Well, looky who’s back. Why is it sooooo hard to get back into the swing of things after the holiday madness? Like why do I all of a sudden turn into a sloth? Not surprisingly there’s been a whole lotta reviews, roundups, reflections, predictions, and goal setting for the past and present year popping up in all my social media feeds. It’s been a ‘goal’ of mine to be better at setting goals for the past 5 years. Obviously not doing too well on that note. But I refuse to give up. I am FOR REAL going to set some concrete goals and put them on paper for 2016.

I also wish that I was better at sharing personal thoughts with you here. I have them, lots of them, trust me. I think sometimes I get too much in my own head and either figure that no one’s interested, I just sound like a whiner or that I’ve already spent too much time thinking and want to move forward before I had the chance to communicate anything. Well I have A LOT to think about in the new year because of a big commitment that I took on recently that I can’t wait to share with you….very soon, promise. 

……..but until the goal setting and secret sharing happens here’s a roundup of the most popular posts from 2015. I scaled back a little bit on the blogging for 2015 so there wasn’t quite as much content but I would like to think that I was going for quality over quantity. 

Birthday Week Twig & Tweet Cake
Well I don’t blame you for loving this one, it really was adorable.

No Churn Pistachio Ice Cream Recipe
What!? No churning and only 3 ingredients? Yeah, that was a hit. I became so obsessed with making my own ice-cream that I whipped up 9 (!) more recipes for the summer issue of Merry. 

Introducing Makeful TV
Well you guys were just as excited as I was with the introduction of Makeful TV and my DIY tutorial video debut. Have you spotted it on TV yet? I’ve had a few celebrity moments. Strangly they’ve all been from men. I had no idea they were so into crafting ;)

DIY Watercolour Heart Cookies
Who could resist these on valentines day? Is it food or art? Discuss. 

Holiday Sangria Recipe
This is a recent one that spoke to all the lushes out there. I hope your holiday was merry and CHEERSful. 

My Kitchen Makeover
I put a lot of my own blood, sweat and tears into making over my own kitchen so it was great to see such positive feedback and this little feature on House Beautiful was icing on the cake. Here’s the final reveal with links to all the different steps and DIY projects that were involved. 

Make Your Own Lamp Shade
Vintage lamp lovers rejoiced when I shared this kit by I Like That Lamp which allows you to live your dreams and buy all those thrift store lamps that need new shades that are impossible to find. You’re welcome. 

Funfetti Easter Cake
This is a really traditional recipe from my family Easter celebrations that happens to be adorable and delicious and obviously you agree. 

5 Refreshing Summer Cocktails
Well it’s clear that I need to share more booze recipes with you guys. These 5 delicious summer cocktail recipes were part of Merry Mag Summer issue. Eating the props was a hard job but I took one for the team. 

DIY Dip Dye Ribbon
People liked getting their hands dirty for this simple but pretty project to make your gifts extra special. 

Two personal favourites of mine that I’m a little disappointed didn’t make the list (what the heck people?!) were these  Boho and Vintage inspired patio hang out stories. 

I’m also SUPER proud and in love with this video project I styled for a custom video we created for Kendall-Jackson Wines. 

2015 also saw the release of two more fab issues of Merry, our first ever Summer Issue and our recent 2nd Holiday Issue that were both a big hit. Thanks so much for all your kind words! 

 

Ok, well I think that’s about enough bragging to last another year! Oh wait, one more thing. THIS was kinda amazing. What would Martha do? Obviously she would buy one of my hand made repurposed vintage plates. Duh. 

Overall I would say that for me 2015 was a pretty good year. It felt a bit transitional as there weren’t any big turning points (until this month that is…stay tuned). Sometimes I feel like a hamster running on a wheel with so much drive, ambition, time & effort invested but not moving as fast as I would like. I think my whole inability to set goals and focus properly is part of  that and I’m really hoping to get some professional help with that in 2016. LIke business coach help, not shrink help…although I’m sure they would both help!

Well lastly I just wanted to say thanks so much for your support and having an attention span long enough to come visit and poke around here all year. It really means so much to me! If there’s something you particularly loved this year, something you want to see more of or questions or (kind) feedback you have for me about the blog, I would love to hear what you have to say in the comments below. 

Have a happy & healthy new year!! See you on the flipside!