Someday, I’ll be living in a big old city *cues Taylor Swift!*, well, today is that someday. If you follow me on Instagram (follow me @_thepinkchickadee), then you likely know that I am Washington, DC area-based. It has been a dream of mine since my early college years to move back to the Washington, DC area post-college graduation. Even though the college-to-real world transition wasn’t exactly smooth sailing for me (or at least it didn’t feel that way all the time), I am proud to be a Washingtonian and am glad that I call the nation’s capital my home.
Today, I am sharing my Washington, DC gallery wall – aka something that I have been working on for *over* a year now. Putting together my Washington, DC gallery wall has been very meaningful for me. I started purchasing pieces for it (via accumulation over time) when I was still adjusting to the post-graduation life. Life in a brand-new city isn’t always easy, either, as glamorous as it may look on the outside. When I first moved back to the big city from college in North Carolina, the majority of my friends were still in North Carolina and I had yet to fully establish a network of friends. I soon came to realize yet had to take time to accept that most of my coworkers were best kept in a professional networking light, which wasn’t easy for me yet is the best decision I made given my career goals and later-established personal boundaries. I ALSO had a really uncomfortable situation with someone in my network alongside some of my friends on two occasions that should not have happened that took a major mental toll on me. While I currently, have found closure when it comes to both cases and wish everyone the best, it still was tough and almost made me want to move back down to North Carolina. BUT, through it all, I am so so so glad that I chose to stick it out and remain in the Washington, DC area. I have since found a great network of friends and supports alongside my family who happens to reside here. I feel beyond lucky. SO, putting together my Washington, DC gallery wall is like a culmination of overcoming challenges yet sticking it out beyond it all.
Washington, DC is an INCREDIBLE city! I LOVE LOVE LOVE the fact that within a 30 minute drive, I can go from my neighborhood in the Northern Virginia suburbs to the monuments of Washington, DC. I feel BEYOND lucky to have such neat monuments, including the Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, and US Capitol Building, in my own backyard. People DREAM of simply visiting Washington, DC, yet I have the amazing blessing of living there. When I was in North Carolina for college, I remember being so so so excited to move back to the Washington, DC area and being soooo close to such incredible historic and monumental places. Now, that I am living in a big old city, I am enjoying savoring every moment of it!
As for my Washington, DC gallery wall, I slowly accumulated items over the course of a 1 year period. I got items from: Home Goods, Shop Made in DC, Evelyn Henson, Etsy, and local Washington, DC-area thrift stores. Slowly gathering items for my Washington, DC gallery wall allowed me to spend less over time instead of all at once.
Washington, DC is TRULY my happy place! I feel incredibly grateful to call the nation’s capital my home and to have SOOO many great national landmarks that people dream of seeing at least once in their lifetime within my own backyard. To *hopefully* many many many more years of living in the Washington, DC area!
XOXO – Katie <3