So why now? Why start a blog?
Truth be told I have started a blog before, back when I was at University we were all advised (hint hint, shove shove) to create a blog in order to promote our own design work. Mine was Jessiemarietextiles and looking back, it is a little embarrassing! I was never particularly Social Media savvy (still true), at the time the only social media I used was Facebook, I hadn't heard of Pintrest and was highly suspicious of Instagram and Twitter. I certainly had no clue what a hashtag was or why I would want to use them. So when it came to creating a blog when I was at University, I didn't really spend a lot of time or effort on it, because I didn't see the value in it.
Fast forward five years and things have changed a little, social media is bigger than ever and refuses to be ignored. I became addicted to Pintrest (just one more pin, then bedtime, OMG look I can bake a cake in a mug!), started an Instagram account (also Jessiemariemakes) and closed my Facebook. For a while I was present on both IG and FB, but as I became more involved with the Instagram community, my Facebook account dwindled. My decision to move away from Facebook was determined by a number of things, the main one being that I now longer enjoyed browsing it, it was being used as a tool for people spout hate speech and make other people feel miserable. I didn't like the format, the changes, or the content. Now I know that this sort of thing happens on Instagram too, but I see a lot less of it, and if I do, I personally feel that IG makes it a lot easier to Block / Report those posts so that I don't see them in my feed. The reason that I stick with Instagram as my main social media account is that I have found an amazing online creative community, who support one another in their pursuits. Also as a creatively minded person, the visual layout is much more appealing, I love seeing the beautiful things people make pop up on my feed every day.
I know, I know.... this blog post is entitled Why Blog? I promise I'm getting there! I felt it was important to look back at my previous social media consumption, as it has influenced my decision to return to blogging (doing it properly this time). As I have said, one of the biggest pulls of Instagram for me is the community and seeing the work of other people. This is because (and I am sure some of you can relate) amongst my group of friends and family, I am very much alone in my crafting. Don't get me wrong, I come from a creative family and my mum and some friends in particular always take an interest in what I am doing, but it is never quite the same. It is the difference between knitting an item and being a Knitter. Between making a quilt and being a quilter. In the creative community, what we do and what we make defines us as much as any other personality trait, if I didn't make and create, I wouldn't be the person that I am.
Being in touch with the online creative community has pushed me to develop my own work, encouraged me to try different things and constantly gives me inspiration. Some blog posts I have in the pipeline will talk more about that. Which kind of leads me back to (if you are keeping track of the abrupt direction changes of this post) why I want to blog. Though I LOVE Instagram and continue to use it daily, I sometimes find it restrictive in what I want to share or what I want to say. It allows contact with a multitude of people but often only in such a superficial way, a like here, a comment there. Blogging I feel is going to give me an opportunity to explore things in more depth, to talk about my projects in more detail and hopefully connect with people in a more meaningful way. I am looking forward to watching this space develop, and I hope you will join me.
Happy Crafting
Jessie Marie
Fast forward five years and things have changed a little, social media is bigger than ever and refuses to be ignored. I became addicted to Pintrest (just one more pin, then bedtime, OMG look I can bake a cake in a mug!), started an Instagram account (also Jessiemariemakes) and closed my Facebook. For a while I was present on both IG and FB, but as I became more involved with the Instagram community, my Facebook account dwindled. My decision to move away from Facebook was determined by a number of things, the main one being that I now longer enjoyed browsing it, it was being used as a tool for people spout hate speech and make other people feel miserable. I didn't like the format, the changes, or the content. Now I know that this sort of thing happens on Instagram too, but I see a lot less of it, and if I do, I personally feel that IG makes it a lot easier to Block / Report those posts so that I don't see them in my feed. The reason that I stick with Instagram as my main social media account is that I have found an amazing online creative community, who support one another in their pursuits. Also as a creatively minded person, the visual layout is much more appealing, I love seeing the beautiful things people make pop up on my feed every day. I know, I know.... this blog post is entitled Why Blog? I promise I'm getting there! I felt it was important to look back at my previous social media consumption, as it has influenced my decision to return to blogging (doing it properly this time). As I have said, one of the biggest pulls of Instagram for me is the community and seeing the work of other people. This is because (and I am sure some of you can relate) amongst my group of friends and family, I am very much alone in my crafting. Don't get me wrong, I come from a creative family and my mum and some friends in particular always take an interest in what I am doing, but it is never quite the same. It is the difference between knitting an item and being a Knitter. Between making a quilt and being a quilter. In the creative community, what we do and what we make defines us as much as any other personality trait, if I didn't make and create, I wouldn't be the person that I am.
Being in touch with the online creative community has pushed me to develop my own work, encouraged me to try different things and constantly gives me inspiration. Some blog posts I have in the pipeline will talk more about that. Which kind of leads me back to (if you are keeping track of the abrupt direction changes of this post) why I want to blog. Though I LOVE Instagram and continue to use it daily, I sometimes find it restrictive in what I want to share or what I want to say. It allows contact with a multitude of people but often only in such a superficial way, a like here, a comment there. Blogging I feel is going to give me an opportunity to explore things in more depth, to talk about my projects in more detail and hopefully connect with people in a more meaningful way. I am looking forward to watching this space develop, and I hope you will join me.
Happy Crafting
Jessie Marie
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