IN MY BAG

always have with me:

wallet • phone • little film camera • lip balms • double-sided sharpie • strawberry hi-chews • pocket knife

vintage Coach purse thrifted // shared here

I really enjoy creating and seeing other people's "What's In My Bag" posts, both because I'm curious to see what others carry and use on a daily basis, but I also really just like arranging things and taking photos of it all. I've been extremely busy getting ready for Spring Bada Bing (this Saturday!), so I really needed to take a break and do something bloggy, even it was just this. 

ps - you can see my vendor spotlight article on the Spring Bada Bing blog here if you're interested

THE ONLY THING I'VE EVER KNITTED

A friend taught me how to knit freshman year of college. I immediately bought this chunky, mustard yarn, knitted this long, simple scarf, and promptly forgot everything I learned. I enjoy and regularly do a lot of different kinds of crafts. But knitting is just not my thing. I do love this scarf though, dropped stitches and all.

LITTLE FILM CAMERA

I want to take more film photos this year. So I bought this little Slim White Angel to carry around with me. Hopefully I'll have some nice shots to share soon.

24 THINGS IN 2013

I'll be 24 this year, so I have a list of 24 things to work on throughout the year to get the most out of it. I'm realizing (or maybe I've just known it all along) that it's really easy for me to waste a lot of time doing things that are actually me doing nothing. And then I spend time thinking about what I could be doing instead. I want to not do that so much anymore. This might help me. I'm excited.
1. read 12 new books
Reading was one of my favorite things to do throughout my teenage years, and since college I've done it less and less. Despite this, I still keep a list of books I want to read. This year I want to finally get into that list and start reading again.

2. take more more polaroid 300 photos and figure out my diana mini
I want to use these cool cameras I have more often. I used to take Polaroid 300s all the time, but stopped having film handy. And I got a Diana Mini as a gift last year and avoided using it due to a film winding problem. This year I want to fix the camera, start using it, and get film developed.
3. finish decorating our apartment and getting everything organized

I'm so close to having everything organized, but not quite that close to having the space decorated how I want it. It just doesn't have the touches and atmosphere that I'm happy with yet. I need to work on it a lot.

4. re-open the anykind shop and update it weekly

I closed my online shop in December to reorganize after all my shows and moving. I also want to do a better job with my product photos and the overall aesthetic of the shop. I talked here a little about the new direction I want to take my work, and this year I want to apply that to my shop as well. 

5. explore 6 new hampton-roads thrift stores

After living in Saratoga for six months with virtually no thrift store opportunities, I am overwhelmed in a good way by all the thrift stores in Norfolk and surrounding cities. I can't wait to go explore new ones.

6. rent and watch 25 new movies/shows from the local video store

I haven't mentioned the video store here yet, but it's amazing. They have probably any movie I could come up with that I wanted to see, and I want to take advantage of it by watching 25 new movies or shows this year.

7. make and stick to a weekly cleaning routine for the apartment

I'm pretty bad at cleaning a little bit at a time to make the work easier for myself. Instead I just let things pile up and then feel bad enough to work on it. I am realizing how easy it would be if I just do a little every day, room by room. This is a goal for me this year to make my home life more enjoyable and less stressful in an easy way.

8. set-up my screen printing station, design, and print fabric

I have always wanted to screen print, ever since I religiously made freezer paper stenciled t-shirts throughout middle school and high school. Now I have the perfect space to do it in and nothing is standing in my way.

9. go on five dates with Douglas before he leaves for deployment (stuff we haven't done yet)

This is a little bit of a "make the most of it" goal but still an important one. Douglas is going to be gone most of this year, so before he leaves I want to go on five special dates with him, doing things we haven't done together. We have thought of most of them, but still need a few ideas.
10. give away/discard unwanted clothing and housewares every season

This is another one that is going to make my life easier and more enjoyable. It's hard to start giving things away, so I want to do an apartment purge every season. Once you get going it feels so good.
11. get a dog!

We're are in the process of this now because this takes a little more planning. But we still have to go to shelters and search around to find our new little family member. We can't wait.
12. do a diy blog post at least every other week

DIY tutorial posts are some of my favorite to do, but I when I get out of the habit of doing them it's hard for me to start again. I want to do good, quality DIY posts at least every other week this year.
13. get a new slip cover for our futon

Okay, so this isn't the biggest deal, but it's taken me this long to do it. So I need to put it in writing that I will do it this year. The cover we have now is bland and blue and weird. And it's getting me down. I want to get something fresh that will look good in our new place.
14. take really good pictures of our apartment room by room

When I get done decorating and arranging, I want to spend time taking really good photos to share, room by room.

15. visit sam and katie in austin

I visited my brother and his girlfriend/my best friend last year in Austin for a just a few days. This year I want to visit for a little longer and see more cool stuff with them.

16. find and make 10 healthy recipes i like and will eat

I have yet to really try new recipes and find ones that I want to make on a regular basis. I have some bookmarked and clipped, and now I really need to get into them.
17. go to zumba at least four times a week

I've found a perfect place up the road that offers classes every day, and I'm excited about it. I started going to Zumba all the time in Saratoga and it was so much fun.

18. make french macarons until i am successful

I first had a macaron when my dad and I were in Paris two years ago, and I never really thought of making them myself. Recently seeing so many recipes and posts about making them at home, I have a huge desire to try it myself. I'm sure this post by Beca is going to be my lifesaver here.
19. EXPERIMENT with new kinds of bags and make bigger purses

I have so much fabric now that I've saved up for making more complicated and bigger bags, and I have to start sometime. I have pages in my notebook filled with designs I want to try.
20. participate in a monthly photo-a-day challenge (every month!)

I started a January photo-a-day challenge today (you can follow along on Instagram @jessemcknz), and I really want to do one every month. So consider this my official 365 Challenge.
21. participate in 8 craft markets throughout the year

I had so much fun going to seven different craft shows in 2012 and learned a lot as well. I hope to do the same this year (hopefully one more!).
22. dye fabrics using shibori methods

I've had muslin and fabric dyes waiting for me ever since we lived in Charleston. This year I want to finally play with Shibori dying and maybe come up with some new ideas for bag designs because of it.
23. print instagram and phone photos throughout the year and display them throughout the apartment 

I've only printed a batch of phone photos once, and I love their little squareness together in a big frame on our wall. But since I did it that one time, we've had a lot of new adventures together and done awesome things. I want to print photos I love throughout the year and display them in our home.
24. keep up with my writing/list/drawing notebook all year 

I feel as if the success of all of the other 23 things depends on my ability to keep up with this one. Plain and simple, I am way more productive and organized when I have a notebook and constantly write and jot things down throughout the day. I am more creative this way. I love writing by hand and doodling, and when I make lists this way instead of on my computer, I feel more driven to accomplish things. Plus, I just really like the physical feeling of holding all my thoughts and lists in my hand, carrying it around with me. I haven't kept up with a notebook since my sophomore year of college, and I really need to do it again. 

There it is. It feels long to me now. Long in a good, that's-a-lot way. I worked on this list through December, adding things and taking them off. And I'm really happy with the final one. I feel like it's really representative of things I actually want to do, as opposed to things I feel like I should do. So here we go.

Have you made a list of goals or things you want to do in 2013? Let me know! I'd love to see and keep up with each other throughout the year. 

IN 2012...

...we continued where we left off in 2011 - exploring Charleston and loving everything about living there.
...and even though it was really cold and windy sometimes, we still bundled up and went to the beach and walked around downtown Charleston a lot. Living in Charleston was an amazing way to end 2011 and an even better way to start off 2012.
...I participated in my first craft market with Anykind. It was at a really cool venue, I was so proud of my display, and I had no idea how much fun it was going to be to sit at that table all day with Douglas. Thanks to that day, going to craft shows with Douglas became one of my favorite things to do. He's the best.
...things unexpectedly changed when Douglas was transferred to Saratoga Springs, NY for the rest of his training. As you can tell, we loved Charleston and hated to leave so suddenly. We knew it was all a part of being in the Navy, and though we have made the most of it now, things were a little stormy for a while.
...while Douglas moved up to Saratoga and got everything settled, I went back to Athens for a couple months and stayed with my parents. We had a few things planned, and it just worked out better this way. Even though it sucked being away from Douglas for those two months, they were kind of exciting in their own way. I prepared for my biggest craft show yet, Athens Indie Craftstravaganzaa, and it went so well! I had my own tent and got to spend two days goofing off with my best friend and the best helper ever, Elizabeth.
...I visited my brother with my parents in Austin, Texas. And loved it. Austin is so cool it kind of hurt.
...I also took another trip to Europe with my dad. We went back to Paris (and almost knew our way around a little) and then went to Barcelona and Madrid. There is so much to see in the world. I feel lucky that I saw this much of it in 2012.
...I drove up to Saratoga with Elizabeth. We stopped in Scranton because duh. The whole drive was beautiful, and Virginia and Pennsylvania took so long to drive through. Overall it was a crazy, surreal kind of trip, driving up to live somewhere I'd never been before. And I was so excited to see Douglas.
...I saw Saratoga for the first time. And started to explore. From our little apartment we could walk downtown through a gorgeous park filled with ducks. There were sidewalks everywhere and people was snarky in an almost charming way. Closest I'll ever get to living in Stars Hollow (Gilmore Girls, anyone?).
...I set up our little one bedroom apartment simply, knowing we would only be there for six months. It was my favorite apartment I had lived in up to that point. The floors were beautiful, and I loved the bright, white walls. It was a perfect home for us.
...I loved my work space, too (in the corner of our living room). It was great having an open yet still cozy space to work in. I got some good work done there.
...we experienced upstate New York in the summer. And it was truly amazing. And delicious. The weather was perfect. I went to the huge farmers market every week and bought the best blueberries I've ever had. I know I said how sad we were to leave Charleston for New York. But looking back on our months in Saratoga, though it wasn't that long ago, they have a golden, nostalgic glow to them already.
...I set up in the Saratoga Artisans and Crafter's Market about every other week. Though it was slow, it was great to have so much practice setting up my display and interacting with customers. The best part though, is that Douglas and I made an amazing friend through the market. That alone makes the whole thing worth it.
...I made amazing friends both in Charleston and Saratoga Springs - and also got to spend time with amazing friends while in Athens.
...Douglas and I spent a day at the Saratoga Race Course. Our apartment was on the same road as the track, so we saw plenty of fancy people going to and from the races every day. The season lasted about a month and a half, and it was crazy living in the middle of all of it. We knew we had to go at least once. And luckily we only went once. We bet five dollars and won nine. We were both real excited by our small win...and I imagine our luck would have ended there.
...we also went the Adirondack Balloon Festival, and it was one of most incredible things I've ever seen. We thought we knew what to expect, but once we got there and were up close to the balloons, watching them inflate and take off all around us, it was just amazing.
...we took three trips into New York City. One was for our one-year anniversary (yay!), one was to see Newsies with friends from Georgia, and the last one was to say bye right before we moved to Norfolk. They're some of my favorite times we've spent together.
...we did something I never imaged we'd do - diamond mining! We drove to the Herkimer Diamond Mines with our friend Holly, and Douglas and I spent the day unskillfully beating rocks with hammers. It was great to do something so different together. And it was awesome to go see our friend do something she loves so much.
...as quickly as we came to Saratoga, we left. About two weeks before we had to leave, we found out we were moving to Norfolk, Virginia. So once again, we packed up and set off for somewhere completely new. This time though, we could do it all together. It was all very nerve-wracking and scary and exciting still.
...we made our third home for the year in Norfolk. Our apartment in a dream, and I love how things are going here so far. It's a little scary that Douglas and I are facing some much time apart due to his job, but it's okay. This is such a small fraction of our lives - and look at everything this experience has brought us.
...I cooked my first Thanksgiving dinner with the help of Douglas's mom. And it was all delicious. My proudest achievement was making rolls from scratch...yeast and all that. It was so nice to have Douglas's family here for our first Thanksgiving in Norfolk.
...I started up with craft markets around Norfolk. I sold at four holiday shows through November and December, and getting around a little like this has helped me settle in here. Also, I started selling my bags and bows at Kitsch, a local handmade store in our part of town.
...we ended the year with celebrating Hanukkah and then Christmas here in Norfolk. We decided to stay here for some time together. It was perfectly cozy.

Our year was incredibly exciting and emotional and scary and filled with new things - quite the first year of marriage. With all that we know we are facing in 2013, I'm nervous standing at the beginning of it looking at it all at once. But years and days and months go by so fast, and my mom once told me never to wish time to past faster. So we are going to make the most of it. I think that was our slogan of 2012.

Happy New Year, friends.