Haven Maven Mentor Blog Hop

Happy Monday!  Before I share some exciting news with you today, I wanted to thank all of you for leaving me so many wonderful comments in reply to my post on Friday.  I am enjoying reading all of them and learning more about each and every one of you. I will try to respond to all of you, it may take a few days. :-)

Now onto the exciting news. It is geared more for bloggers or anyone thinking about starting one. If you are coming from Jen from City Farmhouse then you know what’s up and are taking the Haven Maven Mentor blog hop.

You now may be asking yourself….What is a Haven Maven Mentor?

Answer:  A Design and DIY blogger who has been blogging for a long time and has lots of knowledge about blogging to share with other less experienced and brand new bloggers at the Haven Conference in August.

Guess what?  I am a Haven Mentor. :-) I am very excited.  I love supporting and encouraging other creatives and entrepreneurs and I am looking forward to being able to sit-down and chat and connect with some of the attendees in a more personal way to help set them on their way to blogging success.

I have been blogging for 7 years and when tell people what I do for a living, the number one question I receive about blogging is, How did I learn what I needed to know to start a blog? followed by the question…How should I start my own?  I have two answers..

• Research. I had the desire to have a blog, this led me to research as much as I could about blogging, then I just dove in.

• Blog conferences!  I have been to many and a good portion of what I know about blogging has been by going to blogger conferences.

Many of the conferences I attended were for a wide variety of niche of blogger or website owner. The Haven Conference was created for the Design/DIY/Decorating niche bloggers with sessions and hands-on classes tailored just for a DIY’er who loves to write about home improvement and decorating.

During the Haven Conference 2016, along with regular learning sessions, attendees will get the chance to sit in a small group with other bloggers and a Haven Mentor. It will be a very relaxed gathering to chat about “all things blogging” It is the Haven team’s hope that these small groups will foster new blogging relationships and maybe even lifelong friendships.

All this week, the blogger’s chosen to be mentors at this years’s Haven Conference will be answering a few questions so anyone going to Haven or are thinking of going, (tickets are still available) can get to know more about the mentors who have many years of blogging behind them and lots of knowledge to share. We hope you will follow along.

For this blog hop, I was asked the following questions:

1. How many years have you been blogging?

I started my blog when I was still working a full-time 9-5 job back in 2009. After doing both for almost 2 years, I quit my job and happily began blogging full-time. It was the best decision I ever made. I like being the Editor-In-Chief of my own publication.

2. What is your favorite DIY project you’ve completed?

You can read all about my ABSOLUTE favorite DIY projects in this post:  The Best 2 DIY Project’s I Ever Made  :-) XO

My other favorite DIY projects?  It is hard to choose only one, but after looking through my post archives I would have to say it is the Tuna Can Lantern.

It was a fun project where I repurposed a few items destined for the trash can to create outdoor lighting for my backyard.  A more recent favorite DIY project….

…is the coffee table I made using 2 x 4’s and a dresser mirror. Making this was easy because I used my handy Kreg Jig that I got in the swag bag all attendees received at the second Haven Conference I attended.

3. What is something significant you learned from a conference? 

I have been to over a dozen blogger conferences since I began blogging and Haven 3 times. I couldn’t go last year since we were in the middle of moving. The most significant thing I learned from going to Haven was how to rock my camera and take better blog photos. Every year there have always been excellent photography sessions from the photography basics to how to grasp using Adobe Lightroom.

4. What is one piece of advice you would offer a blogger–new or otherwise–who is going to Haven?

Stay true to yourself, there are a ton of blogs and bloggers, but only one you. Write and create your blog in your own style. Don’t feel like you have to fit it. Follow your own ideas on how things should be done. When you are authentic and doing things your way…that is what will resonate with others and make you stand apart from the crowd.

Oh…and don’t worry about what to wear while attending the conference.  Every year I see such a wide variety of outfits, from shorts, to jeans to dresses. Wear what makes you feel your best.

If you are a blogger or someone interested in starting one, this year’s Haven Conference is August 5-7, 2016. I hope to see you there.
Next up on the Haven Mentor blog hop is Bre from Rooms For Rent