Looking Ahead To 2015

Good day ladies and gents.

Before I get into my post, I just want to take a few moments first to thank the readers that have stuck with me during the silent hours here at The Uncluttered Lifestyle. I sincerely appreciate each email checking to see if I was still alive and the comments letting me know my printables were useful to you. Each comment read and email received warmed my heart and reinforced my desire to return to blogging. Thank you, thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart!

Now, whats on tap for the year ahead?

Well, let me explain it... when I was planning my return to the blogging world I knew I had to have a plan. I no longer could approach blogging all willy-nilly like I had in the past. (Shhh, don't tell anybody I never had a plan. Well, at least not one that I stuck to.) I knew I wanted this blog to be enjoyable for all visitors and that meant having a clear direction for the content. Sure, I love to talk about all things organizing,  but you can only organize so much, right?

Originally, when I named my blog The Uncluttered Lifestyle, in the back of my mind I knew I wanted this blog to be all encompassing. To me, leading an uncluttered lifestyle goes beyond just keeping the drawers and closets clutter-free and organized, it spills over into all aspects of life and that's what I want this blog to reflect. 

So, for 2015 I'm taking this blog in that very direction, time for me to make my vision a reality. I will touch on many more aspects of life other than just actual organizing. By now, you may have noticed that I added some new pages to the menu bar:

- Uncluttered Home
- Uncluttered Health
- Uncluttered Life

The Uncluttered Home page will have links to the organizing and decorating projects that you have become familiar with from the Uncluttered Lifestyle. I will continue sharing new projects with you since I'm in the midst of a few of them.

The Uncluttered Health page will have links to both my weekly eating and workout plans. It will also contain links to vlogs preparing vegan and non-vegan meals in the kitchen for both me and Mr. UC. I will share how I uncluttered our pantry and refrigerator. 

The Uncluttered Life page will go more in depth on the benefits of living a life with less clutter. Our society says that the acquiring of "things" is important and give us true meaning but that couldn't be farther from the truth. I'm not saying live a austere or ascetic life, because I love being surrounded by nice things and boy do I love shopping but as with most things balance is required.

In my "I'm Back" video I told you, I have a lot of projects in the works and rattling around in the ole brain of mine. Based on all of the direction I'm headed in with this little blog of mine, it looks like the forecast for 2015 is a busy one.

Till next time...

Happy 4th Blogday!

Aloha Sprinklerinos,

Four years ago, on this exact date, I typed into google, 'Free Blog'. A couple of hours and a lot of tinkering later, Sprinkle of Glitter was born and a whole new chapter of my life had begun.

Yep, that is me at 4 years old. Who knew this whole Glitter World would come out of that little head. *Feels proud*

Having this blog has been such a positive exercise for me. It has encouraged me to see the good in so many situations, to value the things I have, to document the important and mundane moments of my life and it has also given me a constant, when other areas of life have been rocky. Naturally I haven't always shared those scary or sad phases of life on here, but over the space of 4 years, nobodies life is perfect. Safe to say though, I'm a happy little clam. 

What I have enjoyed most about working on this blog is the community that has grown around it. I know I harp on about it just about every time I can but really, it means a lot to me. It means that people are engaged in positive thinking, it means that friendships are made, it means that people are being helped (I see a lot of help between you in the comments and support is often offered to people with queries or concerns) and it means, rather selfishly I suppose, that I never ever feel alone.

Last year on my third blog birthday I said this - 

"So, like last year, Happy Birthday little blog. What a journey we've been on! First year a wedding, second year a baby, third year a business, fourth year a ...... . Who knows where we'll go next? I hope you will come with me." 

I think this year the celebration is going to be FRIENDS. This year through blogging and vlogging (the two go very much hand in hand for me), I have made so many new friends and had so many exciting adventures with them. I could go on and on but I think that might be for another post. If you follow Sprinkle of Glitter avidly you'll know who they are. 

As is tradition now -

So, like last year, Happy Birthday little blog. What a journey we've been on! First year a wedding, second year a baby, third year a business, fourth year friends, fifth year a ....... What do you think will come next?

I'm so looking forward to the next 12 months and am excited to see what they will bring us. As always, I'll keep you updated every step of the way. What do you think will be the 5th thing??

I'm off to celebrate now! See you on Monday!!

Toodlepip!

xx

To find new ways to stalk me or learn about my disclosure policy, click HERE. 

Ultimate Advertiser - The Luxury Beauty Company. Click HERE for more info. 

PS- 4 years down the line and blogger still decides not to centralise type sometimes. YAY technology. 

Blog FAQ's || How do you get invited to events?

Aloha Sprinklerinos,

I've been around this 'ere bloggersphere a while now. Not as long as the early birds of 2003 and 2004 but a while. In that time, I've been fortunate enough to experience an array of amazing things and unfortunate enough to experience some of the rubbish that comes with it all too.

Over time I have noticed I am often asked the same questions and thought that rather than answering them individually (or trying to at least), it might be a fun idea to answer some here.

I'm not professing to be Blog Land Expert of the Planet here, but I am saying, 'Hey, here is what I have found in my years of doing this'. You might have felt the same, you might not, I'm only speaking from experience. Do feel free to give your own answers or suggestions in the comments and please do take the time to read other people's because there is always a wealth of information down there and you'd be a ninconpoop to ignore it.  

Today's question is:

How do you get invited to blog events?

Firstly, we ought to just clarify what a blog event is. I'm sure there are a great many type of 'blog events', but seeing as this is a beauty, baby and lifestyle blog, I am mostly invited to shindigs relating to beauty.

So, a company have brought out a new range of products and they have a bit of money put by to promote them. Sometimes, the brand will recognise that bloggers have a wide 'reach'. 'Reach' is weird PR lingo for 'lots of people read this bit of the web and it might be good for those people to see our products'. They have a lot of lingo.

As part of that 'bloggers have a wide reach' thought process, the company might decide they want to have their brand featured on lots of blogs. A good way of doing this is to host an event. A kind of party thrown in honour of the new product, where the brand talks to bloggers about why this is such an exciting new nail polish/perfume/summer range etc. Bloggers usually leave with a goodie bag containing samples of the new product/s and a little bit of info about the line (this is known as a 'press release'). Whilst there, bloggers will get the chance to catch up with other bloggers, enjoy a glass of bubbly and play with the new items the event is about. Basically, it's everything a beauty obsessed girlie girl would want in a night- glass of something fizzy, chums, makeup. Happy days.

So how does a blogger get invited to such things? This was a question I asked when I first started blogging and felt very much kept in the dark. I thought there might be a special list or a system or a secret batman light symbol in the sky. In all honesty it's a lot less exciting and a lot more simple.

Brands will find you. If you have a good blog, a presence on social platforms (twitter, facebook, instagram, pinterest, etc) you will eventually be noticed. Ensure you have your contact details easily findable (email address clearly on your blog or perhaps an 'about' section) and check your inbox regularly. It may take months, it make take years, or it make take days, but if you really want it to happen and you truly love your blog and have a passion for what you are writing about, then it will. I will say though, if you have a blog purely for events and samples, you will most likely find that readers will see through that pretty quickly. They're a clever little lot.

If you are that way inclined, you could contact a brand (via email, phone, twitter, facebook etc). From what I've grasped, this is a bit of a grey area- some bloggers think it's a good thing to do, others don't. Be aware that brands are contacted many times a day by bloggers requesting samples, introducing themselves or asking to be put on their mailing lists, so if you do take the great leap of saying hello, try to be considerate of this and also try to stand out. 

Top Tips ::

If you have just blogged about a product and are tweeting the link, be sure to @mention the brand (if they are on twitter). Not in a spammy fashion, but in a 'Hello, I have talked about your products' fashion. 

If your friend is going to a blog event and you feel comfortable enough, why not ask if she was given a plus one. 

Check your spam inbox! Quite often I've had interesting or useful emails slip in there and go unnoticed.

Have patience. It was over a year before I went to an event and that was back when there were a lot less bloggers, so avoid expecting short term excitement (if blog events are what float your boat) if you have just started and are just building your little slice of the web.

To put it very simply, don't worry. If you want it to happen and you work hard on your blog and love it dearly, it will happen. For those of you thinking, 'Pah! I'm not even that bothered anyway!", then I'm sorry to have wasted these minutes of your life! This post really was just to address the question I have been asked multiple times and hopefully it will cast a little bit of light on what can sometimes be a rather guarded area.

If you have any more info, tips or thoughts on the subject of blog events, I would (and think everyone else) would be really interested to hear about them, so do feel free to comment below!

Toodlepip!

xx

This month my Ultimate Advertiser is Lady of Vintage. If you would like to know more about advertising on Sprinkle of Glitter, check out my 'Sponsor' page up at the top! 

How To Have a Blog Sale

Aloha Sprinklerinos,

Since I have a blog and have been writing it for a good couple of years now, I am often asked questions about different aspects of it.

Recently I was asked how to host a blog sale and realised that this is a question I have been asked multiple times and might be worthy of a whole post. I appreciate this will be of little use to those of you who don't write a blog, so to you I am sorry, I do hope you can forgive me!

 

(Image : THIS PINTEREST SOURCE)

Blog sales can be a great way of decluttering your house, not throwing things in a landfill, helping other people find bargains and making a bit of pocket money. Hurrah!

There are of course some pitfalls, but hopefully we will cover some of those.

BEFORE BLOG SALE

First things first, decide what you want to sell. Ensure that it is clean, in good condition and is actually something somebody might like to purchase. A bottle of perfume that you have only used twice and kept out of sunlight, yes. A bottle of shampoo that has been languishing in the bathroom for six months and you have used 50% of, probably not.

Photograph all your items. Take your pictures in good lighting (preferably natural daylight), against a plain background (white or cream is usually best), and in focus. If you have the time and inclination, consider taking multiple photographs of each item (open, closed, in box, out of box etc).

Make a note of what you are selling, how much you plan to sell it for and how much of it has been used, if at all. You can then use this note to tick it off when it sells and then tick it off again when you have posted it out. Organisation is key!

Ensure you have a paypal account and that you know how to send invoices. These are free to send but once you have been paid, paypal will take a cut (I believe at the moment it is 3.4%). So if you sell a nail polish for £1, you will likely only see 96-97p of that. If you are unsure of how to send an invoice, google is your educational friend here. 

Work out your postage costs. The Royal Mail are little blighters and have recently put up their prices, meaning you may have to research yours a little. Also factor in what you will package your items in and ensure you have stock of this. You want to make sure your products have the best possible chance of arriving in good condition so use bubblewrap, padding, tissue paper where necessary. I always save up the free padding you get in other packages and recycle it, that way you are doing your bit of the planet and your purse strings. 

DURING BLOG SALE

Be very clear with your terms and conditions. Perhaps research what terms other bloggers have stipulated and use them for a bit of guidance. Be clear on how much you charge per item, whether you accept returns, where you will post to (your own country/worldwide) and how you accept payment. I have found paypal to be easiest and safest.

Under each item image, write the product name, what condition it is in and how much you are charging.

Ask people to write in the comments which item they would like and to provide their paypal email address so that you can invoice them. Keep a keen eye on your comments and refresh often so that you don't keep your customers waiting too long.

Once your payment is confirmed paid, carefully package and post your item to the customer. ENSURE that you ask for proof of postage at the post office til. This is free. Keep this proof incase your customer says they have not had their item. Without it you don't really have a leg to stand on and may have to issue a refund. I have been stung by this once and it wasn't much fun. I couldn't prove that I had sent the item to America (I had) and had a very angry girl on my case and I was left poorer for it. 

If you use any other social media platforms (like twitter, facebook, pinterest or instagram), consider using those to drum up a bit of interest in your blog sale and encourage more potential customers to drop by. 

Do this with all the items and voila- some summer spends!

I hope that has helped and if you have any other good tips, feel free to leave them in the comments.

Toodlepip!

xx

What Does My Blog Want To Be When It Grows Up

The girls are at it again. By girls I mean Thistlewood Farms, It All Started With Paint, The Space Between, Eclectically Vintage, The Cottage Market. These ladies are hosting another party... a What Do You Want Your Blog to Be When it Grows Up party. 

The question really got me to thinking about somethings that I struggle with, which in turn, might impede my blog from achieving its goals. So I'm going to share them with you today, but set in a form that will hopefully help me to overcome them.

1. Be more worded, but not wordy.

If you were to ever meet me, one of your first thoughts might be... hmm, she doesn't talk much. That's for a few reasons, first, I'm a great listener, people tell me their woes all the time. Second, I like to get to the point and fast. I normally cut out all the fluff and just tell you what needs to be said. Now that I'm blogging, however, that is a huge problem. It could come across as cold and harsh, which I am not. So it's my goal to add the some bells and whistles to all my posts or else my average posts would be about five sentences long. 

• This is cluttered and not pretty
• I need to change it
• This is what I did
• This is how I did it
• This is how it looks now

Sigh... yup, that would be me all the time and this is what I'm constantly fighting.

2. Open up more.

This really goes hand-in-hand with the first goal and even stems from the same issue, not talking very much. I tend to suppress a lot of my emotions until I get to know a person, I'm sure it has to do with my past. But yet again, that is not a good thing for my blog. I want to have a connection with you, my reader, and for you to feel comfortable with me. In order for that to happen, I have to tell you who I am and what makes me happy, sad, scared, what I love and what I hate. This is sooooooo very hard for me, but consider this a step in the right direction. :)

3. A transference of energy... or inspiration.

The thing that I love most about blogging is the inspiration that I receive from "blogland". But I feel its important not to be just a receiver only, one must be a giver as well. I want my blog to inspire you. I want you to know that when you visit here you can and will gain inspiration for your next project. It a feeling that I know I receive when I visit your blog.

4. To never stop growing.

More than anything I never want to stop growing. The first four goals listed leave a lot of room for growth and I know they are areas that I will continue to work on as long as my blog is here. And while, yes, I want to continue to grow in followers, it is much, MUCH deeper than that.  I want this blog to a place that always has fresh ideas... a place where other (unknown) capabilities will blossom.

So its your turn to express how you feel. What do you want your blog to be when it grows up?

Blogger Updates

Did you hear the good news about the recent Blogger update? For a while now, bloggers on other sites (i.e. WordPress) have been able to reply in-line to comments left on their posts. On Blogger though, that has not been the case. For us to reply to a certain comment, the "reply" would appear at the bottom of the comment list instead of directly below the comment being replied to. This was extremely frustrating especially if you were answering a question.

Well... Google has finally listened to our pleas and has made some very necessary changes. Below are my replies on my most recent post. Yipee!

Check out the Google's notice on Google Buzz for all the details and steps to turn on the Reply feature. I will tell you, I didn't have to adjust anything, the feature was already turned on. Thanks to Google for making it a simple process.

Till next time... Happy Blogging