What Blogging Has Taught Me

I'm back! Thanks again to my guest bloggers Alissa, Kaylee, and Kelley! You made it easy for me to relax & enjoy my vacation. I have a ton of posts swimming around in my head--holiday photos and outfit shots from my vacation--but first I wanted to share some thoughts for the new year, before it's too late. 

Though I have kept this blog for a while, it was only this year that I formed it into a style blog and really focused on joining the blogging community. As the new year approached, I found myself thinking about what I have learned through that process, and wanted to share. Feel free to share what blogging has taught you!

What blogging has taught me:

1. Everyone needs a creative outlet. I love to write, and that is definitely a way to express my creativity. But, writing also happens to be the bulk of my schoolwork and can become tiresome and even chore-like if I don’t give myself time to explore other areas. Taking photos, organizing posts, and writing little tidbits on this blog is a way for me to do something purely for the sake of being creative—something that has no expectations it must meet or any format it must follow. Though I don’t have thousands of followers or fancy sponsorships, keeping this blog has filled the creative side of me that I wasn’t quite sure what to do with before. And really, that is enough. Some play an instrument, some paint, some sing; some blog.

2. Wear what you want, and what looks good on you. Though I love to follow trends, sometimes a girl can lose her sense of style when trying to keep up with every single one. Having a style blog has forced me to think about what looks I really like and what looks I can leave to other girls. Taking photos of yourself causes you to see how comfortable you look in an outfit and what complements your body and style best, which helps weed out the trends you can do without. Keeping a blog has also made me braver in what I wear—to push it just a little bit further and not care if I stand out a bit or am over-dressed. Living in such a liberal college town where half of the people are barefoot on campus helps, too.

3. High fashion is fun to look at, but the best inspiration comes from “normal” girls. I have always loved magazines like Vogue and Nylon. I love to flip through their shopping guides and editorials and garner inspiration. However, it didn’t usually translate to my own style because high fashion is so out of reach, both stylistically and financially. Looking at all of your blogs, as well as favorites like Bleubird Vintage, gives me real, tangible inspiration for ways that I can remix items I already own to make them new. Seeing what other people buy, thrift, or DIY gives me ideas for what I want to accomplish and how I can put my own spin on an outfit. I love seeing ideas from funny, sweet, gorgeous women that have fun with fashion and aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty.

4. Quality > Quantity. When I first started turning this blog into a style blog, I felt like I had to post every outfit photo I took, even if it wasn’t my favorite in terms of the outfit or the photo quality. I also felt like I had to blog every other day, even if it meant something lackluster. Now I know that I should only post outfits, recipes, links, or photos if I really love and am inspired by them.

5. You don’t have to document EVERYTHING. Though I want my blog to be a representation of my life and style, I have realized that I don’t need to busy myself taking photos of everything I do. Sometimes, moments are meant to be just lived. A post can be a wonderful trigger of a memory down the road, but the memory itself is the most important thing. For example, I originally planned to do a Christmas post. But, Christmas became the kind of day spent with only my immediate family, where we had a lazy morning that stretched into the whole day. I never even changed out of my pajamas, and that was okay with me. Being fully present is what’s important.

Here's to another year full of learning. xoxo!