Looking Forward...2017

It honestly feels like just yesterday we were getting ready ring in the New Year with friends - now here we are 52 weeks later and it feels like no time has passed at all. 2016 brought a lot of great things, a few not so good & as we are getting ready to close it out I'm really excited for 2017. All year I've felt a little off with my focus - I didn't set any goals for myself in 2016 & I need that focus to drill down into what I want to accomplish! I decided to split it up in blog & business! The time frame I've given myself - all of 2017!

BLOG / SOCIAL MEDIA ||

Social Media

I put a lot of emphasis on my blog over the last 3 years and sort of neglected the social media aspect of it. The occasional tweet, Instagram post & even Pinterest post were sometimes just forgotten. I'd really like to grow each of my social media accounts organically by a set number (that I've written down for myself) over the next year. Each quarter I've given myself a goal & I'm hopeful that I'll hit it! Are we following each other?! If not, let's change that! 😉 - @blovedboston everywhere! 

Blog

After finally getting a blog layout that I love, I switched to 3 days a week of blogging this year and I'm really happy with that flow. That wont be changing - the content that you see on the blog will however! I really want to curate better photos in my posts, using more original photos & trying to steer clear of pinterest found ones - when possible. I've actually been getting a lot of questions about my photos recently -  Gary got the new iPhone 7 and the camera is just insane!! Any chance I get to take some photos with it I do and for this reason I'm excited for my upgrade in January!  Travel / Vlog?! We have a tripped planned to drive up the Pacific Coast Highway - I'd really love to build out my travel posts and perhaps even share a little bit of the trip in video format! We (and by we I mean Gary) is really good at creating these movies of all our trips and we have one for all of the trips we've taken, so I thought why not start sharing that here! 

BESPOKE BOSTON WEDDINGS ||

Anne Lee Photography This was such a fun year for Jackie & I with our business. Although we only planned two weddings - one of which was featured on Wedding Chicks this past Friday- it was still an incredibly successful year for us. We partnered with a group of insanely talented vendors for a styled shoot (published in September) & then a pop up event with over 50 attendees - one of which resulted in us getting signed to do their wedding in 2017! To be completely honest, it's hard balancing a business on top of my family, full time job, blog and all the other things that make for a fun life and I get a little hard on us for not getting everything done faster and as quickly as others, but this isn't our full-time focus, so I think I should give us some slack! For next year...

1. I'd love to have Bespoke featured in Style Me Pretty - it's a lofty goal, but I think it's possible! We are working on another styled shoot with a team of fantastic vendors - so this could definitely be the one! 
2. We're going to have our now "Annual Bridal Pop" sometime in the late spring / early summer
3. We are set to coordinate 4 weddings next year, one day of coordination the first weekend of the year! I'm pretty happy with that number of weddings, but I'd like to round it out to 5! 
4. For the business itself, I'm looking forward to building our brand and that is going to start with our materials. Hopefully this will be done before the end of Q2. 

BONUS ||

Reduce Shopping|| I feel like I did a lot of shopping this year, especially towards the end of 2016 & there were only a handful of purchases that I'm still swooning over. For that reason I really want to cut back on shopping - focusing on quality of quantity! I'm also going to be doing a huge closet clean out in the first quarter of the year & really want to sell some of those items I just never get around to wearing!  Well friends - this is the last post of 2016 for me!! I'm so looking forward to the start of the new year and 2017! I hope you all have a happy & safe NYE and can't wait to see what you all got up to during the long weekend!! The weekending link-up will be live on TUESDAY the 3rd!  Do you like to set goals or resolutions? 

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Christmas Weekending

Hello & happy Tuesday friends!! Hope you all enjoyed your holiday weekends. Of course it went far too fast, especially since it seems like we wait for this weekend all year, but we still have a short work week & another holiday weekend to look forward to! This Christmas looked a little something like this...

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{Family Dinners}

We spent Christmas Eve with Gary's side of the family & enjoyed some delicious food, a few very intense games of fibbage & a little dessert by candlelight because the power on their block randomly shut off! 

{new pom pom hat from my sister}

Christmas day we switched gears and celebrated the second night of Hannukah & Christmas with my sister and the family! 

{Lived in Outfit}

I shared this outfit on Instagram last night & these over the knee boots (currently 40% off) & suede bag have been on major repeat!! I didn't think I'd get into OTK boots, mostly because I didn't think they'd look that great on me, but these are so flattering! The back is a super fun lace up with stretchy material so you're calves don't feel like their suffocating and they run true to size! 

{Movie Traditions}

Since we started dating, Gary & I have gone to see a movie during the holiday weekend as I'm sure most of you do as well. This year was no different & I somehow got talked into seeing the Star Wars movie, but that's fine with me since it means I get my pick of chick flicks for at least the next 2 movies we watch! We go to the theater where we can preselect our seats & lie back like we're at home and the best part is that the ticket prices are exactly the same! 
Of course there was a lot of playing with new presents & since it feels like gift cards burn holes in my pockets I did a little more shopping to capitalize on those sales!! How was your weekend? Link up below to share it with us! Also, the winner from the Paperless Post Giveaway is Kate - thanks so much to everyone who entered! 

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Still Christmas-ing

Happy Monday friends!! Hope you all are still enjoying an extended holiday weekend! Link up is live if you're interested...if not see you back here tomorrow for Weekending! 
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Friday Favorites | The one before Christmas

Happy Christmas eve eve friends! It has felt like the longest week, but that's always the case when you're looking forward to something! I'm not taking any time off from work for the holiday so it's going to be a welcome three-day weekend over here!! I thought I'd share a few favorites from the week since I haven't done that in what feels like ages!! 

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Favorite New (to me) Blogger & YouTuber ||

via Randomly Monday night I was watching YouTube videos and stumbled upon Lydia Elise Millen's channel - what followed was a solid two hour marathon of watching! I've become a fan over night and just love her style, her familiarity & honestly the accent is just amazing! She just got engaged (as in a few days ago) so you know I'm beyond excited to start following along with that! 

Favorite New Bag ||

Last week I mentioned this bag (also comes in black which is the color I got) in my holiday outfit post AND I had a credit to Nordstrom so I decided to get it!! If it's possible to be in serious "like" with a bag, then I totally am! Even though it looks a bit small, you can get away with stocking it full of items, but not over stuffing it! My iPad, full size wallet, a few makeup items, brush & mini planner all fit comfortably! I'm planning on doing an updated what's in my bag post at the start of the year - even though I basically just did, but it was a solid purchase to round out the year! Get ready to see a lot of it! 

Favorite Songs ||

Still going strong with iTunes Radio and here are a few of my current favorites Taped Up Heart - Kream feat. Clara Mae Chase You Down - Runaground Haunting - Halsey

Favorite Show ||

I'm a little ashamed to admit that Gary and I binged on Schitt's Creek on Amazon this past weekend! If you're a fan of the arrested development humor, then this is even better than that! I didn't realize that it originally aired on CBS, but you can catch up on Amazon (for free if you're a Prime member) with the first and second season! The new season starts on January 10th & I can't even wait! The quick humor and funny banter does not disappoint!  The weekending link-up will be live on Monday for those of you interested in posting...I will be taking an extra day off! I'll see you back here Tuesday and I hope you all have a wonderful holiday! 

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Recent Reads

There is nothing better than getting cozy on the couch with the tree lit & a good book to settle in with this time of year!! I've been squeezing in extra reading anywhere I can and I imagine with the upcoming holiday a lot of you will be doing the same! Here are a few of my recent reads and a couple that are next on the list! 

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New Years Eve Inspiration | Paperless Post Invites, Bites & Decor

Happy Christmas week friends!! I wanted to change it up this week and instead of Weekending (the linkup is still live below), I thought I would share a little NYE inspiration since we'll be hosting for our friends this year! We have quite a few people coming so I've been pinning ideas of how to make our space work for the crowd! Let's start first with how I got the word out...the invites! Also, keep reading for a fun giveaway! 

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Winter Skincare Routine

We made it through another week & we're getting that much closer to the end of the year and to winter. Just as with most of the country - it's frigid today and I can already start to feel my skin starting to dry out. To combat this I've started a new routine and thought I would share the few products that have been working for me recently! 

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Holiday Outfits | From the office to the party

Truth be told, one of the hardest things for me to wrap my head around is going from the office to a holiday party. Most of the time there just isn't enough time between the start of the event and me leaving work to justify going home, changing & then making my way back to wherever it is I'm going. For that reason, I try to have at least one part of my outfit be appropriate for both and then bring along everything else I need. I'm crushing hard on these velvet pants (currently 40% off) - basing my entire look around it!! 
I'm a tad bit obsessed with these shoes - they also come in black, but unfortunately my size is sold out in the plaid color combo I want, so I might settle for black / white or wait for them to come back in stock! 
Velvet is the fabric of the season and I love that these pants from Ann Taylor can be worn to your work holiday party or dressed up for something swanky! 
I shared one LBB that I have my eye on in this post & then while scrolling instagram I spotted this one from Sole Society & love the price point as well! It actually looks like the perfect in between bag, again taking you from the office to out during the holiday season!! Any bag that can hold my large wallet without me having to pick and choose what I want to take with me is a winner in my book! 
While I like to keep my "party" earrings out of sight at work, doesn't mean they can't make an appearance after hours - especially considering my earlobes can't handle the heaviness all day long! 
H&M is my go to for fun "going out" tops - actually last year at the last minute I got my NYE top from there! One thing my closet is seriously lacking is sequins...need to remedy that immediately! I have a this top in the long sleeved version and I just spotted that they make it in a peplum version! 
Easiest way to dress up any look - a bold red lip! My favorite color is "Ruby Woo" by MAC. 
What's your go to for taking your outfit from the office to the party? 

SHOP THE POST

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Weekending Snaps

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Happy Monday friends!! We're one weekend closer to Christmas & 2017, which is both exciting and terrifying all at once! Amazon packages have been steadily arriving & that wont be stopping anytime soon!! So close to being done...how's everyone else's shopping coming along!? Here are a few snaps from the weekend that included a lot of holiday stuff! 

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Favorites from 2016 | Tech & Home

Happy Friday friends! It's been a busy week here with 4 events after work (including one tonight) & it's there's no denying that the holidays are in full swing!! I thought I'd continue my Favorites from 2016 series with Tech & Home items I loved this year! 

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Wishlist Wednesday | Christmas Edition

I'm the first to admit that compiling a wishlist when someone asks for it is hard - mostly because if there is something that I want to buy, I usually don't have enough patience to not buy it for myself. However,  the question is inevitable - "what do you want for the holidays?" and the simple of answer of "anything" really doesn't help anyone. So while this is a little all over the place - I'd be happy with any one of these items and I've also realized I've become a little more practical!! 

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Weekending | All the holiday things

Happy Monday friends! It honestly felt like we did it all this weekend - well, did a lot of my "holiday fun list" from last week that is!! It was the weekend of pop-ups & outdoor activities! 

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Favorites from 2016 | Beauty, Books & Shows

Happy Friday friends!! I thought I was a day ahead all week long, which makes for an extra long week, but we made it to Friday! For the next couple of weeks I thought it would be fun to recap some of my favorite things from this past year in their own categories - starting this week with Beauty, Books & Shows! 

Favorite Beauty Buys ||

I feel like I tried a lot of new beauty items this year - some good & some were duds, but the ones that were really good I ended up buying more than once in 2016!  Bobbi Brown Shadow Sticks || I use these shadow sticks daily! They stay put all day and the colors are really pigmented! I use dusty mauve the most, but the other three colors are on heavy rotation as well!  Moroccan Oil Dry Shampoo || Finding a dry shampoo that works with dark hair and doesn't leave a white residue is hard so when I randomly ordered this one earlier this year I was hooked! I've gone through three travel sized ones & even after testing others I always come back to this one. Did I mention it smells heavenly?  Butter Bronzer || After first mentioning this bronzer in May, I'm happy to report that I bought another one just in case they stop making it! I must have a thing for products that smell good because this smells like someone bottled up summer & the best smelling tanning lotions into a bronzer! SO GOOD!  Lock-It-Concealer || Kat Von D knows her stuff! In August I mentioned how much I was loving the concealer and setting powder duo and here we are in December - both are going strong! I've never had a concealer, for lack of a better word, conceal as well as this one! Maybe it's because Kat Von D has a lot of tattoos and has perfected hiding some for other people, but this duo does not budge! The best part is that it doesn't get into the fine lines under you eyes either!!  It Cosmetics CC Cream || This was the year of It Cosmetics! Maybe I was living under a rock, but before this year I had never heard of the brand and then suddenly it was everywhere and for good reason too! I recently started using the CC Cream - the one that says "your skin, but better" and their right - the finish is nice with a good mix of matte & dewy! I realize those are opposites, but somehow it's matte in the places I don't want to shine and dewy everywhere else! 

Favorite Books ||

This was the year of reading for me - I checked my kindle & I actually read 50 books! With all those books, there are definitely a lot of favorites, but I narrowed it down to my top 4! 

One True Loves || Taylor Jenkins Reid became on of my favorite authors this year - I read 3/4 of her books and really loved them all, but especially One True Loves. This was named best book of the Summer and I admit, I was partial to it because it took place in New England. 
A Small Indiscretion || I didn't read many thrillers this year - this was actually the only one and it was so engaging. If you like chapters that weave in and out of time, you'll like this read. You can read my original review here. 
The Balance Project || I read this at the start of the year & I'm amazed that I still remember it so vividly! What's the difference between a twenty something "newbie" & a high power female executive - no spoilers, but not a whole lot! 
The Marrying Type || I absolutely loved this book because it was so relevant to right now! It's about a reality show that follows wedding planners from around the country, with the focus of this season being on a wedding planner from Charleston!  You can see more of my reads from 2016 here, here & here. 

Favorite Shows ||

There were plenty of binge-athons in our house this past year, mostly thanks to Netflix! 

The Crown || We flew through the first (and currently only) season of The Crown on Netflix. I'm not usually one for period pieces, but this show is so good. It's about the Royal family, specifically Queen Elizabeth II. Highly suggest watching this if you like Downton Abbey, the Royal Family or are a history buff! 

Season 2 of Bloodline || The first season of Bloodline on Netflix was good - it took a few episodes to really get me hooked, but for the very first episode of season 2 I was in it!! So good and I can't wait for season 3! 

This Is Us|| I'm sure this show is going to be on a lot of people's must watch list!! The first episode hooks you...not until the last 2 minutes do you feel like you were truly shocked & it takes a lot for a show to stump me! I've watched every episode this season & you can relate to all the characters! Mandy Moore was meant to play this role! 

The Affair || Gary and I started watching this early on in the year on Showtime. I think the name is a little off-putting for a lot of people, sort of gives it away with what happens, BUT - once you get into the character stories & their development you get sucked in. We just started watching the current season and I'm a little sad that I can't just watch the entire season! 

Younger || If you guys haven't watched this show on TV Land yet, you're missing out! It's hilarious, totally current & a quick thing to watch!  What were some of your favorites this year? 

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