Old Goals and New Goals

So last year I set twenty goals for myself as a challenge for the coming year. I think it's nice to set measurable goals for yourself so that you're always working on being a better person. I ended up completing most of my goals and I'm pretty proud of myself! I thought I'd share a little breakdown of the goals I accomplished and briefly mention those that were overlooked.

1) Read 50 books

I didn't read 50 books, but I did read 22 books and I think that's pretty damn good! My favorite book of the year was a toss up between Bright and Shiny Morning By: James Frey and How To Make Love Like a Porn Star by: Jenna Jamison. Both were fantastic reads. For the complete list of books I've read, check out my book club page.

2) Learn to crochet

This was a fun goal. I taught myself the basics of crochet but I am by no means a master! I'll have to practice this year and get better (one of my goals has to do with that!)

3) Save $5,000
HAHAHAHAH WHAT A JOKE! I have no job and I'm a college student. Saving $5 is a feat. $5,000? Definitely didn't happen. I have a job this year and I've set a much smaller savings goal that I think is attainable. Better luck next time Mal!



4) Paint a picture worthy of being hung in my home
I did this! I painted a few pictures with my little brother over winter break last year and they are hanging in my room back home. My favorite was this little green monster! Really silly and simple but so fun to make and so cute in my closet (yes, there is a monster in my closet). I painted another piece for a class I took last semester for an assignment on self-reflection and I liked that one a lot as well :).

5) Participate in an art festival
This also didn't happen. I researched it quite a bit and realized that I'm not quite ready to put the cash down for this. It's really expensive and requires a huge commitment so I'll have to put it on the back burner.



6) Set up and maintain an etsy shop
DONE! I made Jacques and Jill this year. I sold some earrings to some fabulous customers (some of them are readers!) and have it stocked with pretty knits for winter right now. Accomplished!

7) Learn to sew
Again, I am by no means a professional with this goal, but I am learning. I am almost done with my first project ever (a dress) and I can sew a whole mess of different seams so I am considering this ACCOMPLISHED! I have a continuation of this goal for the coming year :)

8) Learn to felt
I decided to felt soap for this goal. The verdict? Not fun. I was a complete failure at felting. But at least I tried! Maybe I'll try again someday. Not for a long time though. I found the whole process to be quite tedious and frustrating.


9) Sell at least 15 handmade items
Thanks to all of you I was able to accomplish this goal :). Not much to elaborate on here...

10) Learn to cook tofu
This may be my favorite accomplishment from the past year. I eat tofu about once a week now and have attempted many different recipes. Some of them have been great, some have been not so great. I'm happy to have the knowledge though!

11) Hit the gym at least 3 times a week
If I'm going to be honest with myself, this goal was not accomplished. Even if I had made it to the gym 3 times a week all year I wouldn't have been able to go for the week and a half I was down because of my wisdom teeth over the summer. I did, however, make it to the gym more than I have at any other time in my life so overall, I'd say this goal was a success. Lifetime fitness is really important to me so making an effort to stay healthy will always be a goal of mine.

12) Learn how to do my makeup
I picked up a few new tricks this year for makeup application and then I realized that I don't wear makeup because I just don't like it. When I go out, I use this tutorial from Cupcakes & Cashmere to do my eyes but on a day-to-day basis I'm content just wearing mascara.

13) De-clutter my life
CHECK! I have this problem where I really like to clean (thanks mom...) and purge my life of excess material things. I annihilated my room at home this year and after midterms I'm going to deep clean my apartment in hopes of creating more space.

14) Take a cooking class
This goal was SO MUCH FUN that I'm doing it again this year. I took a pasta making class at The Chopping Block and it was fabulous. I can't wait till I have enough money to take another class. If you live in Chicago and have any interest in cooking I would highly recommend taking a class here.

15) Keep up with my writing (blog or journal once a day)
I did really well with this goal. I took a couple mental health days from the blog but I've journaled really consistently and I've been writing a private blog that is more about my personal struggles and day to day musings.

16) Officially decide on a major
After a year of pretending I could handle the pressure and lack of stability a job in fashion design would provide, I officially changed my major to marketing and I've been extremely happy with the results. I love all of my classes and I know I made the right decision.

17) Come up with 5 tutorials for blog
Did that! You can find them too if you click here, here, here, here, and here.

18) Get straight A's in the spring semester
FAIL! I got a C in art history and A's everywhere else.

19) Find a way to help pay for school
I applied for more scholarships and didn't get any of them. Apparently Columbia College Chicago doesn't appreciate dedicated students who get consistently good grades and participate in after school activities. Sweet...

20) Become certified in something (anything!)
I am certified to use the wood, metal, and plastic shops at Columbia. So if you need me to use some power tools, I am officially allowed to do that :).

And to see the goals for this year, check out my birthday goal page by clicking here. I'm really excited and I've already gotten started on a few of them!

Sorry this post was SO LONG. I generally try to keep them a bit shorter than this.

xo
Mal