Hey there, well we are nearly at the end of our Makers Month and today we are chatting to the lovely Joanna from Adventures & Tea Parties about her instagram #ColourMyEveryday project she did for the first time this year. We thought you lovely lot would like to find out more too and so we had a nosey around for you.
Tell us a little about you and Adventures & Tea Parties
Hi, I’m Joanna from Adventures & Tea Parties, a creative lifestyle blog and accessory brand. I’m a fan of all things creative, obsessed over music, like my tea very strong and one day I’d like to own a dog – I’ve already decided on the name!
I run my business full time as well as being a freelance writer and photographer. In spring 2016, I turned my life upside down (in a good way) and moved to beautiful Somerset, where I’ve thrown myself into all things creative, including becoming an Etsy team leader, going on courses (next up is a book art course, then lino printing) and making wonderful, creative friends. And, those friends encouraged me to run my first ever Instagram challenge, #ColourMyEveryDay.
How did the #ColourMyEveryDay tag come about?
Being colour obsessed (one of the themes in my shop designs), I had been looking for a colour themed Instagram challenge to take part in but I just couldn’t find one. So, I got thinking one day, why don’t I create my own challenge!
What did you want to achieve from it?
With the challenge my main goal was to discover and appreciate colour every day by seeking it out in everyday items, in the great outdoors, around the home and sharing my findings with fellow colour obsessed folk on Instagram. I hoped that a handful of people, mainly my mates, would join in but it evolved into something bigger than that.
Has it exceeded your expectations?
It totally has! I honestly couldn’t believe how many people got excited about joining in and then did join in, with more and more people getting involved and sharing their wonderful photos as the word spread about the challenge. It far from exceeded my expectations; it blew my mind and I loved how engaged everyone was, liking, commenting and most of all, encouraging each other. I knew Instagram had a strong community vibe but the challenge really emphasised that for me.
What else has come from the insta tag?
Before I started the challenge, I had never designed a graphic in Photoshop before but to advertise the challenge, I had to learn how to use it. That was a huge lesson but it gave me the confidence to do something I’ve been wanting to do for ages, design my first enamel pin. And so, as the challenge gave me confidence to do just that, I decided to base my first pin design on #ColourMyEveryDay
As well as increasing my own skill set, the challenge led me to meet many more like-minded people on Instagram and a request to run a photography styling workshop, which is exciting!
What would be your top tips for someone planning their own tag project?
First up, choose a theme or topic that you’re passionate about and that you want to do. Secondly, plan it well in advance and thirdly, give your followers plenty of notice of the start date and the prompts; lots of followers like to plan their shots in advance.
Would you do it again?
I certainly would! It was such a wonderful experience and has led to things I had never imagined would happen when I was grappling with Photoshop to create that graphic.
What are you planning next?
I have lots of plans for #ColourMyEveryDay. In fact, the prompts for a week-long challenge that starts on Sunday 22nd October will be released on 1st October, where we can explore the gorgeous colours of autumn and with the launch of my brand-new website too, I now have an entire area dedicated to the exploration of colour and the challenge itself. I plan to fill this with lots of colour themed fun, so watch this space!
We love a bit of colour over here at LiLiMi, which is ironic as both of us mainly dress in black and grey! ha ha. But we do love to see a new # come along and make everyone think more brightly about Instagram. It should be about sharing and fun, rather than feeling that people are not looking. Which I know is hard when you run a business, but the more fun you make it, people will follow, maybe eventually.
see you in October!
H & Sammy
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