How My Style Has Evolved In The Last 5 Years

It was only last week that I realised it had been 7 years since I turned 18. 7 WHOLE years. It's a lifetime away from the bodycon dresses I used to wear every Saturday night, the untouched eyebrows and the dangly feathered earrings, because cute.

I'm *probably* not the only one who looks back and silently cringes at how we used to look. How we used to dress. But also how times were different then, and so were we.

Some people never look any different. From weight gain and hair dye gone wrong, it's fair to say I've evolved over the years, and HEY hopefully for the better. 

Whilst things have changed and people have come and gone, fashion has always been that one consistent and stable thing in my life. It's always been there and I've always loved it. It's just that it's evolved over the years with natural progression.  I like to think I know my style and what suits me more than ever now. Just call me Trinny & Susannah.

So how has it changed I hear ya ask.

Well, you only need to hit the left arrow on my Facebook profile picture to see. Or scroll back on my Instagram to the beginning of time. Its not pretty, but it's me. We all make bad style choices, I still do now. I still get called Pat Butcher and told I've forgotten to change out of my pjs, I guess I've just learnt to be happy in what I wear, and if that's not the most important thing about style and being comfortable in what you're wearing, I don't know what is.

I now dress for myself. Not for others, not to impress others, just for myself, by myself. I wear what makes me happy, what makes me feel good, and an outfit that I feel like I could take over the world in. 

The days of heading to Revolutions in a cut out dress that barely covers my stomach are over. I'm sad about it too. Never did I think I would be a confident, twenty something who wore MIDI skirts. Who the frick do I think I am? Midi skirts make me feel smart, sassy and confident. I love dressing them up as much as I do dressing them down with sneakers and a jumper.

I barely wear anything above my knee now or plunging necklines. Congratulations to me, I am now officially that old person. I cringe at the thought of someone catching me wearing a mini skirt and someone saying 'she's too old to wear that'. Let's face it, it's gonna happen. 

The way I accessorise has grown up a lot too. The feathery dangly earrings and £1 bangles from Primark have already made their way to the charity shop. I rarely swap my pearl earrings for anything else these days, and I spend more on investment pieces that are timeless and classic. No matter how old you get.

The 18 year old bangle wearer has now swapped it for classy, yet sassy bracelets from Thomas Sabo. My 2 current favourite huns are the Friendship Bracelets - Little Secrets Bracelets which I have dressed with their Charm Club Charms for bracelets. A little N in case I forget my name, and a 4 leaf clover, because a girl really gotta have a bit of luck every now and then. I pair it with my Love Bridge bracelet, also pink (OBV) which features the cutest little skull. 

I can really see myself adding to this bracelet with sentimental charms that mark milestones and special occasions. There is more than 500 charms in their whole collection, so you can be as creative as you want. 

I really want to mark the time that I lived in Finland as this was a really big part of my life. I've even found a Finnish flag charm, so I definitely know what I'm going to add next. I love the idea that this bracelet will stay with me, and I can add to it for the rest of my life.

Little jewellery pieces like this finish off my outfit better than your mum's red lipstick and glitter eyeliner from collection 2000 that you've had for 3 years. They're sleek, minimal and finish my outfit off to perfection.

With jewellery, and skirt/trouser length covered, I guess the major last change for me has been colour. I no longer shy away from colour. I mean, I like pink, if you hadn't noticed? You'll rarely catch me without wearing some form of pink these days. But do you know what? I wouldn't have it any other way.

I no longer see getting older each year as a burden. I'm more adventurous with what I wear, I know what I like/what suits me and I've got to that stage in my life that I really don't care what anyone else thinks.

I just style it my way.

T-shirt - ASOS

Trousers - Topshop

Jacket - Missguided

Boots - Miss Selfridge via ASOS

Charm Bracelet Little Secret* - Thomas Sabo

Love Bridge Bracelet Skull Pink Pave* - Thomas Sabo

How has your style changed as you've got older?

*Products marked with an asterix (*) have been sent to me for review. This is a sponsored post in collaboration with Thomas Sabo. However, all opinions in this post are 100% my own

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Fakery Within The Influencer Network

November has been the month of the so called 'blogger scandals'. The tweets dug up from a decade ago, and witch hunts to bring influencers crashing to the ground. Perhaps they deserved it?
It's common knowledge that the blogging community has become cattier than ever. Quite frankly it's embarrassing. But something that is striking me now more than ever is the fakery. It's a bad smell you just can't get rid. It lingers.
This is WAY beyond the real life vs Instagram paradigm.
I was at a 'place' a couple of weeks ago. Bloggers and influencers flock to there on a regular basis. To snap pictures against what probably is the dreamiest backdrop a gal will ever find. It's a bloggers dream. No denying it.
But it's not all that meets the eye. Firstly, to say I felt out of place is an understatement. I even got the memo about wearing pink, but nope. We paid the £5 price tag for a tiny, all be it dry cupcake to soak up the atmosphere on a cold table outside. LOL life.
Before we knew it there was 'influencers' descending on us. Sitting on the tables next to us, posing. Only leaving 5 minutes later with the shots that they had and uploading to Insta. We actually found these pictures on the influencers account afterwards claiming that they had been there. 
Like lol, no hun. I don't know what stopped me from calling her out then and there. It made me think. What is real that we see?
It was embarrassing. Way beyond embarrassing. It was everything that I would never want to be. I actually said 'I really hope I'm not like that'. DONT CHEAT THE SYSTEM. You pay for this £5 cupcake like everyone else to get the shots.
I have encountered 'influencers' like this before at events who turn up for the free s***, are nice to your face (or not) and then unfollow you as soon as they get home. 
Everyone is out to make a quick buck in this materialistic and quite frankly fake industry. It appears that being fake sells. But for how long?
How long are we going to continue buying into influencers who wear an outfit once, its up on depop within the hour and what comes with it is often no personality. More 'girls grab 40% off this top now' and *insert cliche quote*.
I'm fed up of endless beach shots, in bikini bottoms wedged up between bum cheeks (JUST BUY A GOD DAMN THONG BIKINI) when I'm slaving away in a 9-5 job and feeling guilty for looking between my curtains for the dominos delivery guy to pull up.
As influencers, you are ultimately a role model. You have responsibilities for you what you post. So it begs the question, do you think they are healthy role models? Do you honestly want to be like that?
It is not an attainable or easy lifestyle for your average, everyday person. It never will be. A person who works a 9-5 day, comes home to work on their own goals, still finds time to comment and reply to peoples questions, and bags their clothes up for a charity shop, rather than making money on something that they got for free is a role model.
Followers need to understand that these are not everyday lifestyles to buy into. That perfect bikini shot? It has been taken 153748 times, probably before breakfast and after a gym session. That 'jacket' they're promoting? They probably don't even like it. They've just been paid x amount to promote it, they're laughing. It's fakery at its finest.
That's why I'm buying into real people. Real bloggers who share their personal life, the high bits, as well as the low. The ones that stay true to themselves no matter how high their follower count reaches. The ones that exist past their Instagram account.
I've dropped a 'few' influencers off my Instagram feed in the last week. It's unhealthy, not realistic and quite personally a fake and unattainable lifestyle that I'm just not interested in.  

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2 Years On - What My Current Job Has Taught Me

Ey up, how did this happen? It only feels like yesterday my mum made a packed lunch for my first day in my big girl job.

It was a lifetime away from answering phone calls from angry train users, and slipping into the same monotony every day that felt like it would last forever. I never thought I would get out. But I did.

My new job was the challenge and breath of fresh air that I needed. I never thought I would make it past the first month. I wasn't cut out for this, I wasn't smart enough and that person inside my head keept telling me I wasn't good enough. And sometimes it still does.

But here I am, over 2 years later. It's funny how things work out. It's not been an easy journey, but I value the lessons I've learnt since I've been there.

I've cried. I've brought work home with me to finish, and start. I've done extra work to show my worth, and enough presentations to shake a stick out. I've sold my soul to the devil a few times too. Ya know how it is.

It feels like I've constantly had to prove my worth, but maybe that's not so much of a bad thing.

I must admit in hindsight I never thought I would last. When I left uni I didn't think I could manage a full time job after recovering from pancreatitis. My confidence had seriously been knocked and I sort of didn't know how to be around people anymore. It was really damn hard.

I knew the only way I could ever progress was to push past it and get out of my comfort zone. Be pushed into the spotlight and left to cope. Survive drowning in the ocean when you see no glimmer of hope.

That 3 month mark was my milestone. A milestone that I tell anyone to apply to any new job that they start. It will get easier. After 3 months everything starts to slot into place. Those 24635 questions you have no longer need to be asked, and you know what? It's all gonna be okay.

Knowing your worth and value to a company is not a reflection of your skills. It's that person inside your head telling you you'll never be good enough. I've moved up the ranks in the short time that I've been in my job and quite frankly I need to cut myself some slack sometimes.

Having said that, it's not always easy being a girl in a male dominated office. I've been blanked in meetings, left on the shelf and excluded when I really should be there. It's a societal issue that I've met, that ultimately makes me question my worth and value. 

You hear about the gender gap on TV, but you don't think it's an actual thing until you experience it. I have no doubt that I will always feel like that little girl who doesn't know a thing, but it makes me strive to always DO better. 

Paper trail is everything. As soon as the s*** hits the fan, the fingers start pointing. Here we go again. 

Ticking those boxes and organisation along the way will never land you in deep water when you're trying to fight your corner. Paper trail is the easiest way to show your innocence. That get out clause to say, HEY I have done my job.

A final lesson for me is to show conviction in what you're saying. Even if you don't have a clue what you're saying. Be confident. If you're confident in what you're saying, you're one step closer to convincing that person on the other line. They're ranting? Stop speaking and let them. They'll soon stop when they realise you're not reacting.

Despite the hardships I've encountered along the way it's shaping those early, hard years of climbing the ladder to success. We all have to do it.

Ticking those boxes, hardening and strengthening me for whatever experience is next.

Stand your ground, be confident in what you say and work damn hard. No workplace is perfect (or so it seems), and the wall to wall bants in my office definitely helps when you've been laid a bombshell 20 minutes earlier. Just take everything in your stride.

If you're sat there wondering what it is that I actually do with my life, make sure you check out my what I do for my day job post!

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My Blogging Plans For 2018

2018. You beautiful thing you. I don't know why it does or should signify a clean slate, a reason to start again and work towards your goals. But it does, and I never feel like I have my s*** together as much as I do in the first week of January. Short lived, or not.

Before any new year, I stop, I brainstorm blog titles excessively and think about how I'm going to make my blog game better than ever.

My blogging pattern took somewhat of a bumpy journey at the start of the year. There was hectic life changes, and sometimes your blog really does need to take a back seat for a little while.

I now feel like I'm ending the year in a good place with my blog. My blogging game is back for good, or so it seems (ya gal did 9 posts last month, and what?), and this is what I'll be doing more of in 2018.

Revamping Old Blog Posts

In the 200 odd blog posts I've written, I've probably only revisited and updated 2 of them.

I have so much content out there already to look back on, and cringe at. I have probably 10 blog posts that attract a lot of regular traffic, both from Pinterest and organically from google. Great. Shame about the 90% odd bounce rate that they have. I think LOL, I wouldn't even read that.

I want people to be landing on my blog and staying. Like falling into the pages of your favourite magazine. The type you can still buy from your local corner shop. 

One biggie for me in 2018 will be revisiting those old posts, rewriting, editing and possibly retaking photos. In saying this I know that I've worked in my job for too long, but these old blogs may be getting a lot of traffic, but it's pointless traffic. What's my ROI, what is the conversion I'm looking for when people land on my blog?

I want people to be staying for longer than they currently are on my blog, so that's my main target for 2018. 

More Lifestyle Content

Fashion will always be at the forefront of my blog, but as life events have come and gone this year, I've been really enjoying ploughing out lifestyle content too. 

It's easier to write because it's me. What's happening to me and what someone else may relate to, or find interesting. I love reading lifestyle content too, so I guess that helps. We're all naturally nosy, right? We like to latch onto each others experiences and stories, and have comfort in that. 

As I navigate the hardships of adulting, expect a lot more of this to come next year. With personal posts that will make you think and list type posts that probably don't make any of you laugh. lol.

Wordpress Migration

I would like to. I've been thinking about making the move to Wordpress for a little while now. There are limitations to blogger, limitations in taking my blog to the next level. I also wonder if blogger will always exist, and if not, what's next?

I need to research this more thoroughly before I do so, and what impact, if any it could make.

I think Wordpress will allow me to up the stakes though, so its definitely something I want to do before 2018 is out.

Photography

Improving my blogging photography is the top of my list every year. Still trying.

I've switched up the way I post blogs and photos this year. Moving out also helped because HELLO white walls and copper everywhere. I share a lot of the pictures on Instagram that I use on my blog and it's definitely helped with getting my content repinned on Pinterest.

So 2018 is the year of brighter and whiter photos. More time spent on Pinterest and recreating photos. But also the year of sharing more photos of ME and bringing more personality across in them and my posts than ever before. 

I still use my DSLR on auto too, so if you fancy hooking a girl up with some tips, holla at me.

More Self Promotion

2017 has been the worst year for self promotion. The reason being that on a Sunday night I CBA to schedule 20 odd posts for the week ahead when I'd rather be slobbing on the sofa consuming a packet of biscuits and watching 13 going on 30 for the 178th time. Not gonna lie.

I've noticed the difference it makes to my social traffic though, so there is importance to it, even if x bloggers get fed up with the amount of posts you do.

The swipe up function on Insta would kinda help too. I've had a huge rise in traffic from Insta to my blog this year, and I think that this platform is quickly superseding twitter for me, despite the fact that no one even sees my posts anymore.

Scheduling posts, tweets, Instagrams or the captions the night before at least has to happen more. I'll hopefully set aside one lunchtime at work each week for this, it will save me from aimlessly scrolling through ASOS for at one day at least, eh?

Host A Blogging Workshop

Something I have wanted to do for the last couple of years is to host a blogging workshop in Plymouth.

I've been in the game for a while now, and the Plymouth blogging community has grown rapidly in the last year alone. I would absolutely love to organise a workshop with talks on SEO for blogging, flat lays, photography, the business side of blogging etc.

It is one more to add to my 12647 New Years resolutions, so we'll see shall we?

What are your blogging plans for 2018?

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