I’ve wondered whether to re-write this post and make it more exciting; I’ve wondered whether to make a countdown of content and list my favourite blog posts from over the past eight years and fill it with throwback photos. But really, this post only needs simplicity.
It is equally as nerve-wracking as it is exciting to write. This marks a new era in my life, as hyperbolic as that may sound.
On March 29th 2012, I started this blog. Today, on September 3rd 2020, I am publishing my last post on tollydollyposhfashion.com and launching a new website – tolmeiagregory.com – tomorrow, on September 4th.
It’s also a little uncomfortable talking so directly about myself; it feels a bit icky and unnatural due to the nature of the work I’ve now committed myself to and how it’s not really being about me but the world and us, as a collective. However, this is is my space after all and even though I don’t get often share overly personal things, I recognise that it’s always appreciated more than I usually expect it to.
If you’ve been a follower for a while, you may have noticed that my blog has become increasingly inactive (and if you’ve only followed me recently, you might not know it even exists!). In the early days, I was posting daily updates, made up of outfit pictures taken on an iPhone 3 and collages of product photos to showcase celebrity style inspiration. In the latter days of covering climate activism and sustainable fashion? You’d be lucky to see me publishing once a month.
This change has been entirely natural. It has come after years of pouring my heart and energy into frequently uploaded content, after writing 830 blog posts (yes, you read that correctly; 830) and after growing from an 11-year-old to a fully independent 20-year-old who has her own bills to pay.
My content gradually evolved and blog posts went from taking half-an-hour to complete to several days, from photography to research. It’s not that it became unenjoyable but it was taking time away from what was becoming a more valuable use of my time.
Instagram and its many uses were slowly becoming a more powerful tool and it was freeing up that time. Instead of compiling long-form content, I was able to keep important conversations going around the clock. I could make things more personal, allow my content to become more accessible to all and share other people’s work and educational content in a much easier way. My platform has blossomed into something stronger than it was before. I’m also more than certain that most people’s digital attention spans have lessened since 2012, as sad as that may be.
Along the way, I’ve even become self-employed and started a career as an illustrator. Launching GIPHY stickers in 2018 was one of the best decisions I ever made because it has given me freedom and flexibility and the skills to run my own business.
As a now self-proclaimed activist – the ability to share and inspire people instantly is more important to me now than having to maintain a platform fit for consistent levels of high-quality long-form content. After all, we’re facing a Climate Emergency – time is of the essence. Of course, I’ve always appreciated quality over quantity but there are now more conversations to be had and topics to cover than there ever was before.
I will note that alongside this, personal wellbeing has to come first. At the time of writing this, I am coming towards the end of a month-long break from keeping on top of my social media platforms; the first time I’ve ever done this. The only Instagram and Twitter-ing I’ve engaged with have been for my local activism group back home, where I live-tweeted an action from my parent’s house in Italy as they mass-cycled down a dual-carriageway in the UK. Proof that everybody can get involved, even if you aren’t physically on the streets!
I also never aimed to keep up my blog for this long. It was a summer project, initially. It was just an idea that 11-year-old Tolly had, to combine her interest in fashion and the digital world into one. It was never my goal to become an ‘influencer’ or to have my work featured in publications and to be nominated for awards (and most recently, turn them down, especially when the nomination is coming from a publication promoting consumerism and unhealthy diet culture for women). Just as it was never my aim to become an activist. This has all been a truly organic progress; I’ve just been going along for a ride with what this has all become.
I’m sure my 11-year-old self would be proud of everything she’s achieved over the years and would be even prouder to know that I am using my platform in such a positive way. Letting go of this blog is much like letting go of my aspirations of becoming a fashion designer – yes, it’s a big decision to make but it makes sense. It’s making room for something even better and more fulfilling.
However, I’ve decided to not let go of this blog entirely. I want it to carry on existing because it is much more than a fashion blog. I’ve only archived or deleted a handful of blog posts. Every other bad blog post is still up. Every outfit post taken by my dad from dodgy angles before we discovered what ‘bokeh’ means, still lives on. Every most-likely problematic thought that I’d yet to educate myself on, is still there (because it’s possible to evolve, grow and learn and unlearn).
Every post dedicated to a fast-fashion brand or a company I wouldn’t dare support nowadays is still available for all to see (something that often surprises new followers is that I haven’t always been an ethical fashion advocate). The blog post that documented the traumatic experience of surviving an earthquake a few years ago, is still up to revisit.
It’s a time capsule that is still full of resources for young people just finding their footing in things like sustainable fashion or becoming themselves. It would be a waste to let it go, but it also wouldn’t feel right to carry it all with me as I keep riding along this journey. I tried that; I copied old content – the really good stuff – over to my new website, and it just didn’t feel right.
I want to thank each and every person who has ever sat down and read even a sentence of this blog. You have been a part of my growing up, my childhood and my ‘becoming’. I know – dramatic.
It’s not as if this is goodbye forever, it’s just a goodbye to this slice of my internet pie. And if you’re curious what the next chapter looks like, you can go and have a read on my new blog or, of course, continue to stay updated elsewhere like on Instagram and Twitter. I’ll also have a limited run of art prints available, which is another new exciting venture for me.
I will still be writing content that is longer than an Instagram caption but it’s not something I’ll be tied to. There will no longer be the pressure to be a ‘blogger’. I can just be me and when something worth talking about comes up, it will have a new home – the home that will also belong to my work as an activist and a digital artist.
And to be completely honest? I think I may have slightly outgrown this nickname or ‘brand’. It was lovely and endearing in the beginning, taken from a story my mum made up when I was little but I’ve admittedly reached the point where I feel a little bit embarrassed every time I share my username with someone in person because, really, I’m not Tolly Dolly anything…
I’m Tolmeia.
