What I Have Gotten Out of 2017

The end of the year has come up so fast, can you freaking believe it? It feels like just yesterday I posted Goals & What I Want From 2017. In that post, I went over some goals and things that I wanted to accomplish before the year was over. Welp, let the countdown begin.

TRAVEL

From what I can tell, I’m not alone when I put traveling on my To Do List. At the beginning of this year, I decided that I wanted to visit at least 10 states. Is it bad that I forgot I set that specific goal? I know I wanted to travel (when do I not) but to 10 states? Past Emily must’ve been rich! Ha, I wish. Although I know for a fact I didn’t hit 10, I did pass through and visit some states throughout the year- like New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and even a bit of Massachusetts. I really spent most of my time Upstate, New York. Between visiting friends at college, or dropping off my favorite hair stylist at school and visiting, spending time with my boyfriend’s family and camping! I’m not complaining, my time was very well spent.

KNOWLEDGE

So in January, I decided that I wanted to learn everything and anything that came my way. Though I can’t recall what exactly I have learned within this timeframe, I can definitely tell you that I did do exactly that, I LEARNED. In January, I was on winter break at my previous school, waiting for my last semester to come and go before graduating. I received my associate degree in Graphic Design in May. Let me tell you, it went by fast!

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I learned how to animate using Adobe After Effects, and how to create GIFs in Adobe Photoshop. I have learned a new way of thinking from one of my Design Professors, and I’m very thankful of him for that. I’ve been playing around with JavaScript, which has been interesting to say the least, and I’ve been reading a lot more!

ART

Do you want to try taking a guess as to how many photos I’ve shot in the last year? I don’t even think I could guess… my camera alone probably took 20,000 photos. Which isn’t really a lot- my phone definitely has about 5,000 easily. I got a new kitten this year, 89% of those photos are probably of him. LOL!

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I have been spending more time in my sketchbook- which has helped me think of things I would’ve never thought to do before. Also, because of my business- I’ve been working with new equipment that I wasn’t used to. So that helped me try random things, instead of consistently controlling my way of designing. I’ve been really enjoying my creations lately, not that I haven’t been before, but I definitely feel more confident after trying new things.

MEET

Okay, this year I’ve met some really awesome people who do really awesome things. Not all of them have blogs (believe me, I’m trying to make them join the dark side) but I will leave links if I can. Pretty recently actually, I met Blythe Morgan through one of the Facebook groups we are in. She’s super nice and fun to talk to, and gives AMAZING and much needed feedback. If you’ve been reading previous posts, you know that I’ve recently done a blogger swap post with her as well as created an Etsy challenge with her! She is a web designer as well as the owner of her shop Wild Child Creations.

Instagram // Etsy

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I’ve also met some new friends at school who are very creative, but won’t mention some of their names for confidentiality purposes. Starting with Ena, I have known her for more than a year, but we have gotten pretty close this past year and I need to mention her. She’s such a good person with a strong heart and her dedication amazes me. She’s currently traveling around the world and creating art along the way. I wish she’d take me with!

Instagram

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I’ve also met Danni through Sunday classes, which have been– interesting to say the least. She’s an amazing artist, who’s Instagram you NEED to follow if you don’t already. She mostly posts illustrations & drawings, she’s seriously AMAZING at what she does. Go check her work out!

Instagram

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For my week day classes, Emma has been through them all with me. I LOVE her concepts on the projects we’ve been creating together in class. You definitely should go check out her work! So excited to be spending a lot of next semester together & creating a bunch of new stuff in the courses to come.

Behance // Instagram

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How are you rounding up the end of the year?

I know it’s a lengthy post, but bear with me it’s a good one! I want to know all about your accomplishments of 2017. SO! Let me know all about them in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you and chat!

Thanks for reading all the way through & I can’t wait to hear what you’d like to do before the year is over! Stay warm, it’s gotten super cold in the last week or so- snuck up on me! 🙂