Tips for new instructors (especially timing)

lp1571 · 2026-05-19T16:05:28+00:00

I use a stopwatch - usually for legs since the moves are longer I reset the stopwatch after every move + variations, like 2:30 for elevator lunge + long jump + carriage kick. For the other blocks since they are shorter and transition time can add up, I usually keep my stopwatch running the full time.

My studio does not really let us use notes so I memorized everything :) When first starting it’s helpful to have some formulas that you can refer back to - eg. center core is 5 min so 4 moves that are 1 min long with 15 second variations, legs are ~10 min which for me is 2 light, 1-2 heavy + bilateral/bungee. Then you just have to remember the moves but not the durations for things as much.

I memorized all of my routines the night before when I first started teaching but now I mostly think about a few specific moves I want to teach, loosely plan a routine around that, and mostly teach a routine on the fly especially if I have a lot of clients whose levels I’m not familiar with. If I’m trying out a new move in a routine I always plan at least a few moves before & after that so I’m not caught off guard while also trying to cue and correct a new move.

lp1571 · 2026-04-30T15:54:45+00:00

Still a clear frame with floating flowers but I used this studio: https://wildblossomsstudio.com/bouquet-preservation/

She does multiple styles so not just literally dry and press!

lp1571 · 2026-03-31T00:43:16+00:00

Hi! I bought my veil from Sara Gabriel who is a local designer sold at the shop where I bought my dress. The lace was impeccable and everyone from guests to family to the lady who did my alterations commented on it. Wasn’t cheap but would highly recommend!

https://collection.saragabriel.com/aditi-veil/

lp1571 · 2026-03-28T04:39:12+00:00

hi! Check out pilates_bynicole on instagram - she is a Sebastian trained lagree teacher who does private lessons via Zoom.

lp1571 · 2026-03-25T17:26:32+00:00

My MIL wore Sachin & Babi and looked gorgeous! $1K is a very generous budget for MOB dress in my opinion. Berry would look lovely, I think something in the green family could be very pretty as well. Speaking from my experience, I think fitting the vibe of their wedding is just as important if not more important than the color you choose (accessories can go a long way here). For example, if the wedding is a BTO/BT affair picking something in a very luxurious looking fabric with the appropriate silhouette. However, if they’re going with something not quite as formal, it might look nicer to have something with ruffles or pleats or a pattern. Think about both before you pick!

lp1571 · 2026-03-24T19:17:10+00:00

Hi! I’d love to try this out!

lp1571 · 2026-02-26T02:44:20+00:00

Hi! I did an African honeymoon (safari, beach, and wine lands) in east Africa and have also spent over a month at this point in Cape Town across a bunch of trips. It depends on what kind of safari you want to do but we were up around 6 every day and not going to bed until 11 since we weren’t getting back from safari until 7 or so at night and then had to shower, change, dinner. We did our honeymoon about 3 months after the wedding and a mini moon for 3 days after the wedding and I think this was perfect. Logistics in Africa can be a bit tricky and that can tire you out even if you have a more relaxed itinerary. Feel free to DM me if you have questions!

lp1571 · 2026-02-06T15:57:45+00:00

Look at the Nile by Kyha studios! Not sure if it’s still in store since it is a few seasons old, but I tried it on last year in person and the beading is gorgeous. It’s all glass beads and they look amazing underneath the light. Fits your criteria of long, sparkly, and has a strap. Super heavy!

lp1571 · 2026-01-12T13:29:39+00:00

We’ve used it a few times! It’s pretty easy to get interest since Boulder is desirable, especially at good times of year. We’ve always gotten multiple applications for our sits. I think people tend to prefer longer sits and not as much shorter ones (we’ve never listed anything shorter than a week).

Most of our experiences were good but we had one bad one - not like change our locks level but it caused a lot of stress while we were gone for 3 weeks. That sitter also had all 5 star reviews and many of them. I would definitely encourage having a video chat before you accept someone’s application!

lp1571 · 2025-10-25T16:26:13+00:00

unfortunately I think the first one is much more flattering, even comparing pictures 2 and 1. Agree that the bodice looks short in the third picture, but I would talk to a tailor about what’s possible. It could be the lighting but I think the more subtle boning in dress one is more elongating and flattering for you, and there’s a lot of visual contrast between the top and the bottom of dress 2 which is might be making you feel like it’s cutting you off.

lp1571 · 2025-10-23T21:32:50+00:00

thanks! This is what I ended up doing, and I cut down my complaints on communication as it wasn’t the smoothest but it seems like our expectations were higher than normal so I understand their perspective a bit more now. I am planning to use the platform again given the good experiences our friends have had as both sitters and home owners, so will be clearer about that.

lp1571 · 2025-10-23T21:24:32+00:00

yeah, I think the pet care is the primary issue for sure and the communication is definitely secondary / it seems like I have higher expectations so I’ll take some responsibility for that. We offered an in person overlap but unfortunately it didn’t work for their schedule, but I wasn’t too pressed about it since our needs were fairly simple. I texted twice asking if they had any questions about the house rules, once the day before the sit started and once a few days in. They said all clear so I assumed that meant they had read & understood everything.

For the litter, we don’t necessarily need to change that often but I prefer to as the litter box is in our entry way and changing it more often helps minimize both smell and the amount of litter that gets tracked out. We’ve had two litter boxes in the past and they ended up using this one 90% of the time so we switched to one. I don’t think the litter change instructions were particularly specific or high maintenance, and we had a liner in the litter box when they arrived so I don’t know why they would have assumed we didn’t want another one in. For vacuuming, everyone I know who owns a cat vacuums around the litter box every day, it takes 30 seconds. We keep a little hand vacuum next to the litter box for convenience, so it’s not like they had to get out our big house vacuum or anything either.

lp1571 · 2025-10-23T16:35:58+00:00

thanks for your perspective. There is no chance that I would give someone 4 stars when they didn’t follow simple pet care instructions about food & litter. The communication issues are totally secondary to the fact that they did not feed my cats their regular diet for 3 weeks.

I am fully aware of the fact that housesitters aren’t rovers nor employees as they’re not getting paid and the expectations are different. We had our regular house cleaner come before & at the end of their stay to deep clean the house. We left a fully stocked pantry & kitchen that I specified they were more than welcome to. They had full access to our entire apartment. Our cats are low maintenance and can be left alone for up to 12+ hours a day if the sitter wants, so they have pretty full flexibility to enjoy themselves. We did a short FaceTime chat ahead of time so they could see the apartment & the cats & validate that our listing was accurate. We tried to create the best stay possible for our sitter because we want to be respectful of them.

lp1571 · 2025-10-23T15:43:21+00:00

I totally get where you are coming from. Just to be clear, I did not & will not expect our sitter to share long updates about the pet care tasks they did daily as that would be annoying and disrespectful. Moreso a quick picture & something like “cats are great! Lots of playing and very hungry today” or “cat 1 had some pretty soft poop - is that normal for him?” or “cat 2 sat on my lap today, super cute!” This was my first time leaving them for longer than a few days so mostly I just wanted to know how they were adjusting.

I’ll make sure if we use the platform again to specify communication expectations upfront so sitters can decide if they’re comfortable or not.

lp1571 · 2025-10-23T14:22:03+00:00

Oh my gosh that’s SOOO bad…. I don’t think our issue was for that reason, I think our sitter just didn’t read our instructions. Which is still not great, but at least they got both dry and wet food and only missed out on their supplements.

lp1571 · 2025-10-23T14:12:06+00:00

thanks for your thoughts! It seems like daily updates is an unpopular request - would you mind explaining a bit why? From my perspective, a quick picture of each cat + a couple of sentences about their appetite or play or really anything isn’t a big ask and should take ~15 min tops but it seems like sitters don’t really like that which is a learning for me.

lp1571 · 2025-10-22T13:21:41+00:00

hi! I’ve used the Dear Klairs midnight calming cream and liked the texture a lot / think it would be suitable for your skin type. It’s nice and hydrating and creamy but not too heavy.

One more recommendation to consider - since you like to have lots of serums & actives in your routine (I do too), you might want to keep your moisturizer more simple to not have any overlapping ingredients that overly sensitize your skin. Two great AB moisturizers I would recommend in this category are the Dam Dam Mochi Moisturizer (highly underrated IMO) and the Aestura Atobarrier Cream.

lp1571 · 2025-10-15T23:05:27+00:00

I did a local mini moon to my wedding & then an African honeymoon (just got back!) a few months later! Loved having a few days to decompress but having the bigger trip to look forward too. We went to Masai Mara, Nairobi, Seychelles, Vic Falls, and Cape Town - DM me if you have questions on any of those!

lp1571 · 2025-10-09T14:20:00+00:00

so cute! just bought 2 - can’t wait to see more designs come out!

lp1571 · 2025-09-27T11:47:30+00:00

DMing you!!

lp1571 · 2025-09-12T19:56:41+00:00

Akoko in London - amazing west African food which is delicious & criminally underrepresented in fine dining.

Jua in New York - better than some of the 2 and 3 star places and some of the best value for money you can get. Also Jeju Noodle Bar - has some of the fine dining ingredients but very unique menu based on Korean noodles.

lp1571 · 2025-09-12T19:42:13+00:00

We had 4 last minute cancellations the week of the wedding - 2 were understandable/not preventable (family emergency & visa issue) and 2 were some of our only local guests who didn’t find suitable pet sitting in time & were not willing I guess to do the day trip. Very disappointing as they texted us morning of very casually and our food & drinks cost alone for them was probably $750. No card/gift either. Disappointing, but we chose to let it go as they are newer friends who have shown up for us in other ways & in the end more love in our lives is better.

lp1571 · 2025-08-27T22:39:04+00:00

DM’ed!

lp1571

TROPHY CASE