Why I've mostly stopped using Instagram

I joined Instagram a long time ago, way back in 2012 and at that time it was very quiet. I followed other bloggers, they followed me back, and I posted pictures of things that reflected my blog. They weren't people that I knew personally so I didn't post many photographs of the family or identifiable locations, instead I shared craft projects, nice cakes, pretty views and so on. 

Now that more and more people have joined Instagram I have quite a few people that I know in real life following me, especially since it became more integrated with Facebook. This makes me feel a bit more self-conscious about what I'm posting, and although I follow back people that I know I don't actively seek them out. 

A few years ago I had a big cull and unfollowed a lot of accounts which worked really well and I had a beautifully curated feed. But lately I find the photographs less inspiring, it's more about the selfies and making life look perfect rather than the pretty little snippets of everyday life that I like to see. I also lament the loss of the original square photo format, and sometimes every other post seems to be an advert. 

Photo credit Souvik Banerjee via Unsplash

When the reels came along that was the beginning of the end for me. 

I really hate reels, along with other short form video content like YouTube shorts and TikTok. I like to scroll in silence so sudden loud music alarms me, and they are also very addictive - once the algorithm has got your measure it doesn't let you go. It's not a posting format that comes naturally to me, and I just can't compete with the creativity on offer. I also discovered that mindlessly watching one video led to a whole feed of similar videos, in my case it was gender reveals which I just couldn't get rid of!

I still pop into Instagram from time to time but I'm not sure I'll ever be a regular user again, it has just changed too much from what I want it to be!

Some of my favourite Instagram accounts for beachcombers

I've been trying to stay away from social media a little bit lately, but I love a quick Instagram binge every few days. I've had a good sort through the accounts that I follow and I'm very happy with my current Instagram feed. I follow lots of crafters, and people that post pretty things like fabric creations, nice views and lovely cakes. 

Recently on my own Instagram account I've been posting lots of pictures of the things that I've found while beachcombing, and when choosing some hashtags I came across some accounts which were posting pictures that I loved, so I thought I'd share a few accounts I've been following recently in case you are also a beach and sea enthusiast!

I discovered smartie_lids_on_the_beach when I was sharing some beach plastic that I had found, and it inspired me to make my own beach plastic collage. Michelle is an artist from Cornwall and she makes beautiful art using the discarded beach worn plastic that she finds on local beaches. I love looking at the pictures of her colourful collages.

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A post shared by Michelle Costello (@smartie_lids_on_the_beach)

tidelinetrashandtreasures is another account sharing colourful beach plastic art, and this one is particularly relevant to me because Carmen is local and visits the same area of beach that I do. I also just saw that they sell their gorgeous work at the farmer's market that I visit from time to time, so I will look out for them the next time I am there!

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A post shared by Carmen Haselup (@tidelinetrashandtreasures)

lorileethomasart also shares beach art, but also using natural objects and lots and lots of sea glass. I always hunt for sea glass and I have a modest collection but nothing like this! I would also love to find some sea pottery one day.

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A post shared by Lori-Lee Thomas (@lorileethomasart)

Finally I wanted to share lightkeepersdaughter709. This account also shares some gorgeous sea glass and sea pottery.

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A post shared by lightkeepersdaughter (@lightkeepersdaughter709)

I love seeing wonderful beachcombing pictures popping up in my Instagram feed. It makes me want to get back down the beach and start hunting!

Do you follow me on Instagram?

Being a blogger I try to keep on top of various different social media channels, and Instagram is always the one that I struggle with. Instagram is very competitive, and it's one that it's easy to game by buying followers or using a bot to automatically follow and unfollow other users to grow quickly.  There is also a lot of pressure lately to publish only carefully edited photos which co-ordinate with your perfectly curated feed. 

But I've recently decided that I want to get back into using Instagram again. I love scrolling through and seeing the photos that catch my eye. I'm especially drawn to anything colourful and crafty, and that's the kind of photos that I want to share on my own account. I also love putting together Instagram stories and sharing little snaps from my day, especially if we are out and about or doing something fun and interesting. I'm discovering that there are some lovely communities over there if you take the time to spend a few minutes interacting.

So if you don't follow me on Instagram I'd love you to pop over and give my feed a visit, and if you like my photos it would be wonderful if you would subscribe!

You can find me here - Jennifer Jain on Instagram - and if you drop me a comment, either here or over there, I'll be more than happy to follow you back!

Creating a perfect life for Instagram?

I've recently ventured into the world of Instagram stories. I'm loving watching them, and learning how to put together my own creative stories. I'm not one for talking directly to camera, so mine are snapshots of things that I've been up to and things that I've seen, generally accompanied by a few lines of text. I also love embellishing them with little graphics, pointy arrows and so on. If you want to check them out you can find me here - Jennifer Jain on Instagram. I've even made little buttons for highlighted categories!

However, as I take my Instagram photos and set up my stories, I am very conscious of the fact that most of the time, as well as selecting what is on display I'm also choosing what to leave out. I might take a close up of a bowl of homegrown strawberries on the table, cropping out the mess on the counters behind. I take a carefully composed shot of my legs propped up in the sunshine with no wobbly bits on display, and my pictures of our vegetable patch certainly don't highlight the weeds.

So although my Instagram shots are showing off my daily life, in truth it's not as honest as it might appear. I might not spend nearly as long curating my Instagram feed as other bloggers do, but I'm definitely thinking carefully about what I'm sharing. I usually post one photograph per day and it's showing a highlight - like a fun family moment shared around the firepit, not a family moment spent shouting at the children to get dressed and brush their teeth!

Last weekend we went camping and hired a fire pit, we liked it so much that this weekend we went out and bought our own for the garden! #epig #snaphappybritmums #firepit #firepitseason

A post shared by jenniferjain (@jenniferjain) on Jun 9, 2018 at 12:24pm PDT

But the truth is that I don't want to be sharing photos of the messy or miserable parts of life. I think that as long as you understand that people are only sharing their best moments on line - whether it's Instagram, or Facebook, or on their blog - people want to see happy photos. And I'll be honest, occasionally the prospect of sharing something on Instagram will get me to go and and do something different - to go for a wander by the beach, to pick up a craft project, or to spend a bit of extra time decorating a cake. And that's not a bad thing!

CLOSED Sugru Giveaway - Join in with our creative community on Instagram

Nicola at Me, You and Magoo and I have been hosting the Crafting is my Therapy hashtag on Instagram for a few months now, and we are so pleased with how many people have been joining in! We've had some really gorgeous crafty images linked up, and it's been brilliant to follow people's progress as they post updates on their projects.

The hashtag changes each month, and at the end of the month Nicola and I will share our favourite images from the month.

This month we are delighted to welcome Jen from Craftic as a co-host. Craftic is a fantastic resource for crafters packed with tutorials for simple projects that you can make using bits and pieces from your craft stash. Follow Jen on Instagram to see some of her beautiful crafty ideas.

We are also very excited to announce that for the month of July we will be running a giveaway.

Sugru have provided us with a Create and Craft Kit to give away to one lucky person. To be in with a chance of winning, all you need to do is to share a crafty photograph on Instagram using the hashtag #craftingismytherapy_july (please see full terms and conditions below).

Sugru is a brilliant product for crafters. You can see some of my Sugru projects in my Sugru crafts round up, and you can see some more great crafty ideas using Sugru on the Sugru blog. I'll also be sharing some of my favourite Sugru craft projects on Instagram over the month under the #craftingismytherapy_july hashtag.

So hop over to Instagram and check out the hashtag - we'd love to see you there!

Giveaway terms and conditions

The prize is a Sugru Create and Craft Kit.

To enter the giveaway you must tag at least one relevant photograph on Instagram with the hashtag #craftingismytherapy_july. 

At the end of the month we will pick a winner at random from everyone that has used the hashtag.

The winner will be contacted by direct message on Instagram. If the winner does not respond within 14 days then we reserve the right to reallocate the prize.

The prize will be provided and dispatched by Sugru.