There are few locations the place Whitney Leavitt hasn’t made a TikTok: on a airplane, in a car parking zone, in a soda store drive-thru, in the course of a marathon, and even in a NICU. (OK, that was one time.)
Now with greater than 3.4 million followers throughout all of her social media accounts, the 32-year-old mother of three leads a busy life as one of many stars of Hulu’s The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, which follows a gaggle of Utah-based Mormon influencers recognized collectively as MomTok. As such, Leavitt has mastered the artwork of filming on the fly, curating a toolkit of transportable (and inexpensive) devices that include her in every single place.
Credit score: Mashable Composite: Zooey Liao / Picture Credit score: Nik Roberts / Getty Photos / Otterbox / Newmowa / Splice
“It’s funny, the more that I’ve gotten into being a content creator, it’s the cheaper stuff that I love more,” she mentioned. “You can buy the lights that are bigger than this, you can buy the tripod that’s bigger than this. But I’m always on the go, and also I’m a mom, and I’m not gonna fit that kind of stuff in my diaper bag.”
Contemporary off of Secret Lives Season 2, Leavitt sat down with Mashable over a video name to disclose her content material creation necessities and different tech she will’t reside with out.
An Octobuddy telephone mount
Leavitt makes use of a scorching pink Octobuddy to affix her iPhone 15 Professional Max to home windows whereas she data TikTok dances and lip-syncs, preferring to movie in environments with loads of pure mild.
“I think it’s all about the lighting, I really do,” she mentioned. “I just think it makes or breaks the video, to have some good lighting. … I’ll always look for a window.”
An LED selfie mild
If Leavitt cannot discover a good supply of pure lighting, she defers to the “amazing” Newmowa LED selfie mild she purchased based mostly on a glowing advice from TikTok megastar Alix Earle. “She raved about it, and I was like, oh, that makes a huge difference in my videos,” mentioned Leavitt.
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A vacuum suction telephone holder
Leavitt forgoes a conventional smartphone tripod in favor of a VIBE USA stand that she purchased by means of TikTok Store. There is a vacuum suction mechanism and magnets on its base that allow her simply mount it to non-glass surfaces that the Octobuddy cannot follow. “This is so cool, you can literally stick it to anything,” mentioned Leavitt, demoing the gadget on a close-by wall.
The Splice app
Leavitt edits most of her movies proper within the TikTok app earlier than cross-posting them to Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts. Nonetheless, she additionally dabbles in Splice, one other cellular video modifying app she likes for its simplicity and resemblance to TikTok.
“CapCut didn’t really resonate with me,” she mentioned, “but I love Splice. Super easy to use… If I just wanted to edit a video without having to upload all my videos on TikTok, then I’ll just upload them on Splice.”
An ‘on a regular basis cute little purse’
Leavitt’s content material creation instruments reside within this fake leather-based shoulder bag, her “everyday cute little purse,” alongside a pair of Apple AirPods, cuticle oil, and a Chomps meat stick. “You know, the essentials,” she quipped.
A Celluma PRO mild remedy machine
Past her filming must-haves, the Celluma PRO is one gadget that Leavitt reaches for day by day with out fail. She sits underneath the medical-grade crimson mild remedy machine each morning for half-hour.
“I do not know when you’ve ever heard of Paris Hilton’s tanning mattress that is LED crimson mild remedy, however that is the aim,” mentioned Leavitt. “That’s where I’m trying to get at in life, is being able to have something like that at my house.”
A Ninja air fryer
Leavitt additionally counts her Ninja air fryer as a tech important in her routine. “I meal-prep my meals, and I hate reheating them in the microwave, so I’ll pop ’em in the air fryer,” she mentioned. “I just feel like it keeps it crispy; whenever I reheat food in the microwave, it gets soggy.”
Some Secret Lives followers may be shocked to know that Leavitt would not have a soda maker in her kitchen, given the forged’s well-documented love for Swig, a preferred soiled soda store chain in Utah. However Leavitt needs to protect the sanctity of her Swig rugs.
“I love the experience of actually going to Swig and picking up a drink,” she defined. “I know some of the [Secret Lives] girls have those soda-making machines and their line of purees and syrups. I don’t have that, because if I did have that, it would get dangerous really fast.”
