In our eighth edition of KOL Diaries
we meet web designer turned
full-time blogger @莲太太
She moves seamlessly from one busy task
to another, balancing time for
both work and play.
Here’s what’s on her plate in
a typical week.
Food & Fashion Blogger | @莲太太
Place: Shanghai
Occupation: Full-time Blogger
Active platforms: Weibo, WeChat, Luzhou
I’ve already been a full-time blogger for ten years. Back at the height of Taobao forums, I by chance became a Taobao influencer, a “Taobao Lady,” attracting many followers. I’ve been sharing my expertise in beauty and styling, starting with my NetEase blog, then Sina Weibo and WeChat public accounts. My long-time followers have migrated with me from one platform to another. I never forget why I started this—to create content sincerely—and that’s why my fans follow
I got up at 5:30 am and rushed to the airport for an early flight to Sanya for work. I had a quick breakfast at the airport, a beef sandwich, and an Americano. I looked over the client brief while waiting to board.
Arrived in Sanya, where the temperature was 35 degrees Celsius. I felt a little uncomfortable due to the sudden rise in temperature. I had no time to eat lunch and rushed to the hotel.
I arrived at the hotel and checked in. After taking care of a few things, I met with the client and headed to the venue for Tuesday’s event to go over the script for the live broadcast.
After having dinner in the hotel, I returned to my room to organize my notes for Tuesday’s live broadcast. I also tweaked the copy and arranged the photos for other Singles’ Day brand campaigns. There was nothing else going on, so I went to bed early, since keeping my energy levels up would be a challenge again the next day.
Woke up and showered, then had breakfast in the hotel: a slice of toast, a bowl of yogurt and cereal.
I did my makeup, looked over the script and product information for the live stream, and warmed up with my fans.
The venue for the event is a spot 600 meters from the hotel, a 5-minute walk away. The live broadcast is at 2:30 pm and we need to work with the venue staff and prepare the products for the shoot.
The live broadcast lasted one and a half hours. The whole event ended at 4:30 pm, and after that, I returned to the hotel to pick up my luggage and head off to the airport.
I was hungry when I arrived at the airport and had a Hainanese chicken rice set meal for dinner. The plane was delayed by 4 hours, so I edited photos and copy in the airport. Arrived home at 3 am the next morning.
Tossed and turned all night, but felt very satisfied to be able to sleep in until 10 o’clock. I was so happy to have a lovely brunch, and it felt so good to be back home! I had a simple vegetable, pork rib, pearl barley, and corn soup, which can reduce inflammation.
At the brands’ invitation, I attended the Giambattista Valli x H&M pre-sale event and bought some beautiful clothes. It was hectic, but I snuck off to meet a girlfriend for afternoon tea, the best way to relieve stress after work.
Lamb noodles for dinner at home. Today was a really restorative day!
Prepared for Singles’ Day: Dealt with the emails and messages that were piling up, and organized my copy.
My body clock woke me up at 8 o’clock. When time and circumstances allow, I do some yoga, which is very helpful for soothing tense muscles and lifting my energy levels.
Today’s breakfast was homemade bread and jam, paired with plain sugar-free yogurt, which is very nutritious.
I only had a half-hour to myself with my flowers and plants. Roses can pick up diseases very easily, but careful maintenance can help them bloom.
I played with my dog. Whenever you’re experiencing a lot of stress, the companionship of your pet is the best comfort. Later, I joined an impromptu conference call. At the end of the month, I have an interview at home I need to participate in. The interview will be about anti-aging skincare products, so it seems I’ll need to prepare again.
Pasta, chicken wings, and a salad of fruits and vegetables for lunch. So delicious.
Shoot with NARS today, and it turned out I had done enough homework about the brand, its product information, and its characteristics. The makeup photos need to be taken in the studio, an empty room I’ve already been using as a studio for a year. The results are still very satisfactory.
The shoot ran very late, so I had no time to cook and had to order takeaway.
When I don’t need to go out, I like to organize the content from the day’s shoot as soon as possible. The pictures taken in the afternoon were subjected to two rounds of selection, refinement, and typesetting.
Aromatherapy can stop me from feeling so tense at work, and at the same time, it can bring me a lot of inspiration. I tossed and turned until almost midnight. Once I was over 30, I began to pay attention to work-life balance. When I’m not traveling for business, I stick to a schedule of turning off my phone and computer at 11 o’clock sharp so I can rest.
Homemade pineapple buns and an Americano for breakfast. So delicious. While losing weight, you need to eat fewer high-calorie foods, even if it means giving up butter.
Shooting on location today. After breakfast, I had a meeting to discuss the location and direction for the shoot. I prepared two looks. Generally, to ensure the quality of the shoot, I don’t shoot more than three outfits a day. Although this isn’t productive by the standards of many fashion bloggers, I have such a small team that as long as I can work to the best of my ability, I am very satisfied.
No time for lunch, so I boiled some noodles, ate a little, then got ready to head out. In the winter, the days are very short and daylight is limited, so we need to complete the shoot within three hours.
Today I chose to shoot on Shanghai’s Wukang Road. Although today marks the beginning of winter, it is still a little hot in the afternoon sun. The two looks I shot today are both for winter, and the plush coat was very warm. There were also some small mishaps during the shoot. Because I needed coffee to use as a prop, I didn’t have time to shoot the second look in the sun. But even with shooting later, the result was still a good one.
Hurried home. The journey was a two-hour round trip. Bought a box meal from FamilyMart and when I got home I ate my food while getting to work selecting, editing, and typesetting photos.
I used to work as a web designer, earning a modest salary, often working overtime until the early hours, and later met my future husband. Ten years ago, it was not easy for us to start our own business. We also moved house several times because of economic constraints. But being able to do what you like with the people you like is also a kind of satisfaction.
This includes opening an online store and becoming a forum moderator. Using my artistic skills and love for beauty. Maintaining a consistently high standard for the quality of forum posts. Continuously updating my blog and building popularity. Then switching to Weibo and cooperating with one well-known makeup or fashion brand after another. Everything seems so natural, but only we know that every step is the result of our persistence and hard work.
I used to take time management seriously; 99 percent of my time was spent working and I ended up getting sick. I started to return to normal through exercise. Once I had recovered physically, I would prefer to go climbing, fishing, or camping with my family when I was not working. These dopamine-producing activities are far more effective than spending money trying to buy happiness.
This year, I started to learn to slow down. Reading, painting, and watching movies can calm my impetuous heart, giving me space to think more and gain more inspiration than before. The future I long for is to still do things I like with people I like, just like ten years ago.
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