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17 Jun 2018 Blog Series Comment

4 Editing Apps to Create Insta-Worthy Photos

1. Lightroom First things first. Every well-edited picture starts with a well-trusted app used by photographers and bloggers alike. Lightroom is the best place to start whether you snapped your picture with your DSLR or your phone. Not only can you use Lightroom to make corrections and adjustments to your picture. But, you can create your own presets (basically filters) and add other premade presets to use on your picture. My favorite presets are VSCO and Tezza’s. 2. VSCO VSCO is almost everyone’s go-to app and a great app for filters too! If you prefer to skip Lightroom then definitely don’t skip VSCO! Not only can you edit pictures, but you can edit your videos too. I’m obsessed with the HB1 and HB2 filters and used to ALWAYS apply the A6 filter in my previous editing style. 3. Mextures So Mextures is my GO-TO for the best grit and grain and light leak effects. I love a vintage feel on my images and ALWAYS apply grit and grain. Mextures also has amazing filters to add over landscape images too! This is a paid app but is well worth it! 4. Facetune 2 (with VIP) I just recently downloaded Facetune 2 and LOVE IT! I don’t take many selfies so I use Facetune 2 mainly for the prism tool. It creates this distorted effect on the image (like pictured above) and has some really cool retro filters. I am absolutely obsessed with this app and find myself using it for every image! Facetunes 2…

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29 Mar 2018 Fashion 7 comments

7 Ways to Conquer Comparison on Social Media

Happy Good Friday! Today, I’m changing it up on the blog and wanted to talk about the comparison game. It’s something I think every single girl has struggled with, including me. In the age of social media, Pinterest perfect homes, perfect little squares on Instagram showing everybody’s picture-perfect life, family, body, etc. it’s easy to get caught up and think that there is something wrong with you and your life. The funny thing is, when you compare yourself to what you see on social media you are comparing yourself to a false reality. I mean EVERYTHING on social media is curated, styled, edited to perfection. To an unrealistic perfection that is anything but real and most of the time, it’s also unauthentic too, #truth. As a fashion blogger myself, I now know (most) of the tips and tricks for a flawless photo. How to work my angles. How to pose in-front of the camera. How to style my house. What parts of my house that are “Insta-worthy”. And truthfully, the list goes on and on. Now that’s my job to curate content, style myself, style photo shoots and to produce quality images, especially when I’m collaborating with brands. But at the same time, it’s important for me to understand my job as a blogger is to blog about fashion and to ultimately make things look pretty. And that my real life is messy, unpredictable, FAR from perfect and not a curated app full of pretty images. Which is why separating…

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18 Feb 2018 Blog Series 14 comments

3 Guaranteed Ways to Make your Blog (or Instagram) Pictures Better!

Top | Skirt | Jacket | Shoes (similar) | Purse I get asked a lot about my blog and Instagram pictures. From how I edit them to how I get them to look so professional and what camera’s I use. I have an editing guide here if you were wondering about editing. But today’s blog post is how to take the ‘perfect’ picture before editing! So let’s jump right in! 3 Guaranteed Ways to Make your Blog (or Instagram) Pictures Better!: 1. Create a story Don’t just take a picture. Create a story. Use buildings in the background to create interest, depth and height. Take advantage of the way the sunlight is hitting the road or the way it’s hitting your hair. Look at your surroundings and try to make them create a story for either your blog post or Instagram. Create a vibe or a feeling. Nothing is more captivating than an image that creates a story. It’s so easy to take a picture in front of a wall and call it a day. But it’s so much more exciting and inspiring to use your surrounding to help tell the story about your outfit! 2. Capture the candid To really create a story try and capture the candid moments. Nothing shoots better than an authentic walk (vs the fake walk – which rarely looks good). Walk around your shooting location, naturally interact with what’s around you and do your thing. I like to pretend that Qais isn’t there shooting…

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28 Jan 2018 Blog Series 19 comments

How I Gained 20,000 REAL Instagram Followers in 6 Months – Part 3

So originally, this Instagram series was only going to be 3 parts. But, since the most recent algorithm change on Instagram, I’m going to write one more post talking about how to “try and beat” the new algorithm! We’ll get more into that in Part 4. Because Part 3 is all about posting your planned and edited content on Instagram. Now if you’re starting to read the series here, you may want to read Part 1 and Part 2 first. I honestly believe having a great Instagram feed means making small parts all work together to make something great! So here are the links to the first 2 parts in-case you missed it: How I Gained 20,000 REAL Instagram Followers in 6 Months – Part 1 How I Gained 20,000 REAL Instagram Followers in 6 Months – Part 2 When Should I Post to Instagram? This is always the million dollar question! And I’ve read a countless amount of posts that supposedly have the best times to post on Instagram. So many articles I read said “Wednesday at 5” or “Sunday at 10“. And guess what? When I first started my Instagram I followed these rules to a tee! And did they work? Yup. At least for awhile. And then all the sudden my engagement started dipping and I couldn’t figure out why! Truthfully, is there a “right” time to post to Instagram. I’d say no. Do I think there are better times to post then other times on Instagram?…

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20 Jan 2018 Blog Series 12 comments

How to Be A Girl Boss: 8 Ways to Build Your Empire

Since starting my own business, Shop Basic Babe, I’ve felt more encouraged and inspired to motivate other women. Maybe it’s because of all the encouragement I received after announcing my launch on my Instagram. I had so many lovely ladies reach out to me and tell me how proud they were of me and how I was such a girl boss. Firstly, I was shocked by how many people reached out to me to congratulate me and encourage me. Most of these ladies were some I have never spoken to before on Instagram. But they reached out and it was the sweetest and most uplifting act of kindness I could receive. Especially after launching my new business! I had some many women reach out to me and tell me how I was living their dream. And how they wanted to start their own business one day! To know you’re living someone else’s dream is such an intense feeling. It makes you really grateful for what you have, first off. And secondly, it makes you want to reach out, touch hearts and inspire other women to pursue their passion and dreams! And because of this, I decided to write a post that I’m still living out day by day. How to be a girl boss. How to Be A Girl Boss: 8 Ways to Build Your Empire: 1. Don’t fear failure Can I just be real for a minute? Every. Single. Day. I fear failure. Launching a new business from the…

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07 Jan 2018 Blog Series 11 comments

10 Blogging Mistakes I Made My First Year + How To Avoid Them!

I’ve been blogging for just over a year now and I’ve learned SO much in these past 12 months. When I first started blogging I honestly thought it’d be easy. That I could write blog posts on the fly, create content effortlessly and just get through the blogging world without breaking a sweat! Looking back in retrospect I can see how naive I was. But you live and you learn, and you just keep blogging! So here we go! 10 Blogging Mistakes I Made My First Year + How To Avoid Them! 1. Hiding my blog from others I think many new bloggers do this! When I first started my blog back in the Summer of 2016 I kept it a major secret. I didn’t want anyone who knew me to see it and I even kept it a secret from my mom (lol). I just couldn’t bear the thought of people who knew me in “real life” see my attempt to become a blogger. I thought it was better to keep it a secret just in case I failed. So I stopped blogging until December of 2016. I just decided if I was going to blog, then I was going to be real and share it with the whole world! So I re-posted on basicbabe1.wpengine.com and posted all my blogging pictures to my personal Instagram account. I just went for it. And guess what, it was the best decision I ever made! How to avoid this: Just like…

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01 Jan 2018 Fashion 8 comments

How I Gained 20,000 REAL Instagram Followers in 6 Months – Part 2

It’s been over a month since I started this blogging series! Thanks for your patience, I know so many people have been waiting for part 2 to be published. I’ve had so many other projects on the go, including Shop Basic Babe, that it took me longer than anticipated to sit down and write this post. But, alas, here it is! Part 2. Part 2 – How to Edit: When I first started on Instagram I had no idea how to edit! I would spend hours scrolling through different accounts and admire all these beautiful feeds. Thinking, I wish I knew how to edit or what apps to use! At first, I got a little discouraged and thought maybe editing was just not for me. I read so many different blog posts about how to edit and they were ALL so generic. None of them gave specific advice on what filters they use. What their editing process was. If they used more then one edit. And the list goes on and on. When I first started editing I definitely over edited every picture. I wanted a bright clean feed. And thought that meant raising the exposure like crazy, lol! I actually had NO idea what I was doing. I dabbled in so many different editing programs, trying to figure out how Blogger XYZ achieved that look on her Instagram. It probably took me until last Summer to really figure out how to edit my pictures to the way I like. And…

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21 Nov 2017 Blog Series 27 comments

How I Gained 20,000 REAL Instagram Followers in 6 Months – Part 1

Finally, my most anticipated blog post is here! I really wanted to write it sooner but decided to take my time and figure out how I was going to write it and how I was going to share this most valuable info, lol. Originally, I was thinking of doing a video discussing how I grew mine but didn’t want to condense my tips. I really want to be thorough and share everything I did so you can do it too! I’m going to break this series up into 4 parts so I can explain what apps you need, why you need them, how to use them, and of course a few Instagram tips! So let’s get started with part 1: Part 1 – What Camera and Apps to use: This is THE most important parts when it comes to creating your brand on Instagram. Using the right apps and camera are so important when being able to convey your brand and create your story. Remember, Instagram is visual so consistent quality and editing is key. Even if you’re starting with 0 followers! Step 1: Choose your camera When you first start blogging or even if you just want to live on the ‘gram, you need a decent camera to start. Now you don’t need to go drop a couple hundred or a thousand on a DSLR camera just yet. But, you do want a camera that can take clear and crisp photos. When I first started my Instagram I shot with my iPhone…

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10 Oct 2017 My Top 5's 19 comments

5 Ways to be Productive When Working for Yourself

Since my early twenties, I have been an entrepreneur and have been working for myself. I’ve learned a lot over the past few years about being your own boss (which isn’t easy, especially when you’re young) and wanted to share a few of my tips on keeping productive while working for yourself! And if you don’t work for yourself but blog on the side, then this post is definitely for you too! 1. Create a schedule and stick to it The hardest part of being your own boss is motivating yourself to work. Sometimes all you do is procrastinate and then nothing ever gets accomplished. A key start to successfully working for yourself is creating a schedule and always sticking to it! When it comes to my day job I have my days of work, hours and what days I have off all scheduled on a company calender like an employee. When it comes to my blog schedule I always set which days I am doing what, the time I am doing it and what exactly I’ll be doing. I personally don’t use anything to schedule myself for my blog, because I set myself into a consistent routine and that works for me (which is usually shooting looks on days off and working on everything else mornings and evenings)! But, using a physical planner or using your calendar on your phone is a great way to keep track of your work and time! 2. Turn off all your distractions And when…

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