A blog reader named Alicia asked me an interesting blogging question the other day. Hi Abby, I remember reading something from you awhile ago about when you decided to take the leap from your blog being a hobby to really making it a career and why you chose not to get involved with affiliate marketing…
Should you Move Your Blog from Blogger to WordPress?
Last month I moved my blog to WordPress.org after nine years on another platform. I also moved my shop from Big Cartel to my new WordPress site. The decision to move was a hard one to make and meant a big investment in both time and money. I know that I wasn’t alone in wondering…
User Testing for Your Blog or Online Shop
Standing in front of the mirror wearing my new jeans, I fix my hair just so, ready for a night out. Feeling pretty good I turn to my husband and say, “How do I look?” Why do I ask this question? I think it’s because there’s value in feedback, especially feedback on things we can’t…
How to Manage an Editorial Calendar for Your Blog: A Guest Post from Kristin Link at Sew Mama Sew
It’s Thursday night at 9:30 and you realize you haven’t posted anything on your blog this week. Quick! Think of a blog post! Sound familiar? It sure does to me. I wrote this blog for seven years that way. It’s not terrible to have to come up with content on the spur of the moment,…
Graphic Design Hacks for Craft Bloggers
Craft blogging is all about telling visual stories. You make things and then show what you've made, teach how you made it, and explain the techniques you used. To do it you (and I) depend heavily on images. Great visuals convey meaning more effectively than words. They attract the eyes of new readers, they make…
Easily Create a Blog or Etsy Banner for Free Using PicMonkey
PicMonkey is a free online tool for editing photos and creating graphics. It’s easy and intuitive to use, and it’s more powerful than many people realize. I’m a PicMonkey superfan! Today I’m going to show you how to easily create a beautiful new banner for your blog or Etsy shop, for free, using PicMonkey. Head…
5 Great Sites That Will Make You Look Like a Graphic Design Pro (Even When You’re Not)
I’m married to a finance guy. He’s the type that reads Barron’s cover to cover each Saturday. On the desk next to the computer we share is a running list of stocks he’s investigating. This is a guy that loves a good spreadsheet. Curious about the bond market? I’ve got your man. Being married…
Organizing Blog Archives for Increased Usability
One of the very best things about a blog is that it’s alive. Unlike a static website, a blog is always fresh. It’s current. Blogs allow readers to see what the writer is working on, or thinking about, right now. But because a blog is an ever-growing body of work it can become unwieldy…
PicMonkey Tutorial: How to Add Handwriting to a Photo
I don’t own a graphics program, not even Photoshop, and investing in one isn’t in the budget this year. Instead I’m really enjoying learning to use free online programs to their utmost. PicMonkey is one of my very favorites. You may know of PicMonkey as a photo editing program, which it is, but it’s also…
PicMonkey Tutorial: Putting an Image Inside Letters
I don’t own a graphics program, not even Photoshop, and investing in one isn’t in the budget this year. Instead I’m really enjoying learning to use free online programs to their utmost. PicMonkey is one of my very favorites. You may know of PicMonkey as a photo editing program, which it is, but it’s also…