little white truths

I’m slotting in my monthly round-up posts a little earlier than usual this month because it’s, you know, Christmas apparently and the December post schedule is a bit different for many bloggers - plus I’d like to get my 2016 favourites posts out in the next couple of weeks, so I’ll write my usual monthly posts a touch earlier to make room for those.

Ha. Can't believe I just used the word 'schedule'. As if I have one. I write, I manage two kids and a dog, play with my beauty things, and I try to stay sane in the process. That be my schedule ; )

Anyhoo. First up is five good things for December, because my golly I need to see the positives today or festive stress will trump me.

(Ach, Trump. Ignore that word please!)

I am on my computer

Yesterday I wasn't - or at least, I tried to be but I wasn't able to write. We have three house guests for the next couple of weeks so I've had to move my entire life upstairs: my laptop, my daily makeup basket, my photography set-up, my tray of admin like bills I need to pay... The list could go on. And the problem with moving this old laptop is that, for some reason, it chucks a tantrum whenever I unplug it - which of course needs to be done whenever you move it - so writing was a non-starter yesterday because we couldn't get it to work.

But today it appears to be working. Fingers crossed. So thank golly I'm able to write today because my head would implode if I couldn't. ARGH! Vent over.

A new computer is coming, so things will improve

If you've ever wondered why some of the photos I use in my posts aren't quite in focus, my husband and I believe it's because this laptop is four years old so it cannot properly 'read' the HD shots I've been taking with our camera and the cameras on our iPhones. Believe me, I've tried everything to take better shots (new lighting, borrowed cameras, photos in different parts of the house and at different times of day etc etc) and none of those things has really helped.

Long story short, I'm getting a new laptop on Boxing Day when the sales start. We haven't been able to afford one until now because it's been a huge couple of years for expenses (two of those things being having two babies!), but this month we have the budget for it. Can't wait.

2016 is almost over

Now I want to be clear: on balance, my husband and I have had a pretty good year (those three words always remind me of Tori Amos ; )). Yes we've had financial strain (who hasn't), yes we've trudged through a tough pregnancy and yes there have been frightening health scares in our extended families - the list could go on - but we have two healthy kids, food, clean water and a roof over our heads.

But I know that 2016 has been a bloody awful year for so many people - you only need to watch the news to see that - and many have experienced tragedies and personal issues that have made their lives almost impossible to bear. 

I'll leave it there because this is meant to be a positives post, and this is the positive: 2016 is almost over and 2017 can be a fresh start. 

I've always believed that hope is life's shelter (that's a quote of mine from one of my books; please excuse me for quoting myself ; )), so let's carry hope's canopy with us as we face the New Year. 

Because hope isn't about the sunshine. It's about choosing to strike a match against the dark.

The youtube tide is changing 

I'm sure I'm not the first person to have noticed this, but over the course of this year I've noticed new trends in the youtube videos I watch every night, one of those being that youtubers are becoming more willing to share their personal stories with viewers.

This year I've watched youtubers cry on camera as they talk about relationship breakups, mental and physical health issues, and explain to their viewers why their videos are done in certain ways: eg, I've just watched one young lass explain why she doesn't edit her videos or re-film them if they're not perfect - it's because she starts to feel like an actor then and that's not what she wants for her channel. Good on her.

While it saddens me that people feel the need to get on camera and explain things about their lives because they're sick of others being rude or making hateful remarks in the comments section, I think it can be a good thing when people speak freely about their personal problems because sharing such things can help how they feel. It can also help younger viewers realise that they're not the only ones with issues. 

I much prefer this 'real' approach as opposed to airbrushed Instagram photos of perfect makeup on perfect faces because that just ain't the truth - and I don't want my kids thinking they need to look like that, nor do I want them thinking that 'normal' people are always happy and in good moods. Who does.

The tide is changing in the beauty community, too

Is it just me, or does anyone else feel that project panning is starting to gain ground on product hauling? While my youtube and bloglovin' feeds used to be filled with hauls, they're now starting to fill with updates on panning challenges and 'use up' projects.

This can only be a good thing - or at least that's what I think. While I have no issue with people buying masses of makeup that they can't hope to get through if that's what makes them happy (and of course there's a place for that in the beauty community because it's helpful for some individuals to test bundles of different items and compare them for consumers), I also feel that reigning in non-essential spending is something that a lot of us feel we need to do, so the exponential growth of the panning community is helping with that. Good.

In sum

They're my positives for December! I hope this post shone a little extra light on your day : )

Speak soon x