Blogger Q&A + Eyelet Details

Since I have a fairly non-traditional job, I receive a lot of questions. Some are from people in passing, some are from my friends, and some I receive from people on Instagram. I figured it was time I share some of these commonly asked questions with all of you. Plus then I have them written out and I don’t have to keep answering them over and over. And for those of you who could care less about me, but would love to learn where I got my cute eyelet shirt (no offense taken), I’ve covered that as well.

Note: This post contains affiliate links

Outfit details: eyelet top, white jeans, straw bag, shoes, sunglasses

Before I move onto the Q&A, I want to briefly talk about this amazing eyelet top. You may remember this one from my Spring Tops blog post from last week because I included it in my top round-up. I wore it this weekend and I’m declaring it the perfect Spring top. I’m always a fan of navy and white, you can wear a normal bra and it is under $50. I’ll definitely be wearing this one constantly this summer as well. I’m obsessed.

Now onto the questions in no particular order…

How did you get started blogging?

I started The Sensible Shopaholic around the time I quit my job in IT to become a stay-at-home mom back in 2015. I absolutely adore my kids, but I knew I needed something of my own to keep my sanity. Starting a fashion and lifestyle blog was something I considered doing for years and decided the timing was right to just go for it. Admittedly, my blog started out more as a daily sale blog where I shared mostly sales and stock photos. It has come a long way and evolved into what you see today. I talk a little bit more about starting my blog and some of my blogging tips here. Fun fact: before I started this blog, I used to write a family baby blog and completed several 365 Instagram projects for my kids. I suppose you can say I had a little experience before I started on day 1.

How do you make money blogging?

I personally make an income blogging through two different ways: sponsored posts and affiliate commissions. Sponsored posts are when a brand pay me a fee to create a blog post or social media content advertising their brands. Whether it is a post on my blog or social media, I always declare in my writing that I have some sort of relationship with the brand, or I’ll use #ad or #sponsored to make that relationship clear. Even if the post is sponsored, I only choose to work with brands where I would actually purchase their products in real life. There is nothing worse than saying “buy this amazing product” and having you guys hate it. That hurts my credibility. I turn down sponsored posts almost daily and try to be very picky about who I work with.

Affiliate commission is income I make when you purchase a product using a customized link showing I referred you to the product. I mainly use RewardStyle/Liketoknow.it, but am a member of a few other affiliate networks as well. Affiliate commissions vary widely by website and not every link I share is an affiliate link. In many cases, the income is as little as a dollar so speaking from my heart, every click through an affiliate link really helps! If I’m not making money through this blog then it probably isn’t worth my time and effort because I do work at it non-stop.

One other way some bloggers make money is through ads on their websites; however, I do not have any ads on my site at this time. I’d really prefer to keep it that way if I can. After all, who really likes ugly banner ads and pop ups? Reading my sponsored posts and clicking on my affiliate links will help me keep it that way and keep this blog up and running.

Who takes your photos?

About 95% of the photos on my blog were taken by my wonderful husband. We recently had family photos taken while we were in Hawaii, but other than that, I’ve never paid for a photographer for my blog. I’m lucky because he knows what I like in photos and we’ve gotten the process down to a science. Once we find a spot, it probably takes us less than 2 minutes to take a few quick pictures and then we go on about our day. Yes, he groans and moans every time I bring up taking photos, but then he remembers the income and cool stuff I get for our family. It isn’t perfect by any means, but it works.

Also, I’ll admit, I occasionally bribe my kids to take a photo here and there when my husband is out of town. They are getting pretty good at not chopping off my head and holding the camera still while pressing the button. It does requires me to adjust the settings and tell them exactly where to stand, but it works when I’m in a bind.

I did invest in a good camera and lens (I use a Canon T7i DSLR with a 50mm f/ 1.4 lens) and have taken photography classes to learn how to use it. I also personally edit all my photos in Lightroom.

How do you find time to write your blog?

I get this question A LOT from other moms. As far as my job goes, I consider myself a full time mom and a part time blogger. I don’t have a nanny, family or babysitters around to help with my kids other than the occasional night out. However, I do have two mornings a week to myself when both kids are at school, but I find I usually end up using that time to run errands or shop by myself (honesty moment right here).

I used to do all my blog work during nap time and at night until my daughter quit napping and put a wrench in that plan. Gosh, come on Kenzie. I’m regularly up until 11 pm or midnight working on blog posts, especially on week nights. I definitely try to squeeze in an hour or two of work here or there throughout the day when I can, but it all depends on the day. Personally, I believe it comes down to you’ll make the time if you really want to do something. I absolutely love what I do and I find the time to make it happen (even if I have to order takeout instead of cooking. Oops).

How and where do you take all your photos?

To be honest, I’ll take photos almost anywhere we go as a family. I don’t have one specific spot I like to go to shoot. I’ve gotten REALLY good at spotting cool photo shoot spots in parking lots or just off the side of the road. I’m convinced you don’t need an amazing mural or chic city street to have a good Instagram feed. I don’t take photos everyday, so occasionally on weekends I’ll try to photograph more than one outfit at a time. I’ll admit, I’m also really lucky to live in Phoenix where we have interesting mountains, cactus and desert all over the place.

Where do you keep all the stuff you get?

I’m lucky to currently have a big closet. I’m actually working on a blog post as we speak showing you around my closet and how I keep it organized. However, I don’t keep every single thing gifted to me by brands. I absolutely love sharing the freebies I receive with my family. This past Christmas, I think I gifted every single person in my family with at least one awesome blog gift. I use what I can, but I also don’t want to become a hoarder. I’d rather pass along the benefits, when possible.

Does your mailman hate you?

Yes. Yes he does.

Alright, that’s all I’ve got for you guys today. What do you think of the whole Q&A post? Should I turn this into a regular series? What other questions do you guys have for me? Leave them down in the comments below!