Learning Curve

As I may have mentioned, the learning curve is steep when you’re starting your first blog!  There’s so much to know, and so many decisions to make – about resources, strategy, suppliers, systems, and other things I didn’t even know required decisions!

It was really useful to me to know which resources other bloggers were using.  Reading about theirs gave me a starting place to decide what would work for me and my projects.  I’ll use this page to share resources I use and recommend.  I’ll let you know any pluses or minuses that I’ve noticed, and update when I learn something new or work with a new partner.

Just click on the titles to find out more.  Here’s the list so far – I hope it gives you a starting place too!

Themes

Restored 316*

This is where I bought my WordPress theme.  These beautiful themes are used by lots of bloggers in our niche, and are built with the female blogger in  mind.  I was really grateful that so many features were already built in, and the plugins I needed were already supported.  Customer support is wonderful!  I worked with them quite a bit setting up Mantel and Table, and they were so patient and helpful.  I wrote about choosing my theme in this post.

Niteo Themes

I used a Niteo theme (named Fifty) for my Coming Soon page before Mantel and Table was launched.  It was beautiful, and I added a field where people could sign up for my mailing list.  Subscribers were added to my MailChimp list right away, and got the welcome email and promotional printable.  Their customer service was also great.  They answered my questions quickly and fully!

Creative & Design Resources

MyFonts.com

This is where I found the fonts I use on Mantel and Table.  I also use them for printables, on social media pictures/ads, and basically anywhere I next text.  I looked at a lot of fonts sites, and this was the easiest to use and fastest to load.  Plus you can set up Albums, Favorites, and Tags to narrow down and categorize your font options. The preview of the font with your words is nice and big, and easy to use.

Photography

PicMonkey*

I totally love PicMonkey!  This is the program I use to do any secondary processing of my pictures, and to add the Mantel and Table watermark.  I love it!  (Did I already say that!?) It’s super intuitive, and can do so many things!  I don’t know all that much about photography yet, but PicMonkey is so easy – and FUN – that just using it teaches me things!

Email Marketing

MailChimp

This was the email marketing provider that worked most easily with my Niteo Themes Coming Soon page.  Even for someone with my limited technical skills, it was easy to figure out and use to make a welcome email sequence when people signed up.  I’m using a different provider now, but there’s nothing wrong with MailChimp!  It was pretty much 50/50 for me at the point I was choosing, but I would still recommend MailChimp.

ConvertKit*

This is the email marketing provider I use now.  I love how convenient it is to use with my WordPress blog – it’s really easy to insert a form into a post.  Setting up email sequences and broadcasts is easy too.  As with all my favorite resources, their customer service is spectacular!  I still have a ton to learn about ConvertKit’s many features, so I’ll report back here with any updates!

Education & Training

Abby Lawson/Just a Girl and Her Blog*

Besides having a fun and totally inspiring blog, Abby Lawson shares several eCourses for bloggers.  Here’s the one that started it all:

• Building a Framework: The Ultimate Blogging Handbook – This was the course that gave me the final push to start Mantel and Table.  It really demystifies a lot of blogging concepts that had just been confusing.  It explains the processes, and actually shows you how to do them!

Affiliate Marketing

Amazon Associates*

I buy a lot of things from Amazon, and I recommend a lot of them to you! As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This is usually the place to begin as as affiliate marketer – it’s a very easy way to monetize your blog!