Kate and I both live in Michigan. She lives about 2 hours south of where I am and understands the deep love for that wonderful body of water known as Lake Michigan. Though we live close we are yet to meet and I hope this changes sometime this Fall!! We have only known each other virtually and only because of Bryan and Mae. Kate is one of Bryan and Mae's brides from this summer and goodness was their wedding amazing! So beautiful, real, and joyful. I love those kind. Forget the frills I love to see a celebration of love and that is what Kate and, her husband, Zach's day was all about. Make sure you check it out here and here. Gorgeous, right?!?!
Anyways Kate does adorable outfit posts on her blog A Heart Full of Daisies and talks about their house renovations they are doing. It is so fun to keep up with their lives and Kate is always so adorable in all the outfits she comes up with. It is hard not to fall in love with her. So I cannot wait for you guys to get to know her!
Kate on her wedding day via Bryan and Mae
Q: Tell us about your blog how it began, when it began, and everything in between.
A: It wasn’t long after I became in engaged in August 2010 that I began my quest to create a wedding that personified Zach and I. Searching through endless blogs and wedding websites, my adoration for the blogosphere began. Having had a running blog for about a year, I decided to create a lifestyle blog in dedication to my wedding planning, inherent love for cooking, crafts, décor, and of course, fashion. I wanted a place to call my own, a place to create, and document the many passions of my life. It has been my source of release and growth, something that is often forgotten in the daily grind of life. Read more about that here.
Q: How would you best describe yourself?
A: Explaining to others who you are is often one of the hardest questions to answer…who am I? Since college, I feel like I’ve changed and evolved quite a bit. As a relational person, my faith, husband, family, and friends come first in my life. I used to think that I was extremely extroverted and always needed others around me, but I’ve come to realize that I’m more in the middle…needing that time by myself to think, create, and write is quite precious. As a health conscious individual, I believe that a healthy lifestyle can do so much for yourself, the community, and world at large. Being a creative soul, I long to always make new crafts and learn new hobbies constantly. If you ask my husband how to describe me, he would say I’m "dramatic" whereas I would call it "passionate" about life.
Q: What do you feel sets your blog apart from the rest?
A: This is another tough question since there are so many amazing blogs out there! I’d say that my blog is unique in its own way because it captures so many elements of "a woman" in one blog. A lot of blogs are dedicated solely to fashion, cooking, health, home improvement, or décor, but my blog encompasses all of these things. I like to think of myself as a Martha Stewart, a woman who tries to do it all… minus the insider trading part.
Q: What keeps you doing it?
A: Definitely my passion for trying new things and wanting to share these little adventures and experiences with others has kept me blogging. I see it as a way for my family and friends, who are many miles away, to keep in touch with my life. I also have a really bad memory and so this is another way for me to be able to remember these amazing times and share these parts of my life with my future children.
Q: What have you found challenging?
A: I’d saying giving my blog the time it deserves has been the most challenging. I love blogging and could spend hours each day writing, taking photos, and tweaking my blog template, but that just isn’t realistic. I’ve also found that taking the ideas for my blog design in my head, to actually making them happen online has been a struggle. For someone who has never worked with coding before and has minimal Photoshop skills, this has been my challenge that I’ve slowly been working at.
Q: Explain one moment as a blogger you felt accomplished?
A: To some, this might be a small task, but to me it was a huge endeavor! When I started to add more complicated items to my blog template, I spent probably a good 6 hours one Saturday trying to add a horizontal drop down menu bar under my header using html code. Once I had it the way I wanted it, I was ecstatic!
Q: What is one tidbit you have found helpful while becoming a blogger?
A: I’d say that some of the most helpful advice I’ve heard from other bloggers about being a blogger is that you should never blog for anyone else; blog for yourself. Once you loose sight of this and just start paying attention to your stats, sponsors, etc., you loose focus of why you started doing this in the first place. Also, don’t blog a post unless you want too…readers can tell when posts begin to be routine and done because it just "has to."
Q: What do you consider your tools in your toolbox for your blog?
A: My camera, my husband who takes most of my "garb" photos, Photoshop, Pinterest, and a thesaurus…a good cup of coffee or wine (depending on the time of day) is always helpful as well!
Q: How do you time manage your life to make sure it all fits together?
A: Prioritizing all the things I want to do in my life can be difficult and sometimes the blog falls at the bottom of the list. With my husband, Zach and I being newlyweds, attempting to remodel our new house, having a full-time job, trying to stay in shape, cooking decent meals, blogging, and having a social life….life gets busy really fast. For me, it’s all about balance. What do I want to get done that day and what I’m willing to give up to accomplish that? Do I need to forgo my running time today? Will we have to just do sandwiches for dinner tonight? Will I have to wake up super early tomorrow? These are the types of things I ask myself in order to fit everything into my schedule.
Q: Where do you go to find inspiration (shop, blog, book, place)?
A majority of my inspiration just comes from the people, places, and things around me. My blog takes on posts that are relevant to what is happening in my daily life – events I went too, what I’m cooking for dinner that night, or the latest house project Zach and I have accomplished. Sometimes it’s just a photo, recipe, or a beautiful spot on my drive home that will spark an idea for a post. When I do get stuck in a rut, Pinterest, other lifestyle blogs, thrifting, or going for a long run usually helps me restart the engine. I write more about this here.
Finally to get to know Kate a little better I wanted to have her put together some things that really inspire her. Love her style right?!
shorts | poster | vintage items | kitchen | daisies | book ends | orange skirt | fries | poster | glass | bedroom | avocados
Thanks Kate for sharing with all of us! It means so much to have you take the time and be apart of this column on the blog.
Now make sure to check out Kate's blog and follow her on facebook, twitter, and oh yeah she is a mad pinner!