Looking for some advice, please?

Makeuptalk.com forums

Help Support Makeuptalk.com forums:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Joined
Feb 11, 2015
Messages
9
Reaction score
0
Location
United Kingdom
Hi everyone,

I'm new to these forums, and am looking for something - anything - in the form of advice, please?

Anyhow, I'm a beauty blogger. Or was until yesterday, I guess...

I made the decision to discontinue after two years, because I honestly didn't feel I was any good whatsoever.

To be honest it's really hit me hard, because it was a huge part of my life (I'm sure other bloggers can understand what I mean by that?).

I tried so hard for two years to improve my content, layout, theme, my photography...Everything.

To no avail.

It still looked shoddy to me...and I guess to others, too!?

All my efforts and attempts at interacting (on some others' blogs and social media), and advertising also went completely ignored, and it got to me so much because I worked so incredibly hard for hours a day, (and spent money on better camera equipment, backdrops, software and a domain etc) and all for nothing, it seems!   :( /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

I feel so discouraged and let down because I really did try everything I could to improve, because I wanted to help people and be relatable, I suppose. I'm beating myself up over this.

I love(d?) blogging so much, but the enjoyment and fun was overtaken by stress and pressure in the end.

In a final attempt at salvaging my disaster of a beauty blog, can anyone please give me any advice on what to do/how to improve?

Anything?

Thank you in advance x

 
 
Hi There!

I think the thing you need to focus on, and my first and only question for now is:

What did you love about blogging - why did you start it in the first place?

xx

 
Hello I'm Laura and welcome. When I read your thread it really got to me so I had to reply, I'm not sure I will help but if u need any more don't hesitate to ask. First off I bet your blog wasn't bad it was just your view of it, I look at my own blog in a negative way too. You shouldn't care what you gain out of it or what others think but if you love it, which you obviously do, then please carry on write what you love it's an amazing hobby. If you want to know any more direct help/ answers please ask

Laura

 
Hi There!

I think the thing you need to focus on, and my first and only question for now is:

What did you love about blogging - why did you start it in the first place?

xx
Hi there and thank you for your reply,

I initially started blogging because I was hoping to share my own tips and review with others, to help them out.

Then I realised that I was in way over my head...I was a very late bloomer when it comes to makeup and fashion anyway, so everything I was giving advice on, people already seemed to know... :blink:

I'm still a rookie now, to be honest, so feel like a bit of a hypocrite giving others advice haha xx

 
Laura makes a very good point! 

When it's your own work, you can lean more towards a critical view of your work. It's the only way you can improve your work right? Critisize it, find the weak spots, and fix them. From my experience of editing videos - the more I work on them, the more I find the things that's wrong with them.

The problem is, you start looking for the faults. Then it's no fun anymore...

So ask Laura put so smoothly; "please carry on, write what you love"!!

 
Hello I'm Laura and welcome. When I read your thread it really got to me so I had to reply, I'm not sure I will help but if u need any more don't hesitate to ask. First off I bet your blog wasn't bad it was just your view of it, I look at my own blog in a negative way too. You shouldn't care what you gain out of it or what others think but if you love it, which you obviously do, then please carry on write what you love it's an amazing hobby. If you want to know any more direct help/ answers please ask

Laura
Hi and thanks for your reply,

Ah, I'm sorry! I didn't mean for it to get to anyone...

I'm not sure? I'm often kind of self-critical and a perfectionist (I'm mildly Aspergers, so this could be why?), and often people have criticised everything I've done throughout my life, so being hard on myself is second nature to me now.

It is an amazing hobby, and I'll miss it...I'm just not sure I am very helpful or relatable?

Thank you Laura :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> x

 
Hi there and thank you for your reply,

I initially started blogging because I was hoping to share my own tips and review with others, to help them out.

Then I realised that I was in way over my head...I was a very late bloomer when it comes to makeup and fashion anyway, so everything I was giving advice on, people already seemed to know... :blink:

I'm still a rookie now, to be honest, so feel like a bit of a hypocrite giving others advice haha xx
Hi!

I understand your worries, but I can tell you now that there are HUNDREDS of girls/boys/women/men out there that are "late bloomers" to makeup and beauty. The fact you were willing to start the blog in the first place shows you want to share some tips you found very helpful in your own experience (Whatever that experience may be).

So don't be too discouraged by it; if giving tips on your experience is what you love to do, then you have every right to do it! There will be people out there thinking "man, thanks so much for sharing that with me! I didn't know that!" 

Then there is the other side of it - you might learn something yourself. Someone might see your work and say "Hey, I tried that once, but due to (for example) my super oily skin, I couldn't use that mask you mentioned. I used this one instead *insert name here*" . You can then share from this experience "This face mask is amazing, but I've heard that it doesn't really work on those with super oily skin, but I have had recommendations for *insert product here*". This is equally amazing information to be sharing. :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

You learn as you go along, and in turn you share what you learnt on your blog for others to learn from you. That's really all blogging is!

If this is what you enjoy, then you can take that as your primary motivation and keep doing what you love! :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

I hope this helps you? xox

 
Hi!

I understand your worries, but I can tell you now that there are HUNDREDS of girls/boys/women/men out there that are "late bloomers" to makeup and beauty. The fact you were willing to start the blog in the first place shows you want to share some tips you found very helpful in your own experience (Whatever that experience may be).

So don't be too discouraged by it; if giving tips on your experience is what you love to do, then you have every right to do it! There will be people out there thinking "man, thanks so much for sharing that with me! I didn't know that!" 

Then there is the other side of it - you might learn something yourself. Someone might see your work and say "Hey, I tried that once, but due to (for example) my super oily skin, I couldn't use that mask you mentioned. I used this one instead *insert name here*" . You can then share from this experience "This face mask is amazing, but I've heard that it doesn't really work on those with super oily skin, but I have had recommendations for *insert product here*". This is equally amazing information to be sharing. :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

You learn as you go along, and in turn you share what you learnt on your blog for others to learn from you. That's really all blogging is!

If this is what you enjoy, then you can take that as your primary motivation and keep doing what you love! :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

I hope this helps you? xox
Ahh thank you so much.

That actually does help me! :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

I always loved being able to share my experiences, especially when I bought something and could find little to no reviews of it elsewhere on the internet! 

One other thing that also worried me was that a vast majority of beauty bloggers often show and review high-end products ALL the time, and I simply can't afford those sorts of things with a baby and a second on the way haha! Obviously I work and earn, but it's still so expensive to buy regularly! And I really don't want to ask hubby to help fund it either. I don't feel my husband should buy me things lol.

But I get intimidated by that sort of thing, because I tend to focus on affordable/budget beauty, with just a couple of high-end treats very occasionally...I'm not sure many people enjoy that compared to MAC, UD, Benefit, Chanel etc...That's also where I felt a little out of my depth.

That's also where my advertising attempts on social media got ignored, I think. Nobody seems to care about an underdog blogger like me who can only afford less expensive things.  :( /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

I guess I can keep trying to improve my product photography in the meantime, just in case.

Thank you again for your advice :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> xx

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Ahh thank you so much.

That actually does help me! :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

I always loved being able to share my experiences, especially when I bought something and could find little to no reviews of it elsewhere on the internet! 

One other thing that also worried me was that a vast majority of beauty bloggers often show and review high-end products ALL the time, and I simply can't afford those sorts of things with a baby and a second on the way haha! Obviously I work and earn, but it's still so expensive to buy regularly! And I really don't want to ask hubby to help fund it either. I don't feel my husband should buy me things lol.

But I get intimidated by that sort of thing, because I tend to focus on affordable/budget beauty, with just a couple of high-end treats very occasionally...I'm not sure many people enjoy that compared to MAC, UD, Benefit, Chanel etc...That's also where I felt a little out of my depth.

That's also where my advertising attempts on social media got ignored, I think. Nobody seems to care about an underdog blogger like me who can only afford less expensive things.  :( /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

I guess I can keep trying to improve my product photography in the meantime, just in case.

Thank you again for your advice :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> xx
I completely understand where you are coming from!

I work a full-time job, so I don't have the tim to create weekly videos/posts. I rely on my boyfriends camera equipment which means it's only available when he's not using it. And in terms of products - I live in the netherlands, so I can't review drugstore brands from the States - instead I review and use drugstore brands from here. My "audience" is very small, but there is one non-the-less.

I just love talking about my expeirence, and making my own looks and designs from it. it's the reason I fell in love with makeup in the first place, and blogging just allows me to go that extra step further.

If you enjoy what you do, and if you have the makeup you like to work with, then there is no reason you should stop! Unless you don't like doing it anymore.

I am so glad this helped you, and if you share with me your link to your blog, I'll go check it out (if it's not disabled!).

If you'd like, we can always do some kind of collab together sometime :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> I think it would be awesome!!

Much love and success to you, and I really hope you continue to share your love of makeup and beauty, and your love of blogging of course ;) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />, with the world (no matter how big or how small it may be!).. xxxxoxoxoxoxo

 
I completely understand where you are coming from!

I work a full-time job, so I don't have the tim to create weekly videos/posts. I rely on my boyfriends camera equipment which means it's only available when he's not using it. And in terms of products - I live in the netherlands, so I can't review drugstore brands from the States - instead I review and use drugstore brands from here. My "audience" is very small, but there is one non-the-less.

I just love talking about my expeirence, and making my own looks and designs from it. it's the reason I fell in love with makeup in the first place, and blogging just allows me to go that extra step further.

If you enjoy what you do, and if you have the makeup you like to work with, then there is no reason you should stop! Unless you don't like doing it anymore.

I am so glad this helped you, and if you share with me your link to your blog, I'll go check it out (if it's not disabled!).

If you'd like, we can always do some kind of collab together sometime :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> I think it would be awesome!!

Much love and success to you, and I really hope you continue to share your love of makeup and beauty, and your love of blogging of course ;) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />, with the world (no matter how big or how small it may be!).. xxxxoxoxoxoxo
Ahh I see...Yeah, I mean if you have little/no access to those brands, then that can't be helped :( /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

I guess I should consider myself lucky that here in the UK we get most of those brands then, and if not, then we can usually find them on eBay or Amazon...

Never really thought of it like that?

Yeah, you're right; I love to experiment with makeup and fashion, too.

I'm hardly some fashionista or fashion-savvy blogger like everyone else. I follow mostly the alternative style, so people think I'm weird or sort of look down on me for it haha. (Especially the fashion bloggers - ugh!)

But you're right with the beauty...Makeup is so fun and versatile! Like you can totally reinvent yourself with it!

I'll always find that fun, and I like learning new tricks and finding new brands/products.

It hasn't been deactivated :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" /> It's here: www.alternativelyalluring.com

Thank you :) /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

Ooh, I've never done a collab! I've never known how it works haha...Sounds fun though!

Thank you again for all your help and kindness xxxxxxxxx

 
Hi there and thank you for your reply,

I initially started blogging because I was hoping to share my own tips and review with others, to help them out.

Then I realised that I was in way over my head...I was a very late bloomer when it comes to makeup and fashion anyway, so everything I was giving advice on, people already seemed to know... :blink:

I'm still a rookie now, to be honest, so feel like a bit of a hypocrite giving others advice haha xx
Just wanted to say that I think the advice you've received so far is spot on - if you enjoy blogging, then let that be your motivation. That authenticity will shine through in your blogs, and you'll find your audience.

And don't worry about people knowing everything - as you've found out yourself, there are people coming late to the party looking for advice. And have you ever had that moment where you discover something on line that you couldn't believe you didn't know about. Well that means there are literally thousands of people out there who don't know about the other bbloggers that you expect them too - so let them find you instead!!!

Chris

 

Latest posts

Back
Top