Dealing With The Seasonal Blues - My Personal Tips

Can anyone else really feel Winter creeping in? I'm not some kind of softball, I haven't turned my heating on yet or anything, but there is definitely a chill in the air. Every year around this time I get a touch of the blues. I realise I'm lucky not to get a full blown seasonal depression episode the majority of the time, although some years are worse than others. It's something I've learnt to recognise and put my own strategies into place to counteract the feelings of sadness, anxiety and exhaustion. I've shared some on this in previous years, one of my favourite posts is here and has several ideas for dealing with SAD. This year, I thought I would recover those ideas and add a few more. I hope this might be of help to anyone who has a similar outlook when October hits, but obviously, I'm not a mental health professional and if you find that you feel so low you aren't functioning properly, it's probably worth a visit to the doctor who can recommend various interventions.

1. Talk About It

One of the things I've noticed in my thirties is that people are much more willing to discuss depression and feeling low. I have quite a few friends who I have in-depth conversations about the feelings that can happen upon me during this time and I am confident in saying it's almost certainly the thing that has helped me the most when it comes to pulling my socks up and getting on with things. It really helps to know that other people, not just random Internet people but my actual friends, are going through similar stuff. There can be a feeling of isolation that comes with anxiety and depression disorders and quite often realising that other people are feeling the same way can put a mind at ease. I'm not alone, these feelings are normal and almost everyone has them to some degree, some of the time.

If you struggle to connect with people in this way, I've noticed something that might help. Sometimes, people don't WANT to just sit down of an evening and start talking about their depression, why would they? There's still a stigma around mental health. But you can listen for clues and be the first to state that you feel something too and this can open doors to conversations that have a real benefit in dealing with SAD.

2. Have Coping Strategies

I spoke in my post last year about some of the things that I do to overcome the blues. Seasonal depression in the most part is encouraged by a lack of Serotonin. Not getting that Vit D hit from the sunshine can really affect your minds chemical balance but there are small things you can do to boost your bodies production of the hormones needed to counteract depression. Eating dark chocolate, hugging, watching baby animals, exercise and creating self-care rituals all have an impact on how much Serotonin your body produces and at the very least, giving yourself a positive task to complete that you know has the capacity to make you feel better can have a great result. Don't sniff at doing tiny things for yourself - a face mask, a bar of chocolate and a favourite film, or spending time with people whose company you enjoy can prevent you from dwelling on the negatives.

3. Read Books That Help

Autumn is a great time to cosy up with a book, in my mind - I don't get a huge amount of reading done during the hustle and bustle of the summer so I tend to save a reading list that I want to work through when Autumn hits. One of the books that has helped me most in overcoming my negative thinking patterns is Heart Of The Revolution by Noah Levine. It's a book on Buddhism for beginners and it covers a lot about letting go of guilt and focusing on positive experiences without clinging to them and being sad when they are over - this really resonates with me during times when I I feel down and it's a book that I go back to over and over. If Buddhism isn't for you, it's a great time to read a book that benefits you in another way. I'm just starting The Multi-Hyphen Method by Emma Gannon. It's a book for people who want to develop various streams of income from their skills and aren't necessarily defining their success in terms of working a 9-5 job day in day out. Reading books like this inspires me to work harder at making my dreams a reality and it also takes my mind off my mild depression because I'm focusing on the future. Other books that have helped me through the winter months are The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin, Eat Prey Love (the book is infinitely better than the film!) and various books on mindfulness and motivation that I'll share in a future post. I'd love to hear your suggestions in the comments for books that have helped you through dark times. Next up for me is The Kindness Method - about treating yourself kindly for a more positive life.

4. Get Out Of The House

 Probably the most over-egged bit of advice ever, I'm pretty sure there are few ailments that exist that at some point the patient hasn't been told that getting some fresh air might help. At school, Matron would suggest I sat by an open window for pretty much any injury - broken your leg have you Katy? Some fresh air will surely mend those bones! Now, if I see sunshine, I make a point of getting out in it. Vitamin D is absorbed through skin, so roll up your sleeves and trousers and get outside to take in some of that wonder vitamin - it's one of those irritating things that won't make an immediate impact, but increasing your sun exposure during September and October is proven to have an impact on the severity of your Serotonin deficit over the winter. 

5. Define and Deal With Anxiety

People will often refer to Anxiety as one illness, one mental health issue. "I have Anxiety" people will say. "I feel Anxious". Actually anxiety is a catch-all term for a number of disorders. Finding out which sort of anxiety you have and what triggers it can be a lifelong process. I've noticed that few people talk about the specific form that their anxiety takes. Is it too personal to discuss? Are people worried that others will view them as crazy? Do people use the term 'anxiety' because it's easier than explaining that they are terrified by social situations, health issues, accidents, crowds, heights etc. If you are able to define to yourself what makes you anxious, this can help you to avoid triggers. One of the forms that my own personal anxiety takes is health worries. During low days, I can spend several hours googling non-specific symptoms and diagnosing myself with every type of illness I find. On really bad days, my brain will start practising how I will tell my friends and family that I'm dying. It's stupid and it's a waste of time, but I since I started to pick up more on what triggers me to have worse moments I am able to try and avoid situations were those triggers might appear. I don't watch hospital based reality shows anymore and I've deleted myself from several health forums. I've unfollowed individuals who blog about long-term illness because their updates can start me off on a worry spiral again - when I am going through a low time, it helps to avoid things that make me feel lower.

6. Lumie Bodyclock Starter 30 Wake-Up Alarm Clock


I mentioned this alarm clock in my previous post but it's so good I'm going to mention it again. It's about £60 on Amazon and at John Lewis and it wakes you up slowly with warm light that projects on the nearest wall in a sun ray pattern. Waking up feeling like I actually want to get out of bed is a complete change to normal because usually, as soon as the mornings get misty I want to huddle up in a ball at the bottom of my duvet and not speak to anyone for a month!

This isn't one of those vitamin D giving lights, it's just a more natural and refreshing way to start the day!




I hope some of these might have helped someone, somewhere. Please do comment your own coping mechanisms below, I'm always on the lookout for ways to boost positivity going into Winter.

Katy x

Blogtober & A Life Update

Hi :)

Happy October! I know October is a bit of a blogger cliche (no, I don't want my coffee to taste like pumpkin, a fruit I would never consider eating) but I love the lead up to Halloween and this year I'm hoping to get my boyf in his most extravagent costume yet - here are a few from previous years:

This year I'm going to give Blogtober a try - a post day for the whole of October.  I've been blogging for 15 years but I don't take it hugely seriously - I kind of want that to change especially as I'm launching two separate online ventures at the moment. The first is my digital marketing and Influencer biz - Strange Marketing. My Dad has helped me with the site and it's looking pretty awesome! Over the next few weeks I'll be adding a lot to the free content section which I hope will help anyone looking for guidance to setting up social media for their business.

You can follow Strange Marketing on twitter here and on Instagram here. The website is here.

I'm also launching my handmade crowns on Etsy this week - that's my main goal for the first week of October. So, if you have found this post from my Etsy profile, please do give me a follow on your RSS reader - I'm hoping to build a fun community of crown-loving guys and gals through my blog and my social platforms. Follow my crown-making ventures on Instagram here. You can also get a custom crown through my Kickstarter project which is running until 22nd October - here is the link!

So, please join me over October as I share lots of information about growing your social channels, crowdfunding and starting a new business - I'm really excited to see what can happen this month - What are your goals for October? Pop them in the comments!

Curious On The Horizon - My Favourite British Festival

I have a guest post up on the Curious Blog! **click here to be magically transported**

I usually start my festival posts with a countdown, but I'm going to forgo that today. The reason being, the sheer pain of getting through another weekend of normality before we are finally let loose at Curious Yellow after a year of waiting is too much,

When I arrived at Curious Yellow last year I took it upon myself to enjoy every single moment that we were blessed with inside those high hedges. I'd looked forward to it so intensely that I was certain it wasn't going to match up to my hopes.

This year, I've tried hard not to let the excitement build too early, but I have to confess, it's hard to help myself. Without a shadow of a doubt, the main draw for me is the gardens that the festival is set in. When we first heard about it two years ago, the location was a secret. I knew there was an avenue of trees from the press release but I didn't know anything about the history or magic of the place.

My recommendation? Don't Google it. To be fair there are so many secrets and angles and ways to explore this unknown little place that you probably won't spoil it, I certainly didn't, but the pictures available online don't do it justice. They don't give an idea of the scale of some of the biggest sculptural pieces and they don't portray the joy you feel as you turn a corner on a boiling hot day, barefoot and with some of your best friends and come across some completely and utterly unexpected, shady, perfectly designed spot that you are certain you didn't see last time you went along the same route.

I've had a top-secret chat with the wonderful Liz, whose ideas for getting the average festival-goer appreciating what us Curious veterans already love are hopefully going to instil the same joy into you that they have with us - pop over to my guest post on their blog by **clicking here**

I hope to see you by some giant Grecian columns in a weeks time, peering around the corner for the next surprise - I'll be the one with muddy bare feet and a massive smile on my face, trying to soak in every single second of the short time we get to take over this wonderful, overgrown, surprise-filled place.

Buy your ticket here.

2017 Aspirations & How To Be In The Moment

Welcome to 2017.

This is the year that I want to start fulfilling my dreams. I've spent quite a few years floating along, now, the time has come for me to create a life that I love. Whilst using that phrases jars with me just slightly since Zoella started using a similar one - it's still something I can aspire to. Also, I don't hate Zoella.

This year I want to blog better, work harder and earn more. I want to be a better mother, a better girlfriend and a better friend. I want to love my life, my career and myself harder and I want to strive to live a more positive existence but there's one goal, one aspiration in particular that has been the focus of my thoughts for the past few weeks. Like many people, I fail at resolutions. I can go back over old diaries, paper and digital, and tell you a hundred resolutions that I have made throughout my life that I never kept,and probably quite a lot that I ended up doing the exact opposite of.

A lot of people scoff at setting goals and aspirations at New Year. Oh, "it's just another day" and "what's the point I've never kept them". But I see the New Year, despite definitely being 'just another day' where things go wrong, as a chance to look at what I am not achieving that I definitely want to - and there aren't a huge number of other days in the year that I bother to sit down and mull over that.

I spend a lot of time rushing from one thing to another. Rush to get my son to school before the only bus that won't make me late for work sails past. Rush from the bus stop to the train station because there is only a few minutes connection time. Rush from the station to work because there's only just enough tim to run there and not be late. I rush through the morning trying to get everything down and I rush around at lunchtime because I have a 20 mins period to do things like, eat, go to the bank, take a top back, go to the post office. I rush through the afternoon willing the day to end so I can go home and then I rush to the school to pick Ramsey up before the 6pm deadline. We then rush to the shops and home before I collapse and I make dinner as quickly as I can because bedtime is approaching then we rush through a bath...

You get the idea.Life is a rush. All through these days (eat sleep repeat), I'm willing the time to hurry up so I'm one day closer to the weekend and at the weekend, I rush from eating to meeting to cleaning always thinking of the next thing I need to get done.

I found myself saying a few times after the holidays ended this week - it just rushed past. One minute I was drinking Prosecco at work and the next minute I was back at work opening my brand new desk diary you know? There didn't seem to have been a moment of time that took the duration that it should have. I freaked myself out a bit, is time speeding up? Am I going to wake up tomorrow and I'll be 78 and my life will have gone in a flash? I still think the answer to that question is yes, but now, I have a plan.

I am going to recognise each moment that happens.

It's a big one, I know. It's also impossible because who could do that? Every second? No-one. Maybe some mindfulness supremo that lives every second with intent or whatever, that isn't me. But if I set the goal to try and be in the moment as much as possible, perhaps the terrifying rush of life will at least seem to be going just a little slower and I can try and revel in the existence that I have.

When I was younger time seemed to pass incredibly slowly. I would lay awake at night sometimes and not be able to sleep and the time would seem to be taking eons to slip past. I've sat in bad jobs before and looked at the clock, only to look four hours later and see that just five minutes have passed. That doesn't happen anymore. Maybe because I really love my current job and there isn't enough hours in the day to do everything that I want to achieve with it, maybe because I'm older.

I've rambled a little here, but I don't really mind and I hope you don't either. I really love looking at at my New Year posts and seeing whether or not I have fulfilled my goals for the year - back in 2012 I wrote a list of goals that I wanted to achieve and it's been a real benchmark in how I feel my adult life is going, even though they are all pretty silly. You can read the full post linked here. I hope I can look back at this in the same way towards the end of year and have some input into whether I was able to put more of a focus on appreciating the moments of my life.

Blogwise, I want to ramp things up. I'll be posting more regular content giving insights into how Influences are making money and developing a whole industry under the umbrella of marketing, I'll be sharing behind-the-scenes look at some of the marketing projects that I'm working on with some major e-commerce and high street beauty and fashion brands, and I'll be looking to share plenty of gig and festival reviews and info. Happy 2017!!

Roy Ayres at the Jazz Cafe

I have to be honest, although I have a developing love for soul music, I wasn’t completely sure of Roy’s back catalogue. My boyfriend got the tickets months ago after seeing he was playing in London and told me we were going and I would need a babysitter – at the time, it seemed like an incredibly long time away so I didn’t do anything, about it until a few days before the gig when I had a huge panic! Luckily one of my old work colleagues teenage children is trying to raise some money for travelling so I managed to wrangle a last minute sitter, I’m pretty sure the boyf would have never let me forget that I missed Roy Ayres through bad planning and disorganisation…

Babysitter sorted we set off to London. I hadn’t been to the Jazz Café before, a beautiful Art Deco bar and club in Camden – I’m a huge fan of the style and it was a bit an extra treat for the night! We were pretty early and managed to get a great spot right by the side of the stage which we guarded with our lives, never leaving less than two of our group in the spot – the whole place was packed. I kind of wished we had splashed the extra £15 per person to sit up on the balcony, they had tables and an impressive view of the stage as well as their own bar, I will definitely get up there at my next Jazz Café gig come hell or high water because the photos from that vantage point are *lit* (Do cool kids still say that?)

The support act was surprisingly cool - I was really happy to be introduced to Louise Golby’s music, she belted out some pretty nice soul – we actually bought her album at the event and listened to the whole thing when we got home that night. She even got up with Roy later on in the night and sung with him, which was super fun!

And then there was Mr. Ayres. As I said, although I obviously recognised some of his music I would not have been able to sing the lyrics to every single song. The majority of the audience were  clearly lifelong fans as they knew every single word cheering and whooping as they heard the first few bars of each song he played – the atmosphere was incredible. I always think you can tell how well a gig is going by how many people are in toilets during it and there was not a single person in that corridor for the whole of Roy’s stage time!

Have I told you about my love of the keytar? I live in hope that one day I’ll be musically inclined enough to be able to play it. I tried learning the piano but I struggle to play different things with each of my hands so I hit a bit of a plateau but seriously, that instrument is the bomb. I’m sorry for not catching the guy’s name but the keyboardist in the band was something else, at times playing both a classic Rhodes organ and the keytar together – he was obviously hugely talented and definitely elevated this gig from enjoyable to incredible for me!

My only teeny tiny gripe? I wish the drinks weren’t quite so expensive at The Jazz Café, I know they have to maintain the place and staff and it’s in the centre of Camden which can’t be the cheapest of places, but I feel if you pay £30 for a gig it’s nice if you can afford to have a couple of drinks as well – although, let’s be fair, it was a school night and I probably shouldn’t have been knocking back too much gin anyway ;-)

Overall, we all had a great time - it's clear that Roy isn't the springiest of chickens but he has an undeniable stage presence and an incredibly loyal following which makes for an extremely enjoyable night - I'm now working my way through the Roy Ayres back-catalogue through my headphones at work and I'm loving every single soulful second...

What’s your favourite Roy Ayres track? Where you at the Jazz Café this week? Let me know below ↓↓

Katy x

Seasonal Affective Disorder - 6 Tips For Boosting Your Serotonin

Many of my posts recently have been about digital marketing, and I definitely want to carry on sharing those things - but I also want to share other types of content that I hope will be enjoyed and today is one of those posts - I would be more than interested in hearing about your thoughts and experiences so please leave a comment or come follow me on Instagram

I've been planning this post in my head for a really long time, since August, basically. It's kind of a scary thing to write about because in the most part, people don't really talk about depression openly. I'm starting to think that isn't because of a fear of seeming weak, but because suffers are worried that by speaking out, they risk looking like they are asking for sympathy or attention.

I should say here that none of these tips are in any way meant to substitute for getting advice from a doctor. There is nothing to be ashamed of in going to your GP- even if it just means getting a diagnosis and then seeing if you can boost your happy hormones yourself - if you can't GO BACK!! There is no need to suffer unnecessarily.

75% of the time, I feel fine. I've always been a huge worrier, but this gets significantly worse in the winter months.

Seasonal Affective Disorder has a hit rate of about 1 in 15 people, depending on what you class as SAD. It's characterized by a variety of symptoms, including anxiety, lack of interest in normal activities, feeling hopeless, changes to sleep patterns and weight gain & craving carbohydrates. The causes aren't completely known, but seem to be a combination of an increase in the production of melatonin and a change in the body's circadian rhythms, both of which affect sleep patterns. There is also significant evidence to suggest that a reduction in the body's production of serotonin has an impact on happiness levels in the winter in SAD sufferers.

There's quite a lot more information on SAD on the NHS website (click here) This post isn't meant to supplement doctor's advice, but I wanted to share a few things that have helped me and might help you or a friend.  These things might seem silly and insignificant, but they are proven to boost serotonin and might give that little extra needed to get through the day a bit more easily. Don't scoff until you've tried every single one!

Dark chocolate boosts serotonin production - this is a fact. Dark chocolate contains serotonin and L-tryptophan, as well as carbohydrates from sugar, which can signal the body to produce even more serotonin. Personally, I don't love it, but I try to eat a few squares a day just to give my serotonin receptors a little boost, We tried Montezuma's geranium and orange chocolate last night and it was incredible, but a bit much for my tame little taste buds.Green and Black's 85% Dark is my go-to.

Obviously, just eating chocolate won't help. Eating right and drinking lots of water will make you feel  better at any time of the year - I kind of feel that's a given here.If you eat properly, you will feel better than if you don't.

'Bear' with me - I know the majority of people will probably think this is silly, but there is some research to suggest that watching baby animals doing funny or cute things can boost the serotonin production in your body and therefore ease the symptoms of depression and SAD just a little.

Here are some of my favourites:

• 23 Baby pandas in a pile
• Pandas doing naughty things
• Bear cub meets a fawn
• Puppy swarms

Anxiety sucks. It can cause a huge range of symptoms both real and imagined. It can convince you that you are going to die or that everyone is against you. The key to fighting rising anxiety levels is to learn about it. First, you need to recognise when you are feeling anxious and when you are actually in danger. When you start to recognise that certain situations are creating anxiety, you can avoid them, or manage them appropriately. Reminding yourself that it's just anxiety, it's just your body and not an external threat of any kind can help to calm you in a situation that could otherwise develop into a panic attack. Even during a panic attack, calmly telling yourself:

"This is a panic attack, I have had them before and it always feels like it's the worst one. This will be over shortly"

can be enough to see it off. Learning about anxiety and ways to fight it can make a significant difference to your quality of life,especially if anxiety is stopping you from doing anything. There are lots of tips and tricks online to fight panic attacks, such as having an elastic band on your wrist, mantras and exercises to help with breathing and blood flow. Do your research and find what works for you.

Here is one of my favorite serotonin-boosting facts. Hugging for 8 seconds gives you a surge of the happiness hormone! I've tried this out many a time, in fact if you are reading this and you know me in real life, chances are you've had a slightly-too-long semi-awkward hug with me at some point. I've learnt it helps to explain what you are doing before you grab someone for an 8 second hug, otherwise they might feel like you are a little crazy and perhaps are not planning to let go. Or maybe that you doing that thing where you shake someones hand for way too long just to see how they react. Often, if you tell people that hugging for 8 seconds will give a chemical happiness boost, they are up for it - this is tried and tested to the point where many people in my life now will hug me for 8 seconds anyway when we greet, just so they don't have to listen to my speech about serotonin. Good times!

Hands down, the thing that has made the most different to managing the winter blues for me, as been this little piece of equipment. (Here's a link to Amazon)

It's a Lumie Bodyclock and it's changed my sleeping habits completely. It creates a sunset in your room - I have a completely white bedroom wall so I have it on a pile of books in front of that, the slots in the back create a sun pattern and the light dims slowly, it wakes you up by getting brighter and brighter. An alarm eventually goes off if you leave it longer than 15 mins or so before you get up and press the button. My parents got it for my birthday and I love it. I live in fear of the bulb going and having to order and wait for a replacement (it's just occurred to me that I should order one before it goes - I am getting so much better at adulting). But anyway, if you struggle to get up in the morning this might help. Being jarred awake in the middle of a deep sleep isn't the best way to start your day and a decent night's sleep is essential when you are trying to fight seasonal depression without the use of traditional pharmaceuticals.

I also have a new sleep toy to play with which I will be sharing in the next few weeks!

It's not a cure, but trying to lead a positive life WILL make you feel better. This means smiling at people, trying not to get frustrated in public over people taking too long to use the ATM or standing in front of the good cheese at the supermarket so you have to pretend to be looking at the garlic bread but really, you want the cheese. The rule is, for every negative or mean thing you say, whether out loud or not, you should try and create 5 positive things too. It doesn't always work, but it's a nice ideal to aspire to.

I know people who know me in real life will probably not agree, but I am trying  to reduce my complaining. If I hear myself complaining, I try and stop and I wish other people would to. People complaining for hours about something instead of putting that time and energy into finding a solution really bother me and I often can't help but to complain about that! It's a cycle that I want to break - if you cannot be positive, at least be quiet.

These are not steadfast solutions, I know that some people will need extra assistance to fight seasonal depression (and all-year depression, obviously) however I know I would prefer to try every option before going down that route and so far it's done me pretty well. I still dread the nights getting longer every year but if you build yourself a toolbox of ways to deal it can be a lot easier.

Katy xx

HELP! My Christmas Ornament DIY Went Viral And I've Been Trying To Make The Most Of It Since 2010

Christmas - the most shareable, pinnable, instagrammable time of the year. For bloggers and pretty much anyone in marketing, it basically takes up around three to four months of your life. There are a million articles and informative podcasts and youtube videos about how to make the best of the world's interest in crafts, baking and cheese at this time of year- with the ultimate aim of creating some content so awesome that it gets pinned a billion times and drives traffic to your blog for years to come.

I did this - but I've struggled to capitalise on my creation for the last six years and now, I need to know whether it's time to just give up, and move on, or if there is something I can do to get the traffic that gets so interested in this DIY to come here, instead of the web address that's been attached to it since the beginning.

In 2010 I was writing on a different little space on the internet. I'd been blogging for quite a few years by this time and I knew what I was doing with photographs and sharing my content, I was getting around 100 hits a day, not amazing, but it was going steadily upwards and I was making jewellery for an Etsy shop that I've since shut down. Because of this, a lot of my social network at the time were crafty types and a lot of the content I was creating was craft related. When it came to Christmas 2010, I was at home with my little guy, I'd just been made redundant and I had a lot of time on my hands. I created this:

I popped the DIY up on the blog and did the usual round of promotion, a post on twitter, Pinterest and on the Etsy forums. Instagram wasn't as huge a thing back then and I hadn't quite worked out how to best use it to promote my content. It's since been pinned 4,700+ times - linking back to the original post on my old blog.

I have tried everything I can to capitalise on this creation in my new space, here at katyclouds.blogspot.com. I moved most of the content over to here when I migrated to the new username but because the original Pin linked to the old blogspot, traffic is still being driven there by Pinterest and it drives me INSANE. Hits on the old blog go up to around 3K a day as we get into prime Christmas crafting time, and the old article still gets shared regular as clockwork by all the major crafty DIY sites and blogs. It would basically be a dream come true for traffic and my profile in general - IF the traffic was going to the correct blog! I haven't updated the blog over at the old address for nearly 6 years - I don't want to use the username anymore, I want to use this username and keep the content here. I want traffic to come here, driven by the awesome DIY I made 6 years ago and all the other Christmas, crafting and digital marketing / social media help I've posted over the years.

As someone who works in digital marketing and has done for nearly eight years, I feel like this is an issue I should be able to solve and it frustrates me no end that I can't. That's why, dear reader, I am calling in the big guns and asking for help. Here are the things that I have done to try and get the traffic coming here:

• Reposted the entire article on this blog under the same username and repinned it. The pin has been shared 47 times. That's 1% of the times of the original. You can read the article as reposted here by clicking here ➡click here⬅
• Put a big link up at the top of the original post directing traffic to this space
• Put a link at the top of the new post
• Set up an automatic divert on my old blog - with a large image that should have just enough time to load before the viewer is diverted. I think I still lose about 50% of traffic as they lose interest (or panic because scammers) - although towards Christmas hits on this blog do go up with the majority of traffic coming from the original blog.
• Repeatedly over the last six years reposted and resubmitted the pictures and article to many crafting sites, repinned it hundreds of times myself, shared it on every social media platform imaginable
• Written this post in an attempt to find a final solution - or give up and accept that I can't make the most of the interest in this DIY on a new blog.

I can't change the link on the original Pin, and besides, it's too late. Perhaps I have no choice but to watch in resigned pride as the hit count on my old blog goes through the roof every Christmas and accept the fact that I cannot get that traffic here. Or perhaps, someone out there knows the answer. Perhaps someone has helped a business or individual solve a similar issue and wants to share with me the secret to diverting traffic from one ridiculously popular source to another. I have lots of DIY content here for people to enjoy. I have the full DIY for the Christmas bauble. Which, by the way, fell apart after two days because I didn't use strong enough glue and no longer exists - in case you thought I  got it out every year and cried over it, weeping for my lost traffic. I'm only saying this because I would definitely do that if it hasn't have been such a shoddy DIY in the first place.

So, digital marketers, people with ideas or Pinterest experts - how can I make sure that the traffic comes to my blog here this year? What are you tips and suggestions for driving up the traffic of this here blog based on this one successful DIY I created 6 years ago? Or, I feel this might be the one, is it time to let go of the dream and concentrate on creating more Amazingly Awesome DIY's that will bring readers here themselves. Please drop your thoughts and ideas below, I can't wait to read them :)

The Mutual Love Club

I'm excited to launch a new personal project of mine today, The Mutual Love Club.

The idea behind the Mutual Love Club has been sitting around idly in my brain for a few months now, as I continue to promote my blog on social media and try to find new ways of sharing my content. I've recently discovered a raft of twitter accounts dedicated to sharing content created by bloggers - you tag them in your post, they retweet it to a huge following, often in the tens of thousands. It's a great idea, but I've spotted a few problems with the plan - there's very little two-way engagement and the tag takes up a lot of space in your tweet. When space is already at a premium, that's not idea - What determined tweeter hasn't spent an extra minute rearranging my words so they can use 'a' instead of 'an'...Or is that just me?

So what's my answer? Fuelled by the slight frustration at fighting to getting my content shared to a wider audience, I came up with a plan to create a mutually-beneficial sharing community that interacts with it's audience, not just blindly retweets them. This isn't just about retweeting, but engaging with like-minded individuals on a daily basis - the type of people who WANT to see and share your blog posts, vlogs or opinions.

I hope you'll come over to twitter and give us a follow. My goal is for the stream to be FILLED with inspirational, motivational, positive links and video from around the web, being mutually shared across a wide community of viewers - boosting everyone involved's stats and introducing 'members' (read: followers) to new and exciting content!

I have no idea if this will work or not, I've never done anything like it at all, but I hope you'll follow my journey as I try and create my little love club ♥

#BRINGBACKCOSMIC

When did you last hear the word COSMIC?

If you are one of my friends, or in fact have met me in the last few weeks, you may have heard it from me. I've started a little project to try and get COSMIC said a little more. It's a great word.

So, #bringbackcosmic is a thing now. Well, I'm trying to make it a thing. So far, I've asked everyone I have met in the last week to try and find an opportunity to use it and spread the word!

You might hear some especially cosmic music, see a particularly cosmic film, or even be standing under the night sky and suddenly feel a little cosmic. If you see an opportunity to  describe something as cosmic, please use it, and let me know using the hashtag #bringbackcosmic on Instagram or twitter 

Saw these two at a festival recently and told them both they were extremely COSMIC.

Super Healthy Summer Eating Challenge Of Fun

Once, I was quite a bit larger than I am now. I lost about 3 stone in total. I don't like to think back to much to that time in my life but I have to constantly remind myself not to reach for that second slice of cake, not to always order the thing on the menu with the most cheese.  This summer I want to get my body in better shape. I'm currently about the right weight for my height but I would feel so much better three or four pounds lighter and I know I can do it.

Here are some of my very favourite links and things from the web helping me with this mission.

If you are trying to track what you are eating for either weight gain or loss, you really can't go wrong with My Fitness Pal. The database of foods is extensive, I've yet to have to add anything from full meals in popular restaurant chains to individual items that I have bought at all three supermarkets I regularly visit. It's pretty impressive. It will also add recipes to the database simply by copying and pasting the webpage into their application.  Sign up for My Fitness Pal on your or the web, and add me as a friend on there if you like :)

One thing I fail at hugely is eating a varied diet when I'm trying to lose weight. So, yesterday for dinner I made a salad with grated carrot, cucumber, ham, pumpkin seeds, shredded beetroot and a mango and chilli dressing. I ate it in a wrap for my dinner, and then another wrap of it for my lunch today, and guess what I have this evening? Yup, another wrap of ham and pumpkin seed salad. So I love this page for it's array of meals between 200 & 400 calories. The Moroccan Chicken with Sweet Potato Mash is a real favourite, there is always plenty for a sandwich or pitta the next day. This week I'm going to be trying the Root Curry

Superfood Salad with Sirloin Steak - a lunch last week from a local gastropub. Yum! I chose to have the dressing on the side so I would know exactly how much I've had - a good tip as many pubs tend to add much more dressing than you would at home. 

One of my favourite healthy eating blogs is Eat Yourself Skinny. I can't wait to try some of her puddings. I just saw today a really delicious looking salad with quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) which I'm anxious to have a bash at.

I'll also be trying the 30 Day Ab and Squat Challenge. I'm terrified of exercising at the moment as I have a slipped disc that is severely affecting both the movement and the feeling in my right arm I'll be going for an MRI scan in a few weeks, so I can't wait for that. The challenge is one of the only 30-day challenges I could find that had the right exercises, i.e ones that didn't involve putting a large amount of weight on my quite frankly useless arm.

This is taken from here, where there is loads more information about this challenge.

I'm a huge salty snack fan. I can literally devour a bag of crisps, a bowl of olives (sometimes both together) in about 5 seconds flat. Quite embarrassing if you are meant to be sharing with someone else. So I'll be whipping up a whole bowl of these Edamame treats created by Rosie of The Londoner this week too, they sound too good to be true.

I'm also having Epsom salt baths on a weekly basis, they are meant to draw the toxins right out of your skin, super cheap aswell, I bought a huge bag of Epsom salt for about 2 pounds, enough for several very salty baths. I'm then dousing my whole entire body in Garnier Anti-Cellulite Oil. Read some reviews of this product here on Bean's Beauty Blog and then come back to me in a few weeks when I'll be showing before and after pictures of my treacherous thighs...

So, I hope you will join me on my journey here on my blog. I do promise only one healthy eating post and recipe share per week. You can follow more of my progress on Instagram and twitter. 

Hope you are having a beautiful Monday x

Be Happy - 5 Ways To Focus On The Positives

source

It's important to focus on the positive aspects of you life, especially when you are going through a hard time, or struggling with a life situation that has come out of the blue. My focus for 2013 has been to lead a more positive life. Through setting empowering goals and forcing myself to get out of my comfort zone, I've been trying to make improvements in the way things are for myself and my son.

Here are 5 ways that you can focus more on the positive aspects of your life.

1. Get Something Awesome Out Of Each Day

At the end of every day, I sit on the edge of my sons bed and ask him what the best thing that happened to him that day was. Sometimes he can't think of anything and I have to help him out by reminding him about aspects of the day that he has smiled at. I hope this routine will stick in his heart for his life, and as he gets older and doesn't want me sitting on the edge of his bed anymore, he will still thinking about something nice that has happened to him as he falls asleep each night.

2. Go Back To Your Goals

One of the real benefits of setting yourself goals and aims for the year in January is you can look back at it and see that you have made progress. It's June, and I've completed quite a few of my 50 goals for the year, as well as being well on my way to completing more! It's never too late to set yourself some goals to reach by the end of the year. If I feel that I'm not getting anywhere, I look at my goals, pick one, and do something towards completing it. Being productive is a sure-fire way to boost your happiness levels :) 

3. Adopt A Mantra.

A long time ago, when I was feeling under the weather for longer than I should have, I read a book about positive living. The book suggested that adopting a mantra would remind your brain that things are not so bad. I've since tried to find the book again but I haven't been able to. The mantra the book suggested was "it's all going wonderfully". It's a kind of divine suggestion that everything is happening exactly as it should, even if it seems bad at the time - try it yourself. 

4. Get Away From Technology

You spend too much time in front of a screen. This is a fact, for every single person that I know in real life and in the blogging/social media world. The problem is that it's almost impossible to walk away once you sit down in front of a computer, There is too much to consume, and some of it is dark and even macabre. I've been looking for tattoos of flowers and ended up on a forum for people who want to become eunuchs. There is so much to consume on the internet that you can't ever be 'finished'. Take a break. Get up and go away, spend the day doing something else. My son and I went on a long walk to a nearby village and splashed in a stream for a few hours...it felt good.

5. Remember It's Temporary.

One of my favourite ways to stop myself getting down, is to remember that sadness and worry comes in waves. It's kind of the same coping mechanism as you are taught for child birth. The pain comes in waves, and all you need to think of the peaks is that you'll soon be in a trough. When I feel sad or worried about something, I try to focus on the last time that I felt okay, but still knew about the worry. I was okay at that point, and I will be okay again (It's all going wonderfully)

Now for my positive thing of the day...

I am featured on the Picmonkey Blog today - I got an email about it a few days ago and the post is due to go up today - how exciting for my little blog. I've just checked and it's not up yet, but you will be able to see it here hopefully :) 

Don't forget you can follow me on twitter if you so wish. My radio show is carrying on until July and you can listen here, weekdays 10 - 12 x

Snapshots From Half Term Week

We've been having half term round these parts and I just wanted to share a few snaps that I have taken of my boy having fun with me throughout the week :)

I just love him. 

Take A Chance, Take A Risk

It's easy to do the same thing every day. Get up, faff about, eat, sleep, get up...

Sometimes everyone needs some encouragement to break out of their comfy routine and do something different that could lead you down a different path. Sometimes I look back over a week and feel like I haven't gotten any further towards my goals in life than I had a month ago. I want this to change and the only way you can change your life is by doing something out of your comfort zone.

So I looked at my list of goals for the year and had a think about some things that I have always wanted to do and thought what the hey, let's just go for it.

Here is my little list;

1. Apply for a gameshow
2. Make a move on setting up a creative business
3. Send a message to someone that I haven't spoken to in an age
4. Try a food I haven't ever tried before
5. Enter a competition.

So those were my dares. I didn't go too serious on them, as you see. But they have given me a little spark this week and I would highly recommend that you set yourself a little challenge like this and do something fun and different.

I applied to be on some game shows and I got a call back! I can't say much about it at this second but I'm waiting to hear my today, very exciting. I also applied for a local business initiative  putting forward an idea that I have been working on for what feels like forever. It really would be a dream come true for me to be able to take that forward.

I sent a few messages to old friends requesting catch-ups and I had a really disgusting experience with canned salmon. What ARE those little round bones? Why would I want to eat a scaly, fatty, boney mess? People who eat canned salmon (and pay twice the price of nice, clean fillets) are ridiculous.

Finally, I've been going competition mad, entering everything I see that has a free web-entry option. I'll let you know how I get on.

I hope this has given you a little inspiration to do something, however small, out of the ordinary today ♥

Ombre Hair

So, I'm about twenty years behind the rest of the internet and decided to ombre my hair. I never, ever dye my hair. Once I grew it really long and decided to donate it to a cancer charity when I had it cut. So, you can't dye or bleach it or anything if you do that. If you are thinking about doing it, you should, as it takes 40 donations to make a real-hair wig for a cancer survivor. Cancer is scary.

Anyway, this is the result of three packs of L'oreal Wild Ombre 1. ***awkward selfie alert!***

Cue speech about posting pictures of myself online...

 

So, I don't really like posting pics of myself on the internet. Firstly, as you can clearly see, I have a monstrous forehead that kind of takes up most of the frame. My friends know this, so they instruct me in detail before taking pictures of me. "Tilt your heard down!" "Hold your chin in!" "Push your eyeballs outwards!". I try to heed this advice when taking photos of myself but mostly I end up looking like a cone head. Secondly, it feels a little self-indulgent. I know the whole point of blogging is to put yourself out there and I am trying to take my own advice of putting a personable (if hugely foreheady) face to your online persona.

 

Still, it's a fear I am trying to overcome, so, um...enjoy these photos of me. I promise not to become one of those bloggers that post hundreds of pictures of themselves on their blog and not much else. In fact I have some exciting things planned for my blog! I'm going to be doing some CV advice, some more articles on successful blogging & detailing my journey into a more frugal, healthy lifestyle :)

 

Have a lovely weekend, I'm off to swish my hair around in front of the mirror. x

Catching Up & Job Hunting 101

Yesterday I went on a really long walk along a disused railway line in our town.

That little black splodge in the distance is my doggie, she loves a random trek.

Can you spot her in this shot of me looking pensive and dramatic? She's a cheeky one!

I've been loving the radio station this week, listening to some amazing new music and getting involved in some of the outside broadcast stuff that we are planning this year.

It would probably help if I could work the equipment, I'm still a learner though :)

Just a few little shots of my life the last few days ♥♥

I'm spending time looking for a new work project at the moment - gosh it's hard. I have experience in recruitment, obviously, so I get how it works. If you don't hear within 24 hours you haven't got the role, if your interview is less than an hour you probably haven't got it, don't put that you are dynamic on your CV etc etc....

So I thought it would be fun to chart my search for the perfect job here on the blog as well as sharing some of the recruitment worlds inside secrets (cue terror in the recruitment world, I'm sure). Tomorrow I'll be sharing ten CV tips that you have probably never heard, I hope you'll come back for a look x

The Worlds Worst Plan

When I was about 14 I remember a specific day that I stopped at a play park on the way home from school, and I swung really high on a swing by myself for about an hour. I can't remember what I was thinking about, it was probably some minor issue that feels horrific when you are 14 but really has no effect on your actual life in the long run. But it felt pretty serious at the time, really serious.

Over the last two weeks I've gone back to the same place and closed my eyes really tight and swung as high as I can on the same swing. I had a brief moment of craziness, really, where I convinced myself that if I imagined it hard enough I would open my eyes and be 14 again and everything would be okay.

But when I opened my eyes it was still now.

So, Plan A (try and rewind time by swinging on a rusty old swing and wishing really hard) didn't work out for me.

I'm onto Plan B now. I'll let you know when I know what that is.

Sweet Boy

I wanted to return to my blog after a two week gap with something beautiful. Here is 25 photos of my recent photography project where I committed myself to taking more photos of my and my little guy.

I can't wait to get this printed out and up on my living room wall, I just love it so, so much.

I still don't like the way that *I* look in photos. I know that's to do with my own self esteem more than it is what I actually look like. I did read something very interesting about how you look in photos though. The reason, apparently, that you feel you don't look quite 'right' in a photo is because you are used to seeing yourself reflected in a mirror, a mirror image of your own face. If you imagine how different words look in a mirror, you'll start to see where I am going with this.

Because you are used to this image of yourself, when you see a regular, non-mirror version of your face, it looks just slightly 'off' and wrong. Because it's not what you are used to looking at. However, it IS what other people are used to seeing. I tested this theory with someone I know well, get them to stand in front of the mirror and look at them in the reflection. This is something I remind myself constantly of when I am looking through pages of facebook photos and hating my jawline, or my eyebrows, or something else about my face. Maybe it isn't what other people see. 

I didn't mean this to turn into some sort of self-hating rant. I'm a big advocate of the theory that no one else's opinion matters other than you own, and once you are happy with yourself inside you will be happy with the outside too. I hope you love these pictures as much as I do, I'll be back tomorrow with 10 ideas for photo projects you might like to try and how to hashtag them for success in Instagram. I also have some picmonkey tutorials up my sleeve that I can't wait to share.

Katy x