Cardigan I invested in 2 years ago, a very favorite!
Hi! It’s been a while since I’ve come on here with some personal updates and life happenings! So I’m here for a moment to spill my heart out and release some thoughts.
Something that’s been on my mind is the way the social media world continues to spiral—and the speed at which it’s going. Is it me, or has it felt extra overwhelming lately? Thinking about Grace a lot and how it might affect her at some point. It’s definitely affected me. This is a subject I have to touch base on often because it’s a big part of my job. I want to keep things feeling light and healthy, but most importantly be a good role model for G.
A few years ago I openly shared—that consuming my feed/keeping up with other creators in the space just doesn’t add value to my life. In fact, it did quite the opposite. It was a distraction and I inevitably fell into comparison game. As an example, things like feeling envious of those who can buy homes and renovate immediately, when that just isn’t my reality. We are all at different places and points in our lives, we cannot compare. It’s like, why even allow my mind to go there, when there is so much to be grateful for with where I *am* at in my life. I also notice that when I do fall into the scrolling game, I put unnecessary pressure on myself to try harder, to keep up. I’m a super sensitive pisces and 100% a highly sensitive person, so maybe I take this all in a bit more heavily.
I think with everything I’ve gone through this year while experiencing tough parts of postpartum—I let those boundaries slide. I found myself in the comparison game again recently. So, I am back to tidying this stuff up. It’s so important to keep a pulse on your relationship with social media and to make sure that you are utilizing in a way that is intentional/uplifts you and makes you feel happy and content… and nothing else.
No one should feel like they have to keep up with anyone on the internet. I hope I never make you feel that way. My life is not perfect. It’s actually been quite a rollercoaster this past year. While I love beautiful photography and sharing happy moments of my week—it does not paint a complete picture. I never post things just to post them, but in between the times of posting these pleasant snaps, life is happening behind the scenes and I have hard days, too. Always good to remember this. Everyone is dealing with their own shit, insecurities, and navigating through these very digital times.
I heard on a podcast recently that we are essentially the guinea pigs of this era, which is kind of eye opening. Have these self-check-ins, clean up your follows, spend more time offline than on. You have control over this—what you consume (and ultimately how it makes you feel) and the habits you take part in on a daily basis.
To each their own, always.
I want to try and do things a bit differently. I want to *truly* focus on content on my blog (and Studio!) FIRST and foremost. Instagram is a tool to share when these things go live. Also setting a timer on the app, we are buckling up! Life is too short to be distracted by a space with no end cue.
If you are an avid reader, come and visit my site each week! As always, comments are open and would love to connect there. If you want to get updates on blog posts each week, I have a newsletter signup at the bottom of my site which will be launching this week, so feel free to sign up if you would like.
I also want to start taking more photos for my enjoyment. I always snap pictures weekly, but truthfully, I slowed down with this a lot… I don’t think to grab my camera as much as I used to, or experiment as much as before. Social media has created a weird pressure to perform well around it and I really hate that. Photography has always been for me—and a massive curiosity of mine, I am done holding myself back here.
Lastly, my ‘week in pictures’ post are going to be more regular now. They will be serving similarly to IG stories. Snaps and snippets from the week. I will still share things here and there on stories, but the focus is on this weekly blog post.
That’s all I got! Thanks for reading, I appreciate you being here x
Such beautiful, candid words. Perfect for a Monday. I’m not a blogger but one of your biggest fans. Day 1.
❤️❤️
been feeling a lot like this over the last few years. your site (and IG) continues to be a favorite read of mine, though. would love to know a list of your must-read blogs/websites since you’ve pared down the content you’re consuming.
“Life is too short to be distracted by a space with no end cue.” – Love this so much Ashley! Just wrote it on a post-it and stuck it to my desk as a daily reminder.
Brenna, yes! That quote was SO perfect! “..no end cue.” Nothing has ever felt more true!
I have been feeling extremely overwhelmed with social media as of late as well, especially as a Mom. There are a couple people I follow that always spark my creativity (you being one!) and that’s truly my only reason for staying on social. I’m hoping to get back into my morning routine that I loved so much a few years back, coffee and reading my favorite blogs. This makes me happy you’ll be posting your ‘week in pictures’ more regularly as I step away from social knowing I won’t miss out on much! Keep doing you, your content is wonderful and so refreshingly authentic, xo.
Man~o~ man did I need to read this today. My anxiety is through the roof this week and it all comes down to feeling like I’m not worthy or good enough to be doing what I’m doing for a living which in turn stretches into my personal life immensely!
I feel like this anxiety happens to me this time of year every year. With the holidays approaching, it’s like social media has pressure and then there is holiday pressure. Not only be the perfect family (like it portrays so well), but visit all the perfect places and eat all the caramel apples and do all the holiday things… it just keeps going faster and faster and I too feel like I’m spiraling.
Thank you for this reminder. I always know it, but I’m not always good at listening to it.
A lovely read – thank you for sharing! If you ever decided to do a podcast, I can say for certain that it would be an immediate favorite! Wishing you well! X
Love this and so agree! Thanks for sharing and not being like every other ‘influencer’.
Thank you…I have loved your writing lately…I would say the best yet…
I am a new mom and if you feel up for it, I’d love to read more about your experience as a new mom…it is so much to process.
Couldn’t agree more. I actually deleted IG a few years ago and have been much happier overall. Plus I still get to enjoy your content via your site 🙂 Thanks for sharing!
Ashley, thank you. I have been off Instagram for 16 months now due to the comparison game. Going through fertility issues, and living in SF where it seems near impossible to buy a house, sometimes I feel I’m so behind in life, and fall into the comparison trap HARD! Yet, I find my way to read your blog here and there because you are one of the only people I have found to be so authentic. Truly. Your style and interior are truly you, and I find inspiration in that. Thank you for your honestly, I find this so relatable! Never change, you are a unicorn on social media ❤️