Vero wrote a really good piece today about the relationship between bloggers and PRs. It was mainly in regards to technology journalism, but the points are valid across everything and the comments bring up really interesting points from both sides.

I don't think it comes as a surprise that the PR / blogger relationship can be strained, and the fault lies on both sides.

I have friends in PR, I have friends who blog and I have friends who work in print media. All of us are battling it out for our little piece of the pie, and we all have to remember one thing about each other. It's my motto for life, which I repeat to myself whenever things don't work out how I planned.

They're Just Doing Their Job.

For every PR that sends me info on a security tether after contacting me about a shoe website (this actually happened and she got very hostile when I said it wasn't relevant) there's one who couriers over a lipstick last minute so I can fill a gap in my video. For every PR who won't return my phonecall when I ask for information on a product, there's another who takes me to Nobu for dinner to talk about their new clients.

Similarly, for every PR who calls me to check what I'm working on so (s)he can send me relevant press releases or samples, there's one who tells my colleague they won't send anything to Catwalk Queen (even images) because they're 'not doing online'.

[I will happily name and shame Oasis at this point, because I think it's an absolute travesty that they're missing out. I've since had a better experience with the online marketing department, but it's still a real shame they won't see the light, especially since they have an e-commerce site. I know the PR who said that was Just Doing Her Job, but there are a million eager fashionistas eyeballing our content each month, and since that phonecall, we've more or less boycotted the brand in favour of the ones who actually invite us to their press days.]

By nature, bloggers write opinions, they're honest and they don't hold back. The freedom of blogging vs print media is what appealed to me in the first place. I know we're a bit scary because we won't pander to people quite so easily. We're also a bit contradictory. We want to be treated with the same respect as press, but at the same time, we don't want to be treated like press. We want to be recognised for what we are. A new breed of writers who bring together old skills and new ideas in order to deliver content in a new way.

But those 'weaknesses' are also our strengths. If a product is good, blogger buzz can really sell it. Plenty of people have now realised the power of 'underground' buzz from new influentials (argh, jargon-speak) and witnessing the PR about turn has been really fantastic for me. All I've ever asked is that PRs show some kind of interest in understanding bloggers, and that definitely seems to be the case (as a whole) now. So for those who're out there flying the flag for good PR practice, thanks. Those who aren't...go to your clients, tell them about blogs and get them to invest some money in targeting them.

Contrary to popular belief, we're not just in it for the freebies.

I dream of one day having a house big enough to store all the things I wish I had. I collect a few things already; shot glasses, hair accessories, Escada perfume bottles, sunglasses and things with butterflies on. But there are so many things I wish I could hoard alongside those. Las Vegas memorabilia, vintage movie posters, Varga girl prints, vintage sewing patterns...and the latest, limited edition Barbies.

I first went through this phase about five years ago, when I wrote a feature on the evolution of Barbie as part of my final University project. Jenni bought me a book full of collectors (ie adult) Barbie dolls and I became obsessed. I used to search ebay on a daily basis trying to find the doll I still maintain will be the basis of my collection. The rule was I couldn't buy any more until I had this one. It's Barbie dressed in the Dior 'New Look' suit from 1947. The Ultimate Fashion Moment in miniature, if you will. Who cares if Babs is genetically impossible and so busty she'll fall over. She looks good in couture.

Yep, even I sometimes worry that I am becoming a parody of myself.

Anyway, if anyone knows how I can get hold of it, that'd be lovely. It's my birthday in a couple of weeks...

ps. Dear eBay sellers, those '40s style tea dresses' you're selling as vintage for upwards of a tenner? We know they're from BHS in the early 90s. They're still ugly.

Fact: Digressica's post about London knife crime says everything I want to say about London knife crime, but in a much funnier way. If I address the subject, I am likely to lapse into a long rambling post about my knife / blade phobia, which will involve me saying things like 'but I don't have problems buttering my toast'. Nobody wants that.

So, onto something a little more fluffy, because that's what is expected of me. I have a question. I'm slowly becoming an old lady, so I figured it was time to embrace that. I knit. I sew. I buy cider so I can put it in Somerset pork casserole, rather than so I can get ratted mid-week.

Next up, I figure I need to hone my ballroom dancing skills. That seems like the logical next step, no?

I'm ok with latin. I did a fair interpretation of the Cha Cha Cha with my dad at a dance a few weeks ago (no, you really did just read that right) so I'm ready to move up in the world. Where can I learn to do the American Smooth? I want to be like Kelly Brook (left), all Ava Gardner curls and Marilyn curves and amazing frocks.

I will need a partner, of course. Preferably someone who looks like William Holden and dances like Fred Astaire.

Email me if you can help...

A few things to talk about that have happened recently...

Firstly, last Saturday I went to Hard Rock Calling, the most unfortunately named London 'festival' ever. You can read about that here.

I also went to Nobu, the fantastically overpriced but wonderful Japanese restaurant at the Metropolitan Hotel. You can read all about that here.

This weekend, I've mostly been playing my beloved Nintendo Wii and anticipating Doctor Who. The Who anticipation wasn't really worth it since I predicted what was going to happen almost to the letter, but,in usual RTD style, it was a very neat and tidy, emotional finale that ticked all the fangirl boxes while successfully pissing off anyone who wants any kind of scientific backing to support all the 'wibbly wobbly timey wimey' stuff.

Ironically, that's a quote from a Steven Moffat episode.

And then there's the Wii. Ah, the Wii. I've only had it for about a month and already I'm on my third galaxy on Mario Galaxy, I'm halfway through Guitar Hero on hard (that orange fret button will be the end of me) and I've just added Lego Indiana Jones and The Sims 2 Castaway to my games collection.

I can't buy anything else, ever.

I'm a bit concerned I'm not going to like the Lego game. I should probably have tried Star Wars first before throwing away £30 on this, but I think it'll grow on me. I can always flog it on eBay if I don't like it, I suppose.

Now I'm just trying to convince myself that buying a Wii fit is a complete waste of money when I have a gym membership I never use.

I keep getting emails from a certain pair of friends relating to Doctor Who. The last one didn't even have a message body, it just said 'why isn't it Saturday yet?!'

It's finally dawned on me that going to the RSC to see Hamlet in August with the pair of them probably wasn't the best idea. Now, I'm as big a David Tennant fan as your next hot-blooded, geeky female. But those two take it to another level entirely. There is bouncing involved.

At the RSC at the moment they're using a smaller, temporary theatre. Mom was there recently to see A Midsummer Night's Dream and apparently it's amazing. We're sat in the third row. For this...


Did I mention Patrick Stewart is also in it? It's going to be geek city. Mon dieu!

It's been a week since the Panorama documentary on Primark aired, so I think enough dust has settled for me to comment on what happened afterwards. But first, here is a clip of our five minutes of fame. We were featured again at the end, but you get the idea...



On the plus side, I think Isabelle, Abi and I come across as having a good knowledge of our subject. I'm grateful to the Panorama editors for picking out bits of footage that make us seem fairly intelligent, even if we were just 'frenzied fashionistas'. I thought the documentary addressed a difficult subject in a very interesting way, opening it up for discussion across the industry.

The problem is, I was contacted about this documentary through work, in a professional capacity. I was asked to give my views as a fashion insider, not as a 'fan' of Primark. I wasn't expecting to be lumped in with the teenagers on YouTube who post video diaries. The videos I shoot are part of my job and I was contacted through that channel, as a professional. We even filmed in the same location.

This is where it gets tricky. Despite all this, Catwalk Queen, Hippyshopper and / or Shiny Media were given no credit on the show. Our full names were given, yes, but your average TV viewer is not going to google a name to 'check' if someone has a website.

Three of us took three hours out of our workday to film, yet we were offered no fee and given no credit. It's no surprise my bosses were a bit pissed off. Not only did our company get nothing from this, but my head was on the chopping block too, for being naive enough to think that the BBC would credit the sites or the company without us having to ask.

The aftermath began when Ashley, a director of the company I work for, wrote a rant about the whole affair on the Shiny Media blog. The story was picked up by various other blogs, and eventually by the Media Guardian. Eventually, we got an apology from the editor of Panorama, which I was very grateful for. It was definitely a turn up for the books. You see, after placing a tiny link to Catwalk Queen on the very bottom of a page on the Panorama website (after I chased it up - this was discussed) subsequent emails from my colleague Abi were ignored.

So to Sandy Smith I say thank you for recognising that a mistake was made. I hope this is a lesson to all of us for the future. To bloggers - don't be afraid to ask for credit, a fee or both. To the BBC - don't underestimate or undermine bloggers. They have more power than you realise.

Yes I'm on the telly. Please direct your comments here.