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The LL Journal

Our Social Media Break & What We’ve Been Up To

May 15, 2021

Ever feel like you have to have validation in order to love your home? Or do you feel like everyone is trying to achieve the same look? When did you start feeling this way? When did the transition happen from being happy with your home, to feeling like you need(ed) to morph your design style into a specific aesthetic or category?

We unintentionally took a week or so off of social media just to reflect and to make plans for the future of Laine and Layne without the distraction or influence of anything or anyone else. The weeklong absence turned into over a month due to both Justin and I coming down with Covid. Thankfully, we both had mild cases and are finally feeling back to normal. Unfortunately, Justin also developed severe bodily hives and swelling for about four days. We are uncertain if this was due to the virus OR due to an allergic reaction from a medication. He has an appointment with an allergist soon so hopefully we will be able to determine the cause so we don’t have to worry about that happening again since it was pretty scary. Needless to say, the past month has brought about it’s challenges as a family, but we have never been more thankful for our health and excitement to get back to sharing what we love with a refreshed perspective…

When we first started this account in the latter of 2015, we started by styling, photographing, and sharing little vignettes of our home and products we loved (and sold in our shop). You see, when we first started this account, this community was completely new to us, especially coming from the wedding/motherhood photography industry/community. So what we were creating and sharing felt new to us since we weren’t influenced by anyone else… but somewhere along the way, we felt the constant pull to follow the masses along with all of the “rules”. Style and share what people love, not what we loved. Try and fit our aesthetic into this designer’s aesthetic because it was popular. Story a specific way on Instagram because it is what we were told to do. Honestly, I started to become frustrated and uninspired more days than excited with social media… and that is when I knew it was time to take a step away and just reflect. There is a structure we need to follow as a brand that is consistent, but finding that unique voice and remaining authentic is where we started to fall short.

So what did we end up doing? We pretty much dissected every room and started to put them together again, piece by piece, with items that have meaning and gave us a feeling of home without the influence of what we were seeing on Instagram. Instead of trying to morph our style into this style or that style, we focused on OUR style. I think what I am finally realizing is that it is OK to not be able to 100% define your aesthetic or fit your design into one specific category. We don’t have to morph what we love into any category. Subsequently, we began dissecting parts of our business the same way… where we could do better, be better.

We have learned a lot about our own aesthetic and what makes up good design in these last five years- how scale, placement, color and contrast, texture, all play a crucial role in design and what makes a room beautiful and we are happy with where our home is growing. But what I want you to know more than anything is that in order to love your home, you don’t need validation from anyone. Loving your home doesn’t depend on how many likes or comments or shares your home gets on social media, or who says what! Loving your home comes from validation WITHIN! YOU, your family, your loved ones, and who shares the space with you and how the rooms make you feel at the end of the day.

Current view of our living room.

Same perspective almost seven years ago… and guess what? I loved our living room just as much then. Goes to show you how much pressure and outside influence we put on ourselves huh?

We are so excited to get you caught up and up to speed on everything… we are also working on a new website launch that will be so much more user-friendly and on brand with where Laine and Layne is heading. More on that soon, but be sure to follow along in stories on Instagram- we have a reveal coming!

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  1. karen sunday says:

    That top picture is sooooo gooda!!!!

  2. Laura says:

    Enjoyed reading your post. Staying true to you is so important and your style is beautiful.

  3. Vicci Miller says:

    Thank you so much for your transparency…feels like the deep exhale we all need to take. ❤️

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