Monday 16 March 2015

I'll Be Honest...

Hello there!

Today's post is from the heart and just me spilling out how I've been feeling as of late and bascially just a little honesty from me to anyone who is reading really.

The past month I've been getting a little down about my blog and truthfully a little bored of most peoples blogs to. Same old white background with perfectly focused and placed products. The same old mix of random jewelry, potted plant or washi tape strewn about to try and steer away from the plain white. The same old posts with incredibly Google friendly titles 'how to make your blog more readable!' or 'how to take the perfect blog picture ft this app I've been paid to promote!'.
It's all boring me.

Me in 2010.
Back when I started this in 2010, I used it as basically an online scrap book. I was actually buying tons and tons of magazine at the time and had a real scrap book that I'd sit with for hours on my days off cutting and sticking then writing a little about what I had done afterwards. I quickly made online friends who I will always truly love their blogs forever (like Ayden, Gem and Claire.) And then n 2011 when I moved to Cardiff took a year and a half long break from the blogging scene where it appears I came back to it coming totally out of its shell and now is a weird global marketing thing where how many Twitter or Instagram followers you can hashtag your way into getting, really effects the way you work in this game. Which is exactly what it's become, a game.

Me in 2013.
My personal fave 'me' how I looked and felt.
Don't get me wrong I am writing this as a now VERY small fish in a big vast ocean. I am so happy with all the amazing brands I've worked with, all the awesome opportunities I've had. I stared Bloglovin' up 2 years ago and almost have 1,000 followers from that alone and recently just hit 2.5million page views which is awesome!

But now I feel, especially in the past couple months, that since I've been posting less outfit posts, less of my actual face (due to confidence issues and shitty lighting where I live) I've been totally shunned and nobody gives a shit anymore. It almost feels unless you're super skinny (which is beautiful and fine in everyway) and have some kind of unusual coloured hair (which I totally did but it washes out like crazy, I totally have no times these days to dye my hair every week and also the damage is unreal) and are in a clique with the big dogs, then you will get nowhere!

I feel like now I'm at a crossroads I can either drop off this blog and never have anyone give me a second thought OR I can embrace it and pick it back up when I'm ready, when I have more confidence, when I have better lighting. Who knows, I guess it's just something for me to ponder on for now and I'll post when an idea comes for now until then :)

I guess what I'm trying to say is I feel like I'm losing my own little internet place and my creativity is dwindling. I need a boost but I just can't quite put my finger on how to do it and when then will be just quite yet. Thankyou everyone who has supported my blog so far and I hope we can continue our fun times.

Anyone else feel like this or is it just me?

X

23 comments :

  1. I know how you feel hun. I too feel like there's no point and blogs just bore me then and we are all pretty much the same. So much pressure to be different or in truth to be the same x

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  2. It's really not just you! I've recently returned to the blogging world after a few years and can't help but notice how much of it is just so... commercial? All the popular stuff is ' How To...' and '20 Ways To...'. Snore! Honestly, genuine lifestyle blogs such as yours are a breath of fresh air! Maybe take a break if you're really not feeling it or just don't pressure yourself; blog as and when you please. Either way, I'm sure there are plenty of us who will stick around your space of the 'net.

    And please don't let the confidence issues get you down. You're an absolute beaut'! x

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  3. Oh gal, I totally know how you feel. I can't keep up with everything these days and the whole blogging thing has changed so much in the past few years. I think back to when we all started and how simple it was, and there was much more of a community feel to it all too. I think when we feel this way the best thing to do is strip it all back to basics. Write what you want to write and do whatever you want to do because you enjoy it. Right back to the reason we both started writing blogs in the first place, for ourselves! <3 xx

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  4. I totally get ya! I actually have a post pretty similar to this which I wrote a few months back and never published, it's still sat in my drafts. Thought I would keep at it a little bit longer at the moment, but who knows! I've always enjoyed reading your blog, yours was one of the first I came across, just blog if and when you want to :) xx

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  5. Firstly I am SO glad that someone else feels the same as I do. I'm new to the blogging scene and I hate the pressure that is put on you by other bloggers to get your photo's perfectly focused with a white background scattered with ribbon or flowers to make them look prettier. My photo's are far from perfect and I don't have enough 'whiteness' in my living space to create those super pro looking product snaps. I don't have perfect skin, I don't have a funky hair colour (yes I did just use the word funky), I'm not super skinny and sometimes you get so bogged down with so many blogs following the same pattern that you forget what your blog is really about which really gets you down. I love you're blog because it doesn't follow the same snoring 'rules' as all of the other blogs out there. It's refreshing, you're beautiful, and it certainly brings a smile to my face. You're a true inspiration and I hope you can get your confidence back so that you can carry on doing what you do best... blogging your life scrap book style! :) <3 Love, Amy-Lou From 'Did Someone Say Cheese?' xx

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  6. We can completely relate to this and honestly had to remind ourselves of why we started our blogs in the first place - for fun. I'm pretty sure we had less than 100 followers for the first year, we haven't seen much growth over the past year but we have still been offered some fantastic opportunities which we are grateful for. It's sad that people don't really comment anymore, or if they do, they leave a few words that don't even relate to the post - AWKS. We don't like bunting and we don't take perfectly placed Instagram snaps. We aren't models and we don't want to ruin our naturally dark hair by dying it purple or pink, just to get more followers.

    We do however, have a few amazing followers who mean the world to us. I've made some rawrsome blogging friends and they make it all worth it. I even got noticed at work month ago and was so insanely flattered. We will continue to blog, because it's fun. Not because we want it to be our career and you will never see a HOW TO post on The Style Rawr. I hate those posts! Keep doing what you're doing, I follow less than 100 blogs (religiously) and you are on that list because I'm genuinely interested in you and your blog! I probably only follow one mainstream blogger because they are all too samey.

    Tara x

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  7. It's not just you (clearly from all these amazing comments and my vague attempt at one). I remember starting my blog back in 2009 and having a real connection with other bloggers. These days trying to keep up is just...argh! No-one wants to know unless you're pink haired and perfect.

    xx

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  8. 'since I've been posting less outfit posts, less of my actual face (due to confidence issues and shitty lighting where I live) I've been totally shunned and nobody gives a shit anymore' - oh my goodness yes, this so hits the nail on the head and is the exact issue I'm having. My flat has AWFUL lighting so outfits posts are few and far between, and coming at it from another angle since I stopped being in the bracket of 'plus size' when I lost weight and became just a chubby size 14-16 interest has waned a large amount too.

    Keep your chin up, I'm terrible at commenting (yay social anxiety) but I do read every post and have done for years :) there are followers who do still care I promise xx

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    Replies
    1. agree with the plus size thing, I'm not size 22+ anymore and don't feel like I fit in there because I can buy clothes in most shops. I was made to feel bad for losing weight even though I never wrote about it on my blog and did that elsewhere.

      I'm not spending £5 on peonies to have strewn around in photos, I don't have any white walls in my slightly crappy rented house but actually I just don't care about getting a perfect photo that people will pin and 'like'

      I like reading posts about gigs, days out, what people have been up to (I'm so nosey) and all that perfect looking lifestyle stuff is bland and sterile. I've made a little gang of bloggy friends and that's the best that that has ever come from my blog.

      I hope you keep at it if you enjoy it and if not take some time out :) xx

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  9. I can understand how you feel. Having had my blog for over five years, I've seen certain blogs roll out the same posts over and over and I just think 'where's the creativity' And don't start me on the 'how to' posts when it comes to blogging. Some of my favourite blogs are the ones where I see personality and a little something different. :)
    x

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  10. 1 million percent yes. Everything feels so FAKE in this 'industry' and I am done. Just gonna faff about in my corner of the internet and see what happens. :)

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  11. I completely agree with a lot of this! Blogs have become so professionalised that even though I've been blogging for five years I feel that mine isn't really "good enough". I'm trying to re-focus and treat it more like an online diary - so long as I enjoy posting I'll keep at it! Also sick of reading blog posts about how to blog!! x

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  12. Sometimes I absolutely feel like this. It is on those times that I step back and take a little break. Taking a break helps a lot.

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  13. I love you!!! I love you and your blog and your honesty too!

    I read this and yep - I have a few elements of all the things you said bore you. I can take that on the chin. But I have one of those blogs that not many people read- i am not exactly mainstream. I write from the heart and soul and I don't shy away from real life. I know - after 6 years of blogging that this is not what most people want to look at or read. I don't care though. I am being true to myself. Collecting stories and telling them for those few that get me to read.

    So much respect for you!!

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  14. Ooops published before I was ready!

    DONT STOP BLOGGING!!!!

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  15. I have read your blog on/off for the past few years and it would be such a shame if you were to stop.. I had a long break from blogging and I have just made a new one to start fresh and do it differently to how I used to.. if you still enjoy it, just change is up a bit and try things differently.
    The blogging 'cliques' do suck if you aren't part of one, but stand alone blogs are among my favourite, the individuality is the best for reading :) x

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  16. I totally understand where you are coming from. It would be sad to see you forever leave, your blog is one of about only 8 that I always read when I see there are new posts! You have to do what is right for you though. I began my beauty blog back in January 2010 and the world of blogging has changed beyond recognition. I loved the community aspect of it but that has gone now. I too am fed up of carbon copies. That's why I broke away from the confines of beauty blogging and began a new lifestyle blog. I have vowed not to get bogged down in comparing myself to other bloggers and actually just do blogging as and when I want to. It is much easier said than done, but ultimately I blog for me. I blog because I enjoy writing and it is a record of things that I have felt relevant at a time and will look back on one day.

    Like I said, it would be a shame to not see any more posts from you but I do understand where you are coming from, totally. xx

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  17. Hello there lovely, I am sorry we didn't get to say hi to each other at the bloggers meet-up, I love your blog too! Let's make sure we say hello next time.

    It sounds like you're in a bit of a rut, which happens to everyone at some point. It can be really hard to 'keep up' with everyone else's perfect perfect blogs and lives, but we all know that's just a facade and even the perfect bloggers struggle with insecurities and impostor complexes just as much as the rest of us! I think the key to being happy with my blog, for me personally, is to just to stick to doing my own thing and blog about the things I want to. Now and again I try and be trendy and do a 'how to' or something a bit more googleable, but to be honest most of the time I'm just babbling about things I bought in the car boot sale!! And carrying on with my boring hair colour. Oh well. I hope you're feeling a bit more like yourself soon, it's tough when you feel down in the dumps xx

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  18. Hello Dear! I really like your Blog. You have interesting Posts. Would you like to support each other and follow via Bloglovin and/or GFC? That would be so cool and i hope we stay in touch. :)

    Greetings, Sophia xx
    Instagram: sophiaton_
    Blog: www.sophias-fashion.de 

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  19. I feel the same too, partly because right now in my life i have so much going on in terms of uni work, but also that you'll only get noticed if you have those thousands of followers, or spend tonnes of money buying the latest beauty products. I've taken a break from blogging myself, and just can't find the motivation to write anything at the moment. But, don't stop blogging, your blog was one of the first i ever read and i really enjoy the content you write, it's so genuine and a joy to read!

    Hope you get your motivation back but also don't feel pressured :)

    aashs-littletalks.blogspot.co.uk

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  20. You hit the nail right on the head - I was in this exact boat a few months back and in all honesty, my main reason for blogging now is because of the career prospects it given me. You wouldn't believe how far 'I have a blog' goes on a CV when you wanna work in fashion marketing/social media, even if its a tiny blog and everyone and there mum has one! It's also been a good way for me to build up my self confidence. I'm SO self conscious but I've been using my blog recently to try and build my self esteem by posting more outfits etc. I hope you find your place again soon, and I hope you reach full happiness with it all! x

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  21. You're saying so many things I've had going around my head for a while! Good to hear many others feel like this too. I just feel like the originality is being sucked out of blogging and the more 'mainstream', cloned or whatever you become, the more 'successful' you are, which is wrong. Blogging should showcase the unique viewpoint, not the same 'perfect' thing you would see in a fashion magazine. I want to see images that aren't 'perfect', I want to see the real person behind the blog, not this perfected persona. I've also suffered from not posting more personal images since my health deteriorated last year, even on Tumblr (now that I'm not posting outfit shots).

    The more I think about it, the more I think it's a crappy situation but then I feel bad about my blog and do that comparison thing, which just leads to a vicious cycle of not wanting to blog because I don't think my blog is good enough, then losing followers because I don't blog enough, but feeling what is the point, nobody will read it anyway?! I think we just have to keep plugging away at what we're doing and blog about what we love because then WE'LL feel good about and it doesn't matter so much what others think x

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