Today I’m doing EBL a bit differently. I’m going to be sharing some links to some fantastic posts at various blogs. I’m also going to be tweeting my EBL post suggestions on Twitter {@bitsofbeauty}. If you have a post or a tip you’d like to share, just tag it #EBL. I’d love to see what you come up with!

Also, I’m going to be updating this post throughout the next 24 hours, so be sure to check back!

You want to make a crap load of money, but before you do that…

Have you ever heard of the Theory of Relative Depravity ? Ya, neither had I until about 5 years ago during my political theory class.  We might not know it by name, but we sure know what it is. It’s what we call, “keeping up with the Joneses” and what keeps most of us from feeling satisfied with what we have. It can influence us into decisions that put us into debt and keep us in a rat race.

So, what’s an EBLer to do with the Joneses? Tell them to peace the **** out!

Two great posts to get started:

+ Waving Goodbye to the Joneses from Get Rich Slowly

+ When you take it all away, what are you? from Far Beyond the Stars

You want to take risks, but you’re afraid…

Oh dear, you read this blog and you haven’t read the Alchemist? Stop being lazy and read it. It isn’t long; you can thank me later. Until then, I’ll bring you up to speed with this quote from the book:

“Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dream.”

It’s absolutely true.

“But how do YOU know? Why should I believe YOU?”

I know. I live by this. You don’t have to believe me, in fact you shouldn’t. You should find out for yourself and try. I’m not a god, so I’m not asking you to have faith in me.

I’m asking you to have faith in yourself.

Besides reading the Alchemist and just going for it, get started with these:

+ Become the Best by being the worst from Untemplater

+ Reclaim ownership of your mind from Illuminated Mind

+ A guide to beating the fears that are holding you back from Zen Habits

+ Overcoming suffering and acheiving lasting happiness – words fromt he dalai lama from the Business Backpacker

You want to follow your dreams, but everyone thinks you’re crazy…

… sometimes, including yourself.

Stop justifying yourself.

Stop rationalizing so much.

If you know you want a change, that’s all you need to know. Who cares about what anyone else says? Sure, it’s great to get advice from friends. I encourage it. But, you need to learn your own lessons. You need to be daring. This isn’t about them. It’s about your life. If you’re not hurting anyone {and by that I mean beating, killing, or devastating someone}, than you’re free to do as you please.

Get started and get crazy:

+ Why they try to zap your dreams from The Middle Finger Project

+ The perils of justifying yourself from White Hot Truth

+ The ultimate guide to not caring from Almost Fearless

+ Be strange, be very strange from Explore Truth

You really want to, but you don’t have the time!

Sure you do.

“No, I don’t.”

Yes you do.

In fact, saying you don’t is the biggest load of crap I’ve ever heard. If it’s important to you, if it truly matters in the grand scheme of your life, then you have time for it. We’re given 24 beautiful hours every day until we die to fill. You should sleep at least 6 of those hours. {If you’re truly resourceful, you’ll find a way to get things done for you while you sleep.} So, that leaves you with 18 hours for your family, yourself, your dog, your dreams, whatever!

The problem is we get distracted. We let other things that aren’t important get in our way. We’re taught not to be selfish, but there’s a point that not focusing on what matters to you is just plain stupid.

So stop saying you don’t have time for the important things. The truth is, it’s ALL you have time for.

Take back your time, get focused, and maybe even save some money:

+ Reclaim your attention from Zen Habits

+ How to reclaim ownership of your mind from Illuminated Mind

+ How you spend your time, how you spend your money from Simple Dollar

So you want to travel around the world, but…

You have a family. You’re in debt. It’s scary. Blah, blah, blah. Yes, I hear you. I’m scared, too. It’s scary and we all have responsibilities, but that’s not enough of a reason to not go for it.

Stop making excuses. If they can do it, so can you.

Need more examples of being location independent? Or, maybe you want to be an entrepreneur? Funny enough, these folks will inspire you because they’re both:

+ Thrilling Heroics

+ JetSet Citizen

+ Chris Guillebeau {who has these awesome guides to help you do what he does}

+ Exile Lifestyle

Ok, so maybe you don’t want to quit your job, you just want to be a little happier.

So, you LOVE what you do, but you’re not opposed to more happiness. {Really, who would be?} Besides following the example of our past EBL guests , you might want to go to the authority on pursuing happiness in daily life. No, not Thomas Jefferson and that bunch. No, not Confucius. I’m talking about Gretchen Rubin!

Hopefully, this post will get you going in the right direction for you.

Have a favorite post?
Agree? Disagree?
Hell, maybe you don’t believe happiness is a good priority. Just leave it below or tweet it with #EBL.

photo by Elena Kalis

Dress Design Decor: the name about sums it up. It’s blog that shares anything beautiful that falls into one of those three categories and a recent addition to my google reader. The author, Canadian based graphic designer Daniella, is our guest today. Daniella shares with us 5 everyday beautiful things about her favorite time of year: Spring.

I live for Spring. I just think it’s the most beautiful season of all, as the grass gets greener, flowers start popping up, the temperatures rise, and everyone starts to gather outside again. It’s such a pretty sight to see…

1. Walks in the sunshine… Its feels so good to be outside again with the sun warm on your skin and a light breeze in the air. Perfect for romantic rendezvous.

2. Flowers… be it a bunch of tulips from the framer’s market or a few wildflowers from the forest, this little luxury sitting in a pretty vase in my home always brings a smile to my face.

3. Breakfast on the balcony… I love sitting out on the balcony each spring, for a quick breakfast in the morning or long, lazy brunch on the weekend. It’s nice to start you day off quietly “waking up” outside before you have to rush off to work.

4. Picnics… I think picnics are always a beautiful thing. There’s just something about packing up the perfect lunch with pretty plates, cutlery, napkins and more. It’s a great way to spend some time with a loved one, enjoying what nature has to offer. I’m determined to find the perfect picnic basket this year.

5. Bistros… Outdoor dining is ideal for those early spring days. All of a sudden everyone is outside, as patios and sidewalks fill with people looking to enjoy a cup of coffee or a light lunch. Is there anything more picture perfect that savouring a yummy latté watching passersby?

I hope everyone takes advantage of the spring weather to come… it always seems to take forever to arrive and just a second to fly by before Summer hits. Enjoy the beauty of Spring while you can!

1. {via} the fashion spot, 2. {via} definitely golden, 3. from me to you, 4. {via} brabourne farm 5. from me to you

Pinning down the things that inspire me wasn’t easy. I am constantly inspired, but rarely can I say that a particular subject inspires me. The truth is, ideas strike me and I wholeheartedly run with them. While I can admire the beauty of many things, I can’t say that they really inspire me. They may set me in a state of awe, but I’ve determined that there are 3 main causes of inspiration for me.

The incredible feats we are capable of, or better phrased as innovation, inspires me. We’re capable of doing things that were once only imagined and deemed impossible. If it can be imagined, it can be created.

With their unwavering wonder and bubble filled laughter, children inspire me.  Watching them learn, dreaming of how they’ll change the world… it makes me want to change the world for them, to plow the path and pave the road. They are so resilient and complex; we don’t give them enough credit.

It’s the little moments that really get me going. Did you ever watch a TV show where someone had a premonition or visions? That’s me, except I don’t predict the future. I’m not one of the sisters from Charmed, but I have that same reaction when I see something, touch something, or stumble upon some thought that instantly dumps an elaborate scene and character into my head. At that moment, I have to get it out, write it down, so I don’t lose it.

The trigger could be anything, and it happens to me all day long. It could be something as simple as the strap falling off a woman’s shoulder…

About Blog It Forward
Yesterday:   Billede Design
Tomorrow: Black Eiffel

Also posting today: Cottage Industries, On Montague, Feminine Modern, Rhymes With Chaos, Style Bust, Just Travelin’ Through,  The Sweatshop of Love,  Miel & Company, Wonderings & Wanderings

images: 1. Jessica Stam by Sølve Sundsbø 2. Originally posted here, 3. Rodney Smith

Sorry I’m late today folks! I couldn’t leave you without a bit of inspiration. Today, it’s provided by Alan of the blog 9 to 5 alternative. I feel that his post is focused and beautiful in its simplicity. Alan is a lifestyle design blogger. Most of you are familiar with the fashion and design blogs, but I want to broaden your blog horizons. As a reference point, bloggers like Leo of Zen Habits fall into the lifestyle design genre. There are some fantastic, inspiring, thrilling blogs out there. So I encourage you to visit Alan’s blog and explore the genre. You’ll find that they know how to live extraordinary, beautiful lives.

Mark Twain once wrote that “nothing so liberalizes a man and expands the kindly instincts that nature put in him as travel and contact with many kinds of people.”

I couldn’t agree more. Travel makes my life everyday beautiful. It always will. Here are seven examples why.

{landscape} From atop Gokyo Ri, a 5357m (17,575 ft) peak in Nepal’s Khumbu Himalaya.

{people} Arts and crafts at an Ethiopian school in Israel.

{perception} Driving through the Syrian desert.

{animals} Baboon-ing on a Rwandan safari in Akagera National Park.

{food} Ethiopian spice hunting in the Merkato district, Africa’s largest open air market.

{nature} Climbing Half Dome in California’s Yosemite National Park.

{history} A camel guards the Treasury in Petra, Jordan.

photos by Alan Perlman

Our guest today, Jess Constable, has one of the most refreshing blogs out. Her blog, Makeunder My Life, is all about what she calls “designing a life with intention.” The idea is to scale back in order to focus on what you really want. In no way does this mean being a minimalist, but instead, it seems to me that this is about finding a happy balance for every person. All this makes here an ideal guest for our Everyday Beautiful Life series. Here, Jess shares 5 things that make her life everyday beautiful.

1- Erwin – Erwin, my boyfriend is a constant source of smiles and support.

2 – Chevron Paintings – These paintings were a great DIY that were super easy but also add glam to my studio. I love looking at them everyday while I work. This pattern has actually inspired my new Spring jewelry collection coming out in April as well.

3 – Flowers – I have a weakness for buying a mixed bouquet at Trader Joes and then putting each type of flower in it’s own mini-vase and scattering them around my apartment. It spreads the beauty to four or five different spots.

4 – Noble Tree – This is a great coffee shop to do work. I love the indie-vibe and eclectic decorating.

5 – Cheesy Oatmeal – Though it certainly may not look beautiful to most, I adore adding cheese to steel cut oats for breakfast with pepper flakes. It’s something I look forward to every morning and brightens my day.

photos by Jess Constable

Just a quick announcement. I’m currently accepting new guests for the Everyday Beautiful Life Series starting in May 2010. If you’d like to share what makes your life beautiful everyday, please shoot me an email . {You don’t have to be a fashion or design blogger. In fact, you don’t have to be a blogger at all!}

Today’s guest is Editor-in-Chief of Dream Sequins, Deanne Yee. Dream Sequins began in 2008 and covers emerging fashion and boutiques across the globe. Check her blog for some backstage looks of NYFW, beauty reviews, and all things fashionable. Here are a few things that this stylish guest finds beautiful.

I love the verses of Edna St. Vincent Millay. She lived this passionate inner and outer life and was the first woman to win a Pulitzer for poetry.

The beaches of Thailand. We took a boat tour of some of those far off islands near Phuket. I won’t forget the temperature of the water and the clarity of it… True beauty.

Hair accessories. Right now I am mad for them.

A good solid writing instrument. I am not talking about iPhones or laptops. I want a nice heavy pen to write real, considerate notes and letters to friends.

Dark red lipstick. My wardrobe has gotten very light and unexpectedly colorful lately. So I love pairing these innocent looks with a darker lip.

images: 1. edna st. vincent millay, 2. dream sequins, 3. jennifer behr spring 2010, 4. Sebastian Lester {via} we heart it, 5. unknown {via} weheartit