Happy Monday my lovely readers! It’s been a while since I last spoke to you on here, longer than I’d like. Let me just get straight to the point: I’ve found myself in a major creative rut, bordering on creative burnout and to be completely honest, I just couldn’t get anything out onto the page.
Last week I recorded a video on this topic which will be up later this week so hopefully that explains the situation a bit better, but what it basically comes down to is that I feel I really need to take a step back and take the pressure off my creative endeavours. I’m incredibly thankful to be one of the lucky few who get to turn their hobby into a job, but the uncertainties and the (mostly self-inflicted) pressure that come with it can be a bit overwhelming at times and drown my desire and inspiration to create and share online. The only topics I could think to blog about would have come out as lukewarm filler content, and that’s not the type of content I started this blog for.
I need to give myself the space to step away from worrying about what people want to see and read and what kind of content I should be sharing, and instead focus on what kind of content I want to share. What makes me excited, what do I like to read myself, what can I write or film about from a place of passion rather than necessity.
The spark always comes back sooner or later, so I have faith it won’t take too long. Until then, I’ve decided to skip an upload rather than upload something of bad quality whenever I need to decide between the two. That’s why it’s been a bit quiet on here for the past days… I’m working on it though, and hopefully I’ll be back to regular uploads very soon.
Anyways, I do have a little photo diary to share with you today! I didn’t take a great many photos, so it’s a concise compilation of the past two weeks. Let’s take a look at what I was up to besides sulking, haha!
Rehearsals are in full swing as my dance school’s performance is coming up in a little over a month. The theme of the show this year is Middle Ages so I’m sure you can guess how excited I am :) I’ll see if I can share a photo or maybe a snippet of video with you after the performance.
Diarmuid basking in the last rays of sunshine, with his balding bum. Bless him, haha! It’s normal for rex (curly-haired) rats to lose hair as they get older, but it does look really funny.
Filming the video where I recreate a photo of Lillian Gish:
I really love how this one came out!
I was steaming my clothes while the rats were out. At first I was happy they were being nice and quiet and I could do my steaming in peace, and then I realised too quiet is never a good thing… Turns out two chocolate easter eggs were hidden in the corner of the sofe that I hadn’t noticed, but the boys sure had. You wouldn’t believe the strength I had to use to pry the chocolate away from them! No more snacks for the rest of the day :)
There’s a little theatre in Utrecht that does screenings of the new Game of Thrones episodes every Monday. We headed over there with a few friends and let me tell you, it was pretty great. They had bean bags all over the floor and we were able to enjoy the episode on a big screen. The only downside is you can’t buy tickets, so you have to get there early to secure a spot. It’s worth it, though!
The time has come to switch over to my spring and summer wardrobe. There are a few more beige items and a few less black ones in my closet now, that’s when you know it’s getting warmer :) Oh, how I love my neutrals.
Putting my warmest and most seasonal items back in storage to make room for the spring & summer pieces.
I found my first grey hair!!! Well, potentially. I couldn’t tell for sure whether it was grey/white or just a very light blonde, and I’ve had the occasional rogue blonde strand in my hair for years. Regardless, I was pretty excited about it. It’s a strange thing to be excited about but I find it rather wondrous and beautiful to watch how I’m slowly ageing. Over the past few years I’ve developed some smile lines around my eyes which I really like as well. Ageing is something I feel like we’re supposed to be scared of, but I honestly find the changes in appearance nothing but charming. Worsening health is another story of course, but luckily I’m not experiencing any of that yet (and hopefully won’t be for a while, knock on wood).
Styling bookshelves is an ongoing struggle. I’m quite happy with the way ours look now, but I can’t help tweaking little things here and there anyway.
Bell pepper snack time with the boys.
I set out to film a video which I very quickly regretted wanting to attempt at all. It took all day to film (literally), it was intense, and left me with a monster edit I’m still working on. I really hope it turns out good!
The video deals with 18th century hair styling (obviously, haha) and I do quite like the way it turned out. Here’s a tiny sneaky peek :)
The brushout was hell this time, though. It was the most intensely set updo I’ve done so far and it took a while to get all the teasing out. Not to mention I had to shampoo my hair six times (!) to get all the gunk out. But it’s done and I’m glad I tried it!
Fighting over the empty yogurt cup.
This Saturday was Kingsday! It’s a national holiday in the Netherlands where we celebrate the king’s birthday by dressing in orange and selling our old stuff on the street. Over the past few years visiting a music festival on Kingsday has become more common too. A bit of an odd holiday, but we love it. The royal family visits a different city each year where they talk to the people, shake thousands of hands, and experience the city as presented by its people. It’s really quite nice!
Robbert and I first went to my hometown to check out the market, and then we headed to the NDSM wharf in Amsterdam to meet up with some friends. Someone had these makeshift bumper cars over there, which were amazing. So simple yet so effective, haha!
Unfortunately it was quite cold and rainy all day. We warmed up by this fire for a bit but didn’t end up staying very long.
On Sunday morning I started the day with a good workout at the gym. The rest of the day was spent cleaning around the house, and mixing songs for the silent disco we’re planning at the scouting in a few weeks.
Tonight we’re going to try to get in at the Game of Thrones screening again, I can’t wait. It’s bound to be an epic episode.
Have a great week guys, I’ll talk to you soon!
I would love more day in the life videos. Parks, museums, grocery shopping, some of the beautiful architecture you have there. Self care, spas, library, churches.
Love your videos. Don’t always seem them at the time. Usually I binge watch them
Hi Lucy,
Sounds like you’re at a place where you want to re-evaluate. That’s a great place to be, even though it feels upsetting.
Things are constantly in a state of flux, evolving and changing. Writing about bobby pins and pony tails and bygone beauty looks may be right for now, but likely it’s not what you’ll want to be doing ten or even two years down the road. It can be challenging to contemplate letting go of what has served you well for the last decade, a bit scary, a bit sad. But you and your life and your well-being are what matters here.
Do you remember Habioku’s hair site? She left it years ago. For a time she had a cooking site, Freshly Chopped into the Pot. She’s left that one, too. Life takes over and old projects take a back seat.
Whatever you decide, Lucy, please know that you’re an amazing, charming, intelligent, sensitive, caring and utterly delightful person and I (and all your fans) wish you the very best and will support any choices you make. All the best to you and Robbert.
You deserve some time off! Creativity is a gift and producing creative work is as taxing as any other job. Take care of yourself; you can’t contribute on an empty battery.
Compare creative work to trying to keep a bonfire going: at regular times you need to go to woodshed to collect and chop some new wood before going back to stoke up the fire with fresh fuel.
Love your content Lucy, as always. Make sure you look after yourself though!
Emma
I’m having a hard time myself right now, and your view of aging surprised, delighted, and cheered me! Thank you for that. I recently started getting a BUNCH of gray hairs. It’s hereditary, and I have black hair, so it’s very noticeable. Anyway, it sort of bummed me out, because I’m only 27. But seeing your view of it really made me smile and reminded me that it’s nothing to be upset over. I hope your creative flow starts back up when it’s ready 💗 Your readers will be here no matter what!
Thank you, Shalma! I think gray hair can be super pretty, if worn with elegance and pride 😄