HAVEN MENTOR BLOG HOP

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Hey There!  I am so pumped to announce that I will be a Haven Mentor this year! What an honor! If you are coming from Liz Marie Blog, welcome! If you are new around here, let me take a short 2-3 minutes to introduce myself.

My name is Aniko, and I’ve been blogging for over five years. YES! It’s been an amazing journey of 5 long years already! Wow! I can’t even believe it. I started my little blog at the end of 2012 (December). December 23rd to be exact with a ‘HOW TO MAKE DIY ORNAMENTS” blog post. Bahahhaha! Who knew back then that I have to always be at least three months ahead of the game with seasonal decor. Anyways! It’s funny to look back now and realize how much I’ve learned since that first blog post. On this little DIY, HOME DECOR blog I document all the craziness I am digging deep into on a regular basis. This blog became my BABY, my BUSINESS and a little open book of our busy life!

I am a mom of two handsome boys and wife to my best friend. We live in RVA, moved into our first house in 2008 and still in it with many DIY projects behind us.

Below are some of my favorite DIY projects:

• DIY PALLETT FURNITURE
• DIY FLOATING SHELF
• DIY OUTDOOR KITCHEN
• THE OH SO MANY “ONE ROOM CHALLENGES”:-)
• HOW TO MACRAME

Can you tell that I love DIY projects? 🙂

And there are so many more to this list…

I was entirely self-taught in many areas of blogging, including photography. I wrote an eBook specifically for bloggers, THE ULTIMATE PHOTOGRAPHY BOOK FOR BLOGGERS.  It’s an excellent resource for those who are just starting out with photography. But oh man, the number of resources that were available to newbies back then was nothing close to what it is now! I wish I had access to all that is out there today! You, Newbies, You are lucky!

But one of the things I recommend to ALL newbies in this blogging business is to attend a Blogger Conference. Like Haven Conference.

 

 

When I attended my very first blogging conference back in 2015, it was a lightbulb moment. Despite that I remember how nervous I was as I knew nobody and it was a bit intimidating to come up to gals that I don’t know. But, let me just tell you! It was the most incredible experience, and I made lifelong friends there!

 

One thing I want you to do if you are NEWBIE and you will be at Haven is to Come to find me and have a coffee or drink with me!

What is your best advice for a blogger?

Hmm. My best advice is to avoid the trap of comparing yourself to others. Be the unique yourself and let your audience love you for who you are as a person! For a long time, I was super self-conscious about having a voice with an accent ( Dah- I have an accent you all!), and I went over that fear and let me be who I am. Just be YOU!

What is your best advice for a new Haven Maven attendee?!

1. LEAVE YOUR SHY FACE AT HOME AND DON’T BE AFRAID TO start UP CONVERSATIONS WITH STRANGERS! Hey – I mean it!
2. BE OPEN, ASK QUESTIONS!! You go to a conference to learn. Classes are incredibly resourceful, but I learned more than ever just to talk and chat with fellow bloggers! Seriously!
3. ATTEND AS MANY CLASSES AS YOU CAN! Tha Haven Team works super hard to bring you the BEST classes ( I thought a photography class 2 years ago), and I encourage you to attend as many classes as you can!
4. DON’T BE CLICK-Y! Don’t just stick with your group of friends! Make new ones!
5. IF YOU WILL BE AT HAVEN THIS SUMMER, COME to FIND ME AND LET’S HAVE A DRINK OR COFFEE! ( Yeah, I prefer a “drink” over coffee lol)

I am super excited to see OLD AND meet NEW friends in just a short few weeks! Woohoo!

See you there!

And don’t forget; throughout this week ALL THE AMAZING HAVEN MENTORS are sharing about themselves so go check them out!

MONDAY:

RHODA SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY

AT CHARLOTTE’S HOUSE

SHEILA- MAISON DE CLINQ

LIZ MARIE BLOG

PLACE OF MY TASTE (ME)

Cheers,

Aniko