My First Media Kit- Whaddya Think?

This is the year I've really been taking my blog seriously. I'm actively trying to get more followers, loyal readers, get my writing groove on, and find my voice. Because of all this I've also started to wade into the deep end of the pool - sponsored posts.

I know that sponsored posts aren't anything to be too worried about but I do want to seem professional and like I am actually trying. I don't have that many followers on social media even though (shameless self-plug) I have doubled every single one of them!

For those of you with tens of thousands of fans my measly numbers may not seem like a big feat but let me tell you, as someone who is shy and introverted, this is the best! It is definitely a milestone for me each time I hit a new multiple of ten or hundred.

So with my wanting to work with some awesome brands I decided to tackle my first media kit. I went on Pinterest and Google to get some inspiration. I got some ideas, headed to Canva and voila!

My first attempt.

I'm pretty happy with it. I love minimalist design and I love that the colors and arrow theme come straight back to my blog.



Do you have a media kit? What does your look like? If you want, leave a link for other readers to see yours. If you have any suggestions for mine, don't hesitate to leave your two cents. I greatly appreciate it.

Favorite Blogging Apps - Promoting

I realized that I left a big part out of my Favorite Blogging App series - promoting! If you've been blogging for any amount of time you know that getting your blog out there and read is important whether you have commissioned posts or just want to meet new people. Of course for most of us, we have school, jobs, children, and like sleep so getting something out on each and every social media outlet can be very time consuming.

Fortunately there are apps to help with that. These are the ones I use most often.

IF - formerly IFTTT. Available on iOS & Android. 

IF utilizes recipes. There are tons and tons of recipes in their database, but if you can't find exactly what you're looking for you can always make your own. These recipes do everything from turning on a light in your house, to automatically downloading all of your Instagram pictures, to automatically tweeting when you've posted a blog post. It's based on an IF/THEN statement which shows you just how versatile this app can be.

The recipes I use for my blog the most are:

• Send a tweet when you post about something on your Blog. 
• Post Instagram picture on Twitter as a picture (not a link). 
• If any new post on your blog, then create a link post on your Tumblr blog. 

You can also use it to automatically post about your newest post on your Facebook Page. I had that one but it wasn't working correctly with my current Blogger template and I haven't gone back to look through it. And don't worry if you have Wordpress. It works the same way. The best thing about IF is that you don't have to think about it. The app works in the background, so as soon as one of the IF statements are triggered, it automatically does the THEN.

I know this post is for promoting your blog but you really should give IF a looksie. They have so many different recipes to make your life a lot easier.

Hootsuite - Available on iOS, Android 

Hootsuite is a beast of an app. It can take so many of your social media accounts and show you their feed, schedule their posts, and even give you analytics on them. For those who have group blogs or shared Facebook pages, this app will alleviate all of your drama because it allows for awesome integrated collaboration. There is a free and a paid version depending on your needs.

I use Hootsuite to schedule most of my tweets. Hootsuite has this "smart" autoscheduling that will try to schedule your post at an optimum time of day. What I love most about the app is that it will auotmatically shorten your links - no need to head to Bitly before composing. It also will show your Twitter pictures as native instead of links which helps with audience connection.

There is also a desktop Chrome app which allows you to easily share any website, picture, story, or Pin on the web with just a click of the button.

I admit that I haven't delved into this enough to utilize all of its capabilities but just the Twitter thing does it for me. It's invaluable and I hardly even use the actual Twitter app anymore.

Facebook Groups - Available on iOS & Android. 

Facebook has gotten so much better separating all of its components. The Groups app allows you to manage, connect, share, and view all of the groups you are a part of. No need to go through your personal feed to get to what you really want. From here you can add to a thread, comment, or share your own post. This is what I use to read a lot of the daily group threads for my various blogging groups. You have the option of notifications for each group, which I love, because I am a part of some groups that I don't need to be constantly up to date with. This option lets me pick and choose which groups or actions I think are worthy of notifications. Easy to use with a simple yet useful layout.

Facebook Pages Manager- Available for iOS, Android. 

The Facebook Pages Manager lets you post, comment, look at your Insights, chat, and schedule posts to your Facebook Page. This app is easy to use and helps when you don't want to be bothered by your personal Facebook feed. I love that it allows me to add posts from this app as opposed to waiting until I'm at my desktop. It also makes it easy to connect with readers since you have the option of putting notifications on. There's not much to say about it, but it's definitely a life saver.




So that's what I use on a daily basis. What about you? Are there some apps I've completely overlooked that would make my life so much easier? Let me know in the comments!

Favorite Blogging Apps - Organizing

Today I'm continuing with some more apps and websites I use to help my blog be the bestest it can be. This time we're focusing on keeping everything organized.

When it comes to my blog, there are a lot of different apps and websites I use to get everything in some sort of order. I think organizing everything I have: pictures, half written drafts, and ideas is one of the easiest things to do because there are so many apps & websites that you can use with almost no effort on your part. Here are some of my favorites apps/websites and how I use them. Oh and they're all free to use!

Google Keep - available on Web & Android

Google Keep are like Post-It Notes on your phone. But unlike Post Its you can add pictures, hyperlinks, reminders!, lists, audio recordings, and label them for even better organization. You're also able to change the color of the note which makes for super easy color-coordinating. I use Google Keep for just about everything! It's so easy to use that it ends up being the app I open first. I make grocery lists and To Do lists for everyday use but I also have an ongoing list of blog posts ideas, a list of posts that need to get written, pictures I have to take for posts, materials I need to buy for a specific post, just whatever! The colors make the widget pretty to look at on your phone too (I have a Galaxy S5).  What's great about the phone app is when I'm browsing the internet and I see a picture of something inspiring I can "share" it to Google Keep where it will automatically save the picture. Or, if I come across a blog that I like but don't have the time to add them or read all their posts I'll add the hyperlink to Google Keep and it will add a clickable link as well as a picture from the page. This can obviously be done with any website not just blogs. It makes it easy to go back and look at things later without having to copy & paste the URL into your internet browser.

Google Drive - available on Web & Android & iOS

Google Drive is like your own personal 15G flash drive that you never have to remember to take with you anywhere. As long as you have a Gmail account you can access Google Drive and I highly suggest you utilize it. Drive is similar to Dropbox in that it stores files, documents, pictures, and other things but with Drive you're also able to make documents, spreadsheets, PowerPoint presentations, forms, drawings, and probably a million other things, all within the app. So for someone who didn't want to buy Microsoft Office (yes, that's me) you can open and create .doc documents in Google Drive.

I use Google Drive in my everyday life for making budget spreadsheets, keeping track of my work hours & vacation days, as well as storing a current resume, generic cover letter, and other random stuff that could come in useful. For the blog, I have half written or just really, really rough drafts of posts that I haven't written out in full. I also have a list of writing prompts in case I get writer's block and I need a quick topic to get the juices flowing. Google Drive also stores your Google Photos which is nice since I use Blogger. All of my blog photos are right at my fingertips. Google Drive is easy to use, multipurpose, and an organizers best friend.

Google Calendar - available on Web, Android, iOS

Perhaps this one is a bit of a throwaway but I cannot even begin to tell you how much I LOVE Google Calendar. It's just so easy to add events, reminders, and share you calendars with others. I love all the color-coding that goes on too. What's even cooler is that if you have actually use Gmail as your email Google Calendar will automatically add things to your calendar when it sees dates and times in your inbox. It's pretty nifty.

In real life I share my work schedule with John because him asking me when I was working next got old real fast but I also have a Bills calendar, Birthdays, Fun Stuff, Appointments, Books, and Movies & TV calendar. Yup. I use Google Calendar to track everything I watch and read. For the blog I use it to see what posts I'v done and I use it to plan any upcoming ones. Looking at posts by month helps me see if there are any trends or reoccurring themes I can utilize. It also helps me see how often I post book or TV/Movie reviews. I tend to have those posts on standby and I don't want them to overwhelm what few readers I have or make my blog seem boring.

Dropbox - available on Web, Android, iOS, Kindle Fire, Blackberry, & Windows

Dropbox is similar to Google Drive. It's a cloud storage system that allows you to add, sync, and look at your files from any mobile device or desktop. You receive 9G of storage free when you sign up. I keep a lot of rough drafts, ideas, and graphics that are pertinent to my blog on Dropbox. There's not really much to say. It's easy to use and you'll have whatever you need right at your fingertips.

Trello - Available on Web, Android, & iOS

Last but not least, Trello. Trello may look similiar to Keep but this is a whole 'nother beast. Trello allows you to make lists and then cards within each list. Then each card can have hyperlinks, text, pictures, and you can even add members for collaborating. The system within a system within a system keeps all projects neat and orderly.

For the blog I have different cards for different topics and ideas. For example one card is for DIYs I want to work on and write up. When you click on the DIY card you'll be met with my ideas which are called a "list" but is within the larger label of DIY. Then, if you click on a specific list, let's say Painted Pot, you'll see a list of the materials I need, a picture of what I want the finished product to look like, or a hyperlink to the instructions. It may sound a bit complicated but once you get using it, you'll find that it makes organizing projects a breeze.

I also use Trello as a makeshift editorial calendar. You can see that each month has it's own "list" and then cards within the list. You can also add labels to your cards. For me, green is link ups; orange is a reminder to schedule the post; yellow is when guest posts are due. Obviously you can do what makes you happy but I find it so easy to glance at the year in this way and if I don't end up doing a post I can simply drag and drop it into another month. I type the dates on the left and put them in order so I know which posts are coming up, due soon, or if there is no date which can easily be moved around. I don't collaborate on my blog or have a group but if you do I would suggest you give Trello a try for that. It would make projects and ideas between people easier to see.


So that's it. It was kind of a long one but hopefully you've been introduced to a new application. I love trying out new organizing programs. Digital organization is my THING. So if you know of something I should try it out please, please, please leave it in the comments!

Favorite Blogging Apps - Pictures

There are a tons of different apps that I use for making my blog look presentable, or at least half-way presentable.

Today I'm going to talk about these three free picture editors because let's be real - not everyone has Photoshop.

PicsArt Photo Studio - Available for Android

All credit for finding this app goes to John. He was the one who first introduced me to it and the app is so full.of.stuff that I've never needed, or looked for, another app.

The app lets you edit, draw, and layer. You can add clipart, add pre-made quotes, stickers, and text. You can make your own collage or use their frames to put everything together. It is seriously the best photo app ever. The buttons and layout are very intuitive. Give yourself about ten minutes and you'll be a pro.

Even though the app is free you can purchase extra clip-art, fonts, and frames. I've bought a few of them when I get GooglePlay credit.  They have tons of different themed clip-art: baby, wedding, tattoo, Valentine's day, Christmas, hippie...there are tons to choose from. You can mix and match from different themes to make your photos come alive a little bit more.

These are just the selections in the Effects tab. If you were to click on each one of these, another menu would pop up below (like you see here) and every single one of the effects are customizable!

What makes PicsArt different than other photo apps is that you can create an account and join in on their community. It's similar to Instagram but obviously used with PicsArt. I don't visit their gallery as often as I do Instagram but I do use it to get some ideas and inspiration. It's really amazing what some people are able to do. If you're looking to challenge yourself, photo-wise, the community also does weekly hashtag challenges and contests.

Canva - Online. 

Canva is the best when it comes to designing...anything from scratch.

They already have pre-made templates and dimensions for most of your social media. No more wondering what size you should make your Facebook cover photo!

They also have a Stream tab that gives you inspiration and ideas from other Canva users.

And if you're like me and you're having a hard time understanding why something doesn't work, you can always check out their Design School tab. They have little mini tutorials on tons of stuff! Not only on how to use Canva but how to make your graphics stand out and be beautiful.

Using the web app is free if you use free elements (or upload your own). Some of their elements do cost a dollar per but I've been using it for a while now and I've never had to pay. Just get creative! It's pretty simple to use and has some awesome features like leading and kerning but it doesn't have a crop feature which annoys me. I'll end up making something and then just cropping it in MS Paint later. When you're finished designing you can download your project as a photo or a PDF file.

PicMonkey - Online

PicMonkey is an online photo editor and designer. You can edit a photo you already have, design a graphic from scratch, or make a collage. You can upgrade to become a Royale member and get some extra features.

What's cool about PicMonkey is that it allows you to use fonts that you have downloaded on your computer. I have a ton of fonts of my computer so if I need a specific font I have to go to PicMonkey to use it (Canva only allows you to use their fonts).

They also have a textures tab which can turn a boring background into something more interesting.

I feel like if you compare PicMonkey to Canva, you'll think it looks childish or amateur but it's all about how you use it. Again I say, get creative!




The more you mess around with these apps, the more you'll figure out what works best for a certain project. It is not uncommon for me to use all three just to get one photo. I love these apps and I use them on a regular basis.


Here are some examples of what I've done with them.

Effects, cropping, and both borders were done with PicsArt with the free features. 

Done on Canva with free elements. 

Done with PicMonkey with free elements. 

Now, how about you - do you use any of these apps? Which ones are you favorites? Which ones should I try out?