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Do you love crocheting and want to share your projects or designs with the world? If you’ve ever thought about starting your own blog, now is the best time to do it!

Blogging is fun and incredibly rewarding, especially as a crafter. There are lots of reasons for starting your own blog; you can share your own projects and designs, you can create a fun and inviting community of like-minded people, and you can even earn income from a blog!

That’s right: you can get paid for posting about a hobby you already love. And getting starting is super easy. It’s so easy that I can’t believe I didn’t do it sooner!

There are lots of people in the crochet community who have built big, beautiful blogs and had amazing success. If you’re on Pinterest a lot, you know that there’s a handful of big-name bloggers and designers out there. You may see their success and think “wow, wouldn’t it be great if I could do that too?”

Maybe you dream of being able to fund your yarn addiction solely through a side hustle, or maybe you’d just like a little extra cash to save every month. Or maybe you have lots of original patterns that you want to share, but just don’t know where to get started.

Well you’re in the right place, cause I’m here to tell you that it’s possible, and you can get started right now!

It’s true that blogging isn’t always sunshine and rainbows. You do have to get started on the right foot, and it does take time and effort if you want to earn a substantial amount of money or gain a large following from your blog. But starting a blog, and setting it up, is a breeze. It took me less than an hour to fully set up, customize, and start posting on my brand-new blog!

Starting your blog the right way is fast, easy, and helps prepare you for a successful blogging future. In this guide I’m going to show you exactly how to set up a blog that you can customize to fulfill your blogging dreams!

With blogging, there’s no time like the present. I waited so long to start blogging about my passion for crocheting, and I wish I had started way earlier! Blogging has opened up so many new opportunities, like working with my favorite brands, collaborating with other designers, and more. My biggest regret is not setting up my blog years ago, when I first started designing my own crochet patterns. Imagine where I’d be if I had been building up my blog from day one!

And starting a blog isn’t expensive, either- you can start a blog for a few dollars a month!

That’s right- you can start a clean, professional-looking blog for less than $4 per month. Getting started with a good web hosting service is the most important purchase you’ll make, and the investment is one of the best decisions you can make for your blog and brand.

Don’t make the same mistake I made; start your blog today! This easy 3-step guide will walk you through every part of setting up your very own blog using my favorite hosting platform, Bluehost.

The 3-Step Guide to Starting A Blog

Here you’ll find the exact steps you need to take to set up your new blog. It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3!

1. Hosting & Domain Name

You’re probably thinking, “what is hosting and why do I need it?” Being self-hosted is non-negotiable if you ever want to grow or monetize your blog.

There’s lots of online platforms where you can set up a blog for free (blogspot, tumblr, etc.), and while it might seem like starting with a free platform if a good idea, it can actually make it harder to do anything with your blog. Customization is extremely limited, and you can’t monetize your blog. Plus, you don’t technically  “own” your blog when you use a free platform. If that platform all of a sudden closes up shop for good, then you’ve just lost your blog, along with all the work you’ve put into it!

A better option is to use a hosting provider. There are lots of them out there, but I use and love Bluehost. A hosting provider essentially gives you your own little piece of internet real estate, so instead of using a free platform that isn’t reliable for serious bloggers, you have your own little corner of the web where you can set up your blog exactly how you want to.

Picking a good hosting provider is one of the most important decisions you make when starting your blog. When it comes to hosting, you want something reliable, so that your site isn’t crashing all the time & therefore losing readers. You also want something easy to use, so you can spend more time working on the things you love instead of dealing with a difficult, confusing platform. And you want something with good customer service, so that if you do have a question or an issue, your hosting provider will be there to help you every step of the way.

Like I mentioned before, I use Bluehost. Bluehost is the preferred platform of tons of bloggers. It’s been hailed for its user-friendly interface, reliability, and top-notch customer service and tech support.

To be honest, I didn’t start with Bluehost. I was going to, but I got some advice to steer clear of Bluehost and to go with a lesser-known hosting provider to save about a dollar a month. I took that advice, and I had a ton of trouble! It was definitely not the right platform for me; it seemed to be designed for people who have a lot more technical experience than your average person. After struggling for a few months and having my issues go unresolved, I decided to go with my original instinct.

I finally switched over to Bluehost, and I’m SO glad I made the switch. After struggling with the difficult, clunky platform I started with, I was beyond relieved to find that Bluehost’s platform is clean, streamlined, and designed to be easy to use for people of all knowledge levels. Bluehost is by far the easiest, most user-friendly hosting service out there, and I could not recommend them more!

They’re also one of the cheapest hosting providers out there- you can host your very own website for as little as $3.95/month! That’s an amazing deal for the great service they provide.

How To Set Up With Bluehost

To start your blog with Bluehost, you’ll want to pick a domain name (your website url, and the name of your blog).

Choosing a name for your blog is the fun part! You can be as simple or creative as you want to be. I chose something that I knew would grow with my blog and brand, as I want to branch out to other forms of fiber art, and my nickname is Em. So that was easy! You can brainstorm lots of ideas for your blog name. Think about what you want to describe your blog, and you may want to line up a few ideas in case the first one is taken.

You can check the availability of your domain name by heading on over to Bluehost and selecting ‘Get Started’.

Once you choose a domain name, you can pick your hosting plan. The Basic plan covers everything you need to get started! I chose the Plus plan, but you can start with the Basic and then switch later as your blog grows.

 

 

Once you’ve chosen your plan, you’ll be prompted to create your account, on a page that looks like this:

Fill out your info and select your addons (they’re not necessary, but can give you a little more peace of mind), then checkout.

You’ll be prompted to create a password to login to your site (don’t forget to write it down!)

And now you’re ready to roll! Now you’ll use Bluehost’s easy WordPress install to set up your blog. WordPress is the software you’ll use to write, edit, and publish posts to your blog. It’s the platform pretty much every blogger uses, and Bluehost makes it easy as one click to install it!

2. Login to WordPress

Login to Bluehost using your new account and password, and choose a theme. Don’t worry- you can change this later!

Now you can login to WordPress. Click the ‘Start Building’ button:

You can familiarize yourself with your new WordPress dashboard and its controls, and you can also use the Bluehost setup tools for some extra help!

Once you’re ready, you can launch your new website.

Fill in the info, and you’re ready to blog!

The next step is customizing your blog, which is probably the most fun besides picking a blog name!

3. Customizing Your Blog

Here’s where you can really let your creativity shine. The way your blog looks to your readers is so important; a clean, pretty blog is more likely to keep readers than a blog that’s cluttered and difficult to navigate. You want your blog to be inviting, so that you encourage your readers to come back again and again!

Investing in a professional blog theme is another important investment to make for your blog and brand. WordPress has free themes available that are fine for when you’re first starting out, but they don’t offer many options to customize, and they can be difficult to tailor to your individual blog needs. Plus, they may not offer tech support if you need it. And honestly, they’re just not as pretty as some of the nicer themes out there.

An easy solution is to go with a well-designed, professional, affordable theme from a designer. You can have a stunning blog in minutes with a theme from a designer or theme company. For my blog, I decided to go with a theme from Beautiful Dawn Designs. These WordPress blog themes are created for the feminine blogger, with beauty and simplicity in mind. They’re amazingly affordable as far as professional themes go, ranging from $35-$55, and you get a beautiful, easy-to-customize theme as well as all the setup support you need.

I love the theme I’m using! It’s really helped me customize my blog, and I feel confident in the way my site appears to my readers. Installing the theme was super easy, and I love all the options there are to customize my page layout, colors, fonts, and more.

Having a clean and beautiful blog is integral to establishing your online presence, and helps set you apart from the rest. Later on, as your blog grows and you explore things like monetization and brand collaboration, your blog’s layout will be a deciding factor in your success. Start your blog the right way and go with a professional theme, that way you’re prepared to take bigger steps with your blog and brand later on!

You can browse their WordPress themes here. No matter what style you’re looking for, Beautiful Dawn Designs has fresh, pretty themes to make your blog stand out!

And you’re done!

Welcome to the blogging world! You’re ready to start writing posts and sharing your passion with the world. I can’t wait to see your blogs, and I hope this tutorial was helpful!

If you have any more questions on how to start a blog, you can email me at emily@emsfiberarts.com and I’ll be glad to help you out!

You can also sign up for the email list to receive blog updates, and discounts on my favorite blogging tools.

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