PicoBlog

I know Syd from the town where I grew up. I remember she was one of the very first bloggers I was aware of back in 2011. Syd is a full time content creator, working big time brands. I interviewed her in 2020, when I first launched this series. At the time, she was living in a condo downtown Toronto. What I found the most endearing about interviewing her for the second time around, was how she’s pursued all the dreams and goals she set out for herself and shared back in the initial interview. She moved to the country and built her dream home with her partner, and lives a beautiful, intentional, and slow life with her two dogs and fiancé. At the same token, when comparing the two interviews, many of her answers were actually super consistent and similar, which just goes to show that she’s confident in what she likes and has a strong sense of self. I’ve enjoyed following along with her house building journey, her cold plunging routine, as well as her intro to gardening. She mostly shares video content of her daily life over on Insta and TikTok, if you’re into that. She’s sweet as pie and truly down to earth. Thanks for round 2, Syd!

39 (mostly) rapid-fire questions with Sydney Hoffman.

What time do you wake up? Is it different on the weekends?
Right now I wake up at 7am but as the sun starts to rise earlier I will naturally wake up earlier with the sun.

First thing you do in the mornings?
I let my dogs outside.

Do you hit snooze?
No, because I never set an alarm. I wake up at the same time every morning.

Are you a morning or evening shower-er?
If it’s a hair wash day it's in the morning. Other than that, always in the evening.

How do you typically spend a day off?
I like to take my sweet time in the morning enjoying my coffee and then I always like to find a trail to go on a walk.

The best part of a day off for me is taking a long time to enjoy my morning coffee. If the weather is nice I will sit on my balcony with my coffee and listen to the birds chirp. After coffee, I like to find a new trail to walk Gary. Although I live in the city I love getting out in nature. Also my day off usually consists of a treat night. I’ll usually order pizza and a movie or binge a new series on Netflix. - Syd, 2020

What’s on your bedside table?
I currently don’t have a bedside table. That’s the next thing we need to buy for our new home.

What’s the story behind your home and how long have you lived there?
My partner Shawn and I bought a piece of vacant land about 3 years ago in the rural Caledon area just outside Toronto. We sold our condo downtown, said goodbye to city life and built our dream home. We officially moved in September and are currently working on our landscaping.

Favourite room in your house?
My kitchen. The natural leathered quartzite stone in our kitchen is my favourite part of our entire house. I’ve never had such a big kitchen before so I’m taking full advantage of it and cooking so much more.

What are a few favourite things that you cherish in your home and why?
I cherish our windows the most in our home. We wanted floor to ceiling windows so we could look out to nature. Seeing nothing but trees, flowers and the sky is truly the most peaceful feeling in the world.

Where do you find / shop for home decor?
Furnishing a full home was overwhelming because I love to take my time picking pieces and I love thrifting but we ended up finding some beautiful items at Crate and Barrel and Article. We still are missing some decor but for those I would love to take our time thrifting them. 

Vintage or new?
Vintage although most of our items in our home right now are new.

But when it comes to clothing, majority of my sweaters in my closet are vintage.

Both! For clothing and furniture. Growing up my mom loved thrift shopping and refurbishing old pieces. I love having some vintage pieces sprinkled throughout my house and in my closet. However, new is a lot more convenient! - Syd, 2020

3 things that are always in your kitchen?
Spinach, sweet potatoes and fresh, local eggs.

3 things you wish were always in your kitchen?
A housekeeper to specifically clean my kitchen (lol). I cook 99% of my meals and the cleanup is never ending.

A built in pizza oven.

Sourdough ready to go so I can make bread or pizza at any time of the day. 

Favourite kitchen utensil / gadget?
Our Technivorm Moccamaster coffee machine. We bought this as a housewarming gift to ourselves when we moved into our new home and it was the best thing we’ve purchased in a long time. Makes amazing coffee and looks super cute on our counter.

Briefly summarize your food philosophy.
I believe in eating good quality foods to fuel your body and brain. As long as it’s going to benefit my body and make me the best version of myself and my mental health, that’s all that matters

Your go-to, no fail recipe?
Roasting a bunch of vegetables together in a bowl with quinoa and some yummy sauce.

Whipping up a quinoa bowl is my favourite. Roast whatever veggies I want, throw in some quinoa and hot sauce and I’m done! - Syd, 2020

Favourite meal growing up?
My mom’s homemade pizza.

Any supplements you take / witchy elixirs you swear by?
I love taking herbal tinctures and learning more about herbs in general. I have this book called ‘Encyclopedia of Herbal Medicine’ that I keep on my kitchen shelves and I’m regularly looking up new herbs and all the benefits. I find it so interesting. There are so many amazing benefits to natural herbs grown right from the earth. Nature is so cool!

Skin on or off potatoes / yams?
Skin on - always!

Cilantro. Love it or hate it?
Hate it.

Coffee or tea?
This is soooo tough. I have an entire tea drawer in my kitchen and I probably have 3 herbal teas a day but I cherish my morning coffee.

THIS IS SO TOUGH…but probably coffee. - Syd, 2020

You’re ordering take out. What do you get?
Pizza or sushi. 

Favourite local restaurant?
Inaka Sushi in Caledon is incredible. Amazing fresh sushi.

Describe your personal style / style philosophy.
I’ve been staring at this question for 10 minutes and I’m struggling to answer it. I don’t know why this is hard for me to answer (hah).

I would say comfy but stylish comfy but outdoorsy.

I love buying good quality staples mixed with fun vintage sweaters.

Your three wardrobe staples, go…
Agolde 90’s pinch waist jeans
A vintage or thrifted sweater
Boston Birkenstocks

What qualities do you look for in your friends?
A loyal friend who doesn’t like drama who prefers to have cozy nights in over a night out.

What’s one trend you're currently loving and hoping to stay for the long haul?
I love the trend of content creators making more food from scratch (even if for some odd reason some get ripped apart for it on TikTok).

I hope the one thing that sticks is the fact that everyone slows down and starts to do the things they truly love in life. Everyone is appreciating nature and cooking during this crazy pandemic. I hope everyone sticks to that once this is over. - Syd, 2020

You decide to treat yourself. How do you indulge?
I have a wishlist of clothing items and accessories. Whenever I achieve something in my business that I’m proud of, I will treat myself. I have been eyeing some running sunglasses from District Vision and some new Norda trail runners.

What’s the one thing you’re willing to spend more money on?
Good quality shoes. I’m so hard on my shoes and clothes for the most part so I really need quality shoes. Especially if they are running or hiking shoes where I will be wearing them a ton.

Keys to productivity?
Setting a routine for yourself and sticking to it.

This time last year, I wish I knew…
That everything works out in the end.

One place in the world you’re dying to visit?
England! Traveling there in April with my mom.

What’s a movie you’ve seen in the last 6 months that left the biggest impact on you?
The Biggest Little Farm. It was so eye opening to see how much work goes into a sustainable farm and how every insect and animal has a huge impact on it. 

Guilty pleasure?
ASMR TikToks.

Song currently on repeat?
Kacey Musgraves - Too Good to be True

Favourite form of movement / exercise?
Walking or running in the forest

If you could rename yourself, what name would you choose?
I love my name so much. I kind of dig my middle name which is my mom’s maiden name - Denby. I think that could be a badass first name.

Tell me a bit about what you do.
I’m a full time content creator which still blows my mind every time I say that. I essentially share and create content around my life everyday.

What’s a typical work day look like?
I like to get outside in some way first thing in the morning. Going for a walk, cross-country ski or a run. Every day at work is different. Some days I need to shoot a brand collaboration which will take me the majority of the day followed by editing. Most days after my morning routine I spend hours on my computer on emails, editing, pitching and organizing the admin part of my business.

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