Creativity Over Coffee: Kate Bowler

Happy Thursday, Friends! I’m so excited for the next installment of Creativity Over Coffee. This is my favorite series on my blog and I know many of you love it at home, too.

Today I’m excited to introduce you to my friend, Kate, who is the creator of the Domestikated Life blog and also has a brand new book, New England Invite, coming out October 1st. I’m counting down the days! I know Kate from blogging BUT we are virtually neighbors and I said to her Kate we need to meet for coffee which we did at our favorite coffee shop, The Lucky Finn, in Scituate Harbor. Grab your coffee at home and join us for a fun chat!

I love your blog, Domestikated Life. Can you share more about your blogging journey?

Kate: I started blogging as a creative outlet right when I got out of college. I had a pretty standard entry level job where I didn’t feel like my creative muscles were being flexed, so I took it on as a project outside of my 9-5 job to start writing more and sharing some of my creative projects at home and in the kitchen. It has evolved a lot over the years and grown up with me. After blogging for several years I made the leap to pursue it as my full time career.

When do you feel most creative or happy?

Kate: I feel most creative when I give myself time to really dedicate to it. It can be hard to force creativity out when you have deadlines or busy schedules, so I try hard to actually carve out time for brainstorming and inspiration – even if it’s just flipping through magazines at night. When do I feel most happy? When I’m playing with my daughter and husband! I’m so grateful that I was able to work towards this career that has given me the flexibility to spend a lot of time with them.

You talk a lot about food and entertaining on your site. My readers love design and New England style, can you share more about your style or some entertaining tips?

Kate: I think my personal style is very rooted in New England aesthetic. Living close to the water, you can see a preppy, nautical vibe in a lot of my photos, clothes, décor, and even in my menus. I think that style actually translates directly to how I entertain too. I like to throw parties that have a classic, clean feel to them, but are at the same time very casual and laid back.

My best piece of entertaining advice is to prep as much as you can in advance so you can actually enjoy hosting and spending time with your guests. That sometimes means being smart about making a plan and a menu that can be executed with little fuss on the day of the event. I’ll set the table the night before, use a big tray to corral things like salt and pepper and condiments that will need to be brought out ot the table, and lay out all of my serveware in advance. For the food, prepare salads and leave garnishes in prep bowls on the side so you just have to toss things to together before serving. Marinate or prep your proteins to be ready to cook off quickly. And choose a dessert that can be baked or assembled in advance.

Who, or what, inspires you?

Kate: I’m still an old school girl and love a print magazine for inspiration. My mom and sister and I swap magazines and I always tear out recipes and photos to keep in a big inspiration file. I also go to our local library a ton and check out lots of cookbooks for inspiration.

You have your first cookbook coming out October 1st, New England Invite, can you tell us more about the book? What can readers expect?

Kate: Yes! I’m so excited for it to come out – you can pre-order it now on Amazon. The book idea started because I love entertaining, but didn’t feel like all of the beautiful entertaining cookbooks that I owned reflected how we host in New England. I decided to write the book I was hoping to read, and chronicled a year of entertaining across the New England Seasons. The book is filled with easy recipes, 12 full party menus, and lots of tips and advice for how to make an event come together (like which dishes you can prep ahead, and how you can make leftovers do double duty if you’re hosting guests for the weekend).

What is your favorite color?

Kate: Navy blue, and I know it’s a preppy stereotype, by coral is a close second.

How do you feel about social media? Do you feel it’s made you more creative?

Kate: I have an ongoing love-hate relationship with social media. In just about every way possible it has lead me to amazing opportunities in my professional and creative career. I’ve met close friends through social media, built my brand and my business, and use it daily to connect with an awesome group of followers. In many ways I find a lot of creative inspiration on social media, and it challenges me to keep creating and trying new things. I do find it’s become increasingly important to step away from it though to keep a fresh perspective and avoid replicating a creative formula that we think may work just to beat the algorithms and garner likes.

How do you juggle everything?

Kate: I have an incredible support system – my husband, my mom, my family, a great babysitter — it takes a village to balance motherhood and a career and I’ve learned that you have to ask for help when you need it, and take it when it’s offered!

I’m also a bit obsessive about organization and write down absolutely everything. I use the app TeuxDeux to keep everything in my brain organized, and take time at the end of each day to plan my tasks for the following 2-3 days.

What advice would you give to someone who is interested becoming more creative, or following in your footsteps?

Kate: Just start. I think that is always the hardest part of the creative process. I’m guilty of it myself, I get caught up in the what-ifs and get too afraid to start an idea. You just have to jump into it and do it, don’t wait another second.

Growing up I was a huge follower of INSIDE THE ACTORS STUDIO. At the end of the program, they would ask the interviewee these questions:

What is your favorite word? Cheers!
What is your least favorite word? Moist. Ugh, I can barely type it.
What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally? My family, they give me so much energy and motivation.
What turns you off? Pessimists
What is your favorite curse word? I’ve been trying really hard to curse less since my daughter is in the sponge-stage of her toddler years. Recently I dropped something on my foot and yelled MOTHER-F…GOOSE! I caught myself, and Mother Goose is now my favorite curse word.
What sound or noise do you love? Summer rainstorms
What sound or noise do you hate? Loud chewing
What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? I’ve recently had a little daydream about owning a book shop. The world needs more bookshops.
What profession would you not like to do? Accounting. Anything with math, numbers stress me out.
If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? Ma’am, your table is ready.

A huge thank you to Kate for joining me today. Listening to her answers makes me want to throw a bunch of parties before summer ends. I hope this interview did the same for you! Be sure to follow along with Kate and check out her new book:

Domestikated Life Blog * Instagram * Facebook * Pinterest

If you’d like more Creativity Over Coffee you can read the full series here

* Photos courtesy of Kate Bowler

** This post contains a few affiliate links for Kate’s book.