5 Tips from a seasoned blogger

January 26, 2016
Blogging




This month marked my 4-year anniversary as a fashion blogger.  I use the word fashion loosely as I remember not wanting to be in front of the camera for the longest time.    I can remember reading tons  of blogs late at night on my computer. The inspiration I got from reading and following so many wonderful blogs ignited a fire in me to want to do just the same. Create and inspire.  Funny thing is, the blogs I am talking about I no longer read.  They were pivotal in inspiring me, but when I truly got into what I wanted my blog to look like it was far different from how they blogged.  Better know as finding my own voice.

Right out of the gate I declared I was not the least bit interested in standing in front of the camera and sharing what I had on.  Nope.. no way... it wasn't happening.  Then somewhere along the way you meet a great group of other local bloggers and they are all taking photos for each other and next thing you know BAM... you are smack dab in front of the camera.   I was hesitant, scared, and unsure I would even share them at first. I started out quite simple with  only a few pictures of what I was wearing. But when the numbers started to grow, it was an intoxicating feeling and I loved that you all loved it as well.

I don't believe there is just one correct formula to becoming "successful" as a blogger.  There are however a few lessons I have learned over the course of my time here at my little corner of the Internet that has helped make my brand the best it can be.

Don't give Up -  I know that seems ridiculous to start with giving up as the first lesson but trust me... you will want to give up.  You will become frustrated and feel defeated many times. Remember why you started blogging in the first place and continue to feed your passion.   Don't fall into the trap of keeping up either which takes me to the next lesson.

Just Be You - Staying true to yourself is what makes your blog unique.  You want to stand out not blend in.  If you are always trying to keep up with others and thinking their grass is greener, stop it!  Let your personality shine.  If you're goofy let it show, and occasionally be a bit vulnerable with yourself you will garner a more genuine readership and it will all be because you were authentic.  Discuss what you love and know and It will keep them coming back. 

It's Time to Engage - (Bonus points if you know the movie that line is from)  One of the most important lessons and forms of mutual relationships is communication.  Answer questions, leave genuine comments on others post and pictures.  Let your readers know you are really out there and care about their thoughts and comments.

Inspiration and Motivation -  Have you ever sat down to write a post and come up empty?  I have.  It sucks.  Hitting a creative roadblock and coming up with original content can be difficult sometimes.  Stay fresh and pleasing to your readers is what keep them coming back.  Research a topic, or browse pinterest or magazines for inspiration for what you want to share.  Just remember... be original it pays off.

Tools of the Trade - Investing in the proper gear will help you take your blog serious.  Now I am not saying go out and spend a fortune on a bunch of equipment,  but do think about your composition and quality of pictures. Quality of quantity.   Fine tune what you do have to work with and as you can afford it purchase a good camera, editing software, a background and anything else you need for your type of blogging. 

Do you have any tips to share? Leave them in the comments. 

Blog Planning for the New Year

December 30, 2015
Motivation




If you're like me you have more than the end of the year on your mind.  There's new years eve, sale shopping, un decorating, and lets not forget blogging.  I know what you're thinking.... I can't add one more thing to my plate right now. Well now is the time to  get re-inspired, brainstorm new ideas and type of content you want to deliver to your readers in 2016. 
Today, I thought I’d share some of the items I’ve included in my new 2016 blog plan, and how you can write one of your own.

I broke it down into manageable bites to make it easier to customize it for your own blog. 

Why?  The most important question in blogging.  What is your own personal take away from blogging?  If you answered this with "I want to quit my day job and have a viable income to support myself", or " I just wanted a place to share all my fun ideas and be creative", then you have the why!  When you started blogging it may have looked drastically different than it does now for you so think carefully about what it is you want in the coming year.

Now that you hopefully have the Why...... take a look at your blog and take open notes about what you like about your blog and what you want to see change.  I'm not necessarily talking about designs either.  I'm referring to content as well.   Make a list about what you would change; maybe it's the sidebar content, or your sponsorship, whatever you see write it down. Don't stop just with the visual part either.  Your social media is very important and if you are wanting to step up your game you need to make it part of your blog plan.   Determining the look for your blog in the new year will help you see your blog plan better.



You have the Why; now lets talk abut the what.

What worked this past year for you and what didn't turn out so well? Look for any connection between the why you blog and what works for your blog.  If sponsorship is important and you want to make money then you have a direction. It worked for you!   If you tried it and it wasn't any fun because so much in involved working with brands then you cross it off.  This makes your vision for your blog much easier and you can align yourself with your goals. 

The Planning Phase

Hopefully by now you have a clearer picture of where you want your blog to go and taking it there should be much easier; now to get down to the details.


Mission.  What is the mission for your blog?  Do you have a mission statement? If not you should.  For example a part of the mission statement for The Blog Guild is to create, connect, and collaborate. You can read the entire mission statement here.  Having a mission statement will help with your blog vision.


Creating Content.  Part of your plan should include a list of your topics and categories.  Maybe you have an entire tutorial you want to share.  Break it in to sections and create a series.  Start making a list of all your topics that would be relevant to your blog brand.  Some of mine are fashion, style, beauty, and DIY.  Once you have your categories then break it down even further into sub categories. For example under beauty there could be product reviews,  beauty tips, organic products.  You get the idea.

Education.    So let's say you want to add beauty to your blog in the coming year but you don't feel like you are 100% on your tutorial.  Better educate yourself on the topic.  Watch you tubes, make appointments at cosmetic counters; you can pick up some great tips from the ladies at the counters!! Practice.  Before you know it you will be ready to start sharing.  Make that part of your blog plan to set a deadline for when you will integrate the new topic on your blog.  We will talk more about your blog plan with your editorial calendar later. Take a photography class. Sign up for a workshop, or maybe there is a conference convenient you can attend.  Use the tools you have available to up your game.  Did you sign up for The Blog Guild workshop?  It's the perfect way to start off your new year and learn all about pretty images to share on your social media and flat lays. And Since we are speaking of social media that brings me to our next topic. Take a photography class. 

Social Media.  There are so many ways of sharing and how and what you share is equally important.  Engagement is critical.  Being available to your followers is important.  Try to answer questions and thank someone when they ask a question or comment.  Let them know you appreciate them.  Decide what you want to post during the week and have all your pics edited and ready to go on Sunday evening.  I had a plan this past year to grow my instagram following; watching the followers grow was exciting.  Increase how often you post.  If you are not posting every day then start.  If you can aim to post 2-3 times a day, but if you're not even posting daily then shot for once a day to start with! Engagement is critical for your current followers as well as potential new followers.  Brands like to see you engage and are always checking so if you are planning to, or currently monetizing then keep this in mind. That brings me to the next topic. 

Monetizing.  Pay attention to this one, its tricky.  If you are already monetizing that's great.  If it's working good then see what you can do to step it up.  (See previous paragraph regarding social media and posting regularly) If you want to start this year monetizing there are platforms like Reward Styles for your blog and Like to Know it with instagram, there is also ShopSense but I don't work with them so I am not familiar with them but know several bloggers who are successful with them.  You can reach out to brand and pitch an idea to work together. Be precise with your pitch and what you expect from the brand and what you will deliver.  Get it in writing is always important. I recommend you research the legal aspects to income streams via blogging and make sure you adhere to the disclosure laws.  If you do choose to work with brands this is something you would add to your blog plan with your financial expectations and show how much you would like to make each quarter and how you will make it. 

 New plans.  Ok, so we have pretty much covered everything bit growth.  Your plan is great and it sustains you for the year but you have to add new projects for growth.  There are several ways to increase your audience. Do you currently have a newsletter?  Entice your followers to sign up by letting them know you are sharing things different than what they find on the blog.  Again, attend a workshop to learn a new skill.  I can't tell you how much I value the investment to attend a I Heart Blog Shop class.  I learned how to really use photo shop and it increased not only my skill level but my confidence in my layouts.  Did you sign up for The Blog Guild workshop yet?  You can find out more about it here. 

So are you ready to start planning?  You can write it out however you want. I am a paper kinda gal but Paper, word, Google docs, whatever works for you.  Don't worry, your plan will look different from everyone else's.  It should be unique to you!  There are other elements you may incorporate into your planning.  Traffic, networking and creating connections to only name a few. 


Taking the next step.  Research the class you would like to take; signup!  Block some time and explore with your camera and learn all about what you can really do with it.  Look in your community for other local bloggers.  We have a fantastic network locally we all connect with; The Blog Guild. 

Reflecting on Blog Goals

December 28, 2015
Blogging

It's hard to believe that 2016 is just around the corner.  With every one's calendar full with holiday parties and festivities sometimes we forget to take a look at our blog goals.  This is the opportunity to take a look at your blog goals and assess what worked and what didn't.  Having a blog business plan is important and if you did write one at the beginning of the year now is when you should re-visit it.  If you don't have a blog plan well that's okay too, next week I am going to show you how to create your blog plan.

  • What goals did you set?
  • Which goals did you meet?
  • What didn't work out and why?
  • Is your vision still in alignment with your goals?
 
Falling short of your goals doesn't translate into failure.   I think people give in to feeling like a failure for not obtaining the goal.   Maybe you just need to tweak a few things and put that goal onto your new years goals.   I am going to share one of my goals from this past year and yes, I did not reach it.  I set a goal to have 1K instagram followers by the end of the year.  Seemed simple enough right?  Yeah... that didn't' happen. I currently have 905.  Close, but not there.  Life happened and I got busy at work and then forgot to post what was going on... etc, etc.  When November rolled around and I could see that the possibilities of having a 115 sincere followers didn't seem obtainable so I took a look at what I could do differently to help my goal.  Reaching my goal wasn't as important as what I learned along the way.  I took a look at what I was doing and made a few changes and started noticing my following engagement not only changed but grew.  (If you don't follow me and feel so inclined to, you can right here)  Maybe halfway through the year you decided you wanted to work with brands and take your fun blog to the business level only to find out you really didn't want to after all.  That's okay.   But what I did learn was that this is my blog/biz and I will and can tweak the plan along the way as I see fit.  Being able to look at written goals helps you keep track with where you want to be in 12 months. The race isn't the run, it's in the journey. 

Take a break during the end of year hustle and bustle and spend a quite moment with your blog plan and your goals from both the last year and the upcoming year.  But let's also applaud you if you did reach all your goals!  Pop some corks and celebrate, you deserve it!   




Pin this for later and refer to it as a reference once you have time to really spend some time reflecting.

Instagram Happenings

October 12, 2015
bags
Happy Monday!  How was your weekend?  Mine was busy and productive, but never long enough! Today I am sharing a few favorites from my instagram account of what's happening there.  Do you follow me on instagram?  There are exciting things I am working on behind the scenes in my office and my blog so stay tune for that announcement.  It is finally cool enough to wear my favorite booties.... and found the perfect amount of distress on a new pair of jeans for under $60.  Sharing my favorite lipstick color and tortoise sunnies.  There is something to wearing this pink color even in fall that just makes me happy!  OH, and it's #Pinktober and that means Breast Cancer Awareness and lots of pink!


Distressed Denim ~ Booties ~ Sunnies ~ Favorite Lipstick ~ Monogram Necklace ~ Pink Clutch ~ Python Cuff c/o~ Ropes Bracelets c/o ~ Hot Pink Celine Necklace ~ 

How to Create a Gallery Wall

February 03, 2015
Art


It seems these days everyone either has a gallery wall or is in the process of creating one. For example here is mine.  I have since moved a few things and added my marquee light initial that I shared here with you on instagram. 



 You may see my entire office  and read the full post here. 


But gallery walls are not always easy! They take a lot of planning and design. Here are some tips and tricks for creating an amazing gallery wall of your very own:
  • Have a theme or color scheme before you get started.  I knew pink and gold would play a part in my wall so I played off of the color and built if from there with images and quotes that I loved.
  • Have a solid plan.  I began gathering my prints, designs, and frames before I started hanging.  If you don't want to wait until you have all your images you may create a growing gallery wall.  This is where you add the prints to your wall as you go.  A critical point to this method is to have a solid compositional beginning. 
  • Consider your framing options.  While there is no steadfast rule to what frames you use, planning carefully using different styles can work.  I kept my frames uniform in appearance with smooth or slightly rigged frames but in assorted styles and in white and silver. Prints come in many shapes and sizes sometimes making it difficult to find a frame that fits and works with your other frames.   Many times matting prints can easily change the size and even the shape of your print to fit a standard size frame just in a larger size.  For example: framing an 5x7 in an 8x10 frame with a mat.
  • Create a mock wall and play around with your arrangement.  The last thing I wanted was a bunch of holes in my wall prior to finally finding the right position.  Before you go banging your wall up there are a few options that will save your wall from looking like Swiss cheese. Cut an old grocery brown bag, wax paper, or any other paper you may have to match the shape and size of your frames.  You may even use command hooks as long as your frames are not to heavy for them.  Place your cutouts on the wall for a dry run.  This process also allows you the luxury to move them around for the best placement.  Once you are pleased with your placement remove one cutout at a time and hang your frame.   
The top example below is currently how my wall is designed.  Below is another example of how to play around with shapes and sizes.  Have fun with it!



Fee free to pin this guide for a future handy reference. 



Life Updates

January 16, 2015
Baking
Hi guys.  So I have been a little hit and miss ever since the holidays.  I'm sorry... not sorry.  It felt great to take a break and just absorb the time off from work and blogging.  Sure, there were nights I would think about picking up my laptop and start posting but I enjoyed my "me" time so much it rarely happened.  I have however, been working on a few things behind the blog that I hope you guys love as much as I do.  I want to tell you about a new series I am launching next Tuesday.  It will become my How To day sharing all my DIY's with you from how to create a gallery wall, to making perfect cut out cookies!  I am still going to be sharing my outfits and favorites, and just about anything else that suits my fancy on the other days of the week too!
I have been working hard discovering new designers and products that excites me and a few collaborations that are amazing! 


So here is a phone dump of a little bit of what has been going on.  You may have seen some of these pic if you follow me on instagram already! 

I know its the middle of January, but this was my December.  We had an ugly sweater contest at our company luncheon and this is what we decided to wear. There were 18 ugly sweaters in all and  I won second place, but only behind by one point!

 
Some of the sights from around my house.  These boys playing batman on my office floor was so fun to watch.  Their little imaginations reminded me of how my boys use to play with them as well.   My grandson had corrective surgery on his legs and was in full leg cast for a month then switched to these half leg cast.  Poor little guy.  He was a trooper just pulling himself along refusing to use the wheelchair!   My new Blair Ritchey PAK..... love this bag, and a whole jar full of bath bombs!  Velvet crates hand delivered a gift box I won to my home and it was fabulous.  Ummm I need more of that funckychunky Sea Salt Caramel for sure!
 
 

A little tribute to all my monograms, my desk ready for the new year, A few new goodies arrived in the mail I will be sharing soon, and of course... on the last day of the year... and it being a Wednesday... We wear pink!

Blanket scarfs, and more blanket scarfs!


Here's to Friday and a great weekend!  See you back here bright and early next week!  xo 

My Office

August 14, 2014
Colors
bright-office-flowers-daisys

I'm finally ready to share my office space with you.  I know I have mentioned it several times and I have even shared little sneak peeks before.... but today you get the whole shebang!!!! Welcome to my office, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!  I linked to all my product sources at the end of the post but If I missed something please let me know and I will try to recall the source for you. I posted here how we painted the striped wall.  I still love it as much as I did the day we did it to! 


michelle-dwight-get-it-girl-pillow

white-desk-white-leather-chair


office-gallery-wall-pink-lips-gold-love

I recently completed the gallery wall next to my desk.  I had been gathering things that I loved for some time to hang on the wall and finally earlier this summer I felt happy with how it was coming together.  I hung them with the help of my bestie over the 4th weekend.  I love how I have just the right amount of space still on the wall in the event I come across a little something to add!  This is where I spend a lot of time working when I am at home.  We just love the space and the feel in the room when we are both working.  We placed our desk back to back to open up the room and it allows us to work facing each other rather than backed up, or side by side.  You can clearly see the invisible line down the room form her side... to his side....Ha!  There is a TV mounted on the wall in the corner up behind his desk so when we are taking a break from working at our desk we can catch a little something to watch.  The only thing that is left for this room to be complete is to find the right window covering.  I am leaning towards a pair of clean sheer white panels.  What do you think? Color on the window or white? There is a large picture window to the right of this image below as well as the one you can see. 


stripe-walls-office-inspiration-pink-pillows

leather-furniture-white-ottoman

glass-cabinet-paper-weights-gold

I have collected paperweights for many years now and have them displayed in this antique curio cabinet that belonged to my grandmother.  My mom always finds uniquely detailed paperweights in Europe when she travels to add to my collection.  There is an art to blowing glass and not every paperweight is a collectable. 


mongolian-pillow-pink-lattic-pillow


crate-and-barrel-mongolian-hair-pillow


gold-love-pink-lips-print

gold-python-planner

desk-top-styling


floral-arrangement

Thanks for being patient with me while I worked on this room.... It has been a labor of love indeed for me! 

Prints ~ Be Present / Lips / Gold Love / Neon Heart / Leopard Heart (I Made) / Dull Your Sparkle Print / Heart Paint chip art ( I made)  /  Paper Flower ( I made)


Pillows on love seat ~ Both floral and scroll handmade by me / Mongolian hair pillow/

Shop this post below! 










My Readers

August 01, 2014
Colors
When Readers.com contacted me asking If I would be interested in working with them I didn't hesitate at all.  I wear readers daily.  As a matter a fact I have them strategically placed through out my house too.  I have worm glasses or contacts since I was in middle school and didn't have a need for readers until I hit my 40's.  Somewhere around 42 I was stretching things further and further back to read.  Now, it is the first thing I reach for at my desk to start my day.  Readers.com has some of the cutest styles and I coordinate my glasses to compliment my outfits!  They have become a daily staple for me to work at a computer all day so they better be cute! 



 You can always find a pair  on my head if I am not wearing them too!  Check out these darling readers.com glasses with the floral and the  pink leopard temples! 






So what about all the times I am not at the office?  When I get home in the evening to work at my desk at home you can bet there are plenty of readers around.
  

I always have several pair hanging on my glassybaby as a cute way to keep them handy on my desk.  


And for those evening I work from my laptop... yup you got it, more readers on my night stand.  This crystal jar was my grandmothers and I use it to hold my readers, hand cream and a little lip balm neatly on my night stand. I am all about keeping my readers.com glasses handy and displayed cute.  



So when I say I have glasses strategically placed all around my home... I mean it!  See?  There is even a pair by the kitchen sink.  You wouldn't believe the number of times I have tried to read some label printed so tiny an ant would have difficulty!  Readers.com is definitely where I will be going to add more readers when I need them!  



*Readers.com sent me glasses for this post to use. All opinions are mine and I am never without a pair of readers... or two!  I would never recommend something I didn't trust or believe in and I love my readers for sure!  

Favorite Phone Apps

May 21, 2014
My home
If you're like me... you rely on your phone for a lot.  Most of us would feel helpless without are phone at our fingertips.  With so many apps it's confusing as to what you want... verses what you would actually use.  Here are a few of my favorite apps I use frequently.

Favorite-Phone-Apps

 Picframe ~ Perfect for making a collage of your favorite photos with tons of layouts to choose from.  

Over ~ This is a great app for adding text to your photo.  You can also buy add ons to this app and get a wider selection of fonts.

Snapseed ~ This app is great for color correction, adding brightness, and warmth and contrast.  It's like a teeny tiny mini version of photo shop on your phone.... tiny I said!!

 Squaready ~ Ever take a pic of something fabulous only to find it is too large of an image for instagram to show the entire picture?  Well this my friends is the app for you.  It takes any photo and proportions it down to size for the entire image to display in instagram.  Love this!!

Starbucks ~ This is for all you coffee lovers.  Having this app on your phone eliminated the need to carry your Starbucks card.  Just show your phone to the clerk and they scan your bar code.  It keeps track of your stars, your balance, and you can even reload your card from the app!  Who goes for coffee and doesn't have their phone with them anyway???

Shazam ~ I have to give my son credit for this app.  I was always asking him "who sings this song?"  in the car and he would get so tired of me always asking for him to remember what I liked.  This app listens to a clip of the song and searches for the artist and name of the song.  Then, when you have time you download the songs you liked from the iTunes store!

What are some of your favorite go to apps?  

Graphic Image NY

February 07, 2014
Celebration

I  keep a journal, a place to write down my thoughts, plans and dreams.  Its not a national secret journal, but I also wouldn't want every one have great ease reading it either.  Graphic Image has teamed up with me to share the sweetest, most colorful journals for you or your sweetheart! Featuring a fully functional heart shape lock this elegant journal includes 240 lined cream-white, acid free archival pages.  The pages have a gilt edge and a there is a double faced cream satin ribbon marker. 



 These journals would make great gifts for graduating seniors for their life plans, new mothers to write sweet notes for her baby to read when they are older, or maybe just a place to write your own thoughts and inspirations.  What a special gift to spend the next 12 months writing letters to your loved one and gift it to them next year! Whatever you use your journal for it will be so special I just know it!!

    I am celebrating sweet gifts the entire month of February… sweetheart month… with you to celebrate my appreciation of you following, reading, commenting, and supporting my blog.  You guys really do make my blog what it is!  Thank you.   So get ready for a month of fabulous giveaways for you!!! 

      Enter to win by following the instruction in the rafflecopter form below and good luck! 
    a Rafflecopter giveaway




    Gem of the Week

    February 06, 2014
    Colors
    Whether you are making a list… jotting it down… or sending sweet notes…these are just plain cuteness!  xoxo





    January Favorites

    January 14, 2014
    Celebration





    Happy Wednesday lovelies! With the beginning of not only a new month, but a new year there are plenty of favorites right now.  My blog Anniversary was January 1st.  2 Years of blogging!  To say it has been a blessing is an understatement. I love a celebration, and I have something wonderful in the works to celebrate with you my Anniversary!  Coming off of the holidays, and given all that my 2013 held, I wanted to wait to really do it up right!  Stay tune, its gonna be fabulous! With that being said, its really is fun to work at my desk with all my new gold planners, datebooks, and journals.  Can you ever really have to many pretty gold accessories for you desk? 

    I know it's still deep in the dreadful months of winter, but a pretty pink lip is just the right pick up needed to feel pretty.  I am longing for pink right now can you tell?  These flats are super cute, and I have always been a shantung silk fan.  These are fabulous and would go with everything from skinnys, to khaki shorts! Cutie patootie!  These shoes would definitely be a great splurge!  Which one of these four are your favorites?

    Linking up with the girls.  Do you have four favorites to share this week?


    Linking up here too!
     

    Lucite Love

    December 10, 2013
    Celebration
    Lucite.  Simple, classic, and yet making a statement in the most subtle of ways.


    chair   Nesting tables  Desk top dock  Notes 

     



    So this little number arrived a few weeks ago at my house.  I won it actually!  Birdaria is one of my favorites with their mantra prints and artwork.  I have long wanted a Lucite tray for my home, so when I received the email that I won a custom Lucite tray I was super excited. I knew pink would be involved too!

    What I didn't know was the sweet little surprise they had in store for me!  I was touched and thrilled at the same time to turn the monogram over to reveal my logo.  Thank you, thank you, thank you.  What a sweet touch, and a perfect way to utilize my tray in more than one space!




    I haven't decided what I will use my tray for, I know several people use theirs on their bar carts, but when you have teenager's in your home, a bar cart isn't a reality, rather a temptation.  Whatever I decide, it will be fabulous!! 

    What would you use the tray for? Give me some ideas please!


    Travel Tips

    December 03, 2013
    Family
    Traveling anytime of the year can be joyous and hard work at the same time.  You're so excited to get away that you make list and start laying out and packing way too early.  Oh wait, that's me!! haha

    via
    Now Boarding


    We all know the essentials to a trip.  Packing the necessities, placing your liquids in clear bags, or even better yet a few Truffle pouches!  These really are perfect for travels and are approved by the TSA.  Not to mention you have to carry clear bags to any pro football game.  Just saying, they are pretty fab!  But on to our trip..... The most important thing to do is to be safe in your travels.  With sticky fingers loitering in public places looking for unsuspecting and weary travelers, just waiting to ruin your vacation.   A few simple steps can save you hours of time, and huge headaches if the unforeseen happens to you. 
    Lets be honest, if your wallet was lost, or even worse, stolen, would you be able to remember every. single. card. in it?  Probably not. Thieves act 10 times faster than we do when it comes to stealing out of our accounts, and by the time you may even notice your wallet is missing, they may have already spend thousands on your credit!  I want to share a few things you should do to be safe, and protect yourself.  While I have never had this happen to me, I could only image the panic I would be in if it did.



    Via
    • Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine. Do both sides of each license, credit card, etc. You will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel. Keep the photocopy in safe place.

    • I also carry a photocopy of my passport when I travel either here or abroad. We've all heard horror stories about fraud that's committed on us in stealing a Name, address, Social Security number, credit cards.

    • We have been told we should cancel our credit cards immediately. But the key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call. Keep those where you can find them. 
    • Call the 3 national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name and also call the Social Security fraud line number. I had never heard of doing that until advised by a banker friend of mine who told me of people having applications for credit made over the Internet in their name.
    • The alert means any company that checks your credit knows your information was stolen, and they have to contact you by phone to authorize new credit.

    1.) Equifax: 1-800-525-62851-800-525-6285

    2.) Experian (formerly TRW): 1-888-397-3742 1-888-397-3742

    3.) Trans Union : 1-800-680 7289 1-800-680 7289

    4.) Social Security Administration (fraud line):

    1-800-269-0271

      This tips won't stop a thief obviously, but they will help you in the aftermath.   Safe travels!

    What I have been up to

    November 26, 2013
    Celebration
    So things are starting to get busy here!  With the kick off of the holiday season for me beginning last week, I have a pretty full calendar. All of these pics are from my iPhone, so sorry they aren't very clear, but I did get the new white and gold 5S this weekend and the pics are going to be amazing on it!  I gathered with a few local bloggers last Thursday evening to learn a few tips and tricks from a professional photographer  for taking better photos.  We all brought our cameras and took notes, now lets see if I learned anything!


    Straight from that event on to the next, Erin and I hurried to downtown KC to the lovely new space of Ampersand Design Studio for the #nodevents.  Several bloggers all across the country collaborated with Land Of Nod for a little party and display of a few super cool toys!  We were lucky to have a collaboration local!
    There was a crepe paper craft table to make flowers to take home, a fun photo booth with pink and gold confetti!!  The studio was decorated so cute, and toys set out all around to admire!  Check out Ampersand Design Studio's blog to see the full recap with all the party pics from the night. 

    So remember where I said toys set out all around?  Well all the toys were given away in a drawing and I won this Intergalactic set!! Isn't it super cute?  My grandsons will have a blast playing with this.  Thanks Land of Nod and Ampersand Design Studio.  


    Moving on thru the weekend and the festivities, I had a minute to spare as I passed thru the Plaza and had to do a little girly shopping at Kate Spade.  Picked up a few pretties!! See those polka dots peeking out of the bag?


    These are darling, and I always loved a pair of Keds.  Not a glitter girl, but these are super cute, but polka dots always!!


    Saturday evening I attended a fundraiser gala with these girls.  We had a great time laughing, fun party booth pics, and even people watching a few shall we say, awkward party goers!!!! Can't wait for the next party! Whew, that was a party, event, filled weekend!  Anyone else's party season began yet?


    And this little fella turned into an elf in Target on Sunday!!

    About Peridot Skies

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