Lifestyle, Uncategorized

New Years Eve 2018 round up!

by Rebecca Henderson

For the past few years I’ve looked back so I am able to look forward. I think it’s a good way to end the last 12 months and get an idea of what I want to achieve for the year ahead. So this is the third round up post I’ve done on New Years Eve that contains all my blog posts from the past year.

*POST UPDATED May 2022: Bright Lights Big City has evolved from being focused on PR to being all about travel, experiences, food and drink. All posts that are no longer relevant to these topics have been removed.*

Happy New Year!

Are you in or out to celebrate the new year arriving? Whatever you are up to I hope you have a wonderful time and welcome in the new year in style!

It’s been my second full year of blogging and I’ve come a long way from my intermittent posts in 2016. In 2017 I was listed as a top female PR blogger by Vuelio on International Women’s Day and blogged continuously for the whole year. In 2018 I started to grow as a blogger and I was shortlisted for a UK Blog Award in 2018.

This year I’m including a monthly highlight section to recap the year and pull out a few memorable moments. There is also a list of every single post I’ve written this year.

Monthly highlights

January

The start of 2018 was very exciting as I was in Australia. It was while I was on holiday that I found out I became a UK Blog Award finalist. What a great start to the year!

It was hard coming back to the UK after such an epic end to 2017 and start to 2018. Australia really opened my eyes and I vowed to do more and make the most of 2018 and get out more.

February

I decided to do my first vlog, a week or so into the month a switch flipped and I knew I had to conquer my camera fear. The next day I picked up my iPhone and started filming.

March

February flew by and before I knew it I was teaching myself iMovie and editing my very first vlog.

March was packed full of blogging events, I literally couldn’t keep up and it meant I had to split my second vlog into two parts!

I also had several mentions on PR Place over the last two months which I’m really proud about. Richard Bailey curates blog posts by PR thought leaders and it’s a real honour and privilege to be listed alongside some of the biggest names in the PR industry

April

I attended the UK Blog Awards as a finalist! I didn’t win but, it was a very interesting experience.

May

May was a whirlwind and saw local radio presenter Emma Jo Real Davies invite me to be on the panel at Emma’s Beautique hosted by Capital FM. It’s a Hampshire beauty event that brings together brands, bloggers and beauty fans to share tips and share all things beauty. I was thrilled to be included!

Also, I finally managed to see War Horse, the famous show came to Mayflower Theatre and I was invited to see it! It was incredible – what a treat!

June

One of my major blogging goals was achieved – I was invited though my blog to review a festival! It was brilliant and I loved combining my passion for live music with my blog.

I definitely started to struggle with putting the vlog together on a regular basis on top of work and other commitments. I fell behind massively!

July

What a glorious British summer! I went to see Jack Johnson Eden Project and Michael Buble in Hyde Park. And, on the blog I teamed up with Marks and Spencer, The Ivy in Winchester and Lush. It was a big month for blogging partnerships and something I am so proud of.

August

The blog completely changed – it was time for a new style that could cope with all the updates and changes I wanted to make to it. I’m really pleased with the new design and sliding carousel on the top – even if I can’t work out the correct size for the photos most of the time!

I also got the flu, properly, you know the kind you have to have two weeks off of work and you’re miserable, clammy and conked out. It was not fun.

Thankfully I was just well enough to head on holiday to Cornwall for a week.

September

So much personally happened in this month that I had to take some time out away from it all. I was gutted to take a step back from the vlog and blog but I had to do what was best for me. September wasn’t all bad though, I went to Cornwall for a lovely holiday and I took on the 30 day yoga challenge again.

October

I went pumpkin mad! I really embraced Halloween and enjoyed ever minute of Autumn. It also gave me some space to get back into writing again.

Wicked came to Mayflower and I was invited to review opening night. It totally surpassed my expectations and it is a lovely alternative tale to the Wizard of Oz.

November

The Hilton Ageas invited me for a fabulous stay over and spa day which was just the ticket after a very stressful couple of months. It’s a real hidden gem and I absolutely adore this wonderful spa. It also really helped me get focused with the blog again, like it reset my mind and allowed me some space to process, think and put things in perspective.

The Hilton was huge Harry Potter fan I was delighted to be invited to the advance preview of Fantastic Beasts – The Crimes of Grindelwald at Showcase Cinemas. This was a dream of mine and I honestly don’t think Showcase Cinemas had any clue to how much they made my week!

I decided that a year of vlogging is perhaps enough and that I’d have a break from it next year and do vlogs intermittently. So much work goes into them and it’s just so hard to manage it on top of working full time and a very full life. I’ve not posted my finished vlogs yet but the past few months are there are ready to go. Why don’t I push the publish button? I don’t know!

December

After spending last December in Australia and missing last Christmas, I was determined to embrace the festivities this year and make the most of everything. I became totally obsessed with wreaths and ended up with three in my house. Merry Christmas everyone!

What a year it has been, extreme highs and extreme lows. It has been one tough year, I can’t pretend it hasn’t been but, I survived and am ready for 2019 and a clean slate.

2018 blog posts

January

February

  • How KFC has dealt with a total cluck up! February 25, 2018
  • Creative Campaigns #25 – Iceland makes the most of KFC crisis February 24, 2018
  • The power of influencers – Kylie Jenner wipes $1.3 billion off of Snapchat’s market value February 23, 2018
  • Brunch at Vospers with Southampton Bloggers February 17, 2018
  • Meet the Professionals 2018 at Solent University February 12, 2018
  • Twitter posts first ever quarterly profit of £65 million February 9, 2018
  • The #StartingOut Series – Vlogger Brogan Tate February 8, 2018
  • I’m in the final of the UK Blog Awards 2018 February 7, 2018
  • Future trends in media relations – a webinar by Gorkana February 6, 2018
  • Kylie Jenner leverages birth for maximum PR February 5, 2018
  • Creative Campaigns #24 – Benefit’s #outofthisworld BADgal BANG! mascara launch February 5, 2018
  • Creative Campaigns #23 – Amazon’s Alexa loses her voice February 4, 2018

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

  • The September 2018 Yoga Challenge September 1, 2018
  • The September 2018 Yoga Challenge starts today! September 1, 2018
  • The September 2018 Yoga Challenge September 1, 2018

October

November

December

Yearly round ups have totally become my thing. I love looking at them to remind myself how far I’ve come. After all this isn’t a competition or a race, it’s a journey I’m on. I’m growing and developing all the time and a reflection of the past year is a great way to look at my progress.

You can have a look at what my previous posts for each year here…

New Years Eve 2017 round up

New Years Eve 2016 round up

UPDATE: I did originally write a New Years Eve 2016 round up but I think the internet has gobbled it up, the link has broken and I can no longer find it.

What have you been up to over the past year? I’d love to know, and read your posts. If you do a similar round up or have something you’d really like to share, pop a link in the comments section so I can give it a read.

Happy reading!

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