Early last month when I was in North Vancouver, I stumbled upon this women’s consignment store along the Lonsdale Quay area. Their items were adorable and I loved the aesthetic of the store in general. Although I didn’t purchase anything, I hope to come back again in the near future.
Check out the Reel I made about my visit!
This week, I visited lifestyle and travel blog, Angie in Canada. So, keep reading to find out more about this week’s blog!
This is Angie and her blog, ‘Angie in Canada’
Angie in Canada is a lifestyle and travel blog created by Angie, an exchange student from Hong Kong. Her journey in Canada began two years ago. Ever since touching down, she has had the opportunity to visit some great places, eat delicious foods, and try new seasonal activities in Vancouver, BC—all of which you can read more about on her blog.
All in all, Angie hopes to share her experiences in Canada—particularly in Vancouver and at SFU—with her audience, taking them along on her personal journey.
Imagining Angie’s audience
Just from reading Angie’s introductory post titled, ‘Hello everyone!’, I’m immediately drawn into who Angie is and who her audience is: university and other exchange students alike who are exploring Canada one day at a time. Though I will say, seeing that this is a lifestyle and travel blog, I wouldn’t limit her audience to that specific demographic just yet. Rather, this blog would be great for lifestyle and travel enthusiasts like Angie. But anyway, let’s take a closer look at Angie in Canada.
Content—a casual and colloquial conversation
Something I noticed in each and every blog post on Angie in Canada is the casual and colloquial writing style used by Angie. I appreciate that as a reader because not only did the topics in each post intrigue me, but I felt like part of the author’s thoughts and conversations.
This writing technique reminds me of Suler’s ‘online disinhibition effect’—that feeling we have in cyberspace where we say, act, and do as if nobody is watching—in that what Angie has written thus far is a reflection of her personal values.
The UX (User Experience)
The UX—user experience—of a website covers functional aspects.
The theme and design of Angie in Canada tie everything together. Right when you land on Angie’s website, you’re greeted with a personalized heading and clean design.
The navigation bar is tidy and categorized by topic. However, I think the link to Angie’s ‘About’ page could be moved from the top-right corner of the screen to the navigation bar so that all her pages are all in one place.
Other than that, I appreciate the addition of photos in each post to compliment the text content. For instance, in Angie’s ‘VanDusen Botanical Garden’ travel post, the text content is followed by a photo gallery that provides us a visualizer of her experiences.
One more little detail that caught my attention and gives Angie’s website more personality is the integration of a Spotify badge in the right-hand-side menu. The badge features Spotify’s ‘Chill Hits’ playlist and updates regularly with tunes that you can listen to while reading Angie in Canada. It not only encourages interactions on her site, but it makes for a great reading experience.
If Angie hasn’t had a chance already, I’d recommend looking into how else she can boost her SEO. Having a good SEO is great for builds user engagement, site credibility and trust, and user experience. Hollingsworth covers this in more detail in his 2021 article, ’15 Reasons Why Your Business Absolutely Needs SEO.’
The UI (User Interface)
On the other hand, the UI—user interface—of a website highlights visual aspects.
Something that stood out to me was the use of negative, or white, space. While sometimes white space can be too overwhelming and other times nonexistent on websites, Angie in Canada gives us an easy-to-read and easy-to-navigate design with an even balance between text and image content and negative space.
Even more so, the font colour contrast against the white space plus the sans-serif typography used across Angie in Canada allows for an easy reading experience on the eyes.
When you take all these different elements into account, you get a good sense of the image and brand that Angie is promoting—her brand. As Gertz (2015) notes, the pattern that these elements forms becomes its own “trademark.”
My final thoughts on Angie in Canada
In terms of overall marketability, I feel that Angie definitely knows her audience and has done an exceptional job at catering her content to them. Like a performer has a crowd of fans at their show, Angie has her own public made up of individuals who share similar interests as her and as each other.
Each post is consistent with the theme of her blog—travel and lifestyle—and doesn’t fail to engage her readers with curated photo galleries for each of her experiences shared. I think Angie has done an amazing job building her personal cyberinfrastructure, and she has lots of room to continue developing it through her blog.
So excited to continue reading Angie’s content, and I encourage you to check out Angie in Canada as well!
References
Gertz, T. (2015, July 10). How to survive the digital Apocalypse. Louder Than Ten. https://louderthanten.com/coax/design-machines
With finals season right around the corner, I thought it was time for a wellness post dedicated for fellow students like me who are trying their best to make it through to the end of the semester.
It can be easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of academic life. With classes, assignments, exams, and extracurricular activities all vying for your attention, it’s no wonder that so many of us students find ourselves feeling overwhelmed and stressed out. However, it’s important to remember that your wellness should always be a top priority. Today, I’ll be sharing five tips to help you prioritize your wellness as a university student.
Sleep is one of the most important aspects of wellness, yet it’s often the first thing to go when we’re busy. It’s important to prioritize getting enough sleep each night, as sleep is essential for cognitive function, memory consolidation, and emotional regulation. Aiming for at least 7-8 hours of sleep per night and establishing a consistent sleep schedule can help regulate your body’s internal clock and help you feel refreshed and ready to take on tasks when you wake up.
Exercise is another key component of wellness. Regular physical activity can help improve your mood, reduce stress and anxiety, and improve overall health. Aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise most days of the week, whether that means hitting the gym, going for a run, or taking a yoga class.
The food we eat has a significant impact on our physical and mental health. Over my past few years of university, I have learned that it’s important to prioritize a balanced diet that includes a variety of nutrient-dense foods, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats. While this is something I have struggled with in the past, turning to Pinterest or Google for healthy recipe ideas or getting help from a nutrition coach can help with ensuring that you are eating well everyday.
Stress is an inevitable part of life, but it’s important to have tools in place to help manage it when it arises. This might include deep breathing exercises, meditation, mindfulness, or journaling. Experiment with different techniques to find what works best for you, and make time for these practices regularly. Personally, I really love journaling and stretching as stress-management tools, but feel free to do whatever works for you!
Finally, it’s important to remember that you don’t have to do it all alone. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, stressed, or struggling with mental health issues, don’t hesitate to reach out for support. Whether you decide to reach out to a friend, a family member, or a counsellor, it’s important that you feel cared for when the workload of school gets overwhelming.
In conclusion, prioritizing your wellness as a university student is essential for your overall health and academic success. By making sleep, exercise, nutrition, stress-management, and support a priority, you can ensure that you’re taking care of your mind and body even when your schedule is packed and life is busy.
With care & joy,
Ainah
Enjoy this video of my friends and I trying out Catch 122 in North Vancouver for the first time!
It’s been about a month since I’ve started my content creation journey with this blog, my Instagram, and my TikTok all under my “Life With Ainah” brand.
With that said, I thought I’d take the time to share a bit more about myself. I posted this on Instagram a couple of days ago and wanted it to have a space on my website as well.
“
hi friend! i’m ainah. 
by day, i’m a communications student, content manager, freelance designer, & aspiring content creator. 
but these are all labels and positions that anyone can associate with me on a surface level basis.
to dive a little deeper, i’m a follower of Jesus. i have and continue to struggle with anxiety and comparison — so having a platform to talk about beauty and intentional living doesn’t just run skin-deep around here.
more than just sharing my fave make-up products, i hope to bring light to how knowing my worth in Christ has brought me a confidence that no product could ever grant me. and more than journaling prompts and routines, i hope to share how the peace of Jesus has equipped me to live a wildly intentional life even when worry plagues me.
i also love coffee and cafes and the people in my life — so you’ll be bound to see some reels of places i visit, my memories, and recommendations here.
thanks for being here 
i’m always down to make new friends and connections here on instagram — so please feel free to reach out if you want to talk!”
With care & joy,
Ainah
