I just had an amazing dinner and I am itching to catch up on this week’s Project Runway so I am going to make this super short and sweet. Below, I’ve posted some of my favorite links around the web this week. I hope you enjoy!
I often think as the day as a deposit of time. Each day, each person is allocated seconds, minutes and hours and what we do with those precious moments are up to us. Will we spend them wisely or withdrawal without caution? Especially around the New Year, time is all anybody can think about. I’ve decided to be more intentional about mine. I want to keep a close eye on each interval, and what better way to do so than with a stylish timepiece that accentuates every ensemble.
I am a serial minimalist. I don’t wear a lot of accessories or extra, unnecessary articles of clothing. When I do, they have to be worth it. I discovered JORD (pronounced Yode, like Yoda but without the -a) in the one place I discover a lot of new brands, on Instagram. I was immediately attracted to their sophisticated mix of natural and largely re-claimed materials while still holding stylish design in high regards. Compared to others I have seen, the JORD wood watches stand out in terms of impeccable craftsmanship, classic style and top-tier quality.
I personally have the Cora Polaris Walnut and Midnight Blue JORD timepiece. This watch sets your eyes to the stars quite literally as the face is adorned with Swarovski crystals that align in a way to depict the Little Dipper. The earthy walnut accents are complemented with the rose gold tones to emulate the evolution in feminine design. It is strong, mysterious, subtle and illuminating, all the qualities you want hugging your wrist every day. It is a constant reminder that the universe has a lot to offer, something I think more of us need to hear at this time.
For me personally, I would style my Cora Polaris one of two ways:
1) I would pair this piece with an outfit that includes pink accents to enhance the rose gold tones of the metal.
2) Because of the subtle complexity, I would pair my watch with a monochromatic neutral outfit meaning head to toe black, white or camel pieces.
If I haven’t convinced you yet to invest in these beautifully-crafted watches, maybe this will aid in your decision. I have partnered with JORD and am gifting one lucky winner $100 off any JORD watch of your choice. All you have to do to enter is click this link www.jordwatches.com/g/sincerelysydblog and fill out the short form. It will take you literally less than 30 seconds. If your uber excited about what JORD has to offer and can’t wait until the giveaway ends, just by entering the giveaway you will receive 10% off gift code for your future wrist piece.
While you are perusing the exquisite JORD options, keep in mind that most watches have additional options for customization by mixing and matching faces and woods. Most watch backplates can also be engraved for personalization. All of the Cedar humidor presentation boxes have the ability to be engraved, as well! Every watch comes with a one-year warranty and options for return and exchange, can be sized for the recipient and JORD offers free worldwide standard shipping. They really are in the business of making you look and feel fabulous!
I am honestly so pleased with my JORD piece. It has exceeded my expectations and I cannot wait to style it in the new year. Enter my giveaway via the above link so we can tell time together!
Thank you JORD for partnering with me on this post!
That’s cause for celebration in and of itself! It was my first full week back at work since December 20th and let me tell you, it was NOT easy. I feel more tired than I have in a while, stressed again with business and I think there’s a direct correlation with working and my skin looking 10 years older than I actually am. But, I’m hopeful that after some much needed extra rest this weekend, I will be back better than ever next week.
Since I haven’t posted one of these in a while, I’ve included some additional amazing articles and videos that have surfaced the interweb over the past couple of weeks. I hope you enjoy celebrity baby news, tear-jerking proposals and videos of people falling as much as I do. Enjoy!
At the turn of a New Year, I usually never feel any different. It’s not like when the clock strikes midnight that some new wave of revelation and hopefulness swoops over my body. For some reason though 2020 felt different. I did feel hopeful. I had this gut instinct literally at the stroke of midnight that this might just be my year to shine. It was the weirdest thing ever.
So, just in case that is the truth of the matter, I am being very intentional this year. I have come up with three categories: Career-Driven, Personal and Financial. Within those three categories, I’ve established five goals that I want to achieve in 2020. Each goal is specific and quantifiable in an effort to really put all of my focus into checking every single item off my list by December 31, 2020 11:59PM.
I operate off of checklists, so this is the holy grail of checklists for myself this year and I am holding myself accountable. I hope if you have the same feeling I do about 2020 and you too want to be intentional about goal setting this year but don’t know where to start that this post acts as a thought starter for you. Let’s do the damn thing and crush our goals this year!
Career-Driven (This encompasses both my full-time job and my secondary “job” as a blogger):
Participate in 3 learning opportunities related to my full-time job
Take on at least 3 new clients at work
Attend one blogging conference
Post 3-4 times a week on my blog
Get to 10K followers on my Instagram account
Personal (This category encompasses personal goals and relationships):
Read one new book each quarter
Volunteer at least 2 times this year for different organizations
Participate in the “one in, one out” rule (Buy one new thing, one thing I already own has to go)
Start a podcast with my mom by June
Grow my relationship to its next chapter
Financial (This one is self-explanatory):
Save enough money to put a down payment on a house by 2021
Put 10% of my paycheck in my savings account
Save money by only eating out 2-3 times a week (I usually eat out way more so this will probably be my hardest one lol)
Be mindful of spending in order to take at least 5 trips this year
Apply for and start using a credit card (For the credit part but also points for travel)
3 Tips For Setting Your Own Goals:
Categorize your goals to help compartmentalize your mind
Create S.M.A.R.T goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-Based)
I often ponder about timing. Are the events that occur in our life due to the romanticized idea of fate or are we strategically placed in acts of randomness. If I weren’t perpetually 10 minutes late, would my life be totally different? This thought especially crosses my mind when I experience a year like 2019. Cause and effect; if I didn’t or did do this, would that of happened? It was filled with a lot of high highs and an abundance of low lows. But in the twisted plot of it all, I learned many valuable lessons.
As 2019’s last chapter comes to an end, I’ve realized that from the things I’ve gone through, I’ve learned:
To revel in the uncontrollable. I lost two grandparents this year, I stayed at a job longer than anticipated because I loved it more than expected, I traveled all over North America all of which was not really pre-planned and so much more happened that I didn’t expect. Instead of wondering why things are happening to us, I have realized that they are actually happening for us. The uncontrollable is inevitable and uncomfortable, but it is necessary in order to become stronger and more adaptable.
To follow your passion. This year I started this blog with no idea what in the hell I was doing. I was nervous and fearful of what others might think. As a result, I’ve found a purpose to help young-professional women, my confidence has doubled, my connections have nearly tripled and I reconnected with something that comes pretty natural to me: writing.
That over communication is key. This year, if I want something, I have learned to ask for it. Although we fantasize about superheroes, no one in the real world can actually read minds. I tend to hold my thoughts in, sweep them under the rug, but by simply stating a feeling or asking for something I want/need, it stops the countdown clock before it reaches ka-boom. I mean the worst thing they can say is no.
I was never one to pick a word for the year, not because I thought it was silly but just because I’m too indecisive to narrow one down. But looking back on 2019, I’ve decided to retroactively choose my word based on the year’s events. I chose discoverability. I discovered a new sense of self; someone I am learning to truly be really proud of. I’ve discovered a new passion and creative outlet. I discovered parts of the world I had never seen before. I discovered connections I never knew I needed. I discovered this confident, strong, opinionated professional woman who speaks up in important meetings. I’ve discovered the ability to ask for what I want. I’ve discovered how important the core relationships in my life really are and how much those select few people really mean to me. I discovered happiness in an extensive closet collection with my Rent the Runway membership, happiness in the sound of a champagne cork pop and having beautiful dinner experiences (hey, you even have to celebrate the small things every now and then).
So, for 2020, I am choosing my word now! I have chosen growth. I want to grow my relationship into the next chapter. I want to grow as a professional by reaching the next milestone. I want to grow my online presence both in numbers and in other verticals. I want to grow my travel bucket list because I just keep scratching off my top destinations. I want to grow my savings account. I want to continue to grow in my relationships with family both close and distant. I want to grow in my wellness journey. I want to be intentional about my growth.
I hope you are entering 2020 with a positive mindset and with intention. It’s not only the start of a new year, it’s the start of a new decade. If that isn’t a clean slate, then I don’t know what is.
We are officially on the 5 day countdown to Christmas! Even better? I officially will not be back in the office until January 6th!!! Some work from home days and lots of PTO has me the happiest I’ve been in a while because this week was brutally busy. I’m looking forward to some major downtown, food, family and maybe a massage (or two) mixed in. Shhhhh.
What am I going to do with all this extra free time? Well if you find yourself any sort of bored over the next few days, here are some great articles I found on the internet this week. I hope you enjoy and have very happy holidays with loved ones!
Now three times in one week?! Must be the holidays or something. Or it’s just me freaking out about buying presents *typical* I just HAD to post one more time for my last minute Christmas shoppers. If you’re stressed, take a deep breath because it is going to be alright!
The holidays are a rough time for our wallets. From normal monthly bills, to events, gifts, traveling, the list seems endless and money seems to spontaneously grow wings.
But just because it’s the most wonderful time of the year doesn’t mean that every gift you buy has to be $100+. There are plenty of fantastic gift ideas out there that you can purchase for $50 or less. Stocking stuffers, small wrapped presents or handouts to colleagues, I have scoured the internet to bring you the best of the best. Here are my top picks for gifts $50 and under.
Second post of the week and it’s only Tuesday…who am I?!?! Well let me tell you, I’m still a true procrastinator. In everything I do, I usually wait until the last possible minute before completing the task.
It’s the way I’ve always been, from 3rd grade papers to waiting until 11PM to pack a suitcase before a 5AM flight. Not much has changed, so why would Christmas shopping be any different. I tend to stay on brand.
If you are also a bonafide procrastinator, you will surely appreciate this less-than-two-weeks-before-Christmas Gift Guide for Her. If you are either late with letting others know what you want for the holidays or late in buying for the women in your life, I tried to make it easy on all of us!
Below you will see my top picks for holiday gifts this year, many of which I am even asking for myself or already own. Everything is linked for easy access or you could even send this blog post link to your family members so they can easily access the items. If you have any questions on any of the options, just let me know!
To be completely honest, I hate buying gifts. Around this time of the year, I always see so many people online gush about their love of buying presents for loved ones. They go on and on about how great it makes them feel when they see the look on a friend or family member’s face after opening something they knew they would love. I call bullshit on this.
Maybe you are this type of person maybe it’s a front, I don’t really know or care, but I know from personal experience buying gifts sucks. It stresses me out and thus I put it off until the last minute, which in turn stresses me out even more. The worst of the worst…buying gifts for the men in my life.
For someone who finds pride in being a semi-creative person, when it comes to buying a gift for a man in my life I totally freeze up and draw a blank. So like the last 6 years, I have of course waited until the last possible moment to buy my boyfriend any holiday gifts. If you’ve done the same, I am attempting to ease our pain by compiling a gift guide for him. Here are my top picks for holiday gifts for the men in your life. Get shopping ASAP, Christmas is literally in less than two weeks *starts sweating*
Life is too short to not celebrate any chance you get and that’s exactly what I capitalized on this year for my birthday. I celebrated my 24th year on this planet not one, not two, but for four straight days. And if I’m being completely honest, I still have one more dinner this weekend. “Extra” would be a word I’d possibly toss around for the constant, busy schedule that was this week.
If you follow along my journey on Instagram (if you don’t, you should and can HERE), then you know that the reason I’ve been absent on my site is because this week I’ve literally been out every.single.night! The week started with a celebratory dinner at Etta with my mom. Etta has been on my list for SO long and it definitely did not disappoint. I will write a more in-depth review soon. On Tuesday, I heard the Jonas Brothers were coming to town, so I dragged my mom to AllState Arena to row 4 on the floor and we danced the entire night away. Wednesday was the monthly Wine Night at one of our favorite local restaurants. The finale, my actual birthday, was yesterday (Thursday 12/5) and I ended my crazy week with PTO from work, a 3-hour spa day and a fabulous dinner at the Princess Café.
This week has been magical and although some people have given me a hard time for celebrating so much, I really don’t mind because I’ve had a blast. Maybe I encouraged you to celebrate some more for your next birthday and for that alone, it was worth it. But, it is time to get back to regularly scheduled programming, which starts with the weekly Friday Favorites. Some of the best articles and videos I found on the internet are below. I hope you enjoy and have a wonderful weekend!
Art Basel is happening right now in Miami, I’ve had fun following along with some of my fave celebs on their social accounts!
Loved this Forbes Women article, which is a letter to the fashion industry encouraging them to stop treating plus-sized women like second-class citizens
