2012 revisited

Last year I kept a "good things" jar. Every time something neat happened, I wrote it down on a little slip of paper and put it in a jar in my bedroom. On New Year's Eve, I emptied the jar and relived all of the good memories I'd had throughout the year. It was a really fun project (and one that I'm currently doing again for 2013) but when it was over I didn't know what to do with the my memory notes. At first I bundled them up with a paper clip and put them in a zip-lock bag in a drawer, just until I could come up with something better. And then it hit me - duh! - a scrapbook! :)



I gathered up all of my notes, purchased a pretty 8" x 8" pink scrapbook and ordered photos to go with some of the occasions I'd written down, like my day trip to NYC with Amber last June, my trip to Disney, adopting Hubble, etc.

My mom and I used to do real scrapbooking -- like the kind where you have tons of gadgets and paper-cutting tools and patterned papers and stickers and embellishments and the pages look like they could be in magazines -- but I wanted this to be more like a journal, kind of messy and fun! I just used washi tape and some cheesy stickers from Michaels, and then doodled a bit on the pages. The result is a sort-of-sloppy but definitely fun little peek into my year, and, I think, the perfect way to preserve all those happy memories!

good things

At the end of 2011 I saw an idea on pinterest to write down good things that happen throughout the year and keep them in a jar. On New Years Eve, open the jar and read all of the lovely things that happened to you during the year. I decided to try it out last January, and I actually stuck with it through December!

I wrote down big things (adopting Hubble, passing 6,000 sales on etsy, my first airplane trip), little things (playing board games with my brother, holding Chloe for the first time) and nice things that people said to me. It was so nice to relive all those wonderful moments, and I really couldn't have picked a better year to try this out. Overall 2012 was clouded with family heartbreak and professional disappointments for me. I honestly wouldn't have looked back on 2012 with even the least bit of fondness if I hadn't kept track of all of the nice little things along the way and reminded myself of them on New Years Eve. I am definitely doing it again this year!

If you're thinking of trying this for 2013, I do have one suggestion. If something awesome already happened, write it down. But if something awesome is potentially going to happen - no matter how exciting that something seems -- don't write it down right away. There were quite a few things in 2012 that I got SUPER thrilled about (particularly Flapper Doodle opportunities) and they ended up being huge let-downs. If I had written them down and forgotten to take the paper out, I would have been reminded of my failures on New Years Eve. That wouldn't have been fun. So if someone emails you about an exciting collaboration or project, or if you get an interview for the job of your dreams, just hold off for a little bit before writing it down.

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 :)