Book Review: Blogging for Bliss by Tara Frey

Blogging for Bliss: Crafting Your Own Online Journal: A Guide for Crafters, Artists and Creatives of all Kinds

Author:  Tara Frey

Publishers: Lark Crafts

Publication Date: August 4, 2009




About The Author
Tara Frey began blogging in 2004 and inspired thousands of creative souls with her honest and often funny prose about family, friendship and her creative endeavors.

The Creative Blogging World
This book is a visual delight for artists, crafters and creatives of all kinds. The color illustrations are amazing and really add value to the text. Ms. Frey was a creative blogging pioneer and she shares many of her techniques for adding photos and using photo-editing software. She offers tips on enhancing and embellishing blogs with type, art and other visuals.

The author features more than 50 blogs to inspire the reader and illustrate how a creative hobbyist or professional can use a blog to share and promote their skills.

There are many creative bloggers who have made the transition from pleasure to profit. Ms. Frey tells how these bloggers have built blogs that create loyal followers and solid business.

My Thoughts
I have found that craft blogs are RED HOT! Even though this book was published several years ago, I found myself pouring over the pages and absorbing as much of the information as I could.

I found the information about taking great photos, altering photos, designing banners, using photo-editing software, and adding "sidebar fancies" absolutely fascinating. I also learned how to use Blog Roll to attract more readers to my blog.

I enjoyed reading the case studies of 50 creative bloggers who have attracted a large following of readers.  I checked-out these blogs and most of them are still active. Each of these 50 bloggers also listed their favorite craft blogs so this book really offers a wealth of examples to investigate.

I was a little disappointed that the author's blog has been closed down. I could find very little current information about her.

I recommend this book to creative bloggers who are looking for inspiration from those who have found bliss and success in the blogosphere. I would love to see an updated edition in the future.

My Rating:  4 Stars Out Of 5

FYI ~ I checked this book out from my local public library.

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Make A SlideShow From Old Illustrations

Last week I attended a local Friends of the Library book sale and found a real gem. Trades and Occupations: A Pictorial Archive from Early Sources (Dover Pictorial Archive Series), by Carol Belanger Grafton, is a collection of over 1100 illustrations. These pictures were found in publications that were printed between 100 and 350 years ago. The picutres feature different kinds of work that people have participated in over the past several centuries. These pictures remind us that work was for centuries a common subject for art, and particularly for illustration.

The fair use policy for these illustrations state that "you may use the designs and illustrations for graphics and crafts applications, free and without special permission, provided that you include no more than ten in the same publication or project".

Last week, I wrote a blog article about how I use Animoto to create slideshows from my personal photographs. Today, I used some illustrations from this book to create a slide show of illustrations featuring Victorian book sellers and libraries.

Dover Publications has published dozens of books of clip art and vintage illustrations. Most of these book are 20 to 30 years old. I think these books are wonderful resourses for graphics to use on blogs, social media sites and videos.

Please click HERE to watch the video and post your comments below. I love to hear from you!