Beauty Blogging On A Budget .
When it comes to blogging, there seems to be a common misbelief that we all have lots of money to spend. When ever i tell people i run a beauty blog the first thing i am asked is “How much money do you make?”. Yes i get sent some free items some times and if i’m lucky i might get to do a sponsored post but in all honestly i am running my blog on a budget.
I am sure i’m not the only one who is in this situation so here is how i run my personal beauty blog & some tips.
My site.
Before moving to self hosted, the only money i spent on my site was my domain name. As i was running my blog on a free site my domain name was:
www.desperatelyseekinglifestyle.wordpress.com
This was such a ridiculously long title that i just had to change it! It only cost me around £10 to buy my own domain. If you are blogging as a hobby i would recommend you stick with a free host such as wordpress & blogger.
After 7 months of blogging i decided i wanted to go self hosted. Now going self hosted is definitely more of a pricey option. I went with Bluehost which cost me £90 for the year. Going self hosted is a massive step and i would highly recommend that you research a lot in to it before you take the step of transferring your blog. For me spending the £90 was definitely worth it but this is an annual cost so do bare that in mind.
Equipment.
Everyone seems to think that all bloggers have high tech cameras, lighting equipment and apple products galore that cost £300 + which i really don’t have the money for. I take all my blog photos with my phones camera which is a Samsung Galaxy S6 and it does a great job for me. Would i like a fancy blogging camera? Of course i would but until i can genuinely afford one i will be sticking with my handy Samsung phone.
For lighting, natural daylight is your best friend! Take advantage of the sun and take all your photos when its the brightest time of the day. I do own 2 soft boxes which cost me £50 of amazon ( i had a gift card ) but i would say i use the natural daylight more.
I type up all my blog posts on a HP laptop that is basically falling apart but as long as you have a decent internet connection then that is all you need.
Props.
Props are such a great thing to add into your blog photos and make them look a little bit more interesting. However you don’t need to go crazy buying expensive decorative items. I look in charity shops and bargain shops to pick up some cheap home decor.
For back grounds for your blog photos, here are a few ideas of what to use:
- Table tops
- White blankets or sheets
- Buy a roll of cheap decorative wallpaper
- Flooring
Products.
When it comes to reviewing products on your blog, of course you will need to spend some money. However don’t go into Superdrug or Boots just for the sake of buying things to write a post on. Make sure when your picking up a product to review you genuinely really want to try it. the worst thing you can do is spend all your hard earned money of beauty products that you probably wont ever use.
Here’s a little tip. Go through all your beauty products you already own and pick out some of your favourites. Write posts on products you already own and have a decent opinion on.
You don’t have to spend a lot of money to be a beauty blogger. Just use what you already own.
What’s your tips for blogging on a budget?
DesperatelySeekingLifestyleX
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Blog: www.desperatelyseekinglifestyle.com
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Twitter: twitter.com/desperatelySLS
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