2011: A Reflection

While my little corner of the internet has only been around for a mere 11 months, I can assure you I've experienced a rather full 19 years of life. 2011 has been a trying year, but more than that it's been exceptionally gracious. While certain memories will undoubtedly hold strong for years to come, this blog has helped to document those which may be forgotten. As the final day of 2011 comes to a close, I've found there's no better time than now to reflect on all of the wonderful things I've experienced this year:

Many late nights were spent at some amazing concerts...

I even shot my first concert!

Spent the day at the beautiful Cherry Blossom Festival in Fairmount Park...

Frolicking through Rittenhouse Square in the spring...

A lot of dessert sessions at Max Brenners...

Exploring the Parkway when my friends payed me a visit...

A midnight movie premiere...that made sleep through class the next day!

A gorgeous, sunny Memorial Day weekend at home...

Finals week was riddled with projects (and a trip to the emergency room)...

Photo shoots in the park...

And tons out outfit blogging!

Our family vacation to Mexico...

Another concert!

I moved back to Philadelphia for school in September...

Did I mention I like to go to concerts?

And a wonderful, albeit jam-packed winter break at home.

I don't like to limit myself to a single revolution at the start of each new year. Certain goals and challenges present themselves as time goes on, and I can only do my best to overcome them. Perhaps one of my goals this year will be to not limit myself to preconceived notions of success. I feel like I broken out of my anxious shell and taken more chances than I ever have before. I can't wait to see where I'll go in 2012, and I wish you all the best of luck as well!

Appropriately Festive

lace dress $30 - ASOS /  green bag $20 - Urban Outfitters / chain ankle strap flats - Gap / leggings, scarf $6 - H&M

Minutes before I left for work I pulled on my black opaque tights to find not one, but two holes. How did they get there? Why did I only pack one pair of black tights? Where did I leave my travel mug full of coffee? I had a lot of questions. In my moment of desperation I put on my black leggings instead and was plagued all evening by a case of chilly ankles. After I took these photos I decided that maybe wearing footless leggings along with ankle strap shoes also didn't do much for my legs. But hey, life is one big learning experience, isn't it? But don't worry, I bought new tights today and won't be making this mistake again.

This is also the only time of year when I can wear this dress and carry this bag and not feel inappropriately festive. I carry this satchel as my everyday bag, and the couple of times I wore this dress it wasn't until I received some questioning looks from some fellow Starbucks patrons that I realized I was sporting the traditional colors of Christmas decorations. I'm milking this week for all it's worth. 

You Don't Know Until You Try

Silk button down $4 - thrifted / high waisted jeans $20, gold necklace $11 - Forever21 / green satchel - Urban Outfitters / black suede wedges - Bamboo

Hello to all! I hope everyone found some way to enjoy this past holiday weekend, whether you had something to celebrate or not. Hopefully yours was more relaxing than mine (oh, the joys of working in retail!) but it was amiable nonetheless. I've found that I like giving gifts just as much as I do receiving them, and that shopping for everyone else is half the fun. It wasn't until last Wednesday that I was able to check everyone off of my list, but at that point I still had boxes to wrap and cards to make. I'm always putting things off until the last minute.

Wearing pants never fails to induce some sense of bewilderment. "Wait, is Courtney wearing pants?" Yes, yes I am. I know a lot of people are quick to put Forever21 down for mass-producing cheap fads, but the truth is that when I'm looking to try something new and am not willing to invest in a better product, Forever21 is my first stop. I didn't know how I would feel about high-rise jeans but decided they were worth a shot. It's like that old saying, you don't for sure until you try, so I tried and I liked. 

I'm currently recuperating from copious amounts of sugary desserts and the early stages of a cold. Luckily, now that the holiday shopping rush has subsided I have some more downtime this week to rest, recover, do tons of DIY projects, and possibly build up a backlog of posts. I'm looking forward to a productive week!