5 THINGS I’VE LEARNED FROM BLOGGING

Today, my blog, Luxe & Linen, turns 2! Yippeee! I never would have expected to keep up with this for so long, but a huge thank you to everyone who has been rockin’ with me from day 1. This blog is not just a piece of me, but piece of all you guys as well so thank you to everyone for the undying support. When starting this blog, I never expected the sleepless nights from editing pictures, the stressful hours that went into shooting and planning, and most importantly, the never-ending writer’s block that always seems to go on for hours on end. Being a full-time student by day, a part-time worker by night, and immersing myself within the blogging world after hours has proved to be extremely difficult, however, I feel so passionate and proud about everything I’ve done over the past two years that honestly, I cannot even imagine doing anything else. So what has the blogging world taught me?

It’s Not Easy
If it were so, then everyone would be a blogger, right?! It’s definitely not a simple “take a picture then write a caption” type of thing. Photoshoots don’t come easy and words don’t flow out magically through your fingertips (although I wish it did because maybe then I would actually get some real sleep around here!) Consistency is key in this world, meaning posting once or twice a week, making sure you plan accordingly through your posts, or providing enough engagement to your social audience is all in a day’s work. It’s tiring really, but it’s definitely something important to learn over the course of your blogging career. Trust me, there will be times where you will feel like giving up! I’ve thought about it a countless amount of times, but it’s so important to not give into that feeling. If I had thrown in towel, I wouldn’t have had the chance to meet some incredible people and passed along on so many amazing opportunities. Just remember to power through it and once you get over that creative hump, everything else feels like a breeze.Expand Creatively
The best thing about sharing personal style with the rest of the fashion community is that we’re not simply labeled as “bloggers,” we are style influencers. This platform has given me the opportunity to truly be myself and immerse myself within my element. Being a style influencer has definitely taught me to stray away from what is “safe” and expand my horizons both fashion-wise and within the creative field. The beauty of influencing style is that you have absolutely no boundaries and restrictions; no one can ever tell you the way rock your style is wrong. If instinct tells you to wear a scarf as a top, then go forth with confidence and rock the hell out of the scarf as a top! Influencing is about embracing the nature of your instinct, style, and craft. Within my two years of blogging, I’ve also have aimed to expand my blog into a YouTube channel and hope to bring it onto more platforms as well. In my eyes, when you mix creativity with a little bit of business-savvy, any blog can only go up from there.Networking is Everything
Blogging is a community and networking has opened the opportunity to meet other creatives within the field such as business owners, stylists, designers, or other bloggers as well. The best thing I love about blogging is that we are community based on support! At the end of the day, we are all going through the same struggles of shoots, pictures, editing, filming, writing, etc. Everyone wants to be successful in their craft and help each other out; networking with other creatives paves open leeway for that. I’ve met so many amazing people within the course of my career that I am so blessed to call some of them my friends, but who knows, maybe the next person you meet might be the very person who contributes to your success. Go out there and make some new friends!Eat a Slice of Humble Pie
Like I’ve said before, blogging is a supportive community, therefore it is not a competition; there is no race as to who will make it first. I’ve seen it so many times, cocky bloggers, people bagging on others because their pictures were not up to par, videos were terribly edited, and their posts lacked content. Who cares!? Just the very fact that they had guts to start a blog is enough, and trust me, it does take a lot guts to put yourself out there.  Although I admit there are those who are more influential than others, it is a shame to believe that you are better than everyone else. Just because you are a blogger does not entail that you are more elite than everyone around you. Therefore, take a step back and eat a slice of humble pie. When you stop judging and start supporting, more people will appreciate your work and good karma will follow you.Know Yourself
Drake couldn’t have said it any better. Know yourself, know your worth. In a saturated world such as fashion blogging, it’s so easy to get caught up with the latest trends to obsessing over social media followers and creating the right social media presence. At one point, I tried to mold myself into something I was not because I thought that was expected of me as a blogger. I changed up my style to fit the view of one company, then changed it up again to fit the view of another. When you’re not real or being yourself in this industry, people can see right through you. I lost myself within the struggle that I forgot why I started this blog in the first place. I started this blog not because I was aiming to get famous or reach a billion followers on social media, but as a creative outlet for myself. It was the only thing kept me from going insane in college when I was forced into a major I had no desire for. As I try to finish up this thought all teary-eyed and what not, I truly believe that this blog saved me. Since then, I found my own aesthetic and stopped trying to mold myself to appeal to others. If you truly know yourself and your worth, you’ll soon realize that you don’t have to put yourself in a box. Never forget why you started. Dress c/o Shein/Floral Ears c/o Chloe Montana/Shoes H&M

Thank you again to everyone for the undying love and support. Here’s to another year and counting!