April Wrapped

The unfolding of the most life-changing year

April

2026 has unfolded both in the most unexpected way and exactly how I imagined. I’m writing this month’s wrapped from a Blue Bottle cafe tucked away on a corner in Wan Chai in Hong Kong. Looking out to coral, fuschia, and blue grey buildings outside, my mind drifts to a completely different set of architecture I’ll be looking at in a month.

It’s a little hard to catch my breath as I think about how big my life has gotten this year. In April I finally was able to book my French embassy appointment. After waiting months to even be able to book an appointment, I’m now the proud holder of a 1-year visa for France. I’ve been dreaming up my move to Europe for nearly 6 years now.

6 years of envisioning a life that’s drastically different from the one I grew up in.

6 years of visualizing my European apartment.

6 years of slowly building out what the rest of my life would look like.

While I know receiving this visa is only the first (very small) step to building this life that I’ve been dreaming up, it’s the first concrete step that I’ve taken in a long time and I can’t help but feel a little closer.

I also went to LA in April to attend the Canva Create conference and to spend some quality time with a close girlfriend of mine. I’ve been catching myself having rather out of body experiences as I find myself traveling nearly every month. Sometimes I take a step back and look at my own life in awe—how did I get to this place where I can travel for work AND for pleasure. Where I’m in control of my workload and schedule. Where it feels like my future is completely within my own control?

The theme of April was noticing all the areas of my life that 8 year old me would be in awe of. The traveling, being able to do an international move, my amazing group of friends, being able to pursue love so freely—the list is endless.

I’m hoping to put together a more detailed letter soon on all the planning that’s gone into my Paris move next month so stay tuned! Until then, here’s everything else that’s happened in April.

Loving

YSL Blush

With all my traveling this year, this has been my go-to blush that I’ve kept in my make up case no matter where I’m going. The pigmentation is insane and it gives such a beautiful healthy glow to your skin. I have it in 44 Nude Lavalliere.

Nars Concealer

While my Merit Complexion Stick has been my go-to base for years, I’ve been enjoying a really natural look lately so I’ve actually been using my Nars Soft Matte Concealer rather than doing a full-face base. It blends like a dream and rarely ever leaves dry patches which is ideal for my combination skin.

Following a training plan

This has been the first year I’ve really set any REAL fitness goals for myself (I’m running 31km in May for my 31st birthday and my first half marathon in October). Which means it’s the first time I’ve had a reason to create a specific training plan to work towards that goal.

I’ve been loving Runna for my running goals which also now has a feature for you to add strength training sessions, pilates sessions, and stretch sessions to your plan. (use code ANGEL for 2 weeks free)

Consuming

Shrinking

I started this show when I was at the start of my grieving process last year. This show couldn’t have come at a better time—bringing a tiny bit of light and comedic relief to an otherwise fucked up situation. Now it’s a major source of comfort for me.

Hunting Wives

Janice Fong put Summer and I on Hunting Wives and you know what—it’s exactly the kind of brain rot that I needed this month. Nothing beats a gold ol’ dramatic murder mystery.

Making

Felt really proud that I got to work with the Singapore Tourism Board during my visit in March. It’s projects like these that make me wonder how I got SO lucky with my career that I get to get involved with the most incredible teams. Here’s the video if you want to check it out!

Snapping

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Angel xo