Nuffnang Blogopolis 2012

I went to Blogopolis on Saturday and wow, what a day. I left at the end of the day feeling a mix of emotions. I was excited and motivated but also drained and tired. I had the conflicting emotions of having been inspired with so many fabulous ideas but also the overwhelming feeling of "where to start?" 

I went with my blogging friend Belinda aka @MrsKypo from Billy and August. It was lovely to walk in with someone who was as excited as I was to be there :)  Once we registered for the day we stood around at the front of the Conference Rooms waiting for the day to start. I thought I saw a few familiar faces but when I pointed them out to Belinda, she laughed and said they looked really different to their profile pics. Turned out I was getting confused and had forgotten my glasses! They were totally different people! It was too funny and I decided to wait for people to say hello to me first to save myself any embarrassment ;)

After the welcome speech our first class we went to was Blog Design held by Katrina from the Block. She shared so much and it was all so helpful and relevant and easy to do. I have already implemented a couple of things such as the search bar at the top of the blog and I have added a RSS feed. Hopefully what I have done works! But I want to give my blog a little refresh so I am just doing up a mood-board of the feel and image I want to project and then I'll go from there. I will need help with this so I might have to employ Katrina and her company The Media Maid for those extras :)

Our next session was Branding your Blog - by Nicole Avery aka The Planning Queen. Nicole gave me something to think about as to whether I want to introduce sponsors/advertising to my blog. I am still undecided on this as I blog for me and to share snippets of my life and all the lovely things I come across. 
I like to think I have built a bit of a brand for Honey and Fizz and that is that this space is a very light, pretty and happy place. I try to keep things upbeat and that is how I like it. It is my escape. It is sharing the BEST bits of life. It is a lifestyle, fashion and inspirational blog. I like to think I celebrate the beauty in life. So that's me so far and the image I am trying to bring to you. Is this how you feel when you come to Honey and Fizz?

We then had a session with Rachel Devine from Sesame Ellis on blog photography. Rachel's photos are gorgeous and she gave us great tips on Light, Colour, Framing, Composition, Images that tell a story. Also tips on cameras and post processing. A lot to think about as well. As I love to use gorgeous photos here on Honey and Fizz and I usually source them from Pinterest, other blogs and tumblr sites. Rachel has got me thinking about improving my own photography and using more of my own shots. I guess I am doing this via my Instagram account as I am not overly interested in doing a Photography course. I am quite happy just to do the best I can with my point and shoot camera :)

After that brain overload (in a good way!) we broke for lunch, which was a delicious buffet of salads, chicken, salmon and desserts. This really made it feel like a "day out".

The afternoon sessions were in panel form and had it was great to listen to the other bloggers experiences and tips. Eden is an amazing speaker. So real. I could have listened to her all day. Also Mrs Woog made a good point on the Blogging Community sticking together and supporting each other. I love this idea as blogging is full of the best and most lovely people who can lift you up. All of this love and most of us haven't even met in real life!

I did meet some lovely bloggers I have been following in real life, Corrie from Retromummy, Jennie from Posie Patchwork, Nikki from Styling You, Mrs Woog from Woogsworld,  Katrina from The Block. I was introduced by Belinda to Zoey from Good Googs and Danni from Hello Owl.  It was great to be face to face with the voice behind the blog. I also saw some familiar faces from a distance:)

I was getting distracted halfway through the day thinking of Noah at home (our longest separation!) So I apologise to anyone if I didn't seem "fully there" :) After a fab day I was ready to get back home to the boys though. I walked in to a beautiful clean house and dinner ready. Also to find Finn with a cut lip and chin and a need for stitches/glue! Seems he had a football injury that day and they didn't want to call and tell me and spoil my day. Love them xx

So that was my first blogging conference and I loved it. I will definitely be going to more in the future. How about you? Are blogging conferences your cup of tea? (pardon the pun, the event was sponsored by Twinings!)

Simone xx