How To Take The Perfect Instagram Photos | Guest Post

Hello & welcome back to another post! Today I have an awesome guest post for you from Taiya, a fellow teen blogger. I found her blog via Pinterest and I totally adore it! Make sure to give her a follow & leave a nice comment at the end of the post! Without further ado, let’s give the spotlight to Taiya…

A while ago, Abigail reached out to me to join my Teen Group Pinterest Board, and I checked out her blog and FELL IN LOVE! It was so refreshing and inspiring to find other teen lifestyle bloggers having great success and a wonderful following on her blog. After we emailed back and forth a few times she asked me to write a guest post for her and I couldn’t be happier to work with her and her wonderful amazing audience (that’s you!)

But before we dive right in, here is a little about me…

• I live in a small town, Canada, and when I mean small, I mean small, trust me 😉
• I have been blogging for about a year and a half now, and I couldn’t be happier with how much my blog has grown and changed for the better over these past few months!
• I may have a slight obsession of shopping for clothes (but what teenage girl doesn’t, right?…)
• I can never get enough chocolate, like seriously, I could live off chocolate if needed.
• I love dancing but you’d never catch me in a ballet class; I’m more of a dance-in-the-kitchen-to-the-radio type of dancer if yah feel me.
• And best of all…I just finished school for the summer! Yippee ☺
• You can read more about me here.

Alright, enough about me, let’s get into the photography! In this guest post I am showing you my top tips and tricks on how to take better photos, and how to get those picture-perfect Instagram pics!

#1. Keep an Eye on The Background

When taking photos, you always want to be aware of what’s in the backdrop. A cluttered room or random people in the background could definitely ruin a good picture. If you are trying to take the perfect selfie in your bedroom, I recommend checking what’s in the shot behind you. Do you have some laundry on the floor (guilty), or could you close your closet doors so it’s less messy looking? (also, guilty) Whatever it is, try to keep your background nice, clean, and minimal.

#2. Natural Lighting

When taking photos, natural light is your best friend, I promise you. Artificial light usually looks “fake” on iPhone photos and destroys the quality. When taking blog photos in my room I always try to take them mid-afternoon when the sun is shining, open my blinds, and turn off the light. For me personally, natural light is always the best way to go for the best results.

#3. Try Out Different Angles

I don’t know about you, but photos with a unique angle is always wayyy cooler than a boring straight-on shot, especially for outfit photos. A shot from the left or right side always looks awesome. So, play around with it, try close in, far out, maybe from the left side, or right side. try it out and see what you like best for that particular shot. ☺

#4. Act Natural

When posing for pictures, I know this sounds obvious, but act natural. Easier said than done, I know, but trust me when I say over-posed photos looks fake and staged. Try natural positions and remember to keep your shoulders relaxed. Using objects around you as props also helps. I love this picture not only because of the photos but the way she is effortlessly sitting on the steps in a natural pose.

#5. Take Advantage of Street Art

If you live in a city, street art is your best friend. Colorful walls on the side of buildings or pretty street art is not only trendy, but definitely Insta-worthy! Often when I’m walking around downtown in cities I see gorgeous walls that would be the perfect backdrop for an Insta pic, so grab a friend and take a couple shots! Here are some examples: 

View this post on Instagram

caption this!!!

A post shared by Tara Michelle ⭐️ (@imtaramichelle) on Apr 11, 2017 at 5:38pm PDT

 #6. Use Filters, Sparingly

I’m all about those filters, but you definitely don’t want to go overboard. I use VSCO Cam (free app) to edit all my pictures and I LOVE their free filters. Now I would recommend avoiding those bright pink filters you used back in 2010, yeah, you know what I’m talking about, enough said, LOL. I prefer filters that are bright, crisp, and clean looking. I like to use A6, A4, and HB2 (from VSCO Cam). I will also sometimes veer off the filter path and just manually edit the photo myself. If I do that route, I usually adjust brightness, contrast, and saturation.

#7. Take OOTD Shots From A Lower Angle

If you are going for that perfect OOTD Insta, ask your photographer to crouch down a little. If you are coming from a lower of an angle, it will elongate your legs and make you look taller 😉 And who doesn’t want that?

#8. Use The Rule Of Thirds

If you haven’t heard of the rule of thirds before, don’t worry! There are tons of helpful YouTube Videos on the rule of thirds for beginners. The rule of thirds is basically a photography trick that enhances your photos and makes them more appealing to the eye. You just line the subject of your photo on a “third” line to make an interesting shot. See the first photo below? Boringgg, it’s just a plain ol’ straight on shot. The second one, taken using a “third line”, is much more interesting to the eye.

Well, girl. That’s it for this post, I really hope these tips and tricks helped you step up your photography game a little! It would mean the world to me if you popped on over to my blog and checked it out. Thanks a ton for reading, you rock ❤

 

 

 

 

 

Blogging Hacks That Will Skyrocket Your Blog Stats // Guest Post

Hello, hello, and welcome back! Today’s post is going to be awesome. Liv from livalittle.com is doing a guest post that you’re sure to enjoy. Make sure to check out her blog and give her a follow, because she has awesome content and an amazing design business! Her whole blog is seriously goals–the look, the posts, everything. Without further ado, I’m going to give Liv the spotlight! 

Greetings all! My name is Liv, and I am the resident blogger at LivaLittleBlog.com. Today I am writing a guest post for the lovely, Freckled Fashionista herself, Abigail. I have been a follower and fan of her’s for a while now and I have only good things to say about her blog! The design is flippin’ flawless and her posts are definitely worth my time reading. Not to mention the blogger is *amazing*. It has been so great to work with her!

Before I get into the post, I’ll share a couple facts about myself with you all:

• I have been blogging since July 2016 (almost a year *whoop-whoop*) and I am a lifestyle blogger & web designer.
• I love tea, popcorn, and food in general. (But, I mean, who doesn’t?)
• I’m short. Like, really short. I’m barely five feet tall. (#verticallychallenged)
• I have a slight substantial obsession with horses.
• I’m a ballerina and dancer at heart.
• Music fuels my soul and my memory is pretty much 90% song lyrics.
• I fangirl over Once Upon a Time, Marvel movies, Sherlock (B-Cumberbatch the best <3), and so much more. (If I typed them all out, we’d be here all day)
• Find out more about me here.

So, today I will be sharing my best advice on how to skyrocket your blog traffic in no time at all! So, without further ado, let’s get right into the post!

Blogging Hacks That Will Skyrocket Your Blog Traffic

1. Engage with readers & other bloggers

I have heard from many successful bloggers that the best way to build blog traffic is to comment and engage with your readers and fellow bloggers. Always, and I mean always, respond to comments on your blog. (unless they’re spam obviously) When people go out of their way to say something nice about your blog, the least you can do is leave a reply thanking them. Also, dropping a friendly comment on someone else’s blog shows that you are a fan of their work and a kind, outgoing person. They will most likely check out your blog in return.

You can also try following other blogs instead of leaving comments. Whenever I see that someone has followed my blog, I almost always check out their blog as well. If it looks like the kind of blog I would enjoy reading, then I will follow back.

A great way to find new blogs is to check out “Blog Button” pages on blogs you follow. On these pages, bloggers swap buttons which are like little advertisements for other blogs. All you have to do is click on their button to be magically apparated to their blog. Then you can drop a comment or follow and they will most likely check out your blog in return.

2. Make your blog aesthetically pleasing

This is *huge*. I’d hate to break it to you, but if your blog is unappealing and disorganized, people with leave instantly. Invest your time (and possibly money) in your blog design. If you want a professional design for your blog, then hiring someone is a great option. There are many blog designing services out there, including my own which I would greatly appreciate if you all took a look at!

On the other hand, you can always design your blog yourself. This month I will be releasing a number of posts on how to “brand” your blog and make a killer design without spending a penny. I have done a lotta research on the topic of web design, so feel free to contact me at any time if you have any questions!

3. Develop a posting schedule and stick to it

Ugh, I’m actually the worst at this. I am busy all day every day with blogging, keeping up with web design orders, school, chores, horses, etc. Sometimes blogging gets pushed to the end of my priorities because my posts take a lotta time to write. I mean it. A high-quality, 1000 word post takes me about 4 hours to write, and some days I just don’t have time for that.

However, it’s essential you post often enough to keep viewers coming back. You don’t want your blog to become this:

4. Invest in your blog

It never hurts to put a little money into your blog. Here are some things you can invest in to boost your traffic:

• Professional website design
• Website domain + hosting
• A “Pro” theme
• Marketing and advertising
• Webinars and resources that other bloggers are selling

Investing a little money in any of these things can help you build your blog. Just make sure you know what you’re doing before making a purchase.

5. Write a killer about page

The about page is one of the very first places new visitors go to, so it has to be well written and full of personality. There are plenty of good tips for killer about pages on the web that can help you build a beautiful, personality-filled about page that will make people hit that subscribe button instantly.

6. Be yourself

Write with voice and express yourself to your readers through your words! Show them the real you, and don’t pretend to be anyone else. :))

7. Plan ahead to avoid blog burnout

This is key to gaining subscribers. This goes along with developing a posting schedule: make sure that you don’t just disappear for who know’s how long and leave your loyal subscribers waiting for your next post. Plan ahead your blog posts for the month and carry out your plans to keep people coming back for more.

8. Use social media to your advantage

You can use almost any social media platform to promote your blog. One that I recommend is Pinterest. On my blog, I have a whole post on how you can use Pinterest to grow your blog traffic, so you can definitely check it out if you want to learn how to do so.

And that, my friends, concludes today’s post. I hope you learned a bit more about how to build your traffic and enjoyed reading it! You can check out my Pinterest for more blogging tips and tricks as well. Just remember to take breaks from blogging. You have a life to live beyond the screen. Go live it! :))

I would appreciate it so much if you would check out my blog, LivaLittleBlog.com, and drop a kind comment or follow – I will definitely return the favor! Have a fantastic day everyone!

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How To Make Your Blog Posts Stand Out

Hello & welcome back to another post! Since I really enjoy writing posts on blogging, I have another one of those for you today.

Let’s say you’re scrolling through the WordPress Reader. Your eyes naturally go to the posts with interesting titles and good pictures, right? You’re more likely to click on the posts that look appealing. Now let’s flip this around. Naturally, you want your blog to look appealing so other people will want to read your posts! Because when your posts stand out, people are more likely to follow your blog and be involved in it.

So, in today’s post, we’re going to be talking about how to make your posts stand out. Ready? Let’s get into it!

-Have A Specific Title-

When you have a title that’s specific and relevent, people are more likely to click on your post! Slow down on the emojis and symbols and make the title look neat and clean.

-Have Well-Taken Bright Pictures-

The lighting, camera, props, etc is super important if you want well taken photos! If you’re using your phone, make sure you edit the pictures so they’ll be sharper and brighter. Use natural lighting as well, it makes a big difference! And try to use a good background (I really like using my white table) and lay out the props so they’ll look aesthetically pleasing. Here’s a post on how I take my pictures.

-Have Your Post Be Well Written & Helpful-

Each of your posts should always benefit your readers in some way! Doing a makeup post? Share a bit of advice on your makeup! Is your post about your favorite hairstyle? Well, share how to do it as well. Or, maybe your post is all about you, and that’s okay! However, you should ask your readers a question at the end or do something so they’ll feel like they gained something from reading the post, and feel involved.

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Well, that’s a wrap for this post, but stay tuned because I have a lot more awesome posts coming your way. Thank you for reading!

What are your tips for making posts stand out from the crowd?

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Crochet Coasters

Bonjour! I just finished my French homework and I thought I would write a quick post.

I love to crochet, but I’m still a beginner (I’ve only been crocheting for about a year and a half). I was feeling crafty a few days ago, so I asked my mother if she wanted me to crochet her anything, and she requested some coasters. I spent some time on Pinterest (by the way, my username is Abigail08) looking at coasters, and I saw some adorable coasters, but I wanted an easy coaster pattern that I could actually understand. 🙂

I used a tan/mustard colored yarn for the coasters. I know that there are much more fancy and beautiful coasters out there, but I just wanted to crochet something simple, so I just crocheted for a basic circle.

I went a little coaster crazy and ended up making eight coasters. The first ones that I made turned out a bit hole-y because I was forgetting to do the slip stitch at the end of each round. The other ones turned out nicely, though. I was feeling lazy so I didn’t weave in the ends. Oops. 🙂

Overall, I’m pretty pleased with the result! The coasters are simple, but they serve their purpose. Once I begin making Christmas presents, I may make some coasters with different colors, or I’ll try to crochet some fancier coasters. 

Here is the tutorial I used:

Thank you for reading!

Unposted Sewing Projects

Hello!

There are always those little sewing makes that never get posted…well, in today’s post, I’m going to be giving four small sewing makes the spotlight!

First, we have this gorgeous zippered pouch. I always love a good zippered pouch, and I constantly need them for makeup, brushes, pencils, etc. I was super careful when I sewed in the zipper, because I wanted it to be as perfect as possible, and I’m proud with the way that it turned out.

My family keeps asking about the stitches at the bottom–yes, they were intentional, I sewed them because I thought it might look nice, but I’m regretting doing that.

The lining turned out very well also, so I’m happy with this pouch, and I’ve already used it a lot!

This is supposed to be a knit fabric headband. I’m on a cross country team, and hair always comes out of my ponytail and hangs over my eyes. I decided one day that I needed to practice my hand-sewing skills, so I cut a two long rectangles of knit fabric and attempted to sew a fabric headband. My messy stitches don’t show at least, so overall I’m pleased with the result. This will get a lot of use.

You’re probably wondering what this could possibly be. Well….I’m actually not sure, but whatever it is, it’s pretty darn useful! I’ve had this upholstery fabric in my stash for awhile and was planning on making another zippered pouch. In June, we went to Cape Cod, and I needed something to store my beauty products. I thought a drawstring bag would be perfect, but I accidentally sewed the part where the string goes shut. Oops.

I finished sewing it nonetheless and ended up with a rectangle of fabric. A snap would have made this rectangle useful, but I didn’t have any snaps. What about velcro? I couldn’t find the velcro. So, I took it on vacation anyways and just folded the bag/pouch/rectangle/thing over, and it worked out ok! The fabric is really cute and holds up even when I pile it with stuff. I just found my velcro yesterday, so I’m probably going to sew on some velcro so that it closes.

My last little project was really fun to sew. It’s a mood board! I sewed it up within 20 minutes and printed out a few emojis. This is a great idea for a present, or for something to make for your bedroom. I actually got the idea for this online, but in the video that I watched, they used hot glue instead, so there are different options.

That’s all for today! Thank you for reading, and let me know which project was your favorite in the comments. Have an amazing day.