Aloha! I love when people tell me that here. I feel so Hawaiian. BTW - some Hawaiian dude told Raven and I that we aka "Mainland Americans" have ruined Hawaii by bringing cancer, heart disease, mosquitos and chickens here. Yes, we ruined your islands sir. My apologies.
Anywho - Raven did a quick recap this morning so you are going to have to check that out here.
We have been posting updates on our Instagrams all day, so follow us!
Raven - @RavenASmith
Moi - @TheBargainBlonde
We will make you want to hate us though. I'd hate us too. Breakfast on the lawn:
And Mai Tai's by the pool all day yesterday:
OK, OK ... enough. So today I have three Texas ladies for you. We actually know the same people, which is such a small world. My BFF Liz (you've heard me talk about her on the blog a million times) went to college with them so you know they are legit.
Without further adieu, I will let you meet the fabulous Emily and Leah & Jacq (a packaged deal)!
Your Blog Name: Raines and Shines
Meaning behind your blog name:
I was trying to think of a title that was both easy to remember and personal. My soon-to-be hubby's last name is Raines and since I am going to be an official Raines come March 23, 2013, I thought it would be a good idea to go ahead and incorporate my future moniker into my blog title. "Shines" was a play on words (rhymes with Raines, people) and reflects my personality: cheery, bright and blonde!
Blog Established: January 4, 2012
Current follower count: Currently at 65 and counting.
Get to know this Baby
1. Why did you start blogging?
Okay, don't think any less of me, but I have a really bad memory. I'm horrible at telling stories because I always forget them. I knew I wanted a good way to document my wedding planning and thoughts and experiences along the way since this is such a new and fun time in my life. I'm the kind of person who will write in a journal for a week and then forget about it so i thought a blog would be best way I could share my experiences with friends and family. My blog has become a story book of my life with family and friends, wedding happenings, current fashion, products I love and pop culture.
2. What do you hope to gain from blogging?
Early on, my blog was private for just family and a few close friends because I was afraid to jump right in with the highs and lows of planning a wedding and prevent a quarter-life crises. My close family and friends know I am a pretty private person and I think blogging has really helped me be comfortable in my own skin and be open with everything going on in my life. This blog is all about self-reflection and being able to document moments in my life. I'm hoping to gain confidence, some technical skills, new internet buddies and hopefully new IRL friends too.
3. Name 3 established blog you look up to and why.
My goodness narrowing it down to three is not easy. There are so many wonderful bloggers that I can spend hours reading their posts.
Of course I look up to the one and only Bargain Blonde. Who else has the honor of becoming the most valuable blogger of such a big city like Dallas? Lindsey finds the best and cutest clothing bargains! She makes the shopaholic in everyone into a money saving diva. (I have also come to find out that she is besties with some of the girls that I went to college with and were in the same organization. Small world!)
Raven from "A Momma's Desires and Pacifiers" is definitely another blog that I look up to. When I first started blogging I decided to email her for advice about her blog design and come to find out she created it all on her own just by researching so it really gave me inspiration to do the same. I considered paying someone to do it for me until Raven gave me courage to try it out on my own. This girl ROCKS and is hilarious!
Kristen from All in my Twenties was one of the very first real blogs that I started reading besides the celebrity blogs. This girl is hilarious and her writing skills are amazing. She speaks exactly how she feels and doesn't care what anyone thinks because it's her own little space to do whatever she wants to. I really appreciate and look up to her for that! Her posts consist of daily events and is really interesting to see what others do on a day-to-day basis.
4. What has surprised you most about blogging so far?
The good is how fun and addicting it can be and how supportive so many strangers have been. The bad although it's not super bad is that I tend to obsess over the details of the look and feel of my blog. I find myself wanting to change things up constantly and always messing with the aesthetics of my blog. I always tell myself to quit messing with the font and just type! It will be exciting to see what it looks like come December.
5. Best advice you've received about blogging.
I talk about blogging a lot with Stan and my sister, since it's still pretty new to me, and he is constantly telling me to just take it one step at a time; don't try to do it all in one day, it is a work in progress. If you see something you like, check into how to do it, then do it and don't be afraid to change it if you don't like it. I'm just so indecisive and find myself always asking my sister for a second opinion.
Meet Stan (and his dream boat)
Meet Natalie (my sister)
6. How do you come up with material for your blog?
It's usually whatever thoughts come to my head on and given moment, the funny frustrations that happen on a daily basis, things I like, shows I watch, etc. Little inspirations I see and experience. I have also taken a lot more pictures since I started blogging which helps with daily topics and I really like to just write about day to day stuff or wedding updates.
7. What do you do when you aren't blogging?
Besides at work (a girl's got to eat), you can find me on a boat at the lake, spending time with friends and family, buying everything at your local Sephora, and planning for that once in a lifetime thing we call a wedding! I love to travel and try to take a vacation whenever I can. Whether up to Austin to visit my sister or Vegas, I am up for an adventure!
8. What is your goal for your blog a year from now?
I hope to have shared fun and interesting news about my life and wedding planning. Hopefully encouraging others with new ideas, product reviews or fashion go to's. Also to have my layout settled so I do not have the constant feeling of needing to update it.
9. Have you ever been on a blate? If so, how did it go? If not, would you?
I guess technically speaking I have been on a blate since my best friend also blogs, but I have not actually been on a blind blate (say that three times fast) but would absolutely love to. I have come to realize that the blog community is a great way to meet new people and lifetime friends. I would love to expand my circle!
10. Tell us where we can find you on the web:
Thank you so much Lindsey for having me today!
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Who is this baby?
Hey everyone! We are Jacquelyn Henion and Leah McGarry of Sweet and Sour Showers and we are so excited to participate in the Bargain Blonde's Baby Blogger series.
We came up with the idea to start SASS because we really and truly love to plan parties and showers, bake over-the-top sweets, and clog the gmail servers as we email nonstop about all the sour details. We started our blog in August 2011 and currently have 125 followers and counting.
Get to know us!
Answers to your most burning questions...
1. Why did we start blogging?
Creating a blog was the perfect place for us to share all of our party ideas, showcase our fun baked goods, and give girls like us a place to vent about the planning process. Bonus – it gives us a platform to subtly talk isht about the ills of being a bridesmaid. Check out our very first blog post to learn more.
2. What do we hope to gain from blogging?
SASS gives us the chance to share our ideas and hear from other girls just like us who love to pour themselves into the details of party-planning. This also seemed like the most fun way to feature all the cute custom treats that we offer for sale. Besides, how else would we be able to talk about pen15 cake pops?
3. 3 established blogs we look up to:
- The Sweet Adventures of SugarBelle: She is our cookie idol! If you don’t decorate cookies this blog will be totally overwhelming, but her pictures are to die for.
- TV My Wife Watches: This guy is a small blogger, but he is both filthy and hilarious. If you watch the Bachelor, you have to read this blog. It’s our Tuesday morning guilty pleasure.
- Bargain Blonde: Not trying to suck up here, but it’s true! There are so many blogs out there that only post link-ups and don’t have any meat. We love that Lindsey keeps it real with her bargain advice but also makes us LAUGH. Plus everything she does for us small bloggers is really cool, too.
4. What has surprised us most about blogging so far?
It’s so much work - and Blogger really sucks sometimes! We are really passionate about sharing good, useful material on our blog and don’t like to just share Pinterest pictures. (You know where you can find Pinterest images? ON PINTEREST.) So we spend a lot of time brainstorming ideas and making sure that if we were an outsider reading our blog, we wouldn’t be bored out of our minds. Here are some of our favorite shower posts:
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| Check them out here! |
5. Best advice we've received:
Don't drink Goldschlager. Just kidding (sort of). The best advice we have received is not to expect success overnight or compare our blog to others. Some of our topics attract a lot of interest and others may not, but we can't get discouraged. We are doing something different that we really enjoy, and that's the most important thing!
6. How do we come up with material for our blog?
Coming up with material for our blog is easy because it seems like we are always planning some kind of party – bachelorettes, bridal showers, baby showers, you name it. And when we’re not planning something, our friends probably are! If you want us to feature a shower you’ve thrown, contact us. We’d love to hear from you.
7. What do we do when we aren't blogging?
When we’re not blogging, we both love to cook and bake, watch reality TV, and hit up local restaurants here in Austin. We also love to travel. Here are some pics of us on past trips…
8. What is our goal for our blog a year from now?
We know that our blog is kind of a niche topic, so mostly we just hope to keep coming up with new and interesting ideas and continue to receive so much interest in our baked treats. Plus, we want to hear more from our readers. It’s amazing how much our comments have grown in the last 6 months, but we want to hear more!
9. Have we ever been on a blate (blogger + date)?
We haven't done any blates yet, but we are definitely trying to meet more bloggers, especially in the Austin area.
10. Find us on the web:
