So long...farewell my beautiful friends
Changes are a part of life...an end is really just a new beginning.
For the last five years, I have been a part of a small group of very talented, lovable, gorgeous and creative women from all over the world. This group was created & hosted by the stylish editor of the blog Splenderosa, Marsha Harris, all the way from Houston Texas. This monthly gathering was called BIO (By Invitation Only) and each month we each wrote about a selected topic, and sadly today we will be posting our last BIO party. It has been very special, we have laughed, we've cried, and we been through so much together. And the one thing that brought us together was our blog.
I am re-posting images from one of my favourite BIO posts from I think about three or four years ago. Our topic was a special 'PRETEND' dinner party hosted in the 60's, (and some of these women I actually knew whilst I was at Vogue) We really did have some fun topics... A celebration of women around the world!!!
This final post topic for BIO is...blogging, the changes, the highs and the lows.. the future where we see it leading.
Interesting topic (thank you Vicki Archer) and perfectly timed as I'm sure like me, many of you are noticing and moving through the many changes happening in the digital world.
To be truthful, I haven't been using my blog as a blog for the last two/three years now, as I progressed from my weekly blog posts to creating Styling Magazine firstly monthly, then bi-monthly. The most wonderful part of the change was that all of my original blogger friends, readers & subscribers came with me to the magazine and through the changes and many more arrive daily.
As an art director and photographic stylist (and originally from the magazine industry) I was craving more from the digital world and my blog, I wanted pages of space and good old fashioned two-page layouts to share my stories, my images and just creative stuff. I was a tad frustrated with the layout of my blog. I wanted to have more control over the way I shared my work, the look of it, and the design and the imagery. So, I became a blogger-self publisher!
So here we go... this months topic - The changes - I was one of the very first creative bloggers in Australia, and it remained that way for a while. Most of my readers were from the United States and Europe, Australia unfortunatley was a little slow to move into the blogging world, but now, wow, has it changed!!! My life has also changed since I started blogging (nearly eight years ago now), I don't spend as much time as I used to on the computer, I spend more time in the studio creating, photographing and preparing stories for the magazine. I do miss the early days of blogging, where there was time in the day (or night) to write to everyone. Now, it is totally overwhelming to see how many bloggers are out there. It's so different, a little more impersonal!
The Highs and the Lows - The highs are easy, meeting you! and the realisation that through "the blog" we have all been able to share our work, our lives, our products and our ideas all from our computers in our home. The lows, well there really haven't been any lows for me, blogging has been one of the most extraordinary things to happen in my life, The people I have met and the relationships that I have built with INCREDIBLE men and women and businesses around the world. I only wish I had more time in the day!
The future and where we see it leading - It is a perfect world for me right now! And, I do have some lovely changes for the new year ahead, the magazine will be a little different, maybe a little lighter with a new style and a some modern touches. As Andrew and I grow older I want more time for me, my family, my friends, my health and my home. I will share more of that with you early next year.
So, farewell to my beautiful group of girlfriends in the BIO party, I know we will still be in touch with one another in other ways, but, it's now time to put the "BIO' pens down girls, this is our last party together. Thank you Marsha for inviting me to join five years ago, and thank you girls for sharing your amazing lives, I am, and I always will be so honoured to be a part of such a special group of women.
Cheers to you all and I wish you a Happy Christmas and an absolutely fabulous NEW YEAR... and I raise my glass for very a special toast to "Mother Marsha" who has secretly over the many years kept us all in the loop about each others lives, to be cared for, as she cared for us, is a very special thing.
Thank you, thank you Marsha! xx Coty
