inspiration: blogging 101 e-course.

Back in July I was lucky enough to win a spot for Ashley from after nine to five’s first e-course, Blogging 101. I was so excited to start. With family and the baby it took me a while to push my way through the course but I am so glad I did. She really put everything she could into a one month course. It’s geared towards people who have already started blogging and want to give their blog a push towards success. Success is really what you make it. Ashley has great ideas for making your blog just the way you want it to be. She also includes weekend projects to help you incorporate the ideas from the course directly into your blog. I really thought I knew what I was doing when it came to blogging but I learned that I have a lot of learning to do.



Sometimes you need a little push from someone else to really get your great ideas started. Ashley’s Blogging 101 e-course is perfect for that. It’s so reasonably priced too, for all the information you get it’s a STEAL! She also has started another e-course on time management as well as offering “pay what you can” consulting. I’m seriously considering the consulting myself.

Ashley is an extremely intelligent kind hearted person; you can see that in her blog. She has wonderful ideas to help you and your blog or business. Check her out at after nine to five blog and shop. You won’t be sorry, I promise!

blog love weekly v7.0

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This week for blog love weekly I am going to being sharing with you one very special blog. Recently Ashley from after nine to five started a blog called “The Bartering Blogger.” Anyone with a blog can join and swap wonderful goodies with other bloggers. It can be handmade or something a little different. I really love this idea. I don’t have a ton of money floating around to get buy new things just because I ‘want’ them, so the Bartering Blogger is a great solution! I was really excited to be able to swap ads with the Bartering Blogger for the month of May. Other bloggers on the page are also willing to swap ads. I can’t wait to share more trades in the future!

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Speaking of Ashley, have you visited her blog? After Nine to Five is an amazing blog full of life experiences from the fabulous Ashley. I love the fact that a lot of her blog posts are just the written word. A lot of times I get so caught up in the visual aspect of blogging I forget about the really important stuff, ya know, like the writing! She can tell a story and give an opinion without all the visual over flow; you have to love a good writer. Her Etsy shop is also full of fun goodies! I’ve been drooling over a lot of her necklaces for a while. Someday when I actually start making money I’ll get one.

One another note: We’re back home and almost done cleaning. It’s so good to be home and as much as I was angry with him, I’m glad Piston is back with us again. It wasn’t the same sleeping without him at the end of the bed.

Happy Friday! You know what that means? Next week is my birthday! Keep a look out for something special!

wishlist.

I’m not really a person that buys a lot of stuff. If I do get a few extra dollars I usually spend it on crafty supplies or taking my daughter to lunch. Sometimes I really want to splurge on myself though! There are so many amazing things out there that I’ve had my eye on and dreamed of longingly.

This lovely little camera necklace from afterninetofive I think is going to be my celebration present for when I make my first Etsy sale. I have to reward myself for a job well done right? ^_~


I have had my eye on this Hanson shirt since I saw it at the last concert I went too. If you didn’t know Taylor is a pretty darn good photographer, hence the camera. Not to mention it’s my favorite color!

I’ve been attempting and failing to play the guitar for years now. I thought maybe starting out smaller would be easier. I think playing the ukulele would be awesome! It’s travel size and I could bring it anywhere with me!

One of Jo Totes camera bags? Hm, YES! and PLEASE!!!

Since I bought my first vintage camera I’ve been wanting to get my hands on an instant Polaroid one. I love everything about Polaroid’s! I wouldn’t even care if it was a really ugly camera, as long as it still worked!

The last thing on my list has been on my mind for some time. I’ve been dabbling in Digital Painting for a little while and well, I’m horrible at it, but I love to do it. I would love, love, love A Bamboo pad! I think this would make doodling so much fun and easy! I have so many ideas for digital illustrations in my sketchbook just waiting to get on my computer screen.

That’s about it. If I ever stop spending my money and save it maybe I’ll fulfill my wish list. Yeah, maybe someday!

What’s on your wish list?

journey to etsy: photography.

Well if you've looked for any kind of advice on Etsy one of the first things you'll hear about is having good photographs. There are a ton of people out there that have online shops, and as much as we would hope to be unique, a lot of them are selling the same exact thing. So, what is going to draw a customer to your shop over others? Photographs.

I'm not going to lie; I'm not an avid online shopper. I like to see, touch, and even smell what I'm going to be buying before I buy it. So I want to make sure my photos highlight my products as much as possible for an online shopper. You'd think for a photography major that this would be easy, not so much. I'm still just learning, and I'm a perfectionist when it comes to my photos. Thanks to some advice from two other wonderful bloggers and Etsy seller; Ashley and Chrissy, I decided just to go with it. I'm going to roll with what I've got and just keep perfecting my photos as I go. I can't hurt to change things up and relist on Etsy right?

Etsy Shop Photo Preview.





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I also discovered two tutorials that I think are really going to help me the next time around.
Ashley from After Nine to Five recommend that I build a lightbox for my photos. I think this is going to be really useful and I'm going to be taking tips from her tutorial over on her blog. {Thanks again!!!}

Maryam from Pamplemousse! also did a great blog guest post on how to Etsy photography. The tutorial is over at The Art of Staying Up All Night and it is really helpful.

Well, I guess that's that! If you have any advice or know of any good tutorials on photographing products please let me know! Or, if you want any advice or critique, I'm still learning but I can help some, right? I can't help it, I love to help!

Now, go take some pictures! ^_^