Keeping it real in an Instagram world

Starting out in the online world is pretty daunting when everything looks 'pretty perfect' in ALL the posts you see.

Instagram is the most engaged network after Facebook with 1 billion monthly active users. This is a pretty daunting number to a newbie!

I have had a personal Instagram account for six years but rarely used it for four of those! I mainly used it for keeping up to date with with what my friends were doing and following my favourite shops and 'influencers' to see what's new.

I had a baby boy in October 2018 and since then my posts went from a total of 119 up to 250! 131 posts in just under 15 months...I blame the baby! Before I had a baby I promised myself I wouldn't become a mum who posts lots of photos of their tiny human...maternity leave a phone with a decent camera meant that unfortunately I did become one of those mums!

One of the perks and downsides of maternity leave is that you spend A LOT of time at home. Therefore you spend a lot of time looking around and finding things that need to be done, or fixed or changed or updated. This is made worse by looking at all the 'perfect' Instagram home accounts which portray beautiful homes, with stunning interiors and gorgeous accessories, which look very squeaky clean.

What is perfect?

Perfect is a very subjective word; it has different meanings for everyone. To me the perfect Instagram home at the moment seems to be one which is immaculately tidy, white and grey, big plump karate chopped cushions and pillows, the odd designer or 'must have' item casually in shot, lots of space, shelves minimally styled with candles and empty vases, quotes in frames...the list goes on. Don't misunderstand what I am saying, I love seeing these photos and I have a love for a lot of the same things (white and grey being the main thing out of the list!), but trying to translate the same into my home isn't as easy as thought! If I had a blank canvas then maybe it would be a different story...but I love my home, it is warm, cosy and has character. I try to make my style and my home work for me and my family. My husband and I have worked hard to own our home and we are very proud of it.

I am no fool, I know that on the opposite side to the photo you see it probably look like a bomb has gone off with a mountain of washing or children's toys everywhere, but it doesn't stop the comparison!

I have wanted to start a life/home blog and Instagram account for a long time but the frequent visions of 'perfect' have put me off. UNTIL NOW! I just thought why shouldn't i? My home is my happy place, it may not be 'Instagram perfect' but it is my perfect.

"My home is my happy place"

I live in a 3 bedroom semi detached house built in the 70s (I think). My husband and I moved here in 2016 and were lucky enough to not have to do too much to it...which was good as we didn't have a lot of money to spend doing anything major! The kitchen, hallway and bathroom had all been renovated in order to sell the house and they were completed to a very high standard with a fresh and modern design. We put down new carpets, painted a couple of rooms and bought some new furniture - that was about it! We then had Jake in 2018 and it started to feel a little small (how can a 6lb 13oz baby make a good sized house feel pokey?!) We have had a one storey extension built onto the back of the house opening up the kitchen and dining room to create a second living space and a utility room with a downstairs toilet. It has completely changed how we use our home and space. Since the completion I have concentrated on using what little money we had left to create a cosy feeling and make what I call pretty corners!

Pretty Corners

Pretty corners is the term I use to describe the corners or sections of rooms I see on Instagram. The corners or sections you look at to gain inspiration from and think about how to styling your own home in similar ways. I realised that my whole home doesn't have to 'perfect', I work hard to make it (and keep it) a functional, inviting place to work and play. I love spending time creating pretty corners which appeal to me, my style and my reality. I keep saying 'me' and 'my' - my husband doesn't really have too much of an input into the styling of our home...but from talking to my friends this is quite common?!

Having a dedicated Instagram account

I have started the acton.life.and.home Instagram account to show off the pretty corners of my home which make me happy, because why shouldn't I?!

I also want to show and share the other things that make me happy and form part of my life. For example, I am back to work after the Christmas break so my new to-do pad and 2020 planner are making me very happy right now; Rich (my husband) bought me a new lipstick for Christmas which I love; I bought new storage for the utility room which makes my everyday life so much easier...these are the things I want to share and talk about but I don't want to do it all through my personal Instagram account. I don't have any fancy equipment, I have a camera phone with some filters...that's it! I am not claiming to be brilliant, I am just me, sharing my life and loves.

I am a small drop in the 1 billion drop ocean of Instagram but everyone starts somewhere!

Personal blog

I enjoy writing. For work I am a researcher in a University, so as a result I need to be able to write, organise thoughts, ideas and create something people want to read and find useful or interesting. I felt that starting a blog could be a fun thing to do. I would love for people to find my blog and want to read what I write, but if not that's okay. It's my corner to chat and off load. I wrote a diary for years when I was a child and no-one read that (I hope!), it was for me and I enjoyed it, surely an online blog is the same, just a bit more modern?!

I am excited to share my real slice of perfect.

#newtoinstagram #whatisperfect #prettycorners #keepingitreal #perfect #mylife