New name, who dis?
That’s right, after 8.5 years of Sartorial Scot I am changing the name of this blog and my social platforms. The new name? Pinot and Parquet.
Before I explain all the reasons and meanings behind the new name, I wanted to give a bit more context. So let’s dive into the past 8 years…
The History of Sartorial Scot
In September 2012, I was about to start university. I was 17, bright-eyed, bushy-tailed and full of enthusiasm for the world of blogging. My favourite thing to do was scroll through my bloglovin’ feed endlessly, as well as binge-watching my subscription box on YouTube.
So, of course, I wanted to start my own.
I named it Sartorial Scot because I wanted something that sounded fashion-y (it was at a time when The Sartorialist blog was at its height) but also reflected who I was. I was about to go to university in Glasgow, so it just seemed to make sense at the time.
It took me a long time to take blogging ‘seriously’. A lot of it was due to being scared to talk about it publicly, for fear of being ridiculed by people I knew in real life. And I’m sure when I did start sharing blog posts on my personal social channels that a lot of people did ridicule me. But when I look back on it all now, older and wiser, it was a silly thing to be afraid of.
It gives me a twinge of regret sometimes, to think of what could have been if I had the courage to work harder on this blog and shout about it from the rooftops from the beginning. However, I may not have got fame, fortune or 100k instagram followers from this little blog, but it gave me a lot of other life-changing things.
I got my first jobs in marketing because of blogging. I learned about social media management, email marketing, content management, photography, influencer marketing and so much more because of this little blog. What started out as a frivolous hobby is actually how I learned the skills that are now the basis of my livelihood.
So, I sit here now, 8.5 years later and I’m in a very different place to the teenager who set up a blogger account and posted blurry photos of makeup. So, it felt like it was about time for a change.
Why Pinot and Parquet?
If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen that I recently became self-employed and am working freelance as a digital marketing strategist and marketing consultant. It’s a decision that has, of course, been life-changing for me career-wise but also has just made me really reflect on what makes me happy.
Dramatic, I know, but it was a huge decision for me to make and let me tell you – I went through it last summer. Maybe one day I’ll write about it…
During this period of internal turmoil reflection, what never came into doubt was my desire to continue this blog, my Instagram and ‘content creation’ in general. However, I did want to finally take things a bit more seriously and really carve out what I want this to be.
So I thought of what I’m passionate about and can share content about with a bit of credibility, as I think that is important. One thing I don’t think will surprise you. The other might.
Interiors and wine.
Blogging about interiors has been a part of this blog since the beginning – starting with sharing my uni room set-up or talking about our experiences with renovating our house. It’s a big part of my life and something I will always want to share with the world.
When it comes to wine – this is something that is actually much more present in my ‘offline life’. I used to work in the wine industry, and while I wasn’t there for years and years, I did get to do some really great wine education while I was there. What started off as something I had to do for work actually became a true passion.
When I left the wine industry I went to work for a marketing agency, but I brought my passion for wine with me by setting up a wine club. It became this really popular social event in my work – I would source 4-5 wines around a certain theme and talk to everyone about them while they tasted it (..and we all got drunk). I hosted one every quarter from September 2018 until February 2020, when the Rona ruined all our plans!
I love talking to people about wine, but in a total non-bullshit way. I worked in the wine industry and I know first-hand just how pompous and exclusive it can be. I think it’s part of the reason a lot of people don’t engage with wine as a topic – it’s too intimidating.
So, I’ve decided to try and share more about this big passion in my ‘real life’ into my online life. And so, that’s how Pinot and Parquet came to be – Pinot after my favourite grape (Pinot Noir) and Parquet because, well, who doesn’t love a parquet floor? And alliteration..
Sartorial Scot has served me well over these past 8 years, and honestly it is quite emotional letting it go! But I think it’s the right time to make this switch and I’m hoping that for new people discovering this blog/my other channels for the first time, it makes more sense. Because, yeah, there isn’t a lot of fashion content happening here anymore!
You can follow me on Instagram on my brand new handle @pinotandparquet for all the wine and interiors content (plus sprinklings of general lifestyle). It would be lovely to hear any thoughts you have on the new name, what you’d love to learn about wine or even just a hello!
