Remember the good old days when Instagram first came out and it was all just for fun. Pics of our everyday lives with a nice old fashioned filter? Yes I miss those days a bit too! However I do also like using out favourite photo sharing platform as a creative outlet and as a bit of a challenge. I also really enjoy working to an Instagram theme.
I’ve always enjoyed other Instagram accounts that have a theme. My aesthetic side loves the uniformity and how visually pleasing a collection of pictures can look together. I have a lot of admiration for heavily curated feeds as well as still loving the less floral and polished ones too. I definitely follow a mixture of both.
My Instagram Theme
Since I first starting using Instagram in 2012 I’ve used it in all kinds of ways. It was about 2 years ago I started thinking about themes. This year has been the longest I’ve stuck with an Instagram theme having gone with a yellow theme since all the way back in January!
I’ve stuck at it this long mostly because I’m still really enjoying it. I have found a big love for the colour yellow, which puts a big smile on my face. I’ve also taken time to actively seek out pretty yellow places and gone on lots of long walks looking for yellow things to photograph. It’s been so much fun!
I will still throw in the odd non yellow instagram picture and they still blend in very well. I’ve not found it restrictive or felt that its takes the fun out of Instagram, more that I’ve enjoyed it more by using it as a creative outlet. Before the yellow theme I used to choose a colour and run with it for a few weeks before mixing it up again and trying something else.
Keep it Seasonal
At Christmas I stuck to a mainly red and white Instagram theme. Our Elf on the Shelf made quite a few appearances! Keeping is seasonal is a great way to stay on theme.
I used the autumn months to go a bit crazy for orange. I couldn’t get enough of all the beautiful leaves and the pumpkins and squashes that appeared everywhere.
Pick a Colour
Last summer I went through phases of using a key colour in every picture. I really enjoyed using green as it’s my favourite colour. When I’m done with yellow I’m looking forward to going back to green. As I love nature and going for walks so much, this one was very easy to do.
Mix up your content
Even when working with just a single colour scheme, I like to post all different types of content. When I was going for a white Instagram theme, I mixed in flat lays, architecture and pics of the kids and it all flowed really well. I’ve been doing this a lot this year with my yellow theme.
Post content that you love
Even if I’m being very selective with what I post and only putting my best pictures out there. I make sure that each one tells a story and means something to me. Even if it is just a pretty building I’ve seen on a walk or a favourite product, I try to only post content that speaks to me.
Balancing out your feed
For a few months last year, before I wasn’t thinking too much about colours, I started using a pattern for my posting. Each day I would post one outfit picture and one scenic picture, so they always alternated. I kept this up for a really long time and although I enjoyed it, I found it a bit restrictive and when I decided to stop, it was great to just post whatever I fancied again.
Keep the memories
Of course as a photo sharing platform, Instagram is a great place to keep your memories. As someone who love taking photos, visiting lovely places and spending time with friends and family, it really is a great place to record little stories of my life. I love this little section of my insta from my trip to Margate last year.
Plan ahead
I like to plan my content in advance, so I use an app called Planoly to upload my pictures to and work out the order I’m going to post them in advance. I usually edit lots of pictures in one go, plan them out and add hashtags and then post them with a fresh caption a couple of times a day. This works really well for me as I can get my pictures ready while I’m working from home and post them quickly at other times of the day when I’m with the kids and don’t want to be glued to my phone.
Relax and Enjoy!
There is no wrong or right way to do Instagram and there’s really no clear route to success, especially now with evil algorithms and non chronological time lines. The most important thing is to enjoy it and not compare your feed to other peoples. Find something that works for you and keep up the good work. Treat it as an opportunity to explore and to share the best visual parts of your life.
Do you have an Instagram theme or are you a bit more chilled out than me?! What are your best Insta tips?
If you like this, you might find my guide to Colourful Street in London to Take Instagram Pictures.
Ways to follow Vintage Frills
Instagram – Twitter – Facebook – Pinterest – Youtube – Bloglovin’ – Etsy
I think this last year I’ve produced some of my best content. There are so many 
In March the blog will turn 6. Thats a long time to keep going with something and there have certainly been times this year when I’ve wondered about when to stop. Luckily I’m anywhere near that stage yet and I know I have a lot more blog posts left in me! I think it’s great to go into the new year with some goals and here are a few of mine.
ONE: I’d like to get back to taking regular outfit photos and sharing them both on here and on Instagram. It’s something I’ve always been pretty consistent at and I’ve fallen behind recently. I love getting creative with my clothes and having recently reorganised my wardrobe I have lots of ideas. I’m not a big fan of winter outfits, so I always fine it a bit harder at this time of year but there’s nothing wrong with a challenge!
TWO: I’d also really like to do more Week in Pictures posts. They’re the ones I love going back and reading. They’re easier to do in the school holidays, as I do m ore when the kids are off. I find it quite hard on normal weeks, because most of what I do is just work and cleaning! I do always try to do a couple of fun things though and I’m sure I can find a way to make it work. It might even encourage me to fit in more interesting stuff!
THREE: An important goal for me right now is to pace myself and one important goal for next year is to just stop when I need to. I can be quite hard on myself when I need a break, but its something I’m working on. First and foremost the blog is something I enjoy doing, so it should never become a burden.
FOUR: One of the most common bits of blogging advise I see is to write for yourself. This year I’d like to write more about everything. Yes I love fashion and baking, but also walking, music, doing stuff with the kids. The blog has always been a bit of a mash up of topics, and I’m hoping it will be even more so this year!
FIVE: Another goal I’d like to think about is looking back at old posts on the blog and some of the things I used to do, but don’t anymore. I know you used to love my charity shop hauls and I hardly do them now. In fact I’d like more vintage themed content in general as there’s not been nearly enough of that recently. Sometimes it’s great to go back to basics.
SIX: My last goal isn’t really a blog goal, but I thought I’d include it anyway. I’d like to start working harder on my Etsy again. I love selling pretty vintage things, I’ve been doing it far longer than I’ve been blogging and it’s something I enjoy massively. It also give me a good excuse to go out hunting for pretty vintage things, which I don’t do nearly enough anymore! So watch this space, the shop is going to get a lot better over the next few months.
What are your goals for the next year. I have lots of personal ones that I might do a post on, if I get time. If you’re a long term reader or just a new arrival, I’d love to know what you’d like to see on the blog. What are your favourite types of posts and is there anything new you’d like me to try?
In recent years blog photography has really stepped up a gear, especially with the rise of Instagram. Everything is very visual these days. This blog has three main types of photographs; they are photographs of items and products, outfit photos and photos of places. I wanted to focus on the first type of blog photographs in this post.
Lighting: Good lighting will always be your friend when taking good blog photos. Natural light without too many shadows will always work best. If theres a bright but overcast day, the diffused light is perfect for getting those snaps. I also use a soft box light when I absolutely need to. Its also nice to add a little depth to pictures using light boxes, candles of fairy lights.
Props: As my blog has a vintage theme, I usually find nice things to include in my photos at car boot sales and charity shops. I love using vintage books, kitchen bits, china and jewellery to make my pictures interesting. I also love using fresh flowers. You can choose nice things that go well with the look and feel of your blog.
Find your own style: At the moment flat lays are everywhere. They look great, work across all social platforms and are a great way top show off products, bakes or whatever it is you want to show. As well as flat lays I like to take photographs from lots of different angles. It’s all about finding your own style and what works well for you and your blog. For each post I usually take about 50 pictures and choose 3 or 4 perfect ones for the finished piece. The more you work at it, the more you’ll find your own style.
Take inspiration from others: One of the best ways to find inspiration is to read lots of other blogs, look at Pinterest and look at pictures in magazines. Obviously do this without directly copying someone else ideas. I often get ideas for composition and layout from elsewhere and then do my own thing from there. Blogging is all about learning as you go.
Equipment: Depending on what you can afford, a good camera does make a big difference. I started off using my phone to take my pictures, as time has gone on I’ve upgraded my camera several times. I still take outdoor shots on my phone sometimes. For my flat lays and food shots or anything taken indoors I use my SLR camera with a macro lens.
Editing: This is a really important part of the photography process for me. Once I’ve taken and chosen my blog photographs I like to crop, edit and watermark them before adding them to the blog. I used to use photoshop for this. I now use Pic Monkey as its very quick, straightforward and easy to use. There is lots of free editing software online as well as more advances options that you pay to use. It’s worth shopping around and trying different things to see what works best for you. As I’ve got better at taking pictures, I’ve needed to edit less, but it can be a great way to improve pictures when the light wasn’t perfect or the colours aren’t quite right.
Laptop – I use a MacBook Pro to write on, I love how portable it is and lots of my work happens while I’m on the go. I am one of those people who can be spotted in a coffee shop typing away! A lap top really is the most essential bit of blogging equipment.
Phone – I have an iPhone 7. Since getting this phone, I’ve taken a lot more blog photos on it as the camera is amazing. Most of my Week in Pictures posts are now taken using my iPhone rather than my big camera. I’m loving the extra space in my bag!
Props – I’m always on the lookout for new probs for my photographs. I pick up little treasures at charity shops and car boots to include in my photos. I also have a big selections of backgrounds. My favourite photo prop is definitely a bunch of fresh flowers though.
I get asked about blogging a lot. I’ve been writing this blog for over 5 and a half years and when I started out I had so many questions, most of which were answered by my bestie 
Todays post is all about the very first steps, the things that you need to do before you even start writing your first post. In some ways these are the boring bits, but getting it right on the first day will pay dividends as you start to grow your blog. There are lots of posts with blogging tips online, so this is just my personal advice.