I’ve never been one for resolutions. They just seem very abstract (“get fit”) or way too much pressure (“don’t eat chocolate”). I am, however, all about setting goals for myself and for my home. Goals seem more manageable, something to work towards rather than trying to tackle something huge all in one go. I can work towards them, make decisions based upon them, ask myself with every step if it means getting closer to whatever my end goal actually is. And let’s be honest – putting them all on here, in public view, is a great way to keep me accountable!

And it does seem to work. I made a number of goals last year – both personally as well as for my home and I have to say, I’m rather proud of how many I was able to tick off the list. *fist pump* Here’s a brief rundown of my 2016 goals if you don’t fancy reading the whole post:

2016 Personal goals – how did I do??

1. Stay authentic to my blog, give of myself more and say no more often. I feel good about my content last year. I said no to LOADS of collaborations that just didn’t feel right or that I felt weren’t a good enough fit. I also said no to collaborations that I knew would stress me out (ie., a bunch of new outdoor furniture but it needed to be photographed in February when my garden is a disaster area, daylight is limited and everything is dead. Erm, no.) I also shared some things that didn’t go right (our difficulty in finding someone to install the worktops comes to mind as well as struggling psychologically working in a dark room.)
2. Improve my photography skills. I know I still have work to do here but my photography has improved this year, I’m getting better at shooting on manual settings and working with low light. But this is a never-ending goal so I just keep trying!
3. Do a class on flower arranging. Done! Plus, I created this Christmas centrepiece which I was pretty proud of. So we’re getting there!
4. Do more video content. I created 7 videos (4 with the lovely folks at SwiftCover, 3 on my own) this past year which I’m pleased with (well, the quantity anyway). I still need/want to improve my skills but more on that in a bit!

2016 Home goals – how did I do??

1. Complete the dining room remodel. Done!
2. Complete the kitchen remodel. Done!
3. Get new wardrobes in the bedroom. Done!

SMASHED IT. So with that said, here are my new goals for 2017…

2017 Personal Goals

Here’s what I’d like to do in the new year in terms of my own blog, my skills and my life. This isn’t by any means an exhaustive list but these are the biggies I want to work on improving or doing this year.

Improve my Video Content

I think the thing with video content for me is that it really stretches me. I genuinely haven’t got a clue what the hell I’m doing (this is probably pretty obvious) and so it is forcing me to learn some new skills. The truth is, I’ve been blogging for 6 1/2 years and while I am still learning all the time, I feel like I pretty much know what I’m doing now in terms of photography, pulling together a decent post, making sure it all makes sense and getting my personality across. With video? Not so much.

So learning things like planning the content, lighting, angles, editing, overlaying text etc – it’s all like a brand new language for me and videos take me twice as long to do as my regular content so yeah, it’s HARD because I’m still learning. I do enjoy the challenge of it, however, and I really want to create some decent quality videos this year. So I’m working on it and I’m going to strive to create at least one a month in 2017. I’m hoping by the end of 2017, I will have cracked it. Or at least learned to make nice looking videos. (Fancy subscribing to my YouTube channel? Oh, go on then.) 

Team up with great sponsors

I’ve worked with some pretty great companies this past year and staying true to my blog is always at the very forefront of any collaboration I do. If a brand can help me out to create better content than what I can do on my own, then I’m all for it – because that’s always going to be the best end result. I want really good, high-quality content for you guys. Stuff that you can take away and learn from, encouraging you to try new things and experiment and really feel confident when it comes to decorating your own home or tackling DIYs. So sometimes teaming up with brands allows me to do that either much quicker or much better than when I’m going it alone. This doesn’t mean MORE sponsored content of course – it just means being super selective (as I’ve always tried to be) and only working with brands that feel like the right fit for Swoon Worthy. So really, this is just carrying on from last year – say no to things that aren’t a good fit, say yes to great quality content I think you’ll like.

Get back into healthy habits

This is less about the blog and more about my own health. I did great all year and then December came and I fell off the wagon big time – and I’ll tell you what – I feel dreadful!! So after a month of indulgence (and an extra 8lbs on my hips!!), I need to get back to healthy eating which I loved so much so I can start to feel better again. It’s less about losing weight, more about feeling good!

Collaborate more with other bloggers

Susie from Old Fashioned Susie, Karen from Making Spaces, Antonia from #TidyLife and Karen from Well I Guess This is Growing Up on a rare Northern blogger meetup

I so enjoyed organising the UK Home Blog Hop for Christmas and I want to do more collaborations with my fellow bloggers this year. I’m already planning a Spring Hop but I want to do more with individual bloggers too, joining forces to create some really great content and introducing you to a few new bloggers you may not yet know but that I know you’ll love.

2017 Home Goals

Here’s what I’d love to get done around the house for the next year. Now, I am well aware we have tackled just about every space in this house and so the biggest projects have been ticked off (finally!) but believe it or not, it’s not totally done yet. So here’s what’s left and what I’d love to see us get done over the next year.

Create a Sexy Man Cave

This was actually a ‘bonus’ goal last year that we didn’t quite manage. But this is currently at the very top of the list. I want a sexy moody space that we can both enjoy. I’ve started planning the design but I’ve already made changes to it so it’s a work in progress! Wayne has a lot of little finishing projects that need to be completed before we can get some paint on the walls and bringing in some new furniture so I have to make sure he doesn’t lose momentum! ;)

Finish the Hallway

This was taken ages ago but it hasn’t improved much since – in fact, it’s probably worse now!

You never see much of my hallway on the blog because it’s shockingly ugly. We’ve never touched it in all the years we’ve lived here because we wanted to get the rooms done first and now that almost every room in our home is complete in terms of the ‘big stuff’, it’s time. The flooring, walls, ceilings, lighting – everything – needs attention. Trust me when I tell you the picture above is actually quite flattering.

Finish the Floors in the Bedroom

The old, stained carpeting in the bedroom needs to go. We want to refinish the floors in there to match the rest of the flooring (pine stained a deep colour) and that will mean this room is completely finished. Well, it’s never finished, you know me – but at least I won’t cringe when I’m in there.

Buy More Vintage

I’ll be sharing this vintage beauty with you soon!

I have a number of smaller pieces I am going to be needing and I’m going to challenge myself to shop vintage before going for new pieces. It’s far too tempting to just go on a website and place an order for something brand new and sparkling but you can get some amazing pieces for so much less in places like eBay (or Craigslist if you are in the US) – plus you can get such unusual pieces that really give a space a personality. I’m going to be on the lookout for seating, lighting and storage. Stay tuned because the hunt is on.

So, as I said, this is no means an exhaustive list. We always end up doing additional projects here and there but those are my biggies. Now it’s your turn: Do you set yourself resolutions or goals each year? What will you be improving on in 2017? Any on my own list you are working on yourself? Do tell…