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OK, so this post has been hanging around my drafts folder since last Summer. <ashamed face> Its original tone of ‘wow, there’s this really cool thing called Pinterest, check it out, dudes’ is like, so totally 2011, and it has therefore been quietly put out of its misery.

Since then it’s become a legal requirement for all blogs to do a Pinterest post, so let’s now get all 2012 on its ass with some top tips and observations about the site gleaned from a year of using it. It’d be great to hear yours too.

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This blog has been neglected of late, so I’m really grateful that Jennifer of Scamp Baby Gifts agreed to write this post on how daily photo blogging has both introduced discipline into her blogging, whilst also allowing her to relax with it.  Thanks Jennifer!

Today I’m super happy to be writing a guest blog post for Loveitloveitloveit‘s blog all about the trials and tribulations of (trying) to write my own blog.

I have written a blog for about 6 years (started just after the birth of my eldest child). I began it merely as an online version of a baby book – to record moments in time, photographs, memories of holidays and things that my kids said as they grew up all too quickly.  I religiously uploaded and updated my blog every few days for the first couple of years, it slowly dwindled to weekly as I went back to my part time job at the BBC then, when I started Scamp Baby Gifts, in 2010 it all but ceased completely.  I would load up three months worth of pictures at a time then desperately try to remember what we had done and the stories I wanted to tell.  It takes time to write a blog and I didn’t seem to have much of that whilst building up a new business.  I had great intentions of the different things I wanted to write about – all relating to children, making, cool baby things, craft projects and things to do/places to go with kids.  I kept being told how important a blog was and it was a vital addition to your own website.  It lets your customers know more about you, get what you are about, see what you like, what your children like, what your tastes are like and ultimately if they like what you like then they are bound to be into what you sell.

Despite knowing all of this it still was difficult to make time to write posts.  Then, on December 31st 2011 I stumbled across an idea on that most magical of social media sites … Twitter.  My Picture a Day 2012 #project366 was born the very next day.  I HAD to take a picture every day and I had to write a blog post about it.  It did seem a bit of a chore for the first few days (and the odd time when I realise at 10pm I’ve forgotten to take a photo) but in general I have loved doing this.  I am now thinking of situations I’m in each day and how I can portray them.  I only use my iPhone camera, the trusty Instagram app and the thought of using slightly different angles for shots but it helps to turn what may seem mundane and dull into something a bit more, well, interesting.  What I was determined not to do was bore anybody good enough to follow my blog with an entire collection of shots of my kids being cute.  I want to take photos that are about memories, about interesting things that we may have done, about happy days, funny days, days where not much has happened, every day objects and then tell a short tale about each and every one.  This, I hope, I’ve succeeded to do.  Since starting this on New Years day I’ve learned that this still fulfils my original idea of what our blog should be about.  Having the photos create the story has made writing about them much easier though. 96 days down and the project shows no sign of waning!

Jennifer is on Twitter @scamp_babygifts

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Happily, people come in all different shapes and sizes. Luckily, clothes do too. Unfortunately single sizes of clothes also come in all different shapes and sizes. Every woman in the UK must have experience the frustration of being a different size in every store she visits. (It’s a problem which this magnificent tool both cleverly illustrates and attempts to address.) Sizing is not simply a three dimensional issue. We each bring a large dollop of confounding factors in the form of our beliefs about our size, perception of what we ought to be and emotional reaction to how clothes fit us.

All of the above also applies to childrenswear, which is further complicated by the addition of age based sizing, and what size a child ‘ought’ to be at any particular age.  Babies and children of the same age vary hugely, and parents get to know pretty quickly whether their child fits nicely in to the ‘correct’ size for their age or whether they need a different one.

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Valentine’s Day is all about love, this shop is called Love It Love It Love It. Erm…. something to do with hearts. Anyway, have look at these pictures and hopefully a proper blog post will be along shortly.

Sture & Lisa organic cotton hearts body, £16.

Krutter heart dungarees £31.50 (only size 3-6m left), hearts top, £22 and hearts body, £18

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It’s November, and there’s almost a whole month left before Christmas, so a post all about it seems a trifle unnecessary.

However.

The last posting dates for Christmas are sneaky little beggars, prone to dash up behind you and bite you on the bum, coming as they do so much sooner than you expect.

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You know how sometimes things change so slowly that it’s imperceptible and it’s only when you stop and look around that you suddenly realise how much the scenery has changed? Yeah, well, that.

A few weeks ago, a friend on facebook posted a link to the new Hyperbole and a Half post, she’s the one who wrote God of Cake, yeay! Reading the new post, probably the best description of depression I’ve ever seen, was the realisation. Oh shit, it’s happening again.

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Winter brings a whole host of new international kidswear labels to Love It Love It Love It, and there’s a distinctly retro theme going on.  If you remember wearing luxurious, warm fabrics such as velvet, velour, terry towelling and corduroy as a child, you’ll love what’s on offer.

The most recent arrival, from Denmark, is Krutter. Inspired by designer Birgitta Sonn’s memories of her own childhood, there is some serious 80′s funk going on, with soft velour jumpsuits and bright dungarees the order of the day.

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Ah Downton Abbey.  With its pretty dresses, intruige, romance and more pretty dresses, it has become a Sunday night TV staple. But don’t let the pretty dresses fool you. It’s also a grittily accurate historical documentary and searing social commentary. Whilst Downton teaches us many things, here are just a few of its most salient points, which we would all do well to note.

OMG Sybil, I’m totally gonna pull a handbrake turn in this tractor. ROFLMAO

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A mere 16 short months ago, I started a semi regular series of blog posts about the stuff you really need and don’t need when you have a baby. It has turned out to be somewhat less than semi irregular, let alone semi regular. In fact, if you found the last instalment, on feeding useful, you’re probably about to wave your baby off to college and are better placed than I am to write this post but hey, let’s press on regardless.

So. Travel. Babies need a way to get around.

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During the genesis of Love It Love It Love It, whilst deciding which brands to stock, I looked at well over 700 children’s clothing brands from around the world. Since launching the store, I’ve lost count but must have seen several hundred more.  Here are some* of my favourites that didn’t make the cut. What do you think – did I make the right choices?

Zutano

Zutano do a fabulous, wide range of clothes with great prints for girls and boys, many of which are unisex. Their print family concept means that it’s easy to mix and match pieces from across the range. Zutano was going to be one of the first brands stocked in Love It, but timing meant that I’d just missed their order deadline, and since then I’ve learned the hard way that import charges on clothing from the USA is so high that it’s difficult to break even on it, never mind make a profit.  Maybe one day, eh?

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