Faux Fur Vest: Old (similar here) // Top: Zanstyle // Jeans: Ewa Bazaar // Boots: Cavender’s // Bag: Karl Lagerfeld
Lately I’ve been really involved with
my blog. Whether it be promoting it through social media or wanting to
change the design/rebrand.
my blog. Whether it be promoting it through social media or wanting to
change the design/rebrand.
Let’s first start off with my blog
itself. I had been recommended by a blogger friend to a web designer who
was running an incredibly amazing deal for bloggers and I had been talking
about changing my layout for quite some time. I thought this was the
perfect opportunity to rebrand. I even bought a new domain. I
wanted to revamp my blog design and I was super excited to start this new
journey and bring my blog to the next level. Boy was I so wrong. It
turned out to be a disaster. Oh, and in case you’re wondering I will not
be naming the designer because this designer has done other blogs that have
come out beautifully, for whatever reason I just got really unlucky. I
had signed up for this blogging special back in April of this year.
Before I left for Poland I even did a photo shoot with my blogger friend so
that I could have cute typical blogger pictures that scream “allow me to
reintroduce myself.” Well, it’s the last week of September and I just
told the designer last week that I will no longer need their “services.”
I put that in quotes because I didn’t receive any services. I’m only
getting a partial refund (which I STILL haven’t received) because the designer
spoke with me on the phone 3 times, and had emails going back and forth since
April (insert really sarcastic voice).
The rough draft deadline was the first week I was back from Poland which
was the first week of August. I had to
email the designer to let them know I was back and had no response for two
weeks. Then we scheduled a phone conference
and the designer never showed up, never rescheduled, and it took them two weeks
to get back to my 3 emails of “hey, so is everything ok because you never
showed up” emails. This was just since
August, before August it was a constant struggle with this designer.
itself. I had been recommended by a blogger friend to a web designer who
was running an incredibly amazing deal for bloggers and I had been talking
about changing my layout for quite some time. I thought this was the
perfect opportunity to rebrand. I even bought a new domain. I
wanted to revamp my blog design and I was super excited to start this new
journey and bring my blog to the next level. Boy was I so wrong. It
turned out to be a disaster. Oh, and in case you’re wondering I will not
be naming the designer because this designer has done other blogs that have
come out beautifully, for whatever reason I just got really unlucky. I
had signed up for this blogging special back in April of this year.
Before I left for Poland I even did a photo shoot with my blogger friend so
that I could have cute typical blogger pictures that scream “allow me to
reintroduce myself.” Well, it’s the last week of September and I just
told the designer last week that I will no longer need their “services.”
I put that in quotes because I didn’t receive any services. I’m only
getting a partial refund (which I STILL haven’t received) because the designer
spoke with me on the phone 3 times, and had emails going back and forth since
April (insert really sarcastic voice).
The rough draft deadline was the first week I was back from Poland which
was the first week of August. I had to
email the designer to let them know I was back and had no response for two
weeks. Then we scheduled a phone conference
and the designer never showed up, never rescheduled, and it took them two weeks
to get back to my 3 emails of “hey, so is everything ok because you never
showed up” emails. This was just since
August, before August it was a constant struggle with this designer.
There was always an excuse. I
totally get that personal life can get in the way of things, especially if you
have family emergencies, but this is your business. I was a paying
client. I was extremely understanding every single time there was an
email (literally, every time I sent an email there was no response for 2 weeks
but I saw them posting away on social media) and the designer wouldn’t respond and
then come up with an excuse as to why they didn’t respond. I don’t know
if it’s because I have better time management, discipline, or because at my job
there is no such thing as NOT finishing something for a client on time, but I
felt as though this designer just didn’t want to work with me. I got so
upset with the entire process that I didn’t want to change my blog name anymore
and I just didn’t want to change my blog at all. I was even going to
migrate my blog from one platform to another. Now, I either have to find
someone else, or learn how to migrate it myself. I’ve decided to stick
with my name because that’s how everyone knows me already. It’s what I
identified my blog as for so many years and I think I just got so caught up
with this glamorous idea of a new blog.
totally get that personal life can get in the way of things, especially if you
have family emergencies, but this is your business. I was a paying
client. I was extremely understanding every single time there was an
email (literally, every time I sent an email there was no response for 2 weeks
but I saw them posting away on social media) and the designer wouldn’t respond and
then come up with an excuse as to why they didn’t respond. I don’t know
if it’s because I have better time management, discipline, or because at my job
there is no such thing as NOT finishing something for a client on time, but I
felt as though this designer just didn’t want to work with me. I got so
upset with the entire process that I didn’t want to change my blog name anymore
and I just didn’t want to change my blog at all. I was even going to
migrate my blog from one platform to another. Now, I either have to find
someone else, or learn how to migrate it myself. I’ve decided to stick
with my name because that’s how everyone knows me already. It’s what I
identified my blog as for so many years and I think I just got so caught up
with this glamorous idea of a new blog.
I came to this realization because
I’m not like the other fashion bloggers out there. I’m not rich, I don’t
travel every weekend, I don’t attend NYFW, I hate macaroons (except a select
few), I don’t have ANY marble countertops in my apartment, I don’t have the
really artsy Instagram feed, and I always try and find dupes of the high end
pieces these bloggers have. The name I came up with was more glamorous
and high end, but you know what, I don’t want to be like everyone else. I
used to care so much about the number of followers I had and now I just don’t.
I think it’s thanks to an article I read about a blogger who talked about how
she was so serious about Instagram and then she decided to break it off with
social media and focus more on her blog and other hobbies that made her
happy. I’m honestly getting to that point. I did a lot of loop
giveaways thinking it would help me at least get recognized and I do all of the
Instagram Pod groups but what I found out is that either of these things can
actually hurt you instead of help you and your Instagram because of their
algorithm. As a blogger, and as an Instagram user I HATE the
algorithm. When I scroll through Instagram I’d rather have it in
chronological order instead of seeing the same user multiple times and liking a
picture from a week ago. Way to make me look like a creeper
Instagram. I heard that when people follow and then unfollow you this
hurts the algorithm, so how is that fair? If someone likes my Instagram
and then stops following me the next day when they realize I won’t follow back
since they have 104k followers and are only following 100 people, that’s my
fault how? If you are part of the Instagram Pods apparently a blogger
told me that this hurts the algorithm because they see that it’s not an actual
fan, it’s someone who isn’t following you and coming to your Instagram every
day, so it just looks “fishy.” When people post the same spammy comments,
that hurts the algorithm. So if someone is spamming my account, it’s
somehow my fault? That’s why I delete a lot of comments
nowadays. Basically in my opinion, Instagram went down the tubes
once Facebook took over. It is so
incredibly hard to build a following that it’s discouraging. Then they will tell you, well we have the
sponsor feature. Yea, I tried that
too. I got maybe 1 or 2 followers haha.
I’m not like the other fashion bloggers out there. I’m not rich, I don’t
travel every weekend, I don’t attend NYFW, I hate macaroons (except a select
few), I don’t have ANY marble countertops in my apartment, I don’t have the
really artsy Instagram feed, and I always try and find dupes of the high end
pieces these bloggers have. The name I came up with was more glamorous
and high end, but you know what, I don’t want to be like everyone else. I
used to care so much about the number of followers I had and now I just don’t.
I think it’s thanks to an article I read about a blogger who talked about how
she was so serious about Instagram and then she decided to break it off with
social media and focus more on her blog and other hobbies that made her
happy. I’m honestly getting to that point. I did a lot of loop
giveaways thinking it would help me at least get recognized and I do all of the
Instagram Pod groups but what I found out is that either of these things can
actually hurt you instead of help you and your Instagram because of their
algorithm. As a blogger, and as an Instagram user I HATE the
algorithm. When I scroll through Instagram I’d rather have it in
chronological order instead of seeing the same user multiple times and liking a
picture from a week ago. Way to make me look like a creeper
Instagram. I heard that when people follow and then unfollow you this
hurts the algorithm, so how is that fair? If someone likes my Instagram
and then stops following me the next day when they realize I won’t follow back
since they have 104k followers and are only following 100 people, that’s my
fault how? If you are part of the Instagram Pods apparently a blogger
told me that this hurts the algorithm because they see that it’s not an actual
fan, it’s someone who isn’t following you and coming to your Instagram every
day, so it just looks “fishy.” When people post the same spammy comments,
that hurts the algorithm. So if someone is spamming my account, it’s
somehow my fault? That’s why I delete a lot of comments
nowadays. Basically in my opinion, Instagram went down the tubes
once Facebook took over. It is so
incredibly hard to build a following that it’s discouraging. Then they will tell you, well we have the
sponsor feature. Yea, I tried that
too. I got maybe 1 or 2 followers haha.
In the end I feel like blogging is a
popularity contest, and there are SO many good bloggers nowadays. I was never the popular girl in school and I
don’t think I’ll ever win the popularity contest with blogging and that’s ok
with me. I do this for fun, not for
competition. I do this because I work a
monotonous job where I do the same thing every day that I have been for
years. This is where I can actually have
some creativity brought back to my life.
This blog is a space where I can write whatever I want. Some people may read it, others may just want
to look at my pictures. I will still
take my blog seriously because it is a business, but I’m not going to take
social media so seriously, especially the gram.
I think I’m just going to go back to being me. Would I love to be a big time blogger who can
blog full time? Oh yes, absolutely! I love my blog, I love creating content, but
if it’s not in the cards for me that’s totally fine! I do this because it’s fun. As soon as this little blog is no longer fun
for me is when I know I need to stop.
popularity contest, and there are SO many good bloggers nowadays. I was never the popular girl in school and I
don’t think I’ll ever win the popularity contest with blogging and that’s ok
with me. I do this for fun, not for
competition. I do this because I work a
monotonous job where I do the same thing every day that I have been for
years. This is where I can actually have
some creativity brought back to my life.
This blog is a space where I can write whatever I want. Some people may read it, others may just want
to look at my pictures. I will still
take my blog seriously because it is a business, but I’m not going to take
social media so seriously, especially the gram.
I think I’m just going to go back to being me. Would I love to be a big time blogger who can
blog full time? Oh yes, absolutely! I love my blog, I love creating content, but
if it’s not in the cards for me that’s totally fine! I do this because it’s fun. As soon as this little blog is no longer fun
for me is when I know I need to stop.
**Please note this site contains affiliate links.
**Please note I was given this tee as a review from Zanstyle, however all opinions are my own.
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DUDE! OMG that totally sucks but im really glad you're keeping your name. ANd i love your style of your blog so I am glad you're sticking with it. I feel the same about every single thing you said – no wonder we are like sisters haha !WOW. i hate the Insta algorithm too and I know I am not as high end as other bloggers but i think thats what ppl love about my blog. Keepin' it down to earth. so proud of u. love you! PS See u in two weeksssssssss
PREACH! I've been blogging for six months and I've felt all sorts of pressures you have mentioned. I've fought with Instagram since the beginning and I refuse to spend my life on there to try to build it up when it is so bent on bringing me down (even though I still use it). I finally decided to do what I wanted to do and be the best I could be–it was very freeing (and sometimes difficult).
I'm sorry that you went through that with the designer. Your work is great, and I want to tell you to keep on being yourself. I'm also not one to travel, and spend lots of money, so I understand how you feel.
Keep going, and thank you for this, it was encouraging to me to keep going and being myself.
Mary
https://www.themarycurator.com/
I feel ya girl. I hate FB so much and insta is getting right up there. I love my blog and that is really where my passion lies. Helping ladies see they can buy second hand clothes, not spend alot of money of them and rock it! I know I won't be a big time blogger and that's okay. I love your style and it's been fun getting to know you more here!
http://www.mylittlenest.org