I'm always finding new gems on Instagram, and I freely admit my "follow" list changes almost weekly. In addition to tons of artists and Disney photographers, I try to keep a good random mix in my feed, so here come 5 of my newer favorite follows:
I'm not the only one who dreams about buying a crumbling Gothic mansion and restoring it while John and I and the cats live in an RV in the backyard, right? Because this account will fuel ALL your crumbling old house dreams:
I was born in Toledo, Ohio, so this one was calling my name really hard last month. Hnnnnng.
This is from a different house, but LOOK at the incredible wall finish:
Makes me miss being a faux finisher, back when John and I had to match stuff like this.
This is why you always scroll through the slideshows on Cheap Old Houses; even if the exterior of the house is a little boring, there's almost always something drool-worthy inside.
*****
2) Peter Anton, sculptor of giant food:
This broke my brain in the best way, and almost every post makes me grin. It doesn't get more "eye candy" than this!
If you grew up in the 80s then this is the account for you. They post toys, commercials, snippets of shows like Reading Rainbow or Alf, memes...
Basically all the stuff you don't remember that instantly take you back:
Ahhhh, sweet nostalgia.
*****
This Korean artist makes the most incredible "cookies" out of piped meringue:
The best part, though, is she posts lots and lots of videos, which are SO satisfying to watch:
I friggin' love these, could watch them all day. (Turn off the sound to save your sanity, though.)
She also pipes squishy marshmallow versions that completely blow my mind:
(Not a video, sorry for the unintentional troll, ha! Visit her feed to watch it.)
Her posts have slowed down lately, but definitely scroll back through her feed; many of her slideshow posts have videos in them.
*****
And finally, because I know Instagram is 90% cute animals and we should keep it that way:
This long-distance Nose Boop video on the top left is quality content, A++
I hope you found something new here to make you smile! It takes a lot of work to turn our feeds into positive, inspirational spaces - which is why it can be so tempting to abandon social media all together. (Believe me, I get it.) I truly believe the personal connections we can make here are worth the effort, though, especially for those of of us who live so much of our lives online.
Towards that end I'm going to try to share recommendations like these more often. So tell me, which platform do you want recommendations for next: Facebook or Youtube?
And while you're at it, tell me your favorite FB pages and YT channels to follow!
****
I suppose I should mention we DO have an Epbot Youtube channel here, so hey, maybe subscribe? We're pretty bad about consistent posting over there, so your subscription will help remind you when we do.
I don't use Instagram much but two accounts I've been following recently are marianarrizon, an amazing Mexican cake decorator and pastry chef, and elseed, a street and sculpture artist out of the UAE who does great work with Arabic calligraphy.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy LazyGameReviews or LGR on Youtube, funnily enough I like his non-game content the best! He has a series called "Thrifting" where he edits together his various thrift store runs, as someone who enjoys the hunt of thrifting I really enjoy getting to live vicariously through him (And on that note, if anyone else has any recommendations for people who go thrifting please let me know! I love seeing what other people find). LGR also has a series on a separate channel called LGR Foods where he films himself making sandwiches. I find the LGR Foods channel to be super relaxing, I'll often put the playlist on as I'm winding down for the night.
ReplyDeleteFor maker related channels, I just started watching Evan and Katelyn. I find them hard to describe other than just saying that they seem like really fun and genuine people who love doing what they're doing.
We love him too!! I don’t have any YouTube recommendations for you but you might want to check out the Facebook group Thrift Store Score. It’s just a bunch of people who love thrifting and then sharing and talking about their finds. 😊
DeleteCheap Old Houses is my jam. I've been following for a long time and adore it. I'm always scouting cool places I could suggest my mother could move to. Now I'm using it for the possible move my own household is making!
ReplyDeleteIf you don’t already follow The Tiny Chef on IG, you must immediate.
ReplyDeleteAww this list is so wholesome! I'm going to have to stay far away from the giant food sculptor because it's too tempting, but he's legit! Thank you for sharing these finds. Btw I think the dessert artist is Korean.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely Korean - Korean flag in bio, Korean notes in the background of linked video, Naver domain website, and Korean language in bio. It's really frustrating to see this kind of casual racism on a "feel good" post
DeleteOops, thanks for the correction, Jo! I'll go fix that now. And Sarah, fwiw I did try to research what country she was from, found that she taught a class in China, and made the wrong assumption. (I'm afraid I don't know the Korean language on sight - and Google Translate wasn't working.) Anyway, I'm sorry I didn't try harder.
DeleteSigh. I don't want to blow this up. It's a super cute and cheery post! Sarah, it's just as frustrating to see casual virtue signaling standing in for "educating" our sweet blogger. There was clearly no intention of belittling the artist. She has an international platform. I bet she has a reasonable sense of humor and grace for her fans. I'm not going to say any more, but thanks, Jen, for being transparent, day in and day out. I think we can all give each other some grace.
DeleteHave you seen Tiny Chef (aka thetinychefshow) on Instagram? It brings me so much joy!
ReplyDeleteYesss! His cute little voice!
DeleteSome of my fave YT channels you might enjoy are TinyKittens and Kritter Klub for cute animal squee and awww, and Bernadette Banner for crafty edwardian sewing stuff.
ReplyDeleteOh man, the eightiesgirl page is a total rabbit hole for me. So many memories!
ReplyDelete"Boop!"
ReplyDeleteMy Froggy Stuff is one of my favorite people on YouTube. Toya is a doll collector and crafter, so she has a ton of videos making 1/6 scale miniatures, mostly from recycled materials (and I've always been a sucker for miniatures!).
ReplyDeleteWow...just looking at that Eighties Girl stuff makes me so nostalgic! I actually STILL have that exact Poloroid camera in grey & pink (somewhere). It came with a matching case and a pair of pink plastic sunglasses. I gave the sunglasses to a friend, but the case is with the camera.
ReplyDeleteFlora Forager is definitely one of my favorite artists to follow on IG. She makes beautiful artwork out of stuff she finds out in nature - leaves, petals, sticks, etc.
ReplyDeleteLiz Climo is always a hit. She's the one who draws those darling little cartoons with the animals being all sweet and helpful to each other.
That alpaca is adorable! I totally deleted my facebook because of the drama and negativity, I realized that it was bringing me zero joy. I love watching the most random stuff on youtube, including Cruising the Cut. He is a British former TV journalist who lives in a narrowboat cruising the canal network in the UK, and he is about as British as British can be. Also I've seen Jenna Marbles' video on houseplants about a dozen times because watching someone nerd out about their majestic hoyas and snake plants is oddly therapeutic.
ReplyDeleteOkay, this is a bit weird, especially considering I have one of the weakest stomachs in the world, but I love Audiology Associates UK on YouTube. They are ear wax removal videos, which sounds icky but which is actually really fascinating. The big draw for all the followers though, is the audiologist and his voice. Rhys Barber is Welsh and his voice is lilting, happy, and SOOO relaxing!!Many of us fall asleep to his voice nightly. His wife makes an appearance once in awhile,and she is truly stunning. Apparently many Welsh people have bright deep blue eyese, and both the Barbers exemplify this.
ReplyDeleteOh my God, you're totally not weird! I love those earwax removals & pimple/whitehead popper videos! What a YT rabbit hole XD
DeleteYou are so right about the rabbit hole! And, for those who have trichotillomania (hair pulling) or dermatillomania (skin picking), it can really help some sufferers. You wouldn't think that an ear wax removal video could be cheerful, but they are!
DeleteI love Zelda Master on Youtube - very helpful when you want to 100% any Zelda game, and I plan to travel to Japan next year, so I love watching Rachel & Jun & their travel recommendations :)
ReplyDeleteI love to proselytize for Instagram's wolfgang2242, who lives with a host of delightful rescued animals including a passel of adorably scruffy senior dogs and the majestic Bikini the pig. The group shots always make my day!
ReplyDeleteEmma Pellerito on YouTube. She's on Instagram as @inkyexperiments. She does art from handwriting and was my inspiration to start doing similar art.
ReplyDeleteNerdECrafter on youtube is hilarious!
ReplyDeleteIf you've ever imagined accidentally buying a Victorian house in Scotland that needs major work, camping out in the yard in an RV with an outdoor kitchen, then WhatHaveWeDunoon is absolutely the account for you! They post pictures of their progress and it is amazing and inspiring all at the same time!
ReplyDeleteWe really enjoy Rachel Maksy(vintage fashion and cosplay), Evan&Katelyn(DIY--they also have a gaming channel that is super entertaining), and NerdECrafter(clay crafting and kit reviews) on YouTube.
ReplyDeleteYouTube next please! That's where I tend to spend a lot of my time lately
ReplyDeleteI know I'm a week late to this blog entry, but I just had to share that first, I was surprised to see a house from my city at the start of this post, then legit yelled "JEN WAS BORN IN TOLEDO?!" when I read underneath. NGL, I fangirled there for a moment. /dork :P
ReplyDelete