The Travelista Wins Highly Commended at the Cosmo Blog Awards 2014

Tuesday 7th October was a date I have had marked in my diary for months. This was also the case for 150 other bloggers from the UK and around the world, who had all also been shortlisted to WIN a Cosmo Blog Award 2014. This group of 150 bloggers had been whittled down from a staggering 46,500 blogs, outdoing last year’s figure of 43,000. Needless to say, even to be shortlisted is a huge achievement. I was honoured to make the cut into ‘Best Travel Blog’ category for a second year running and over the moon to scoop the award for Highly Commended Travel Blog.

 6.00pm – En Route

I made my way to the awards with my friend Sophie from The Part Time Vegan, who was nominated in the Food Blog category. It was Sophie’s first year at the awards so I was giving her a run down of the event as we approached the Oxo Tower in our taxi. The more I spoke about it the more the butterflies built up in my stomach and a mixture of excitement and nerves kept me slightly on edge!

6.30pm – The Arrival

With white walls, on-brand pink uplighting and rather hunky bar men, the long room within the Oxo Tower had officially been Cosmo-fied! The backdrop of The River Thames and St Pauls Cathedral was the perfect setting to hold the Cosmo Blog Awards and made for a great photo op. After checking our names off at the door, we were welcomed with a glass of champagne. Even though we arrived bang on time, the room was already swarming with immaculately dressed ladies (the dress code was ‘dress to impress’ and bloggers don’t do things by halves!)

7.00pm – Mingling 

Unlike last year, there were quite a few familiar faces  of bloggers who I had met the previous year including Nic from Nics Nutrition, Megan from ThumbelinaLillie and Hannah from HannahLeigh Vlog. I was also looking forward to seeing Kirsten from Kirst Over The World, a fellow Travel Blog shortlisted who I had met this Summer at Blogstock. I also had the pleasure of meeting some amazing new bloggers such as Louise from Style Me Curvy.

8.00pm – The Awards Ceremony & Winning Highly Commended!

This year the event extended into a different room for the Awards Ceremony. Lines of chairs with a central aisle faced a stage with projection screens and an easel. As we took our seats for the ceremony, the nerves started to build again. Cosmo Editor-in-Cheif Louise Court and Digital Editor Kate Lucey took to the stage and began to present the awards.

When my name was read out as the Winner of Highly Commended Travel Blog, I was in absolute shock and totally over the moon! Seeing my blog logo flash up on all the screens was totally surreal and I felt my stomach drop as ‘The Travelista’ was read out. I went up to get my award and posed for a photo with Louise, Kate and the Thomson Holidays team. I couldn’t stop smiling, it felt absolutely amazing.

9.oopm – Celebrate!

To top it all off, my friend Sophie also received Highly Commended in the Food Blog category too, so we were celebrating for 2! The Pinky Vodka cocktails at the bar (including the famous Cosmopolitan of course) were delicious and for some reason tasted even better as soon as we were celebrating! Never one to miss a photo opportunity, we messed around taking photos in the Instagram frame and agains the Cosmo Blog Awards back drop.

9.30pm – My Interview with Thomson Holidays

After winning the award the lovely people from Thomson Holidays asked if they could interview me for their blog. Of course, I willingly obliged! It’s always great to get exposure with travel companies, particularly when they are as loved as Thomson. You can check out my full interview with Thomson Holidays here. Along with Thomson, there were plenty of other fabulous brands in attendance, inviting bloggers to sample their products. I particularly loved Seekers of The Sun, who glitzed me up with a metallic transfer tattoo. I think they’re gorgeous and can’t wait to get some more for my travels to Malaysia later this month.

10.00pm – Goodiebag and Home Time

To top it all off, all the bloggers on the night were given a Cosmo goodie bag PACKED with gorgeous products to try. After picking up the goodie bag last year, I knew they were well worth sticking around for! So I made my way home with a Cosmo Award, a goodie bag and an immense feeling of pride for receiving blogging recognition from the women’s glossy that I have devoured every month for nearly 10 years. I created The Travelista just 19 moths ago, and when I first heard about the Cosmo Blog Awards, winning one seemed like a distant dream. But I put my mind to it, worked my ass off and believed in myself (if you don’t, then nobody will). So if you are an aspiring blogger reading this, just remember that if I can do it, so can you!

Thank you to all of my readers and fellow bloggers that voted for me in the Cosmo Blog Awards 2014. Your support is so appreciated and I absolutely love you all stopping by to comment. If you enjoyed this post, please leave me a comment at the bottom of this page! Jess xx