Five Things I can not BLOG Without

I find it SO helpful as a blogger, when sites I follow share tips, tricks and behind the scene information.  So, I’ve decided to share a few blog related posts every so often.  If you enjoy Delineate Your Dwelling for creative DIYs, check back on Wednesday (I’ve got a great Spring brunch setup to share!)  If you’d like to find out Five Things I can not BLOG Without, then keep reading!

5 Things I can't Blog without! Delineate Your Dwelling

 

There are so many things that go into a blog post.  Beyond just the supplies needed for the actual craft or project, there are five main items and resources that if I didn’t have access to, I’d need a serious ‘Plan B’ to pull it off!

This post may contain affiliate links.  See full disclosure here.

1. Macbook Pro + iPhone
There doesn’t seem to be much these days that people do without using a computer or smart phone and I am no different.  I sometimes wish I could go digital free for even a day, but it makes me start twitching just thinking about it.

In the morning on the computer, I link up to a few link parties, check my blog stats and schedule out a few social media posts for the day.  I don’t usually get back on the computer (unless it’s something very urgent) until my kids are resting/napping in the afternoon.  I do a big chunk of work during that time.

I use my phone at various times of the day for Instagram, checking Facebook comments, Twitter comments and quick Pinterest pinning.  See The Many Hats of a Craft Blogging Mom for a more detailed look at my daily tasks.

2. Adobe Photoshop
Oh, Adobe photoshop, how I love thee!  I was fortunate enough to learn photoshop during college.  When I stopped working for a landscape architect firm and started doing some residential landscape design when I had my babies, we decided it was a worthwhile investment and we bought Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator.  I now use Photoshop EVERY day for editing images and creating simple graphics for my blog.  I also use Illustrator for almost all of my Etsy shop prints.  We bought version CS6, right before they moved to the Adobe Creative Cloud Digital plan.  Many folks use PicMonkey or even Canva for a free option and it seems like it has quite a few design functions.

3. Camera: Nikon D90 DSLR + Lens
When kiddo #1 was on the way, my husband insisted on getting a “fancy” camera.  This was right when cameras were starting to be installed in phones (I feel so old just saying that!) and I made so much fun of the hubs for getting this big camera.  Why in the world, would we EVER really need a fancy camera like this?!  How the times have changed.  Now, I use our “fancy” camera on a daily basis.  I have the Nikon D7200 DSLR.
Nikon D7000 Camera
Over time, we have bought three lens for the camera.  The lens I use 98% of the time is the Nikon 35mm f/1.8G Lens.  This lens is excellent for most shots I am taking on the blog. We also have a Nikon 10-24mm f/3.5-4.5G Wide-Angle Zoom Lens and a Nikon 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G Telephoto Zoom Lens.

Nikon Camera Lens

4. Editorial Calendar
I admit, I have a serious calendar problem.  I could have a calendar in each room of my home, a few calendar apps on my phone and a blog editorial calendar and be a happy lady!  Let me tell you, if you are serious about blogging and want to have any kind of order in your life, I can not stress enough how much an editorial calendar is key.  I use both a paper calendar and an editorial plugin.

 

5. Amazon Affiliates
The last part of my blogging equation is monetizing.  I would love to say that I craft all day and somehow the craft materials just multiply over night, but sadly I visit my local craft store on a weekly/bi-weekly basis.  That being said, I’ve started adding affiliate links to some of my key craft supplies.  There is never an additional charge to the reader, but I make a very small percentage of the sale, if they purchase or click on the item.  I’ve found Amazon Affiliates to be the easiest for me to use and the easiest for my readers to use.

If you enjoyed this post, you might also like  The Many Hats of a Craft Blogging Mom.
Craft Blogging Mom-mess, Delineateyourdwelling.com

Well, that wraps up the FIVE things I can not Blog without.  What about you?  Do you have any “must haves”?  We’re all on this journey together.  I’d love to hear them, so be sure to leave a comment!

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22 Comments

  1. Nice post 🙂 I used to use my iPhone a lot for photos, mainly for ease! But have started using our DSLR and I have to say it’s working much better for my blog. I have used pixlr, canva and pic monkey for my graphics which has really helped on Pinterest. How do you use illustrator?

    1. delineateyourdwelling says:

      Ruth, thanks for letting me know what you use for graphics! I bought the Adobe design package a few years back, so I have Photoshop and Illustrator in that package of programs. I use Illustrator for design related items and photoshop for editing related items. =)

  2. I love that succulents phone case! So cute. And I agree, all of these tools are so vital to blogging, especially the apple products – I don’t know what I’d do without my Macbook and iPhone.

  3. Thanks for turning me on to Rifle Paper Co.! Love that desk pad. Guess it’s time I stepped up my game and invested in a DSLR and a Macbook…Loved this post!

    1. delineateyourdwelling says:

      Oh, Rifle Paper Co… how I love thee (and you will, too!) =) Glad the post was helpful.

  4. This was a very interesting blog post. I’m always up for tips being I’m a new blogger. I use picmonkey since it is free. I tried the free online version of adobe photoshop and man is it hard! I felt like I needed a degree in Adobe. Thanks for your tips!

    1. delineateyourdwelling says:

      Thanks so much for stopping by, Lacie! I’ve heard pic monkey is a great tool, many many bloggers use it. And I’m sure if I hadn’t learned Photoshop in college, I’d be using Picmonkey, too.

  5. Oh wow…I kind of felt like I was looking in the mirror when I reading your post minus #5. We have similar backgrounds…interesting. thanks for sharing your tips….

    1. delineateyourdwelling says:

      Ah, how cool!

  6. Amy ~ I enjoyed this post. I like to see behind the scenes. And I am SO happy to have a fellow calendar, dare I say, “junkie”! I also have calendars in every room, several on my computer, and I carry a planner. I think I might have a problem! :0) Thanks for sharing!

    1. delineateyourdwelling says:

      Yay, calendar junkies unite! =)

  7. Good tips, I need to buck up and get Adobe. Cheers!

  8. Viglink is new to me…I’ll have to go check it out 🙂 I loved hearing how you create your printables…I wish I could go back to college and take all of those classes…actually I just might someday 🙂

  9. Thank you for sharing- I always love to read about the things that help other bloggers because I have so much to learn. I love Rifle Paper Co.- their stuff is so beautiful!

    I stopped by from Whimsy Wednesday.

    1. delineateyourdwelling says:

      Thanks so much for stopping by, Jessy! I’m hoping to start a more regular series on blogging tips, so hopefully you’ll come back for more. We all are continuing to learn from each other!

  10. It’s so interesting to see what other bloggers use. I also cannot live without my Adobe programs and my computer (obviously). Might need to get a new camera one day, so thank you for the recommendation!

    1. delineateyourdwelling says:

      Yay, another Adobe lover! Thanks for stopping by Carmia!

  11. I always like to see what other bloggers find useful! Thanks for sharing, Amy! 😉

  12. Thanks for these great tips, Amy! Photoshop is bomb, I love it so. But I’ve found myself using Canva more and more for my blog graphics. It’s similar to PicMonkey in that you can use it for free or upgrade to a “premium” account for a cost, but it’s so user friendly and I always find great inspiration from other users. I had never heard of VigLink before, checking out now!

    1. delineateyourdwelling says:

      Oh, I’ll have to check out Canva! I’ve not heard of it before. Thanks for the tip, Chelc!!

  13. Thanks for sharing these, Amy! Omg, I have a love affair with Photoshop and have for years. Gonna go check out Viglink now. Thanks for the tip!

    1. delineateyourdwelling says:

      Jennifer, you’ll LOVE viglink. You can bring ANY link into it and sometimes get paid for just clicks on the link, not even buying. It brings in just a little each day, but it really adds up!! Let me know if you have questions about it.

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