I’m proud of my blog this year (& you should be proud too)

A little over five years ago, 17 year old me decided she wanted to set up a blog.I went to Blogspot, set up an account and my space on the internet was born.Since then, the Blogosphere has absolutely exploded with ‘blogger’ or ‘influencer’ becoming a genuine aspirational job for teens and young people. It’s a little crazy when I think about how something I merely started as a hobby has become a full-time job for other people.It’s also pretty awesome how so many real women and men have carved out a name for themselves in the social media space. Take Victoria from InTheFrow for example – she started her blog around the same time as me, and I remember meeting her at the Company Magazine Style Blogger awards. Now, she is absolutely KILLING IT and is a face of Ted Baker. Say whaaaa?!Although I haven’t blogged consistently in 2017, and have had a few haitus’ here and there, I am very proud of how my little space on the internet has grown this year. From collaborations to upping the ante on my content, I wanted to share with you why I’m proud of my blog this year and perhaps it might inspire you to be proud of yours too.

PR by day, blogger by night

I often get asked if I ever want to take Sophie etc full time, but if I’m honest, it’s not something I think I could sustain. I think I could generate enough income to sustain it part time if I was 100% committed, but for now, I’m very content building my professional career in PR, and blogging about food and clothes when I get home. It’s tough, my ‘one post a week’ thing never ever works out, and I have to say no to a handful of awesome opportunities but it doesn’t stop me tapping away at my keyboard.So here’s a little shoutout to all the guys and gals who have a nine til five, yet still manage to produce awesome content on the side.

Working with brands

Every so often, I get an email about a brand collaboration in my inbox and I want to shout ‘IS THIS REAL LIFE?’ I’ve had a few of those this year and it makes all the evenings and lunch hours I spend writing my blog posts seem so worth it!First up, Ted Baker. They invited me to their HQ, held a flower arranging workshop then gave me a goddamn dress. Okay, I’m not doing an InTheFrow, and I’m not the face of TB, but to even have recognition from one of my favourite brands is amazing! I’ve also been working on an awesome campaign with Vitality called #WomenInSport which encourages more women to get involved in team sport. They whisked me up to Edinburgh for a night to spend an afternoon with the Scottish Rugby team which was AMAZING. I’ll be updating you all in the new year on this so keep your eyes peeled!I can’t wait to see what 2018 has in store for my lil’ blog in this respect!

New topics

Sophie etc has grown and developed with me and my interests over the past five years. What started as a fashion and beauty blog has become a lifestyle blog where I share my thoughts on food, fashion and also the more personal stuff. I’ve been really chuffed with the different pieces of content I’ve created this year, albeit it’s not been very regularly! One of my favourite new avenues to explore was travel, and I absolutely LOVED putting together my Cambridge City Guide, so there’s more where that came from in 2018!

Finding my voice

Some of the content that I’ve written this year has been deliberately personal and thought-provoking. And this is the one thing that I am most proud of. Although I post nice photos of my outfits, I really want people to walk away from a blog post and it to do something. Sharing experiences like mental health and breakups have opened up some of my darkest moments to the world, but in turn, I’ve managed to turn these negative things into a positive. After I posted about my struggles with panic and anxiety in January, the messages of support I received were so overwhelming, and someone even decided that they finally needed to see a doctor about their panic attacks. When I posted about my break up, it was shared over and over as a relatable post and read by people I didn’t even realise read my blog!When I was at university studying creative writing, I kept one quote in my mind, from a poet called Simon Armitage: “There are 26 letters in the alphabet. If you put them in the right order, you can make something explode in someone’s mind, thousands of miles away in complete silence.”  And I think that perfectly encapsulates the power of any form of written word, be it blogs, literature or a social media update. We are so connected in our world today, so let’s use it for good things. I think we should all be proud of our space on the internet, however big they are. If I’m making one person smile with something I post, I’ll also be happy. I think so many bloggers lose sight of the impact they have on their readers because they are constantly comparing themselves to the biggest influencer on Instagram.2017 has been a big, turbulent year for social media influencers and the blogosphere, but I think that it’s time to take a look at your own internet space and be proud of how far you’ve come.

What achievements are you proud of this year?

Photos by Kaye Ford

Coat* – New Look | Jumper – M&S | Jeans – Zara | Boots – New Look (old) | Glasses – Balmain x Specsavers [shopr_shopthepost collection=”winter-coat” title=”Shop the post”]