BUDGET BLOGMAS | DAY ONE: INTRODUCTION | IN COLLABORATION WITH PRETTY PERFECT PRODUCTS

Hello and welcome to I’m NOT Disordered’s Budget Blogmas!

Today, I thought I’d do a bit of an introduction to the series and explain the inspiration and thinking process behind it. Plus, I’ll tell you a little bit of what to expect from the series…

A huge contributor to the idea of this year’s Blogmas theme was actually my Mum – so a massive thank you to her! And as usual, I kind of snowballed from her idea and created an entire series of Blogmas content!

WHY I’M DOING THIS…

On thinking about the topic, the Social Media Manager had suggested, I decided to take on the theme for a number of reasons:

1. So many Bloggers use this time of the year as an excuse to create elaborate gift guides full of items and products half of their readers may not be able to afford. This is one of the many reasons why I appreciate Victoria Magrath’s content on www.inthefrow.com because she tends to cater to her target audience and so the content and the price of the things she blogs about, are relevant and appropriate. Now, I’ve really enjoyed doing gift guides or picking out items and products which I would buy if I could afford it, but there’s a difference between letting your imagination run wild and giving your readers unrealistic goals and expectations.

2. I feel like having to budget over Christmas is something that is more identifiable amongst my readers with so many having a mental illness which is so overwhelming or to a degree where they’re unable to maintain employment. Of course, this isn’t everyone so when I talk about ‘budgeting’ and ‘affordable gifts’ I can – and will – take into account those who do have a job and their price range.

3. Budgeting can be important to feature on a mental health blog like I’m NOT Disordered, because a huge ‘symptom’ of Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) which I struggle with is the impulsivity and, for me, this manifests in spending money. And – kind of – ironically, impulsive spending through your diagnosis can exacerbate other ‘symptoms’ and leave you feeling ‘worse’ in some ways. Which contributes to the reasons why this is an area where people may need more specific help and support. So, I hope that through Budget Blogmas, I can encourage others struggling with impulsive spending or different money worries, to recognise that you don’t have to spend a fortune to be happy and to enjoy the festivities.

4. If you’ve been reading, I’m NOT Disordered for a while – or even if you just check out the previous Christmas posts at the end of this piece – you’ll know that I very much have the mindset of ‘go big or go home!’ So, with Christmas, I like to be able to say that I’ve gone ‘one better’ than the previous year in producing better – or even just more – content. So, considering Budget Blogmas, I looked at it as an exciting challenge and the opportunity to use more imagination and creativity when publishing content for it.

COLLABORATIONS & GIFTED ITEMS

As you’ll know if you’ve been reading, I’m NOT Disordered for a little while, I really love to collaborate with others because I’ve found it to be the perfect way to engage in new experiences and secure opportunities that might not usually be available. I’ve also found that managing to create partnerships and produce collaboratory work, has felt like an achievement. To be able to say that this person or this organisation believes in me and my blog so much so that they’ll associate their name and reputation with it; feels like a huge win! Collaborations can also be really validating, and they have definitely encouraged me to have more confidence in the content I produce and the ideas I brainstorm and create.

This Blogmas I have the honour of collaborating with Perfect Pretty Shop who have so kindly gifted me some of their incredible Christmas Planners and have honoured I’m NOT Disordered readers with an exclusive code for a 10% discount on their products by typing in AIMEE10 at their checkout.

As part of our collaboration, you’ll be seeing some pages of their planner being completed by a number of very special people (you’ll have to wait for the announcement of their names tomorrow!) to illustrate just how different Christmas can be for each individual…

To check out the company:

https://prettyperfectproducts.com/

Etsy Shop: https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/PerfectPrettyShop

https://www.facebook.com/prettyperfectproducts

https://www.instagram.com/prettyperfectproducts_/?hl=en