A Beginner’s Guide to Manifestation

You wake up on a cool fall morning, groggy and caffeine-deprived.

Before you make the bold decision to get out of bed, you envision yourself brewing a warm, sweet cup of coffee in your kitchen. You imagine how that first sip will taste; rich, smooth, and delicate. “I need a cup of coffee,” you think, and before you know it, you’re sitting down sipping on the most perfect roast.

Just like that, you’ve manifested your own morning cup of Joe!

What is Manifestation?

The word “manifest” means to reveal its presence or make an appearance. When a person manifests something, it means that the thoughts in their mind make its way into their physical reality. Let’s try it out. Imagine you’re taking your left hand and touching your nose. Don’t do it, just imagine yourself doing it. What would you look like? What would it feel like? Now once you have a picture of yourself doing this in your mind, do it. That’s manifestation!

Why is Manifestation on the Rise?

Manifestation is extremely powerful because it allows one to change their physical reality with their own mind. What if someone told you that all of your dreams are already out there, waiting for you to take them? Everything you wish, want, and desire are already established in the universe; your path has already been planned, and it’s been planned out by you. Everything in your life at this moment in time is a result of your thoughts, feelings, and past experiences. In order to claim your future, you must line up your mind with your aspirations in order for the universe to understand that you are ready to receive what’s rightfully yours. How Do I Manifest?

While there are many different ways to manifest your dream life, there are several “must-dos” to ensure that you’re attracting your intended desires. First, make sure that you truly believe in your own potential. Understand that it is completely under your control to see your dreams to fruition. Once you acknowledge this, you’ll open your mind up to positive thoughts and experiences, which will in turn attract good energy to your physical state and transform your reality. Second, envision who you want to be and what you want in your life very clearly. By clearly, I mean down to the color nails and lipstick shade you’ll be wearing on the first day of your dream job! Visualization is the key to manifesting, as it allows one to step into their desires. For instance, picture you as your best self– your highest potential and everything you can imagine yourself standing for. How do you feel? Happy? Powerful? Strong? At ease? Confident? By visualizing this, you are getting a glimpse at how this higher self feels. In turn, you at your present state will feel similar emotions simply by imagining it to be true.

To take visualization to another level, write these desires down and read them daily. The feelings produced by visualizing what you want will consequently raise your energy. The practice of raising your energy to match the energy of the person who has these things (your higher and best self) is the most effective way to manifest. The law of the universe is that it will respond to whatever you are offering by giving you more of whatever you are vibrating.

1. Manifest with water. Pour yourself some water and speak whatever it is you want to manifest into the glass. Sip the water throughout the day and visualize your goals entering your body. There, they can’t escape and you have full control over them.

CRYSTALS

3. Practice gratitude. Focus on what you already have, not what you lack. If you focus on what you don’t have, more of these things will be attracted to you. Remember what we all learned in 4th grade science class? Like attracts like. If your mind is focusing on all of the good things you have, more good things will come. Practice gratitude every single day and never take anything for granted.

Nothing is impossible. If you hold onto your individual power, listen to your heart and visualize your future, you can have anything you want and need. The power of transformation lies in your hands!

WATER

2. Use crystals. Since crystals come straight from the Earth, they hold the power to transmit energy because they generate a specific form of electricity. The best crystals to manifest with are: Rose Quartz (to manifest love and relationships), Pyrite (to manifest success and abundance), Amethyst (for spiritual enlightenment), Green Aventurine (to manifest good luck), and Carnelian (for creativity, motivation, and courage).

GRATITUDE

Who’d have thought vanity and creativity would be the emotional salvation we needed?

Style icon Iris Apfel said it best: “Life is gray and dull; you might as well have a little fun when you dress.” Who knew that these words would become even more relevant this year in the midst of a global pandemic? For many students at the Fashion Institute of Technology, getting ready is one of the best parts of their everyday routine with waking up, applying skincare and makeup, and finally, putting together an outfit serving as the boost required to start the day right. While the process itself of getting ready may be the fun part, the end result is the icing on the cake— the perfect dose of vitality in otherwise sluggish times. As someone who has always loved dressing up, at the beginning of quarantine, I found myself questioning why I bothered to “get ready” in the first place. Here I was, the girl who wore heels to class just because, donning pajamas and sweatpants all day by choice, Here I was, the girl with the extensive skincare routine, telling myself “it’s not like anyone is really going to see me anyways.” Here I was, the girl who lived and breathed makeup, nearly forgetting which makeup brush was used for what. Not even two weeks into quarantine, my habits that were previously dear to me slipped, and along with them, my mental health. Eventually, I started to wonder where my liking toward getting ready even came from. Why do we choose to look good?

Model Danielle Zbodula Gloves Amarcord Vintage

As it was for me, the COVID-19 pandemic was a shock for Jamison Capaccio, 20, a third year Fashion Business Management major at FIT. With the university’s campus closed and all events cancelled, Carpaccio wondered how she was going to continue pursuing fashion & styling— one of her biggest creative outlets. Although hit with a curveball at first, the fashionista quickly picked herself up and drew inspiration from all around her. “At the beginning of quarantine I felt there was almost a burst of creativity beginning to happen all around me,” said Capaccio. “My friends were creating and envisioning new ideas for how we could style [and] everyone on my social media accounts was creating, experimenting, and discovering new ideas. It was almost impossible not to be inspired.”

After spending so much time dressing up for herself at home, and planning out looks, Capaccio even felt driven to share her looks online to potentially inspire others creatively, just like she was inspired by many. Social media quickly became an amazing haven for creatives like Capaccio to share their looks, especially with nowhere to go. However, as the time spent having genuine in-person interactions continues to be replaced by time spent on social media, it is important for one to take everything with a grain of salt. This was something Capaccio learned herself. “Social media is a hit or miss for me,” she explained. “Sometimes it makes me feel better about the look I created and sometimes I look back at it and over criticize myself. Creating looks positively impacts my mental health, and although the process can take a lot of time, I am usually happy with the end results, ” At the end of the day, when choosing to post looks online, it is important to remember that pleasing yourself comes before pleasing anyone else. You have not truly mastered the art of “staying vain to stay sane” if you seek validation in others before you do so for yourself. Capaccio is among the many thriving creatives who have learned the art of “staying vain to stay sane” and used it to their advantage. Rather than letting the “gray” world get the best of her, Capaccio has fun with her style while achieving the illustrious art of protecting her peace amidst a pandemic. For those who are striving to stay sane by delving into their creative outlets she gives her tip: write down your thoughts “I think the best advice I have right now for others is that every idea you have, even if it’s a small one that you think someone has done before or would take too much time and money, write it down, because it might be useful for you in the future,” Capaccio noted.

As proven by Capaccio, myself, and countless others, putting on a little bit of makeup or even doing your hair before an online class can make all the difference in your confidence level during the day. Beyond that, planning ideas for future creative looks and simply searching for inspiration can grant your mental state the boost that it needs (and deserves). When you look good, you feel good ––it’s as simple as that. Who cares if no one else is around? Do what makes you happy but most importantly, do what keeps you sane.

“Life is gray and dull; you might as well have a little fun when you dress.”