May Hidden Gem: TheBelleAdventures

This month's Hidden Gem is Zerina of TheBelleAdventures. I met Zerina through a Facebook group and love her content. Her videos have a style of their own and are fun to watch.

 

 

 

 

When did you start your Youtube channel and why?

I started uploading videos to my channel the first week of November 2013. I've always wanted to make beauty videos ever since I discovered the beauty community on YouTube around 2008. It was just something I didn't have time or equipment for until I finished college and found myself with so much free time on my hands. I figured I'd finally take the leap and start my YouTube journey. 

 

What is the main focus of your channel?

I mostly do makeup tutorials because those are the videos I enjoy watching the most. I'm in no way a professional, but I've realized having a channel is such a great way to track your skill growth, and I believe I've come a long way since I began recording. Other than that, I enjoy filming DIY videos as well. I haven't had a chance to do as many fashion videos as I would like, but hopefully that will change with the warmer weather. I've been thinking about starting a series on my channel and I'm almost done planning it, so I'm really excited for that!

What or who inspires you and why?

I get inspired by people in the community the most. From big gurus, to smaller channels. A lot of people might think running a beauty channel is superficial, but I see them as a vessel for empowering women all over the world. There's nothing wrong in being passionate about this form of art - but I especially respect those who emphasize the importance of loving yourself in your bare skin and feeling as confident then as you do with a glammed out full face of makeup. That's a message that I would also like my channel to portray, which is why I make a point of starting every tutorial with a bare face that I love, imperfections and all. Smaller channels inspire me in the way they keep going and uploading content even though it's so hard to get your channel out there and reach a wide audience. 

 

What has helped your channel grow the most?

Probably the relationships I've formed with other content creators. I love supporting other people and most often those people reciprocate. Joining Facebook groups geared towards beauty channels has also been a major helping factor. Other than that, I'd like to think the videos themselves are a big deciding factor whether or not someone will subscribe.

What would you like people to know about you?

 

I use to be a very outgoing person but over the years I've grown more timid and I have cynical sense of humor. Some people who don't understand this about me might see me as off-putting. I know many prefer watching content creators who are bubbly and loud, but that's just not how I am and I'd rather be myself than pretend to be something I am clearly not - that would be counterproductive and exhausting.

Where you can find her:
Youtube
Blog
Facebook
Instagram
Twitter
Tumblr

See last months Hidden Gem.

February Hidden Gem - WiMomMandy

This month’s Hidden Gem is WiMomMandy (Wisconsin Mom Mandy). I have been watching her for a couple of years now and love her content. She does fun reviews and unboxings. She is a mom and her adorable daughter can be seen running around in the background. 

She also started a Sampled Out project this year where she is attempting to get rid of all her samples from her subscription boxes. She posts mini reviews of each product on her Instagram

so you can follow her on her journey. 

Now let’s let Mandy tell us about herself.

When did you start your Youtube channel and why?
My YouTube channel will be 3 years old this summer! I can't believe it's been that long already! My channel started as a beauty subscription unboxing channel. I knew next to nothing about makeup and didn't really wear it much when i was younger.  After I had my first child I realized I was in my 30's and wanted to start taking better care of my skin and start wearing more makeup.  

What is the main focus of your channel?

My channel was centered on a novice starting later in life and trying new things.  Now that I've been amassing a collection over the last three years I'm focusing on using what I love,  getting rid of the things that I don't love, and deciding which products work best for me and I want to continue purchasing in the future.  I'm weeding the duds out of my collection and getting my monies worth of what i have! 

What or who inspires you and why?

Superfreaky1ru is one of the first channels I really loved and it showed me that you don't have to be young, skinny, and look like a model to have an opinion that matters  I love watching smaller channels! I have met so many amazing women from all over the country through YouTube and I wish I could meet so many of them! 

What has helped your channel grow the most? 
I think that although the videos that get the most views for me are unboxings (I think) most people stick around for my honesty. 

What would you like people to know about you?

I would love people to know that I'm a busy mom of 2 that works full time.  I don't edit my videos,  and I don't upload a lot, simply because I don't have much time.  YouTube is a super fun hobby,  but that's all it is to me.  I'm not on a quest to get a certain number of subscribers.  I don't advertise my giveaways, I would rather have 10 people who actually watched the video enter instead of 500 people who only are subbed to try and win stuff.  I appreciate every person who has joined me over the last three years and although I don't always respond to every comment i read all of them and try to answer specific questions.  If you are interested in joining me you can find me on all social media as wimommandy.  

New for 2015:

#SampledOut on Instagram and YouTube.  My goal is to use all samples,  deluxe samples, and minis I have in my collection before 2016. I give a mini review of each item I finish our get rid of on instagram and have monthly wrap up videos on everyone's progress.  I would say there are somewhere between 30 and 50 participants so far and anyone is welcome to join at any time. I'm also participating in Amber F's pan that palette 2015 challenge.  I post monthly update videos of my progress trying to use an entire palette of eyeshadow.  Also coming in the fall: subscription box showdown flashback! Three years ago I subbed to Ipsy,  Birchbox,  and Sample Society for 3 months and compared each service.  I figured out the sample values of each item and compared the services by their bottom line and your monetary return.  In the fall I will revisit this challenge and see how they stack up now and if the samples have really gotten worse (which is a complaint I hear ALL the time but suspect is just a bad case of rose colored glasses)

Where you can find Mandy:

Youtube
Twitter

Instagram
Blog
Pinterest
Facebook


See last month's Hidden Gem