2011 I Love You

Wow! Wow! Wow! I'm just overflowing with gratefulness, excitement and happiness when I reflect on 2011. This past year has been an INCREDIBLE adventure full of surprises, hard work and stressful moments resulting in personal growth and professional growth.

This blog has really helped me keep track of all of the wonderful things. (Cue Napoleon Dynamite... "I love technology. Always and Forever...")

A couple of highlights...

1. I left my PR job completely

2. Bought a house

3. Had my first art show

4. Had my writing and style opinions featured in 8 publications

5. Styled professional models

6. Had my styling work featured in 6 publications

7. Styled my first advertisement (blog post about that coming soon)

8. Grew my personal shopping clientele

9. Saw wine country and San Francisco for the first time

There are so many more wonderful things that have happened this year that I can't even list, but building relationships with many new faces and growing existing friendships has been the creme de la creme of them all!

Thank you to all of you who read this blog. I truly am thankful for each one of you!

Cheers to the best of 2011 and best wishes for an adventurous 2012!

Pinterest Meals Part 2

Pinterest has revolutionized my life in many ways, and one of those is cooking. I have never really loved cooking, and I just now started to enjoy it because of two reasons...1. I LOVE, LOVE my kitchen. 2. I'm finding the best recipes on Pinterest. I shared some of my discoveries back in October, and I'm happy to say that I have found some new favorites.

BUT first, I'd like to show off a bit of my new found passion for cooking with a couple pictures from my Christmas dinner.

I made a lemon-garlic roast chicken with a white wine reduction, Greek stuffing and a Greek salad. (Can you tell my family is Greek?)

It was a wonderful first Christmas in our new home!

Okay, and now for some of my new recipe favorites...

1. Spicy Dr.Pepper Shredded Pork - I saw this recipe, and thought, "As bizarre as it sounds, I really want to try that!" Um...It's flippin' awesome. It's the best pulled pork I've ever eaten. Tip: I only used one can of adobo chipotle peppers. That was PLENTY!

2. Lemon & Rosemary Chicken Bake - This recipe is one of the EASIEST ones out there. You can't mess it up, which is something that quickly wins me over. Besides, everything tastes good with rosemary on it. Tip: I added some carrots to this as well.

3. Lasagna Soup - Man, I have made this recipe about four times already. That's how much we love it. It's perfect for the winter too. Tip: Use ground turkey instead of ground beef. It's less fat and tastes awesome. Also leave out the sugar. It's added unnecessary calories.

4. Slow Cooker French Dip - The meat is SO tasty, and you don't need to stand next to the stove and cook it. This is the perfect recipe if you want a lot of leftovers too. Tip: Butter the rolls before placing the meat on top, and nix the cheese.

That's it for now, but I'm hopeful that I'll have many more to share soon!

Have you found any tasty recipes on pinterest? If so, share them with me!!!

Holidays & Family

This week I have retreated to Sedona, Arizona to relax, collect my thoughts, prepare for 2012 and spend quality time with my parents.

I look forward to this week every year because I'm forced to be still and take life slowly up in the mountains where there is nothing to do other than hike and marvel at nature.

Today I spent about two hours alone just looking through old family photo albums. I wanted to find some great pictures of my family to put on my family photo wall (one of my home DIY goals of 2012). It was a simple and powerful reminder of the love, hard work and laughter I come from. It was also motivation to continue to work hard at what I do to provide for my own family.

Do you carve out time to plan and set goals before the new year? Or maybe just reflect on what this past year has brought you?

Tomboy Lovin'

When asked the question, "Katharine Hepburn vs. Audrey Hepburn," I always go for team Katharine. I remember when I learned that she was one of the first actresses to wear pants on screen, and I thought, "I like this woman! She has guts!" Now, don't get me wrong. I wear dresses and I have my girly moments, but in general, it's more of a costume "dress up" thing for me. My CORE style and what I wear on a daily basis is more relaxed.

I've always had a harder time embracing my curves and femininity. Instead, I always wish I didn't have boobs, and I'm glad I don't have hips. I just like the tomboy all-American look. I have no idea why, but I really align myself with that style. Even in home decor, you will not find much femininity, and instead a lot of androgyny.

And now that you know a little bit about me, my style, and my favorite old Hollywood film star, I'd love to share some style inspiration of people and designers that are also inspired by this look too.

What about you? Are you a girly girl or a tomboy?

PHOTOS: Karen Walker, Hanneli, The Glitter Guide, The Daybook, Karen Walker, The Daybook, Dress, Design & Decor, Sea of Shoes

Imagination

I think one of our greatest gifts as humans is our imagination. It's not only what fuels innovation, but it transports you to places where colors are more vibrant, where nature becomes more majestic, and most importantly where there are no limits or restrictions. Kids are the best at using their imagination because they haven't yet experienced and learned about life's limitations. BUT I do think that we can continue to be just as creative as we once were if we spend more time doing it and experiencing the result of others doing it too. This is why the arts are so important to support, and also why the entertainment industry is so profitable...Film, music, dance, fashion, etc. are professions that take us beyond our reality. Last night I finally sat down to watch Chanel's Pre-Fall 2012 Paris-Bombay show. WOW! Chanel never disappoints when it comes to a show and that's because they completely transport you to what they were once imagining, and then made reality for 15 minutes.

Sit down and watch at least five minutes of their show, and then watch two minutes of how these clothes were executed. Part of bringing our dreams to life is excellent craftsmanship.

And in that video also lies the reason for why these clothes cost so much - talent, creativity and excellent craftsmanship.

Seeing this just makes me want to bring excellence and imagination to every shoot I'm a part of. Oh, and dream of one day attending a Chanel show too. =)

Photos from Cool & Chic Style Fashion.