My 2025 New Year's Resolution
Help!!!
Throughout much of my teens and 20’s, I convinced myself that my New Years Eve acted as a crystal ball for the year to come. A New Year’s kiss meant good luck in love for the year, a great New Year’s party would bring 365 days of festivity and fun. If the calendar year ended while I was abroad, my year would be full of travel and adventures. Like any good fortune teller, I was able to make specific connections during the year that mysteriously aligned with how I spent each fateful New Year’s Eve. For many years, that one singular night was of utmost importance.
By my late 20’s, I was tired. Tired of partying, tired of planning, tired of putting so much pressure on a personal superstition. My New Years Eves suddenly became an annual succession of nights in, of counting down on the couch next to my dog and my future husband. And in many ways, my life mirrored those nights at home. But was it really fortune telling, or simply willpower?
Looking back on it now, I can barely even remember what I used to do on all of those seemingly vital New Year’s Eves. I realized that, like many other forms of clairvoyance, my experiences were much more about perception than fate. By deciding that one night would set the course, I willed one night to set the course. However subconsciously, I found myself moving in the direction I had told myself I was already going. In a sense, my New Year’s superstition was true, just not in the way that I once thought.
It’s once again the first day of the fresh new year, and after several years on hiatus, I’m back at my crystal ball. I’m peering into the future, and I see myself making a big change in 2025. This year, I’m asking for help.
I’m a lifelong do-it-yourself-er, often to my own detriment. If you relate, we may have a few things in common: Eldest child? Immigrant mom? Bootstraps dad? Virgo? Asking for help often feels like failure, though it hardly ever looks like that in practice. The truth is, almost every opportunity and success I’ve had in my life has only come with the support and help of the people around me. Sure, I’ve worked hard, honed skills, and been blessed with a few meager talents. But none of that means much if there aren’t people who are willing to acknowledge those things and, sometimes, pay you to do them.
If you’re here reading this, that makes you one of the many people that have so graciously offered me your help. And in the hopes that this coming year will be full of even more success and storytelling and community building, I’m asking for more.
Below, I’m outlining my professional goals for 2025. And I know that you, your friends, and your network are the exact people who can make these goals a reality.
My 2025 Goals:
More writing. Substack has offered me an incredible avenue to self-publish outside of traditional media, but I’m ready to go further. This year, I’ll be pitching my writing to mainstream outlets. If you or someone you know has connections at a publication that is interested in putting out pieces about vintage, fashion history, sustainability, and style - let’s connect! If you love what I do here on Substack, please share, interact, and consider upgrading to a paid subscription. You can also gift a subscription! I think it makes for a thoughtful and affordable present for the vintage-loving person in your life :)
Break into personal styling. I have a strong portfolio of styling work for creative shoots, editorials, and commercials. I plan on continuing to work with brands and creative teams, but I’d really love to take on more personal styling clients. One of the most fulfilling elements of my job as a vintage dealer is helping people connect with clothing that they truly love to wear. Whether you’re looking to overhaul your entire wardrobe, you need the perfect look for an upcoming event, or you’re simply stuck on how to wear what you already have, I’m ready and excited to help!
All of my personal styling services will focus on helping you better understand your style by learning about clothing and your relationship with fashion. There will, of course, be a strong emphasis on secondhand and vintage fashion. I’m currently working on building out a digital landing page to reference my past styling work and lay out the services I offer. If you’re looking to transform or deepen your relationship with your style in the coming year, don’t hesitate to reach out. Send me at email at alexandraNstevens@gmail.com - let’s talk!
I assisted on this FREEZING shoot in January with Burberry for Purse Blog. The adorable dog was literally borrowed from a random passerby, and luckily Burberry actually approved this dog shot! 
Some of my styling work from 2024 :) Had the opportunity to work with Miu Miu twice this year thanks to my friends at Purse Blog! Get the fuck out of my house. I’ve become wayyy less social over the years. I don’t miss hangovers or unnecessary small talk, but I do often feel like I’m not taking advantage of what New York City has to offer. I really enjoyed my time at the Clotheshorse Jamboree this past summer, and would love to attend other community-minded events in the coming year. If you’re attending or hosting a cool event, you’re part of a great club, or have any other in-person occasions you’d like to share, please feel free to tell us about it in the 1-800-VINTAGE chat! Same goes for any stores, markets, exhibits, or other physical spaces that you feel like may be of interest to the 1-800-VINTAGE community in NYC and beyond. Small business is absolutely essential to maintaining and building strong creative communities - we all need more reasons to go out and shop in person.
I also have two personal resolutions for this year. I’m making January a no-buy month, both personally and for my shop inventory. I’d like to spend this month focusing on organizing my existing inventory, including tackling tasks like mending and repairs. I did a no-buy last February, which I found very insightful - I wrote about it here.
My second personal goal is a much larger task. I’m going to try my best to track everything I wear in 2025! Every year, I watch my relatively uninteresting and unsurprising Spotify Wrapped and wish there was a version for clothes. I love data, and I’d find it much more helpful to see numbers about my outfits than hearing that I once again listened to more podcasts than 99% of other users. I plan on tracking all of the garments I wear and purchase, and ending the year with a Wrapped-esque breakdown on what I’m actually wearing IRL. It’s a hefty goal - I’ll keep you all posted!
Happy New Year! I’d love to hear about your goals for the coming year. If there’s any way I can help you reach your goals, drop me a line!