How I create a consistent aesthetic in my photos

If you haven’t already read my basic photography tips to create a curated style, it’s best to start here.

How I edit my photos and the apps I use to create a consistent aesthetic in my Instagram feed

Favorite Apps

I usually end up using between 1-4 apps from start to finish when editing my photos before posting on the gram. I feel like I have tried them ALL, and finally found the ones that work the best and are quick and easy! Some of my favorites are Lightroom [free], snapseed [free], retouch [free] and unfold [for my stories] and VSCO [free].

VSCO

After using VSCO forever, which totally worked to start with, I switched to Lightroom and I don’t think i’m ever looking back. VSCO has some really great one click filters you can apply and it’s a great place to start for beginners! Favorite filters are A6, M5, and I used G6 for a long time. You have the ability to copy and paste the same filter to multiple images at the same time, so this always helped plan a consistent style and easily edit blog posts that had multiple images. I still adjusted all the things even after I applied a filter so, you can use the same tips I’m sharing below from lightroom, in VSCO. Start by adjusting the strength of the filter and then focus in on the exposure, white balance [temperature], and HSL [color saturation and hue].

BEFORE

EDITED WITH VSCO A6 FILTER

EDITED WITH MANDI NELSON PRESET IN LIGHTROOM

Even though VSCO’s filters are basically free [some you pay for] and presets can sometimes get pricey [anywhere from $30-$120 for bundles] I switched to Lightroom because I liked the professional preset options better, as it adjusted more things for me ahead of time. With VSCO I would spend so much time perfecting the tweaks because their filters just didn’t work on all my photos and sometimes a I just couldn’t find the right adjustments to make it consistent with my feed. Lightroom has presets made by professional photographers and I found they made more changes built into the preset that made it really easy to get a consistent and professional look to all my images no matter where or when they were taken. One thing I do like better about VSCO is you can edit the strength of the filter as a whole, vs in Lightroom you can’t adjust the intensity of the preset.

BEFORE

EDITED WITH VSCO A6 FILTER

EDITED WITH MANDI NELSON PRESET IN LIGHTROOM

LIGHTROOM + PRESETS:

After 3 years and countless apps and filters, I found the easiest way to get a consistent style from all my images is to apply a preset in the Lightroom photo editing app. They have a mobile version or a desktop. I have both, but to be honest, I find myself using the mobile version 90% of the time, and it’s free!

I went through so many Instagram accounts to find the presets that worked best for me. I like a natural look with crisp, cooler feel with a hint of orange, less yellow and muted greens. If that makes no sense to you, don't worry, just find someone you like and try it out. You can give any preset your own stamp by adjusting things like the exposure, tint, temperature and color hues and saturation [skin tone]. It took me about two months to really start to understand what changes when I adjust what, but now I really think I’ve got it down!

BEFORE

EDITED WITH VSCO A6 FILTER

EDITED WITH MANDI NELSON PRESET IN LIGHTROOM

Current Preset:

Mandi Nelson

I love how crisp and cool her's are-but I adjust the oranges and yellows quite a bit. [I'll show you how I use hers in a later in this post]. You should also go to her story highlights on her IG there’s a crazy amount of good tips on there and she reviews tons of FAQ’s about lightroom + how to use presets. Here’s just one example of how you can really have your own style, even when using a preset. Mandi’s feed vs my feed using the same lightroom preset still look very different because of our photography style and editing.

View fullsize

Previous preset:

Jessica Janae

These are what I used for my first 3 or 4 installments of #thedailymoments and about 3 weeks on my Instagram feed.

Steph Pollock suggested her and uses her presets beautifully. You can see below the difference between my style and Stephs. It just shows you how diverse a preset can be and that by using a preset someone else uses, doesn’t always mean your images will look exactly like theirs. It’s all in how you shoot, the lighting, editing angles and how you adjust the presets.

Other Presets I love:

Jenna Kutcher

Jenna is a beautiful soul, excellent photographer and someone I adore! Her presets are perfect for the beginner because she gives you a ton of easy one click options that don’t need a lot of adjustments.

EDITED WITH JENNA KUTCHER PRESETS

Bethany M Poteet

Her presets make me feel like i’m sitting on a white sandy beach. Such a pretty and calm vibe.

BEFORE

EDITED WITH BETHANY POTEET PRESET

EmmyLowe x BurtsBriPlease

I mean, don’t you just want your whole house to look this crisp, clean and happy?

Sophia Elrae

If you want a moody or warmer fall vibes, love this mamas presets.

BEFORE EDITS

EDITED WITH SOPHIA ELRAE PRESETS - COOLSAGE

Adjustments to presets [lightroom] or filters [vsco]:

The first thing I do to my photos is apply my preset and then I adjust from there. I focus on 3 things, exposure [brightness], temperature [warm or cooler] and color saturation [skin color and landscape vibrancy]. I also adjust the sharpness or grain if the image needs it but not always, this is already done in my preset, so it’s one less step to edit.

First edit, add preset

Then adjust exposure + shadows +highlights

Go into Color tab, and top right is the MIX where you can change each color individually.

I typically change the yellow to get rid of artifical light and then orange to adjust skin tones.

Exposure

I almost always [ok, always] adjust the exposure. I try and take all my photos underexposed or not in direct sunlight so that I can adjust the brightness myself once it’s in the app. I adjust exposure right after I apply the preset and then also after I do ALL my other edits to the preset. I sometimes need to go back and lower it if it’s too bright and lost some contrast or brighten it if it is still too dark.

Temperature

This can help take a blan photo to a whole new level, adds yellows and oranges [warmer] or blues and greens for a cooler feel. I don’t adjust this much anymore, I use the Color Mix to really change each color. But, it’s a good place to start before you get crazy learning the adjustments to specific colors.

Color Hue + Saturation [skin tone]

Thanks to @hellojessiemartin [she’s the best account to follow for really good photo editing tips] I learned all about this part of Lightroom and it’s really upped my photo editing game.

3 colors I focus on adjusting in my photos are the yellows, oranges and greens. Start with the color MIX tab.

yellow: Taking the yellow saturation down, gets rid of that horrible artificial light in most homes and restaurants and makes your images more white + natural [like they should be]. Practice this one with a bathroom shot. It’s amazing what taking the yellow saturation can do to your photo! If you take the luminance up, it makes them even more white and bright.

orange: this adjusts skin tones, this one you have to play with because it everyone has such different skin, it’s really up to you to see what works best for you. Use the color mix tab and adjust the saturation first, then hue to adjust the yellow, orange and red undertones in your skin. Mandi’s preset already takes down the oranges, so I usually bring them up a bit from where she has them.

green: this is mainly for my outdoor shots or images at home that have my plant babies in them. I take the greens down a little so that it doesn’t stand out in my photos. Grassy parks or front yards can get a warm touch to them if you take the green out of the photo a bit.

How I edit in lightroom mobile [step by step]

Here’s an example of an edit from start to finish. I snapped a quick photo of Finn on my iPhone X on a cloudy day. The lights weren’t on in the house and the front door was giving off some light behind him. Let me walk you through my steps in Lightroom.

IPHONE SNAP ON CLOUDY DAY -BEFORE EDITS

EDITED WITH MANDI NELSON - MINIMAL PRESET + ADJUSTMENTS

STEP BY STEP

Import photo into Lightroom mobile

1. Scroll the bottom all the way to the right - add PRESET [I click through each of my options to preview as some pictures look better with different presets to start with, but usually end up with EVERYDAY by MANDI NELSON].

   *Depending on what preset you use these next steps may not apply to you. My preset already ups the shadows and takes down some colors, so you can use my screenshots as reference where they are.

   [use the 3rd slide as an example- I took the oranges up to +24].

2. Scroll to the LIGHT tab - up the exposure quite a bit, Don’t worry if the skin tones look white here, you will adjust the colors MIX tab later and this will help fix that washed out look on the skin. Sometimes I take down the shadows too.

3. Scroll to the COLOR tab - on the top right, you’ll see MIX, that takes you into the colors so you can adjust individually. ORANGES - fix skin tone. Start with the SATURATION and then go to the hue until you find the tone you like.

4. Still in the MIX tab - click YELLOW. Adjust the saturation until you get the walls or whites in your photo the way you like them.

5. EFFECTS tab- personal preference but I like less grain in my photos, so I take that down a bit on MANDI’s preset.

6. To finish - go back to LIGHT tab, and adjust your EXPOSURE again to make sure you don’t loose contrast when brightening too much.

THAT’s IT!

That’s how I edit my photos in lightroom using the MANDI NELSON preset, EVERYDAY.

ADD TO LIGHTROOM, CHOOSE PRESET TO APPLY

EDIT LIGHT - UP EXPOSURE +

TAKE DOWN SHADOWS [IF NEEDED]

COLOR TAB - MIX [TOP RIGHT CORNER] ADJUST ORANGES [SKINTONES]

ADJUST YELLOWS - TAKE THE SATURATION WAY DOWN TO FIX ARTIFICIAL LIGHT

ADJUST THE GRAIN. THIS IS TOTALLY A PERSONAL PREFERENCE BUT I LIKE LESS GRAIN.

GO BACK AND ADJUST EXPOSURE AGAIN IF NEEDED

OTHER PHOTO APPS I LOVE

SNAPSEED -

Oh how do I love this app so much!

Snapseed not only can adjust the colors of your photos, but it can adjust parts of your photos, it can auto correct your perspective and it can even EXPAND your image if you didn’t take those two steps back before snapping like I suggested. I’ll work on a tutorial of how I use them next because I actually use this one a lit to change the angle, and perspective of my pictures.

RETOUCH -

The best healing app out there. When I say healing, I mean get rid of that lady on the beach standing behind the perfect capture of your little one, removing the tv wires from a photo or the telephone wires from a super cute shot of the family. This app is super easy and makes it easy to get rid of all the little things you don’t want in a picture.

UNFOLD -

Unfold is the app that takes your IG stories to a whole new level. Picture collages never looked so good! You can add fonts, background frames and even upload videos and images on the same slide.

I hope this helps! I have so much more I’ve learned over the last two years, so maybe I’ll make this photography tips thing a more regular occurrence. If you have a specific question you want answered, feel free to comment below! Can’t wait to hear if this was helpful or not.

photography tips i've learned to create a curated style

the best photography tips i've learned for capturing your family perfectly, even on your iPhone.

If you're a mom trying to just get great photos of your family that you can frame, or if your an aspiring blogger who wants a curated and personal aesthetic consistently throughout your feed, these are some simple tips I've learned over the last few years that helped me do just that.

If you’re looking for step by step examples of how I edit my actual photos right now. Head over to this post. I walk you through everything step by step and show you how I use all my favorite apps.

Three things I focus on to keep my Instagram feed cohesive:

1. shooting [lighting + angles]

2. editing [presets, touch ups, and angles]

3. posting [9 grid]

90% of my photos I take on my iPhone X, and 50% of the time I use the portrait mode, it needs bright natural light to be crisp, so sometimes I can't use it to get the best shot. If I am using an actual camera, I'm usually using a Canon t3 that Jason bought for me 8 years ago. But truthfully, in my opinion, it's usually not the camera that makes the picture look good, it's the person taking it. It took me almost 3 years to finally feel like I kinda know what I'm doing at these are a few things I've learned that have helped me.

1. When shooting anything; people, food, scenery, selfies, be aware of your surroundings and don’t be afraid to take a few steps back and get more of the location in the picture. [you can always crop later]. A good rule of thumb I use when directing Jason to take a photo is to make sure you get our feet and our heads. It’s human nature to always want to take the image close to someone’s face but I like it when you get the whole picture of what’s happening in the image when you take it from farther away.

2. I almost always try and take my photos with natural light. If I’m outside, whoever is taking the picture [usually me] have them [or you] stand with your back to the sun. And try and avoid standing in the sunlight. Use a shaded area that still gets a good amount of natural light from the sun.

3. If you are shooting indoors, or with artificial lighting, you can get rid of the yellow tints by adjusting the yellow hues and the temperature of the image. [Lightroom does this best]. This is my favorite things I've learned so far. But when shooting, try and keep the lights off as much as possible and avoid using the flash. It’s easier to brighten the photo because it’s dark vs get rid of the yellow light or reflections from the glare of lights.

4. When you edit, keep your photos straight and centered. Use the crop/straighten tools and the perspective to adjust the angle vertically or horizontally. I will show you how to do this in SNAPSEED in this post, but you can use any app or just adjust them in your photo gallery in your phone. This helps with the rule of 3’s, by keeping your lines straight.

5. Use the rule of 3's in photography to align the photo. This is so simple but makes the biggest impact. The rule of thirds is applied by aligning a subject with the guidelines. The basic principle behind the rule of thirds is to imagine breaking an image down into thirds (both horizontally and vertically) so that you have 9 parts and creating a horizon so that your eye easily moves from square to square.

6. Set your scene first and make sure you’re taking the snap straight if you can. If you have time take a couple practice shots so you can see if a weird outlet or random thing stands out in the image. Try and take photos straight on so when you align your subject, don’t shoot from the side of it, shoot straight at it. Don’t be afraid to move around! Taking images from all angles you wouldn't normally think would be good, sometimes get you the best shot! If you end up with something in the image you want to edit, I use RETOUCH. Like this picture below actually had a vacuum leaning on the sliding glass door. I edited it out with two clicks.

7. Use your favorite preset or filter to keep all your photos consistent. Lightroom mobile is free and it is a professional photo editing app that usually you can editing in one click using purchased presets. Below are 6 images shot in very different settings and light but edited with the same filter. I’ll put some of my favorite presets in my post, How I create a consistent aesthetic in my photos. [other apps I use and love, snapseed, color story, and retouch].

8. This one is more for influencers or bloggers, but I use a planning app for my posts. I use planoly, it’s not a free one... but I’ve used it forever and I love it. I usually only post once a day but sometimes I get multiple images that day that I want to post so I save them in there. I store my hashtags and write and edit my captions ahead of time. This helps me see if a photo's colors or how I edited to fit into my aesthetic or if I need to adjust the exposure or temperature to fit the rest of the images before I actually post it.

9. This is a personal preference but I use the grid method [maybe it’s called something different] but I staged my photos to have one light and one darker photo each time. Which creates a grid that is easy on the eye.

10. Try, try and try again. The more you shoot, the better you will get. Same with editing. As you start to edit your photos, it will become second nature and then you'll learn another trick to making your photos the exact style and feel you are looking for.

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10 Pictures you should take at home right now

When I scroll through my 70,000+ photos in my iPhone I think lots of things about where I'm currently at in life, where we used to be and how fast time moves.  I think, Finn's never going to be that small again.  Jason and I probably won't grow old in this home.  Our family may not always have just one baby to love and, we all know we may not look this young for long.  This is the exact reason, I take a million photos of simple things throughout the day.  So, the next time you find yourself hanging at home with your phone in your hand you should snap these photos and memories.

1. Simple moments of daily life in the space you spend most time in.

2. Pockets of your home that every time you walk by them, you feel like you're home

3. YOU, mama!  Just you, alone. We need to get out from behind that camera.  I'm talking to you, Husbands!

4. One good "framer."  you know, the one grandma wants to hang on the wall.  Faces closes and with big smiles

5. The one you think would never be the "framer."  the one where someone is possibly throwing a full on meltdown fit but, it's ok.  Cause it's real life.

6. Gadgets.  You know you'd give anything to have a picture of your walkman circa 1995.  Or your old answering machine!  Ha.  Get a couple snaps of the technology around your house because kids these days, don't even know what a CD is!  No, seriously.

7. Candid moment, one unplanned snapshot of what you home life is like right now

8. All the small details.  something around the house that will remind you of exactly what season you are in currently.  It could be your bedroom, your closet, or even your bathroom.  But just snap a quick photo of something material that will bring you back to this moment when you see it again in 10 years.

9. You and your love without the kids.  I know it's way easier to hide the belly roll or to those dang birthing hips with a baby in front of or on you but, you know you need one tiny little glimpse of who you two were before babies.

10. The "look how much he's grown" pic. For me, it's Finn's hair.  He's always been almost bald so when I see a photo with those little ringlets, I want to remember that moment.

When I was younger, every holiday when we would go back home I would want to look through old photo albums.  I loved seeing how people used to dress and really enjoyed laughing at the obscene floral print couches and orange shag rugs my grandma had.  One look at that stone staked fireplace and I would quickly remember all the times that I would sit in that recliner chair in the living room and share an apple with salt on it with my grandpa.  

These days its all too easy to get caught up in searching for that perfectly curated image.  You know, the one with a minimalist back ground, or one that says, I'm always on vacation!  I started a new weekly blog series called #thedailymoments, and it has completely changed the way I look at taking photos these days.  Yes, I want my feed to look pretty and inspire others but that doesn't mean I need to have a couch with perfectly placed pillows or a floor without toys laying around everywhere.  

I use my instagram and blog as a journal that hopefully one day when I'm old and grey and Finn brings his first girlfriend over to visit us for the holidays, I can pull out my blog posts (aka old photo albums) and show her all the embarrassing things he did when he was younger, his first bad haircut, and even how messy his room was.  I can't wait to look back and show him and her how we used to live and even give him a tiny glimpse into what his dad an I were usually doing on a week night in after he went to bed.

These pictures I post, they are a representation of me and my life.  They are what I will leave behind when I'm gone and they will be what my great grandchildren (hopefully) will have to cherish and learn more about who I was, what I did, and what kind of life I had.  It's sometimes messy, sometimes beautiful and most of the time somewhere in between.

A Big thank you to Alison Bernier, who took these photos for us.  She came to our home for an hour on a warm summer night and captured us just being us in our home.  When these pictures were taken we had only been in our new home for about a month, and only Finn's room was actually "done."  We ahd boxes in the hallway and in our bedroom, the bed was still on the floor and I won't even begin to tell you how crazy messy the garage was but it didn't even matter.  I highly recommend doing a session like this with your family at home. I'll hold these moments for years to come no matter how messy the scene behind them was.

6 photography tips to create the perfect Holiday Cards

6 photography tips to create the perfect holiday cards

A huge thank you to Snapfish for sponsoring this post.  I received a credit towards my holiday card order in exchange for this review.  As always, I only share products I truly am obsessed with and all images and opinions are my own. 

Use code HEIDI40 at checkout for 40% off

The moment you go to your mailbox on Nov 30 and receive your first-holiday card, a state of panic comes over you.  How can I be so late? I don’t even have my pictures taken yet!?  Here in California is stays warm through those fall months and we don’t get snow so it’s easy to not get that holiday spirit early on.  

I do have to admit, even though a whole new level of envy and anxiety sets in when that over-achieving Mom sends me her cards that early, it does get me excited about the holidays.

I rarely check my mailbox, until December rolls around.  It’s true, nothing good comes from that metal tin until Christmas cards begin to arrive.  There’s nothing like receiving a picture filled card from friends and family during the holidays.  Am I right?  

So you start to think? What picture will I use? What will we all wear? What location has the perfect landscape? How can I make this year's card perfect?  All good questions but the truth is, you don’t need perfect, you just need to be you. 

Holiday cards are a way to celebrate all the good things this year has brought as you get ready for the new year. Sending seasons greetings to the ones you love, having that personal connection with a picture of you in their mailbox, let’s you share this year's joys with your friends and family.  Whatever goodness came this year, whether it is a new marriage, new home, job promotion or even just celebrating a good year, Christmas cards are something everyone looks forward too.  Luckily, you still have time to get that memorable Holiday card out that snags the front space on everyone’s fridge this year. 

Here are 6 photography tips to create the perfect holiday cards this year:

1. First things first.  Hire a professional to do the job.  Yes, iPhone photos are amazing these days and print beautifully and if you happen to have one of those right place, right time amazingly candid photos in your camera roll to use, USE IT!  Totally acceptable.  However, many of us, including yours truly, take 27 candids all of that perfectly curated shot only to scroll through and delete them all.  If that’s you, here’s why you need that professional. These cards may be keepsakes for grandma and grandpa or Mom and dad of their little ones each year, so you want these images to stand out.  If you're like me, we only do one family photos session a year, and this it, so hiring someone who knows what they are doing really is necessary.

2. Don’t wait for a snowstorm or the perfect sunset to take those images.  Little known fact, I believe the best lighting is a cloudy day.  It brings this whole soft and ethereal feel to the photos if you ask me.  Bright sunny days, are hard to shoot in.  They cause shadows and nobody wants to be overshadowed by a shadow, right? [hahah]. Truth be told even though I love a cloudy day shoot, I dream of one day taking my photos in the rain,  you know, all The Notebook circa 2004 style.  All I’m saying is the pictures aren’t made by the perfect weather, they are made by you, the perfect people. 

3. Find simple and beautiful backdrops in your neighborhood. You don’t have to drive an hour away to stand in a winter wonderland or get all sandy at the beach [although I love a good beach scene] to get the perfect holiday image. Go the minimalist route and find a white wall to stand in front of or stop by that empty field you drive by on your way to work, or that brick wall down at your local mall, that’s the best one! Just find a blank canvas, grab your family and shoot.  Then you can choose from about 1000 designs on Snapfish to make your card pop. 

4. Use the same color palette but don’t be matchy-matchy. Nothing says Sears family Christmas cards like a family all dressed in white shirts and jeans, so, don’t do that.  Here are a few tips on styling your outfits: Pick 3-4 colors [no more than 5] and stick with those. Start with one person's outfit, probably your own because that’s easiest. Try and add in one print to bring it all together.  Add some texture with a scarf or vest.  And most importantly, be comfortable.  The last thing you want is to be fidgeting with your sleeves or pulling down your shirt throughout the whole shoot.  Nothing ruins a photo like you tugging your dress down in every photo. 

5. Embrace perfectly imperfect. We’ve all been that person.  The one who spends hours on Pinterest looking for the right outfits, the right backdrop, and the right poses for our family photos. Oh wait, that’s probably how you ended up here.  He he.  Well ok, so maybe your that person who’s more concerned with telling all your family members to look at the camera, or smile, or "look happy everyone."  And then all your images end up with your mouth open or your finger pointed covering your kid's face. Well here’s my number one tip, skip the perfectly posed, and go for the I’m having the best day of my life look.  Some of my most beloved images are ones where no one is looking at the camera.  It’s those candid, heartfelt moments and emotions that are snapped in between takes that are my favorite and those can’t be planned. 

6.  Don’t skimp on the quality of your cards.  I’ve tried several companies over the years and abandoned some once I saw the flimsy paper or poor image resolution.  This year I used Snapfish and I was super impressed by so many levels. I’m not super good at sending photos to family members with updates, so my holiday cards are the only keepsake they’ll have.  We didn’t even send a birth announcement for our first child because I just never found the time.  [It still bugs me I missed that] so, ever since then I’ve been determined to do one photo shoot a year and it’s for Holiday cards.  Needless to say, since this card is the only thing I send all year, the quality needs to be good.  Photos printed on good paper, don’t have to be expensive or take forever to get.  Snapfish has tons of designs, and cardstock options and they get the job done in a couple of days. 

Lastly, don't take this process too seriously.  These photos should show your playful and happy side and if you make this a stressful event, it will show through in the photos.  Have fun, play around, have a tickle fight, throw your little one in the air and laugh, and you'll end up front and center in everyone's fridge this year.  

With Snapfish you have so many great layout options including these gold foil cards I chose.  They offer fast shipping for your procrastinators like me too.  And to save even more time, you can have you return address printed for free.  I won't be using any other company besides Snapfish from now on for all my card needs.  USE CODE HEIDI40  for 40% off your order.

PC: @ameliaprotiva

Balancing Motherhood + Blogging | #TheMomBlogCollective Week 4

Balancing Motherhood + Blogging || #Themomblogcollective Week 4

If you're new here, here's the scoop. Once a month, our group of amazing and inspiring mamas will answer the same set of questions to do with blogging, Instagram, photography, collaborations, sponsored posts, balancing it all with motherhood, and more. We each have different perspectives and different opinions, so this is a fun way to learn from one another. We hope you'll join along! Check out the hashtag #themomblogcollective to see everyone on Instagram, and I will also link you to all of the amazing blog posts here at the bottom of my post!

If this is your first time checking out the series, and you'd like to get caught up from the beginning, here ya go:

Top 5 Tips when starting a blog or Instagram | Week #1

 How to create your brand + build an online community | Week #2

Photography tips for a Cohesive Instagram feed | Week #3

(I just want to apologize in advance for the lackluster of this week.  I was on vacay with these lovely blogger friends in Palm Springs and needless to say, it was hard to focus on writing a blog when I was meeting some of my favorite mama influencers IRL for the first time. Feel free to check out #momsdopalms, for a full photo journal of our adventures.

Now, you've made it to this week!  How to Balance Motherhood + Blogging | Week #4

One of the most asked questions I get when I meet a fellow mama and tell them I'm a blogger is, how on earth do you find the time to do it all?  I usually laugh because I feel like I don't actually have that part figured out yet.  This weeks topic is sort of ironic because the last few weeks, many of us who are part of #TheMomBlogCollective have been so overwhelmed with regular mom life that we ended up having to skip or postpone this series a few times.   The truth is, sometimes, the balance just doesn't happen as expected, so be patient with yourself and try to not put too much pressure on sticking to a perfect schedule.

I've been an Instagram influencer for about 2 years now and blogging for about 6 months and I still feel like I'm still searching for the secret to balancing my time.  Of course one day I hope I can call this influencer gig my full-time job, but for now, it's just a little side hustle when I'm not busy with that #momlife.  

My real full-time job is a mom and a wife so I have lots of duties I am responsible for on the daily.  I don't have a nanny, a housekeeper, or someone showers and eats for me, so ya know, my daily task list is pretty long. A lot of the time I am single parenting because my hubs travel a ton for work, so finding time to post on Instagram or write a blog is a challenge on most days.   

I've struggled with the mom guilt when Finn is watching hours of YouTube or Disney movies 875 times in a row. I've gone days without eating a thing until 3 pm, skipped numerous workouts (like all of them) and I've definitely forgotten to call back a girlfriend a time or two (prob three) because I'm busy working on my Instagram or blogging.  And seriously, trying to write some witty and compelling caption for my daily Instagram post while a sink full of dishes is staring me in the face is challenging to say the least.

I used to try and post twice a day at least 5 times a week, but that was just too much time away from my daily responsibilities.  Last month, I adjusted my posting schedule, because it was too much pressure to be that consistently witty and keep my images in my feed consistent that many times in a week.  Now, I only post 1 time a day (either before 9 am or after 5 pm) and if my week is crazy, I don't have a problem skipping a day or two.  

 I write and edited photos when I can, and most of the time it means I'm probably ignoring something else I should be doing.  Ya know, like laundry, a playdate or even a shower.  What's kinda funny is, I'm actually typing this on my iPhone as my husband drives us to lunch.  If you really want to be a blogger and find the balance, you've got to make the time, however, and whenever you can.  If that means getting up early, or staying up late or writing for a few minutes at a time throughout the day, it's up to you to find what works for your schedule.

Here are 7 ways I try to keep it all together while balancing Motherhood + Blogging :
1. Get up earlier than everyone else  
2. Find the beauty in the chaos  
3. Make time for me
4. Plan out my days  (please read #5 alongside this one)
5. Be adjustable
6. Be honest with your client, friends, husband and yourself
7. Take advantage of the time after bedtime

1. Get up earlier than everyone else.  

Having a little 'me' time before I get bombarded with the responsibilities of my day, really has helped me keep my Zen and tackle tasks with less stress.  Just being able to brush my teeth without a toddler pulling at my shirt, helps me feel like I've completed something for that day.  On the days I actually am able to shower, get dressed and put makeup on before he wakes up, those are the best days.  They don't always happen, but when they do I feel like a real person and not just mom who lives in sweatpants who always has that dry-shampooed bedhead and a toddler attached to her leg. It's true for me when they say, If I look like my best self, I feel like my best, and I then can be my best self.  (That's probably not the right quote but you know what I mean).

2. Find beauty in the chaos

You heard me, chaos means memories to me, it means things are happening that are sometimes messy, but that doesn't mean bad.  So, it's ok if you have dishes in the sink, a floor covered in cheerios and toys, and a laundry pile that has been looking at you for days.  It's ok if that blog post you promised the company would go live Tuesday if it doesn't actually get posted on Wednesday, life will go on.  If everyone is fed, clothed and happy, you're doing just fine.  

3. Make time for me (I struggle with this one a lot still)

Here's the thing, if the captain of the ship didn't sleep for 3 days, only ate crackers and string cheese and had no human contact besides a 1-year sing along to Moana, do you think he would be fit to lead his castmates into the sea and lead his team into rough waters?  No way, the ship would probably sink because the leader would be too exhausted to actually lead them.  You are the leader of the house and you are leading your children by your example.  Make sure you are on the top of that list of priorities.  Take what you need, when you need it.  I need a daily dose of reality TV paired with chocolate covered almonds and a glass of wine.  That's what makes my love tank full.  You decide what works for you, and make sure you don't skip what you need to care for everyone else.  That means, yes you have permission to sit on the couch midday if you need to regroup or recharge.  Ignore prepping dinner, taking out the trash and skip a post one day if you need to.  You do things for YOU girl, cause when you do, everyone benefits from it.  

4. Plan out your days.  (please read #5 alongside this one)

Make a weekly plan of things.  Not daily.  Cause we all know we can end up having "one of those days"  and if you only plan one day, it will ruin your whole week.  So, I like to plan my week, I like variety so I don't always have the same plan on each of my days of the week.  I do have a general idea of things that go something like this. 
7-8am: Me time (which does usually includes an Instagram post)  It's so much easier for me to posting before Finn wakes up, because after 8 am- it's 100% his time.
8-10am: Morning routine with Finn, diaper changes, teeth brushing, breakfast, teepee play time, etc.
10am-11am varies depending on the day.  Somedays we go for walk, some days we watch a movie, and some days we run errands (Target, duh).
We usually have a snack/lunch before naptime which is between 11 or 12.
11:30am-2pm-ish: Finn's nap time.  This is my time to catch up on emails, collaboration opportunities, plan content for the next few days, edit photos, etc.  I also need to find time to eat myself in here, so somedays, that gets skipped.  
2-4pm: This time is fully dependent on the type of day Finn is having.  He sometimes prefers individual play time, so I am able to do the dishes, clean the house, or fold the laundry while he builds a train, reads his books, plays with his cars.  And some days, it's all "I wanna hold you, mama,"  all day long. Those days are hard because I just can't get anything done with him on my lap.
4-6pm:  errands, dinner prep, or playdates
6-7pm: dinner, bath, bedtime
7-9pm: Wife duties, dinner, dishes, tv with hubs
9 pm---- ME TIME!  This is actually when I do my best work.  I plan my post for the next morning, or I write my blogs.  When everyone else is in bed.  Thankfully, Jason goes to bed at 9 pm every night he is home, so I am able to stay up and focus on my blogger responsibilities uninterrupted. 

5. Be adjustable

Things won't always go as planned, actually, most of my days never go as I planned, but I had to learn to live with the chaos and embrace it really. Some days are easy, some are not, but that's why it's great that success isn't measured in a day.  I like to think of it like a toddler's food plan.  If they get all they need in a week's worth of meals, one bad day of donuts, snacks and skipping all veggies are ok. As long as it's balanced out with the other days of the week.  If by the end of the week, you've hit all the food groups; that one day doesn't matter.  Apply that same rule to your mom, wife, and influencer duties and if at the end of the week you've fit them all in, you can consider that week a success.

6. Be honest with your client, friends, husband and yourself

Most of the time we want to hide our insecurities and just hope everything looks "perfect" when some days it's just not.  I found that when I was honest about what was happening in my chaotic life, it made me much more relatable.  I tell brands, "Sorry if I'm a little scattered, Finn has been super sick and took  1 hr nap instead of 3 hrs so, I'm a little behind on things and I may need to push the post a day or two.  Hope that's ok."  I tell my friends, "Guys, Finn just rubbed sunscreen all over the dog, can I call you back?"  I also let me husband know, "Today was tough, I need you to take over dinner and bath routines tonight. Would you mind helping?"  If you are transparent with everyone, trust me, they will usually understand and be empathetic.

7. Take advantage of the time after bedtime

Oh, you so know what I mean, right?  The moment you put the baby down for bed and you do your happy dance because you have whole 2-3 hours (depending on your bedtime) to get things done.  Or some nights, to actually just do nothing at all.  Some nights I like to shower, meal prep, load the dishwasher and straighten all the toys before I go to bed so I can start the morning without those on my list.  Because the more I get done at night, the better I feel in the morning.  Also, I try and make at least one night about my husband.  Just time for me and him.  Whether that's a glass of wine on the patio talking about our memories and our future, or if it's just cuddled on the couch binge-watching our fav shows in silence; I try for one night of uninterrupted husband and wife time. 

As we all know, just being a stay at home mom comes with a full set of responsibilities, and then to add in wifey duties, friendships, taking care of my own body, etc fitting it all in can seem like an impossible task.  Then if you are an influencer, and you add in the blogging obligations and somehow try to also find the time to take pictures, edit them, write captions, and blog is stressful.  That in itself could literally be its own full-time job and it is for some of you.  Somehow, I try and cram all of those roles into my daily routine. Somedays it works, and some it doesn't.  I just try and remember, this is all for fun and it's ok if it isn't perfect. 

I'll leave you with one of my favorite quotes for those imperfectly balanced days that you need a reminder:

"If something is important enough to you, you will find a way; and if not, you'll find an excuse."

Here's a link to all the other beautiful, genuine and inspiring mamas in the #TheMomBlogCollective:

britthavens.com | @britthavens

thelovedesignedlife.com | @thelovedesignedlife

koleimpressions.com | @steph__pollock

hellobabybrown.com | @hellobabybrown

mrsseacannon.com | @mrsseacannon

cultivatemotherhood.com | @cultivatemotherhood

www.ashleynoel.life | @_ashley_noel_

our guests this week:

henaandcompany.com | @henaandco

momwifefoodie.com | @momwifefoodie

amandapahls.com | @amandapahls

All photos in this post were sponsored by someone I am happy to have in my community of creatives.  Amelia Protiva is wonderful and amazing and just got her doula certification and is based in Silicon Valley.  If you are expecting or if you just want some gorgeous family photos, you must reach out to this beautiful and creative soul.  

The Most Instagramable Palm Springs Girls Trip ever! | #momsdopalms

First off if you've only come here for the instagramable hot spots in PS, scroll down.  I've included my top 5 Instagram worthy places in Palm Springs (with locations) for you at the end of this post. 

Totally oversharing my girls trip to Palm Springs with 9 bloggers in the most epic Air BNB.  This will give you all the vacation envy and maybe even inspire you to book your own girls trip!  I talk about all the hot spots, places to eat, and I even share my top 5 most instagram worthy places in PS.

Growing up in Manhattan Beach meant warm nights, long summers and living in my bathing suit.  I'm a salty hair, sandy toes and sunburned skin type of girl!  I've been to Palm Springs too many times to count.  Because PS was only a two-hour drive from home it became my go-to staycation spot.  My typical agenda when I visit is to stay at my hotel and lay by the pool as much as possible.  I normally stay at the Parker, and if you've ever been, you know there is no reason to ever leave the hotel, it insane. But this time, of all the times I've ever been was one of my most memorable times ever.  I went to test out my Big Brother skills and planned a vacation with 8 other women I'd never met.  I'm already starting my audition reel for the 2018 season. Jk.

We all decide to make time for US, and we somehow found a way to book a 4-day trip without our kids.  Say what? How did we do that?  Well, you basically book a flight, ask your husband to watch the kids and you just go. It's that easy.

We stayed in the cutest Air BNB with 8 influencers and the most adorable little 6 month old ever.  I'd never met these women IRL but the moment I walked in the door, I felt like I was vacationing with my besties. I've been in a comment pod on Instagram with these women for over year (for those who don't know what a comment pod is, don't worry... it's basically a group text with people you don't know).   So, I guess I kinda knew them going into it, as much as you can know someone through a daily group text, I guess.

Paige's details on her blog The Love Designed Life

My outfit deets: Hat: Inlakesh Hand woven hat | Sunnies: Diff eyewear Astro in Matte black | Top: Anthropologie (similar)| Shoes: Loeffler Randall lace up flats (similar)

This blogging world can sometimes be isolating because you're sharing your innermost self with people behind a screen.  Meeting these beautiful women IRL was necessary after we've exchanged 100's of texts with each other.  So what did I do with 8 of my closest social media friends on a Wednesday in Palm Springs? Here it goes.

We stayed at @thewkndhouse in the heart of Palm Springs and this just may replace my typical hotel stay from now on.  It was so, so good for so many reasons. Number 1- it's super close to downtown. Number 2- the rooms were perfection.  And Number 3- just the right size with the most perfect Instagramable walls.  We are all bloggers so, duh.

We ate tacos (pretty much every day we were there) , we drank rosé (you guessed it, every single day), and we took lots and lots of pictures.  We went on this trip with no plans, other than couch hangs & pool time with no kids, visiting a few instgrammable hot spots and late night chats about balancing motherhood and blogging.  And honestly, that's pretty much all we did.

I got the best room. Shhhh! Don't tell the anyone else.  If you decide to go, just plan get there early and snag the flamingo room for yourself! That wall, and It's closest to the potty (bathroom for you non-parents reading this, lol) and the kitchen for those late night snack runs!

The master suite has pretty much the most perfect wallpaper ever.

Pineapples are legit they

STAND TALL

WEAR A CROWN

and they are

SWEET ON THE INSIDE

And of course the other rooms make you wanna go wallpaper your entire house too.

The front and back of the house also come with even more instgrammable moments. There's a ping-pong table, cornhole and pool floats.  We took advantage of only one of those fun things; I'll let you figure out where we spent most of our time. 👇🏻

Hat: GigiPip Eve Nora felt brim hat | Sunnies: Diff eyewear Astro in Matte black | Suit: Kortni Jeane Swing too + Rouched bottoms

If you know me, you know I'm that girl who's always jumping in the pool.  I've been known to take a few people with me and at times, I may push a few people in fully clothed for fun.  I even jumped in the pool at our hotel after my own wedding still in my wedding dress. [true story]   I thought it would be fun after this photo shoot to actually get a few pics of us jumping in the pool.  I didn't have any takers and it took some convincing but I got these two knuckleheads to agree to jump in with me ('so I thought...)

We all held hands, and we all agreed to jump on the count of three. I think it's safe to say, the joke was on me.  I guess that's payback for all the times I did this to other people. #karmasabitch. Yes, that splash is mine.  And yes, those two girls don't know how to count to three.

Oh I will be getting you two back @_ashley_noel_ and @helloerinv. I know where you live.

Of course we needed to really spend some QT together at the house so we did a grocery store run and decided to only eat out a couple times.  We got fruits, bread, eggs and stuff for Taco Tuesday, ya know... the important stuff. We spent a lot of time at the house because it was so great and we loved getting to know each other.

We spent 3 nights curled up and snuggled together on the couch catching up on Bachelor in Paradise and one night we had a game night which included a real hysterical game of heads up and an even more hysterical game of the PG version of cards against humanity.  This is when I had to face the reality of being the oldest girl there when I referenced Coming to America [bark like a dog, a big dog] and nobody knew what I was talking about. (insert laughing & rolling eye emoji here).

Meet Ollie, hands down the easiest and cutest baby ever. Because of my crazy baby fever, having Ollie with us was really helpful for those 'I'm missing my kids' moments. I know we all really tried to take our mom hats off and make time fully for ourselves but I think we all enjoyed having this little nugget with us while we were away. From our own babies. If you want more Ollie, go visit @annehilldesign. She's the best and she lives in Alaska so you'll probably get a few moose of grizzly bear pics too!

We had to visit the two coolest hotels in Palm Springs so we had brunch at the Parker, and spend more time taking photos than we did enjoying our $17 mimosas. The Parker is where I had my bachelorette party, where I've spent numerous "first dates" with my husband and if I ever ran away from life, that's where you can find me.

This might be my all time favorite IRL blogger mama I've met. She really should be a stand up comedian, the most hilarious mama I know. Meet @helloerinv

This girl right here traveled all the way from Canada to be with us, at 31 weeks prego, on a red eye..If that doesn't make you love her, I don't know what will! Meet my favorite Canadian @britthavens.

Hat: GigiPip Eve floppy hat | Sunnies: Diff eyewear Astro in Matte black | Dress: Michelle Jonas | Shoes: Joie leather sandals | Necklace: House of Harlow gold locket | Watch: Daniel Wellington Classic Petite Rose gold | Bracelet: Gorjana Howlite calming bracelet

We had dinner at The Saguaro and to be honest we went on a Wednesday and when we pulled into the parking lot we thought it might be closed.  Needless to say, mid week in Palm Springs is less than lively.  But, on a positive note, it was happy hour all day!! So we got thee best tacos ever for $2 a piece! There was 9 of us and the bill wasn't even $100! So that was a huge score!  We were bad bloggers and didn't get any pictures at this dinner,  but we made up for it the next day when we visited the cactus garden and of course that famous pink door. #thatpinkdoor.

Sunnies: Diff eyewear Astro in Matte black | Dress: Amuse Society | Shoes: Christian Louboutin espadrilles wedges | Necklace: House of Harlow gold locket | Watch: Daniel Wellington Classic Petite Rose gold

The Moorten Botanical Gardens are a perfect girls trip adventure.  It's $5 to enter and this place is insane you guys.  It took about 5 minutes to walk through the whole thing, and about 20 minutes to get some plant-lovers dream photos.  The picture above is inside the cactarium, and it was beyond gorgeous and hot!  It was about 108 degrees outside that day and it felt like 120 degrees inside the green house.  But, it was soooo worth it for a photo like this one.

My friend in real life for over 3 years now, and one of my favorite mamas around Paige @thelovedesignedlife. Her blog is insane, please check it out. The Love Designed Life

So I hear that you aren't a real blogger in Palm Springs until you get a picture in front of That Pink Door.  Kidding, but we seriously had to make a trip there to snap a couple fun pics.  There was a group of young German girls and a car of Asian tourists waiting their turn for pictures too (on a random Thursday afternoon) and if it weren't for the other eager groups of people, we may have passed the door.  It's in a residential area and yes, someone really lives there!  We had Ollie with us, and the sun was blazing hot, so we didn't stay long, but it doesn't take long to become a real life blogger when you stand in front of this cute pink door. [mom, I've made it!]

Oh hey cuties! Paige @thelovedesignedlife Courtney @courtneynicoleramsey + Britt @britthavens

Sunnies: Diff eyewear Astro in Matte black | Dress: Amuse Society | Shoes: Christian Louboutin espadrilles wedges | Necklace: House of Harlow gold locket | Watch: Daniel Wellington Classic Petite Rose gold

In short, or long... life happens only once and you need to make the most of it.  Motherhood can be challenging, isolating and one of the biggest life reflecting times on who you are as person.  But, finding time to be that person that you were before babies, really is important.  I'm not sure these mamas know just how much those 4 days in Palm Springs refreshed me and those memories will stay with me, thank you for the laughs and fun times ladies! Let's do it again next year!

We put this trip together all on our own to meet each other in real life but some fabulous brands helped all our vacation house and pool dreams come true.  Thank you to our sponsors:

The Weekend House  

Kortni Jeane Swimwear

Diff Eyewear

Gigi Pip Hats

Big Mouth Pool Floats

5 most instragram worthy spots in Palm Springs:

1. The Wknd House. Scroll through this post and you'll see why.  If the front yard, the backyard, the pool and the wallpaper are enough, the living room and family room will bring all your bright, colorful, mid century dreams come true.  The best thing about my #1 spot is that you don't even have to leave the house to get the perfect shot. @thewkndhouse

2. That Pink Door.  Yes, it's someone's house, and yes there are always random people parked in front ready to capture that instagram worthy moment in front of that pink door.  The door has its own instagram account if you believe me. @thatpinkdoor

3. Cactus Garden.  It's actually the newest blogger go-to spot and it's fairly close to that pink door.  The Moorten Botanical Garden Showplace is a must go to place even if you don't wanna take an instagram worthy picture.  It's pretty small and it cost $5 to get in, but I will be visiting this place on all my upcoming Palm Springs trips! | Moorten Botanical Garden and Cactarium 

4. The Parker. If you've been to this swanky hotel, you know about the lemonade stand, the cutest yellow pool, and of course the oversized chese game on the gorgeous grounds of the hotel, that is if you make it past the lobby.  From the massive white brick wall showering the giant signature orange doors when you arrive, to the drugs sign and the hanging wicker chairs in the first glimpse of the hotel, this place is perfection.  This hotel is a bloggers playground.  If you've never been, you must go, this place screams, I'm super cool. The Parker Palm Springs 

5.  The Saguaro.  Admittedly, I've only been here for the tacos.   But if bright, bold, fun colors are you thing, than the Saguaro is totally going to be your jam.  Those purple and pink doors have filled my IG feed numerous summers so, if your looking for a pop of color and a good time, head straight to this hotel. The Saguaro Palm Springs

There are some affiliate links in this post, but all opinions expressed are my own.

Photography Tips for a Cohesive feed || #Themomblogcollective Week 3

Welcome to the third installment of The Mom Blog Collective: Tips for better photography. If you're new here, here's the scoop. Every other week, our group of amazing and inspiring mamas will answer the same set of questions to do with blogging, Instagram, photography, collaborations, sponsored posts, balancing it all with motherhood, and more. We each have different perspectives and different opinions, so this is a fun way to learn from one another. We hope you'll join along! Check out the hashtag #themomblogcollective to see everyone on Instagram, and I will also link you to all of the amazing blog posts here at the bottom of my post!

So, I seriously feel like I'm the furthest person who's qualified for this weeks installment of #Themomblogcollective because I generally hide behind my lack of professional looking photos with my lengthy yet genuine and honest, raw, heartfelt captions.  Yes, I do stick to a color pallet and I try and use the same few core filters in each of my images but I'm not a professional by any means. I feel like in order to get professional looking feed, you need to be a professional...right? Nope.  Either hire a professional who actually knows what they are doing or marry someone and convince them to quit their day job, learn photography and follow you around all day. Haha right? And if that doesn't work for you...  Here are a few tips that may help you fake it like I do.   I'll be sharing a few tips, talking about what camera I use, and giving all the details on what apps I use.

Top Three Tips:

1. Make sure your images are straight

I always make sure my photos are straight. People tend to like photos that are symmetrical.   My husband hates it because when I ask someone to take our photos because I always direct them to take them straight on.    "Can you please stand over there and please don't cut me feet off, thanks!" Maybe it's just me but I like things to be straight vs a weird angle or from the side of a scene. 

2. Add some negative space

Before you push the trigger, take three steps back.  Give your audience a little glimpse into the scene you are in.  It's easier for people to see the emotion behind the photograph if they actually see the scenery instead of just your face.  It's so typical that you hand your friend the camera and say can you take a picture of me and they get in real close to just capture your face.  Right?  Trust me on this, .take three steps back!  This way you get an idea of what's actually happening around you and allows the subject of the photo, which is usually you or your kids to be the main focus without being distracted by being too close.   So when I take my pictures I tend to make sure that I have some sort of sky or ceiling or some sort of space above my head and that you can definitely see my shoes or the sidewalk or something below me.  Here's my go to- make sure you get my shoes, even if I'm not wearing any because it helps leave some space.

3. Lighting is key

The time and space that you take your pictures in can be make all the difference.  The best time to shoot is the "magic hour"  which i think you've all heard before.  Right after the sun sets when the suns rays aren't to bright to cause a glare.  Also the best place to take a photo is out of the direct sunlight.  Try taking your photos in shade but still outside in the light. When you position yourself try and get the light towards you vs behind you.

BONUS TIP:

Take numerous pics at the same time

True story, my cell phone currently has 53,000+ photos in my camera roll.  The best way to get a good snap is to take lots of pictures!  I know that sounds simple but the truth is for me, I probably take at least 100 photos of the same scene to get the perfect shot.  Some people are effortless, but for me, I need lots of options.   One way I keep my feed cohesive is to post photos from the same photo shoot on the same day with the same lighting periodically throughout my feed.  

Besides what I use to take my photos, two of my most asked questions are, what do you use to take your photos?  & what apps do you use to edit your photos and plan your posts?

What do you use to take most of your photos?

I have a mixture of iPhone and I recently got the Sony a6000 with a 1.8/50mm lens.  It has built in wifi so I can transfer my images even when I'm not connected to the internet.  It's super fast and easy.  The camera itself comes with amazing features, that makes it easier to just shoot and post, however, I did spend some time watching You tube videos about the camera.  If I do adjust the settings, I mostly adjust the background defocus and the brightness. It's easier to let the camera do the work and edit the images to fit my feed later. 

What apps do you use for your editing?

My favorite apps for editing are Color Story &  VSCO.  I've downloaded so many photo editing apps but these two are by far my favorite.  Easy to use, and they have the best pre set filters ready for you.  Color Story has the flashes of delight bundle that is really all you need.  My favorites are Carrie & Valerie.  I sometimes add some brightness and a little fade depending on what the lighting was like in my original photo.  For VSCO, I use the basic package, A6 filter and then use tons of exposure and a little brightness.  Download those apps, and play with some of the filters to find your own aesthetic.  

If there is anything to take away from me this week, it's more about the stories I tell through my images and my captions, to hopefully turn all your followers into real life friends.
As my girl @helloerinV once said, "You take the picture and you just post it."  It's sometimes as simple as that.

Here are this weeks contributors: 

mrsseacannon.com | @mrsseacannon

britthavens.com | @britthavens

koleimpressions.com | @steph__pollock

cultivatemotherhood.com | @cultivatemotherhood

www.ashleynoel.life | @_ashley_noel_

hellobabybrown.com | @hellobabybrown

darlingnightingale.com | @darlingnightingale

www.a-blessed-nest.com | @blessednestblog

thelovedesignedlife.com | @thelovedesignedlife

GUESTS: 

http://www.helloerin.com | @helloerinv
http://www.hopefeathersphotography.com | @hopefeathers
http://www.psimfromthemidwest.com | @hollynbaron

How to Establish Your Brand and Build Your Online Community | #Themomblogcollective Week 2

Welcome to the second installment of The Mom Blog Collective: How to Build and Online Community and Define Your Brand. If you're new here, here's the scoop. Every other week, our group of amazing and inspiring mamas will answer the same set of questions to do with blogging, Instagram, photography, collaborations, sponsored posts, balancing it all with motherhood, and more. We each have different perspectives and different opinions, so this is a fun way to learn from one another. We hope you'll join along! Check out the hashtag #themomblogcollective to see everyone on Instagram, and I will also link you to all of the amazing blog posts here at the bottom of my post!

This weeks topic is: How to Establish Your Brand and Build Your Online Community

Those two things go hand and hand in my opinion.  In order to grow an authentic community of followers, you need to have a true brand all your own.  You need to establish what your brand is, and make sure that you continue to create a curated feed with your brand image in mind with every single post.  I believe most people follow me for a specific reason; either they love my photography style or aesthetic, they have a common connection with me like where I live or kids the same age, or when they read my posts I say something that resonates with them on a deeper level and inspires them in some way.  If I can connect with someone through my feed in one of those ways, I will gain them not only as a follower, but hopefully I'll engage with them enough and they will eventually join my community of followers who interact daily with me and possibly even meet IRL one day... (IRL=in real life).

Don't get me wrong, I certainly don't think I'm an expert on this topic by any means.  We've all been there, where it just feels like it takes a small miracle to get someone to click that 'follow' button or even just double click your picture, right?  I struggle daily watching that little number go up and down. I gain a few followers and then I lose just as many each day.  So, in this week, I'll be talking mostly about how I use my brand image to get my followers to stay with me, double tap my images, how I encourage comments, and eventually how I get them to join my community.

Here are my 6 key steps to start building your brand + community now!

Step 1: Create 5 key words to describe your brand image

Step 2: Get your colors and photography style consistent

Step 3: Define your core topics

Step 4: Plan out your posting schedule

Step 5: Ask followers to join your community

Step 6: Engage using specific hashtags

 -You can't be everything to everyone-

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Step 1: Create 3-5 key words to describe the feeling you want for your feed.  What vibes, emotions, impressions do you want to leave with someone when they visit your page? Do you want your feed to emulate romantic, classic, bold, colorful, soft, whimsical, minimal, adventurous, playful, moody, or humorous?

In my opinion, the first step to creating your brand should be to figure out who are you really speaking to.  For me, I needed to create my own brand identity that would speak directly to my ideal follower.  I wanted my feed to be a true visual representation of myself through an authentic voice and consistent images so I could reach my true people.  Some words that describe my brand are authentic, bright, beachy, mom-friendly and organic, how would you describe yours?

 

 

-Create a clear identity through your photos-

Step 2:  Get your colors and photography style consistent.  When someone sees a picture of yours, they should clearly know it's your photo either by the style or the colors or both.  Based on the recommendation from @jennakutcher, and her Instagram Lab Course, I created a brand mood board/color theme.  It included my top 5 branding words and my top 5 colors of my feed, which helped me focus on my true brand image.  Canva is this awesome app you can use to get your "colors" by using a screen shot of your feed.   Here's mine:

When I take photos or edit photos, I try and stick to these 5 colors.

You can try it for your own feed here.  Just take a screen shot of your Instagram feed and it will pull out your top 5 colors for you.

(Our next post in this series is all about photography and editing your photos, so don't worry...more details on this to come!)

CANVA COLOR PALETTE GENERATOR

 -Have a focused approach-

Step 3: Define your categories:  I talked a little about this in my last post.  The more you can narrow your focus, the easier it will be for someone to connect with you. I try and define my brand into 5 categories and concentrate my posts around those topics. Family + Marriage, Motherhood, WAHM Life, Beauty + Fashion, Home Decor.  This helps me be consistent and authentic in each and every post and differentiate myself from other bloggers out there.  Using your top categories you defined above, try to create a diverse but defined feed that flows and touches on each topic throughout the week.  Maybe Mondays are WAHM life, and then Tuesdays you try and post about home decor, etc.  This way, you always have something to talk about, and you aren't trying to come up with a witty caption every time you have a great image to post.  It gives you and your feed a more defined focus, which will, in turn, help people to connect with you and keep coming back for more each week because they know what to expect.

-Establish your top posting schedule-

Step 4: Define posting schedule and best times to post. 

You need to ask yourself how often you are willing to spend time on Instagram and how often you really have the time to create a post that will speak to your followers, create hashtags that flow with that photo and make time to engage with your followers who comment.   It's important to make a plan and stick to it so that your followers see you consistently.  Is it once a week?  Once a day? 3x a day?  What does it take to grow your community....that's entirely up to you!  

I recently switched over to a business account and found out that the majority of my followers are actually from Southern Cal and most of them are most active on Tuesday- Saturday.  These insights can help you determine a posting schedule that will create the most engagement on your photos.  If you find that most of your followers are in a different time zone, you should adjust your posting time to fit when they are most active.

For me, I started with once a day, about 4x a week.  Now I try and post before 9 am or after 6 pm 5x a week.  I generally take off the weekends because I have found my better engagement times are during the week.  If you don't want to switch to a business account, there are lots of other sites to view your analytics.  Once of the most popular is

- Include a call to action-

Step 5:  Think of your call to actions like a personal invite into your community.   Occasionally include a call to action; double tap if you love tacos as much as me, comment with your favorite place to buy children's clothes, click the link in my bio to see my tips on how to meal prep, etc.   The goal is to get people to engage on your posts.  People may not feel compelled to comment unless you ask them to, and they may not even respond to your question when you do, but you want them to get engaged any way you can.  Trust me it works.  One of my most engaged posts I ever had was about a postpartum struggle I was experiencing after my first baby.  It was a hard & honest post for me to write, but I was vulnerable and I asked for help or ideas from my followers on how to fix it.  So many people commented that they struggled with the same thing and how they dealt with the issue.  You can read about that here if you want more details, but trust me having a call to action will help your engagement and lead to more true followers.

Remember, your followers want to see you!  Not only in your real genuine voice but images of you!  That creates a connection better than any other.  I bet you if you scroll through your feed, you'll see your most liked photos are not the most perfect flat lay, or the most beautiful sunset, but they are ones you are in, and ones you have written a heart felt or authentic caption about yourself.  Try and do that at least once a week and I promise you, your have a community faster than you know it.

 -Engage using specific hashtags-

Step 6:  One of the best ways to find a new audience is through hashtags.  Using your categories above, search for your niche hashtags and include them in every post.  

I have my hashtags grouped into my categories and saved in my planning app.  (I use Planoly but there are a ton of planning apps out there).  You are allowed 30 hashtags a post, and I use every single one.  If you have a photo that gets great engagement you may end up in the top 9 photos of that hashtag and you will be seen by tons of new faces.  My goal is to get my post in at least 3 of my hashtags top 9 photos to gain followers in my specific niche.  Out of the 30 I am allowed, I'd say 10 are always the same, and then for the rest, I switch it up and use some hashtags that have TONS of posts on them and some that have under 2 thousand posts on them.  I use some that are more specific to my location or subject matter and then some that are broader or used more often.  There is some chatter about using hashtags in your caption or in your comments, and getting "shadow-banned" but I haven't noticed enough of a difference in either to comment on that.  I think we will end up having a more detailed week on this subject where I can expand more on the hashtag subject, but if you have specific questions, please feel free to comment here or on my IG.

-Time + patience are key- 

I leave you with this, you can spend all your time creating the perfect brand and image but if you don't spend time engaging with others, you will not be successful in building a community.  People want to know they are seen and heard, and not just another like on your images.  In between all the curating, planning, and writing you need to include time in your day to reach out to both current and potential followers and comment and like on their pages as well. Respond to your comments on your posts, and search your niche hashtags and engage consistently.  I know that takes TIME, and TIME is the key word here. In order to grow organically, you need to have patience and show yourself some grace if it isn't happening as fast as you'd like.  Remember in order to grow organically, you need to engage, and you'll see a return from your hard work.  That engagement takes time and patience.
In June of 2016, I had 916 followers, today I have over 8 thousand.  I found that as I posted more authentic and vulnerable posts and the more I engaged with my followers and potential followers, the more my community was growing. 

Each month we feature different guest bloggers in addition to our core 10. While we will all be answering the same questions and writing about the same topics, it will give each of you a wide variety of perspectives. We each have a different blogging style, photography style, schedule and more so it will be a great opportunity to read everyone's posts and gain a little insight from each one. 

Here are this weeks contributors: 

mrsseacannon.com | @mrsseacannon

britthavens.com | @britthavens

koleimpressions.com | @steph__pollock

cultivatemotherhood.com | @cultivatemotherhood

www.ashleynoel.life | @_ashley_noel_

hellobabybrown.com | @hellobabybrown

darlingnightingale.com | @darlingnightingale

www.a-blessed-nest.com | @blessednestblog

thelovedesignedlife.com | @thelovedesignedlife

GUESTS: 

kristlesclarity.com | @hereyeswereolivegreen

@amylouhawthorne

If you have a topic you'd love to get an answer to in our series, search the hashtag #TheMomBlogCollective on Instagram and comment on any one of our photos under that hashtag to let us know! You can also leave comments on our blog posts.

Top 5 Tips when Starting a Blog or Instagram Account | #TheMomBlogCollective WEEK 1

I'm so excited to share a new series I am starting here on my blog called #TheMomBlogCollective. Twice a month, I've teamed up with 10 other influencers and we will be sharing a blog post on the same topic -- related to blogging, instagram, working with brands, making money, photography, motherhood and more. More than almost anything else, each of us get asked how we started blogging, what tips we have for someone looking to start, how to work with companies for sponsored posts and more, so those questions are the starting point for our series. 

Each month we will feature different guest bloggers in addition to our core 10. My favorite part is that while we will all be answering the same questions and writing about the same topics, it will give each of you a wide variety of perspectives. We each have a different blogging style, photography style, schedule and more so it will be a great opportunity to read everyone's posts and then figure out what works best for you. And if you have a topic you'd love to get an answer to in our series, search the hashtag #TheMomBlogCollective on Instagram and comment on any one of our photos under that hashtag to let us know! You can also leave comments on our blog posts.

A little about me.  

After I left my crazy busy, 80hr a week, 15 year career in fashion and moved to the Bay Area of Northern California I needed to find something to do with my time.  I had no job, I was new to the area so I had no community of friends and I was newly married with a husband who traveled a ton. When I would talk to my friends about my life changes, and my transition from sales manager power house to unemployed house wife and my future goals of having babies and doing yoga daily, they would listen intently and they would all say, "you should start a blog!"  

I didn't have the first clue about how to be a blogger and it scared the crap outta me to start something new when there was already so many other influencers out there doing it in such a successful way.  I mean, do people really want to hear my story?  Speaking truthfully, I wasn't quite sure what my actual story was even going to be focused on but, I knew I had a story to tell.  I wanted to share my passion for newly married life, fashion, trying for babies, life changes from leaving my career and just life in general so, that's when I started my Instagram acct just for insta-blogging.   Now, I feel like I need to admit that I'm still kinda lost when it comes to SEO, affiliate links and everything else involved with the actual blog part of social media but, I do know I've learned a tremendous amount in the past 2 years of being an Instagram influencer.  

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So, besides the typical first steps that you may already know about being an influencer like choosing your account name, or finding the perfect photo filter, or choosing between square space of Wordpress for your domain, here are my top 5 tips when starting a blog or Instagram account (but really it's just what I follow when I think about my own personal Instagram process and I hope it helps you)!

1. Progress over Perfection.

Here's the truth, when I first started my Instagram, my posts sometimes would take me up to an hour to write.  I constantly found myself being too wordy, and then not knowing how to edit.  What do people really want to hear, or not hear?  And then the images, are they the right color or brightness?  Does it fit in my aesthetic? Is my picture good enough to make people stop scrolling?  When I first started, this was my problem, constantly over thinking everything! I would find myself not posting for days because I was waiting for the perfect post, or the perfect time, or the perfect image.  If it wasn't perfect enough to post, I wouldn't post anything.  But, I quickly found out that progress is better than perfection.  The more your engaging and sharing your heart, the more followers will find you.  If you want to start a blog or become an influencer, just start now.  What are you waiting for?   I promise someone out there needs to hear your story because they can relate in some way.  If you are true to yourself, and you share images that make you happy, I am sure it will make others happy too.  Just start somewhere, don't think too hard about it and just begin.  

2. Be Authentic.   

It is all too easy to get caught in the comparison game when scrolling aimlessly through influencers feeds and blogs.  It's important to always be yourself and not try and be what you think people want you to be.  There are so many gorgeously curated feeds out there with mamas who have the perfect top knot, clean kitchens, with fresh flowers cut on the table and the cutest baby in tow...but honestly, that's not always real life.  One thing that I know helped me grow is to stop following people that I compare myself to or made me feel less than. Believe it or not, when you are scrolling through other peoples feeds, these images are making a huge impression on you.  Those images you stop and double top or screen shot can start to have an effect on your own content.  It can start to affect what you post or don't post, they can affect your confidence in your own creativity and it can even affect the way you are feeling about your life.  As they say, Comparison is the thief of joy and I believe that is true in this process.  If you try to stay focused on your own creative journey and be authentic in that journey, it will bring you joy and success.

3.  Know who you are.

Finding your own voice and your own vision and staying true to that is super important for growth.  Staying focused on your brand and image with every single post has a huge effect on your success.  My number one thing is to make sure you are sharing your full self, but also try not to be everything to everyone.  If I asked your closest friends to describe you in 5 words what would they say? What part of you do you really want to share?  Your fashion style, your foodie outings, your mama tips, etc.  Instead of sharing every single thing you like, which makes it hard for people to connect with you, focus on a couple things and really expand on those topics.  When people come to my page, I want them first to see that I'm a mom, second, I'm a wife, third I'm a sweatpant loving momtrepreneur who works from home and is struggling to balance work/home/parenting life. I try and use those few things as anchors in each of my posts.  If my posts don't talk about one of those things, then I am missing sharing my real brand image and finding my true community.  I find people connect with other people for a specific reason; whether it's because they love their home style, or they are vegan, or because they are working from home moms, etc... So let your account reflect a few things about you so people can really find something to relate to on your page. Finding your niche is going to be an ongoing process but the idea is to post images, ideas, and stories that resonate with your true community, and if you can do that, you are totally winning.

4.  Be ready for change.  

In order to monetize your Instagram feed, it's important to keep up with these constant changes.  What worked for me when I first started has changed so much with each day, week, and month.  As this little app evolves, and algorithms change, you have to be ready for that.  You need to make sure you find time to keep up with the changes and always be on the lookout for how you can evolve and do things better.  It's a never ending battle to keep growing despite the ever changing process of it all. I remember when I first hit that 1k, and then 5k, and now I'm stuck at 8k and it's killing me. But honestly, I'm sure once I hit 10k, I'll just want more.  And with that comes hard work and new ideas of how to make it all happen.  I use my community to stay up to date with things and we are constantly sharing other techy blog posts that keep us informed of changes on Facebook or Instagram.  There are tons of influencers out there who are willing to share their knowledge, you just need to take the time to research it.
 

5. Join a community of creatives like you.

When I first started this journey, one of my main goals was so to find a community of like minded people and love them hard.  Ya know, like find your tribe and you will thrive thing?  Having a community of other momtrepreneurs, or creatives I can bounce ideas off of or share a win with is exciting and necessary for my continued success in this influencer journey.  Yes, I have my friends and my husband I can talk to about it but, it's not the same.  Don't get me wrong, Jason loves a good celebratory dance session when I get a check in the mail for a collab, but does he really love hearing how my photo just got 500 likes for the first time ever, or how this huge brand just reposted my photo, probably not.  I know he supports me, but does he really get it?  I've met some amazing friends through this journey and we chat daily.  I have to say, these conversations can mean the difference of me feeling completely lost at sea or confident in my ability to do this.

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I'm gonna end it with this.  HAVE FUN!!  Don't take things too seriously and try and have a good time.  If posting in your feed becomes a stressful part of your day, take a break, and I promise your true followers will be there when you get back.

Please leave me comments below or questions so I know I'm not just only talking to my computer screen. 

You can find all the other blog posts linked below:

A Blessed Nest | @blessednestblog

Ashley Noel | @_ashley_noel_

Britt Havens | @britthavens

Cultivate Motherhood | @cultivatemotherhood

Kole Impressions Blog | @steph__pollock

Hello Baby Brown | @hellobabybrown

Mrs Seacannon | @mrsseacannon

The Love Designed Life | @thelovedesignedlife

All photos in this post were sponsored by someone I am happy to have in my community of creatives.  Amelia Protiva is wonderful and amazing and just got her doula certification and is based in Silicon Valley.  If you are expecting or if you just want some gorgeous family photos, you must reach out to this beautiful and creative soul.