Behind The Blog featuring Traci-Ann Loves…

Hey Beauty Buddies,

Arriving home from work yesterday I was so moved to find quite a few of you had emailed such kind words of support in relation to my intro on Sundays Keeping Up With Karen. Can’t thank y’all enough for such caring messages – you all know who you are & I couldn’t be more grateful to have such an awesome bunch supporting me. And just while I’m dishing out the compliments… thanks so much to all who checked out yesterday’s post Makeup Revolution Iconic 2: Metallic Eyes. Some of you gals are really eager to invest in it & I’m pretty sure you’ll love it as much as I do! Don’t forget you can buy it in Superdrug or online if you’re an international customer or someone who prefers to shop from your comfy arm chair!

However onto today’s post & I’m beyond delighted to introduce y’all to one of my loveliest blog buddies… the gorgeous Traci Ann from Traci-Ann Loves. Apart from sharing a mad obsession with eye shadows, Traci-Ann is one of those bloggers I just instantly clicked with. She’s funny, sassy, knows her cosmetics, regularly stops by for fun beauty chatter & is always super duper supportive & encouraging. It’s blog buddies like Traci-Ann that I consider a friend I’ve yet to meet! So if you haven’t check out her fabulous corner of the interweb then get yourself over pronto & say a huge hello, you’ll not regret it 🙂

In only 5 words describe what readers can expect from your blog:

Honesty, humour, makeup, ramblings & stuff!

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What inspired you to start blogging?

I originally had a closed facebook group for my friends where I shared beauty tips and let them know of the latest products and sales. This developed into a public facebook page and from there a blog. I still have my facebook page and now have Twitter and Instagram which I use a lot. I also have Pinterest, Google + and Bloglovin’ which I don’t really get if I am honest but I am working on it!

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Tell us about your blog name… what made you decide on it?

I am currently on my third blog name! In January 2015 t was originally Tip-tastic TAS as I gave tips and my initials are TAS. This changed to Traci-Ann Blogs in October 2015 to make my blog name more personal. This then changed to Traci-Ann Loves… in January 2016 as I wanted to start doing YouTube videos and just wanted one name to suit all. I am hoping that this is it and I don’t change my mind again…changing everything over to a new name is a nightmare! Lol!

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Do you ever suffer from Blogger’s Block & if so how do you overcome it?

I do! If I am blocked I just don’t write and wait for inspiration to strike. I read a lot and peruse the internet as well as consider my current interests…usually inspiration will strike when I least suspect it! My blog is my hobby and not my job so it doesn’t matter if I don’t post for a few days or a week or so. I take breaks when I feel like it and definitely don’t feel pressured to have a schedule or post my content to a specific time frame.

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What’s your favourite post to date? 

I don’t have a favourite as I don’t post anything I don’t like. One of my posts that is my readers’ favourite and still gets hits every day, more so than any other blog post I have written, is ‘Decluttering the Blusher Drawer’ http://traciannloves.co.uk/2015/04/12/decluttering-the-blusher-drawer/  I am planning a decluttering series with some blog posts and YouTube videos which hope that people will love as much as they do this post. I am desperate to declutter so I am quite excited to get started!

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Describe your everyday clothes style:

I have three main styles. My ‘I’m off to work, look at my totally unflattering uniform’ style. My ‘I am not leaving the house and yes I will wear PJs all day’ style. And the other days where I always wear a dress (as I am too lazy to choose matching coordinates), tights and pretty shoes or boots.

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What are your current top 3 beauty items?

1. Urban Decay Naked Skin concealer. This stuff it just brilliant and covers everything without caking up. If I can’t be bothered to wear foundation I just splodge this randomly around my face and blend and it does the job just fine!
2. Lipstick! Any super opaque bold and bright lipstick…and coordinating lip liner of course! It finishes off any look just perfectly.
3. Face oil. I just cannot get enough and literally drench myself in it on a night. I am yet to try mixing it with foundation but YouTube assures me this is something I really need to do!

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How do you like to relax & unwind after a stressful day?

A bath and a bit of Netflix usually sorts me out. I love the LUSH bubble bars and I am currently watching Pretty Little Liars, The Goodwife, Reign, Homeland and Vampire Diaries on Netflix.

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Describe your ideal Saturday night:

I would pop out for an early dinner with friends, have a drink or two then go home nice and early, change into my PJs and curl up in front of the TV to watch Saturday night TV or Netflix. 🙂

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What do you do to relax?

I watch Netflix, surf the web and catch up on reading posts from the bloggers I follow. I LOVE NETFLIX!!! 🙂

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Everyone has their bad habits, what’s yours?

I pick at the skin on my lips and bite the inside of my mouth. I am also the queen of procrastination…it’s amazing how clean my house becomes when I have a project to complete or uni work to do! 😉

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What was your favourite school subject?

I am afraid that I didn’t like school at all! I tolerated it and passed the exams I needed to pass very averagely…but there was nothing that I actually liked doing. One of my most hated subjects was computer studies…I know right! This was back in the day when Windows was a mere twinkle in the everyday computer user’s eye and computers had black screens with green writing. I had a dot matrix printer and learnt ‘go to’ programming…I only managed to scrape an E in my high school exams and I vowed never to use a computer ever again! Lol!

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What’s your dream job?

I love the job I currently have! I am an occupational therapist and I work with people with brain injuries. It is a challenge that makes me laugh and cry in equal measure but I wouldn’t change it for anything. I would really love to win the lottery and spend the money on setting up a specialist rehabilitation unit as my client group have very limited choices when they leave hospital. I absolutely adore blogging but it really is a hobby for me…a space where I can totally turn off from work and do something totally fun and just for me.

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Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

I hope that I will have finished my MSc degree. I am currently doing it alongside a full-time job which is really hard.

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What top 5 things are on your bucket list?

I have never thought of a bucket list so I’m making this up as I go along!

1. Win the lottery – not sure if this is really bucket list material but a girl’s gotta dream!
2. Buy a house – run-of-the-mill for some people but this is a biggie for me!
3. Own a really massive car with ginormous wheels – because why not!
4. Travel the world for as long as I want and not have to worry about money. J
5. Write a book. Subject tbc! Lol!

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What’s your biggest achievement to date?

Passing my driving test on the 5^th attempt! It is one thing I feel the proudest of as I did not let failure stand in my way! My academic achievements are great, I got a first class degree, a bit of a change from my mediocre school grades, but nothing beats the freedom a driving licence gives me.

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Who inspires you?

People who are fearless and who do not take no for an answer when trying to achieve something.

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What top tips would you give to someone who is thinking of starting their own blog?  

Consider your reasons for starting as this will determine the shape and style of your blog. If it’s just a hobby like mine then just hop onto WordPress, get started and figure it out as you go along. If you want your blog to make money and be your job…well I can’t really help you there but I am sure some sort of plan and strategy is in order to make that work.

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QUICK FIRE QUESTIONS:

Tea or Coffee = tea

Coke or Pepsi = Pepsi

Messy mayhem or Super Organised = super organised

Cute kitten or Playful puppy = playful puppy

Night In or Night Out = night in

Heels or Flats = flats

Lip Stick or Lip Gloss = lipstick

Rock Chick or Pop Princess = rock chick

Paperback or E-book = e-book

Social Media Contact Details/Links including blog address:

You can find Traci-Ann at:

Blog: Traci-Ann Loves… https://traciannloves.co.uk

Twitter: @traciannloves https://twitter.com/traciannloves

Instagram: traciannloves https://www.instagram.com/traciannloves/

Facebook: Traci-Ann Loves https://www.facebook.com/traciannblogs/

YouTube: Traci-Ann Loves https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjfTLvk834D81Om60JdSHaw

Bloglovin’: Traci-Ann Loves https://www.bloglovin.com/blogs/traci-ann-loves-14656797

Pinterest: Traci-Ann Loves… https://uk.pinterest.com/traciannloves/traci-ann-loves/

Google+: Traci-Ann Loves https://plus.google.com/118350767601863812217

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Don’t forget: If you would like your blog featured on Behind The Blog then get in touch via the contact page by clicking *here*, I’d love to hear from you!

Thanks so much for reading & of course do say hi in the comments below… we adore a good chatter here on Confetti & Curves