TLBG Meets...

This week we've been speaking to the beautiful Paula from PinkBow in our latest interview...

The team at TLBG love your blog PinkBow, but for those who might not be avid readers, tell us a little about you and your blog…

Hi, I'm Paula and I run the blog PinkBow. I work in advertising through the day and the rest of the time use this little space on the internet as a means of fulfilling my creative side through my interest in photography and all things style, travel, food and anything else that happens to take my fancy.

What inspired you to start blogging?

I was always an avid scrap-booker and liked to have a place to document my inspirations. Having my own site seemed to be the next best thing in this digital era and a place for other people to share also. What began as showcasing other people's images, led to my own interest in photography and now I share mostly only my own work. I didn't even know blogs existed back in 2008, when I discovered Style Bubble and Style Bytes and became addicted from that point on.

What’s your day job and how do you fit this around your blog?

I work for a local media company, in the advertising department. Running a blog could quite easily turn into a full time occupation, so running it alongside a full-time job is quite hard. You have to be very dedicated and really love blogging for the sake of it, blogging is very time-consuming and may not look it, but it is a lot of hard work. I try to stick to a three-posts-per-week schedule. I do most of my picture-taking at the weekend, that is my only opportunity for light in the winter months, by the time I get home on an evening from work it is dark. I also try to get in as much of the writing up of blog posts on a weekend if I can, or I try and fit it in around gym sessions through the week. Also, I find writing notes and posts on the Asana app on my iPhone is a great time-saver as I can be organised and write on the go when travelling to and from work and then just copy and paste into a blog post when I get to my computer.

We’ve noticed you’re a big fan of French beauty, what makes it special?

I think there is something so special about the French in general, they are stylish and effortlessly so. It seems to be a blogger 'thing' now to emulate French style but really I have loved French films and magazines for so many years, there is a lot to gain inspiration from. As a result French beauty products, the lesser expensive pharmacy products as well as the higher-end brands, are just amazing quality and seem to work so well on my skin. As well as having the chicest packaging of course - so important for creating a stylish bathroom beauty shelf.

What’s your skin type and do you have any skin concerns?

My skin is quite normal now. Although as a teenager I had combination skin, with a very oily t-zone that gave me quite bad acne. I would go to the doctor about it and get quite upset but it sorted itself out as I got older. Now my skin is normal, apart from the odd hormonal break-out and I can really use any product without any bad effects.

You have a fabulous lipstick collection, which is your favourite?

Of course I will always love Chanel, the packaging is so French, so stylish and so sleek. And MAC are also good for less inexpensive, daily lipsticks with a huge array of colour choice. But for the absolute highest quality I would go with Tom Ford. The colours and formula are just amazing. Expensive but well worth it.

When you travel, which products do you always pack?

I don't pack very lightly, especially with beauty products. But I do collect miniatures so have a huge selection to take away with me. I like the Aesop collection which came with a gorgeous case, a mini Bioderma, Chanel eye-make-up remover, baby wipes, my Clarisonic Mia (if I think I will be bothered to use it when away), a selection of eye creams and moisturisers and I love Jarvis toothpaste in Jasmine. Also I have miniature body products that I like to collect from staying in good hotels, it's always nice to have a little bit of luxury when travelling. And finally I always take with me my 'Sleep Kit' which consists of This Works Pillow Spray, Rollerball and Hand Cream, Nuxe Reve de Miel Lip Balm, my Holistic Silk Sleep Mask and some ear plugs.

What’s your guilty beauty pleasure?

Not really guilty, but my huge nail polish collection. I have a real thing for Chanel polishes, my collection is currently around 40. I really have to hold myself back when the new seasonal range comes out. But they look so good standing on a glass tray in my bedroom, they are little works of art :)

What’s been the most rewarding thing about blogging?

To be part of an amazing community, especially in the early days when blogging was quite new and so much more creative and less corporate than it seems to be now. I have had some amazing opportunities too, fun trips staying in beautiful hotels and I even once got to meet the iconic photographer Tim Walker.

What advice would you give to aspiring bloggers?

To make sure you are blogging because you love it and want to produce great content. And not just to attend events and receive freebies, this will be so obvious to the reader. To offer something creative and different is the only way of standing out from the crowd. There are so many blogs now, to try and stand out is so much harder than it used to be. But blogging is such a fun thing to do and if you've thought about starting a blog, I say go for it, it's a great hobby to have.