Strange & Charmed

How to Design an Instagram Photo Challenge!

Have you ever seen or participated in an Instagram photo challenge? For anyone who loves photography or Instagram, these sorts of fun photo a day challenges can be an awesome way to connect with your community and grow your following at the same time. So, today, I wanted to explain the simple steps to take if you would like to host your own photo challenge on Instagram!

1. Pick a time frame: First things first, you are going to need to choose a time frame for your challenge. Many photo challenges are month long events, however, nothing stops you from choosing a longer or shorter time frame. You can use a photo challenge to lead up to an event for your business like the launch of a new product, in which case you may want to host a two week challenge. Or, you may want to use a photo challenge to celebrate an important event or milestone by hosting a week long event. Like I said, it’s up to you, but you are going to want to decide the time frame of the challenge so you can start planning it.

2. Choose a theme: Photo challenges usually revolve around a theme, for instance, in March I hosted my first photo challenge called CharmedGTD, which means Charmed Getting Things Done, and it was a productivity themed challenge. In June, I co-hosted another challenge with my buddy Paper & Glam and we called it Summer in the Glampire to celebrate the start of summer and our vacation to Aruba. Some challenges are themed around specific creative endeavors, others around seasonal events. Choose a theme that works for you and will help you attract the type of audience you are looking to gain!

3. Brainstorm prompts: Once you know the length of time and the theme for your challenge, you can start brainstorming prompts to go along with it. Photo challenges normally have one prompt for each day of the challenge and it’s up to the participants to get creative and interpret the prompts to suit their preferences. Again, let your theme guide you with this, but don’t be afraid to get creative yourself and think outside the box!

4. Create a hashtag: Every great photo challenge needs a great custom hashtag to go along with it to act as its name or title! Make sure your hashtag is descriptive of your challenge, is as succinct as possible and of course, unique! Make sure to check Instagram to see if anyone is already using your photo challenge hashtag, because you will want to find something that has little to no use so that you can appropriate it for your own brand!

5. Design your graphic: Using image editing software, design your photo challenge graphic to share with your community. Of course, when designing your graphic you will want to create a square image, at least 1,000 x 1,000 pixels, use your specific brand colors and imagery, and of course, simple fonts that are easy to read! Make sure to include in your graphic the title of the challenge/the custom hashtag that participants should use, your own Instagram handle so that people can tag you and know who to attribute the event to, the time frame for the challenge, and of course your daily prompts! If you also have room, feel free to include your website URL as well!

6. Promote your challenge: A few days to a week before your challenge starts you will want to begin promoting it. Of course you will want to first post your custom graphic to your Instagram account and encourage your followers to participate by reposting the image to their own feeds. Ask your followers to tag friends that they believe would enjoy the event as well. You may also want to promote your challenge via your website, blog or other social media channels by creating a dedicated post and explaining the challenge to your followers. Don’t hesitate to post a few times in the days leading up to the event so that you get the word out to as many people as possible!

7. Have fun & interact with your community: Once your challenge begins, make sure you keep up to date posting and checking on your custom hashtag to interact with your community. Make sure you are having fun with the event and like a good host, checking in with your participants by liking and commenting on their photos! Photo challenges are supposed to be fun while also helping you to promote your own account, so make sure to enjoy yourself and make the most of your interactions with your community!

Now you are ready to design and host your own Instagram Photo Challenge! Make sure to let me know if you host a challenge so I can see the fruits of your work and how you put these tips into action!

xoxo,

Solutions

5 Free Design Tools for Bloggers & Business Owners

There is no doubt that having a uniform brand and visual experience online is crucial for every blogger and online business owner, however, you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars on professional software to create great images and design elements for your brand especially if you are just starting out. Here are a few free design tools that I love to use and would recommend to any blogger or business owner just getting started!

1. Color Hex: Using uniform colors throughout your website and graphics is a critical part of achieving brand uniformity for your blog or online business. When working with color online, I always rely on a hex code, which is a digital formula for web based colors. Websites and various online design resources use hex codes to determine color, and so having a site like Color Hex bookmarked will help you pinpoint your specific brand colors and ensure you are always using the same colors over and over again!

2. Colour Lovers: Need to find a specific color palette to use for a project or post online? Colour Lovers is an awesome free website that helps you determine color palettes. Browse the site for one of their pre-designed palettes, design your own using the suite of tools available on the site or create a color palette from your favorite photo with their Photocopa tool that analyses images for their color palettes!

3. Death to the Stock Photo: If you are in need of some awesome stock photography for your website, don’t waste your time with standard stock photography sites with their obviously staged images. Death to the Stock Photo is a modern approach to stock photography that offers an awesome and affordable monthly premium service, or a free monthly pack of images for you to use in accordance with their image licensing terms. These are some awesome pictures that can be used in a variety of ways to liven up your site, so check them out for an awesome alternative to bland stock photography.

4. Canva: Need some powerful software for creating awesome graphics and images, but don’t have Photoshop? A free account with Canva will give you access to all the tools you need to design your own eye-catching graphics, promotional images or any other images or design elements you may need for your website.

5. Flat Icon: Looking for some custom icons for your website or design elements? Flaticon.com gives you access to a large library of vector icon images that you can use for your blog or business. With both free and paid icon options, you are sure to find the right icon set to fit the needs of any project.

I hope these 5 Free Design Tools help you make the most of your blog or business online! Let me know how you like them or if you use any other awesome free tools that I need to know about!

xoxo,

Blogging

5 Ways to Market Your Blog in 10 Minutes or Less

Promoting your blog online does not require a significant amount of time or effort. If you only have a few minutes to spare, there are plenty of effective ways to spend 10 minutes that will help spread the word about your site and hopefully gain you some new followers. With anything online, it’s not how much time you spend, but how you spend that time that counts, so the next time you have a few spare minutes in your day, whether you are waiting in line at the store, or have a short break in your work, consider one or more of these options to get some quick wins for your brand!

1. Pin your blog posts to Pinterest: Pinterest happens to be the major source of traffic for my blog. Get into the habit of spending an extra moment once you have published a new post to share it on Pinterest. Open the blog post as an individual link in a new window, copy the link into Pinterest and pick your best image from your post (a vertical image works best) to represent the article. To save extra time in the future, download the Pinterest Browser Button so that you can easily pin and save posts or articles from around the web quickly and easily without having to go directly to Pinterest.

2. Schedule tweets for your most popular posts: Although Twitter itself doesn’t have an option for scheduling Tweets, I use the desktop application called TweetDeck or the iPhone app Hootsuite to create some automated tweets when promoting a blog post. For maximum impact, choose a few of your most popular blog posts, grab their short links (or shorten the standard link in Hootsuite) and write a few quick tweets to promote them! Schedule them out a few times during the next week so you can maximize their exposure and send more traffic to your site.

3. Take an IG photo to promote your latest post: As one of the fastest growing social media platforms online currently, Instagram is a great way to promote a blog post! Take a styled shot or one of your best images from your blog post and share it on Instagram, letting your audience know that you have a new blog post they wont’ want to miss. Make sure your blog URL is in your profile description OR use a free site like bit.ly to create a custom short link to add to your description!

4. Send an email to a fellow blogger pitching a collaboration: One of the best ways to get the word out and promote your site is to collaborate with other bloggers. Think about some bloggers you admire that have similar sized followings as your own and send them a short email inviting them to collaborate. Make sure you provide a few examples of the types of collaborations you have in mind so that they know you have put some time and thought into your offer! Of course, make sure you are following the blogger on all their social media platforms and interact with them regularly so they know your name and perhaps are equally as excited to work with you!

5. Respond to comments on your blog or other social media: Replying to your blog comments is a great way to foster community around your site. Make sure you are replying to most if not all of your blog comments in a timely manner. This will encourage your readers to comment and engage with you, and ensures that they will be back to your site regularly!

Now, isn’t that quick and easy? I told you that promoting your blog doesn’t have to take up much time, and it’s definitely something you could do even if you find a few extra moments when you are out and about, thanks to the aid of a smartphone! I hope these tips help you promote your blog and gain some new traffic to your site. If this post was helpful to you, please do me a favor and go ahead and share it on social media. Share it on Facebook, tweet a link out to your followers, or even take an Instagram picture and share it with your community! Thanks dolls!

xoxo,

Productivity

Mind Over Matter, Social Media Marketing Trends & Productivity Hacks You Need to Know!

Last month, the community reaction to my link roundup was so positive and supportive. Many of you really connected with the fact that I too struggle with my own productivity on a regular basis, as shocking and unbelievable as it may seem. I love talking about productivity and really consider myself a student of it, not because I believe I’m naturally inclined towards it, but rather because my instinct is the complete opposite. I tend to be very lazy, so over the years, in order to not only survive, but to flourish, I have built up a repertoire of life hacks, organization methods and productivity shortcuts to help me get more done in less time. If there is a quicker way to do something, I am all over it. Have a method to cut down on your number of tasks while still remaining a high performer, yes please, I’d love to know! To be honest, most of my knowledge of these sorts of things doesn’t really come from me, but rather, from books, magazines and articles I have read over the years, which is why I love sharing these sorts of link roundups with my community. On one hand, this gives you some insight into the sorts of articles I read on a regular basis, but on the other, it helps you to develop the positive habit of reading, self-improvement and continuing education. So, in an effort to share and help inspire my community, here is a selection of articles I read and think you may also find enlightening!

Self-Improvement

Business

Productivity

Have any other articles you read recently that you think I would love? Please tweet me the links @MissTrenchcoat or go ahead and leave them down below!

xoxo,

Filofax

July Dashboard {Free Printable}

Who’s ready for another FREE planner printable?!? This month I decided to do something a little different with my planner freebie. I know I normally make a task list for the month with fun inspirational and seasonal to dos, but this month I have decided to shake things up and design a monthly dashboard. Although I know my task lists are fun, they have been getting a bit redundant and in an effort to make these printables as useful as possible for my entire community, I decided to change up the design.

Let me walk you through what this insert is all about! I really find it helpful to have a dashboard or one place where I can keep track of important monthly items. Whether those items are important dates I need to remember like birthdays and anniversaries, or my monthly goals or reading list, I know this dashboard will help you get that little extra edge of productivity that we all desperately need! As usual, these inserts are available in both A5 and personal size.

To download your own FREE copy of these inserts, click here to head on over to my shop where you can access the files!

If you do download these free inserts, please let me know about it by taking a picture and tagging me on Instagram with the hashtag #StrangeandCharmed so I can see how you are making use of these inserts in your own planners. I love seeing your pictures, and I can’t wait to like them and interact with you on IG! Make sure you’re following me @MissTrenchcoat!!

xoxo,

tech wallpaper

Be a Flamingo Tech Wallpapers

Can you believe we are half way through 2015 already? Half a year behind us, but a whole six more months for us to reach our goals for the year. As I have just come back from vacation in Aruba, I thought it would be awesome to spread the caribbean love with my community through these new tech wallpapers I put together. Of course, the original photography in the image is my own. This image was snapped on Flamingo Island, the private beach island that was part of the resort I stayed at in Aruba. The flamingos are something of an attraction and they pretty much just hang out on the island being fed by the tourists and conversing with the iguanas! What a life! Exotic creatures such as these remind us that the world is filled with beauty and color. There is no reason to go to great lengths to conform when you have a beautiful flamingo inside of you! Stop hiding your flamingo! That’s going to be my mantra for the next few months!

Here are the Be a Flamingo Wallpapers!

Be a Flamingo in a Flock of Pigeons Desktop Wallpaper — Desktop Background. Right click image to open in new page and save full resolution file.

Be a Flamingo in a flock of Pigeons iPad Wallpaper — iPad or Tablet Background. Right click image to open in new page and save full resolution file.

Be a Flamingo in a flock of Pigeons iPhone Wallpaper — iPhone or Smartphone Background. Right click image to open in new page and save full resolution file.

I sincerely hope you enjoy these new backgrounds and of course, I would love to see pictures of your devices sporting their new wallpapers for the season, so make sure to snap a pic to Instagram, use the hashtag #StrangeandCharmed and make sure to tag me, @MissTrenchcoat so I can like and comment on your photos! I can’t wait to see your devices all spruced up for summer!

xoxo,

books

3 Ways to Overcome Resistance & Start Getting Shit Done!

I spent quite a few hours in the air last week traveling to and from Aruba on vacation, and so I decided to spend some of that travel time wisely by catching up on a few audiobooks I had downloaded from Audible.com. The book I was most anxious to listen to, The War of Art by Steven Pressfield, was recommended to me on numerous occasions by a variety of mentors and so I decided it was time to check that one off my list. The audiobook wasn’t long, less than three hours in total, so I listened through to completion on a single flight. The book was by no means ground breaking, however, it was immediately evident to me why so many people had suggested it, because I myself have been living by and evangelizing about every message in this book for years! I honestly felt such a deep connection to the book as I sat there listening and internally applauding each sentence. The crux of the book was simple; in order to find success in the creative fields, you must learn to overcome the various types of resistance you are sure to face on a daily basis. You may think that the hard part of being creative revolves around the execution of it, but really, it’s the muddy waters of resistance that begin far before you get to work that are the true challenge. If you find that you get overwhelmed at just the thought of your work, or feel like your riding a rollercoaster of emotions that make creativity difficult for you to sustain, here are 3 ways to overcome resistance and start getting shit done in your life!

1. Turn Pro

Within the War of Art, Pressfield explains the difference between an amateur and a professional and why it is necessary for you to turn pro, even if you are taking on an endeavor as a #sidehustle. An amateur is someone who says they are doing something for the love of it, but really, this is a barrier that keeps the amateur from fully realizing their potential. A professional, on the other hand, takes their work seriously and knows that the success of their endeavor needs to be beyond the whims of passion or pleasure. An amateur can worry about failure and feel discouraged by it because they are working from a place of emotion, while a professional can rise above outcomes and work through failure until the point of ultimate success.

2. Understand the source of creativity

One of my favorite quotes from Marianne Williamson explains that “You are a faucet and God is the water,” and this concept is one that Pressfield explains within his book as the true source of creativity. Any great artist or creator knows that it is an impossible feat for one person to come up with an endless supply of creative ideas, and likewise, all great artists know that their ideas do not come from them, but instead are dictated to them from God. This phenomenon may seem very woo-woo, but it is one that I experience on a regular basis. When I submit my creativity over to God, magic happens. An outpouring of ideas flow through me like water and all I have to do is grab a pen and keep up!

3. Never give up

Another interesting phenomenon that is again, often chalked up to being outside the realm of possibility, is that your success often lies on the other side of great failure. Because of this, it is essential that you do not give up just because you have failed. Personally, I believe that when you give a whole-hearted and well organized effort, it is impossible to fail entirely, but failure is a part of success that a true creative artist must fully embrace. Everything is impossible until you do it, and although you may fail a hundred times on the way to success, the only way to cross the finish line is to keep going and refuse to give up.

This book wasn’t a long or difficult read, but it sure was powerful. If you feel like you could use a fire under your butt to get started or to work through a creative endeavor, definitely pick up this book and start applying its many lessons to your life! Let me know down in the comments if you have read this book or even if you face resistance in your own life and how you deal with it. I’d love to know your thoughts and strategies as well!

xoxo,

printables

A Parisian Holiday for Your Office & Planner!

Summer is such a wonderful time to travel and I personally can’t think of a place I would rather travel to right now than Paris! As they say, “Paris is always a good idea!” So, to bring you a little “What’s In My Bag” style travel inspiration, I have designed an entire collection of planner and office decor printables with a little Parisian flare. My Parisian Holiday Collection consists of 4 Printable Wall Art designs, a printable sticker set with 8 unique designs and a set of four journaling cards! All designs are original vector artwork you won’t find anywhere else, including some highly requested makeup and planner favorites.

For my Parisian inspired wall art, I decided to do things a little differently with this collection. My 4 wall art designs are really meant to be used together, so instead of selling them individually for $12 each, I decided to bundle the 4 designs for $26! Print them in their full size of 8” x 10” or at half or quarter sizes through Adobe reader and hang them together as a full set in your home or office for some beautiful seasonal travel inspiration! Hint: these home decor prints would also look amazing in a walk in closet, bedroom or even your bathroom!

Looking to liven up your scrapbook or planner for summer with some awesome printable decoration items? You will love my sticker and coordinating journaling card designs. As I said, this Parisian Holiday Collection is inspired by “What’s In My Bag” style photos and videos and includes my favorite seasonal items from makeup to purses, and perfume to planners, as though I am packing up for my own Parisian getaway! You are going to love decorating your planner for summer with these awesome printables! Hint: these designs aren’t just for Francophiles, but fashionista’s and beauty gurus alike!

If you’d love a Parisian Holiday as much as me, I’d love it if you checked out the collection and let me know your thoughts! Click here to hop on over to my Shop to view the collection! I can’t wait to see your Instagram pictures featuring these awesome printable planner and office goodies so make sure to snap a pic and to use the hashtag #strangeandcharmed so I can like and comment on your photos!

xoxo,

Productivity

Things You Need To Do This Summer

It’s now officially summer in the northern hemisphere and we have a good two to three months of long days and sunny weather ahead of us. While many people, myself included, traditionally use this time to rest, relax and have fun, I feel like these longer days can be packed with much more than just time at the pool. Here are five things that I think you need to do this summer to really make the most of the season and to look back at it and think of it as a very productive time, instead of as an endless string of lazy days!

1. Read more substantial novels

As cliche as it sounds, summer really is a great time to do some reading at your own leisure. As much as you may want to pick up the latest click lit or YA fiction to enjoy by the pool, I really encourage you to incorporate some more substantial literature into your summer reading list. Most people are under the impression that all reading is equal, so if you read a romance novel or Moby Dick you are getting the same benefit from reading. This is not true. Studies show that lighter literature actually has the same effect on your brain as watching television for the same period of time. Your brain isn’t actually expanding with everything you read, so you need to pick reading material that will challenge your thought, grow your vocabulary, and expose you to new ideas. If you would like some recommendations, here are a few I love.

2. Learn something new

If you are like me, summer represents a time in your life where you have less obligations and more freedom. Although I graduated college close to a decade ago, I still see summer as my vacation time and I would venture to guess that goes for many people. The thing is, while most people are spending their summer on frivolity and fun, I think this is a great time to get a jump on the competition so to speak and pick up a new skill or learn about a topic that may help you advance personally and professionally. On my to do list this summer I have a few technical skills I want to master and areas I want to learn more about in terms of helping me run my business. Choose an area of your life that would benefit from some additional education and find a research online to help you learn. We all have that nagging list filed in the back of our minds with skills or knowledge we wish we had, so pick a topic from your list and get started making progress. If this topic of continuing education speaks to you, I suggest starting here.

3. Start your #sidehustle

Most people could really use an extra income, even if it’s just a small part time income from doing something we love. If you have been thinking of a business idea but dragging your feet on getting started, now is the time to act! Hammer out your idea, source your materials or any tools you may need to get you started, and scour the internet for information and ideas for marketing your business. I have a whole YouTube video dedicated to How to Start an Online Shop if you are looking to sell physical or digital goods so I highly suggest that video as a free resource. Of course, if you want to get started but need the motivation of a coach to keep you on track you can always join my Empire Building Program and get access to my workbooks and coaching. I’ve even recently added a new Shop Review option to Empire Building where you can get a live one time 1-hour call with me to review your business idea, online shop or work through any issues you are facing. There is nothing stopping you from making this summer a profitable one and perhaps the start to a really awesome business venture!

4. Have meaningful discussions

Many people I encounter online have something very major in common. They are all searching for real meaningful connections online that they aren’t getting in their lives. I truly believe that finding a friend or small group of friends that share you belief’s and values can be an incredibly uplifting experience, but how do you know when you have found true friends? The clues are always in the conversation. If you can have long, meaningful discussions with another human being you know you have found a true friend. While you are making plans with your friends this summer, make sure you aren’t just having adventure but that you are also connecting on a deeper level, sharing knowledge and experience for mutual benefit. It doesn’t matter if you are having these conversations with your best friend and neighbor or if you are chatting with like minded individuals in Facebook interest groups, just get yourself out there, find someone to talk to and make a meaningful connection.

5. Organize an area of your life

We all have an area of areas of our lives that desperately need order and this is the perfect time of year to establish that order. Whether your closet is a mess or your social life could use a revamp, think of this like a project that you can tackle over the next few days, weeks or months. First, decide what area of your life needs the change. Is it a physical issue of organization like a room in your home or your office space or is it an abstract area like your career that you want to get organized? Next, define the problem and write out your end goals for your organization project. Why have you chosen this area to organize and what do you want this area of your life to look like once your project is complete? Finally, list out all known action steps and start cracking away at the issue bit by bit. Don’t feel like you need to enact massive change overnight, just make yourself a nice long to do list for this project and set a goal for yourself to do one thing everyday. Somedays you may do more than one and some days this project may fall off your priorities list, but make sure you are taking steps at least on a weekly basis. Remember, if you fall off the wagon with this project, go back to the problem you defined and your goals to inspire you and keep you motivated. If you need more guidance on project planning, this resource can help you get started with your life organization project or anything else you’re working on!

Which of these tasks are you excited to tackle this summer? Let me know in the comments!

xoxo,

My Productivity Playlist

My Productivity Playlist #10 {#SUMMERINTHEGLAMPIRE}

Are you ready for summer? I definitely am! As you read this, I am most likely on a tropical beach in Aruba enjoying the sun, fruity cocktails and flamingos for my #GLAMPIREGETAWAY. You don’t have to be jealous because if you are in need of a tropical vacation, no matter where you are, you can always tag along with me via Instagram and that custom hashtag that we are using for our photos. I hope you all have fun following along with my travels and I’ll be sure to be liking and commenting on your photos for the #SUMMERINTHEGLAMPIRE photo challenge that is going on this month. If you missed the start of the challenge, don’t fret, just refer back to this post and get started so we can share some inspirational summertime pics with each other!

Now, on to the playlist! This month I’ve chosen a selection of songs that for one reason or another remind me of summer or a beach vacation. Now, I know there are plenty more summer themed songs out there, and trust me, those will also be featured in future productivity playlist posts for the rest of the summer. For now, I wanted to create a playlist for my vacation. I don’t know what it is about the idea of vacationing in Aruba, but it makes me think of the Rat Pack and swanky 60s getaways! Bring on the oversized sunglasses, floppy hats and silk scarves because I am ready for my #GLAMPIREGETAWAY!

Here’s a rundown of the playlist, but of course, you can listen right now for free via Spotify:

Hot Child in the City | Nick Gilder
Summertime | Billie Holiday
The Girl from Ipanema | Amy Winehouse
Happy | Pharrell Williams
From the Morning | Nick Drake
Summertime Sadness | Lana Del Rey
Ring of Fire | Johnny Cash
Nature Boy | Nat King Cole
Come Fly with Me | Frank Sinatra
Kokomo | The Beach Boys

So, what quintessential summer tunes did I miss on this playlist that you would like to see on the next? Leave me a comment down below!