Welcome to a new year. “So this is the new year? And I don’t feel any different.” A classic lyric.
Somehow it rings very true.
And somehow it does not. A lot happened in 2021 and as a way of wanting to move more towards things I want in life, I’m beginning a new series on the blog inspired by friend Jessica Harumi. She writes a monthly goals post on her blog and just did a year in review too.
Starting this year I’m going to be following suit because the idea appealed so much to me.
Traditionally, I’m a huge goal setter, planner, and dreamer. And with each new year, I take some time to plan out each month and time to dream about what I’d like to accomplish. My physical planner is a huge part of that process and has been for well over a decade now.
Each morning I grab my coffee and water, find my cozy spot on the sofa and get to dreaming and scheming. It’s a sacred time for me. Not perfect, but I still shoot to do it every day.
Since writing my ebook “French Capsule Wardrobe”, I was reminded of just how much I love to write and how much that has been missing from my life. That combined with my inspiration from Jessica, I want to share my recap of 2021 and my goals for 2022.
I want to do what I can to make the most of it without putting too much unrealistic pressure on myself. But I also know that if we don’t over aim, the drift of life that we all experience will carry me further away from the bigger goal: to be better at life.
So here we go!
Recap of 2021
2021 was a very pivotal year for me in my process of healing from CPTSD. Without getting into too much detail, I found that the more I focused on my trauma the worst I felt. But the more space I gave myself to just be the more positive pathways were built in my life.
I continued my 2020 goal of going to counseling every week for 52 weeks. Maybe a few sessions were missed but by in large, I went every week. That’s nearly 2 years of solid counseling.
In May, I decided to end my contract with a long-term client to focus more on my YouTube channel, blog, and business. It was hard to say goodbye because this client was really a close friend and someone I admired a lot. As my youtube channel kept growing and I started to focus more on personal styling clients, I needed that extra space and time.
It was a bit of a risky decision but my husband was very supportive. Being able to work with sponsors on my channel was a huge blessing and kept my business afloat this entire year.
Even though I enjoy working with brands, it had been a lifelong dream to design more physical products and write again. Over the year, I worked to design some new products for my Etsy shop and got feedback from you all on Instagram about which designs you like the most.
Little by little, more and more sales started to come through. A respectable seed was planted and it’s one that I very much intended to nurture this year.
In April, I was fortunate enough to collaborate with Jessica to do the Parisian Style 10×10 challenge and it honestly changed my life. I would consider it a highlight of my year. She was so incredibly encouraging and inspiring to work with and watching her create content reinvigorated me. Being introduced to her community brought me new friends and connections and helped me to rethink how I approach video making, photography, and styling.
In all honesty, getting to do the challenge helped me to believe in myself again and find the courage to end the contract with my long-term client. I saw that if I gave my platform my all, I would need a lot of time and space to do so.
The summer came quickly and although it’s my favorite time of year, I felt a little disconnected from myself mentally. More trauma work had me facing some very difficult memories and to be perfectly blunt, I retreated inward and went on autopilot. There were a lot of intense things to process during the summer; a lot of grieving. In spite of that, there were some lovely women in my life who stood by me and helped me get through it which became a bright spot in my life.
Luckily, I learned from a mentor early on to “play injured” and I continued to make videos and work on my craft. Summer is my favorite time of year so I really tried to focus on that. I also decided to start refining my wardrobe and decluttered an enormous amount of clothing from my life.
And as summer turned to fall, I had the opportunity to work with more styling clients, brands, and to pick back up the Parisian Style Challenge. Another boost that was very much needed!
So many lovely women participated and some new connections were formed that I cherish! It’s truly inspiring to get to know everyone who joins in and I’m hoping to do more of that with Jessica in the new year.
With the arrival of fall knew I wanted to be more prepared for Christmas and the holiday season than I had been in the past. My mom and I made plans and put them on the calendar. Christmas tree in November was a must. It was my goal to celebrate Christmas for as long as possible.
And I’m so glad that I did. It was a remedy in a lot of ways for a hard year. And perhaps one of the best Christmases in recent history.
I also knew that before the year ended I wanted to birth one more project: my ebook.
Depending on how long you’ve been following this blog, you may or may not know that I love to write and have written several books. In 2018 I wrote a 30-day guide to health and wellness called “Simple Is The Cure”. After that, I wrote a course, “Simple Style”, and two other ebooks, “Closet Clean Out Guide”.
Not that I talk about this at all. I’m the worst at promoting my own work! But one long-time idea I had was to turn a handout I had created for a workshop “How To Dress Like A French Girl” into an actual book.
My goal was to take all the lessons I’ve learned from real French women and turn that into a guide. Included would be my dream wardrobe; everything I wish I could own and want to own. In other words, my dream wardrobe, and style dozens of outfits.
So in early December I spent a week just writing and editing, styling and designing. And on December 19th I launched my ebook “French Capsule Wardrobe”. I’m super proud of it and feel like I’m only beginning to scratch the surface of writing and styling.
I finally feel like I’m coming back to myself. Finding balance in work, physical activity, and life; finding more confidence in myself and my abilities. My mind feels more balanced and clear and I hope that this coming year will be even more focused on healing and open to possibilities than I was in 2021.
I can’t thank you enough for all of your kindness and compassion this year. Without your connection and support, I wouldn’t have made it through some very hard times. You being here and being a part of this community is literally what keeps the lights on 😉
Thank you for each comment, email, direct message, like, share, view, etc. Thank you for sharing your life and time with me. It’s really special and I cherish it.
There are so many goals and dreams I have for 2022 and I’d love to share them with you.
Click here to read my next post and to share your dreams and goals in the comment of that post.
As for right now, I want to close and say how proud I am of us for making it through another crazy year. I’m sure you’ve accomplished a lot and been through a lot that no one else knows about or has seen. I see you! You’re not alone. Love you so much, my friend.
How was your year? What did you do that you’re most proud of? Let me know in the comments!
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