WeBlogNorth Featured Content Creator of The Week - The Dancing Dressmaker
This is a space that showcases all of you awesome WeBloggers in the North and gives everyone a chance to get to know each other, as well as raise your profile (and your DA!). This week we're chatting with Kate, who blogs at The Dancing Dressmaker.
Interested in being featured? If you're a member, get in touch at [email protected]
Name - Kate Relton
Location - Wensleydale, North Yorkshire
Blog URL - thedancingdressmaker.wordpress.com/
Instagram followers - 194
There's a tendency these days to see everyone doing these things and assume there is no room left for your voice or creations. You have nothing to lose, it is your little corner of the internet so make it exactly how you want it to be.
How long have you been blogging?
I started blogging about 18 months ago but I've been writing behind closed doors for years!
Why did you decide to start your blog?
I wanted something to drive and encourage my writing so I set it up to document my learning a new skill in dressmaking. It gave me a framework to build on which has given me the confidence to expand the content and subject matter of my blog posts.
Do you see this becoming a career or part of your career?
I'm about to start a postgrad in Journalism and I would love to pursue a career in freelance writing. The dream is to write a variety of content for different places while living a full and creative life with my little girl.
What do you hope to achieve for your content in 2018 and what’s your big-picture goal?
I have a huge list of posts I want to write but have shelved out of fear or self-doubt. I'd like to mould my blog and its content to reflect my personality, my writing and my interests. I'd love to include an interview series too, and talk to some of the incredibly inspiring people I've discovered through social and mainstream media.
What is your favourite social media channel & why?
Instagram without a doubt. It feels less judgemental than some as the emphasis is on the visual content. There is an atmosphere of support and a shared love of creativity, art and the small things in life. Those little snippets of other lives, other worlds have often been my comrade and lifeline and I still find it inspires me and prompts me to explore things that I wouldn't otherwise have found.
What is your favourite tool or app that helps in your content creation?
I'm a total newbie when it comes to tools and apps so it's a world of constant discovery for me! I like playing with Layout just for the raw visual appeal of how photos can be put together and I'm trying my hand at video content creation with the help of easy tools like Animoto - simple and effective.
Who is your content inspiration and why?
I have a huge love for Mel Wiggins. Many of her blog posts have stopped me in my tracks and a couple have prompted me to write something of my own. Her newsletter is always engaging, personal and diverse - a breath of fresh air in the barrage of daily emails and one I never fail to sit down to read from beginning to end. I'm also in the throes of a serious podcast addiction. My current love (read: obssession) is Love Stories with Dolly Alderton - she has a natural easy interviewing style allowing her guests to speak and reflect at their own pace.
What do you like to do on weekends? Where can we find you hanging out?
I have a three year old girl so most of my days are spent running after her, watching Wallace and Gromit or making honey sandwiches! When I do get time to myself, I love to do anything creative and hands-on, most often sewing and baking. I'm the happiest roaming about in the garden or at a country house or museum (all hail the National Trust!). I've recently rediscovered my love for reading and since becoming a parent, the rare moments of reading a book, listening to music and drinking hot tea are just pure heaven.
If you could go anywhere in the world or experience any one thing, what would it be?
I lived in Northern France for a few years in my teens and I think I left my heart there. I have an indulgent dream of buying an ancient car and driving round the whole of France, discovering tiny villages, eating croissants and visiting all the places that nobody knows about.
What’s your tips for staying motivated and/or organised in your work?
I completed my degree from home while my wee girl was a newborn so discipline and self-motivation was pretty pivotal to my work. The key for me is planning - make lists, write down all your ideas in all their unedited glory, and when you have allocated work time, go straight to work. Don't even look at the washing up or the laundry pile. Step away from your phone. Think of it as clocking on - set yourself up with snacks and good music and get cracking.
What is the one piece of advice you’d give other content creators & aspiring bloggers/vloggers?
Just start. There's a tendency these days to see everyone doing these things and assume there is no room left for your voice or creations. You have nothing to lose, it is your little corner of the internet so make it exactly how you want it to be. Don't try to tailor it to anyone else's requirements. Stay in your lane!
Fun/Random fact about you (go on, surprise us!):
I have one leg significantly longer than the other - a fact that I failed to notice for 26 years of my life. Presumably that can be my excuse for being so thoroughly appalling at running...
The Featured Content Creator of the Week series is available to all bloggers, vloggers, influencers and content creators subscribed to WeBlogNorth. If you are a subscribed member and would like to be featured, then please get in touch. You’ll receive exposure to the entire WeBlogNorth family, as well as coverage across the @WeBlogNorth social channels and website. It’s great exposure for any content creator looking to get noticed and grow their following.
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