Relatable, inspirational, aspirational . . all words thrown around regularly when talking about bloggers. More and more so I’ve seen the term relatable blogger banded about when shaming bigger bloggers such as In the Frow and Lydia Millen for, lets face it, enjoying the fact that they’re successful. They’re not trying to be un relatable and aspirational, they’ve just been successful and like to enjoy that, wouldn’t you do the same if you got a promotion in your job?
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Being ‘ A Relatable Blogger ‘ …
I never saw myself facing this same issue and believe me I am in no way at their level of treat yo’self (yet). But a sequence of events have led to me worrying about being told off by my followers – yes you guys. Believe it or not when I got my first designer piece, that Gucci belt, instead of congratulations and happiness for me I got comments and emails to the tune of ‘please don’t start buying designer and becoming un relatable‘. And I just wanted to address this because as a blogger, when amazing opportunities come your way, things you’ve aspired to and could have only dreamt of, should you turn them down for the sake of being relatable.
Some context. A couple of weeks ago I was contacted by the PR team at Bicester Village about a collaboration. If you don’t know (you can see my post here) it’s a luxury outlet village based near Oxford. For this collaboration I was gifted a voucher to put towards something of my choice. For me this was an opportunity to get a designer bag that was already heavily discounted for a fraction of the price and share with you how amazing the village is, it really is. I’ve visited Bicester Village before and you all know how I’m such a fan of not only designer pieces but also a bargain so I felt it was a good fit.
Fast forward a week and another amazing invite drops into my inbox, this time breakfast with Farfetch & Aquazurra to celebrate the launch of their new collaboration and wait for it they were going to gift me a pair of shoes from the collection. After initially checking they’d got the right person and then basically snatching their hands off. I went into a spiral of worry and regret. Will my followers be able to buy these shoes? Will I get told off? Is it too soon after the Bicester Village post? will I be seen as an un relatable blogger? All of these thoughts which quite frankly I shouldn’t be thinking. I’d just been offered two of my dream collaborations which less than two years ago when I started blogging I could have only hoped for, and here I was sat worrying what people were going to think of me?!
Let me be frank. I’m never going to be a head to toe designer kinda gal, but I do enjoy luxury accessories and designer pieces. The only reason I don’t have more is because I can’t afford them. If I get an opportunity to work with these brands or finish saving for that Gucci bag, you’re damn right I’ll get it. I can only hope that as people who have followed me for a while you won’t turn your back on me because of my success. If I do so happen to have something at a higher price point, I’ll always link high street alternatives and if anything, I hope I can inspire you to work hard to reach your goals too!
Seeing Stripes
Rant aside, lets just have a minute to appreciate the stripe-y-ness and fluffy-ness of this knit!? I’m usually drawn to anything light coloured so I surprised myself by picking this but hey, I wore red the other week so anything could happen right now! It’s super soft and I can’t stop wearing it! I love it with these light jeans and thought combined with the heeled boots (my new favourites) it all looked pretty dandy together!
p.s if you haven’t already then click here to watch my first impressions and unboxing of this dream boat of a bag!
Outfit Details
Coat : Asos
*Jumper : &Other Stories
Jeans : Monki – I can’t find them online but these ones are super similar
*Boots : &Other Stories
Bag : Saint Laurent Via Bicester Village // Affordable Alternative
Preach it girl! Luxury collaborations (and luxury purchases!) are earned with hard work and dedication, and they should be celebrated if anything! And at least for me, seeing bloggers score their dream bags/shoes/whatever for any reason at all just makes me more motivated to work even harder myself. So keep going, you’re obviously doing an amazing job! And as for the relatable-ness, it all comes through with the honest way you write, wearing high street as well, and your Insta stories! xx
Author
Y E S ! So glad you’re with me on this babe!
Such a cute outfit. I think it’s a good thing you are getting these collabs and people should celebrate your success not call you unrelatable
http://ohduckydarling.com
Author
Thanks so much hun! That means a lot to me!
Too right! I can’t imagine turning down such fabulous opportunities!
Gemma
http://www.fadedwindmills.com
Author
I know right!?
This outfit looks so cozy and chic, love it! And although I can’t afford lots of the high end brands, I still think bloggers should enjoy their hard-earned success and share that with their audience. It’s great to see boss ladies being successful and authentic!
Amber
amberbutbetter.blogspot.com
Author
Exactly! We should all be able to enjoy our success!!! This knit is SO cosy!
I love this outfit and your photos, they’re beautiful. As for buying more expensive things- definitely go for it! I don’t see why anyone should stop supporting you over that, and having street style options as well is a great idea!
My Lovelier Days
Author
So glad you agree hun!
YES YES YES! I loved this post babe. Can totally relate (haha see what I did there?!). But seriously.. loved it 🙂
xx Lisa
lisaautumn.com
Author
haha love it! So glad you liked it and agreed babe!
Love this post! No blogger, nobody for that matter either, should be shamed for working hard, and getting amazing opportunities. I’m not gonna lie, I’m always jealous of bloggers getting bloody amazing opportunities; but I’m always happy for them too. And it makes me work harder too. x http://www.aimeeraindropwrites.co.uk x
Author
Amen to this!
Aw I loved this post ! We should celebrate bloggers getting amazing opportunities … not bring them down. Well done for all your amazing opportunities ! You work your ass off and deserve them xxx
Saira
http://www.throughtheglitterglass.wordpress.com
X
Author
Totally! Thanks so much babe!
Like I do understand the frustration of not being able to afford anything but at the same time if i was in the position to buy all designer clothes I would! Personally I watch and read a variety of content featuring both high end and high street items because I like seeing both, I have a few designer items that have either been presents or I’ve saved up for and designer content is useful for helping me decide what to save up for next while high street for things that I buy more regularly.
Just keep making the content that you want to make because whether it features high street, designer or a mixture of both, I’ll still be reading/watching x
http://www.thelipstickthegirlandherwardrobe.co.uk
Author
Thanks so much hun! This is exactly what I think! I’m glad we’re on the same wavelength!
Author
So good right!? They’re my new favourite jeans!
Author
It’s SO snug!
Aww man, that’s really sad that you’ve ended up feeling this way! Personally I’d love a designer bag but I know that if I bought one, I’d probably scuff it in seconds!! That being said, I’m not going to begrudge someone else one because that’s just nasty! xx
Author
Isn’t it! I think it’s terrible and just wanted to highlight it because I’ve seen it quite often!
I have follow a few bloggers since their humble beginnings e.g. Tamara, In the frow etc. As a follower of theirs for a long time now, it was always interesting to see their reviews on things that realistically I could afford or perhaps save up to buy. Recently, although I still love these girls and happy for their success because let’s face it – they’ve reaped their hard work and are so ahead of the game. What’s hard is that they’ve attracted luxury companies and worked with them, their audience is bound to change. They will or should now appeal to the rich rather than the humble followers that helped to put them out there. I agree, they deserve every success but at the same time, I understand also that most followers esp students and graduates who are on minimum wage nevrmind the average earner won’t relate because these bloggers are in a different bracket now. How can one follow a blogger who advertise and review mainly products that only the rich and famous can afford?! #gofigure
Author
Oh yes 100% I think theres a difference between treating yourself and alienating people! For me it’s just splashing out to reward myself for achievements and special occasions!