BLOG TALK KC : MONETIZING YOUR BLOG

Last evening I attended a mini workshop organized by the lovely ladies of BLOG TALK KC. 40 plus KC Bloggers got together, with notebooks and pens in hand, to learn about how to make your blog your full time income. I have been blogging for over five years now, but honestly when it comes to monetization, I realized I have not been that worldly .

It was a super windy evening, but we were in an ancient stone castle sipping on our cocktails and soaking in all that our lovely speakers had to share with us. No, I am not kidding about the castle bit at all. Chef Renee Kelly hosted our lovely bunch at her amazing restaurant HARVEST . I had been to Harvest earlier and if you want to read about my experience, then click Here .

Huge Thank you to Chef Renee Kelly for all the tasty appetizers she sent for us. From a crazy good cheese platter, to truffle fries with aioli, to clams and braised rabbits, the plates kept coming up. Chef Kelly spoke to us about her culinary journey and mentioned that she would be contesting for the next Top Chef. Well, we would be rooting for you big time Chef. Its always a pleasure meeting her.

Mingling , with the clinking of our cocktail and champagne glasses carried on, as the storm raged outside. My spirit of choice for the night was Pimms and Gin.

Finally it was time for our Keynote speaker, Kelly Snyder of the blog Redefined Mom  She literally blew my brains away with her business ideas. I was surely living under a rock, when it came to earning money from my blog.She took us through the ropes of how to fine tune the approach of our blogs, how to prepare a proper media kit and finally make our blog, a better marketable product.

"Your Blog is the only startup in the US, with the least amount of capital involved." As I was crazily scribbling down, it was indeed a wake up call for me.

Last but not the least, as it was so chilly and windy last night, I went the typical skinny jeans and leather jacket route for my OOTD. Some pointy shoes and my powder blue top from Express was my pop of color for the outfit.

Thank you Blog Talk KC, Chef Renee Kelly and Kelly Snyder for such a wonderful evening. I have a lot of work to do on my blog for sure.

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THE BLOG GUILD LAUNCH - KENDRA SCOTT'S NEW STORE - KC BLOGGER MEET UP

Being a lifestyle blogger, covering local Events is always fun, and add to it like minded Bloggers from your city, the fun just doubles up. Last Thursday was finally the D-Day we were all waiting for. KC Blogger Meet Up was making the Official Transition to something bigger and better. It was the Launch of  THE BLOG GUILD.COM. The launch of our new website which seeks to be a networking platform of all the fabulous bloggers from the Kansas City area. And since we mentioned what happens when Fun doubles up, we kept up the idea of the doubling up the fun. It also marked the launch of the brand new store of popular jewelry designer KENDRA SCOTT.

So it was time to bring out the Champagne, Confetti and all that jazz. A Huge Thank you to Emily, Lisa and Erin for planning and executing it all so well, in their signature style. A huge thank you to THE BLOG SALON, who designed such a beautiful and interactive website. Blacks , Whites and Golds were surely the colors of the evening in all the memorabilia which had been created for both the launches.

It was really nice to mingle with so many fellow bloggers of Kansas City . Some old faces , some new. There were some nice and crisp Rose and Whites, some lovely mini cupcakes and not to forget the Cheese platter. Wine and Cheese and Girlfriends and jewelry, what more could a girl want in a evening. I had completely given my calorie count a miss . And who can forget those glitter macarons. If Macarons are not decadent enough to please a lady, they came with a dusting of edible glitter. They were honestly just too pretty to sink your teeth into.

If CREATE, CONNECT and COLLABORATE were the keywords on which KANSAS CITY BLOG GUILD.COM was based, then FAMILY, FASHION and PHILANTHROPY are the keywords on which KENDRA SCOTT has based her multi million dollar jewelry brand.

It was fascinating to hear how Kendra had started off with a capital of just $500 in Austin, Texas, and created her first designs and taken the brand to where it stood today. High five for Girl Power.

The Store was beautifully decorated with both seasonal displays and parts of her original collection. Her MYSTIC BAZAAR collection was clearly centre stage. But the most fascinating part of the store for me was the COLOR BAR  screen . It was an interactive screen which allowed customers to create their custom jewelry in minutes at the store.

As it was such a fun night, I had decided to let my hair down by all means. And to add to all the fun there was a Pop up Store by the lovely ladies of  PARLOR,KC within the Kendra Scott store. It was essentially a Braiding Station. And I decided to have a go at it. For me braids reminded me of school days but these ladies were there to break those memories for good. Goodbye school girl braids and hello to new glam braids. we decided on doing two fish tails braids in the crown of my hair. And I was clearly floored. So floored was I, that I tried to re-create that the next evening, forgetting ll my phobia of school girl braids.

Hair done, wine glass in hand, it was time to mingle some more and catch up with what all the other bloggers had been upto. The Holidays some had been just back from, the events others were gearing up for, the collaborations which were waiting to happen.

Amidst all of the mingling and shopping and fun, there were three giveaways . Congrats to all the winners who won their choice of Rayne Necklace  or a pair of the Danielle Earrings. My luck with Giveaways is always a Try Again.

Its definitely  events like these which make you realize who many creative ladies there are out here in Kansas City. Cheers to all the KC Bloggers and all the amazing work we do. Shine on Ladies !!!!

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