2017 | The Highlight Reel
I love the end of a year, because each year I do a roundup of all the good and exciting things that have happened in my life and I really love looking back and having the time to reflect on it all- especially if there's things that I've forgotten about. No questions about it, 2017 has been the best year of my life. It has been the year of self evolution. It has been the year that I finally- finally- grew up and got my shit together. It's been the year that my life has had a total makeover and completely changed. I have loved every second (well...most of the seconds) and had the time of my life. So let's just recap...
The first month of the year, the first chapter of a fresh start...I began the new year in Oxford with my a girlfriend. We were each others New Year's kiss, as it was my first New Year's single and alone for the first time in 6 years and also the one year marker of my *horrific* breakup. It was nice to start the New Year feeling happy and refreshed.
I moved house and finally got my own room- although this did mean saying goodbye to my fur babies, Elsie and Doris, who I miss so much, so often. Little did I know that this would be my last family home!
I met Jonny properly for the first time, not realising how significant this moment would be later on in the year!
I began working in partnership with Elegant Touch, which I was honestly over the moon about! They sent me my first batch of nails to promote in January and it just seemed like a brilliant way to start the year.
February
I had a job interview with Laura Ashley Head Office in a social media role and got to the final stages of the interview process but was unfortunately unsuccessful. However, this proved to me that my skills and experience were obviously good enough for somewhere as senior as LA Head Office so this spurred me on to apply for roles in higher positions in my field. Daunting but exciting!
I went to a few gigs in February which was fun! I got to see Drake live with Lauren which was an incredible experience and one that I wish I could relive over and over- he was so good! I also saw Loyle Carner (bae) and The Fratelli's too!
It was another Valentine's Day alone, so I spent it with my youngest sister- we exchanged the cutest of gifts and ordered a Dominos, so I think we did it right! We also did a photoshoot for a blog post I posted following Valentine's Day, which turned out to be my most popular post of all time...
I also got my first ever double bed in February- it doesn't sound like much I know but this was really something to me and changed my sleep for the better!
I got told I had to up my glasses prescription, so I got stuck wearing them almost all of the time. A bit of a low point but everyone says I really suit glasses, and I've grown used to them now so it's not so bad!
My biggest achievement of all- I got to interview Radio 1 DJ Gemma Cairney for my magazine, Love from...! I couldn't believe my luck and was so over the moon about this!
March
I started off March in the best way- I won £100 worth of Elegant Touch nails and tickets to Glamour's Beauty Festival. I never win anything so I was really happy about this! The Beauty Festival happened a couple of weeks later and was really good!
I went to another gig, this time to see The Weeknd with Bobbie! We managed to get really close to the stage and he was honestly almost better in person then he is on Spotify/CD's etc.
I managed to secure tickets to see Gorillaz at their festival in the summer, thanks to my Dad. I cried with happiness because I never thought these guys would perform live again!
The GIRL POWER issue of Love from... came out, featuring Gemma Cairney and it was the best and most successful issue to date. I was so happy with it and it sold out twice!
I attended the Makeup Revolution 3rd birthday party, where I got to see Julia, Vix and Jemma which was amazing and so much fun! I was thrilled to have been invited- they know how to throw the best parties!
April
I attended my first ever christening, and I found a guy here that I *really* liked and continued to pursue for the next couple of months. C r i n g e but a big learning curve for me.
I met Tiff in person, properly for the first time! We went on a girly lunch date and found out that we are basically soul mates. She's been a huge part of my life ever since.
I went on my first ever double date with the aforementioned guy. It was really good and a lot of fun and, again, a big learning curve.
I got to see baby Bobbie a lot too, which was really nice. She grows so fast and every time I see her she's different! I babysat her solo for a couple of hours at my house and really learnt how much hard work babies can be, which prompted me to blog about how I was never going to have kids...
The best achievement of all- I got a new job! I landed myself my first "proper", "grown up" job as a Communications Officer and got to quit retail for good, yay!
May
I started off May seeing Stormzy with Bobbie which was unreal- I don't even have the words to express how unbelievable he was or how talented he is. If you ever get the chance to see him, go!
I spent an entire weekend with Tiff, going to a cute little gig together, going out for drinks, having a cute lunch date, making new friends and trying the worlds best burgers. This weekend really stands out in my mind because it was just so much fun and was so spontaneous!
June
June was a great month for me! June 1st marks the birthday of my magazine! Love from... turned 2 and I got to celebrate by going out for dinner and even having a birthday cake- a surprise from my mum and sister! Running your own business is hard work but the magazine is something that I am so passionate about and love doing- I couldn't ever not do it!
I had a few encounters with the previously mentioned guy, which ended in- you guessed it- disaster. However, they have left me with some absolutely hilarious memories. Now, if people could just never speak to me about olive oil again, that would be great...
I got to see Gorillaz live at their festival! The day was gorgeously hot and sunny, and being located next to the beach meant I got to spend some time at the seaside as well. It was a lot of fun and definitely one of the best gigs I've ever been to in my life!
I spent so much time hanging out with various girlfriends, which brought me closer to all of them and we made some brilliant memories together which we still laugh about now.
I pulled off hosting a huge conference at work which felt like a massive career achievement for me!
July
I saw Justin Bieber, live and in person. Yes he was very far away but I still saw him in real life. I also looked totally bomb on that day and want to go back in time just to wear that outfit again. This day was also a key point that lead to mine and Jonny's relationship, so is a very happy memory in my mind.
I got to see Blushes live for the third time and got to see Foster the People live for the first time, both of whom were absolutely brilliant.
There was a lot more girl time- drinks, brunches, dinner dates, gym dates (yes, really!), spontaneous car trips to nowhere and also two press trips to London for my blog which were huge accomplishments for me! I got to work with Edgerton Pink Gin and Tresor Paris and it was an honor to be recognised as a blogger by both of these companies!
There was a lot of body positivity in July too- I fully fell in love with myself and it felt great.
I was reunited with my family on my dad's side for the first time in 15 years which was really lovely and made me feel complete.
A big step was beginning to look at flats and buy homeware in preparation for moving out! I began looking at the different kinds of places I could afford and finally began to feel like a grown up!
Finally, on the 31st July, my blog turned 3!
August
In August I worked on a really exciting campaign with Elegant Touch which involved being part of one of their promotional videos shared on social media! I was mega excited about this because it was just another chance to get my name/face out there whilst working with a brand I truly loved!
I met Jonny again and started to hang out with him and get to know him- gradually falling head over heels for him (aw). We saw each other almost every day and did a lot of fun things together, like going bowling, going to Waddesdon Manor, breakfast dates and late night 'ghost hunts'. I also met some of his friends, who in turn, became my friends. Some of my favourite memories from this year are from August.
I worked on some sponsored content with The Piano Works and got to take an amazing trip there. I got way too drunk but had the time of my life and definitely want to go back sometime soon!
I also got to work with seven different brands to create sponsored content in August, which made a nice little additional stream of income for me and left me feeling very hopeful and positive about my blog.
September
YAY, Jonny asked me to be his girlfriend! After vowing to stay single for the rest of my life, after feeling like I would never love anyone again or let anyone love me, I opened myself up to the idea of a new relationship and became Jonny's girlfriend. We've been attached at the hip ever since- I can't seem to shake him off!
I went on a great night out in MK for Poppy's birthday and had such a laugh- it's one of my favourite nights out from the year, because it was a messy one but not so messy that there was drama and no one could remember what happened.
Jonny and I house sat for a friend so spent a week living together... it didn't take long for us to realise we probably wanted to do this permanently. It was such a good week and between us we managed to keep a cat alive and cook without the assistance of our parents! Go us!
Jonny also took me to the zoo for a surprise day out so that was a massive high point of September too!
I went to see Chip with Jonny, which was our first gig together and was... interesting.
Me, Jonny and two of our friends took a mini break to London for the weekend. We went to Ministry of Sound, the Aquarium, played at Junkyard Golf, went out for dinner and drinks and again, realised that we had a lot of fun when we were together and that we didn't really want to have to be apart. We've spent every night together since then!
Finally, Jonny won a lot of money in a bet, so booked me and him a holiday to Amsterdam- my favourite place in the world!!!
(Yep, as it was our first month dating, Jonny features quite heavily in September, and from here on in!)
October
In October, me and Jonny had a 9 day holiday! It started on the 7th October, where we headed up to Manchester for the night to see Annie Mac, which was incredible. We came back home on the 8th and on the 9th we flew out to Amsterdam for 5 days! We had the most incredible time- it was my fifth time there and Jonny's first, and despite running out of money, we crammed in so many tourist attractions, including ones I'd never done before and made a lot of great memories there together. On the 13th we flew home on the 14th we went to stay at The Manor for a night, as part of a collaboration for my blog! Not only was this another great memory for us, it was a beautiful way to round off our holiday and was also a huge blogging achievement for me!
The SELF issue of Love from... magazine came out and was a huge success, yay! I tried to be a bit more creative with the page design and layout to make things look more professional and I think it's really paid off.
One of my top highlights this year has to be speaking at the Diamonds and Deals Women In Business event. To be classed as a successful business woman, and to speak alongside the likes of Remel London, a huge idol of mine, was a complete honor and I was utterly overwhelmed. I want to do more of these inspiring chats in 2018!
I had my birthday night out at the end of October which was a huge success. I felt so surrounded by love and happiness and realised how lucky and grateful I am to have such brilliant people in my life- both the new ones and the old ones, all of whom helped to make my birthday so special. (I also looked the best I've ever looked in my whole life, which was great haha).
Finally, Beth and Callum's baby shower. A lot of fun and a lot of baby talk which made me very broody!
November
My birthday- and meeting bloody TOM HANKS, my number one, all time hero! He said happy birthday to me! I don't need anything else from life, thank you. I am done.
Bobbie turned 1!
I got to see Dua Lipa live and scream along with all her lyrics about fuck boys which was great.
I took Jonny to see Blushes live for the first time, and introduced him to Tiff- it's so important to me that my friends and Jonny get on, and luckily they do!
I got back into presenting work! I presented six Safe Drive Stay Alive shows to 1,000 people each time over and I absolutely smashed it- so much so that I've been asked back to do it next year! I absolutely can't wait because I really did have the time of my life doing it. I am so at home with a mic in my hand!
I got to celebrate Jonny's birthday! I spoilt him as much as I could and we decided last minute to spend the weekend in London too, which was a nice treat for us both!
Callum and Beth's baby was born! Jonny and I both cried at the first photo of him and when we got to meet him and have cuddles we couldn't get the thoughts of babies off our brains- we are both so broody now!
I found out I had to move out of the family home as of January so me and Jonny made the brave, slightly crazy and pretty scary decision to move out together and began looking at flats, which was exciting and too much adulting for my liking.
Lastly, I landed myself a new job! I only work two days a week as a Communications Officer and I managed to land myself a role as a Social Media Assistant to a photographer for another two days a week! As social media is something I am passionate about I was so bloody happy to get this role- especially because I love photography too! And I was even happier to be working full time hours again. I started in the last week of November.
December
Jonny and I secured the house that we wanted!
We spent the weekend in London and got to see a BBK gig which was pretty insane.
We went to Winter Wonderland- Jonny had never been before and is a bit of a grinch so I delighted in getting to drag him around the most festive place in London!
We signed the contract for our house, paid the deposit and made everything 100% permanent and secure! We began buying homeware, such as sofas, and doing a lot of other adult things that are pretty daunting!
Finally, we celebrated our first Christmas together, which we both said was our best Christmas ever too! We had a lovely day with both of our families and were both completely spoilt too!
***
So there we have it- the rather lengthy highlight reel from the best year of my life so far! I've made some amazing career achievements and I fell in love again- and I'm finally moving out! So much is going on and there's so much planned for 2018...I just can't wait for next year!
What have been your highlights from 2017? Share yours in the comments below!
Love from,
Florence Grace
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