Reflections on blogging and my journey so far (Part 1)

One of the reasons I wanted to start this blog (apart from doing something more with all my phone photos of beads and bracelets) is that when I was starting out I really wanted to hear about more trollbeads, see non stock photos of an individual's actual beads and hear the stories behind why they bought or were given that bead and what it meant to them.  When I first started looking for these things I didn't find as much content as I thought I would, given how amazing the beads and bracelets are!  Once I'd ended up with a collection of photos I thought this is exactly the sort of thing I would have liked to have seen back when I was looking for it... ergo the blog came to be created.

I also wanted to keep in the habit of writing - as like a lot of folk I mostly write emails or make use of shortened forms of communications, such as social media to keep in contact with people.  Having a blog would help me continue to keep writing, keep contact with friends, indeed make and share content with new people and continue to do something with my trollbeads that I'd started out doing, taking photos of beads and sharing them.

Normally I write a lot of my rough blog content on the weekends, I have a full time job during the week so I find what works best for me is to concentrate on ideas, mock up rough drafts, and try things out, then during the week I'll go back to it with a fresh pair of eyes, polish it and publish, or scrap it, or put it on hold as a good idea (but not ready yet).  Some pieces do just come straight away where they're written, edited and published all in one go, but mostly I follow the former process.  This weekend I was planning to have a long session writing; I had received 7 packages (oops) last week and wanted to have a day of photography and putting pieces together.

I got sidetracked by life (in a good way) and spent the day instead sorting out a last minute, decided to do it the day before, holiday with a friend who lives the other side of the country... so the combination of deciding on which airport we could both get to, where to go (we're both easy going so narrowing down deals was quite straight forward), how much to spend, working out how to squeeze in an extra days holiday when you've booked up all your leave allocation (that was the most complicated bit but I chose this over the more convenient flights and returning to a destination) and booking it took up most of the day on and off, the evening was spent larking about with other Trollies as I'd just spent my going out money on some beads (quelle surprise!) - oh and of course Doctor Who!  Everything stops for Dr Who in our house, even trollbeads.

Sunday I thought, I'll do some writing Sunday!

Again sidetracked, this time by a road block, an impromptu shopping trip (why don't they sell non seasonal clothes anywhere out of season) and trying to remember just how high a factor of sun cream I need when abroad. I am easily sidetracked (or led astray) so I guess you can see how the buying of too many not enough trollbeads occurs.

Anyway (see I'm even getting sidetracked writing this) I have a few draft pieces that aren't quite ready so I decided to write abut why I blog, and also why I didn't blog this weekend.

What I was hoping to find but wasn't sure quite where to look, and was utterly delighted about when I found it, and that Pauline wrote about so eloquently about... was the community element to collecting trollbeads which has been, to use the cliche, the icing on the cake.

Especially since I started blogging, and also buying from other collectors that has now become a really enjoyable part of the trollbead journey and one that has opened up other interests; when my bead fund recovers I have seen  some of the most amazing artisan beads made by artisan bead makers and whilst this takes me away from the trollbead path, it is most certainly part of my Trollbead Journey.

So given that I've not delivered on any choice photos of my new beads for today yet, here is a peek at what one of my packages contained, and the arrangement below is down to seeing some other leather bracelet photos where the beads are more organised (as I tend to wear mine in a normally chaotic fashion).  So thanks for the inspiration girls!

Because above all what I really wanted from My Trollbead Journey was great jewellery that I can wear!