14.3.15

hello....!

Hello everyone. How has this week been?.....good I hope. I have been in a bit of a photograph frenzy, which is all good. It's been a little exhausting, it feels like everything else is also happening at the same time. So in some ways it's been a tough week, tough but good. You know when that happens.


I'm feeling so drawn to making these hearts right now. Whenever I can. Maybe it's the fabric and the colours, I don't know but I just have to make them. I have popped some single ones with a little message in my shop if anyone wants one to dangle one somewhere! Each heart will come come attached to a little postcard and with a little envelope to match. Truthfully I have had an explosion of ideas around these little hearts! And I can't wait to set to. And do my photography course :-) 

Of course there are lots of little photo moments through out the day. The camera that I brought is making a huge difference. Although I still don't really know how to take it off auto. Other news, I have finally got myself on instagram.


I realize this is not big news for most of you in fact who are already there. But the teens 'old' phone appears to be up to the job. We have already narrowly missed having world war three over it and have drawn a line under the fact that I'm not allowed to ask him anything else about how it works and have to work it out myself. Which actually in the end is the best way anyway. So four photos in and I think it's going to be awright!

Which brings me to the next thing. I've noticed that for some people who were blogging, and are now on instagram, it really lights them up. It works really well for them. I've also noticed that sometimes it doesn't. Perhaps what they are already doing is working as it is.  I don't know where I'm going to land in all this yet. I can see it's quicker, easier and you can message and reply more easily. But it's still not blogging.


I think bloggers are having to work quite hard right now, since instagram's success. Many are quietly leaving their blogs and are off in the insta-world. Things are quieter here. Less people around, less comments. I'm not someone who believes we have to reply or visit everyone who reads our blog, but I do think we need to put ourselves out into the blogging community and acknowledge what we are reading and enjoying, whoever that may be. It shouldn't become a chore.


Which brings me to my blog reader. I have a lot of blogs on my reader, and I had a lot of blogs in my sidebar. I suddenly really noticed there were quite a few with no updates for several months, and I also felt suddenly sensitive to some of the photos. I can't keep those on. I'm sorry if that affects you. If you have disappeared on to instagram I think it would be best to leave an honest note with a nice picture. Which is what the lovely Hesta did! Or give us a wave and smile and an update like Millefuilles did. Then it may be okay to sit there :-) So I'll just keep it to about a month. I can always add people back on. I can still see your blogs in my reader, mainly. And if not I'm sorry, but I can't follow everyone and times change and people move on to new things.


It's about enjoying ourselves and not feeling over-whelmed. And whole-heartedly enjoying the connections we have made, the amazing inspiration and life changing ideas and people out there. That's what it is for me.

So look, instagram. Up till now it's just been me peeking in on a group of people who inspire me in some way, whether it's how they live, what they do, how they put their message out in the world. Or their creativity and perhaps how they represent something I want to be part of my life. It's an inspiration board. So far.



Blogging is my community. Flickr inspires my photography. Facebook I just see as a kind of necessary business platform, but it doesn't call me.
I will be on instagram, but I have to say that if I am already following and commenting on your blog then I probably won't be following on instagram as well. Unless I've known you for ever and ever!
I'm using INK 361 as my reader which I like. When I open up my reader I need to not just be flooded by too much. That's the thing.

Of course I may totally end up eating my words and wouldn't that be funny.



P.S. please excuse the random nature of my photos, they are all recent I can't seem to think of words and photos in unison today!

27 comments:

  1. Dear Heather,

    I am so touched that you mentioned me here today; thank you! Your thoughts about blogging v. Instagram echo mine almost to the letter. Blogging is most certainly the most important form of self-expression and connection for me. I am delighted to have found Instagram (where so many lovely bloggers are hiding) this year. I like the way it works; the visual side of it really appeals to me. However, it will never replace blogging for me. Never. The two-month hiatus since my last post reflects how troubled I have really been. Writing a post always feels as though I have come home.

    Warmest wishes to you Heather.

    Stephanie

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  2. Really love this post of yours!
    I believe that blogging is a way of life... It is a ton of hard work, so you really must be passionate about it (or have some sort of driving force), otherwise it feels like a chore! That's why a lot of bloggers are finding it easier to use IG (it's a great marketing tool, too). This world invites us to be quick-quick and rush-rush and just celebrates instant gratification and insta-everything. Blogging is a ton of work, not for everyone for sure! It requires work, time, patience, effort, love... not everyone is willing to pour their heart into this. Blogging is about the whole picture, about the real person, all about stories. I have to say I am happy you're staying.
    xo

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    1. You are right Monica, blogging is a ton of work. It's amazing how long a post takes to create, but we must still be all wanting to be here. I'm considering using instagram as a place to just bounce in now and again with moments and things that have caught my eye and also a place to share some floral hearts around and the odd crochet cushion! and to give a quick wave to places and people I might not otherwise. X

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  3. I've just followed you on Instagram and welcome to that platform. I use Instagram to just share with Facebook and Twitter (three for the price of one!). It's great to flick through when you have five minutes, but reading blogs to me is catching up with people over a cup of coffee... not to be rushed :-) Have a wonderful evening x

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  4. I'm on ig but I still blog. Many others have stopped, tis true. I'm still here reading yours! X

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  5. Interesting post and welcome to Instagram.. I see my blog as the 'flagship' (as cheesy as it sounds) and FB, Twtter, Flickr and Instagram simply stem from it and drive traffic to it.. BTW I Love your new heart fabrics! :)

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  6. I myself have taken a very long break from blogging for nearly a year as i was unwell and have only returned a fortnight ago. I was unwell and is was becoming too overwhelming for me understanding that I should read others blogs and reply to their comments. Now I've lost most of my followers and I have to start from scratch all over again. When I did return I too found a lot of friends that I made here had disappeared to other forums which made me quite sad indeed.

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    1. Hi there, I'm sorry to hear it's been hard, and now coming back to blogging is also tricksy! I guess I would perhaps just try and imagine I was at the beginning again. Just blog for you, without looking around too much everyone else. Maybe just reply to the comments that you get left and really just go where you feel inspired to go. Because the most important is you are feeling inspired to blog again and keeping that feeling going! I agree it must be strange to come back and find things have changed here. I think also it's about finding the right platform for you. For some people instagram may just be their thing and easier, so you might want to consider that. Anyway whatever you do, make sure you enjoy it. X

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  7. I do agree that blogging is tougher since Instagram waltzed in, but Instagram doesn't allow for long form writing and In consequence I reckon blogging has plenty of life left in it yet. Like you though I am selective about the blogs I read and link to, particularly since, if you'll pardon my mixing of metaphors, so many bloggers. jumped ship for Instagram ... no one wants to be directed to a blog that hasn't been updated in months. A thought provoking post Heather!

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  8. Hi Heather. I do hope you enjoy IG. I started a year ago and loved it initially but have waned recently. It's great for sharing images captured on your phone when you're out and about but if I'm honest I think there's too much pressure to present a perfectly styled life there - really how long do some of those images take to put together? I do like the interaction of comments there though and the chance to interact with a different community. I enjoyed Susannah Conway's August Break project on IG and will probably do that again this year. For me I think I prefer words slightly more than photos and so blogging is my home and takes priority over Instagram. Some interesting thoughts in your post and in the comments it's generating. Thank you for your blog Heather and for the support you give to others too. So glad you're enjoying your photography right now. Claire xo

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  9. I'm also more of a words than pictures person like and a phonephobic so I'm sticking to blogger. I hope you do too as your posts always get me thinking.

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  10. Dear Heather
    A very interesting discussion - I have no idea about Instagram, what it is or how it works, I do not even have a mobile telephonic device. I love my blog and really, really enjoy writing it but have been horrendously busy with work (which is so very different to my blog I cannot 'cross reference' and blog about work as it is a very different world). This has been coupled with a loss of confidence that my blog is of interest particularly when there is a plethora of fantastic writing and lovely things out there.. For me I love the combination of words and pictures but I have been so embarrassed about not having the time to reply to kind comments that I felt I had left it too late to return...not sure if that makes sense.

    Love your hearts though Heather

    Best wishes
    Jenny
    PS: I have hundreds and hundreds of photographs taken since my last blog post so will get something together I think. It is the writing bit that takes me such a long time. Thank you for the prompt!

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    1. Dearest Jenny, first of all I am so glad that you are not a noreply blogger, and that I can in fact make sure you get this in your email and out there on my blog! I think there must be a collective throwing up in arms at the suggestion of you doubting your lovely blog which is in fact a wonderfully witty floral extravaganza!....so no more of that.... What can I say, don't let not replying get in the way of blogging either. It doesn't matter, life moves on and we just know we must be missing many a funny moment in your world. I don't think I've ever read another blog quite like yours, it's really quite unique. You are the queen of the Custards and you can do it your way! ...are you on flickr? If you were you could be loading your photos along the way and that kind of inspires a post I find. Thanks Jenny X

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  11. Oh please stay blogging! I have only just discovered you a few months ago and really enjoy your posts. I do not have a Facebook page or understand Instagram. In fact it has only recently occurred to me to leave a comment on a blog, I kind of thought that I wasn't "eligible" to do that!! I am enjoying your photographs, particularly the one on your last post of the girls in woolly hats on a bench! kind wishes..xx

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    1. thank you Kate for commenting, of course you are eligible! it's very kind of you to do so. I would have sent you a message back but you are a noreply blogger....don't let that freak you out, you can easily change that, if you want to!.... some where on your blogger profile I think. I can't promise to always send one, but it's nice to ping one back now and again. X

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    2. ah! more rocket science Heather!! I think I might have changed it...I fiddled about on my blogger profile?

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    3. I'm not sure it's worked yet!...I do hope this isn't the start of a confusing thing x

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  12. There are so many platforms out there that I don't think it's necessary to do them all. I only post on my blog. If I tried to do them all it would become overwhelming. Yes it's much quieter in the blogging world than in past years but I still enjoy it and don't plan on switching anytime soon. :)
    xx Beca

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  13. Interesting post today and one that rang true with myself. I had time off from blogging but dip in and out of it. I found that a lot of the blogs I used to enjoy reading have stopped and I have lost followers and don't receive many comments anymore which makes me a bit lonely and I question why I write a post now. I seem to get a lot of visits. I will keep my blog open and probably just pop in from time to time put continue to comment and visit the few blogs that are left that I do enjoy yours being one of them. I keep in touch with some lovely blogging friends on Facebook and that's great. I haven't a clue about Instragram have never seen it or used it but it sounds very in personal judging on peoples comments on this thread so I probably leave that one alone it gets a bit time consuming otherwise with something else to and confusing. Enjoy your week, dee x

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    1. It does get time consuming! last week I spent way too long on line and am now feeling the effects. It has gone quieter, maybe everyone will come back in a while when the novelty wears off. I think there are some good things happening there too, but like you say keeping the balance with the rest of our lives can be hard and takes some thought I think. X

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  14. Hey Heather,
    I am on instagram. I use it in an entirely different way than my blog. It really is everyday snaps of stuff going on around me. The pictures aren't particularly beautiful (apart from the coastal ones, but that's nothing to do with me!). Funnily enough I've connected with a number of local bloogers/photographers and that has given me so much joy. And there has been connections with Bristolian igers. I love seeing pictures of my hometown very much. I'm quite light hearted on ig. Probably more so than the blog.
    I love those fabric hearts.
    Leanne xx

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    1. Thanks for adding your voice here Leanne, it always feels like a 'keeping it real' voice. Perhaps we can connect in a different way on instagram. And yes you can keep your finger on the pulse with places that have meaning to you. I'm following a couple of Sidmouth people too, which is a place close to my heart. I think I am just scared of being over-whelmed by it, having to try and follow everyone! Which I can't and I think I accept that now :-) x

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  15. Hello from New York to you Heather. I've found my way here via your comment on Annie's beautiful, inspiring site. As a now quite new year's coincidence my own current post has mentioned my own curiosity about Instagram and the necessity of having a smartphone. (I'm a thrifty person, and do want to do the sums before investing in something that I really won't enjoy or use.)

    I have greatly enjoyed seeing this post and its immediate predecessors. And the above comments have also let me know that there is a bit of a current question about blogs/Instragram et al. I love blogging, both as a way to exercise my photography and writing and general observation about life in New York. I think that blogging offers a richer way to tell a story or convey a thought or opinion than the more visual opportunities that Instagram offers.

    And yet...do I risk cutting myself off from communicating with the global future by not investing in a smart phone and signing on to Instagram. It's amusing to think that the internet's opportunities also my result in forming new communication islands.

    Anyhow...this is a very long comment, but I really wanted to let you know how glad I am to have landed here.

    Cheers!

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    1. Thank you Frances, nice to 'meet' you too. I don't really have any phone advice except depending what you would use it for I don't think it needs to be a really expensive one, or even an iphone. My sons old phone is a Samsung galaxy s4. I think the camera on the smart phones are all pretty good. I'm still using my old phone for texting, how crazy is that. One thing at a time here! good luck with your decision making. x

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  16. Well written Heather, I must say I love IG.....it's simple and quick, you can't however talk properly on IG like on a blog. So IG is a place I like to hang out, but so is my blog, two lovely communities! Just love those little hearts of yours :) xxx

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  17. I agree with the comment Vintage Sheet Addict left above me. I tentatively joined Instagram, not sure what to expect. I've found it to be lots of fun, and it has given me a place to share more of my pictures. But it will never take the place of blogging. For me one is about photos with a few words attached, and the other is about words with a few photos attached.

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  18. I just discovered your wonderful blog and have to say that you are so right. We have to communicate. So here's me giving you my comment instead of quietly leaving... Greetings from Germany, Mila

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