Tag Archives: 21 list

the 21 list // the recap

Love!

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Lists are totally my jam.

So when I turned twenty-one, I made a list of twenty-one things to do before I turned twenty-two. Just like I did the year before. And now that that milestone has come and gone, here’s a recap of everything that did (and didn’t) happen.

While this self-professed list-maker panicked and stressed out a little (or a lot) over those things that didn’t get crossed off, I decided to take things easy and let them go. Because hey, it’s supposed to be FUN after all (:

(I didn’t blog about all of them. But you can click through on some of them to read those that I did!)

1. Document my life at 21. (Project Life, here I come!)

2. Make 21 DIY projects. (I made 13 out of 21 projects!)

3. Get onto the dean’s list at school.

4. Try 21 new recipes.

5. SAVE MONEY.

6. Visit a museum.

7. Buy one outfit online.

8. Read at least one book a month. (I read 9 out of 12 books.)

9. Participate in at least 2 runs.

10. Go on a picnic.

11. Spend a day at the park.

12. Cook more Chinese food.

13. Write at least 5 thank you cards.

14. Eat fruit at least once a day for a whole month.

15. Keep a running log of distances I run each month.

16. Wear only glasses every day for a whole week.

17. Take pictures with and develop photos from a disposable camera.

18. Learn 300 new vocabulary words.

19. Not spend money for a month.

20. Have a baking date/tea party.

21. Happy surprise someone.

In all honesty, I think I did much better on the list last year, and could’ve been more diligent with this year’s list. But between trying to keep up with freshman year, making memories + being with family, this list inevitably got pushed to the back some days. And maybe, I might’ve been a little bit ambitious trying to make 21 DIY projects AND cook/bake 21 new recipes.

Anyhow, I had lots of fun working on this – as always. To be sure, I’m going to put some of these things into the next list, since I didn’t get to them this year (:

Check back soon for the twenty-two list!

21 projects // DIY printable post-its

Untitled There’s just something about post-its that make me really happy. They are one of those stationery supplies that I could have endless amounts of. So these neon post-it notes + a cute and easy printable = happiness all around.

Not only were they cute, but also super simple to do. (And you probably know by now, how much I love things that are quick and easy.)

Just download the printable from Living Locurto, lay your post-its on the page, and run it through the printer again. And WA-LAH! You have customized printables for school homework. Although, I think these would work just fine for plenty of other things besides homework. Untitled One thing I neglected to do was to check the size of my post-its against the printable template. It turned out that my post-its were actually a little larger than the template. So the guidelines themselves ended up being printed on my post-it. But the lines were pretty faint and I got to add some cute phrases with my Dear Lizzy phrase stamp, so it’s all good.

I think I’ll take Tater Tots and Jello’s tips for making my own template next time though. I love the idea of getting to add whatever text or graphic you want for some unique sticky notes for whatever you need!

13 down, 8 to go.

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21 DIY projects are part of my 21 list, a list of 21 things I’m working to accomplish during my twenty-first year. Check out my other 21 DIYs here.

the 21 list // write at least five thank you cards

Truth

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Including the ones I wrote after my twenty-first birthday bash last year, I get to check this one off my list. Really, the idea behind this item was to be more intentional about expressing my gratitude and thanks to the people who have made a difference in my life. Because it’s so easy to take for granted all the things that people do, and overlook the little things you actually do appreciate.

I definitely want to be constantly reminded of all the things I can be grateful for.

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The 21 list is a list of things I made to be completed at twenty-one years old. For more about my 21 list, read this post.

21 projects // DIY travel journal

I’m not even really sure whether to call this a DIY, since all I really did was compile several printables and put them all into a book, tied together with some twine. But I really had fun doing this so I’m counting it in (;

I made this travel journal for one of my little friends who traveled to America for several weeks. And just to keep her occupied during the long flight there and back, I put together a fun travel journal for her to work on during the trip.

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The options of what to include are endless. But here are some of the ones I chose to use: travel journal prompts, map of the United States, games, and journal sheets. (You can find more printables on my Pinterest board.)

I kept things simple – travel journal + color pencils + a pack of chocolate. But really, you can make this as simple or complicated as you like. I would’ve put more things in, but I didn’t have much time to get this together, so nice + simple it was.

6 down, 15 to go.

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21 DIY projects are part of my 21 list, a list of 21 things I’m working to accomplish during my twenty-first year. Check out my other 21 DIYs here.

21 recipes // creamy lemon crumb squares

Before we jump into today’s post, the winner of my 100 followers giveaway has been announced in the post! Click here to find out if you won. THANK YOU to everyone who participated (:

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Creamy Lemon Crumb Squares by The Girl who Ate Everything

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The first time I made this, almost all the taste-testers raved about it and emptied the entire box I made. So I’m assuming they really, really liked it. Which I’m so glad they did. Because just for the record, the last time I tried making lemon squares for my twenty list, they hardly turned out like they should’ve. And the rest of my family members have rather, uhm, fond memories of my last failed attempt. So I’m really glad things worked in my favor this time around.

Okay, so back to all the yumminess that is creamy lemon crumb squares: they are a nice twist on traditional lemon squares. And I especially like how the crumbly top and base, together with the oats, give a nice texture contrast. Of all the twenty-one recipes I’ve tried this year, I think this one ranks pretty high on the top of the favorites list.

A note on the original recipe: I actually tasted the filling as I went along and added the lemon juice accordingly. I ended up using 2 1/2 to 3 lemons (not sure how much this is in cups) because I like my lemon squares slightly tart.

21 down, and we’re done! Over forty recipes and two years later, trying out these new recipes is still one of my favorite parts of my annual list (:

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The 21 recipes are part of my 21 list, a list of 21 things I’m working to accomplish during my twenty-first year. Check out my other 21 recipes here.

21 projects // DIY body scrub

Before we jump into today’s post, just a heads up that the 100 followers giveaway closes tonight at 1159pm so be sure to enter by then if you haven’t already!

DIY Body Scrub by Rad Mom Cool Kid

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Slowly but surely, I’m plodding my way through the list of 21 DIY projects. Probably not all of it will happen, but I’m rolling with it and doing what I can.

I used The Body Shop’s body scrub until I ran out and decided to make my own. So I did, with the help of this pin. And I really liked it.

I love that the ingredients are all-natural and things that you already have in your kitchen. It’s extremely easy to assemble and whenever you run out, you can just mix another batch in no time at all!

I just used the basic version from the pin. But really, you can get as creative (or simple) as you like and add other ingredients as you prefer. Maybe I’ll add some lavender, or tea tree oil the next time I make this…

In the original post, the blogger does caution against storing this in the shower and getting any water in the mixture, which will cause bacteria. So it’s just slightly inconvenient that you can’t store it next to you in the bathroom. But I just remember to bring it along with me whenever I want to use it. And it may be helpful to grab a spoon along the way so no water gets into the jar by accident. Just slightly inconvenient, but no biggie.

And just in case you need anymore convincing on why you should make this, check out this article for five benefits of body scrubs.

5 down, 16 to go.

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21 DIY projects are part of my 21 list, a list of 21 things I’m working to accomplish during my twenty-first year. Check out my other 21 DIYs here.

21 recipes // cream cheese apple bread

Cream Cheese Apple Bread by Today’s Creative blog

Cream Cheese apple bread recipe

The day I made these, I was in a hurry to pack and go so I wouldn’t be late for my Bible Study meeting. Hence, the lack of photos. Again. I promise this wasn’t intentional for the last few food posts.

Despite the lack of photos, I assure you that this was yummy indeed. And oh, did I mention that it’s also super simple to make?

Contrary to the name of the recipe, I’m more inclined to call this recipe a cake than a bread because of the texture. But regardless of what you call it, this cake/bread tasted good and I think all the ladies liked it! We enjoyed ourselves in a little circle, with our tiny boxes of apple juice and slice of cake, bonding + talking about life. Good times.

The recipe doesn’t state measurements for your baking tray, so I just used a regular loaf pan for mine (which measured 8x5x3). It turned out that the loaf needed a little more time in the oven than what the recipe stated, but that was fixed in no time. I also used a combination of cinnamon and nutmeg, instead of pumpkin spice seasoning

This one’s going on my list of “Recipes to make again”!

20 down, 1 to go!

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The 21 recipes are part of my 21 list, a list of 21 things I’m working to accomplish during my twenty-first year. Check out my other 21 recipes here.

21 projects // DIY personalized phone cover

We’re taking a break from the food posts this week and doing a DIY! (:

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To be honest, I’ve had this planned out for awhile now. In my head, that is.

Soon after I got my spankin’ new smartphone, I purchased an inexpensive transparent plastic phone cover from one of the shops along the street with grand plans to turn it into a DIY.

So several months later, I finally got round to doing it. I mean, you need to save these kinda things for summer break, right? (But now that summer break is over and summer school is underway, I’m actually getting around to blogging about it. It’s one of those things, you know.)

But my procrastination aside, my guesstimate tells me that including the printing and cutting, this DIY took less than hour from start to finish. Super simple. Which I totally love.

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Supplies:

  • Plastic transparent phone cover
  • Patterned paper
  • Cutting mat
  • Pen knife
  • Scissors
  • This template
  • Pencil + eraser
  • Inks + embellishments

I started by printing this template from Google images. I opened the image in Powerpoint, resized and test-printed it a couple of times before getting a size that fit the cover. (I’m sure there’s a less trial-and-error method to get this done, but this method worked for the non-techy girl.) The size that I eventually settled on was 14.4cm by 9.08cm. Then I cut out the template and measured it against the cover to ensure that everything was fitting right. Just a note: I printed the template on regular printing paper, but I would recommend printing on thicker paper like cardstock so it is easier to trace later on.

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I have plenty of 6×6 paper pads so I picked my favorite patterns and simply traced and cut them out. I used Dear Lizzy’s older Neapolitan and 5th and Frolic collections. The turquoise paper from 5th and Frolic is a little thicker than the Neapolitan ice-cream cones patterned paper, so it was a little harder getting that into the case. Learning from this, I would definitely pick paper that isn’t too stiff, which would affect the fit of the paper in the case.

For the ice-cream cones, I stamped a sentiment from Amy Tangerine’s Sketchbook clear stamps with Hero Arts neon pink ink, and inked the edges with Versacolor’s mint. For the other turquoise one, I simply included a sticker from Dear Lizzy’s Neapolitan accent and phrase sticker book.

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As a girl who loves variety, I love that I can exchange the patterns whenever I feel like it and have endless options to choose from. This is definitely one way to enjoy all the patterned papers I love on a daily basis.

4 down, 17 to go.

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21 DIY projects are part of my 21 list, a list of 21 things I’m working to accomplish during my twenty-first year. Check out my other 21 DIYs here.

21 recipes // chocolate cupcakes with creamy nutella frosting

Chocolate Cupcakes with Creamy Nutella Frosting by Sally’s Baking Addiction

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This recipe was part of the search for the perfect Father’s Day recipe. But it seems like I’ve been a little out of my element for baking lately, because the Nutella frosting for this batch of cupcakes didn’t quite turn out and hold together like how I’d expected it to.

Since I’m writing this about two weeks after Father’s Day, I don’t quite remember what I did wrong that turned this frosting upside down. (I should’ve written it down, I know.) It might’ve been me sticking the frosting in the refrigerator and coming back to frost the cupcakes later. Or maybe I added too much icing sugar in an attempt to fix it, but it didn’t end up quite as smooth as I would’ve liked in the end.

In any case, I eventually settled for a good ol’ brownie recipe for Father’s Day, instead of stressing myself out with trying to master a new recipe within the week. Looks like I haven’t had too much success with cupcake recipes lately. But to be sure, I’m going to keep trying them until I nail at least a couple of pretty (and edible) ones! (;

17 down, 4 to go.

P.S. If you try this recipe and have better luck with it than I did, let me know how it turns out!

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The 21 recipes are part of my 21 list, a list of 21 things I’m working to accomplish during my twenty-first year. Check out my other 21 recipes here.

the 21 list // visit a museum

When I found out that the Public Garden was having their April flea market at the National Museum of Singapore, I jumped at the opportunity to check out the market AND visit a museum, a double-win for me. It was so nice having free entry to the museum because of the flea. And I’m pretty stoked that the National Heritage Board is now offering free entry to museums around Singapore. For more details, read here.

We only had about an hour to check out both the flea market and the museum exhibits before closing time so time was rather tight and we didn’t get to spend as much time as I would’ve liked. But I loved the time I got to spend there and I’m definitely excited to go to another museum again!

I didn’t have my camera with me that day so all these photos are taken with my android phone.

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‘Twas a really fun evening. And definitely a nice way to spend a Saturday doing something different.

I’m still plodding through my 21 list, albeit a little (too) slowly because there’s only a few months of twenty-one left! But I’m glad I got to cross this one off the list! (:

For more about my 21 list, read this post.