Confessions of a Blogger Tag

hello guys!
i'm carrying on with my new tag obsession today with the 'Confessions of a Blogger' tag, so i'm going to jump straight in and say that i hope you all enjoy it!

oo1. When did you start your blog?
my first post is dated 12th November 2011, so around a year and a half ago now.

oo2. Have you had any online presence before? (Other blog, Youtube etc...)
i've never run a blog before this, but i've always had an account on most social networking sites since i can remember.

oo3. Why did you start a blog?
i think it was mainly to coincide with me starting a fashion degree in September of that year, and just wanted a way of expressing and writing about the things I enjoyed. i initially intended to just blog about fashion, but the more i got into it and the more blogs i started reading, it slowly turned into beauty & lifestyle aswell.

oo4. When did you become serious about starting a blog?
it took my six months to really get into it and stop leaving huge time gaps between my posts and around this time last year i started blogging most days. i sort of feel like the more successful my blog gets, and with each and every follower, i get a little more serious and feel like it's starting to be worth all the time and effort.

oo5. What was your first post?
it was a sort of personal, introduction type post which is so cringey to read back now, but at the time i was blogging to no-one! if you're interested then you can read it here!

oo6. What has been your biggest challenge about blogging?
the biggest challenge i've found is to keep going at it and not giving up when you're stuck in a blogging rut! i also have a couple of close friends who have really successful blogs and have got somewhere with their blog s fairly quickly, so sometimes it's hard to sit her with my little, unheard of blog with a few followers when they have hundreds/thousands.

oo7. Where do you see your blog in one year?
i honestly don't know, but hopefully something which i am still proud of and can use in my portfolio for work interviews etc. i'm keen to get into the beauty & fashion PR industry once I graduate so i really hope to keep working on my blog and it helping me to get to where i want to in life.

oo8. What is the most rewarding thing to you about blogging?
Ellie. To have found a friend through blogging and share interests that go outside the blogger world is something i really cherish, especially when nowadays we're brought up on the theory of not speaking to strangers on the internet. i know with blogging, this is something we have to do, but i find it crazy that just from one day stumbling across her blog, leaving a comment and following her story, we've ended up friends and actually make the time and effort to do things together, see each other and speak almost daily (even if it is just sending each other pictures of Harry Styles and then complaining to each other about how much we fancy him).

oo9. What is the most discouraging thing?
it's not that is discourages me, but sometimes i just find myself too busy to blog as regularly as i like. with uni, i often get bogged down with work and other bits and pieces and my blog really isn't at the front of my mind. and now i have a six week internship with 12 hour days, so i know i'm going to have to work hard to keep on top of the blog.

o10. What's your lasting inspiration or motivation?
my lasting inspiration is seeing blogs which i've followed from the beginning go on to become successful, and also whenever i get a comment from a subscriber just to say they've enjoyed a post. to know that just one person has enjoyed what i've written is enough motivation to carry on.

i tag any of you who have taken the time to read this, and if you do this tag, drop me a link below so i can check it out.