Elle's Emotions: Step Back, Breath, Reboot...

Yes, I have been slightly MIA recently- did I intend to step away from VE? Not completely. Like most 'bloggers' recently, I have been struggling to balance & juggle everything thats been going on in my life as well as finding myself questioning everything that I have created on here & how the blogging world in evolving. For so long I have enjoyed this little creative space on the internet & have marvelled at the power this community now has. But at the same time I find my voice getting lost within the blogging hubbub in a community which I feel, is now overly saturated with all things beauty, fashion & lifestyle related. It is really difficult to stand out these days in comparison to five years ago. I do not say this in a jealous or malicious way, but I have to think am I still relevant? 

Then there is also the 'real world'- working a full time forty hour plus job five days a week, trying to hold down some sort of a social life, the stress of purchasing mine & Adam's first house, planning a wedding & finding time for me has been such a struggle over the last six months. Looking back at that last sentence I'm actually surprised as to why I haven't physically combusted!

I do not like to make excuses. That is one thing everyone who knows me will tell you, but I felt like I have had to step away to find my voice again & focus on 'the real world'. 

So now I'll tell you a couple of exciting things that have been going on! We are in the process of buying our first house (this has been one of the most stressful & emotionally draining moments in our lives!) with a move in date of the beginning of August! & also we have been trying to plan the wedding. Now whilst all our engery & time has been spent focussing on the house which we are so so excited about, we have been taking teeny tiny baby steps towards sorting out where & when we will be getting married. It has been a crazy, stressful & emotional six months, but I hope you all will understand that this here has not number one on my list of priorities. I am growing up. VE is growing up. I am no longer that nineteen year old girl that buys whatever clothes & cosmetics she wants- I will be paying a mortage soon!

Ultimately I just need to get back into the zone- do what makes me happy & create content frequently that I am proud of. I know I have written similar posts to this one over the course of five years, but sometimes you just need to take a step back, take time to breath & reboot. 

I hope you all have a lovely weekend & enjoy this glorious sun shine the UK has been have.

As always..

Much Love,

Elle

xoxo

♥

Blog Update: Catch Up, New Content & A Fresh Look......

I am currently singing along to The 'Les Miserables' soundtrack in my bunny PJ bottems & My Little Pony Sweat top eating an apple- multitasking much?!

The last couple of months have been absolutely crazy at work-(the joys of working in retail during peak trade!) with working in London, overnight shifts on a weekly basis, launching new season trends & just general everyday obstacles has meant that VintageELLE has been very neglected. But that should hopefully end today. 

Over the course of starting VE I have taken many breaks, created some great content, gained some lovely & loyal followers, travelled to some great countries & shared a lot of my life & thoughts that I could not say out loud with you all. However times are changing & blogging is evolving- gone are the days when taking a mediocre photo is good enough, now photographs look like they belong on the glossy pages of Vogue & Elle. I am not saying this is a negative thing, I am one of those who enjoy & aspire to build a blog on the same level as Vivianna Does Makeup, HelloOctober, Gh0stparties, LLYMRLS & ICovetThee. & therefore I need to keep up 'with the times' & create content that I would read, as well as embracing everything that running a full time blog entails.

To do this I need to work even harder then I have previously & deliver daily content to all you gorgeous readers, who I know wouldn't mind seeing seven post a week from me! So 2014 is a new & fresh start for VE, with a whole host of new content from travel to fashion to beauty to food to whatever else I feel the hell like writing- this little place of escapism is all about lifestyle pure & simple. If there is every anything you guys would like me to write about or feel needs to be expressed, then please comment below or tweet to me what you want to see/say. I pledge my commitment to this & to you.

Also we all know a new year means a new look & I am giving this blog a huge style overhaul, creating something that is a lot easier to navigate, cleaner & simple to read. Watch this space!

For now I just want to say thank you to all who have read & visited this little place on the internet so far, please carry on recommending VE to friends, posting links & reading what I have to say- I really truly want us all to grow & evolve. 

Much Love,

Elle

xoxo

♥

Sometimes You Need A Little Inspiration......

Image from laurenconrad.com

Sometimes even the most strongest positive thinker needs to give themselves a little bit of encouragement. 

This week for me was one of those weeks where I just wanted to stay in bed, cry & feel sorry for myself- this very rarely happens, but sometimes you have to let yourself fall to be able to build yourself up again. This quote has got me through this week. 

Negative part over, who's looking forward to the weekend & the beginning of a new week?

Have a great weekend everyone!

Much Love,

Elle

xoxo

♥

2012: Elle's Year......

Yes, I am aware, I am a Instagram fanatic!! (thank you Instagram & iPhone)

Bit of a photo overload, but that was my year :)

Thank you to all of you for making 2012 a great year, for everyone who has read my posts, to those who have visited my blog & of course those of you who have followed my blog- a huge thank you for all of the support & lots of love & hugs to you all!

♥

Let's make 2013 an even better year.

Stick around for the journey...

Much love,

Elle

xoxoxo

♥

Those Lazy, Crazy, Hazy Days.....

Image from the talented people @ weheartit.com

Hello :)

How cute is that picture above!!??

I WANT ONE!!!

*cough Christmas*

Today has been one of those lazy, snuggly days, when you just want to stay in bed all day, wear a HUGE cardigan, wear no makeup & do absolute nada- so that's what I did! AHA!

Today I just caught up on A LOT of videos & blogposts from some of my fav peeps- Zoella, TheSacconeJoly's, Fashiontoast, What Olivia Did, TheStyleGossiper, to name a few & it kinda got me thinking.........

I REALLY NEED TO UP MY GAME!

Whilst I think my blog is defo my strong point, (I have had a love/hate relationship with the old Youtube over the last year & just cant seem to get my mojo back for it boo!) I constantly think to myself, why the hell am I not posting pictures of my outfits, lookbooks, fashion loves/hates- just MORE FASHION RELATED STUFF IN GENERAL!!!? Because that is what I set out to do all along & it is what I really love to read/watch myself.

The answer is: I don't really know.

I constantly find myself creating great outfits, finding great locations to shoot at- but I think the main fact is that I do not have anyone who can shoot the pictures for me. I have in my head exactly how I want them to look, the right lighting, what angles ect, but I only have my tripod to use & tripods can only do so much! I only really have two days a week to shoot pictures & ten times out of ten I do not have any energy to physically do it!

My youtube channel is probably the main area that I have neglected the most. I never stuck to the outline of what I wanted to do- Vintage Fashion. I kinda got sucked into the whole 'Beauty' community because every person who I found mainly did beauty with a bit of fashion on the side & I couldn't come up with many good ideas for videos. Most of you probably found me through youtube & I think most people kinda felt disappointed by the content, lets face it- it's nothing really amazing & there's no lack of real identity. I cringe over most of the videos on there!! & today when i found a few new people, who I had never seen before who's videos were really really amazing, it defiantly woke me up!

So therefore I am going to remove most of my videos from my youtube channel & start all over again.

Back to basics.

It will still be under the same username: VintageELLE09

But I will stick to the original plan!

As for this blog?

Well I love it just the way it is :)

I find I can express things a lot clearer & directly (is that a word?!) to the point on here & its a lot more engaging. Yes, I wish I did more outfit ideas on here & I will do more, but I feel on here there is not so much pressure then there is on youtube, where there is a constant pressure to perform.

So lets wrap this up on a happy note :)

THANK YOU to all of you lovely people who have supported me over these two years, those who have read my blogposts, commented, sent me emails, said really nice things to me & those who just lend me support. Everyone says it but you really make it worth while, because I have met so many great people. I wish we could all have one, big party together at my house- but I don't think those of you far, far away would pay that amount of money!

So if you have any ideas or things you want me to chat about please don't be afraid to email or comment me. I honestly want to get to know each & every one of you. & on that note if you want to get to know me more then I will be doing a video or blogpost about little ol' me. So if there is anything you want to know, any advice you need then email, comment, tweet me your q's & I will let you all into my life that little bit more soon :)

Much Love,

Elle

xoxoxo

♥

The Long Goodbye......

Image from the amazing bunch of peeps @ weheartit.com

Is that a blogpost from VintageELLE09 that has appeared in my dashboard?!

Argghh YES :D

HELLO!

It appears one has been slacking on the old blog front for this month (to be honest it has been a fair busy one) but fear not.

So what have I been up to, I hear you all ask?

Well......

1. Falling in love with eBay AGAIN- Sold some stuff, brought some stuff GOD IT'S ADDICTIVE!!!
2. Hating my job. Enough said.
3. Went to Leicester for my gorgeous besties 21st birthday, partied hard, got back to hers at 4am, caught the train home at 1pm- EXHAUSTED. I don't know how you students do it!
4. My boys 21st birthday, more of a chilled out day spent eating some amazing cupcakes, unwrapping iMacs & saving sheep (?!)
5. Brought Kate Middleton's 'going away on her honeymoon' Zara Dress :)
6. Re-connecting with Sex & the City series, mainly consisting with me shaking my head for Carrie not marrying Aidan & crying because I miss New York :(
7. Crying some more at the season finale of Gossip Girl- Chuck & Blair are meant to be together ♥
8. Falling in & out of love with Youtube. This is a constant love/hate relationship at the mo, I make videos & delete them, at the moment I'm just going to stick with blogging
9. Wearing a blazer EVERYDAY, I'm loving this look at the mo
10. Looking to buy a flat with my boy- now this is serious when I say buy I do mean buy not rent. Found one that needs a little attention, it's Victorian, in our price range & would look amazing if done up, however the boy wants something more modern!!!
11. Laughing at Made in Chelsea. It's terrible but I still watch it every week.
12. Listening to Birdy- Skinny Love CONSTANTLY, truly beautiful.
13. Looking to book a summer holiday
14. Eating M&S Greek yogurt & granola pot- LUSH
15. Cheering that Lush are sending me my prize I won when I was in New York, YAYYY!
16. Watching TheSacconeJoly's on Youtube, beautiful couple & are very funny to watch, reminds me of me & my boy.
17. Trying to find the perfect bikini. A constant quest
18. Finding loads of new blogs to follow. There's some amazing talent out there.
19. Missing blogging
20. SLEEPING!!

So in a nut shell that is what has been happening so far this month & there is still 8 days left!

My current mood: I'm loving being home & with the people I care about too much ♥

What's everyone been up to then recently? I know most of you are all in the middle of exams/or have them coming up so LOADS OF LOVELY LUCK TO YOU ALL, I can remember what it is like but chins up my lovelys just do your bestest & look forward to a long summer.

Much Love,

Elle

xoxoxo

♥

Elle's Emotions: Deep & Meaningful.......

http://weheartit.com

I can feel that Spring is on it's way now, & with this I always reflect on what I have been doing in life over the past few months. Maybe it's because Spring is about the start of new things- animals being born, bulbs turning into flowers. Or maybe it's because I feel like in winter I was just awake & not really living.

Call me crazy, but I feel like over the past month & especially after visiting New York, I have began to question the route that I have chosen in life. Yes it sounds dramatic, but the events of the week leading up to my trip made me question what I want to achieve- especially in work.

Work.Has.Taken.Over.My.Life

I love where I work. The fashion is amazing, the brand I believe in & the people I work with are strong & inspiring.

BUT........

The people high in the 'sky' take you for granted and mess you around. I shall share with you all now. I am on the management training program for the company I work for, I have been working with them for over a year & have given literally ALL MY TIME/MYSELF to them. So I was put up for promotion-Deputy Manager, told by literally all the other managers in the store that I was bound to get it, told by the people in the 'sky' that I was going to get it & that I just had to interview for it just as procedure. So a week before I went away I visited the 'sky' & had a v.quick interview, only to be told that the answer was 'not right now' as they had to speak to x&y about my abilities as they hadn't seen me working. So I thought fair enough- off to New York I go. I come back & have another meeting with them. This time they tell me that I haven't got the position as they think I would need to work on certain areas (that I would learn in doing the role) and that they had some else in mind already & they were just waiting for that persons answer.

Thank you. Don't be demotivated. Good bye.

I am not the kind of person who gives up/quits/takes things to heart. I was gracious, smiled, said 'Thank you' & that I 'understood' & was my normal/positive self for the whole day at work- but to be honest I was devastated.

What turns the knife even more was the fact that even though I was not 'ready'- I had to run the whole department for two weeks whilst my manager was on holiday.

Makes complete sense yes?

Anyways the point that I'm trying to make is- was it all worth it? Yes it was. However it has made me realise that I want to start my own company. This thought has been in the back of my mind for a while, being only twenty I have many years ahead of me & I don't want to rush into anything too quickly without giving in much thought. But I want to take the chance & see what happens. I'm not saying that I'm going to quit my job tomorrow, but I want to take this idea & see where it goes.

Working shifts has taken up so much of my time. I feel like I barely see my best friends (because I don't. I couldn't see them at all over Christmas as on the days they were free I was working), I have very little energy, I don't do as many YT videos as I would like to, I don't spend as much time with my family as I would like to & most of all I feel like I'm suck in a routine & I don't like routine!

It may just be a pipe dream & you may not hear of this again, but what the whole point of this blog post is to say: prioritise what matters most to you. Family, Friends & my relationship are THE most important things in my life. They are there for you when money and possessions aren't.

If you are unhappy with your life change it. We are the only ones who has the power to do so. It is not like in the movies where everything just happens to fall into place, you have to work hard & it takes time. When I left school/college I didn't know what I wanted to do/be & it is scary not knowing (it still is), but isn't that part of life? The mystery, the excitement?

Live your life the way you want to & don't be afraid.

Phew, so that was a very deep/meaningful post & I hope you were a little enlightened? maybe? no? I just feel like it is a lot easier to write my emotions down & I like sharing with people who may not know me so well :)

*Pinky promise* a happier, fashion related post next time, ok?

What makes you happy?

Much Love,

Elle

xoxoxo

♥