New Years Resolutions & Where I’ve Been!

Hello everyone! Well, I thought it was finally time to make another blog post. Ever since my struggle with Blogmas, I’ll be honest it’s been a bit hard for me to sit down and write again. But that’s what I want to talk to you guys about today…what exactly has been going on. So without beating around the bush, I’ll jump straight into it.

Health Takes a Dip

The week before my Christmas break from work, I ended up getting a fairly bad cold. I stayed home from work one day to recuperate and pushed myself to go back probably a bit too soon. However, it was just a cold and things needed to get done. Christmas break was finally here and my health was improving everyday until the sickness was completely gone! My break was spent eating lots of great food and spending time with my family. I had a few days of work to complete but most of it was very relaxing and exactly what I needed. Unfortunately though, with about a week dealing with that cold and the holiday, my time at the gym was starting to diminish and I wasn’t watching what I was eating in the slightest. To summarize: I was falling into old habits and my health was very up and down.

Hit with the Flu…Again

I had some exciting plans for New Years Eve that I was looking forward to. The past couple years I had chosen to stay in for this particular holiday, so I was excited to get myself out again. However, you might be able to guess what happened next…I got hit with one of the worst flus I’ve ever experienced. Yep, worse than the cold I had before. I had the shakes, a high fever for literally days, and so many other symptoms. I ended up staying in bed on New Years Eve, New Years day, and about four days after that. It was a bad one, guys. I ended up going to see a doctor and getting some antibiotics which helped kick this illness out of me. We were concerned it had the potential to turn into pneumonia, which is why I was being so careful. I usually go a very holistic route when I’m sick and avoid anything stronger than Advil. However this time, antibiotics were necessary. While I’m feeling SO much better now, it took a good 9 days to feel functional again.

Backtrack to January 1st, I was given some news that was definitely surprising to me but ultimately is leading me in a much more positive direction. Some could see it as a huge setback, but I’ve chosen to see it as a great opportunity that I’m grateful for. I’m very excited for the future, and that’s all I’ll say about it.

Since I was so knocked down by this second flu, my time at the gym and taking care of my health was basically nonexistent. I still couldn’t tell you the last time I’ve been at the gym. Before I got sick, my health had become such a priority to me and my time at the gym had become so relaxing and something I needed. So to not be able to do that was tough. Now that my health is finally on the upswing, I’ve been going on plenty of beach runs/walks with my sister. Taking in the sun and saltwater has been so healing for me and has been my escape.

Declining Motivation

Now I’d like to address how all of this has affected this blog and my motivation in general. I have to be honest with you guys and say that I’ve never felt this unmotivated to do the things I love. This blog has always been so important to me even though I struggle with consistency. Never before though, have I had 0% motivation to write, take photos, or anything along the lines of being creative. Even on Instagram, I’ve barely posted and not even cared. I’m not really sure how to deal with this since I’ve always been an overachieving person who wants to grow in what I love. Writing this post is definitely a step in the right direction, although I still feel like something’s missing. I had such high hopes for 2019 and still do, but my motivation has never been so low. I think the hardest part about it is that I’m only hurting myself. I’m not growing or doing anything beneficial for myself in this state and it bothers me a ton. If any of you have some tips on how you stay motivated or bounce back from something destructive like illness, let me know in the comments below! 

2019 Resolutions

This part of the post is solely for myself, but feel free to keep reading! I thought making a short list of things I want to accomplish in 2019 will help my motivation a bit, so here is that list.

• Bounce back from anything negative with the strength to be and do better
• Be more consistent with anything and everything in my life
• Meet new people that help me grow creatively, intellectually, and spiritually (expand my circle of friends in general)
• Find something that will start a career that I’ll be excited about for years to come
• Stand up for myself and what I know is right. To not be afraid anymore of speaking my mind, even to those above me
• Build more confidence
• Look into furthering my education
• Find ways to be creative in whatever moment I’m in
• Reach my goal weight/make good health a lifestyle instead of a task
• Change my mindset into something more productive
• Rebrand the blog/schedule out posts more often
• Make more videos/build editing skills with Final Cut Pro
• Be more intentional with everyone I meet
• ATTEMPT to eat less sweets/chocolate (this might be the hardest resolution)

I hope you guys found something on this list that you’d like to do yourself or found inspiration in. I’m sorry for my absence but I honestly wasn’t planning it…I think I needed it though. I’m trying to find my motivation again as quick as possible, but I don’t want this blog to feel like a job. I know the more it feels like a hobby and something I’m not forcing, I’ll want to create more content. I appreciate your patience and thank you guys for reading!

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Future Goals for 2019 (Blogmas Day 7)

Hello everyone! It’s Friday!! Hope you are all doing well and are ready for the weekend. I know it’s a much needed break for me. For Blogmas Day 7, I wanted to keep it fairly simple and write down some future goals I have for the coming year. I find this very helpful to look back on a year from now and see what things I accomplished or what I added to the list. Let me know if you guys are planning any of the same things for the coming year or anything new I should add! Let’s get to it.

1. Travel: I’m sure this is something that’s on everyone’s list for the new year. As you can tell from my multiple travel posts on the blog, I adore exploring new countries or cities. There’s something about traveling that just makes me feel so happy and like I’m doing something right. I’d love to go back to Europe sometime within the next year. Although this may be wishful thinking, I can still dream, right?
2. Apartment hunting: This is definitely something that’s going to be a big part of my life in the coming year. Although looking for a new place comes with lots of complications, it’s something I’m really looking forward to. I want to make a little home for myself and take this big leap. I loved having my own space in my past apartment when I was in school, and I think my next apartment will be even more exciting!
3. Make more videos: Creating content for YouTube becomes more fun with each upload. Editing is coming easier, which has given me more creative possibilities. I want to make videos that I’m genuinely interested in and grow a collection that I’m proud of. I would love to post consistently once a week or even more if possible!
4. Continue my health journey: 2018 was a major shift in my health. I reached goals I didn’t think I’d ever get to and my lifestyle is going in a more positive direction every day. Once I quit soccer when I was younger, I struggled to keep fit (which is a whole other story) but I’m starting too feel more like me again. Instead of seeing fitness as a task I have to check off a list, it’s simply becoming part of my life. My health takes top priority now and I’m seeing the results. I plan on taking this mindset into 2019 and reaching my end goal by summer.
5. Seeking other avenues in my education: Grad school has always been in the back of my mind. Since graduating and taking a break from my studies to work and pursue a career, part of me can’t help but to wonder how much further I could go. Going to grad school would be a huge decision but I’d like to at least give myself the option by researching. 2019 will tell which path life will take me. That’s a bit terrifying but also exciting!

I hope you guys enjoyed this little list! What exciting things do you have planned for 2019?? I’d love to know down in the comments! Happy one week of Blogmas! xx

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It’s Time to Tell You Guys…

Hello guys! Well, it’s official. I’ve been thinking about this for a long time now and I think it’s time to finally announce it…I’m doing Blogmas 2018!!! I was going back and forth on whether or not I wanted to participate this year. With my work schedule and things just being so crazy right now, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to do it. I never want to commit to anything I can’t follow through with, but I think the thought of failure was holding me back. I successfully posted everyday from December 1st through December 25th last year and it seriously helped my blog. Not only that, I loved seeing everyone take part in this fun online challenge and reading other Christmas posts!

Even though posting everyday can be a bit challenging (especially towards the end) it allows me to do something creative everyday and I think that’s important. This time of year is so special and it’s celebrated so differently around the world. My blog is my little slice of the internet, so I want to share with you every aspect of a California Christmas! Look forward to lots of cozy posts, ideas on fun things to do this holiday season, and much much more! Let me know if there’s anything specific you guys would like to see, as I’m still scheduling out posts in advance. Whether that be makeup looks, Christmas OOTD’s, recipes, or videos. I’m up for anything new!

I’ll admit I’m still a little afraid of missing a day or two, but I’m going to try my absolute hardest to post from December 1st all the way to Christmas Day. Wish me luck and I look forward to reading Blogmas posts from all my blogger friends on WordPress! Talk to you all tomorrow on the first day of Blogmas!! xx

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Goodbye 2017, Hello To A New Beginning!

Hello everyone! It’s so weird to finally be making another post. I’ve been taking a little break from blogging for almost a week now! I honestly just needed a little time to wind down after posting for 25 days straight for Blogmas. It was such a great experience to blog that often and I met tons of new readers (which is awesome) but it was also a lot of work. However, I’m back and wanted to write my final post of 2017 and give a little recap of my year. There’s lots of new subscribers that don’t know much about me, so I think a little throwback of my year will be nice!

2017 was such a bittersweet year for me. It was a time of immense change and growth for me as a person. I’d like to be honest without exposing too much detail if that’s okay. My year started off with a very heavy heartbreak. I’d never felt pain quite like this before, so learning how to handle that and cope with it was quite the process and at times it’s still something I deal with. I was starting the second semester of my 3rd year of college with an amazing roommate and an unbelievable summer ahead of me. This was definitely a blessing in disguise, considering I started off the year on quite the depressing note.

Honestly that whole semester of Junior year was kind of a blur. Looking back on it, I had a pretty heavy academic schedule but can’t remember much of those months. I turned 21 in March, which I suppose is an important milestone. But honestly, I’m not a big drinker so turning 21 wasn’t a crazy night for me (it was also a Tuesday if I remember correctly). I went to meetings once a month to get more information about my Europe trip through my university and got a Graphic Design internship lined up for the summer. It may also be important to note that the first half of 2017 I wasn’t very active on my blog. Actually, the first few years of my blog I was not very active. It wasn’t until the summer that things really started to change for me online.

Finally, in May I packed up my dorm and moved back home for the summer. I had to wait about a month before heading off to London to start my European excursion! I prepared myself for the trip that month, making lists and getting everything together that I would need. Time went by slowly since I was anticipating such a life changing trip. Unfortunately a week before I left, London was hit with a series of attacks, which at one point made me question whether it would be safe to go or not. Ultimately, I decided to go and concluded that I could not live in fear. Right before I left, I decided to make another blog post and do something different when it came to the subject of my blog. I tried networking for the first time (reaching out to bloggers and trying to connect more with the WordPress community) and everything changed from there! I started to gain more readers and got more feedback on my posts. Normally, when I would post there wouldn’t be much activity, nearly zero actually. I had reached some people when I first started blogging, but the less I posted, the less activity I would get. I didn’t completely understand how vital it was to connect with others, but it’s the most important thing you could ever do when writing a blog. Long story short, my blog started to pick up a bit and I left for London!

The next month would consist of me traveling with a large group of Graphic Design/Art majors throughout Europe, visiting five different countries and going to contemporary art museums everyday! It was the most magical month of my life and I wouldn’t have changed a minute of it for the world. Even the days when I was exhausted, I’ve never felt that type of happiness in my life. When I got home, I created separate posts dedicated to each country individually (called My Travel Journal), which if you’re interested to read more about, I will link here: England, Germany, France, Italy, Greece. After my return, I also started my month long Graphic Design internship, which was extremely professional and such an amazing opportunity.

At this point, my Senior year of college was about to begin! I moved into my first apartment off campus which is only a few minutes’ drive to my school. I moved in with a couple of the kindest friends I have and we’ve been experiencing apartment living together, the good and the bad. There have been tiny bumps in the road, but nothing we couldn’t handle together! I tried working at a new retail store during the start of the semester, it ended up not being for me, and I learned a lot about choosing what is best for your own life and your well being. Sometimes it’s hard to make that choice, but especially when it comes to jobs, you have to at least be able to tolerate the place you’re working. The semester had me extremely focused on my Graphic Design work and preparing for my final portfolio review (which will be in May of 2018). Again, I’ll be very honest and say this semester was full of ups and downs. Some days were extremely busy and I didn’t have a moment to myself and others seemed like they would never end when I got very lonely/depressed at times. I had my final grad check, and signed the papers to approve my graduation in May!

That about brings us to December of 2017. I participated in Blogmas, which as you may know is 25 days of straight blogging. It was awesome and I’m so glad I decided to take the plunge and do it! In the words of Shia Labeouf…

This month in particular has been a lot of growing for me mentally and emotionally. Realizing what exactly I need and want in life, making the necessary changes, and accepting it. Some things are very hard to go through, even if you know they’re the right thing. That’s probably been the hardest lesson for me, but I’m trying my best to do the right thing, in the most painless way possible. In 2018 I will be graduating college, moving back home, and doing research and filling out forms to go to grad school! It’s going to be an extremely transitional year for me, but I am so looking forward to a fresh start. New people, new jobs, new experience…I’m ready for you 2018! Please be good to me. I’m also very excited for where this blog is headed and I have many new things planned for you guys in the coming year! I’m so blessed to be able to share my thoughts with so many people online and always receive such positivity, so thank you for being a lovely audience. This was quite the wordy post, so if you made it this far, thank you so much. That was my recap of 2017 and I hope you enjoyed, I’ll talk to you all in 2018!

Happy New Year xx Sage

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What I Got for Christmas 2015!

// Hello loves! I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and an amazing New Year! Unfortunately, I was quite sick on New Years Eve and New Years Day, so I spent that time relaxing with the bf and family. Christmas however, was very fun and my last few days before I got hit with that sickness. So this post has been in my head for quite some time and I’m sorry it’s being posted this late! However, my cold is almost over and I can finally show you guys what I got for Christmas! I’m so blessed and fortunate to have received all that I did and I’m very grateful! //

So the first thing I got (and probably the most important) is my Nikon D5500 camera! As you all know, I am majoring in graphic design, so this is not only useful for my love of photography, but also future classes that I will be taking. The quality of my photos is very important not only to me personally, but for my success in graphic design in the future. I am so so so excited to use this camera and see what it can do. I’ve worked with it a bit and I can definitely say I’m in love with it. The screen is huge on this camera and can also flip out if you are recording a video. All of these photos were taken with my D5500 (except for the photo of itself, of course!) Let me know if you have any questions about this model!

The next gift I was completely not expecting and was so excited to receive! And that is Nume curling wands. I have been wanting a Nume product (specifically a larger barrel) for quite some time now. This set came with large, medium, and small barrels. You can achieve so many different styles of curls with these, but I have specifically been loving the largest one. You get the most perfect beachy waves and an almost effortless look. I’m absolutely loving them so I definitely recommend you check out their products on their site!

To continue with the beauty product trend, I was over the moon to receive the new Urban Decay Naked Smoky palette! I have been wanting to get my hands on this for a while, and I have been using it every day! It’s the perfect combination of glittery, metallic, and matte shades. They are all made to create the ideal smoky eye look, but I have been using these shades for an everyday look! I’d say all these shades are close to flawless to get that perfect smoky eye! I can’t wait for a night out so I can try out a smoky look! (I did a glitter makeup tutorial using shades from this palette, which you can find here).

This next beauty product I actually got for myself. It’s this gorgeous lipstick in the shade “Brink” from ColourPop. I have never used their products before, but after trying this out, I love them! This shade is a nude color with brown and reddish undertones. It works well with my skin tone and is a great color for a variety of looks. Altogether, both the lipstick and the liner, were $10 in total. However, I did get $5 off shipping since it was my first purchase. So normally, it would be $15, which is still an amazing deal for two products! I found this on Lindseyrem‘s YouTube video about ColourPop lip products. I have that linked so you can check out the variety of colors that they offer. What I love about these lipsticks and liners is that they’re matte but go on so creamy. They were so easy to use and definitely weren’t as drying as Mac lipsticks. Of course, all lipsticks will dry you out a little, but I found my lips weren’t as dehydrated with this product as compared to Mac.

This next gift is so cute and I’m super excited to use it! It’s this adorable, big planner. My mom got this for me so I could plan out all my blog posts, which will hopefully help me be more consistent, haha! But it has this beautiful wooden look with white flowers on the front and a wired binding. It’s exactly the kind of look I’ve been into lately and I never buy huge planners like this, which is an awesome change of pace.

The next are some books. The first photo are some coffee table books all about fashion. The first is the Little Dictionary of Fashion by Christian Dior and the other is Fifty Dresses that Changed the World by Design Museum. Once I get an apartment, I think these would look absolutely adorable on a coffee table or as decoration on a shelf. The next photo are three classic books: Through the Looking Glass, Wuthering Heights, and the Scarlet Letter. The creative approach to these old classics is stunning and will be the start to a classic book collection. I think they are so artistic and beautifully made!

The next items are some card sets. I love writing and receiving cards in the mail and it’s definitely something that people don’t do often anymore. These cards are beautiful and I can’t wait to use them! The first set is simply white and gold stripe with matching envelopes. They’re super minimalistic and cute. The second set has my favorite things on them: donuts! These are so unique and colorful and I’m so looking forward to sending these babies out. These donut inspired cards also came with matching blue envelopes.

This next gift was super simple, but definitely something I’m going to love wearing. These are an earring set from Tilly’s and I love the rustic gold looks with the little turquoise pair thrown in. The feather and bird themes are beautiful. I’m excited to mix and match these with my double piercing.

This next item may seem a little odd, but I’m actually excited to use it! And that’s a selfie stick. I’ve seen so many people use them. Some think they’re ridiculous, and others use them to take awesome pictures of their lives! I’m hoping this will help me to take more photos of moments I have with friends in college, since I haven’t been the best at documenting my experiences there.

And the last of my favorite items is this stick figure man. If you’re confused as to why I got this, it’s okay, let me explain. These are used by artists to sketch and create gestural drawings, for example. For me, since it has artistic connotations, I’ll probably use it for decoration and sketching at some point. I thought this was such a cute little gift to give someone who is artistic. It’s a small and simple item that will make any visual art or graphic design major excited! p.s. look how fabulous he is!!

So yeah these were some of my favorite gifts that I got for Christmas! What did you guys receive? Were there any gifts that you gave to someone else that you thought were great as well? I’d love to hear! Thanks for reading and I hope you all had a happy holiday! >>