Here's to 2011

And what a year it's been. An odd one, and a busy one, to say the least. Here is a snippet of what I and my blog got up to each month (and please be sure to send me the links your your year reviews!), enjoy!

January: The start of 2011 kicked off with a rather lucky bang, when I was amazed to discover I had won the most humongous Lush set I have ever seen, courtesy of Rachel (thankyou, again, I still have bathbombs left over!).

February: The most memorable end to this month was a beautiful holiday with Liam to Venice for our anniversary. Despite the cold, it was the most perfect sightseeing week as we caught the end of carnival. It was a time for heartache and heartbreak, as I lost all faith in my new Holga which lost two reels of film, PAINFUL.

March: Nothing especially monumental happened in March, but what was most written about on this blog was baking haha! In March, we tried and tested a variety of Good Food recipes with varying success (read = Malteser cake fail) including these scrummy lemon curd cupcakes (yum!).

April: It was a month of birthdays, with my 21st and being in shock to this day at receiving this gorgeous ring from Liam. It remains the most precious thing I own and I remember that day in the Jewellery Quarter so vividly. I was adamant I'd know what I'd want when I saw it, and this was it.

May: You might remember in May I held a second hand clothes stall in aid of Breakthrough Breast Cancer. On the blog I sought your generosity in the form of the 22nd May Appeal and contributed a fair amount to the final total of over £1500 raised for charity - with big thanks to your help!

June: This month I braved the mud and the rain and had my first visit to Glastonbury! And what a fantastic weekend it was, I saw so many of my favourite bands (The Kills, Friendly Fires and Foster The People to name a few) and caught the sun on what was one of my most memorable weekends of 2011.

July: One weekend in June saw a load of bloggers invade Birmingham on the #brumbloggermeet organised by myself and Fritha! We had a spot of shopping, multiple photo opportunities, plenty of bloggy gossip, followed by a meal and a few of us hit the town and had one too many G&Ts.
August: Over the summer I was mainly based in Sheffield, where I spent loads of time with new pal. It's been a weird year in many ways, and I'm just so pleased I met Hannah, she's my favourite new person of the year. If I had a medal to give her, I would haha.

September: Aswell as the start of a new term at university (third year now, eeek!) I took to the hills on more than one occasion to soak up the beautiful Peak District. It's only on my doorstep so it's a shame I don't visit more often, but September saw a few beautiful days out in the sticks, watching sheepdog trials and enjoying the Indian Summer.
October: This month I initiated a love affair that would prove difficult to shake. That's right, my love of (faux) leather. I had to include some sort of style reference on my blog roundup and this has definitely been the most noticeable. If I were to rename my blog this year, "365 ways to wear leather" might be the most appropriate!

November: On a spontaneous weekend I decided to get my second tattoo! It has pretty much healed now, and I can honestly say I've never experienced such pain haha! As they say, no pain no gain, and it's also true that tatts are highly addictive - I'm already conjuring up ideas for my third.

December: The last month of 2011 saw my stress levels pretty much hit crisis point. My bro and I organised my parents' joint 50th birthday party, all completely a surprise. Despite all my worries the night was a fantastic success and such a memorable end to the year.

Phew! What a long winded roundup. I feel like I've written a Round Robin haha. What else happened? Well, in 12 months I started 3rd year of university, completed 2 work placements and moved house once. I had trips to London, Whitby and Liverpool, and on the blog front, my biggest achievement was Jazzpad turning two!

It's been a busy, busy year, and I'm sure 2012 will be just as exciting! HAPPY NEW YEAR to all of my followers, on twitter and my blog, xox