27 before 28 list {frocktober, day 4}

Remixes:
Dress: 1, 2 // Cardigan

Eegads, it's that time again. An entire year has gone by and I'm sitting here as a fresh 27 year old. I very vividly remember lamenting my last few days as a 25 year old last year, and 27 somehow seems like a rather giant leap from that version of myself. So much has changed, and it has been a wonderful year.

Last year I made a list: 26 before 27. A little list of big things and small things that I wanted to accomplish over the course of 1 year of my life. All in all, I'm pretty happy with the way things turned out. Although I didn't get a pixie cut or a nose ring, and I didn't travel to a new country or ride in a hot air balloon or complete a rough draft of my book, I made conscious choices all year long to do things I love (and I may have changed my mind about getting that pixie cut. Again). We bought a house and are getting ready to have a baby boy. We saw the Grand Canyon, discovered new local favorites, made new friends. I started writing for Hello Giggles, and have read a ton of great books. We have experienced joy, struggle, heartache, and love. So many of the things I was stressed or worried or unsure about have been resolved over the last 365 days, and I am left feeling incredibly grateful for it all.

I'm not quite as nervous about turning 27 because it's going to be the best year of my life. I spent my last day as a 26 year old making French macarons, which allowed me to cross one last thing off that old list. But I'm ready for this new list. It is going to be full of wonderful, monumental things.

Without further ado, here's my 27 things to do before I turn 28.

1. HAVE A BABY {due 12/30/15} William Boyer! 1/6/16.
2. visit north carolina in the fall A September surprise is close enough!
3. move in to our house! #casaschan is open!
4. decorate baby boy's nursery we settled on Harry Potter/Winnie the Pooh/Lion/Adventure etc...
5. host a dinner party
6. learn to speed read
7. set a weekly date night
8. wear a fantastic halloween costume {big belly and all} Emperor's New Groove!
9. stencil a statement wall
10. sign up for eMeals again
11. finish 12 paintings (only accomplished a few!)
12. baby's first plane ride! {take a trip} many trips! Portland, Chicago, Columbus, Charlotte...
13. attempt to DIY concrete countertops attempted...and we'll be getting real countertops ASAP!
14. go camping it was freezing but I got my hammock time
15. use my pressure cooker (nope...that thing still scares me)
16. buy house plants {and keep them alive} bought one cactus...and he's hangin' in there
17. send more snail mail
18. make cat coasters
19. plan an out-of-country vacation
20. start learning a new language Italian!
21. deck out the new house for winter wonderland!
22. find and purchase a bar cart
23. clean out my closet had an Instagram sale!
24. average at least 2 published articles a month
25. read a new book series The Paper Magician by Charlie Holmberg! Love all of her books!
26. upgrade to a better camera / lens
27. reconfigure the day job Full-Time Mom! Woooo!

This will be a great year for learning, changing, decision-making, loving, nurturing, creating, nesting, dreaming, planning, snuggling, struggling, and more. I'm looking forward to every bit of it. 

to be a writer {frocktober, day 6}

I have always dreamed of being an author.
It's one of those vocations that really speaks to me. It would be so glorious to write something, something from my own mind, and actually release it into the wild world to be read and commented on and, possibly, loved.

It would also be absolutely terrifying.

I've started and stopped writing dozens of novels, jotting down ideas and even describing a few to my husband and friends for their opinions. It's a very vulnerable process and one I'm still struggling with. I have never, ever finished a writing project. Which is rather absurd, since I started writing and telling stories when I was just a kid. I have my first one somewhere, entitled Land of Celladore, a few chapters clumsily written and then abandoned. The self-doubt is really hard to quell. Which is why it's so nice to have people you trust to bounce ideas off of.
The problem is it's ever so much easier to create ideas than to actually complete them. Mid-story it's so tempting, when you hit that wall, to say - oh! What about this? This is a great idea! I'll write about that instead!
Only to discover mid-story, again, that it's just as difficult as the last. It's a terrible pattern of loving and leaving.

I think one of the farces I often create for myself is that I have to find the right thing to write, so it can get published and read and adored by millions. Right? Isn't that the order of business?
I somehow got it into my head that whatever I write has to be publishable. When the truth is, I could write 4 or 5 entire books before I write anything worthwhile. But it's about the writing, the desperate habit of writing -- the practice, the adventure, the experience.
I recently read something that clicked on a lightbulb in my brain. I think the bulb was already there, but it was never lit. If I write 500 words a day for a year, I would have a novel written. Period. Would it be good? Would it get published? That's all besides the point. The point is that it would get done! I would actually finish a book. And that, my friends, is the first of many great accomplishments for a writer-to-be. It would be the first of many steps toward writing that worthwhile something. It creates that system of follow-through that is so necessary to develop confidence, self-awareness and appreciation for ideas. Some of my favorite authors have books that were never published, first drafts that were absolute rubbish. The more you write the better you get, and that is the grand journey of it all.

All that to say - I'm writing a book. I think I'm saying it out loud in order to cement that accountability. It's out of my protective hands now, out into the world. You all know it and if this book ever makes it onto paper and into a cover, we can point to this post, dated and signed with the first hopeful admission.
It's not a good book, but it could be. It's from my own head and it's a work in progress. My goals for this year are to attempt to write that 500 words a day to build up my life's word count, and to hopefully finish a first book draft. It would be a fairly revolutionary accomplishment for me!
I hope to work hard, a little every day, to finish.
Even if it's just fertilizer, it'll be a nourishing beginning.

26 before 27

I think 25 has been my favorite age so far. It's the perfect age, really. I love it.

And today is my last day of it. Thank goodness it's a Saturday because I have got to do things! I've got to paint the town a bright color or kick up my boots or something!
I'm about to turn 26. And. Yup, I'm starting to panic.
I don't think I really like the idea of being in my late twenties. Because this is official, now! There's no avoiding it. I'm crossing that line into real adulthood. Of the "you're old" variety. It's a very different line than before, I can feel it in my slowing metabolism.

I've wanted to make this list for a few years now, but never got around to making it. So to cheer myself up and to also encourage myself to get excited about a productive year of happiness and change and goal-making, I've decided to create a list of 26 things to do before I turn 27. 

1. create the perfect lavender latte thank you, Verismo machine 12.20.14
2. find a signature scent classic burberry 10.6.14
3. aim to write 500 words per day still writing - slowly but surely
4. find a house! we bought a house! 6.15.15
5. travel to a new country
6. learn how to braid my own hair
7. go to the renaissance festival opening weekend! 2.7.15
8. get my nose pierced
9. visit colin and victoria they came to AZ! 4.25.15
10. learn to speed read
11. commence the gatsby club
12. visit the grand canyon with colinoria! 4.30.15
13. make homemade macarons eureka! 10.4.15
14. ride in a hot air balloon
15. dye the ends of my hair purple and I love it! 11.26.14
16. get a video-camera to film our adventures working on iPhone video skills! 
17. achieve my health {weight} goals MADE A BABY INSTEAD! Due 12/30/15. #schantababy
18. read 36 books 25 - I'm getting there!
19. be more relationally intentional {darn you, telephone} Getting a little better - I've even called some people this year. On my own. Without being coerced.
20. get a pixie cut!
21. finally watch casablanca with my dad
22. complete a first book draft
23. go on a camping trip
24. plant a backyard garden
25. decorate a friends-inspired kitchen
26. roadtrip to a new state 4th of July in Utah! #schanclanUT15

Throughout the year I'll return to this list to cross things off.
Just like new year's resolutions, there is a pretty big chance I won't finish this list. My motivation for doing this isn't to make a bunch of empty promises - it's more about being intentional to set aside time and really think about what I'd love to accomplish this year. Laying out a list of wishes.

This list is a mix of new things and classic givens. For instance, going to the Renaissance Festival is obviously going to happen. It's basically giving myself a freebie. I went to the Ren Fest (it's what us cool people call it. I use the word cool very loosely) every year growing up, and moving to Virginia broke that streak. I have missed it quite fiercely. I can't wait for Spring!
There are also the new and more challenging things on my list. Some of them I'll chicken out on, or decide against, or totally change my mind about - maybe instead of making macarons I'll just buy a dozen of them from a cafe and call it a day. But in making this list, I realized a lot of things I've often thought about doing or trying or learning that manage to slip through the cracks of daily life. Like braiding my hair! Eegads, I really just need to learn to do that. It'll only take a few YouTube videos and practice runs, but it's something I always forget to try. Now I have a list and a mental note to cross it off.
Many of these items will be success stories, and I'm pretty excited to find out which ones. 

favorites

I haven't been doing outfit posts for very long, but I was realizing the other day that it has actually been over a year since I first started being interested in fashion blogging.

My first outfit post was on my personal blog, on March 15 of last year.

I hadn't really started out dreaming of a fashion blog. I was just wanting to show off some clothes from Ruche that my husband had surprised me with, and then Frocktober happened, and it all went up from there!
But over the last 15 months, my husband and I have had countless photo shoots, conversations and silly moments in the name of "fashion". Or at least, my personal style/fashion.
So in the spirit of reminiscing, I thought I'd share some of my favorite photos/outfits over the last year!
In no particular order:

My goal is definitely to get to a point where I'm blogging regularly, posting interesting and reliable content. The more I blog, the more I like it. I would love to come to a point where I'm confident (and efficient) taking my own photos, having my tripod handy and being willing to be adventurous with when and where I take pictures.
I might even take a class or two on photography. Right now my camera is simple, but user-friendly, and it takes great pictures without too much fidgeting on my end.

If I was to put together a summer to-do list for Voguish, it would include:

1. Daily photos: even just a few shots after work
2. Improve self-portraits: be confident and able to take my own pictures
3. Set out outfits the night before: being more aware and intentional with my daily routine
4. Blog daily: working on the blog every day, perhaps even preparing posts in advance to publish later on
5. Creative settings: be active and explore the town, changing up locations and scenery

That's a pretty good start, I think.

Cheers to a great year of blogging, an amazing summer, and to constant adventures.