Jennifer

On The Blog Market in May + a Reader Survey

05/29/2015 by Jennifer Leave a Comment

Hope you all have been enjoying the month of May! Since I’ve been splitting my time between here and The Blog Market, I thought it’d be cool to share my favorite posts of the month with you. If you haven’t been following along on TBM, I’ll update you a little on how it’s been going! We have long since removed the community forums from the site. I loved the idea of it but the reality was just not what we had hoped. It was a little glitchy and to be honest, we just weren’t taking enough time to keep it running. Without the forums, we have still been able to engage in so much community and we’ve connected with a ton of awesome readers and bloggers. I love how blogging is such a great means of communicating knowledge and general enthusiasm for creativity.

1. Angela wrote a thought-provoking post about creativity and building a brand. We are really obsessed with this quote. I feel like it’s a very prevalent struggle in the blogosphere.

2. I rounded up 6 favorite WordPress plugins related to social media! Some of them I’ve been using forever and others I am just beginning to explore.

3. This month I finally added share buttons to the bottom of posts in both Earl Grey and TBM! I wrote this post on how to customize your WordPress Jetpack sharing buttons using CSS to make them mesh well with your brand.

4. Have you been following Angela’s series on creating a DIY at-home photo studio? She finished it up this month and it is SO helpful.

A couple of other things…

As a way to build community and promote some blogs and small businesses we think are amazing, we have decided to offer sidebar ad spots. They are just a simple $10 each. Since we are still a growing blog, we’re making our advertising process cheap and to the point. If you want a little extra traffic your way, view our ad shop!

Finally, we are currently holding a reader survey to get a better idea of what people in the blog and design world really want. I would love it if you guys would fill it out! We’re opening an online shop this summer and so far this survey has been really helpful in helping us develop our products better. If you complete the survey, you can leave your email on the original post for a chance to win a free sidebar ad.

Have a good weekend & talk to you soon!

Moon Inspired Products & Projects

05/27/2015 by Jennifer 1 Comment

Whenever I feel a little off or encounter people who may be having “a day”, I think about the moon. I don’t know anything about moon phases and how they affect people, but growing up my mom would always blame weird days, crazy drivers, sassy customers, etc. on the moon. And now I do it too, mostly just for fun (but kind of for real).

Last summer, moon-related things were really trendy. Are they still? I hope so because I’m doing a roundup! I get tired of trends very quickly, so I always try not to overdo it (sometimes failing). I only have one simple moon print, so I think I’m on the right track.

While I was sifting through moon products, I couldn’t help but gather up a bunch of moon-related DIY projects. I am seriously so obsessed with each of these. Couldn’t pick a favorite if I tried.

Are you into the moon trend or anything celestial like that?

The Baking Bird | Logo Design + Theme Customization

05/25/2015 by Jennifer 3 Comments

Once upon a time in March, Kylie of The Baking Bird reached out on Instagram in search of a designer to create a new logo and customize her beautiful blog. My good friend Bee tagged me in the IG post, but I was like, “yeeaah right, that’s a long shot.” Well! Kylie ended up sending me an email later that night and I was so excited to have a new bloggy friend and an awesome new project here in Portland.

Kylie mentioned that she kept getting tired of her blog designs and logos and wanted something that she could keep for a long time. I can relate to that all too well. Soon after Kylie emailed, my design partner in crime Laura and I met up with her for coffee and treats. We bounced ideas off of each other and got a feel for what Kylie wanted in her design. We decided to use lots of copper in the logo and worked on making her blog look clean and pretty, but not too dainty.

All the details together in one big brand board…

Working on this project was the best. Click here to see the full blog customization and drool over all of Kylie’s marvelous recipes. These are just a few of my favorites:

St Germain Grapefruit Margarita
Cardamom Rolls with Pistachio Rose Frosting
Lavender Lemon Curd Marbled Cheesecake
Salted Lavender Honey Pie

What the heck, right? YUM.

moodboard images: green wall / stock pot / restaurant / planters / lettering

To learn more about my blog and web design services, click here!

Indoor Plant Care Guides

05/20/2015 by Jennifer 7 Comments

The ladies I live with are all about plants, which is so wonderful because it keeps our apartment feeling green and alive. Unfortunately, I’m the definition of a plant killer. I don’t know a lot about plant care and I will sometimes forget to water a plant for…ever. One of my goals this year is to become a better plant momma. Thankfully, the internet is full of tips and guides to caring for plants in one’s home. Below are the most helpful indoor plant care guides I have gathered.

What kinds of plants do you have in (or outside of) your home?

Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm

05/18/2015 by Jennifer 4 Comments

When I first moved to Oregon, everyone said it would take a while for me to adjust. And I stubbornly disagreed because “I’ve always loved Oregon, I know what I’m getting into, blah blah blah.” I wouldn’t say the move was very difficult, but I did have trouble finding the magic in my new home. Pretty sure that was due to a lack of community (and transportation!). I’m trying to make it a point to get out more and explore beautiful places here in OR. My two roommates are adventurous and spontaneous, so it’s exciting to have people to go on these adventures with! Last month while my roomie Em’s mother was visiting, we all went out to the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival in Woodburn, OR. If you’re from around here, you probably see a trillion tulip-filled photos this time of year.

We had so much fun being touristy and taking pictures of the quilt-like fields. Have any of you been to a giant tulip farm? If you haven’t, stop what you’re doing, google “tulip farm”, and scroll forever. Do it.

Be Free, Lance Registration

05/14/2015 by Jennifer Leave a Comment

Back in December, I held my breath as I registered for Be Free, Lance., a creative online workshop led by Breanna Rose and Jen Serafini. I knew it would be amazing course since I think those ladies are mega talented. But honestly, I have a habit of impulsively buying e-courses and then never finishing them. Well guess what guys?! I finished this one and haven’t really stopped talking about it since. :)

Freelancing has always been something I put on the back burner, but during this course I just dove in and got to work. In the course, they cover everything from discovering your niche to creating contracts for projects. There are podcasts, interviews, worksheets, and endless chances to network and receive advice from other people in the group. Registration for the second round is now open (only until Monday)! You can visit the official website for all of the deets. If you’re looking to grow your creative business and learn all the technical important things that go into freelancing, I would recommend this course so highly.

Are any of you thinking about taking the course? And if you did back in January, what did you think?

(image source)