I know, I’m late with this – I took a proper break from blogging over the holidays and reckoned that nobody would much mind. Plus, it’s taken me a while to formulate some thoughts. When the most pressing thing in a fortnight is what day the bins get emptied it’s like a juice cleanse for the brain. I definitely feel sharper and more mentally energetic for having a clear break from being so tied to on-line. So, random thoughts in no order…

One thing I do know is that, coming up to the 10 year birthday of BBB, is that I’ll be doing it a bit less. I’ve taken it as far as I can and think there’s something to be said about being more relaxed. I’m not chasing stats, I don’t feel there is any more ‘building’ to be done or any reason to promote growth. I’m absolutely satisified with just keeping the readers I have happy and continuing to have beauty conversations without any other agenda than that simple thing.

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I also know that I’m not running around after brands in 2018! I can’t control the randomness of PR, the constant dropping off mailing lists or being expected to sell my soul for a lipstick sample. If brands want to appear on BBB that is perfect, but other than buying products if I really, truly feel they should be on here, I’m not prepared to do the dance any more. If you knew what it took to get a Fenty or Kat Von D sample, you’d be propping me up in an armchair and applying a cold compress to my forehead. Inevitably, I think, that will mean less content.

I’m also going to use my ‘mute’ button harder! I’m pretty free with it as it is, but find I probably don’t use it quickly enough. One of the issues I noticed last year was the rise of the ‘aggressive self-appointed mentor’ on social media. I’m all for empowerment but from time to time I feel some are more about self-validation than the greater good and it’s all too easy to get caught up in someone else’s loud method of dealing with their own issues. We don’t need any stats or research to tell us that social media can be hard on mental health – if you’re on it every day, it’s plain to see and I feel it’s important to filter out anything that upsets your balance. Use the Graham Norton tipping chair method!

Trend-wise, the rise of ‘natural’ is going to be huge. It’s where all the investment is going both in ad spend and product development. However, be a wise consumer – just because it’s in a pink package with some clever words wrapped around it doesn’t mean it’s natural in the sense we understand it. I need to create a definition for my own clarity. Sustainability is also big for this year – ensure though that what a brand gives with one hand, they’re not taking with another. It’s all very well to take ingredients from sustainable sources, but if you’re over-packaging, over-freighting and underpaying workers, it’s a same problem, different day kind of thing.

Look out too for plenty of wrinkle rinsing from brands targeting older women. They’re taking the ‘anti’ out of ageing and replacing who you should be not with a crease free ingenue but a bareback riding, stunt-doubling, ballet dancing, mindfulness practicing, marathon running paragon. By the end of the year we’ll wish for a bit of insulting packaging again 😉.

 

Image credits: Giphy.com

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