Blogging Goals 2017

I’ve already shared my 2017 goals on the blog but I thought it would be nice to share some of the blogging related goals that I hope to achieve this year. It’s crazy to think another year of blogging has went and by the end of this month it will be my 7th blogging anniversary! Say whaaat!? 2016 saw a lot of change around my blog and I felt like as my interests changed and grew, I created more content that I felt happy with. As my blog generally improved, I also got the chance to work with some amazing brands too! So here is to another year of blogging and hopefully an even better year! So this is what I would love to have checked off my list by this time next year…

1. Improve my photography – My photography has already improved massively in the last couple of years, I mean just look at some of my older posts (apologies in advance if you do!). Photography is one of my favourite things about blogging and I’ve learnt so much from being the one behind the camera to also being exposed to the various photography styles used by different bloggers. I’ve grown a little tired of having the same old flat-lay, I want to experiment a little more in adopting different styles but also making my basic flat-lay a lot less basic!
2. Get more use out of social media – Social media is such an important tool for bloggers and I definitely want to make more use out of it. As well as promoting posts on Twitter and Pinterest, I want to add more additional content particularly on Instagram! I hope that I can get more active and also get more chatty as I know there is a wide range of bloggers about!
3. Update my blog design – I changed my blog about a couple of years ago and I still love the way it looks! Although there is some aspects that could do with updating to make it even better. I may also go down the line of upgrading my WordPress? Who knows but hopefully I will be very happy with the look of my blog this time next year!
4. Branch out into other content – Beauty is obviously one of the main focuses on this blog however I have so many other interests that don’t get as much air time. Style in particular is an area I would love to chat more about, especially since it is the reason I started this blog in the first place! Hopefully along with my first goal of photography, I will be able to better capture style and clothing photos as it is something I do struggle with! I also want to up my lifestyle and food related posts, I spoke a bit about my change in eating a few times so I would love to being share more on that!

What are your goals for the year?

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2017 Goals and 2016 Reflection

Happy New Year and Hello 2017! What better way to start 2017 than the clichéd New Years Resolutions! Whilst some people will roll their eyes, I personally love setting goals for myself. It can be so motivating having something in mind to achieve and of course it’s incredibly rewarding to have a successful end result! So I thought I would share some of my personal goals for the year ahead as well as looking back at my goals from 2016 to see how I got on!

2016 Reflection 

It seems like quite the trend to simply hate on 2016. Whilst a lot of tragedy took place over the year across the world, personally 2016 was a decent and mostly successful year for myself.  I made four goals for myself in 2016 which you can recap on here. The first one related to improving my blog. Now if you look at last years post and compare the photo from last year to now, I think you can tell that there has been some large improvements! My photography has improved massively, as well as changing up what I blog about which has definitely improved the quality of my posts. Connecting with others on social media has been rather slow however and this is still something to work on! I am going to do a separate post on blogging goals for 2017 so keep your eye out!

I also spoke about adopting a healthier lifestyle. I have been really happy with my success on this goal. Snacking has always been a big issue of mine and I’ve really curbed my sugar appetite! I’ve learnt a lot about healthy eating and even trying out new recipes and cookbooks this year. On the fitness side of things, I still continue doing yoga and I also took up a bit of running over the Summer. I could definitely have improved my fitness from the year but I am still happy with my progress and I am also over a stone lighter than I was in Summer 2016!

Also, one of my goals was to invest properly in my wardrobe and have a good clear out essentially starting fresh! I really wish I took a picture of my wardrobe then and now as it has changed so much! This time last year it was full of unworn and unwanted clothes and now I have so much space as well as a wardrobe filled with some really great pieces. Whilst there is still a bit more cutting down that can be done, I am really happy about how it is looking now. Speaking of wardrobe revamping, Farfetch have created a swishy Capsule Wardrobe Generator which can help give you a little inspiration for giving your wardrobe a revamp for 2017. There is already so many beautiful pieces I am dreaming about…, check it out here!

Finally, my last goal for 2016 was to save regularly. When I look at my spending from the last month, I am starting to wince now at the thought of this goal! Nevertheless, I started the year off pretty well taking a note of everything I wanted to buy from the month and how much it would cost. I also saved a good bit too and put money towards things I had always wanted. I could’ve been stricter but I am still feeling positive about this goal!

2017 Goals 

Now onto what I want to achieve this year…

1. Invest in body-care – A couple of years ago I really wanted to get into a regular skincare routine and since then I can’t go a day without. Now I really want to spend more time and efforts into maintaining good body-care. It is easy to focus on cleansing your face etc. but when it comes to body care and looking after the rest of us, it can easily be neglected. I want to keep up with regular moisturising ensuring my limbs are as cared for as my face!
2. Continue a healthier lifestyle – I already spoke about my progress from 2016 and I want to continue finding new recipes, eating better and also even trying to do a little exercise now and again!
3. Spend more wisely – I love buying clothes and makeup as I am sure you all know! Although I want to be more stricter about dropping money on more things every now and again. I already have so much makeup that I would love to use up rather than continuously buying more! I have a few ‘treat-yo-self’ or spendy purchases I would like to get this year so I am hoping I can cut out on regularly unnecessary spending and save regularly!
4. Have fun – I’m still young and whilst I have many things going on, I still have time to do whatever. Instead of wasting that time away, I want to properly cherish it and use it properly. See my friends, go out and do something new or even just watch a movie that I’ve been desperate to see for a long time! Why sit sulking when you can do something enjoyable!

 

What are your 2017 goals?

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Life Lately #12

Merry Christmas! I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas! It is crazy to think it’s been and gone already but I still count the time being as the Christmas period and of course we all still have New Years to look forward to! So on that note, Happy New Year when it comes as this will be my last post of 2016! How crazy!

Life

This month has been pretty crazy, and not just because of the build up to Christmas. I finished my semester at uni which of course meant exams. I spent the first half of December in exam mode which as you can imagine wasn’t the most exciting way to spend the start of the festive month! Obviously though the feeling of getting exams out the way and looking forward to Christmas was indeed very exciting! Annoyingly enough however after my exams past I felt in such a rush and ever so busy with work and preparing for Christmas that I never really felt as chilled as I imagined it would be. Nevertheless with it all cooled down now, I have been enjoying simply doing nothing over the last few days with lots of chocolate and cheesecake and finally catching up on TV that I’ve missed over the past month! I am very much excited to keep that going for the next few weeks before it’s back to uni again!

Blogging 

Of course with the busyness of the past month, I’ve not had a lot of time to spend on my blog. I’ve also felt a little uninspired too lately and I’ve been feeling like I’ve been in such a rush to come up with ideas, never mind write the posts. I took the decision before to cut my blog posts from three posts a week to two which has helped so much! However with a lack of inspiration, I feel pressured by myself to meet my two a week post schedule and it’s obviously no good when I have a lack of ideas and no one wants rushed poor quality blog posts. So to help get myself out of this rut, I have decided to get rid of my ‘Tuesday/Friday’ schedule and instead just post whenever. It isn’t the most ideal especially for my usual organised self but it does mean that I can post when I really want to with posts that I have put all my efforts into and that I really want to post instead of just random rushed posts that are published just to meet my schedule. This doesn’t mean that I will hardly post, there probably will be less posts but I am still going to be active on here and posting as often as I can. I read many other blogs which I love who post randomly without a set schedule so hopefully that won’t bother anyone too much!

On the other hand, I have been pretty active on Instagram this month! I did make a little goal for myself to post every day until Christmas and whilst I did miss a couple of days I did pretty well and it was good to finally get back on to the platform. It was also fun to share some extra stuff too so you can check out all my latest posts here.

Catch up with December posts: Nars Sarah Moon Collection, Things to do this Christmas, Christmas Party Makeup, Winter Skincare Essentials and 2016 Favourites Part 1 & Part 2

How did you spend your Christmas?

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Things To Do This Christmas

This time of year is my favourite, not just because of the big day itself on the 25th but also the excitement of the run up til Christmas when there is just so much going on! Whilst I may not be concerned on all things festive just yet with exams on the horizon (just a few more days to go til its all over!!), I do love spending time doing Christmas-y things. So I have made a list of some of my favourite things to do around this time of year, both big and small to help get you in the festive spirit!

• Make a Christmas play-list with all your favourite Christmas songs (I personally cannot wait to do this!)
• Do some Christmas baking, mince pies or maybe some gingerbread men?
• Try out a Christmas drink from a coffee shop, I personally love the Starbucks Gingerbread Latte and Frappuccino!
• Tackle the Christmas shopping!
• Visit a Christmas market!
• Treat yourself to a limited edition holiday beauty product! (I love the Nars products!)
• Burn your favourite Christmas candle, I love The White Company Winter candle!
• Decorate your home!
• Stock up on Christmas Lush goodies (see my picks here!)
• Have a Christmas movie night!
• Get all the glitter out cause… IT’S CHRISTMAS!

What do you like to do at this time of year?

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December Goals

The last month of the year is officially here. December has begun which means advent (yum!), Christmas (obviously!) and of course the end of 2016 meaning one last month of goals before the new years resolutions, oh yes the dreaded resolutions! So for the last time in 2016, here is my monthly goals to end this year on a high (hopefully!)…

• Complete my instagram challenge (more on this here)
• Keep spending to a minimum (needed after Black Friday!) – until Boxing Day!
• Study hard and do my best during my exams
• Enjoy the Christmas period!

What do you want to achieve in the final month of 2016?

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Life Lately #11

Happy Black Friday everyone and hope all you US gals and guys had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I swear over the last couple of years Black Friday has transformed from being a one day event to a whole weekend to now an entire week of sales, crazy! So having said that, I have already made a couple of splurges, treat yo self and all that! However I did the smart thing and am trying to stick to items that have been on my wishlist for a while rather than impulse buying! So I have already bought a couple of things from All Saints with their amazing 30% off offer and also I picked up a couple of items from my Holiday Beauty Wishlist on ASOS! I also hope to get my Christmas shopping done or most of it by Monday by taking advantage of all the discounts available!

Life 

Other than crazy amounts of shopping, I have also been finishing up on uni work with my last couple of weeks of the semester. That of course means exams are looming so my December will be pretty hectic with studying towards that so my festive excitement may have to take a back step for the time being! Hopefully my blogging schedule won’t be affected but I can’t predict the future so apologies in advance if I do miss a post!It’s crazy to think that December is starting next week and is of course the last month of 2016, how insane! I am super excited though to get all festive and in the Christmas spirit!

In other news, as you can see above I did a little phone upgrade to the iPhone 7. I wasn’t ridiculously fussed over the new model but I am very much a loyal iPhone user so it was natural progression. I got the rose gold shade, obviously, and it is super beautiful! In my opinion, not much different from the 6 model but the design is super pretty although the whole no headphone jack situation is rather frustrating!

Blogging 

One of my goals for this month was to get back into Instagram! Whilst I left it a little late I have been back on! So my return to Instagram is official! To make it even more official, I thought I would do a little instagram challenge and post everyday from the 1st December until the 24th. Like Insta-mas rather than blogmas, nice! So of course don’t forget to follow me to catch my other content here (styledbylaurenblog).

TV/Music 

In terms of TV, I haven’t been watching much! In the UK, I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here is back on TV so I’ve dedicating my evenings to that! I am definitely a wimp when it comes to bugs and that kind of thing but I love the show! Also, I have started watching the Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt which stars Ellie Kemper who of course played Erin in The Office. I am only a few episodes into the first season however it is already such an easy pleasant watch!

In terms of music, I haven’t quite got into the Christmas tunes yet (speaking of which I have surprisingly not heard much anyway!). There has been quite a few catchy songs released at the moment that I am really enjoying. I am really liking the debut tune from Noah Cyrus and also the song Rockbye is super catchy and always played on the radio! I’ve been a fan of Gabrielle Aplin for a while so was nice to hear her new release which is rather different but again ridiculously catchy, love it! To break away from listening to the same pop songs again and again, I started listening to Catfish and the Bottlemen who I am already obsessed with! Their album ‘The Ride’ is just too good!

Catch up with November posts: Nars Lip Pencil collection, Urban Decay Ultimate Basics Palette, The Repurchase List, How to get Inspired in Blogging Again, Lush Christmas Haul and Holiday Beauty Wishlist.

How have you spent your November?

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How To Get Inspired In Blogging Again

Anyone that runs a blog will know that there is always times when you can feel uninspired and demotivated to write. Particularly if you have been blogging for a long time, it is easy to feel like you have run out of ideas. I have went through a couple of periods were I feel brain dead in that I struggle with ideas and feel rather ‘meh’ about blogging in general. Yet, at the same time I love blogging and it would be rather sad to see an end to everything  I’ve put so much effort in to. Bouncing back from a time of feeling uninspired in my blog, I thought I would share my tips as to how you can get inspired again in blogging if you are going through a tough blogging time!

REMEMBER WHY YOU STARTED 

When I am feeling a bit put off by blogging, I like to remember the positives about it and of course why I started it in the first place. Thinking about the progress you’ve made is important and also the community of people who support your blog. I started my blog as a place to discuss the latest trends and offload on my love for fashion and style. My blog has grown throughout the years and changed along with my own interests which is such a lovely thing to look back on. There is times when I blog and I feel like I am talking to a brick wall yet I love discussing my interests and there is always someone on the other end who enjoys it. Blogging takes a lot of work but it can bring so much pride and it’s important to think about how far you have came and how there is also so much more to give!

TAKE TIME OUT 

There is nothing worse than running out of ideas and at the last minute writing up a quick blog post that is rushed and not to your best ability. There is no point in putting effort into something if your heart isn’t in it. There is nothing wrong with taking a bit of time out of your blogging schedule to refresh your brain for ideas. It is always quality over quantity. I read some blogs that only post every so often yet I am always going back as the quality of the posts is always on top form. Blogging shouldn’t be a forced thing, no one is going to stop reading your blog if you miss out a post on your scheduled day! Take some time off blogging and recharge then gradually build up your posts again!

LOOK FOR INSPIRATION 

I love reading blogs! They inspire me so much with my own blog and essentially keep me in blogging. I am always swooning over how beautiful a blog is and getting inspired to change up my own blog. When it comes to thinking of blog ideas, I want to create content that I would personally read. Looking at blogs that I read and the content they create can give you ideas as to what kind of posts you should be publishing to fit your own interests. Social media such as Instagram and Pinterest are also useful tools for inspiration particularly on images for your blog and can also have useful pieces of advice! Obviously when it comes to taking inspiration from others, you don’t want to blatantly copy anyone’s work instead just taking ideas that you can develop in your own way!

GIVE YOUR BLOG A REFRESH 

Coming from the last point on inspiration, I can often be inspired to change up my blog in terms of layout and style. When you are feeling a bit down in relation to your blog, giving it a fresh look can help inspire you again. We all love all things new so a new logo or design can be a great idea to help you get back into blogging. Also updating your about page or adding new pages and features can bring a little bit of new life to your blog and help get you excited about blogging once again!

How do you get inspired in blogging?

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November Goals

With only two months left of 2016, it’s important to truly make the most of it. With two busy months ahead, it’s all about being productive and of course making up for those lost new years resolutions…what resolutions!? Here is what I am aiming to achieve this month:

• Start studying for exams and work in advance on upcoming assignments
• Get back onto Instagram!
• Have at least one Starbucks red cup, yup it’s red cup season!
• Go crazy for Black Friday! (in other words, buy the entire range at All Saints cause heart-eyed emojis!)
• Get the bulk of my Christmas shopping done (one present already accomplished!)

What are your goals for the month ahead?

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Life Lately #10

It’s end of the month time which only means one thing, another life lately roundup! Woo! ! This month I have decided to change things up a bit with the style of this post, I have also decided to stop doing my playlist posts and instead combine it in this post. So, please do let me know how you feel about the changes!

Life 

Life has been pretty damn intense lately. I have had so many looming uni deadlines that have taken up so much of my time It’s been stressful but I’m sure anyone who has been or is in a similar situation will understand how rewarding it is to tick another item off the to do list! It is also half way through the first semester of the year which again is pretty damn crazy but the thought of powering through all the work is exciting stuff!

On a brighter note, it’s reaching my favourite time of year when the Christmas drinks come into Starbucks and the shops are filled with Christmas lights and all things christmassy. Can you tell I like Christmas!? Anyway, talking of Starbucks, the Pumpkin Spiced Frappuccino has made my entire month! Apologies if you are anti pumpkin spice but damn it is so good! I love the classic latte but the frappuccino beats it by a mile! If you haven’t tried it then definitely try one, fall vibes and all that!

Blogging 

This month I cut down my blogging schedule to twice a week and it has been such a relief! I’ve definitely managed so much better now with less content and I do feel like some of the posts I have posted this month have been better quality and also posts that I have been meaning to post for ages have finally got their air time! My schedule is still pretty packed at the minute but I do hope that I can keep up with my schedule and also keep working to the best quality! In particular, I still want to work on my blog photography and try new things out!

TV/Music

Back to a more chilled happy topic, I haven’t been watching too much TV this month but I have been loving one series in particular. Easy has been top of my watch list this month. I mean it’s got Dave Franco in it so what’s not to love. It’s an original series by Netflix with each episode centred around a different situation and different characters. It focuses on love and that kinda thing, it is a laid back, easy watch, pun not intended. It is also a short series so a good choice for watching when you don’t have a lot of time!

In terms of music, there is quite a few songs that I’ve been loving this month. Not my usual taste but I do love a good catchy pop song from time to time!  Also, can we talk about Niall’s debut solo single, LOVE ❤

Catch up with October posts: Current Makeup Menu, Introduction to Kat Von D, Urban Decay Vice Lipsticks, Too Faced Sweet Peach Palette and Get That Glow With Becca.

How did you spend your month?

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