On Blogging

I can't remember the last time I put together a brilliant, on-trend unique outfit.
I have no idea what trends are going to be big for Spring/Summer 15, and more significantly, I don't care.
The last item of clothing I bought myself was a black dress for my work New Year party in January. I've worn it on almost every night out since then.
In the mornings before work I just put on some clothes and get out of the door for 8, and at the weekend you'll usually find me in jeans and a jumper.
I'm not really a fashion blogger anymore.

Truth be told, "fashion" was never really me.
Even in my early days of blogging, it was all about personal style. I never really cared about the latest trends or what was happening at fashion week. 
I was interested in the people behind the outfits.

But the problem with starting out as a fashion blogger is that you associate blogging with pictures.
And you feel self-indulgent, vain, conceited just writing about yourself and what you're up to and what you like.
You feel unless you have some great pictures to post you can't blog at all, even when you're full to the brim with ideas.

Sometimes I want to blog about living with Phil, or about our flat, or about something funny that happened.
Sometimes I want to blog about the fish pie I made or how I got a 3 mile PB at the weekend.
Sometimes I want to talk about a film that I saw, or the list of Phil has made of all the films I should have seen by now that we're working through.
Sometimes I want to talk about what I'm reading, or what I'm not reading.
Sometimes I want to talk about the fact that I haven't bitten my nails since June but I can't get nail polish to last longer than 24 hours.
Sometimes I want to talk about the music I'm listening to or how I felt about the Parks and Recreation finale.
Sometimes I just want to talk about my weekend. Or how much I love our new rug.
But I've always felt trapped. Trapped by being a "fashion blogger". Trapped in the idea that I can't post anything unless I have pictures to accompany it.
I have that sinking heart feeling every Sunday when I want to blog about my weekend, but realise I spent Saturday in jeans and a jumper and didn't think to try to pull something together just for photographs.
And how inauthentic, how fabricated is that?

I don't want to be like that anymore.
Two of my favourite blogs are by former fashion bloggers who now just blog about their lives (Maggey and Michelle), sometimes short essays, sometimes just streams of consciousness. 
And honestly, I enjoy them more than the fashion blogs I read.
And even when I do read fashion blogs I tend to ignore the pictures and just read the text anyway.
I want to write more like that.

I'm not passionate about fashion in the same way I used to be.
I'm passionate about lots of other things. Food, fitness, books, films, health, travel.
But I'm not creative enough to be a food blogger, not fit enough to be a fitness blogger.
I want to create a blog that represents all of my interests, not just one.

I've been writing this blog since I was 19.
I'm 25 in two weeks.
I'm a completely different person to who I was in the winter of 2009.
I've done so much with my life, and on this blog.
I won't be rebranding. This blog will stay here, on this domain, with this name.
It's not going to be a huge change overnight, suddenly turning into a completely different blog. 
This will still be girl next door fashion. It will still be me.
I'm just read to diversify. To enjoy blogging again. To just write what I want to write in my space.

I want to write authentic posts.
Sometimes vulnerable. Sometimes raw.
I want to write posts that people can relate to. 
The number of people who came up to me to tell me how much they loved, and related to, my post on Things you should know before you move in with me.
A post I was almost too scared to put live.

So here's to a more authentic blog.
I'm not saying I'll never post outfits because I still will. I still love that element of my blog.
But I don't want to feel pigeonholed for it. I don't want to feel that outfits is all my blog is.
Not everyone will enjoy this new turn. I understand that and I'm sure some people will leave. 
I accept that.
I have dozens of topics I want to write about.
But importantly, sometimes I just want to blog.
Sometimes I just want to sit down at my laptop on a Sunday evening and write whatever I feel.

I'm excited to see what comes next.

Comments

  1. Love this! It already feels like you've been incorporating more lifestyle-type content on here anyway, so go for it! Being authentic is what makes good blogs stand out, so feel free to be yourself :)


    P.S. I'd love to read some of your movie reviews!

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  2. I've always loved your lifestyle posts the best (truth be told I tend to skip outfit posts anyway!) so am excited to carry on reading as your blog evolves! Good luck! :) xo

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  3. I love this, I love this!!! I want to hear more about your life! Tell me about running! And how hard it is but how great it became! (I'm trying to train for a 5k right now and it's killing me UFFHHH) and I want to hear about Phil and your flat and funny stories and your job and your city and what you cook! Blog for you, girl. You can do whatever you want on your own blog.

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  4. I love love looove this post! You're so honest and I really like that (especially in this 'blog world'). So refreshing and funny - your style of writing is amazing! I'm really interested in what other people think about, how they feel, how they see the world, ... and would love to read more about your life! You're doing a great job :-) Kisses from France :-)

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  5. As a hair blogger, i totally get what you mean. I started off blogging about healthy hair care, then my fitness journey and now i incorporate other random bits from whats going on in my life. I've been enjoying your lifestyle posts more than the earlier fashion/outfit ones so i can't wait to read your future posts :)

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  6. Aw I've been feeling like you were leaning this direction for a while. Being able to write about whatever has been really healthy for me and made me feel a lot better about myself mentally (as I work on myself physically--or at least I will once baby is born in October!). Plus, with working full time, maintaining "outfits" is just so so hard; you find yourself falling into a wardrobe and even if you want to change, it's a struggle to do so because you have bigger fish to fry during the day!!


    Anyway, I'm excited to see where you take your blog!!! I've always loved reading about your life--you've been one of my favorite bloggings since, what, 2010? 2009?! It sounds so creepy, but I can trace the trajectory of your life (and I'm sure you can trace mine!) from what I've read in blog posts.


    xo Michelle

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  7. Thank you for sharing your thoughts! This post is really interesting! Great job!
    I’ll be happy to see you in my blog!)


    Diana Cloudlet

    http://www.dianacloudlet.com/

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  8. To be honest I joined your website for the awesome business fashion but I stayed for the fitness and life stuff, there is only so many times you can look at a pretty pencil skirt. I think blogs need to be more than images these days, what with pinterest, imgur, instagram etc we need words in our lives so spill away. Ill always read :) xxx

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  9. I love your blog. And I love all of your posts. I will say just "Keep doing it that way". I love the variety.
    Domestic Cleaners Wimbledon

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