I am so excited to announce that I will be a Haven Maven mentor at Haven Conference this year. For those of you who aren’t familiar with it, it’s an annual blogging conference for home & DIY bloggers, and it is awesome! I’ve been going every year since it started. For those of you who are new to my blog, welcome! I’m Erin and I love all things home decor, DIY, and making. I’m a mom of 3 busy, wild little boys, and I live in the Atlanta suburbs. I also co-host a podcast with my blogging bestie, Charlotte Smith, called North South Makers, which you can find on iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play.
If you follow my Instagram stories or listen to the podcast, then you know that my youngest little guy, Jonah, always keeps me on my toes. To say he is a handful would be a massive understatement! But he keeps life interesting. (As you can see from the cast on his arm.)
Today I’m taking part in a fun blog hop with some of the other Haven mentors. We were given some questions to answer, but first, I’ll show you around my “haven.”
This is my older two boys’ room, which is a work in progress. I just built this DIY plywood desk for them last week.
Here’s our family room, where we spend most of our time.
And here’s the coffee bar I made over. You can see the scary before pictures (and the entire makeover) here. It was a butler’s pantry that we used as a hoarder’s room storage room.
This is the master bedroom, which I made over for the One Room Challenge a couple years ago.
And this is my mom cave/office/craft room/oasis away from children.
Here’s our dining room. I built the table and benches which you can find info on here.
You can see more of my home here.
And now, for the Haven Maven questions:
What is your best advice for a blogger?
My advice is to first and foremost focus on creating the best content you possibly can. It should be quality over quantity. And resist the urge to compare your work to that of other bloggers. Also, network with other bloggers! Whether online or in person, or both. I cannot stress enough how valuable networking is, for so many reasons.
What is your best advice for a new Haven Maven attendee?
If possible, follow and (virtually) get to know other attendees before the conference. This will help you feel more comfortable introducing yourself to people. Don’t be afraid to introduce yourself to anyone and everyone. Conferences can be awkward, especially if you don’t know anyone, so don’t be afraid to break the ice. Also, bring business cards and be prepared to connect with lots of awesome brands and hopefully form relationships with them. Come find me! I will introduce you to lots of people.
Who are you most excited to see/meet at Haven this year?
I am excited to see SO many blogging friends! I couldn’t possibly name them all. Haven has been such an amazing place to form friendships over the years, and I look forward to seeing all of my “online friends” in person each year.
Here’s the lineup for the Haven Maven Mentors blog hop! Be sure to check out of the other mentors’ posts throughout the week. If you’re attending the conference, I can’t wait to see you there!
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Erin Spain (Me!)
Thursday
Friday
You can explore my project gallery here. Thanks again for visiting!
Thanks for sharing your advice for Haven! This summer will be my first time attending, and to say I’m excited is an understatement! See you there!
Awesome! You will have so much fun. See you soon!
Good tips for the conference, Erin! I’ll be there, so I’ll see you next week. I really don’t know how to best get plugged in before the conference. I’m already following the conference IG account and some of the hashtags. Any other advice to plug in before and while there?
So glad you’ll be coming, Bruce! We need more men to come represent. 🙂 Are you in the Haven Facebook group? If not, let me know and I’ll add you. That’s a great way to connect with folks too. Also, I would check the conference site and follow whatever sponsors you hope to connect with. It’s really just generally a pretty laid back atmosphere. The opening cocktail party is a great place to meet people in sort of a “mix and mingle” type environment. They’ll be assigning mentor groups soon and those “small groups” are a nice way to connect with a handful of people so it doesn’t feel so overwhelming. Let me know if you have any other questions. See you next week!
HI, where do you find your jute rugs without a border on them?
I got mine at World Market a few years ago.
Oh, I forgot, I’ve also bought one at Rugs USA!