More Than a Brand: Why Marketing Feels So Weird to Me

Lately, I’ve been a little quiet online. Yes, life has been full—toddlerhood, a remodel, moving boxes still half-unpacked—but there’s been something else tugging at me. Something deeper. Something that’s been harder to name.

I think I’ve figured it out: it’s the marketing.

When I started Ever & Alder, I had this dreamy vision of creating a brand and a blog that felt like a cozy conversation. A way to share the things I love—T-shirts with meaning, moments of motherhood, glimpses of real life—with the people I love. I imagined people finding Ever & Alder organically, resonating with the stories, and sticking around because it felt like home.

But here’s the thing no one really tells you about starting a small business: it’s not enough to just create something beautiful. You have to sell it. You have to market it. You have to show up consistently and put yourself out there in a way that sometimes feels…well, kind of icky.

Especially around Mother’s Day, when my feed was flooded with ads, it all started to feel like noise. And I didn’t want to be part of the noise. I don’t want to be just another thing popping up on your screen trying to sell you something. I want to be more than that. I want Ever & Alder to feel like a friend, not a sales pitch.

But here’s the truth I’m learning to sit with: I can want both. I can want to share the real, raw parts of life AND also sell merch. Because selling T-shirts isn’t just about profit—it’s about creating space for connection, identity, and belonging. It’s about contributing to my family in a meaningful way. It’s about building something that’s mine.

And yes, that balance is hard. Some days it feels nearly impossible. But I’m trying to trust that I can do it my way. That I can market with heart. That I can share what’s real and trust that the right people will find it—not because I forced it into their feed, but because they felt something when they saw it.

So if you’ve been wondering where I’ve been, this is it. I’ve been wrestling with the tension of wanting to grow and not wanting to push. I’ve been reminding myself why I started this in the first place. And I’ve been remembering that I’m just a girl sharing the stuff I love with the people I love, hoping to build a community and make a living. That’s it. That’s the heart of it all.

Thanks for being here. Thanks for seeing me. I hope Ever & Alder continues to be a place that feels like more than merch—because that’s what I want it to be, always.

With love,

MK