All About HilaryStyle

In a few months hilaryStyle will be 4 years old, which is something of a milestone, but a few weeks ago I published my 300th article, that’s 266, 855 words, which absolutely seemed worth mentioning.

When I set out to write this blog I had no idea that I would still be writing it 300+ articles later, nor that I would never miss a single week’s edition. That’s right I’ve never missed a week, which I admit at times feels like a chore, and there are weeks I’m not sure I’ll have something to share, but I always seem to manage and a deadline is a deadline…

In honor of this milestone, I thought I’d share some of the blog’s stats. Although I don’t have the most impressive numbers I do have a steady following. Occasionally I think about throwing in the towel, but then I hear from someone letting me know how much it’s helped them, or made them laugh and I realize it’s still a worthwhile endeavor.

The Numbers

I’ve personally visited 18 countries, and 22 States, which in the world of travel bloggers may not be impressive, but what I do find impressive is that HilaryStyle has been visited by people from 157 different countries. Thinking a blog would be a fun way to share my adventures with friends and family, I had no idea my thoughts, ideas and photos would be shared around the world.

Click on the suitcases for links to related articles.

Where in the World

I’m most popular in the United States, but it’s nice to know that HilaryStyle has reached Greenland, Iran, and Zambia as well.

Ten countries with the most visits:

United States
United Kingdom
Canada
Germany
Australia
Moldova
Singapore
France
Mexico
Phillippines

Ten countries who visit the least:

Zambia
Guyanan
Gibraltar
Greenland
Cuba
Mongolia
Congo
Palau
Martinique
Iran

I’m often surprised as to which posts receive the most and least attention.

The top ten blog posts of all time:

Making A Tsum Tsum Birthday Party (15, 420 views and still going strong)
The Home Page
Always a great place to start!
The Hidden Staircases of Silver Lake
50 Things to do in Los Angeles
Downtown Los Angeles Graffiti & Mural Walking Tour
Visiting the Anne Frank House
Things to do in LA’s Korea Town
10 Things to do in New Orleans with Kids
50 More Things to do in Los Angeles
12 Iconic Film Locations in Los Angeles

10 Blog Posts that could use MORE love:

Taking the High Road… (Since renamed: Day Trip in the Highlands of Scotland)
Roma! La Citta Eterna (Since renamed: 10 Things to do in Rome)
Along the Way… Surprise Another Castle (Since renamed: Visiting Blair Castle & Gardens)
Cocoas Around the World (Since renamed: A Chocolate Travel Tour)
Pompeii (Since renamed: Day Trip to Pompeii Italy)
You Can Fly, You Can Fly, You Can Fly… RunDisney (Since renamed: Running with RunDisney)
Exploring the Highlands of Scotland
Ireland: Along the Way… Cork (Since renamed: A Visit to Blarney Castle Cork Ireland)
Along the way… The Heart of Ireland ( Since renamed: A Visit to Newgrange in the Boyne River Valley Ireland)
Along the Way… Nottingham (Since renamed: An Afternoon in Nottingham)

Favorite Places

50 of the 250 travel articles I’ve written are about Los Angeles and surrounding areas, but I’ve got love for other places too. London is in second place with 22 articles, and New Orleans, with 20 articles came in third. France and Scotland are tied for fourth place.

London, England

Shoreditch Street Art Tour & Masterclass

St. Pauls Cathedral and Westminster Abbey

25 Things to do in London

10 things to do in New Orleans with Kids

The Garden District New Orleans

New Orleans Let’s Eat Lunch and Talk about Dinner

Fashion & Fun

The blog’s tagline is Travel, Fashion & Fun and while there is a heavy emphasis on travel, I have written 60 fun, 26 street art, and 23 fashion related articles. Occasionally I’m even funny, or at least I make myself laugh and I love to give advice. Here are a few of the most popular articles falling into the aforementioned categories:

DIY: 10 Steps to Building Your Own Longboard

DIY: Skateboard Decks

A Super Birthday For Your Little Hero!

Shopping the Sample Sales in LA’s Fashion District

Fashion Favorites: Walking In My Shoes… Travel shoes that is.

Biking & Art on the Atlanta BeltLine

What do you say LA? Messages from the Street (Art That Is)

Las Vegas: Beyond the Strip

30 Tips For Better Travel Photos

Packing it all in… My Suitcase!

Backpacks. Who needs ’em?

Mom Stuff: What Did I Know?

Whether you’ve been with HilaryStyle since the beginning, or are just joining me, I am so grateful for your interest, and will look forward to continuing the journey. Although I may ease up on that weekly deadline. We shall see…

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January 31, 2019January 30, 2019

Faraway Files #109

Faraway Files A Travel Blogging Community

Whether you want it to or not, time flies… January is coming to a close, and I’m still trying to work out where 2019s travel destinations will be. Thankfully I have Faraway Files for inspiration, and I’m beginning to narrow it down… But, with a tween and a teen in the house our freedom to travel isn’t what it once was and with our teen heading off to college in just two years, I can hear the clock ticking on our family holidays.

While the rest of the family can’t always join me I have found time here and there to escape on my own, and this week I’ll be sharing my adventures at Art Basel Miami.

Corey was our host last week and her favorites were:

A Day in Glamorous Opatija, Istria – My Life Long Holiday

One of the best views of the beach resort Opatija in Istria Croatia is from the coastal path

The Hamptons Revisited and Billionaire Shortbread – Absolutely Fabulous

Tourrettes-sur-Loup, France – Our World for You

The Town square, Tourrettes-sur-Loup, France

Interrailing in Europe – 1 – Le coin des Bobby

Welcome to Faraway Files, the travel link up hosted every Thursday by Erin from Oregon Girl around the World, Corey from Fifi + Hop, Hilary from Hilarystyle and Clare from Suitcases and Sandcastles.

Faraway Files is a weekly file of the best travel ideas on the web. We want to dream of faraway places, make new travel plans and share our travel secrets. We hope you’ll link up and inspire us to travel to new places or revisit a place we thought we knew. We know that you can feel faraway even when close to home, so share your experiences of travels near and far wherever you are in the world.

Don’t forget to comment on the hosts’ posts as well as any others that catch your eye. The more links you read and share the more fun and successful our community will be, so please join in.

We’ll try to read and comment on every post and we’ll share them on social media too. Each week we’ll choose our favourites and highlight them on our blogs and social media channels using #FarawayFiles.

How it works:

Link up one travel-related post and add the Faraway Files badge onto the post or your blog (code below) or link back to the hosts.
The link up will go live every Thursday at 8am, UK time, until midnight on Friday. It will alternate between Suitcases and Sandcastles, Fifi + Hop, HilaryStyle and Oregon Girl around the World. This week’s link up is right here.
Link ups work best if everyone shares so please comment on all of the marked hosts’ posts and at least one other.
Tweet us your posts (@suitandsand, @oregongirlworld @fifiandhop @hilarystyleme) using the hashtag #FarawayFiles and we’ll retweet to our followers.
Love Instagram? Share your favorite photos from your posts with us, tagging #FarawayFiles and we’ll add our favorites to our Faraway Files Instagram feed.
Check out our Faraway Files Facebook page too.

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December 14, 2017December 14, 2017

Faraway Files #58

Welcome to this week’s edition of Faraway Files, a fabulous travel blogging community, where people from all over the world share their travel tips, inspiration, and adventures! I think of it as the modern day form of having a pen pal(s)! I’m excited to be to be using our new Faraway Files logo, which includes Corey and I, for the first time!

The holidays are upon us, and while I do love our holiday traditions, its nice to shake things up every now and again, so for the first time in six years, the boys and I will be spending our winter holidays away from home! I’ve assured my younger son that Santa will find us, even in London!

Speaking of which… Faraway Files will be taking a break for the holidays, and will return on January 4, 2018, with Katy as the first host of the New Year!

I’m excited about all the fun things we’ve got planned during our visit to London! In the spirit of discovery I’m sharing my post about things I’ve discovered in my own hometown: Los Angeles! My post 50 MORE Things to do in Los Angeles, is a companion piece to last year’s post 50 Things to do… and if you can believe it we’re already deep into EVEN more things to do in LA!

Just like every week there were many inspirational posts! The following were some of my favorites from Faraway Files #57:

Shades of Courage gives us the scoop on transatlantic stopovers, and I’m already thinking we need to plan our next big destination, just so we can include the Azores on our intinerary!

I know I’ll be in London for Christmas this year, but Esther of Your Dutch Guide’s post about the Amsterdam Light Festival has me thinking ahead to next year’s Christmas destination.

Jacki of Hit the Road Jacki shares 5 of her favorite US National Parks. Her photos are stunning, and reading about them gives you an idea of just how vast the United States really is.

Welcome to Faraway Files, the travel link up hosted by Erin from Oregon Girl around the World, Katy from Untold Morsels, Corey from Fifi + Hop, Hilary from Hilarystyle and Clare from Suitcases and Sandcastles

This is the place to link up your travel posts every Thursday. Faraway Files is a weekly file of the best travel ideas on the web. We want to dream of faraway places, to make new travel plans and share our travel secrets. Inspire us to travel to places we’ve never considered before or revisit a place we thought we knew. We know that you can feel faraway even when you’re close to home so share your experiences of travels near and far wherever you are in the world.

We love our link up and the supportive community we’ve created. If you join in, please reciprocate and comment on the hosts’ posts as well as any others that take your eye. If we see a pattern of people not joining in, we have decided that it’s fairest to all of us to remove the links of those posters.

So let’s inspire and share each other’s posts. We’ll try to read and comment on every post and we’ll share them on social media too. Each week we’ll choose our favourites and highlight them on our blogs and social media channels using #FarawayFiles.

How it works:

Link up one travel-related post and add the Faraway Files badge onto the post or your blog (code below) or link back to the hosts.
The link up will go live every Thursday at 8am, UK time, until midnight on Friday. It will alternate between Untold Morsels, Suitcases and Sandcastles, Fifi + Hop, HilaryStyle and Oregon Girl around the World. This week’s link up is right here.
Link ups work best if everyone shares so please comment on all of the marked hosts’ posts and at least one other.
Tweet us your posts (@suitandsand, @UntoldMorsels, @oregongirlworld @fifiandhop @hilarystyleme) using the hashtag #FarawayFiles and we’ll retweet to our followers.
Love Instagram? Share your favourite photos from your posts with us, tagging #FarawayFiles and we’ll add our favourites to our Faraway Files Instagram feed.
Check out our Faraway Files Facebook page too.

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July 4, 2017July 4, 2017

Wanderlust is Calling! Travel Resources & Inspiration Hilarystyle

It’s no secret that exploring the world and everything it has to offer is something I love and want to do more of (hence this blog), but realistically I can’t always be traveling… So how do I keep my wanderlust at bay? I admit it’s not always easy, and some who know me, mainly my husband, might say I fail miserably.

#generalife — Relaxing in the Generalife Gardens of the Alhambra Granada Spain 2015

Feed Your Wanderlust

Feeding my wanderlusting spirit is a full time job! Have I mentioned, I love my job!? Eating out and cooking food from favorite destinations, or places I dream of going is a fun way to satisfy my wanderlust. In fact, we’ve picked destinations based solely on a meal!

Our first family trip to New Orleans came about while planning a ski trip in Tahoe. Sitting in a New Orleans themed restaurant planning, we realized, why not New Orleans? We went straight home and booked our tickets! To this day we’ve never made it to Tahoe, but we do visit New Orleans every year.

#lovecitypark — Taken in City Park during our most recent visit to NOLA in April 2017.

Interested in visiting New Orleans? I’ve written a “few” Articles:

I love fish & chips, and they’re a nice reminder of our visits to London, a favorite destination of mine. We make regular visits to The Wee Chippy, on Venice Beach, and although they don’t offer mushy peas, it does help keep that particular craving satisfied.

We love the food in Spain with two of my favorite items being Manchego cheese and chorizo. I keep a steady supply of both these items in the house at all times!

I don’t know how “Spanish” the Spanish Latte at Menotti’s is, but I do love the coffee in Spain, so this is a nice reminder.

Cheese is easily my favorite food! My local market has a great selection and I was pretty excited to discover they even had Blarney Castle cheese?!

Cork Blarney Castle — Here we are at Blarney Castle in 2016

Blogs & Books

Blogs

Of course I don’t only write a travel blog I also read other travel blogs, which not only helps with planning, but they’re also great for “visiting” places I may never make it to, and for inspiration and advice!

#datdog — I met up with my fellow Blogger, Cory, from Fifi & Hop in New Orleans!

I’ve discovered many wonderful blogs, and have come across real world advice which I know I’ll use. In fact, I already have!

I’ll be traveling throughout Nevada, Utah, and Arizona in a few weeks, and I booked rooms based on Oregon Girl Around the World‘s blog. Thanks to Tanama Tales, I learned I’ll need advance reservations for the Las Vegas Neon Museum, a place I definitely plan on visiting.

Travel Blogs I read frequently:

Clare from Suitcases and Sandcastles writes about family travel. Her photography is stunning, and her destinations are wide ranging, they include everything from remote Greek Islands to The Hundred Acre Wood (otherwise known as Ashdown Forest)!

Katy from Untold Morsels writes about her family’s travels with an emphasis on food and unique places to stay! After reading about her stay in Amsterdam I’m definitely putting houseboat on my list!

Lorelei from Caliglobtrotter is a California girl currently living in Germany. I love reading about her adventures, especially the many castles she visits! Her photography is amazing, and now I know how to pronounce Ljubljana! (Pronounced: Lub-lee-yana)!

Erin of Oregon Girl Around the World currently lives in Copenhagen, but we’re both from the PNW, and I love that we connected with eachother via blogging! She’s full of fun and eco-friendly ideas!

I always look forward to reading posts by The Adventures of Daisy the Bus, written by Jonny a father of four, who loves to travel to places off the beaten path. He paints a lovely picture with his words, his photos are pretty great too, and I have wanted to visit just about every place he mentions!

Cory of Fifi & Hop, who I was lucky enough to meet in New Orleans, writes about her family’s adventures on the East Coast and abroad! I especially loved her post on Tuscany, I was ready to book a flight after reading it!

I love reading Joy Loves Travel who seems to have some similar interests to my own! Her info on Belgium came in handy prior to my own visit there.

Dannii Jane of A Beautiful Thing writes a lifestyle blog, but features her adventures in and around London and Europe. Thanks to her we found ourselves in Camden during our last visit!

Books

I admit I have a guidebook habit. As soon as I learn I’ll be going somewhere, or even if it’s just a possibility I’ll pick up the guidebook(s). I also love travel magazines, the big glossy photos, Best Of lists and the off the beaten path recommendations all feed my passion to see more of the world!

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A post shared by Hilary (@hilarystyleme)

Though not a book, Instagram is great for inspiration, and I have discovered not only far away places, but many fun ideas much closer to home.

Some of my favorite Instagrammers:

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https://www.instagram.com/p/BTuIN1FA1ut/?taken-by=photosofbritain

https://www.instagram.com/p/BT_GXWOBnPE/?taken-by=pli.panda

https://www.instagram.com/p/BS_Ou6lliNX/?taken-by=emsjxo

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Preserve your Wanderlust

I’m sure I’m not alone when I say I have TOO many photos on my computer and no idea how to manage them all! Recently I’ve started creating photo books using not only my travel pictures, but the text from my blog posts as well. They look lovely, and make great keepsakes.

We don’t just shut our photos up into books on a shelf, we love to print them out for display too! Some of our favorites from near and far are hanging in large format around our home. We love it when people come to visit and ask about the different locations!

#mpixprints — These 20 x 20 London dessert prints hang in my son’s room!

It’s not all about photography! We love a good project, and have created various pieces of art around the house, which represent loved places. Most recently I painted this “graffiti” Union Jack flag using spray paint and resin. I’m practicing for those Venice Art Walls! We can’t forget about the around the world furniture projects!

Lego Destinations

We’re big lego fans in our house and we get excited when sets are created that represent places we’ve been!

#legotowerbridge — This rather large Lego Tower Bridge lives on top of my guidebook shelf!

We built this Tower Bridge set over the winter holidays. I’m anxiously awaiting my Houses of Parliament set, which should keep me busy this summer, while planning what I hope is a Christmas trip to the UK.

Be A Hometown Tourist

Whether or not you’ve lived very long in a place, I guarantee you haven’t done it all! We’ve had such a great time this past year playing tourist in our own town, and with all that Los Angeles has to offer, I see no signs of that slowing down!

In case you’re interested, here are just some of the articles I’ve written about our recent discoveries in and around the Los Angeles area!

The J. Paul Getty Museums

8 Reasons VENICE Should Top your LA List

50 Things To Do in Los Angeles

The Museum of Ice Cream Los Angeles

The Hidden Staircases of Silver Lake

Downtown Los Angeles Graffiti & Mural Walking Tour

InstaLA! 15 Places to Snap Those InstaGood Pics

InstaLA! Part 2: #WallAntics

Tourist In My Own Town

One Amazing Day in LA!

Warner Brothers Studio Tour

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

The Last Bookstore…

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December 23, 2016November 30, 2017

Oh Christmas Tree

I haven’t always celebrated Christmas, but I’ve always loved it! The twinkling lights, those annoyingly hard to unwrap, but oh so worth the trouble, miniature candy canes, hot cocoa with marshmallows, Christmas Carols, those stop motion holiday tv specials and the list goes on… But the thing I loved the most was, and still is, the Christmas Tree. We didn’t have a tree in my childhood home, but a highlight every season was visiting my neighbor’s homes and helping to hang their ornaments. I recall there being many homemade items and loved watching them unwrap and remember each one.

Now years later I’ve built quite an ornament collection of my own, each with their own memory attached. Every year I look forward to opening up the boxes and taking out what I’ve come to think of as little treasures. Each one a precious reminder of some beloved character, far away place or special moment in our lives. Not only that, but many happy things have taken place around our Christmas tree, not the least of which was Tim’s proposal of marriage, but wait, before we get to that, there was another tree…

That First Christmas Tree

The first ornaments I purchased were for Tim, who I was dating at the time, he was having a party and mentioned that everyone should bring an ornament. I wasn’t exactly sure what to purchase, so decided on some silver snowflakes and a silver bell. The silver bell representing my favorite Christmas movie, It’s A Wonderful Life! A premonition maybe?

What I didn’t know was that the whole party was planned to impress me! I guess he’d been listening when I mentioned my love of Christmas Trees? When I arrived at the party I saw that he’d decorated the most amazing tree I’d ever seen. It was the perfect shape and covered with lights, bows and sparkling ornaments. In my eyes It couldn’t have been more perfect!

I found out later that he’d gone out and purchased everything on the tree just for the party, and I only found out this year that he’d spent an entire paycheck on that first tree! Of course there was also mistletoe at that party and somehow we managed to find ourselves under it at the very same time… imagine that!

Now 18 or so trees later, we’ve still got those original silver snowflakes and the bell along with many of those first ornaments.

Over the years I’ve continued to collect memories and ornaments in almost every major city we’ve visited: Raggedy Anne and Andy in Portland, Oregon were some of the first along with a Yellow Cab in New York City. I picked up Fleur-de-lis ornaments in Paris, Versailles and New Orleans. In Ireland I found a harp and in Scotland a Scottie, Nessie and a set of pipes! Of course London has its place on the tree along with Victoria, Lisbon, Toledo, Rome, Glasgow, Kyoto, and Hawaii. Also just a few of our favorite characters making appearances are Hello Kitty, Spiderman, Captain America, and Spongebob.

Each year I go to the tree lot in the hopes of finding a replica of that first perfect tree. While I don’t always come home with my ideal tree I know that once I cover it with all of our treasures, old and new and surround it with the people I love, “this year’s” tree will be the most beautiful tree yet.

Here’s to finding your “perfect tree!”

Happy Holidays! xo

November 29, 2016

Mom Stuff: I’m Not A Soccer* Mom…

My kids don’t play organized sports and that’s okay! In fact I’ve always liked it that way, but more importantly they like it that way. Please don’t misunderstand I’m not anti team sports, and we did encourage the boys to try…

In fact after years of signing my older son up for the “right” team, getting up early on weekends, shlepping the little brother along, volunteering, preparing snack, washing the uniform, losing the uniform, returning the uniform and driving back and forth to soccer, baseball, basketball, and swim team I rejoiced when he finally asked to quit.

In truth he didn’t really have the drive necessary to succeed, but expected success, how was that going to work long term? I could see years of disappointment ahead and as a mom I could hardly bear it.

It wasn’t all bad and there were some nice moments along the way, but none of them made up for all the times I had to drag ~~him~~ all of us to practice knowing he wasn’t even really having fun. I used to pray for a rain out and we live in California – where we’ve been experiencing a drought for the past 5 years.

Freedom

Once we’d liberated ourselves from the grueling team sport schedules, I worried about what would happen to our friendships after spending years being part of “the team.” What would happen now? Would it be okay? Turns out it would! Phew!

We slept in on weekends while our friends did the sports thing and then met up with them later… But, that all changed as soon as we moved. It’s hard to be the new kid when you’re not into team sports? How do you meet people?

Guess I’d Better Set That Alarm After All

Simon discovered surfing this past summer and joined his school’s surf team! How cool is that?! Watching him practice and seeing the look of joy on his face has finally opened me up to what it must feel like for other parents during their child’s sporting events. Instead of a field we meet at the beach, it’s the rash guard that’s lost and the wetsuit that needs a wash, but the little brother loves the beach and even though surf boards make carpooling difficult I’ll do the shlepping, because I love to see the look of happiness on my son’s face!

#surfpractice — Sunset Surf Team Practice

#carpoolwithsurfboard — Heading to sunrise surf practice

So maybe it’s not a Ball Sport as Simon calls them, but he’s found his passion, which sadly for me means no more sleeping in on weekends. Its back to those early mornings, afternoon practices, team events and competitions, only this time I won’t mind a bit!

So, I guess I’m joining the sports mom club after all… better late than never!

Where there’s a will there’s a way

Happy Little Bro

Drying the “uniform”

Surf Buddies

*Insert team sport here.

September 3, 2016September 3, 2016

Mom Stuff: The Writing Is On The Wall!

Seriously, I mean the writing is literally on the wall! Elliot’s bedroom wall to be more exact! Giving the boys the freedom to choose how they wanted to decorate their new rooms, Elliot chose whiteboard wall paint as his main design element and I must admit I didn’t think it was all that exciting, after all its basically just another white wall, but it’s his room and it was his choice… Good choice Elliot! Turns out writing on the walls is a fabulous stress reliever! “Why does an 8 year old need a stress reliever?”

TOO MUCH HOMEWORK!

That’s right, Too much homework!!! Three weeks into the new school year and we are doing our best to settle into a routine, but I must admit we are hitting a few road bumps. Balancing the need for play and down time with all the homework is becoming a real challenge in our home. I know I’m not alone here!!

Can I vent for a minute?

Earlier this week my third grader broke down in tears of despair after more than 90 minutes of studying (he wasn’t even done). This was more than heartbreaking, it was unacceptable! I keep thinking what are we doing wrong? Did we miss something? I thought he was right on track in school? What’s worse, is that if I’m privately thinking these things, what must be going through his 8 year old mind?

Recently I attended Back to School Night where we were told that family time, outdoor play and after school activities are paramount to a child’s success. That there is no proof of homework being academically beneficial and it’s more about building a routine, yet it still keeps coming, day after day, pages and pages of it… with no end in sight…… Why?

Knowing there will always be homework, my first priority is to help my little guy find ways to deal with the burdens and stress he feels after long days at school and what seems like a mountain of homework waiting for him. How do I do this? He’s only 8 so It’s not like he can jump on a spin bike, or pour a glass of wine, or any of the other more grown up activities I sometimes engage in when feeling overwhelmed? Okay, often engage in…

Art Graffiti Therapy?

As it turns out Elliot discovered a way all on his own, and it wasn’t an electronic device! The whiteboard wall in his room is more than just a good time! After throwing his pencil down in defeat after the marathon study session I found him tearfully drawing on the wall in his room. I decided to join him and pretty soon all of us were happily writing and drawing on the walls!

The writing is on the wall and I look forward to seeing a lot more of it!

SAMSUNG CSC

July 13, 2016July 13, 2016

Happy Anniversary Hilarystyle.me!

Today marks the One Year Anniversary of Hilarystyle.me, and I’m pretty excited about this milestone! You might be surprised to read that putting myself “out there” isn’t always easy and pushing the Publish button that first time, was not just a little bit nerve-wracking. Many things were going through my mind: would anyone be interested in this blog, care what I have to say, find my advice on travel, fashion, or fun useful? I pushed it anyway, faced my fears and… Wallah!

Here WE are one year later and apparently, the answer is a big YES! I am definitely proud of myself, but more importantly, I am grateful to all of you for following, reading, and commenting week after week!

Hilarystlyle.me by the numbers!

The #1 post on hilarystyle.me is:

Making a TsumTsum Birthday Party with well over 6,000 views!

2 is the number of times I pressed PUBLISH before I was ready!

Whoops!

3 surprising things I learned in my first year of blogging:

I love writing!
Even after a year, pushing the “publish” button intimidates me a little bit.
People are actually interested!

87 different countries have visited hilarystyle.me!

Here are the top 10:

United States
United Kingdom
Canada
Singapore
Mexico
Indonesia
Malta
Portugal
Germany
Philippines

Total posts: 110

I’ve written on average two posts about fashion, travel, parties, projects, mom stuff and fun each week!

Total followers: 736

That’s 736 awesome people like you who find what I have to say interesting week after week! Thank you!

Total unique visitors: 9,898

This amazing number is growing each and every day and I can hardly believe that my little idea, has grown so much in the past year!

Total Views: 29, 996

Based on these numbers, some of you like to come back again and again! I hope you’ll keep it up as I’m just wrapping up six amazing weeks of travel around Europe, and I’ve got lots of fun tips, photos and adventures to share with all of you!

THANK YOU!

Here is a sneak peak from my recent trip to Bruge!

June 20, 2016

Glasgow…Whoops! I did It Again!

Whoops! Accidentally hit the publish button before I was ready, again… Tomorrow we will be two weeks into our six week whirlwind adventure, which includes six countries, multiple cities and countless experiences! Keeping track of everything over the course of six weeks will be a challenge, so keeping a daily log of everything we are doing, eating and seeing will ensure that I can share it with all of you! Oops! My plan was to work out the correct spelling, punctuation and small details later, but things don’t always go as planned. I’ll chalk it up to spending the day traveling from Belfast to Glasgow and settling into our 5th hotel in just under two weeks time.

Though we haven’t had time to see very much of Glasgow as of yet, what we have seen is pretty great! I’ll look forward to writing all about it later, but until then here are a few photos from this afternoons first glimpse!

April 8, 2016March 31, 2016

Blogging Awards! I’ve Been Nominated…

Sharing my love of the things I enjoy most comes naturally to me as it’s an inherited family trait. Hi Dad! Writing long personally tailored emails to friends about my travels or party ideas was happening more and more and I had been thinking about creating a place to store this information for future use. That’s when I decided to start Hilarystyle.me.

Not really sure what to expect, I set two goals for myself:

The first smaller goal was to compile the information on the blog along with a few photos and links to our favorite places. This way if friends inquired about our travels I could point them in the direction of the blog.

My second larger scale goal was really more of a hope, the idea that maybe my experiences and thoughts would find their way out onto the web and actually be of interest to other people. You know, people who don’t already know me! Maybe no one would hit the “follow button” or care what I had to say, but I’d never know if I didn’t take a chance and besides I would be achieving goal number one.

Guess What?

People were interested! People I didn’t know! I told myself I wouldn’t care if no one took notice, but I won’t lie I’m pretty excited that people did. In fact I’m down right ecstatic! I’ve learned a lot about myself since I started writing hilarystyle.me and I’m pretty proud of what’s it’s become and where it’s going. Not only that, but I’ve “met” a number of other bloggers in the process and have been inspired by so many of them! Apparently, I’ve been of some inspiration to them as well because two different lovely blogging ladies nominated me for blogging awards!

The Sunshine Award

Cassy, a fashion blogger, nominated me for the Sunshine award, which is given to fellow bloggers who inspire and bring sunshine into the lives of their readers and fellow bloggers. Thank you Cassy for thinking of me, it’s such an honor to know that not only do you enjoy reading my blog, but that you think it’s cheerful and inspiring!Check out Cassy’s blog, baublesandknots.com for fun inspirational ideas about what to wear for just about any occasion! She’s always including fun jewelry and isn’t afraid to put herself out there! I LOVE THAT!There are some “rules” that come along with the honor of being nominated and I am posting them here:

Thank the person who nominated you.
Answer the questions from your nominator.
Nominate other bloggers that bring sunshine to your day.
Ask your nominees as many thoughtful questions as you so desire.
If you so desire click on a few of the blots see what they’re all about.

Cassy’s questions to me:

Is there a favorite book/movie/band/artist that influences your personal style?

I am not one to limit myself and have a wide variety of tastes in all of the above. I think this is clearly reflected in my style!

Do you think it is important to unplug & how do you balance this while participating in a digital world?

I do my best to unplug, but must admit I’m not always successful.

What does style mean to you?

For me style means fun and for myself personally it’s a reflection of who I am inside as well.

The Liebster Award!

Beth, a fellow travel blogger nominated me for the Liebster Award, which is recognition to new bloggers by other bloggers who are enjoying or finding value in their work. Thank you so much for thinking of me! As I mentioned above it means a lot to know that not only are you putting your thoughts and ideas out into the world, but that your words are actually making a positive impact on someone else!

As Beth says: The main aim of the Liebster Award is to highlight new voices and pay the compliment forward to others. Kind of like a virtual chain letter combined with an online high-five.

Check out Beth’s blog VacationCoffee with fun tips about travel, travel with kids and amazing photos!

Beth’s Questions to me:

Where do you call home?

Currently, the Bay Area, but I’ve lived all over the country.

How would you describe the target audience of your blog in one sentence?

Anyone who loves travel, fashion or fun!

What is the primary reason for starting your blog?

To share the fun and adventures I have with my family with others.

How often do you post content on your blog?

I post twice a week on Tuesday and Friday mornings at 8 am.

Is there a story behind your blog name?

Only that I tend to do things in my own way, hence the name Hilarystyle.

What is your ideal morning routine?

Lie around drinking coffee, reading blog posts, take the kids to school, work out, coffee with friends…

Do you have a vice? If so, what is it?

Drinking white wine with the girls…

When you’re not working on your blog, what are you doing instead?

Enjoying my time with family and friends.

What is an amazing travel memory you have?

Three years ago, when I stepped out of the train station in Edinburgh, Scotland and my mouth literally fell open with awe at how beautiful it is!

Where else on social media can we find you?

I’m on both twitter: @hilarystyleme and Instagram: hilarystyleme

Who are your favorite people to spend time with?

My three boys!!

And now, I “nominate” . . .

I follow a variety of different blogs about everything from fashion and makeup to lifestyle, travel, and photography! I’m not sure any of them are all that new, but I enjoy them a great deal! I’ll post the addresses to a few of them here and I hope you’ll take a look and find some inspiration the way I have! Happy reading!

Through The Open Lens

Funks House Of Geekery