Blogger Spotlight: Daisy & Thyme

blogger spotlight: Daisy & Thyme

I bet you thought that I was done with my Blogger Spotlights didn't you?!
Nope! I just didn't post one in October as I had that month off from blogging :). You can read aaalll about that here.

Anyway, back to reason for this post...
November Blogger Spotlight!
This month I am SO EXCITED to bring you someone and something a little different. Someone who really does put her heart and soul into her blog, her passions and her hobbies. Margarida from Daisy & Thyme should be such an inspiration to us all. The way she uses her blog to create happiness in her own life as well as creating amazing things, a true inspiration. Over to you Margarida...

Blog
www.daisyandthyme.com

Social Handles
Instagram | @daisyandthyme
Twitter | @daisyandthyme
Pinterest | daisyandthyme

Tell me a little about yourself and your blog...
Hi, I'm Margarida, over 40, Portuguese living in London. I live with my beloved cat, Blossom. She is the cutest cat ever. I love doing crafts and putting together stylish and unique outfits. I'm passionate about travelling, photography, and very much enjoy cooking.
My blog is focused on finding happiness in daily life. Well, I’m an unhappy political/legal researcher on the quest to find a new direction and turn my life around. Daisy & Thyme is my space to document my journey towards a healthy and happy life. I’m taking on the big challenge of accepting and value myself more. It is never too late to be the best version of ourselves, am I right?! I’ve no intention to tell anyone what to do or prescribe my way of living. But, I'm hoping to help people, whether they’re suffering from eating disorders, loneliness or stuck in life, by sharing my experience, all while trying to find my
path. At least, people might be able to avoid some pain I’ve gone through.

How long have you been blogging and what kind of content can we find on your blog?
Ohhh, I’ve been blogging for less than a year. I've been working on my blog since 2016, going back and forth, but then finally managed to launch it in March. You can find healthy and easy vegan recipe ideas, product reviews, decor ideas, crafts tips and DIY projects, as well as my vintage and shabby chic finds, fashion tips, natural beauty and zero waste products, travel inspiration, low budget and solo travel tips, vegan travel guides, my wanderings in London, a variety of workshops, and more. Basically, everything that makes
me smile, with self-care and my struggles in between, low self-esteem, lack of confidence, anxiety, bloating issues, to name a few.

What made you choose to start a blog and why did you choose the subject/s you blog about?
My trip to Indonesia in 2016 turned out to be a self-discovery journey, and it has marketed the beginning of my recovery process. I’m not going to bother you with the details, but it was there that I decided to change my life. By questioning why I only allow myself to live without restrictions during my holidays, I figured out that I could, at least, attempt to apply the same "technique” to my daily life. While writing my travel journal, I also had the idea of creating a blog not only to share what makes me happy but also my new journey. In other
words, blogging is part of my recovery process.
I’m still stuck but... since I started blogging my mindset has been changing, and I do appreciate more the little things in life. So, I write about what I call my happiness seeds and healing techniques, namely my passions for crafting, cooking, travelling, photography and fashion and so on.
Let me give you an example, my creative activities have been playing a crucial role in my recovery journey. To put it in another way, I not only gain a lot of pleasure from doing crafts, but it also gives me a sense of accomplishment. When I’m making crafts my troubles might not go away, but, at least, it eases my feelings of underachievement, worthless and frustration. It makes me feel better about myself. Of course, I’m not telling you to do decoupage or start weaving but encouraging people to unlock their creativity and embrace its healing powers. Well, it might improve their lives, as it has improved mine. We
should have, at least one thing, which gives us joy in our everyday life, don’t you agree?
I’m hoping that by sharing my experience and craft ideas would be able to motivate people to do whatever gives them pleasure and lose themselves in the creative process. It can be so therapeutic and rewarding, not to mention relaxing.

Where do you find inspiration from for your blog?
I can find inspiration in pretty much everything around me, from cute little things to clothes, flowers, nature, fabrics, quirky shops, furniture, old pictures, books and magazines, not to mention social media, namely Instagram and Pinterest.
Did I say travelling? I’m always keen to learn more about different lifestyles, values and habits and immerse myself in the local culture as much as possible. I find it sooo inspirational. For instance, while travelling around Uganda, this summer, I had the opportunity of staying with families, local communities and visited several women associations. It was incredibly inspiring and gave
me a lot of ideas for my blog.

Do you have any big plans for your blog?
Nope, no big plans yet. But, I’m constantly looking for a new project to keep me going, that's for sure. Anyway, I want to start sending out newsletters next year as well as organising events. Yes, once a month, weekly newsletters are entirely out of the question.

Tell me about your proudest blog achievement.
Well, I don’ t have many visitors let alone working with brands, so any comment on my blog makes me smile. Being described, by people that I've never met, as a talented, creative, brave an inspiring person, deeply touched me and encouraged me to keep going.
And, of course, I'm incredibly flattered for being featured on your blogger spotlight.

What has been your biggest blog disaster?
Disasters? Where should I start… some of the pages don’t download properly, and I'm unable to fix it. I'm still writing about my past trips (couldn’t do it before launching the blog), I asked people to subscribe to my newsletter ages ago and never sent one.

Time is always a big discussion point between bloggers, how do you manage your time?
That's, without any doubt, my main problem. I do get frustrated due to lack of time. I work full time so only have evenings and weekends. I try to plan ahead as much as possible but then, if I managed to do 30% of my planned weekly tasks, I'm lucky. At the moment, I'm all over the place but determined to organise my time, in the best possible way. Between us, I've been put a lot of pressure on myself lately but can't forget that blogging is a hobby, something to bring joy into my life so... can't have a strict schedule otherwise I stop enjoying it.

Lastly, where do you see your blog in 5 years time?
Daisy & Thyme is meant to be a place to share, to find help and support as well as inspiration and motivation. I blog to help myself and others along the way. So, I'm hoping to create, should I call it a supporting network?! I would love to create a platform to empower women around the world, where they can share their experiences, their struggles, their successes, skills and learn from each other. It would be great to work with some brands too. But, above all, I'm hoping to turn my life around in 5 years time.

A massive thank you to Margarida for answering these questions! I really love how Margarida has used her blog to create happiness in her life I also love how she blogs about all of her passions! Her blog is a great example of being able to bring your passions to life and use those passions and creativity as a way to focus on yourself.

All photos provided by Margarida.

Amie xx

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about me

THE GIRL BEHIND FITNESS FORSTER

My name is Amie and I am the face behind Fitness Forster.
I am a freelance recipe developer, content creator and qualified personal trainer. I developed this website to share my passion for healthy recipes, fitness and travel.