My one year blogging anniversary

It’s only makes sense that I take these photos the way I first started; in front of my garage door and with my tripod!

I can officially call myself a blogger now that I’ve hit my one year mark, right?!

Ahh! It is so crazy to say that I’ve been blogging for a whole year. It’s crazy to see my growth, the relationships I’ve gained, all that I’ve learned, and the confidence that I have gained in myself. I have so many exciting things coming this next year and a little bit of change. I’ll get into it all in a little bit, but I have to get a little sappy first.

I would literally not be where I’m at without the support from you all and my husband. So, thank you. Thank you for following my journey and becoming my people and my safe place. Thank you for your continuous support and messages, they never go unnoticed. Thank you for the daily love and laughs I get from you all. Lastly, thank you for becoming my friends. Not that he’ll read this, but I owe so much to my husband. When I told him I wanted to start a blog he looked at me like I was crazy and I’m sure he never really thought I’d follow through with it. He went from being hesitant to voluntarily laying on the sidewalk to get a good angle haha. Now he helps me plan out photos. He helps me with posing, gives pointers and is ultimately my number one fan. I love him.

I don’t regret a lot of things and can honestly say that I regret not starting my blog sooner. When I first started blogging I was just wanting to maybe post once a month with beauty favorites and have it be only a side hobby. Little did I know that I would develop a huge passion for it. I never imagined I’d work and build strong relationships with brands and get paid for it. I never imagined that I would be my own boss, and I never imagined that I would love it as much as I do.

Memory lane

I know I’ve briefly answered this before but I thought it would be fun to go down memory lane on how I got into blogging. When I first started I was ultimately doing it to see what it was like. I mention her so much but I fell in love with Amber Fillerup’s blog BarefootBlonde and she was my inspiration. I would totally be lying if I said knowing money and getting free stuff was a side of it but I seriously never thought of myself to getting to that point. At the time of when I started Laken was a brand rep for a baby boutique in our town (Sweet Tea & Caviar) which led to being a brand rep for more small shops. I  started blogging about Laken and the occasional beauty item. After some time I realized that I didn’t want to make my blog just about Laken and decided to slowly tangle myself into the posts. I know it’s hard to believe being so active on social media, but I don’t like having a lot of attention on myself and get very uncomfortable when there is. I got so nervous and was super self-conscious with just the idea of making a post about me. It took a lot of time for me to get over that which is why if you scroll down far enough on my Instagram you’ll see nothing but pictures of Laken. It wasn’t until maybe six months into blogging that I realized that I wasn’t going to get anywhere unless I got over my fear and took the plunge to focus more on myself. After all, my brand is my name so why should I make it about someone else?!

Truthfully, if it weren’t for all the amazing mothers that I met within that first six months I would be so lost with myself and on social media. I was clueless on what a media kit was, how to send an invoice, all the ins and outs of social media, and how to interact with other accounts. I joined a ton of mom pods because we all had kids and it was something I could relate to. I was 21 with a little baby and truly just needed some support and someone to relate to. I hold such a special place in my heart for all those ladies and can’t thank them enough for always being there even if it was just to comment on a photo I had recently posted.

My biggest piece of advice to anyone wanting to start a blog or want to learn more about influencing is to not ever be afraid of reaching out. You have no idea how many doors you can open for yourself if you take the chance and reach out.

My growth

This part is what’s insane to me looking back at this year. I can’t believe that when I started this last September I was only at 3k followers when I published my first blog, and am now at 17.3k. I can’t believe 14k of you actually like me haha. You have no idea how much this pushes me for next year.

It wasn’t easy. I took part in a lot of group giveaways that I don’t particularly care to do anymore based on that I’m not gaining followers that actually want to follow me. I’ve learned how to interact with people in my niche and how important it is to be genuine. As much as I have gained, I’ve lost a lot too. I’m hoping to grow three times as much this next year!

Change on the blog and social media

I mentioned a little bit about this in my stories and if you haven’t already noticed by the content on my Instagram I’m changing things up a bit! I’m changing my content to what makes me happy and that is beauty, hair, and fashion. I have updated most of my social bios and now officially consider myself and beauty & lifestyle blogger. I loved being a mommy blogger but no longer find it bringing me joy, and as much guilt as I’ve had thinking about this change knowing I’ll probably lose a ton of followers and supporters, I have to do it for my happiness.

I have always loved beauty, skin care, hair care, clothing, shopping and whatever else falls into that category. I was always buying the newest on trend item. I was always purchasing the newest eyeshadow palette. I have also always been obsessed with skin care! Talking about that stuff comes so naturally so it only seems right that I start doing it. I will still be blogging and posting about non beauty and clothing items to break things up a bit. There may just be a little more me on the feed, so hope that’s okay lol.

Exciting goals for this next year

Oh my gosh, the goals I have for myself are crazy and I hope I can make it all happen. One of my biggest goals is I want to double the income that I made from this year. As fun as this is, it’s also my job. I fill out tax forms and sign contracts just like any other real job.I also want to work with more brands and that is all on me by being consistent and continuing to put out quality content.

Consistency is another one for me! I want to try to put out 15 blog posts a month which has me doing three to four posts a week. I look at this as a huge challenge. It’s not hard putting a post together. I just have to buckle down and do it because I always find an excuse within myself as to why I don’t have the time to post it. Being consistent also means gaining your guys’ trust because you’ll be used me to posting more and when I don’t I know I’ll get questions! It’s like having your favorite series all of a sudden not air an episode for weeks without any reason. I’d be so annoyed!

More content is another goal of mine. I over think everything so much and just have to realize that each picture doesn’t have to be perfect. We are for sure out own worst critics and it’s tough some times when your primarily post about yourself. I struggle with this a lot. Along with content I want to be more interactive with you all! I posted Foundation Round up! maybe a week ago and the responses were crazy! The biggest part of it was everyone that answered my polls for it on Instagram were mentioned in the blog post. I was able to make it so much more personal and include you all which I think made a huge difference.

This is more of a blogger goal but I want my content to get greater stats, have better engagement, and get noticed. This is all something I have to do and it’ll just take a little time but will make the world of difference. This is how you get noticed by brands and how brands want to add you to their pr lists and events. It’s am amazing feeling getting noticed by brands!

Lastly, and especially since New York Fashion Week just got over, I want to go next year! It has been a dream of mine since I was little be at or be a part of NYFW. I have for the longest time wanted to do the model’s hair for NYFW, but after seeing all the bloggers and all the amazing events and opportunities I have never been more determined! Big wishes that I get invited or am able to go next year!!

I am so unbelievably proud of myself and am beyond pumped to see how this next year goes! If you made it to the end of this, thank you! Your support means the absolute world to me! And as a little reminder don’t forget to head over to my Instagram to enter my big Blogging Anniversary giveaway! 🙂

My lip color, earrings and similar dresses are linked here for you! I got the dress I’m wearing from Anthropologie on super clearance. Like it was reg $280 and I got it for $40. A total steal!

xx-Kendra