When I first started this blog in 2014 I was so excited to get something, anything up immediately so I could start this whole blogging thing, I didn’t care what my site looked like, as long as I could share my first post! I still remember sitting up in bed at midnight pouring over the Damsel in Dior site, giddily thinking “oh my god. This is IT! This is what I NEED to do! This exists!” And so, I fell “Into the rabbit hole” (my first post).
Until then my life consisted of daily moments of people asking me “are you going somewhere after this?” as in, “why are you so dressed up for work?” Or, “um I would do my hair like this for a wedding…..not on a Tuesday”. My favorite always being “how do you have time for this? It’s so much effort!” It wasn’t until I dove into the world of Instagram blogging and saw I wasn’t the only one in a content state of overdress, that I truly embraced my love of fashion. I couldn’t help but feel ‘different’ and too ‘extra’ all throughout high school and even sometimes college, although I certainly went to a school that allowed for the creative – The Fashion Industry of Design & Merchandising in SF.
My first few years of blogging were a blur of staying up late to finish posts, while working full time and taking care of my then one-year-old daughter Grace. Getting excited when any (literally ANY) brand emailed that they wanted to send me a pair of free earrings to post about, and wondering ‘how do you really do this blogging thing right?” Though by then blogging wasn’t so new, it was definitely nowhere near where it is today and navigating the untested waters meant a lot of guess work and self-doubt. I wish I knew then what I know now! Mainly, “the worst they can say is ‘no’” i.e. pitch yourself! This is the biggest pieces of advice I now give to gals who are new to blogging and reach out to ask me for tips. I guess this goes for everything in life! PITCH YOURSELF and see what happens. The worst place you can end up is just where you already were, and that certainly makes putting yourself out there less scary.
It’s my fifth year of blogging now (I can’t even believe I’m writing that!) and I am still staying up late writing posts. Still sometimes feeling unsure of my style footing but I am just as excited to hit that ‘publish’ button today as I was on May 3rd, 2014 and can honestly say this creative outlet has been the best adventure I could have stumbled onto.
The biggest lesson I have learned so far from blogging is that even though it is a somewhat solo gig day to day, it is truly the people who you get to meet and connect with who make it so wonderful. That every encounter can be life changing, no matter how small of a meeting it starts out being. After 5 years of blogging, I feel like this year has been such a game changer for me and I have to attribute it 100% to the people I have been lucky to meet along the way.
I’m just going to gush for a minute here.
Katie & Samantha, who I am so thankful to call friends, have literally changed my life, when Katie Cramer who owns Lola & Ivy PR firm agreed to take a chance on me, adding me as a client, and have in less than a year helped to propel my blogging career beyond where I thought was possible. My SF blogger gal pals Tamryn & Sarah, who were the first girls in the blogging community I felt a real friendship with, outside the shiny exterior of Instagram. We have had more conversations on boosting each other’s confidence when we felt like just giving up, than I can count over the years. My dad, who at 72 continues to wake up at 6am every Saturday and freeze with me on crisp San Francisco mornings, camera in hand and patiently waiting while I change in the car into the next look to shoot! (oh yes ladies, it’s all glam all the time!) And my hubby Eric, who went from being very confused about what the hell blogging is or could ever become for me, to being the proudest supporter I could ever ask for. I can’t forget my mom, who literally tears up on the phone when she calls me after reading a new post and wants to tell me how great it is. (I seriously have the world’s best parents!)
It’s 1am, and I have to be up at 6 to get the girls ready for school and then rush to work. I am tired, sleep deprived and constantly wishing for more time, but I get to do what I have always dreamed of and that is worth every sleepless night and extra cup of coffee. If there is a moral to this post, it’s that the journey to any success is a long one. Often not bearing any fruits of your labor for a while. But be patient. Keep working hard. Whatever it is you decide to truly dive into head first, if you truly give it your all, stick it out during the times where you feel like giving up, eventually great things will slowly start to happen. I honestly don’t know where this blogging journey will take me and that makes me very excited. In another 5 years, wherever I will be, I will know that I took a chance on a little creative dream, sitting up late night in bed, dreaming of what could be. And that in itself is a success.
Dress Cynthia Rowley via Rent the Runway (c/o) | Earrings, Ring, Cuffs Julie Voss (c/o) | Clutch Minza Khan (c/o) | Heels Stuart Weitzman
A HUGE thanks to a fellow dreamer and a very inspiring doer Kaitlin Fontenot – Love Kait, who designed this site update and has been the most amazing creative force to work with!
Thanks for stopping by!
~Veronica
