously while using Lysol wipes to try and fix my still-wet manicure and googled "bare winter legs" to see if my decision to not wear tights, despite the below-zero temperatures, was gauche or not.

The Fashion Police wannabes would surely have something to say about it.

Don't mean girls and boys always have something to say about everything? Especially other people's happiness.

I pushed my negative self-talk aside and headed to the washroom to change into the Victoria's Secret dress the beau bought me for Christmas last year and take a few obligatory selfies.

After I applied an Instagram filter, making myself feel even better, I headed out to meet Dirty Martini and have a fabulous time.

Take that mean girls (and boys).