2014 Memories & Blessings Mason Jar

On New Year's Eve, Joe and I were chatting about our resolutions and plans for the year. I was telling him about how I wanted to choose a word for the year and about this really cool memory jar idea that I stumbled upon on Pinterest. 

Have you seen them? If not, here's the rundown: Throughout the year, you toss in notes of the good things (big or small) that touched your life. Then, at year's end, you pull them out together and reminisce.  To my surprise, he thought the jar was an awesome idea. Almost three weeks later and I finally have the jar done. 

What I like most about this is that while it's obviously a fit for the New Year, it could also work just as well to record what happened between birthdays. 

Need some ideas of what to share? Try some of these:

Surprise gifts

Daily blessings

Happy moments

Special memories

Momentous occasions

Life's little pleasures

Milestones

Accomplished goals

Make Mistakes

I read this in Parade Magazine's 14 New Year's Quotes to Inspire and More. It resonated with me and I hope it does the same for you. I'm so worried about being perfect and doing everything right. I stress all of the time about things I should have / could have / would have done differently. It's easy to forget that going outside of your comfort zone isn't for the fainthearted. You're going to hit snags and mess stuff up, but that's okay.

[Quote from Neil Gaiman]

I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes. 

Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world.

You're doing things you've never done before, and more importantly, you're *doing something*.
 Don't freeze, don't stop, don't worry that it isn't good enough, or it isn't perfect, whatever it is: art or love or work or family or life. Whatever it is you're scared of doing, do it.

Make your mistakes, next year and forever.

Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Best of 2013

Happy New Year, one and all!

I almost can't believe that it's already two thousand fourteen... Where has the time gone? Y2K was 14 years ago... geez louise! While we're all wrapping up our holiday festivities, I thought it might be nice to recap the thirteen most popular posts of 2013 (based on pageviews). It's always fun to see what was most visited because there are always some unexpected treasures in the trove. Check em out!

#13 - WATERCOLOR GUEST BOOK ART ≈ 1.1k views

#12 - TEACHER APPRECIATION GIFT TAGS ≈ 1.2k views

#11 - SPRINGTIME MASON JAR PHOTO HOLDER ≈ 1.4k views

#10 - WOODEN PLANK WELCOME MAT ≈ 1.6k views

#9 - WASHI TAPE MAGNETS ≈ 1.7k views

#8 - DISH TOWEL MARKET TOTES ≈ 1.7k views

#7 - SIMPLE & FUN BRIDAL SHOWER ACTIVITIES ≈ 2.3k views

#6 - GLITTERED MINI MEMO BOARDS ≈ 3k views

#5 - COUPON ORGANIZER ≈ 3.3k views

#4 - PAPER FLOWER GIFT TOPPER ≈ 3.7k views

#3 - DIY WOVEN CAMERA STRAP ≈ 4.3k views

#2 - PERFECT PAPER BOW & TEMPLATE ≈ 5.2k views

#1 - "ALL OF YOUR FIRSTS" WINE GIFT BASKET ≈ 16k views

While I think the list is pretty well-rounded, I know that some of my favorites from the year are missing. Did you have a favorite project from 2013? I'd love to hear what it was!

Thanks for all of the support -- I'm so thankful to all of you for being a part of my life. This blog is just a 'hobby' and even when my 'real' job gets in the way, I love having this community to fall back on. Best wishes to each and every one of you. Enjoy your day, week, year, and beyond <3

Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram

Top 12 of 2012

2012. In just a matter of hours it'll be over. How about a look back at the top posts of the year?

Paint Chip Brooches

Last last-minute project of the year! We'll be heading down to the beach tomorrow afternoon to ring in the New Year. Since it'll be freezing cold down there, we'll be bundled up instead of dressed up. To add a bit of glam {and glitter} to our NYE outfits, I made these simple Paint Chip Brooches:

Grab your quick-drying glue, glitter, and a couple of coordinating paint chips and we'll get started!