January 2023 Month in Review

First monthly recap of the new year! January came and went so quickly, but it was exactly the calm couple of weeks I needed to recharge for 2023. I keep getting “one year ago today” messages on my phone, sharing memories from my time in Glasgow… It’s so much fun reliving those days, even though they already feel like a lifetime ago. Random things keep reminding me of Scotland and how much I miss it there.

What’s New?

• One of my 2023 goals was to start cooking more—specifically, cooking one more “involved” meal every week, instead of something simple like canned soup and grilled cheese. It’s been fun working more in the kitchen and branching out from my usual recipes. In January, I made stuffed bell peppers (which weren’t my favorite, but at least I tried something new), chili, chili mac, and chicken pot pie. The chicken pot pie took the entire night to make but it was so yummy! I struggle cooking meals for just one person without wasting a bunch/eating the same thing for a whole week, but my brother got me a Gluten-Free Cooking for Two cookbook that’s been really inspiring me lately.
• I can’t remember if I’ve talked about it on the blog yet, but my dad and I are going to Puerto Rico in March to visit family. It will be my first vacation as a proper adult, taking time off work and everything! I’m so excited and have, of course, already been planning all my tropical outfits. My dad and I spent a lot of time these past two weeks researching what to do and officially booking alllll the things. The trip will be here before I know it!

Top Performing January Blog Posts

• Weekly Recap #52, 2022
• A Letter to 2022
• A Tribute to Vivienne Westwood

Favorite Outfits from January

• It’s not every day that I come up with an entirely new outfit combination, but the maroon sweater and black leather skirt duo below was something I had never tried together before and absolutely loved. It’s so fun to shop your closet and discover something new!
• And of course, the retro inspired outfit from my pantone color of the year post is one of my favorite looks from the month—and possibly of all time. I love the brightly colored dress worn as a pencil skirt, and you can never go wrong with polka dots.

What I Watched

• “Full Metal Alchemist”—This is one of my boyfriend’s favorite animes, and while I’m not usually an anime-type person, I actually really loved this show. It explores some interesting moral concepts and is very well-realized.
• Glass Onion—It’s been a while since I disliked a movie so much… I thought Glass Onion was boring, anticlimactic, and poorly written. Skip!
• Banshees of Inisheran—This dark comedy set in Ireland, on the other hand, was very intriguing. Haunting, even. It’s the type of film that leaves you feeling a little empty inside, but you can’t stop thinking about it.
• The Gift—This movie has been on my Netflix to-watch list for a while and I finally got around to it. It’s a dark and creepy revenge story, and while it wasn’t the best movie ever, I thought the plot was compelling.
• The Menu—Loved this movie! I watched it without knowing anything about it and was pleasantly surprised by the film’s weirdness. It was also shockingly dark and left me pondering a long time after the fact. All the food made me hungry while watching, though!
• M3GAN—There was so much hype around this AI doll movie, but in the end it was disappointing… Don’t get me wrong, I still found it really entertaining, but it was your run-of-the-mill creepy doll movie—nothing special.

What I Read

• The Institute by Stephen King—It took me an embarrassingly long time to finish this book… The novel follows Luke Ellis, a young and extremely gifted boy who is kidnapped in the middle of the night and held hostage with other extranormal children. I thought the beginning was SO slow, but I enjoyed the read after things finally picked up, about halfway through the nearly-600 page book. It was well-written but I don’t think worth the boring start.

January Spotify Playlist

My monthly playlists are always a hodgepodge of random artists and genres, but I think January 2023 might take the cake for weirdest compilation of music—everything from country songs to anime intros. You can listen to the whole playlist here, but two of my new favorite songs that I’ve been listening to on repeat are “Stick Season” by Noah Kahan and “I Need My Girl” by The National.

What I’ve Been Loving Lately

• Homemade chocolate banana milkshakes. I’ve been making a lot of these for dessert in my NutriBullet the last few weeks… just a few scoops of vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce, a splash of milk, and one slightly mushy banana. SO yummy.
• My new sneakers from UIN Footwear! Today’s shoes are part of a collab I’m doing on my Instagram, and I absolutely love them. I don’t say this lightly, but they are by far the most comfortable shoes I’ve ever owned—like walking on little clouds. The leopard and pastel colors are sort of out-there but so fun for spring! I decided to pair the sneakers with a casual weekend look today, and I wore them a few times last week as well. You can use my code “grace5” for $5 off any pair of shoes or “grace10” for $10 off a purchase of $120 or more.

What I’m Looking Forward to in February

• I don’t know that I generally think of February as one of the more exciting months, but there’s a lot to look forward to this year! First up is a proper Super Bowl party a week from today. I’ve been trying to get a little more interested in football the past few months since my boyfriend loves watching it so much, so I think it will be entertaining to finally view the big game with him and his friends. Plus, I’m making some yummy snack foods that I’m very excited about!
• My boyfriend and I have dinner reservations on Valentine’s Day, which will be really fun. I’ve never gone out on a date on V-Day so that will be a first for me, and I’m very much looking forward to dressing up.
• Annnd the weekend after Valentine’s Day, the two of us are going on a little weekend trip to a hot springs resort nearby! I’m excited to relax and do nothing in that brisk mountain air.

This Month on Graceful Rags

• A Letter to 2022
• Weekly Recap #52, 2022
• Weekly Recap #1, 2023
• Weekly Recap #2, 2023
• A Tribute to Vivienne Westwood
• What We Did in Nashville
• Weekly Recap #3, 2023
• 2023 Plans and Goal Setting
• Viva Magenta: The Pantone Color of the Year
• Weekly Recap #4, 2023
• What to Wear in Nashville in the Winter

 
What are you looking forward to in February? And how are your goals/new year’s resolutions going so far? I’m proud of myself for accomplishing nearly everything I wanted to in January. I’ve been writing steps for each of my goals in my weekly and monthly planner spreads, which has been really helpful to keep me on top of stuff instead of immediately forgetting my new year plans like I usually do, lol.

Happy February, and as always, thanks for stopping by the blog today!

 

Miles of smiles,

Grace

 

Purple Sweater: Hand-me-down, last worn here | Black Vest: JCPenney, $20 ($1.54 per wear), last worn here | Straight Leg Jeans: Express, $15 ($1.50 per wear), last worn here | Sneakers: UIN Footwear, gifted by brand | Grey Beanie: Love Your Melon, $30 ($2.73 per wear), last worn here | Sunglasses: Sungait, gifted by brand, last worn here