Why I Started Posting Whatever I Wanted on Instagram Again

I joined Instagram in July of 2011. I’m proud to say I’ve had the same Instagram account (with a few name changes) along the way. That means I have thousands of photos on my account. There are grainy photos of my shoes, a selfie at the last Harry Potter movie premiere, early outfit photos in the mirror, terrible food photos, and more. As time went on, I stopped using the 1970s-ish Kelvin filter and the frames and my feed morphed from grainy to slightly less grainy photos of my work day, coffee, my keyboard. When I was pregnant with Forrest, it was belly pictures—taken in my work office bathroom, documenting my outfit and belly every day. After I had Forrest, it was baby pictures.

Since around 2018, I’ve tried to do all the things the Instagram gurus suggest: planning out my content, aiming for more curated images and styling. There were periods of time I felt like I totally nailed it and then periods of time where I hated what I was doing and felt no motivation to post anything. Since my job is to plan social media for businesses, I felt an intense pressure to make my own internet presence do what I was suggesting they do. But overall, I found it exhausting and especially in the last 2 years, a lot of the joy I feel about social media has been sucked out of it for me. I still love planning other people’s content, but I realized I don’t really want to be a content creator on my own.

About a month ago, I asked myself, why don’t I just post like it’s 2011 again? What’s wrong if I only get 20 likes on a picture? Who cares? Does it really matter?

It doesn’t. It doesn’t matter at all. It’s just Instagram. It’s just my Instagram. I can do whatever I want on it.

So I did.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Michelle | Blogger & Marketer (@michellelocke6)

I have had more fun on social media, specifically Instagram, since I started doing this. I’ve felt more creative and happy and carefree about the whole thing rather than stressing about if I was doing the right things. I have particularly enjoyed posting mirror photos of my outfits at work—are they the best photos in the world? Absolutely not. But hopefully people like seeing my outfits because I enjoy sharing them.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Michelle | Blogger & Marketer (@michellelocke6)

Another huge reason I started doing this is really about letting go of my feelings of perfectionism. I have always felt like nothing I did was good enough: the project I received praise for could have been, or should have been better; my house could be cuter or cleaner or different.

Feeling low level dissatisfaction with everything in my life and everything I do is probably a by-product of my low self-esteem and also probably a reason for my low self-esteem. They feed into each other, creating a horrible feedback loop. When I let go of feeling perfect, when I just let myself do things that are fun, I can feel the difference. Letting go of looking a certain way, having a certain kind of house, posting a certain kind of content… it’s really freeing.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Michelle | Blogger & Marketer (@michellelocke6)

Showing myself kindness and finding joy in little things has been important for me, especially in the last years. I still have times where I become snappy and joyless, mainly because I’m overstimulated or too anxious—but those times have become fewer and farther between. It takes a lot of work, but I’m becoming the person I always wanted to be deep down. It’s not what I thought it would look like, but it’s real joy, instead of an allusion of perfection.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Michelle | Blogger & Marketer (@michellelocke6)

There you have it, folks: what I started posting whatever I wanted on Instagram again. Coffee cups and mirror selfies and whatever filter I have been making for my autumn pack this year. Park photos and candids and early morning breakfasts. It’s better than trying to curate it, that’s for sure.

10 Ideas To Promote Your Blog In Your Instagram Story

Here’s a question I see a lot from my fellow bloggers, as well as from small business owners: how do I authentically promote my blog posts in my Instagram story?

Good question.

But there’s a second part: I don’t want to seem desperate or spammy.

Oof. Big oof.

Here’s the thing: if you’re not a natural salesperson (and trust me when I say, I am not), it can be challenging to promote yourself without feeling, well, unnatural. But a huge part of this is your mindset. The truth is, the best and brightest stars are promoting themselves constantly. Lizzo isn’t releasing a new song on Spotify and then, sitting back and not posting about it, worried that people will think she’s being braggy if she asks people to go listen. And while we aren’t all Lizzo, we should all feel like Lizzo: you wrote something you love, you put it out into the world, and you want to share it.

So share it!!

You aren’t desperate for promoting the content you work hard on; you aren’t being spammy for asking people to take 5 minutes to read something. Some won’t, but some will. Repeat after me: I am worthy of success.

That’s the first bit of advice I want to give you about promoting your blog. The second bit of advice is that there are creative, fun ways you can promote your content in your Instagram story. Here are 10 of them.

1. Ask A Question

This is a big of a run up promotion. A long game, if you will. Say you’ve got an idea for your blog. As a random example, let’s say it’s 10 ways to wear a pleated skirt blog post. You might post a question, 3-4 days before your blog post goes live, asking: “How would you style a long, pleated skirt?” As your audience answers the question, you can pull photos that you plan to use in your blog post to show these answers, or simply respond. You can always screenshot your stories as you post answers and use those in the post itself.

Then, when your blog post goes live, you can post a story that says something like: “Remember when I asked how to style a pleated skirt!? I have a blog post featuring some of the top answers, as well as a few new suggestions. #linkinbio.” Simple, easy, you’ve engaged your audience, and given them the possibility of a shout out. A win win.

2. Provide a Sneak Peek

Asking that question is like a sneak peek into your creative process, but there are other ways to do this. For example, you might post a photo of your laptop as you write, with a sneak peek of the topic; or, you might post a few slightly blurry photos for an upcoming topic. There are lots of way to provide a steady stream of sneak peeks into your creative process, such as highlighting your editorial calendar, new products, or purchases and PR. Doing so, and saying, “this blog post will go live in X days!” keeps your audience excited and on the edge of their seats for that new content.

3. Poll Your Audience

Here’s a great way to engage your audience and help them feel like they’re part of your creative process.

• Draft two blog posts.

• In your Story, post a poll asking your audience: “this week, would you rather have a blog post on [topic 1] or [topic 2}?”

• Whichever option wins after 24 hours, post it.

• Screenshot the poll with results and post a story when the post goes live, and say, “You voted! It’s live! #linkinbio”

So easy! And again, giving your audience a view into your creative process is always a win. You can also include a note that the other topic will go live next week or in “x” days.

4. Create Related Content

Let’s go back to the example in the first tip. Your blog post about how to style a long, pleated skirt goes live. You create a series of Instagram stories that highlight a few pieces of content that you couldn’t include—because of space or simply not being related enough. For example, you might post a series of Stories about “graphic tops that go great with pleated skirts” or “5 boots for spring you should pair with a pleated skirt.” Thing: content that is related, but not directly from the blog post itself.

5. Talk It Out

That’s right: do the scary thing, turn that camera around, and talk about your new blog post. Why did you write it? What sparked the idea? What do you hope your readers learn? Don’t forget the swipe up feature if you have 10,000 followers (lucky you!) and don’t forget to use hashtags & geotagging for maximum exposure.

6. Start the Story

Every blog post starts with a story, something that sparked you wanting to write. Maybe it’s a client question (like this blog post!), something that has been bothering you for a while. Start telling the story of why you wrote your blog post… and then, tell your audience that the story is finished up in the blog post itself. That’s right: get them hooked, then send them on to the next piece of content!

7. Post a Snippet

Pull a few great quotes from your blog post and create some beautiful Instagram story slides. These grab your audience’s attention and make them want to read the rest of the blog post.

8. Use a Theme

Keeping your Instagram stories aesthetic and beautiful for promoting your blog post will keep your voice & brand consistent. Your audience will know what to expect! Use a specific theme for each category of blog post so your audience is alerted when content is most fitting for their interests.

9. Share Topical Posts

You don’t always have to be sharing your newest content. Revisiting older content when its relevant can keep your blog posts evergreen and refresh older topics. For example, you might share older posts when they become topically important. For example, let’s say you wrote a blog post on styling graphic t-shirts a year ago; you might post a story about how you’ve seen so many great graphic Ts available and your blog post is more topical than ever. Then, share the link in your bio or a swipe up.

10. Share Feedback

Getting great comments on a blog post? Or a thread on Twitter about your blog post? Share it to your stories with “Join the conversation!”

Beauty Review: Sand & Sky Australian Pink Clay Mask

I don’t know about you guys, but whenever I see something all over Instagram—you know, those viral products that every single Instagram baddie seems to be making videos about—I get intrigued. The part of me that works in marketing knows this is a marketing trick. The more we see something, the more we want to try it. Like those Coco & Eve hair masks. Or, in this case, the Sand & Sky Australian Pink Clay masks.

A bunch of beauty gurus I follow had videos about this mask. They’re all similar. I know you’ve seen them! The Pink Clay mask is particularly intriguing to me because clay masks are amazing for oily and acne prone skin—but they can also be super drying, so your skin requires a lot of babying afterwards. I wanted to try it, but the price tag (nearly $50 for a tub) held me back.

However, a few weeks ago, Ipsy was offering some deals on sample and full size products to add to your Ipsy bag. Well, color me foolish, I saw the Sand & Sky Australian Pink Clay available as a deluxe sample and thought, yes, I will pay $3 for that! It should be at least big enough to use 5 times.

Guys, I’m a fool. Truly, I don’t know how Ipsy keeps fooling me. You’d think at this point before I throw that sample into my cart and buy it, I’d look at the size information. To me, deluxe sample sizes should be fairly substantial. “Deluxe” implies you get at least a few uses, right? I’m not off base here. This is the hill I will die on. This sample is too small!! And for $3? I’m a fool, but you know what, this mask is pretty dang good. Sorry, spoiler alert.

I received this in my ipsy bag and immediately lost it because it is so small, it’s basically naked to the human eye. Just kidding. It’s not that small. But it’s pretty tiny and cute! I was so excited to try it, but I had just gotten back to Idaho—aka my skin was dry as a bone and absolutely wrecked. I decided to give myself a few days of moisturizing before I tried it and I’m glad I did. Without further ado, let’s jump into this review.

(If you want to read more about my adventures in teeny tiny Ipsy samples, click here.)

As a mask…

So, one of the ways to use this mask (yes, there are multiple ways, let me get to it!) is to use it, duh, as a mask. All over the face or in your problem areas (most likely your t-zone). After a few days of hardcore moisturizing (thanks Meriance!), I decided to go for it. I slathered this mask on, using almost half the tube for my apparently giant face, and waited.

And it dried down. Y’all, it dried down. My face was basically one, big tight bandage. Danny was laughing at me because I couldn’t really talk. It didn’t feel painful or bad, it just felt like I had gotten the most intense facelift in the world. It was funny, but also slightly horrifying. When I rinsed it off, my skin definitely felt super clean. Like, cleaner than it has been since I hit puberty and turned into an oil factory. I moisturized and put on some hyaluronic acid because… I was dry. I was clean, but my skin was parched. The next morning, my skin was glowy, but still very dry; I ended up putting on a few dabs of Dove’s DermaSeries moisturizing cream, which is technically for your feet. It helped though and truly, my skin looked amazing. It helped clear up some congestion I had from dry skin and environmental changes (that Idaho to Oregon drive, y’all) and definitely improved the texture of my skin.

So as a mask, I give it a solid 5 stars. It’s great if you have oily skin, but you need to moisturize a lot after using it. Or else, you might really wreck your skin. It also smells really good; lightly sweet without being overpowering.

As a spot treatment…

And here’s the second way to use it. Instead of using it as an all over mask, you can use it to spot treat individual blemishes. If you’re prone to dry patches, like I am during the winter, avoiding it as an all over mask it probably a good idea since it is quite drying. However, I had a cyst pop up over the weekend; I dabbed a bit of it on, let it dry, then went to sleep. When I woke up, it was pretty much deflated. I rinsed and moisturized and felt amazing.

So, if you need a spot treatment, this is kind of perfect. And really, it’s the perfect size for spot treating. Genius.

Final Thoughts

Is this worth the $3 I paid for it? In this size, I want to say no because I am naturally frugal and I really sometimes believe $3 should last me a month. But honestly, it is worth the $3, even though the size was a shock when I first got it. A full size tub costs $49 and has a net weight of 60 g (or 2.1 oz). The sample size tube is 13g, or a little less than 25% of the full size tub. In that respect, this little sample was worth it. It’s hard for me to say whether I would pay $49 for a full size tub of it; I do really like it, but there are comparably good pink clay masks out there from other brands that are much more affordable. They do have a holiday kit on sale at the moment for $59 that includes the mask, a mitt for rinsing, and a storage pouch.

Have you tried this mask? What did you think?

10 Quotes to Use on Instagram

I've written before about how I struggle with Instagram captions. It's definitely a challenge for me to write engaging content both on my blog and on so many social media platforms! But I'm trying... I started thinking recently about quotes that can be used in captions to add a bit of humor, thought, and, of course, engagement. I found a few great ones on Pinterest that I thought would be perfect to share. 

1. Everybody has a chapter they don't read out loud. 
2. Better an "oops" than a "what if." 
3. "It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are." ee cummings 
4. We look up at the stars and see such different things. 
5. "Maybe one day we'll finally learn to love ourselves and stop apologizing for the things that make us who we are." R.M. Drake
6. "Of course I feel too much, I'm a universe of exploding stars." S. Ajna 
7. We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone. 
8. You can ask the universe for all the signs you want, but ultimately, we see what we want to see when we're ready to see it. 
9. Don't let someone dim your light, simply because it's shining in their eyes. 
10. When it rains, look for rainbows. When it's dark, look for stars. 

For more great Instagram captions, I always turn to Pinterest. You can follow me here. 

---

Thanks for reading this blog post. If you loved it, you should sign up for my newsletter here. 

No More Instagram Themes

Does anyone else feel like something crazy is going on over on Instagram? I love nothing more than a careful Instagram: pretty photos, clever captions, glimpses of life behind the blog. But more and more, I've noticed the emphasis becoming about themes. A simple Google search reveals guides to theming your Instagram, tons of Pinterest results, and even more guides to keep your Instagram "on-trend."

Sorry, I had to take a break from yawning. 

Is it just me or are Instagram themes... boring? 

To be clear, I think some people do them right: they edit their photos the same way every time for a cohesive look. There's nothing wrong with that. But overwhelmingly, Instagram themes that focus on creating a specific look in the grid, or that plan out larger images, or only use certain colors, gosh, it's gets a little monotonous. 

Mostly, I think it removes the spontaneity and fun from Instagram. I don't really want to see the same, white-background photos over and over again. Already, the marble background flat lay has becoming devastatingly common and every time I see it, I can't help but want something, anything, else to come into style. 

So this is my plea to other bloggers: posting nice, curated photos in one thing. But no more Instagram themes. 

---

I would argue (and I mean, I am) that Instagram themes are boring. And not only are they boring, I think they remove the fun of Instagram. As a blog reader (as well as a blog writer), I don't want to follow people with perfect houses who only post perfect photos. Sometimes, life is messy: the dinner burns, the coffee doesn't taste good, your son has a blow out right before the newborn photo shoot. Excuse the language, but shit happens. That's life. 

And Instagram is meant to show a little bit more of your life, right? So why portray that life through an all-perfect theme? 

I carefully pick photos I post on Instagram now. But sometimes, I post a picture of my messy living room and linty leggings because, that's my life. And then, sometimes, I post a nice little flat lay, because that's my life too. 

All I'm saying is: you don't have to dedicate your Instagram to grainy, badly lit photos. But I beg you, let a little bit of your real life in. Not the curated side table that you keep clean for blog photos. Not the corner you keep meticulously clean. Not that piece of poster board you have covered in fake marble vinyl. Your readers deserve to know that sometimes life isn't perfect. Sometimes, it's not about a perfect Instagram feed. Sometimes, it's just about being authentic. 

---

If you enjoy this blog post, I'd love if you'd take a moment to subscribe to the Writing Between Pauses newsletter! 

How to Write Better Instagram Captions

Instagram is a social media platform that I really struggle with. I don't like themes (expect a post on this soon) and I don't really get the need to make my house, or life, or child, or self, seem perfect. Sometimes, I feel really jealous over curated Instagram profiles because it just seems to take so much work. 

One of the most challenging parts of Instagram is writing captions. Seriously, captions. I can have a good photo and a good idea. But then I'm stuck, staring at that caption box. Like, what do I put here? What works? 

I gathered up a few resources to come up with a few ideas. Here they are. 

1. Write to engage. 

This is something I struggle with. When I post photos, I try to post something I think is funny or related to the photo. But on Instagram, when it comes to getting people's attention, there is a benefit to writing something that engages other people. This is a great post on doing just that. 

2. Be brief. 

Does this feel like it is at odds with that first point? A little bit. But here's the truth: it's possible to write engaging captions, without going on for sentences. I definitely try to keep my captions two sentences or less. Although I follow some great accounts (like my friend @poesyross) who use longer captions to great effect. For more about writing with brevity, click here. 

3. Make sure to edit. 

This goes without saying: before you hit post, make sure to proofread. I've definitely hit post before write as I notice a glaring, huge typo on my post. Oops. Not the most professional looking, for sure. For more on editing for length & more, click here. 

4. Use a quote. 

Here's the thing: sometimes, there just aren't words. You have a great photo. You know what time you need to post for maximum engagement. You have everything ready. Except words. Grab your favorite (related) quote, add a question, and post it with your favorite hashtags. Easy peasy. Pinterest is a great source for great quotes. Click here to view some! 

3 Ways to Improve Your Flat Lay Photos

It took me a long time to get good at flat lay photos. I have some doozies on my Instagram from back in the day. I've just recently started to get good at it... probably because I only just recently started really, you know, trying. Mainly, I started spending a lot of time looking at flat lay photos that I like (you can view a collection of them on my Pinterest) and really figuring out how to do it. 

A few notes: 

• I really believe in having your own "style." A lot of flat lays seem to follow a similar formula: white or marble background, gold or rose gold accents, truly random props. I'm not into that. I use two plaid scarves as my backgrounds because that feels a little more "my style" for Fall and Winter. Come Spring, I'll figure something out. 
• Don't feel the need to take flat lay photos if you just don't like them! I like them: they're simple, they're pretty, and the more you practice, the easier they are to take. 
• It doesn't have to be perfect. You don't need a DSLR. I use my iPhone. 

Ok, let's talk tips now. 

1. Have the right apps 

I use my iPhone to take all my flat lay photos. Here's why: It's easier. I can take one really quickly while Forrest is halfway destroying my kitchen, then get back to business. I take photos with my iPhone camera. I have the grid option turned on--you can turn this on in settings--because it helps center things and make sure you're getting a good angle. Then, I edit using A Color Story from A Beautiful Mess. You can use a variety of filters (and buy some extras), but I use the same filters every time: Magic Hour (25%), Ginger Tea (25%), Disco Ball (50%), then either Everyday (50%), Lite Bright (50%), or Ruby Haze (50% or less). If you feel your photo wasn't taken in the best light and has that slightly "yellow" look, you can adjust the white balance in A Color Story as well. 

2. Take photos near a window. 

Point blank: the best light is indirect sunlight. I take photos in my bedroom, with the curtains open, on my bed. So set up your photo station near a window and snap away. If I miss daylight hours (which I often do), it's a bust: I'll never be able to edit photos taken at night, under artificial lights, to look as good as I want them to. Sometimes, I still post them anyway, but only when desperate. 

3. Crop accordingly. 

I think the number one mistake that I continue to make is feeling like I should't "crop" a photo. But sometimes photos look better when you crop out extra space. Prime example: When I post flat lays of books (like this one or this one), I end up cropping out a lot of "extra space" so you can focus on the cover. Don't be afraid to crop and that means, maybe cropping something partly out of the photo (like I cropped out my Kindle partially in this photo). 

---

Most importantly, don't be afraid of being perfectly imperfect. Like if your nail polish is looking rough. Or it's something you don't want to, um, put down on the ground. Or if you son decides he wants the book you're trying to take a photo of. It's ok. It doesn't have to be perfect. It's just Instagram!