I recently bought a white tee shirt that had inscribed on it “there are so many opportunities to start something new”. That quote was definitely the primary reason I decided to let Zara sale have my £5. The other was because, although I’ll typically not buy a white t-shirt (is it just me or do they just turn a bit dull after the first wash?) – like the title of this post, I’m trying to do some things differently.

If you ever watched the Oprah show, you may remember the episodes where four to five women put themselves forward or had nominated by their friends for a style revamp! They were mostly bored (or had never tried anything different) of their hair, their clothes and their style. The reveal was often such a shocker – and they didn’t look the same – in a good way!  I loved those a lot – especially when it featured much older women because it proved that you could always try something new and adventurous even as an adult. This definitely ran contrary to some expectations that by a certain age we ought to have fully morphed into ourselves – knowing exactly the kind of hairstyle that suits us or having a signature perfume.

But really, growth is a continuous process and it’s okay – perhaps even recommended that as you encounter life in varying degrees, your tastes and choices evolve. In recent times, I’ve found my preferences seem to be tilting – and if Oprah or anyone else were to offer, these are some areas I’ll put myself forward for a makeover, revamp or simply to try new things!

Style

My style is pretty straightforward. I’m mostly happy to wear a black pant and a blazer or turtle neck top into work every day. And if I had a choice between a black and a green coat, I’ll probably pick the black because it goes with everything. But if I (and maybe you too) keep buying black because it goes with everything at what point will we expand our wardrobe and embrace unique pieces.

While in university, my husband called my flat ballerina pumps kachee shoes because it was literally what I wore all the time – in the same style. Don’t get it wrong, I do buy the occasional non-kachee shoe, but as I’m often in a hurry I will slip into my pair of kachee shoes before anything else. I’ve been known to wear this even in winter!  I will also reach for a pair of jeans and a top before considering whether or not I should match fabrics, mix prints, tie a scarf on my hair or wear some accessories. The other reason for my – if we dare say it boring lack of style, is that I’m hardly going anywhere fancy or feel the need to dress up! I know true stylish peeps say you’re never overdressed and should look great everywhere.

Well, the good news is I’m pretty bored of all of that now! I need more va va voom. And since I stand little chance of being in such makeover show, I’ll be doing these changes myself. How? It’s by basically being intentional. I’ve already started doing some background work on this – but will provide more details in a later post. This could mean I’ll be buying pieces that are not my usual and exploring much more – so if you see my looking a bit funny in my outfits, at least you know why.

Home & Decor

I’m not surprised this is on the list as I’m always open to switching up home decor. What is however interesting is that if anyone put me on a home makeover show (which I crave and would welcome wholeheartedly), they might be perplexed as to why a new home will be significantly different from my present.

A couple of years ago when we moved house we were pretty sure we wanted a modern contemporary vibe. And to a large extent, that’s how we furnished our spaces: matching sofas, carpet on the floor, classic dining table, white walls etc – with a decent sized amount of Scandi living (aka IKEA). Fast forward to the present, and my taste has definitely changed. I’m not completely itching for a rustic or bohemian style decor – but as the British tend to say, I need a bit more character. Just a little bit – I don’t necessarily want fireplaces and chimneys. So I’ll probably swap rugs for wooden floor, pick out more colourful sofas and stand-alone chaise, use wallpapers, varying kinds of gallery wall frames (as opposed to this with all gold coloured frames), more plants, more colours. I’m not 100% sure I’ll prefer this vibe but I’ll definitely love to try and see how it goes! The only downside is that it can be hard-work. If I swapped bare walls to wall papers and didn’t like it enough, it’s a pain to revert, same for swapping carpets for wooden floors.

Food

I love food. But I tend to eat the same thing over and over. The same basic staples, cooked in the same way. Why do I do this when there’s such an array of food in the world to be explored, experienced and possibly enjoyed. It appears I do this out of comfort. When ordering out, it’s easier for me to go with what I’ll enjoy as opposed to try something knew. Because what if I did, and then didn’t like it? Would I go hungry? I guess if I had the buffer of knowing that my go-to options would still be there as an alternative if things don’t go as planned then I’m more likely to try.

But, I’m going to stop being so unadventurous. So here’s to exploring – to buying more varied ingredients, testing more recipes and broadening my palette. After all, as they say, some things are acquired tastes. In a bid to explore further, I recently tried a recipe box Feastbox and I loved it so much as an easy way to try authentic Asian and Middle Eastern cuisine. I’ll definitely be looking to try similar options for other cuisines.

Activities

I feel like I already took a step in getting this makeover by starting The KacheeTee Circle as an opportunity to be involved in some things I’ll ordinarily want to do but hadn’t been able to.

But other than those which I host, I’ll like to do some more activities that are typically not me! While activities like bungee jumping and sky diving come to mind, I still don’t think I have the adrenaline for that. But there are still tons of stuff people get involved in sans adrenaline. Recently my friend told me she attended a gemology class i.e. to learn about about jewellery and stones! That’s not the kind of thing I’ll have thought of, but that’s what I mean – expanding the range of things to do alone or with friends rather than just meeting up for food and drinks. You don’t have to go on and be an expert at these, but it allows you meet a broader range people, gain new knowledge and insights that prove very valuable in life – from making conversations to building networks. And even if these aren’t transferable in any way -surely it could add more colour to our lives.

So from painting to knitting, wine tasting to gemology (haha!) I’ll love to take an afternoon occasionally to just do something different!

In summary, I think people should be allowed to evolve and embrace new choices and new experiences. In recent times, subscription boxes or activity curators help a great deal as they take the burden off you and allowing you try new things. And there’s a subscription box for a number of things now – from clothing to books, beauty products to food.

Do you relate with this at all and feel the need to refresh? What areas would you welcome a makeover or a lifestyle change? Let us know!

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read too: Dear Adult, It’s Okay to Unleash Your Inner Child and I didn’t Eat Rice for 46 Days – Here’s What Happened