Despite actual decades being spent in front of a computer screen, I do the vast majority of my TV and movie consumption through my living room television. Let me tell you, I never imagined I’d ever spend this much time with this TV when I bought it. Sure, I play my fair share of video games and binge-watch a show every now and then, but not like… quarantine-level marathoning or anything. Until now, anyway.
Now that I’ve been able to peel myself off of my couch and take a break from the unending stream of terror that seems to be the state of the world lately, I’m back on my feet trying out some new hobbies, revisiting old passions, and staring at walls instead of ceilings (it’s a nice change of pace). For this, I’ve found an aesthetically-pleasing background gives me somewhat of a sense of normalcy and beauty throughout my day. Luckily, there are several YouTube series that provide a constant output of beautiful and enriching content for me to half-assedly devour, and occasionally get completely wrapped up in. Here are my five favorites.
Architectural Digest Celebrity Home Tours
Nesters, decorators, and Peeping Toms will unite over this incredibly simple-yet-enthralling series of celebrity home tours from Architectural Digest. If you’ve ever wondered where your favorite musician or performer spends the few hours of at-home time that they get between jobs, Architectural Digest is there to document it for you in the grandiose, cinematic style that they deserve.
Obviously, these celebrities have “5 seasons of Breaking Bad” money and “I am Tyler Perry” money with which they hire expensive people and buy expensive things, but that doesn’t make them any less inspirational.
While this series has technically been running since 2012, it’s only been in the last several months that Architectural Digest has moved from a 1-minute short video to a longer-form 10 minute tour. The longer tours are so much more fun and detailed, a vast improvement! So if you’re listening, AD – keep up the good work!
Get cozy in other people’s homes with these episodes:
- Dakota Johnson‘s mid-century Hollywood bungalow
- Dita Von Teese‘s predictably retro mansion (& that forest green kitchen…!)
- Aaron Paul‘s incredibly cozy Idaho lodge
- Mindy Kaling‘s colorfully elegant party house
Vogue Extreme Beauty Profiles
This series is not for the faint of heart. However, if you’re fascinated by the ideas and imagery that you might find unappealing that other people find unspeakably beautiful, get ready for the beauty marathon of your life.
If you’ve ever seen a larger-than-life person whose beauty routine is clearly six times longer than your own, they belong in this series. After watching the profile of neo-human artist Salvjiia, I was completely glued. Salvjiia’s look is somewhere between Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance and every sci-fi movie you’ve ever been too scared to watch. Everything is covered in these GRWM-style shots, from the skincare routine to the clear plastic tubing that they cut (pretty casually, I might add) and glue (also quite casually) to their face. What results is a truly other-worldly beauty that might not always be easy to look at but is always stunning.
Get inspired by the surreal with these Vogue Extreme Beauty episodes:
- Juno Birch, an alien who desperately wants to fit in as a human woman from 1962
- Musician and artist Jazmin Bean‘s dark sweetness look
- Cartoon-like surrealist artist, Sgaire Wood
- Hungry, a human-insect hybrid that rocks high fashion better than all of us
Dianxi Xioge
Something I’ve discovered about myself through all of this: watching people cook traditional Asian cuisine is extremely calming. Dianxi Xioge is an ultra-successful Chinese influencer who built a career around cooking at home after her parents sustained an illness that required her to leave her job. Yeah, that’s very specific info because I went deep on this girl. Her skill set is vast and incredible, and the confident elegance with which she prepares these huge, single-ingredient-focused meals is truly breathtaking. This all sounds flowery like an unimaginative publicist wrote it, but it’s really just me over here, unable to keep my cool around Dianxi Xioge.
The food she makes is native to the Yunnan province of southwest China which is sub-tropical and seems like an absolute food paradise. For each video, Dianxi walks to some kind of magical community food garden and picks tons of a certain type of food, plus some extras. She then prepares the chosen ingredient six ways to fucking Sunday and then shares like nine restaurant-quality dishes with her family.
The filming is very well done and high quality which is awesome because everything else about these videos makes you feel like you’re in a remote jungle with Dianxi, an abundance of food, and beautiful views.
Transport yourself to the Yunnan Province of China:
- Sichuan Peppercorns, the deliciously numbing spice from China
- Everything you never thought you could make with hand-harvested peanuts
- Make rose petal jam with Dianxi and using it in delicious and beautiful dishes
- Gorgeous vegetarian dishes made to be eaten at temple
Mr. Kate’s Home Makeovers
Gosh, where to start with Mr. Kate?! First of all, just to clarify, she’s the one on the left in the above photo and I’ve been delighted to call her a blog friend for over 8 years! Through her YouTube channel and website, Mr. Kate has fostered an incredible community of “Creative Weirdos” (yes, a proper noun) by encouraging the imagination of her followers and fans. Her YouTube channel began with decor tips, DIYs, and mini-makeovers but now… Wow. Mr. Kate is a national design phenom, and her husband Joey is there, too! (Sorry, Joey.)
Ranging from extreme room makeovers for YouTube celebrities to budget-focused projects for normies like us, Mr. Kate’s channel is nothing short of addictive. Complete with befores, durings, and afters, there’s nothing indigestible about her methods. She’ll take you with her to the thrift stores and flea markets for one-of-a-kind decor items, lead you (and her clients) through easy and accessible DIY projects, and teach you how to implement every design concept you’d ever need to turn your home into an Architectural Digest-worthy mansion, no matter the size.
You also get a peek into the creative life of Mr. and… Mr. Kate, themselves, as they purchase and renovate their own English Cottage-style dream house, and then follow along as they create and maintain… their own child! Mr. Kate’s approach to life is based around surrounding yourself with things that make you happy, and it’s reflected in her positive attitude and infectious personality. Definitely worth your subscription!
Inspire your inner Creative Weirdo with these Mr. Kate episodes:
- Molly Burke‘s sensory home makeover, perfectly suited for a blind girl with style
- A studio apartment renovation that cost less than $300
- 3 ways to design a minimalist bedroom
- A highly inspiring office design for YouTuber Lilly Singh
Bailey Sarian: Murder, Mystery & Makeup
For lovers of makeup and true crime, it doesn’t get any better than YouTuber Bailey Sarian’s Get Ready With Me series, Murder, Mystery & Makeup.
This is the love-child of your favorite beauty YouTuber and My Favorite Murder, and Bailey doesn’t turn that camera on without doing her homework. Every Monday as she sits down to prepare her face for a full beat, she introduces you to a delightfully horrifying story, complete with minute details about the people involved, the investigation, and the sometimes anticlimactic outcomes. After all, not ever murder mystery is solved, but from the moisturizer to the setting spray, she’ll have you on the edge of your seat as she recounts grisly details of the world’s most vexing crimes.
Murdering aside (she abstains, btw), Bailey’s career on YouTube started long before her genius idea to blend in a dash of true crime. Her beauty tutorials and makeup reviews were already top notch, earning her over 100,000 subscribers before the series began in January 2019. Since then, however, Bailey has skyrocketed to morbid notoriety and now boasts a well-earned 1.99 million subscribers with over 30 million video views per month. In the month of June, alone, she gained over 400,000 subscribers. Wow.
So fans of true crime, murder mysteries, and beauty queens: this one’s for you.
Grab your favorite palette and comfort blanket for these bone-chilling episodes of Murder, Mystery & Makeup:
- Church Cult & Cellar Girls | The Awful Gary Heidnik
- Candy Man | The Man Who Killed Halloween
- Belle Gunness, The Black Widow of the Midwest
- Jolly Jane, The Angel of Death Went on a Poisoning Spree
That’s it for our five latest favorites. What have you been YouTubing lately?