The Weekly Round-Up: How to Not Suck at Blogging

"Remember that your audience took their precious time to not only read your blog, but to leave a comment on it. Have the courtesy to respond to their comments and foster a desire to continue the conversation. By responding to comments left on your blog in a timely manner, your audience will feel cared about, cherished and therefor interested in returning."

▶ Kimi from Kimi Who wrote this great post (and we have our title) called How to Not Suck at Blogging.  It offers some fairly simple tips you can apply to your blog in order to help your blog not suck.  Simple, right?

"as you can see, i then get a manageable list of bookmarks for me to view and click on! much easier than having to scroll for ages to find my latest bookmarks. i am trying to be more organised with the things i find online and using this method (and pinterest) i feel like i am on top of all of the cool resources i have found. yay me!"

▶ Sara from A Cat-Like Curiosity shared a great post about organizing Facebook and Tumblr for Busy Bloggers.  We're all busy bloggers, so these are some helpful tips I think we could all benefit from.

"I will be featuring my favorite instagram photos weekly and the rest of the co-hosts will be checking out any posts with the hashtag #EverythingAugust too."

▶ Alanna from Alanna & Company is doing an August Instagram Challenge.  Instagram is a great way to boost your blog!

"I celebrated a blogiversary this past April. Usually when a blogger reaches that milestone, they do a post celebrating their hard work, their readers and reflect on the happier moments of the year. I didn’t do that. As I sat down to reflect on my year, all I could see were disorganized posts and my inconsistency. Now, I know there were some great moments as well, but I was convicted that because I was disorganized and my readers were paying the price. Back in April, I decided to get better."

▶ Chelsie from Life with Rosie shared her Blogging Binder and offered tips on how to make one yourself! Useful!

 

"Here’s the secret: you just need to be WHERE YOUR AUDIENCE IS! That’s it. If they are on Facebook or Bloglovin’ or the good ole IG (Instagram to old people – that includes me) then you should be on those sites promoting your brand. If your audience is not on Google+ (which I hope not, I hate G+), then why are you wasting your valuable time on G+?? Just stop it."

▶ Lizzy from Stumbling Upon Lizzy shared a fantastic post regarding where you're spending you're time promoting your blog.  She's right.  You need to be where your audience is, otherwise it's fruitless.

What are your favorite posts this week?

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How this works:

• Follow your hosts Miss Angie at My So-Called Chaos and Aubrey at High-Heeled Love.
• Write up a blog post sharing some of your favorite posts this week from other bloggers.
• Add the Weekly Round-Up Button (code above) and/or a link back to your blog post.
• Link-up with our weekly linky party on Sundays.
• Visit other party-people to see what posts they liked this week!

The Weekly Round-Up: Shark Week!

"It’s Shark Week this week on Discovery. It’s a fantastic way to learn about shark safety, the marine habitats, and the conservation of our marine life. That doesn’t mean it has to be boring. You can jazz up with a good Shark Week drinking game or a Blue Shark Attack Cocktail. Blue Shark Attack Cocktail contains rum, pineapple juice, blue curacao, and gummy blue sharks."

// Blue Shark Attack Cocktail // Mooshu Jenne //  I like everything about this, just sip on this while watching Shark Week.

"For this Sharktacular mani I used Dermelect "Phenom" as my base, and then did a circular gradient with Zoya "Ling" and Fresh Paint "Firefly." I paired up my Morgan Taylor "Little Black Dress" with Winstonia stamping plate #W01 and Bundle Monster plate #BM503 to make the cute little sharks. Can sharks be cute? A matte topcoat was my finishing touch, and this is what I got. I like it. :)"

// Shark Week Mani // Divine Designs // How pretty is this blue?  I LOVE the little stamped sharks too. Killer.

"These sharks are relatively simple and easy to make with only a few supplies. They aren’t too scary looking, though, huh? You could always get a red food coloring pen and add some blood in the teeth. Or a foot."

// Shark Week! How to Make Shark Marshmallow Pops // The Decorated Cookie // These look so fun and easy!

"Stuff the shark case with pencils, pens, glue sticks…or whatever supplies you’d like! It’s just deep enough for the pencils and it can be stuffed quite full!"

// Shark Pencil Case Tutorial // Patchwork Posse // How cute is this little sewing DIY? I love it so much!

// Dipped Gold Shark Tooth Necklace // Your Charmed Life // Isn't this pretty?  Kelly makes such beautiful jewelry! 

What are your favorite posts this week?

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How this works:

• Follow your hosts Miss Angie at My So-Called Chaos and Aubrey at High-Heeled Love.
• Write up a blog post sharing some of your favorite posts this week from other bloggers.
• Add the Weekly Round-Up Button (code above) and/or a link back to your blog post.
• Link-up with our weekly linky party on Sundays.
• Visit other party-people to see what posts they liked this week!

The Weekly Round-Up: Love Wins

Welcome to another week of The Weekly Round-Up where we share posts from other bloggers that we love.  Let's focus on community, and this week extra so, as I share posts regarding the SCOTUS ruling on equal marriage.

"The Supreme Court’s decision isn’t simply about wedding bells, it is about worth. Without the right to choose to marry, one is excluded from the full range of human experience. Today, my family along with many others are finally granted the same rights they should have had all along as human beings; the choice to walk down the aisle and meet their soulmate at the end."

♥ I loved this post that Shane from Sea Salt Secrets wrote called It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood.  She makes some very poignant points about the reason this is good, and why it's been a long time coming.

"This week, I pray that we choose to love others, a lot more than we ever have before. I pray that we continue to love each other, despite any differences. I pray that we quiet our mouths, and that instead, we wash more feet."

♥ Most of you know that I'm not religious, and I'm certainly not Christian in my beliefs-I've grown up in a state ruled by religion and seen the ugly side of it more times than I can count.  However, every once in a while, I'm reminded that there are people out there that really do fit what they say Christ taught, and then they speak out with love.  Emily from Ember Grey is definitely one of those people, and this week, in the wake of so much celebration but equal amounts of hatred and negativity, she reminds us to love one another.  Way to shine Emily!

"The thing is, though, that being angry at the decision for all people in the US to be able to marry means that you hold the belief that all people should not be treated equally. It’s that simple. You can say that it makes you uncomfortable, that you don’t know how to explain it to your children, or that your religion doesn’t “allow” it, but at the end of the day if you don’t support marriage equality you don’t support human equality."

♥ I loved this brutally honest post by Mary (a.k.a. Uncustomary) over at Uncustomary Art reminding us that just because someone doesn't want to be your friend, doesn't mean they hate you.  She makes some great points not only on what the post is regarding, as you don't have to hate someone to just not want to be friends with them, but it also made great points on marriage equality-and more importantly-human equality.

"I think we can all agree that last week was PRETTY COOL for America. SCOTUS not only upheld Obamacare; they also prohibited all 50 states from denying marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Although there’s still much to do in the fight for equality (ie trans* workers’ rights,access to health care for undocumented immigrants, ending homelessness in LGBT youth,equal pay for all genders, taking down that horribly racist flag, and more…), Friday’s landmark decision deserves celebration. And what a better time to celebrate than the week of July 4?!"

♥ Corinne from The Feminist Feline shared this hilarious list of her Top 10 #LoveWins Memes, and it had me laughing a whole lot.  I especially loved the "Bye, Felicia" in biblical speak-SO great! haha

What are your favorite posts this week?

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How this works:

• Follow your hosts Miss Angie at My So-Called Chaos and Aubrey at High-Heeled Love.
• Write up a blog post sharing some of your favorite posts this week from other bloggers.
• Add the Weekly Round-Up Button (code above) and/or a link back to your blog post.
• Link-up with our weekly linky party on Sundays.
• Visit other party-people to see what posts they liked this week!

The Weekly Round-Up: Check Out This Real Talk

"One thing I’ve noticed about the French that ties into food culture is the fact that there are far fewer obese people in France than there are in the US. That’s not to say there are no overweight people because there are a bunch of very unfit, heavy folks walking around. But truly obsese? I can count them on one hand and I’ve lived here over 3 years… France has the lowest obesity rates in Europe. To give you exact figures, 38.5% of men and 26% of women in France are considered overweight (it’s about double that in the US). And in the US, nearly 35% of adults are obese. Yikes!"

♥ Diane from Oui in France wrote a great piece on What We Can Learn from Eating Like the French, and there's a lot of good information in there.  I really like how she's put this post together with actual facts and sources, and lots of great tips to help us eat better too.  Goodness knows I'm working on eating better!

"Social media gives everyone the perfect opportunity to let the world view your life — but only the pretty parts. And I think that is such bull shit. Sure, my life is good, and yours probably is, too, but so what? I have no interest in having a pissing contest with the entire world about the pretty parts."

♥ Colleen from Lunchbox Diaries got with the real talk in her post titled Complaining vs. Bragging vs. Real Talk (?!) and I couldn't agree more!  I don't want to read about how everything is hunky dory with you all the time-because NO ONE is happy and perfect 24/7.  Sometimes I want you to bare your soul to me and get real.  That's how we connect.

"I don't think there's a more cheesy and sweet romantic line than "your heart is a diamond" but that's echoed immediately by the less glamorous reality of diamonds--this heart is a diamond because it was crushed together by 'pressure'. The lyrics acknowledge the darker side of the person that he loves, and then go on to say "I will wait and stay"."

♥ Alex from Haifisch linked up a post for Musical Mondays about a song that's touching her, and then she got very real with us about how she's getting help for her PTSD.  I'm proud of her, and I love when song lyrics just reach in side and bond with some part of you, even when that part is a hard part sometimes, it's cathartic.

"I am notoriously bad at studying. As much as I try, I never seem to be able to do it successfully. I can get myself all prepared to study, and spend two hours working without actually getting anything done. Three years of college down and I've still not figured out the best method for myself to retain information. It all depends on the class, and it feels like my grades are often actually pre-determined by some sort of big scary beast that I have no control over."

♥ Jess from Writing in Red Lipstick is offering us Study Tips from Someone Who Has Never Successfully Studied Before, and I'm right there with her.  At least she's honest, and these sarcastic study tips are hilariously true.

"The thing is, recognizing and then respectfully terminating toxic friendships is an important step in achieving your goals. Getting rid of toxic friends says a lot about how much you respect yourself and your dreams – as does letting toxic friends stick around."

♥ Torie from Call It Adventure wrote a really great post about How to Recognize a Toxic Friendship, and what to do about it.  I love Torie's posts, and this one is so so so true.  I've been there before, it's just something that happens and sometimes you just have to move forward without what may ultimately (and unknowingly) be dead weight.

What are your favorite posts this week?

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How this works:

• Follow your hosts Miss Angie at My So-Called Chaos and Aubrey at High-Heeled Love.
• Write up a blog post sharing some of your favorite posts this week from other bloggers.
• Add the Weekly Round-Up Button (code above) and/or a link back to your blog post.
• Link-up with our weekly linky party on Sundays.
• Visit other party-people to see what posts they liked this week!

The Weekly Round-Up: Check Out These Brave Ladies

Hello readers!  If you're new here, or just new to The Weekly Round-Up, let me introduce you.  The Weekly Round-Up is a weekly linky party hosted each Sunday by myself and Aubrey of High-Heeled Love where we share posts from other bloggers.  Why?  Well it's a great time to take the focus off ourselves and let the light shine on some other fantastic bloggers and writers out there.   Sometimes when we blog, we forget that it's not all about us.  I mean, we're here telling our own stories, so it's easy to be very self-oriented, but it's also great to stop once in a while and share some of our favorites.  

So, take a moment and check out these suggestions I have for you to read.  Who knows?  You might not only find a great post that resonates with you, but you might find a new blog to follow, or a new bloggy friend.  You can never have enough good friends.  

This week I've decided to focus on bravery.  Each post before is brave in one way or another, and I applaud them for it!

"So if any of my friends are craving to travel but are holding back because of the price- just know that if you travel smart, you can spend less abroad than you do at home with your every day routine. So go out, live your dreams and be legendary."

♥ Shane from Sea Salt Secrets writes about how these are our Wander Years. A great motivator to get out there and travel.  Life is too short to stay in one place and be stagnant with our lives-go, do, see, and have memories!  Be brave! 

"But I’m making a commitment that this week I am going to be brave. I’m going to challenge myself to try something new. This month I made a goal to go back to yoga. Well, I’m going to do that this week. Because the sooner I go once, the sooner I can go again."

♥ Karen from A Peek at Karen's World says she's trying to be brave and make changes in her life.  Honestly, I think she IS brave.  It's brave just to write this post and talk about your own insecurities.  You can do it Karen!  We both can.

"In the middle was a leather ring box that said “Love is for children.” I laughed out loud. He and I are constantly calling each other dumb for falling in love, or stating the famous Black Widow line, “love is for children,” in response to “I love you.” It’s an inside Avenger’s joke and I was really, really happy that he brought who we are into the proposal. I should have known he would anyway."

♥ Allie from Sincerely, Bugs has such a sweet proposal story!  I love how her boyfriend fiance made it personal too, and I especially love that their little bit of personal is nerdy.  Geeks unite!  Congrats Allie!  It's brave to move forward with heart.

"But, the reason Ingrid's video had so much of an impact on me was because like Ingrid, for a long time I felt as though my authentic self had to be hidden, like there was something wrong with it. Like Ingrid, I had a role carved out for me before I was even born and it takes a lot of guts to live your real life. Sometimes people will be hurt along the way if you live your life honestly, but you have to ask yourself, is it worth it for you to hurt people temporarily (most people will come around to who you are in time) or continue hurting yourself (and possible even other people along the way) forever just to protect them?"

♥ Anna from Anna in Wonderland digs deep and tells us why she was so moved by Ingrid Nilson's coming out video.  It's so brave to be able to share your deepest and most real stories, and I love that she shared it with us.

"It's in the giving in, that turns out to be the greatest reward. There is something of a relief in admitting defeat and knowing you can put it away as you move on to something better and more fulfilling. I find it amusing how one will hold onto the impending disappointment, as if holding on will make it any better. It won't. Don't fool yourself. The sooner you give in to the changes that need making, the better."

♥ Ashlee of Painting Bliss wrote about how difficult it is when you don't feel like your art is going right, but how you should follow your gut instincts and move on if needs be.  Man, I think this can all be related to other things in life too, can't it?

What are your favorite posts this week?

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How this works:

• Follow your hosts Miss Angie at My So-Called Chaos and Aubrey at High-Heeled Love.
• Write up a blog post sharing some of your favorite posts this week from other bloggers.
• Add the Weekly Round-Up Button (code above) and/or a link back to your blog post.
• Link-up with our weekly linky party on Sundays.
• Visit other party-people to see what posts they liked this week!

The Weekly Round-Up: Find Some New Favorites

♥ Emilie Lima Burke is hosting a Creative Bloggers Swap!  How fun does that sound?  Creativity and Swaps!

♥ Kimi from Kimi Who just got herself a Fitbit, and she's talking about how she's improving her life with it.  I've thought about getting a Fitbit for a while, but I just am not sure I can handle having it on my wrist all day.

♥ Nikki from NikMakeupJunkie reviewed the Skinny TeaTox tea-I'm still very curious about trying this stuff.

♥ Helene from Helene In Between shared a great posts on 5 Inspiring Bloggers & How They Make Money.  What a great post!  It's nice to see people making it work in this big old blogging world.

What are your favorite posts this week?

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How this works:

• Follow your hosts Miss Angie at My So-Called Chaos and Aubrey at High-Heeled Love.
• Write up a blog post sharing some of your favorite posts this week from other bloggers.
• Add the Weekly Round-Up Button (code above) and/or a link back to your blog post.
• Link-up with our weekly linky party on Sundays.
• Visit other party-people to see what posts they liked this week!

The Weekly Round-Up: May 24th, 2015

♥ Heather from The Nerdy Fox shared a really awesome recipe for some fresh homemade salsa, and it looks totally delicious!  I'm such a salsa addict, so I'm definitely going to have to try this-and soon!

♥ Kimi from Kimi Who wrote about a flight attendant tho participates in the Passenger Shame Game and posts shaming pictures of her passengers sleeping.  I really kind of want to get her fired, because A: That's just terrible, and B: It's not a very professional way to represent your airline.  I wonder if someone sent her Instagram account to her bosses how that would go over...

♥ Melanie from Making it in the Mitten shared this tutorial for a DIY Outdoor Palette Bar and I totally want to do it when I get a house.  How cute (and space saving) is that?  WANT!

♥ Rowan from Funning Up My Life shared this recipe for Chili Chai Tea.  Um, YUM!  Must try this.

♥ Stephanie from The Nerdy Photographer takes such awesome Street Photography.  I just love it.

♥ Raewyn from Be a Warrior Queen wrote this fantastic post about Friendship Red Flags and What to Do About Them.  We tend to talk about dating red flags a lot, but sometimes we forget that friends come with their own set as well.  She had some great points here.

♥ Ashlie from Painting Bliss shared a great post about Finding Your Happy.  She gets real, and she's raw, and I just love posts like that.  Posts that not only show you the writer's deepest and darkest, but also their brightest light as well.

What are your favorite posts this week?

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How this works:

• Follow your hosts Miss Angie at My So-Called Chaos and Aubrey at High-Heeled Love.
• Write up a blog post sharing some of your favorite posts this week from other bloggers.
• Add the Weekly Round-Up Button (code above) and/or a link back to your blog post.
• Link-up with our weekly linky party on Sundays.
• Visit other party-people to see what posts they liked this week!

The Weekly Round-Up for the Week of April 19th, 2015

1 // Kati from Kati Rose wrote about feeling that funk where it feels like everyone is moving forward except for you.  I've totally been there before, and I think we can probably all relate to this post a little more than we want to.  Hang in there Kati!

2 // Nikki from Confessions of a Makeup Addict reviewed some Colourpop eye shadow and it's gorgeous!

3 // Both Aubrey from High-Heeled Love and Kenzie from Chasing My Extraordinary celebrated anniversaries this week!  How sweet is that?  Kenzie has been with her man for 6 years and Aubrey has been married to her husband for 5!

4 // Megan from Lush to Blush shared this pretty Spring Braid Tutorial. If my hair were longer I'd totally try it.

5 // Linda from A Labour of Life shared this tutorial for creating glitter letters with Picmonkey. SO useful!

6 // Karen from A Peek at Karen's World won the Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award and it was fun getting to know her a little bit more, and helping her lift her sadness from this week's events, through this post.

7 // Jenny from Dancin' With a Dolly has a very good point when she says she's not lucky.  She worked hard, luck had nothing to do with it friends!  Don't we all get a little irked when someone says we're lucky but it's something we fought for?

8 // I completely adore this Target Inspired Old Window Cabinet that Lindsey from My Creative Days shared for her SITS feature day.  Congrats on being featured Lindsey-I want to try this!

What are your favorite posts this week?

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How this works:

• Follow your hosts Miss Angie at My So-Called Chaos and Aubrey at High-Heeled Love.
• Write up a blog post sharing some of your favorite posts this week from other bloggers.
• Add the Weekly Round-Up Button (code above) and/or a link back to your blog post.
• Link-up with our weekly linky party on Sundays.
• Visit other party-people to see what posts they liked this week!