Hello, Beautiful!
I'm terribly sorry for the lack of blog posts. I've had a very packed schedule working two jobs and only having one day off every two weeks - and on my day off I take that to run errands and get things done I don't typically have time for during the work week.
In a week or two I will have more time, as I'm quitting one of my jobs to focus on the one that provides more hours and that I enjoy the most (Valley Green Naturals!). Having two jobs, plus being a single mom and having a giant great dane puppy (on top of my health issues) is wearing on me and I can't seem to keep up.
I do, however, keep up with my Instagram @ValentineKissesBeauty (please follow me there if you don't already). Uploading on Instagram takes way, way, WAY less time than it does to pull together a blog post. A lot of people don't realize how long it really does take just to take the photos alone, which can take hours if I have multiple shades of a single product; lip swatch photos are the most time consuming. Then after you take the photos you need to process/edit them (and by edit, I mean I crop, straighten and add my watermark, followed by resizing for the web). I often take the photos, then test a product for anywhere from a few days to a few weeks, and during the testing time is when I'll process & edit the photos. Finally, after I have an opinion on the product, I upload the photos and write my review - often I'll schedule the blog post to go up on a certain day so I don't forget to upload them.
And while I LOVE blogging, I just haven't had a minute to even take photos of most products - which has slightly put my blogging on hold. I have products I personally purchased that I want to blog about and others that companies have sent me. I want to get them all up ASAP. May 2nd is when I should start having more time in my schedule - until then, currently, any free time must be spent cleaning my house and planning my son's 10th birthday (which will be on April 26th).
I hope once my schedule allows, I'll be blogging more regularly again - maybe not every day like I used to, but 3 to 5 times a week is my goal. I may even start a YouTube channel up like I been meaning to.... I mean, I have a YouTube channel (you've probably seen my makeup collection and/or beauty room tour video from a few years ago) but I haven't actually been good about dedicating time to it..
Anyhow, that's my little update. I miss all my followers and I'm so glad a lot of you are over on Instagram and we can interact there!
xoxo with love & beauty,
Crystal Valentine
