Good morning and welcome to our latest Wise Words Wednesday. Today we have the lovely Kirsty from Winnettes taking time out to answer our blogging questions on her journey so far.
Kirsty’s blog is a great mix of their life and interior and like me, she shares lots of things in between. Her blog is her space to share her writing and it is fab!
So now it is time to hand you over to her:
Tell us a little bit about you & your blog:
I am Kirsty, a Mum to two little girls: Ellie who is 5 and in her first year of school and Trixie who is 3 and at preschool. I blog over at Winnettes and can usually be found on Instagram or Pinterest scrolling away. I have been searching for that elusive ‘niche’ so many bloggers talk about but mostly I write about what I am enjoying at the time. Mostly the subjects are parenting and baking related but we have recently moved house and I have a few interior posts lined up. I have also recently started writing about Instagram and Pinterest. I get a lot of my traffic from Pinterest so I want to impart what I have learnt. As for Instagram, I am no expert. However, I am acutely aware that so many people dislike it these days and find it quite a soul-destroying social media platform. Well, I completely understand why so I have tried to share the tools and methods I use to ensure Instagram is always an enjoyable place for me to be.
What inspired you to start blogging?
My husband was the one to suggest I start blogging. Trixie was a few months old and I think he could see I was struggling to feel connected to anything and anyone. I had gone through a very lonely time after Ellie and he saw this as a way of me getting a lot of my anxieties out on ‘paper’ and also to give me something else to focus on rather than how tired I was.
What has been your highlight of blogging?
I think us bloggers are going to start sounding like broken records but for me the highlight has been the friends I have made. I have always been so wary of the online world and I am more than aware of the methods of grooming so for me to sit here and write this is unbelievable. But… I have people I consider my friends that I haven’t even met. These people are there any time of the day and will always put a smile on my face. I have met some of them of course. I have thrown caution to the wind and gone and met other bloggers face to face that I have spent months talking to online. I wish I could meet all of them but many live too far away to make that really just now.
Is there anything you have learnt about blogging which you wish you knew when you started out?
There are so many things I wish I had known. I wish I had known how addictive I would find it. Writing is my therapy so really I should have known. I wish I had known how much work actually goes into blogging. I always thought it was just a write and push publish thing, and of course it can be if that is what you want. But for me there is the social shares the commenting the emails the photos and research…. The list goes on.
Bloggers sometimes get a lot of stick however many work really hard and are reaping the rewards, what has been the most rewarding part of blogging for you?
I was recently gifted a car seat worth over £200. I know it shouldn’t be about the value of a product but I have to admit I was thrilled to have been selected to review the product. It was also completely invaluable to us because we really needed to purchase a new seat and so this saved us a lot of money. I completely understand why people get annoyed at all the ‘freebies’ bloggers can get, however I worked really hard on the particular post and got some lovely feedback from the company. Also I wouldn’t have got that gig in the first place if I didn’t take pride in my work or have worked my bones off to improve my writing and photography.
What would be your 1 tip you would give all new bloggers starting out?
Ignore all the ‘noise’. There are a lot of bloggers out there ready to give advice to the newbies. And whilst I don’t think anyone deliberately gives bad advice it is important to remember that what works for one may not work for another. It is hard not to get blinded by what people say you should and shouldn’t do. As with everything, blogging can be a little trial and error. Don’t be afraid of the errors because that is where you will really learn what works for you and your blog. I liken it to my children. I have two girls, they look alike, you can certainly tell they are sisters. But that is where most of the similarities end and therefore it would be naïve of me to believe that one method of parenting would work for both of them. I have to adapt my approach for each child to ensure the end result is the same. I get it wrong along the way but that is where I learn and grow (and so do they).
Who do you find inspiring to read/watch in the blogging world?
This is actually a lot harder to answer than I thought it would be. As my blog is a bit of a mismatch of subjects I draw inspiration from all places. For sheer intense work ethic I admire Tayla from Motherhood the Real Deal. For having a beautiful blog, Instagram and overall personality it is Kerry Villers and for Vlogging I love Molly Forbes.
Lastly – do you have any big plans/dreams for your blog in the next 12 months?
Currently I have no big plans but I am hoping to start making some actual money from the blog this year. With Trixie at preschool I have a little more time to focus on the writing and to ensure any deadlines are achievable with minimal stress.
