Looking back on 2012

Most people probably start these posts with "wow! this year just flew by!!" but for me this year dragged on like no other. It was one of my least favorite years so far, and I'm pretty happy to be bidding adieu to 2012 tonight. With that being said, there were some happy moments sprinkled throughout the year and thanks to this blog they were documented, so I can remind myself that 2012 wasn't entirely as gloomy as I thought it was. Here are some of my favorite outfits, posts and moments from the past year!




Favorite outfit: sick day and black and grey
Favorite post: My top 5 storage solutions for small spaces
Moments: I saw Beauty & The Beast in 3D with my mom and grandmom, I dyed my hair pink again starting a new year of indecisive hair coloring, I got hooked on LOST, I made my first fonts for Flapper Doodle




Favorite outfits: pastel fade and I have to see some dinosaurs like right now
Favorite posts: DIY business card valentines, Bright hair care Q&A with Kelsi from Brighter Sides
Moments: I adopted Hubble!! I hit 4,000 sales in my etsy shop, we celebrated Chloe's ninth anniversary and Hypatia had an amazing recovery from a scary illness




Favorite outfits: Posh frock friday and This outfit is my favorite outfit of all outfits
Favorite posts: My Pi Day festivities
Moments: Getting to work on the Sucre paper doll poster, seeing Dinosaurs!!, I celebrated my 2nd blog anniversary, and I finally got some much-needed closet space (still haven't posted photos of that yet, though! whoops!)




Favorite outfits: dots and dots and my first thrifting find
Favorite post: DIY 3D embellished dress
Moments: I started The Book Fair, attended the science festival in Philadelphia with my family, and dyed my hair light red.




Favorite outfits: Confetti salad and buzz buzz buzz
Favorite post: my wardrobe in review video for a modcloth contest
Moments: I celebrated five years with Hypatia, I rediscovered my love for painting, I updated my blog layout and dyed my hair dark blonde.




Favorite outfits: Look what I made: unicorn dress! and lilac & leopard
Favorite posts: Scalloped stamped dress DIY and my unicorn dress!
Moments: I met Amber in person (!!!!!) I hit 5,000 sales in my etsy shop, my family and I started spending Saturdays at the beach (it was so perfect!), and Danielle asked me to be a part of the Kitschy Digitals launch




Favorite outfits: would you like fries with that? and Inspired by The Nard Dog
Favorite posts: a happy hypatia post and lipstick organizer DIY
Moments: I was featured in Vogue Girl Korea, my laptop bit the dust (but I love my new one!), my grandmom turned 75, I took a day trip to NYC with my mom & grandmom and had a blast, and I dressed up like Andy Bernard from The Office.




Favorite outfits: pink! and bridesmaid gown restyle
Favorite post: how to make a seamless repeating pattern
Moments: I went one whole year with at least one sale-a-day in my etsy shop, Chloe (aka the assassin) let me hold her, and I dyed my hair pink again.




Favorite outfits: my favorite outfit EVER and ballet memories
Favorite posts: I miss the 90's, how one dress changed my life, and my top 5 closet storage solutions
Moments: I saw The Birds on the big screen, I finished my 2013 Flapper Doodle calendar (my favorite FD work to date!) and I started saving for my own house.




Favorite outfits: Pumpkin pie and Back to normal
Favorite post: Just a couple of kittens out on the town
Moments: I launched Sweet and Lovely!, made a dress specifically for apple picking, saw Lawrence of Arabia on the big screen and dyed my hair dark blonde again (last hair color change for the year, hooray!)




Favorite outfits: birthday frock and such a wholesome place
Favorite post: we're clearly soldiers in petticoats
Moments: I was officially one year older, I went to Disney World!!, I flew on an airplane for the first time ever and I hit 6,000 sales in my etsy shop on my birthday :)




Favorite outfits: a new favorite and jeepers creepers
Favorite post: some thoughts on the christmas spirit
Moments: My Aunt Annie turned 101, I had a really fun day in New York with my brother, I decorated my room for Christmas, and enjoyed some time off with my family :)

ch-ch-changes

Tomorrow is New Year's Eve, and it's that time of year for thinking about change and life and what we'll do differently after the clock strikes twelve on January 1st. I have lots of changes in mind for my life but today I want to talk about a few I have in mind for this blog.

When I started blogging here in 2010, it was meant as an outlet for posts that wouldn't fit into my classic film blog, Silents and Talkies. Eventually I decided to start uploading outfit posts as a way to improve my terrible self-confidence (I went from covering my face in photoshop in my first outfit photo --I'm not kidding-- to actually smiling at the camera now. Mission accomplished!) Last year I tried really hard to stick to a schedule, afraid that my inborn laziness would creep into blogging and I'd unintentionally abandon it. I used to blog twice a day. Every. Single. Day. 9am every morning and 6pm every evening. I was determined to stick to it.

But over the last six months or so, I've become much more laid back about my regimented schedule and started posting maybe 4-6 times a week. I like it this way, and that's one thing that isn't going to change in 2013. I've found that this blog has become such a major part of my life now, I'm going to post whether it's 6pm or not. I'm still going to get that "ooh I should blog about this!" urge, and when I get dressed in the morning, dagnabit, I'm going to take a photo of myself posing awkwardly in my bedroom.

Because I'm blogging a bit less nowadays, though, I think it's time to change something else -- my sponsorship program. Even though my readership has grown significantly since the last time I adjusted my prices (thank you!) I am essentially cutting them in half. I'm phasing out all sizes except for the extra large size and extending the run time of that size to 60 days while keeping the price the same. If you're a current sponsor, I've already e-mailed you with information about how this change might affect you. If you're a prospective sponsor, you can see my rates and traffic and purchase an extra large ad here.

But the main change that I have in mind for Scathingly Brilliant is that I want to blog about my artwork and projects more often. I've always been wary about this before because it seems like my flapper doodle posts get substantially less feedback than basically anything else I could possibly post here. I'm sure my mind blows it way out of proportion but I always feel like nobody wants to see when I post new drawings or etsy shop updates, or that I'm annoying everyone. But it's a major part of who I am and honestly I'm much more proud of my artwork than I am of the fact that I managed to dress myself in the morning lol ;) So, whether or not it's a popular thing to post, I'm definitely going to be sharing more art in 2013. Hopefully it will help encourage me to draw more often, too, since I've been picking up my pen and paper less and less with each passing year.

Finally, I want to share more of the things I love -- like I did when I started this blog in 2010. If you perused my recent posts you'd know that I like clothing and pastel colors but you'd never guess that I'm a huge astronomy and dinosaur geek, I love classic movies, I am an avid reader and a champion at arcade basketball. I have SO many interests but I feel like I share a very narrow sliver of them here. That's definitely going to change.

Oh, and more pictures of my cats. Definitely more pictures of my cats.

at the last minute

Me and my dad always go out shopping at the last minute on Christmas Eve. We've been doing it since I was little, usually walking out the door of the last store right as the manager is coming over the loudspeaker to announce that they're closed. It's such a fun tradition for us, even though it can be kind of stressful to hunt down those last minute gifts! I usually do a good deal of my shopping online but my dad does almost all of his on this one trip. This year we were pretty successful, finding some really perfect presents for my mom and managing to find dark green hand towels (the one item on her wishlist this year) at K-Mart after looking unsuccessfully for that specific color at what must have been 10 other stores first!

I really loved how my outfit looked with my coat but didn't get a picture of it at home, so here's a silly mirror picture I took at Kohls.. Actually, it probably makes me completely uncool for admitting this, but I rather like mirror pictures. I feel less stupid taking them, rather than posing like an idiot in my bedroom with the self timer ;p And I get to include my Hello Kitty iphone case, so there's that too..

ps. While I'm admitting things I shouldn't .. I don't think I've actually answered my blog/personal emails in over a month. yikes. I was in Disney, then I was really sick, then I had my Christmas rush in my etsy store and then, well, Christmas. I'm preparing on tackling them little by little over the next couple of weeks though. I'm just enjoying a bit of time off with my family this week and then I'll get to it. Sorry if you've been waiting on a response from me! I hope you understand :)

dress - c/o emerging thoughts | coat - f21 | scalloped collar shirt - asos | tights - target

shoes - payless | purse - modcloth | hat - absolutely no idea

a grainy christmas

Christmas here was really rainy and overcast, resulting in a pretty grainy and crummy picture. But I especially loved what I wore this year so I wanted to post it anyway.

I hope everyone had a splendid holiday! Mine was amazing. So much fun and so much good food! :) I can never sleep well the night before because I'm so excited for my family to open the presents I got for them, so then I end up being tired all day because I'm so sleep deprived. I ended up crashing for a two hour nap and Hubble stayed curled up next to me the entire time. It's our first Christmas with him so that's a special memory I'll always cherish. A little holiday nap with my new kitty <3

dress- modcloth (similar) | cardigan - old navy | shoes - asos | belt - f21

merry christmas!

Merry Christmas!

I think my favorite part of this season is enjoying the traditions that we've had since me and my brother were kids. We wake up super early to open presents and eat breakfast (croissants, every year!) then head over to my grandmom's for brunch, and then it's back home for dinner! Last year me and my brother started a new tradition of watching all of the christmas episodes of The Office before going to sleep on Christmas night, too. Also Chloe -- my antisocial cat -- joins us for opening presents on Christmas morning every year without fail. It's because she likes all the wrapping paper but we kid ourselves into thinking it's her gift to us ;) I look forward to it so much though!!

Me and my dad went out for some last-minute shopping this weekend and I found these cute little paper houses at Home Goods (my first time in there, by the way, and it's amazing!!) I had been looking for similar ones at Target (they were on the website and said "not sold online" but NO stores near me had them) but I like these a lot better, plus the whole set (including the little snowmen) was only $12. It was looking sort of plain, so I did a quick backdrop painting, inspired by this vintage greeting card (thanks for the link Casey!!) I'm going to be so sad when it's time to take all my Christmas decorations down next week! My room was starting to feel so festive!

Well I still have some presents to wrap (I'm writing this on Christmas Eve and scheduling it.. sneaky! ;D) and hot chocolate waiting for me, and I have my own little tradition of watching the "How the Ghosts Stole Christmas" episode of The X-Files.  I hope everyone is having a wonderfully merry day! :)

ps. I'm having a one day 25% off sale in my etsy shop if you have some new Christmas money burning a hole in your pocket ;)

one hundred and one

Yesterday my Aunt Annie turned 101! One hundred and one. A HUNDRED AND ONE! It's seriously unbelievable. She's such an amazing woman, and I am SO lucky to know her.  She's so spunky, I have no doubt we'll be celebrating her 102nd a year from now!

This is what I wore to her party. Her favorite color is blue so I donned this pretty gold lace dress with a blue lining and a vintage blue floral brooch. I have to say, I'm pretty much obsessed with this dress. It's so breathtakingly gorgeous in person, and the cut is so flattering! I never want to take if off, but I'm reserving it for special occasions, like yesterday :)

ps. Me and my brother decided that 101 is your dalmatian birthday. I made him promise that if I make it to 101, and he's still around too, he has to throw me a 101 Dalmatians themed party. He's 8 years younger than me so I doubt I'd make it to his 101st, but I'll definitely return the favor if I do ;D

dress- c/o modcloth | sweater - f21 | tights - old navy | shoes - asos

wednesday in new york

On Wednesday me and my brother went to New York to do some Christmas shopping and see the tree at Rockefeller Center. Even though it's jam-packed with people who had the same idea, it's still incredibly magical. Being in the city this time of year is magical in and of itself... street musicians are playing seasonal tunes, red and green lights sparkle everywhere and stores have wintery window displays. It was so festive, this dueling sibling duo hardly bickered at all! I think we definitely started a new annual tradition this week ;)

Coat - vivetta | Hat and shoes - asos | Scarf - f21 | Bag - c/o romwe | Gloves - h&m

are you kitten me

I wore this yesterday to go Christmas shopping with my dad. Although this time of year I might as well just wear a potato sack, since I hardly ever take off my winter coat once I'm out the door! It's starting to get really chilly here but not quite chilly enough for snow. It's been raining almost every single day, which is all well and good in April but in December I'd like any precipitation to come in flurries not showers! ;)

Today me and Kyle are going to New York to see the tree at Rockefeller Center and do some last minute Christmas shopping. I'm woefully behind on buying presents this year! I usually pride myself on being an exceptional gift-giver but right now I'm really drawing a blank on what to get everyone. I guess if all else fails I can pull a childhood standby and just make everyone a painting lol

cat dress- c/o romwe | cardigan - old navy | shirt - modcloth

shoes - birthday present (ebay) | belt - f21

christmas, take two

I've done a bit more Christmas decorating since my last Christmas post -- not a huge amount but I love the little additions and wanted to share some new pictures! I loved how my tree looked bare, but I love it even more with some mini tinsel and a mid-century style star (both from target) I originally wanted to add ornaments instead but I think I love the tinsel even more!



I got these adorable flocked vintage Christmas mice on etsy! I'd love to add more vintage decorations to my collection. I'm also working on a vintage-style caroler after seeing Danielle's angel in this post. I have the doll head and the paper cone, I just need to find the time to put her all together lol :)

Also the art in the background is from an It's a Small World postcard set I got on vacation last month! Mary Blair stuff can be hard to find, so if you can't make it to Disney World or Disneyland, I also found them on amazon here.



I'm at Michaels (the craft store) almost every day, it seems, but I still spend at least 20 minutes scouring the shelves for something I might have missed on a previous trip. Last week I found these candy canes. I threw away the box so I don't remember what flavor they are (I'm thinking either skittles or smarties?) but they're so pretty and pastel, I just had to hang them up! I alternated them with these pretty snowflake ornaments I got at Target. I don't know if you can tell from the photo but they look like iced gingerbread cookies! They're adorable!



Lastly, I got a little pink Christmas tree for my dresser! I actually bought it thinking I'd put it in storage for when I eventually have more room (it's the perfect grapefruit-y shade of pink, and it was 50% off, so that's when my "buy it even if you need to put it in storage for now" thoughts kick in) but once I realized it would fit on my dresser I just couldn't put it away! And I made a makeshift star from an enamel brooch :)

Oh, I also got some miniature wooden nutcrackers from the dollar store and painted them to match my room, but I forgot to take pictures! I'll sneak them into an outfit post sometime this week ;)