October 2021 Month in Review

I am finally getting around to sharing my October monthly recap today! (I was originally planning on sharing my spooky scary skeleton makeup on November 1^st—I realize it is now very outdated.) I don’t know why, but I have felt so unmotivated to do anything blog-related these past two weeks. It’s that point in the quarter where everyone starts to experience burn-out, the weather finally feels cozy + fall-like, and all I ever want to do is curl up on the couch with a hot cocoa. Thankfully, winter break starts for me on November 22^nd, so I’m in the home stretch!

What’s New?

• It looks like Scotland is a go! For those of you who have been following me since pre-Covid, you’ve probably heard me talk about the saga of my study abroad plans. I was supposed to go fall 2020, then fall 2021, and now I am scheduled to study at the University of Glasgow from January to May, 2022. All that’s left for me to do is purchasing my tickets! I could not be more excited that it’s finally going to happen, and I’m looking forward to spending my winter break brainstorming all the travel I want to do while there.
• I finally started looking for jobs yesterday… Gulp. Even though I’m excited to start “adulting”, I feel completely unprepared to enter the work force once I get back from Scotland next summer. Not only do I have no idea how the job searching process works, but I also seem extremely unqualified for everything. All the jobs I want require a few years of experience in the field first—how do I gain experience if all the jobs require experience?! I can feel myself approaching a meltdown.

Top Blog Posts from October

• Velvet with The Thrifty Six
• Why I Will Never Want a Career in Fashion
• How to Wear a Colorful Moto Jacket

Favorite Outfits from October

• My favorite outfit from October without a doubt was this glam look from my Thrifty Six post. I am *obsessed* with this textured blue dress and am dying to find an excuse to wear it out.
• I also loved this edgy outfit from my post about why I don’t want a career in fashion. Even though the sweater is super cropped, I like playing ‘dress up’ in edgier styles every once and awhile—the choker, sunglasses, snakeskin belt, and leather make me feel like a badass.

What I Watched + Read

• Sideways—I watched this movie as part of my wine tasting class (U.S. sales of pinot noir skyrocketed after the film was released in 2004). While I hated the characters in the film, I did think the California wine country setting and the romanticization of wine depicted in the movie made for an interesting class discussion.
• “Never Have I Ever: Season 2”—This show is pretty much trash. The first season was very cheesy, but I still kind of liked it in an ironic way. Season 2 was just all around bad.
• “Squid Game”—Of course, I had to see “Squid Game” back when it was all the rage! Unlike a lot of people, I really liked the show… until the last episode. I thought the big reveal and explanations of the game were really dumb and underdeveloped. I wrote a whole review of the series for my school’s student newspaper, which you can read here if interested.
• Dead Man Walking—I watched this 1995 film in my capital punishment class. I thought it was a really well-made movie and quite interesting, as it loosely follows the true story of how Sister Helen Prejean, a Catholic nun, became one of the leading opponents of the death penalty. It’s a challenging film, and my professor chose it because it really highlights the concept of retribution, which is one of the main arguments for those in favor of capital punishment.
• Into the Abyss and Thin Blue Line—Both of these were documentaries we also watched in my capital punishment class, about two guilty death row inmates and a wrongfully convicted man on death row, respectively. I would not recommend these movies unless you are really interested in the issue of capital punishment.
• “Orange is the New Black”—I just finished season 2 of this show today. I expected it to be kind of dark and serious, but I would probably consider the series as more of a comedy. I’ve actually really been enjoying it so far, especially because I am a criminology major and study a lot of the problems depicted in the show’s prison.
• “Midnight Mass”—I just finished this show last night, which was made by the same person as “The Haunting of Hill House” and “Bly Manor”. While I have not seen Bly Manor yet, I have seen Hill House, and this is how I would compare the two: I thought Midnight Mass was way scarier than Hill House, and it depicts a very different kind of scariness. Midnight Mass is very suspenseful and keeps you intrigued for the first several episodes, as the viewer tries to figure out what the heck is going on. Ultimately, however, I think Hill House was way better done and much ‘tighter’ in terms of the plot—Midnight Mass definitely left me with some questions. But with that said, I really enjoyed its creepy religious theme, especially having been raised Catholic myself.
• Just Mercy—I read this book, which was made into a film in 2019 starring Michael B. Jordan and Jamie Foxx, for my capital punishment class. It is the memoir of lawyer Bryan Stevenson’s experiences defending death row inmates and other members of the criminal justice system in the deep South, and it specifically follows the story of Walter McMillian’s wrongful conviction. It’s a very sad and eye-opening book but a great read at the same time.

Quote of the Month

• October’s Quote: “Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall.” -F. Scott Fitzgerald
• November’s Quote: “Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.” -Helen Keller.

Accomplishments

Even though I missed several blog posts throughout October, I’m super excited to say that it was still my best month of views and visitors ever!! I increased my views by nearly 400 and my visitors by 200 since my last personal record in August. There were many years of blogging where my growth was almost entirely stagnant, so it’s extremely encouraging that I have continued to grow for the last several months. October was also special because I got to participate in my school’s first ever Entrepreneurship Week by setting up a table for Graceful Rags and telling students and faculty all about my fashion blog. The event gave me so much confidence!

What I’m Looking Forward to in November

• November is going to be an incredibly exciting month! My parents are visiting me this weekend and into the next week to celebrate my 22^nd birthday—I am so excited to see them and find out what fun activities they have planned.
• I’m also looking forward to moving out—as much as I absolutely love my current apartment and living by myself, I really do enjoy the packing process (I swear I should start a packing business because I know most people hate it).
• And of course, I’m stoked for Thanksgiving! We are planning on spending the holiday in Las Vegas, so I’m looking forward to hanging out with family and seeing one of my best friends, whom I haven’t seen since June and will happen to be in Vegas at the same time as me. Yay!!

This Month in 2020: Camo Outfit Two Ways | The Best and Worst Fall Fashion Trends | What Sewing Has Taught Me About Fashion

This Month in 2019: El Camino de Santiago: The Untold Stories | Billy the Puppet Halloween Costume | David Bowie Halloween Costume

This Month in 2018: My Name’s Blurryface and I *Don’t* Care What You Think | So Far Away: Tips for Coping with Homesickness | Maybe She’s Born With It, Maybe It’s Confidence

This Month in 2017: My Road Trip Essentials | Costumes Through the Years | Work Wear or the Weekend? | Take Me to the Masquerade

This Month in 2016: A Fashionista’s Halloween Costume | Formal Attire | Back At It | Back to Boho

What do you think of my skeleton face paint?? I don’t think it’s my best work ever, but I was pretty happy with how it turned out (and received lots of compliments from the trick-or-treaters’ parents). I highly recommend this face paint (the price is worth it), and then I used black eyeshadow and silver lipstick to keep the paint a healthy distance from my eyes/mouth. It washes off super easily!

How was your month? What are you most proud of accomplishing in October? When I look back at my planner, I can’t believe how much I squeezed into the last 4+ weeks—volunteering, soccer, several senior year bucket list items, haunted houses and pumpkin patches, parties, and my friend’s visit to Denver. Phew! I’ve always loved staying busy—it makes me feel important—but I’m also looking forward to resting once this quarter is over.

Be sure to join the linkup above, and thanks for stopping by the blog today!

Miles of smiles,
Grace