Tuesday, January 31, 2017
January 2017 In Review
Wow January went by so fast, and it being my birthday month,
I really did enjoy every last bit of it.
I won't lie though the month of January can also be such a drag... cause everyone is coming from
Decembers silly season and they just wanna take things really slow.
I have been blogging for a while now and I have noticed that when I blog on intervals (e.g. Tuesday & Thursday) I tend to get lazy and I find myself not posting any content which happened second week January were only one post went up that week, gosh I was so irritated.
So I psych'd myself up to post daily of which I prefer.
I won't lie and say its easy, but someone has gotta do it.
I really do enjoy blogging and I think that I will now make it full time.
I have a lot planned for February including a few surprises, so make sure you follow the blog.
Side note: Finally reached 100 000 views and now my new blogs domain is
http://www.aroundsoweto.com the new blog name will make sense as the year goes by
plus I felt like inoutandaroundsoweto.co.za was such a long name for a domain.
Thank you so much for the continued support.
See you soon
xx
Zanele
Monday, January 30, 2017
Manicure Monday | AT IT 24/7
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| Mani Monday /// Weekend Catch-Up |
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| YARDLEY /// Gel Lac Nails Candy Floss 9ml /// R65 |
Gosh I love nailpolishes, and when I saw the featured nailpolish I knew I had to have it.
I love pink nailpolishes and I must say that this colour really suites me (side smile)
Wow my Bloglovin subscribers are really growing, maybe its because I post on the regular now, I guess all that being consistent advise is paying off because I have been putting it into good use.
This weekend was just chilled and bitter sweet my friend Khosi left for Durban this morning and I will be seeing her some time later this year. We did a mini goodbye party and we just chilled at Andiccio24 the Grayston Drive one, where we ate great food and drank a couple of Sangria's, ofcourse we didn't leave without taking the Red Velvet cupcakes as takeaways (captured most of moments on SnapChat - @zanelemondi), if you haven't been to Andiccio24 you are missing out.
I would like to also say hi to my people from Botswana I see you and I really do appreciate it.
Hope your weekend was filled with fun activities as well.
Lets have a great week.
Till tomorrow
xxx
Zanele
SHOP : HERE
Saturday, January 28, 2017
Weekend Reading
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| Zanele Mondi /// In Out & Around Soweto Blog |
Ooh what a week, thank you so much once again guys for showing me love and wishing me a happy birthday. I did snapchat on my birthday but things were not as perfect as I wanted them to be.
Finally dropped the long web address from InOut&AroundSoweto.Blogspot.com to just
aroundsoweto.com; the goal was once I reach 100 000 views I would get a more professional domain for the blog and I did just that, I would have continued with the free domain for a longer time but I reached my target quicker than expected.
The plan still is to blog Monday to Friday, but I find myself blogging on Saturdays aswell,
(which is really strange) however I do enjoy writing so I'm not complaining
Weekend reading
.
xxx
Friday, January 27, 2017
Foundation Review | Essence All About Matt Foundation Review
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| Essence All About Matt Foundation shade 50 Caramel and 60 Mahogony |
Mwah!!!!
I really thought that I had done a review on the Essence All About Matt Foundation hey, because this is my second bottle (tube) and I will be repurchasing another soon.
Here is why.
The claim:
Essence claims that the foundation is mattifying, oil-free gives a flawless and radiant finish, covers imperfections without clogging the pores. Essence also says that the formulation is long-lasing and moisturizing.
The product:
The foundation comes in a white tube and has a red lid, the foundation shade is also visible on the bottle my foundation shade is Caramel, and I use Mahogany to contour. The foundation has a slightly runny constancy and does not have a strong over powering smell
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| Zanele Mondi /// wearing the Essence All About Matt Foundation shade Caramel |
My experience:
I first got the Essence All About Matt Foundation as part of a PR package from Essence last year. Since it claimed to be mattifying I was really concerned because I have dry skin and all things matte end up ashy and cakey. So when I tried the foundation I was really surprised with the finish that it gave me. The foundation has a really good medium to full coverage and for a drugstore foundation I’m really impressed. The foundation does what it claims in the bottle and that is long-lasting and moisturizing, for a foundation that is oil-free I wonder how it achieves that.
My verdict:
The foundation is affordable, lasts a long time I just wish that it can stop transferring everywhere but with a setting spray it lasts. Great job on this one Essence!!! just bring us more shades on this range okay.
Essence All About Matt Foundation R79.95
SHOP : HERE
xx
Zanele
Thursday, January 26, 2017
HD Nude Eyeshadow Palettes Review
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| HD Nude Eyeshadow Palette 01 |
This will be a strange post because I bought these 3 eyeshadow palettes at Clicks for R35 from R99 what is stranger is that I can’t seem to find a page for them or site, the Clicks website does not even have them on their site. Ooh well I guess it’s one of their in store brands and there is no need to have them advertised.
So I bought the eyeshadows during the January sales, I got all 3 for a reasonable price and I get to extend my make-up collection especially eyeshadows because I really don’t use them a lot, I always stick to the nudes. Another thing that I wanted to try this year are different eyeshadow shades and play around with them more on my make-up looks.
I hope you enjoy my mini review
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| HD Nude Eyeshadow Palette 02 |
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| HD Nude Eyeshadow Palette 03 |
The good:
They are affordable, just wait for the sales then you will
get them at a ridiculous price. The packaging is also great, pale pink I’m not
complaining.
The bad:
The swatches look good on my arms, because they are a lot
lighter on my face so the color payoff on the lids is not that great. Tip, you
will need really good eyeshadow brushes that will pick up the shadows then the color
payoff will be great.
The ugly:
The palettes have 13 shades each, however most of the colors
tend to be on repeat throughout all the eyeshadow palettes and most of the colors
are on the shimmery side of things.
2-3 shades did stick out for me on each palette though.
The verdict:
So if you are a beginner in the makeup world these palettes
are for you as they will teach you how to blend, mix and match shades without breaking
the bank.
Hope you enjoyed my review.
Till tomorrow
Xxx
Zanele
Wednesday, January 25, 2017
Ooh Snap It's My Birthday
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| Zanele Mondi /// Ooh Snap It's My Birthday |
Happy Birthday to me.
Wow, I’m getting older now if you follow the blog then you would
know how old I‘m turning this year.
But as you get older then you would know that each passing
year is not really about counting the time that has passed but it’s all about
the experience.
I would say that the year that passed has opened my eyes to
many great opportunities and learning experiences.
I learned so much about myself, there was a time there when
the year began when I didn’t have a job I would apply for work left right and
center but nothing popped up.
Then I had an interview for a temp job cause the lady was
going on maternity leave and that interview I will remember for the rest of
mylife, because I was just myself and we spoke for ages with my interviewer and
it was nothing but laughs and tears, what I’m trying to get to here is just
this year I learned to embrace myself and my passed experiences.
I learned to work hard with small pay or no pay at all,
sometimes we like to place money in front of all things and yes in my past
years decisions were always based on money and this past year I learned to work
hard no matter what the situation was. There is nothing more satisfying than
know you have outdone yourself in a job and know that your clients and employers
are happy with your work, well that’s the cherry on top.
I made new friends, because I’m an introvert the online
world is a placed that I always turned to and blogging as given me opportunities
to meet people with common interests. I will forever be grateful for how the
online community has embraced me, so thank you once again.
I learned to be content, you know once you stop fighting
difficult situations and give everything to God I tell you things happen.
Grandpa, Mom, Dad I know you are always watching over our
families. Granny I love you a longtime mmmmba, my two dear sisters *Pammy and Cindy
I will always love you. My nieces and nephews Lolo, Gigi, Andy, Rhuba, Sdudla
you know I got you and Mr Xiks thank you. To all my other family and close friends
I love you (I don’t wanna start mentioning names cause the list is too long, and Google might think my site is findname.com
LOL)
*used their nicknames cause I wanna respect their privacy.
Tuesday, January 24, 2017
2017 Birthday Wishlist
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| In Out & Around Soweto Blog /// 2017 Birthday Wishlist |
Better late than never, wow I used
to love doing wish lists back when I began blogging.
I think that I need to bring them
back, what’s your take?
I have been eyeing the above
products for a while now and I think that it’s time I got them.
The products are on the super expensive
side of things so I will need to work extra hard for them.
So to my fairy Godmother *wink*,
please make these items possible.
P.S, Birthday is tomorrow and I
will be snapping my whole day.
Snapchat @zanelemondi
Xx
Zanele
Monday, January 23, 2017
Manicure Monday | Birthday Week Loading...
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| Zanele Mondi /// Colours Limited Gel Nail Enamel |
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| Foschini /// Colours Limited Gel Nail Enamel |
Birthday week loading...
Foschini nail polishes bring it for me, they only cost R19bucks but the quality and
longevity is just great.
My weekend was rather quite cause I was at work and did just
that work.
I didn’t have time to watch a lot of TV because I’m in a
content creating mode these days so I’m capitalizing on it.
I hope that you have enjoyed all the posts so far in January
and I must say deciding to post n a regular for me has been a great decision.
My birthday is on the 25th of January and luckily
for me I won’t be at work, cause seriously who wants to work on their birthday.
The plan for my birthday is to snapchat the whole day, and
hopefully that will also encourage me too snap on the regular because I don’t
snapchat at all.
My snapchat username is zanelemondi
Well that was a glimpse on my coming week.
Hope that we have a great, blessed week.
Till tomorrow
Xxxx
Zanele
SHOP : HERE
Saturday, January 21, 2017
FOTD and Weekend Reading
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| FOTD /// Zanele Mondi |
I posted this look yesterday on Instagram and people loved
it so, I thought that I should do a quick FOTD (Face of the day) post and include some weekend
reading aswell.
xxx
Till Monday
Weekend Reading
FOTD (Face of the day)
Eyes:
LA Girl Pro-conceal (fawn) - as eyeshadow base
Yardley Eyeshadow
Revlon Very Skinny Eyeliner
Essence Mascara - No false lashes
Face
LA Girl Pro-conceal (orange) – color correct
Yardley Defy Time Foundation – caramel
LA Girl (fawn) -Highlight ( Yardley absolute setting powder
to set highlight)
LA Girl (toffee) – Contour (Legit Bronzer to set contour)
Essence face powder to set face
Lips
Avon Palm Nude Lipstick
Friday, January 20, 2017
Foundation Review | Yardley Defy Time Foundation
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| Yardley Defy Time Foundation Review /// Shade Caramel |
It's Friday we made it, today I just thought that I should do my first foundation review of 2017 I hope that you enjoy it. I bought the Yardley Defy Time Foundation just when January began because this year I'm on a quest of trying new things so why waste time.
Yardley claims that the foundation has skincare benefits that helps fight the signs of ageing.
The foundation has idealife for a firmer younger, radiant looking appearance. Contains SPF 20 to protect against the harmful and ageing effects of UV rays and that the foundation is also medium coverage.
The Yardley Defy Time Foundation comes in a glass bottle that that has a pump and which makes it easier for one to control how much product they would like to use. I like that drugstore products are making pumps for their products nowadays, atleast our endless complaints are being heard.
The foundation claims to be medium in coverage which I agree but I'm happy that it is also build-able, because I prefer full coverage foundations. Being a medium coverage foundation on my first application I thought that the coverage would be mediocre but to my surprise
the coverage is really good.
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| Zanele Mondi /// Yardley Defy Time Foundation /// Shade Caramel Try On |
The foundation is water based which makes for a dewy type of a finish which is also amazing for my dry skin, cause matte foundations tend to be cakey when I don't use a primer that is oil based.
On my first application I used a foundation brush and I thought nah this foundation will not be okay hey as it was not blending well, washed my face sat down for like an hour then tried the foundation again this time using a damp beauty sponge to blend it in and the results where just amazing, just have a look at the finish product (picture above) """" da boom dot com"""" do people still say that!!!
Overall I'm happy with the foundation because it gives me a dewy finish which is perfect for that summer glow, and I'm hoping that it will still be good in winter aswell.
Yardley AgeDefy Foundation R179 SHOP: HERE
xx
Zanele
Thursday, January 19, 2017
Avon Advance Techniques Range Review
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| Avon Advance Techniques Range |
Good morning guys, hope that your week is going well and okay. Now that I am growing my natural hair I find myself doing a lot a research on products that work for my hair type. Doing a lot of Google research and following hair blogs has helped me get my hair to the length that it is now since the big chop 3 months ago.
So what I have been doing is, washing my hair weekly with a shampoo and then I condition my hair and now before adding my hair food before plaiting I have been using serums. Gosh serums can be expensive and when you find a good affordable one, girl keep it.
Today on the blog I review the Avon Advance TECHniques, which where sent to me in December and I have been using weekly following my current hair routine.
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| Advance Techniques /// Dry Ends Serum |
Advance Techniques Serums range review
Rapid Rescue Hair Serum:
Instant Repair 7, well the name says it all this one I would say is great for weaves and hair that is dry for days and has no movement and moisture left in them. The serum helps to strengthen, nourish and moisturise damaged hair.
Dry Ends Serum
Daily Shine, this serum is great for daily use but I like to use it after every 2 days so that the moisture content in my hair can be kept balanced because you don't want too much product in your hair. I love this one on my wigs aswell when they have dry ends I take my serum dab it a bit and the weaves are good to go.
Nourishing Hair Serum
360 Nourishment, this serum in conjunction with the Dry Ends Serum are really great, because it contains Moroccan oil and helps to strengthen, nourish dry fragile hair, and I don't know if it is just me or what but natural, unrelaxed hair tends do be on the more drier side of things and the serums surely do help.
Frizz Control Hair Serum
Smooth as Silk, I mainly use this serum on my wigs just before styling it and girl when I say, frizz bye I mean frizz bye. The serum just keeps my weave straight and looking great.
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| Advance Techniques Shampoo and Leave In Conditioner |
In the Advance Techniques Shampoo and Leave In Conditioner range I have been using the Daily Shine treatments to wash my hair with weekly, both the shampoo and conditioner are water based which just makes me happy.
Overall the serums smell great, they work great. Just be careful with that glass bottle because should they fall your serum are gone. I'm quite impressed with the price and the products functionality and I will most definitely be stocking up on them.
Daily Shine Dry Ends Hair Serum Regular Price R94.90
Daily Shine Shampoo R49.90
Daily Shine leave In Conditioner R49.90
However you can get all 3 products this month for only R109*
SHOP : HERE
xx
*PR/Gifted products
*Offer available in the January 2017 brochure available through Avon
Wednesday, January 18, 2017
Underneath My Wig| Natural Hair Journey 3 Months Update
To think that I will miss for a while my relaxed hair in a
high ponytail with
an extra load of styling gel is an understatement.
Thinking of it might just makes me wanna go back to relaxed hair.
I'm lying I had to cut my hair month end September 2016 because the same
hairstyle that I loved so much ended up taking a huge portion of my hair (bible
omg that is so KUWTK, I blame those December marathons). Styling gels are a
very tricky one, I mean they make your hair look extra shiny but infact just
sucks up every inch of moisture. I kept the ponytail and styling gel hairstyle
from February 2016 till September 2016 without changing hairstyles.
Fast forward to today I have the natural hair now for more
than 3 months. The first 2 months I just washed it weekly air dried it which I
still do and then threw on the wig cap then the wig.
Then in mid-December I began platting it because I could
feel that it was ready. I did the simple benny and betty hairstyle (ooh benny
and betty gosh just thinking about it takes me back nothing but great childhood
memories). I managed to plate 7 lines and have continued to do so till now,
hoping I get to 2 line by December 2017 (goals).
The great thing about my hair and hairstyle is that when I
go to the gym, I just throw the wig that side and throw in my bandana and I’m
good to go.
This post was just share What’s Underneath My Wig, hope you
enjoyed it.
Till tomorrow.
xxx
Zanele
Tuesday, January 17, 2017
New In | Yardley
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| New In | Yardley Foundation, Eyeshadow Palette |
So the "NEW IN" features here on the blog are like mini hauls cause I never really do hauls.
About two weeks ago I bought the Yardley foundation, eyeshadow palette and nail-polishes because this year I just want to step-out of my comfort zone and try new products and products that I really are foundations the higher the coverage the better.
To be honest though my local mall which is Jabulani Mall in Soweto does not carry a lot of variety in make up products, let me tell you quickly what their Edgars has Yardley, Revlon, an old selection of Rimmel products, Black Opel products that need updating aswell, and their in-house Design brand, that's it LOL I think that it's time I can malls and start going to Maponya Mall now.
I swatched and played around with the products and I will share my final look and review on Friday.
*Shopping information:
Yardley AgeDefy Foundation R179 SHOP: HERE
Eyeshadow Palette R110 : SHOP HERE
Nailpolish (similar) : HERE
*no affiliate links used, just links for information.
Monday, January 16, 2017
Manicure Monday | 125 VegasBaby
ManiMondays are a tricky one for me.
One day my nails be looking great as ever the next they look horrible.
Yesterday I attempted to do my nails again in this gorgeous 125 Vegas Baby Revlon Colorstay Nailpolish that I got in December from Revlon, (side note 125 January 25 my Birthday). From the first swipe I knew that the nailpolish will give me a finish that I wanted. Guys if you are not using a topcoat in 2017 then you need to stay in 2012.
Guys now you know that Manicure Mondays are a time for us to catch-up on all weekend activities.
I had the weekend-off and for the first time since 2013 I went to the gym, did my first weight-in and I'm standing at +/- 97kg, I’m quite tall but the BMI index is above 30 which means I’m over weight (I will get to this on more posts to come however for now you can wish me luck). The shock!!! Not really I was expecting it, I ate my way to the 97 kg because for a long time I was self-medicating with food. This year I'm like okay, okay now it's time I get some help not only weight wise, but psychological also, I will keep you updated on that.
On Saturday a close family friend was *lobolled, congratulations dear nothing but love for you and your Mr.
Eish my birthday is coming soon (25.01.2017) I really don’t know if I want to celebrate it or not but I will see.
P.S. Also came to a realization that posting Monday; Wednesday and Friday is not working for me, I rather post daily.
Hopefully you had a great weekend, and lets have a great week.
Till tomorrow
Xxx
SHOP similar : HERE
*You can read all about the custom of lobola here : HERE
Monday, January 9, 2017
Manicure Monday | Weekend CatchUp
Better late than never. I think this will be my last Manicure Monday post for January, I just feel like they are becoming repetitive.
My weekend was great the Joburg weather was just too nice, it just allowed people to stay indoors which was much needed after the long December partying season. I watched some TV not a lot I was just browsing the internet and unfollowing people on Twitter, following 11K people is so 2016, but if I unfollowed you by mistake people halla at me.
This year I’m trying new products some high-end but I mostly want to stay in the drugstore store level. This Catrice Nailpolish I bought it during the “January Sales” however it was not on sale, “January sales” hey you win some you lose some.
Anywho have a great week.
Xx
Zanny
Friday, January 6, 2017
2016 Beauty & Skincare Favourites
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| 2016 Beauty & Skincare Favourites /// In Out & Around Soweto Blog |
This week I guess was all about the light stuff. Before I start the new year of beauty reviews I just thought that I should sum up some of the products that rocked my 2016. When 2016 began I didn't know that my collection of beauty items would grow so much. Most of the products have been reviewed on the blog, and some like the Revlon PhotoReady, Garnier Fresh Radiance Boosting Scrub and the Almay EyeShadows have carried over from 2015 meaning that I have re-purchased them more than once (hides face). So without wasting anymore of your time will start clockwise from the Vaseline.
1.Vaseline Intensive Care Spray Moisturiser: here
2. Vaseline Healthy Hand & Nail: here
3. POND’S Flawless Radiance (Eye Cream & Night Cream): here
4. Essence Cosmetics | Lash Princess Mascara: here
5. Avon Super Shock Mascara: here
6. Garnier Pure Active Fruit Energy Daily Energising Gel Wash: here
7. African Extracts 3-1 Wash, Scrub & Mask: here
8. Justine Tissue Oil: here
9. Revlon PhotoReady Face Powder: here
10. BornPrettyStore Contour & Colour Correcting Palette: here
11. KANGOL Eyeshadow Palette: here
13. Revlon PhotoReady Airbursh Effect Makeup: here
14. Essence Stay AllDay:here
15. Avon Prime & Set Spray: here
16. Avon Lipstick Collection: here
17. The R19 Nail polish bought from Foschini: here
18. Avon Christmas Edition Nailwear Pro+: here
19. Almay Intense I-Color EyeShadow: here
20. Gamiss R100 Makeup Brush Set: here
*no affiliate links provided, just links for information.
Wednesday, January 4, 2017
Inspirational Quotes for 2017
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| Inspirational Quotes for 2017 |
I think that it is still early for me to start reviewing products, so I will just share some great inspirational quotes* to just keep us in the spirit of planning for the year to come.
This year things will be hectic so if we prepare our brains now, hopefully no amount of work will bring us down.
The quotes that I'm sharing today are some to my favourites.
2017 Let's do this.
1. Life is about making an impact, not making an income. --Kevin Kruse
2. Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve. –Napoleon Hill
3. Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value. –Albert Einstein
4. Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. –Robert Frost
5. I attribute my success to this: I never gave or took any excuse. –Florence Nightingale
6. You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. –Wayne Gretzky
7. I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed. –Michael Jordan
8. The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. –Amelia Earhart
9. Every strike brings me closer to the next home run. –Babe Ruth
10. Definiteness of purpose is the starting point of all achievement. –W. Clement Stone
11. Life isn't about getting and having, it's about giving and being. –Kevin Kruse
12. Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans. –John Lennon
13. We become what we think about. –Earl Nightingale
14.Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do, so throw off the bowlines, sail away from safe harbor, catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore, Dream, Discover. –Mark Twain
15.Life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. –Charles Swindoll
16. The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any. –Alice Walker
17. The mind is everything. What you think you become. –Buddha
18. The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now. –Chinese Proverb
19. An unexamined life is not worth living. –Socrates
20. Eighty percent of success is showing up. –Woody Allen
*Quotes
Monday, January 2, 2017
2017 Blog & Personal Goals
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| 2017 Blog & Personal Goals /// In Out & Around Soweto Blog |
Well done!!! We made it to 2017 and all I can say is, lets do this.
This year I plan on giving my blog In Out & Around Soweto more love, let us see how I do this.
1. Growing my readership. My current pageviews are just above 80 000 views and I plan on tripling this number in 2017, I can only hope right?
2. Work on quality content. Not to say that the content that I'm currently giving you is not quality but I always feel like there is always something more that I could have given on a post and this year, I'm giving that more. (***New posts up every Monday, Wednesday and Friday - Will be changing this when the year progresses to even more posts so don't forget to follow my blog via email so you don't miss a post).
3. Expand the blog. I would like to also work on my YouTube Channel this year, last year I did try but was not happy with what I was producing, 3rd time is a charm righ?
4. Spend even more time with the family. I love my family so much guys and this year I just want to spend even more time with them.
5. This one is very personal. If I don't put this out there then I won't do it (right), but I would like to start a weightloss journey this year, (lets see how that will turn out).
I hope that my mini goals will also inspire you to start your own journey.
I wish nothing but success for all of us all in 2017.
Lets do this.
xx
** Edit from the 16th of January 2017 I opted to blogging daily because having space in-between my actual post days really made me lazy and being lazy will just not cut-it in 2017
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