It's that time of year where we get to start thinking about blogmas.

I have been planning blogmas since the end of September, so I have been waiting a long time for it to be acceptable to discuss on my blog. As soon as Halloween passes it’s straight into Christmas. This makes me so happy as I’m not a fan of Halloween at all. There's no definitive reason, it’s just not a holiday I like to celebrate, plus there are far too many clowns around for my liking. Christmas on the other hand, well that is something I love, probably more than my birthday.

I’m excited about doing blogmas this year, and even though I have already posted clues and pictures on my social media, (and in this post), I don't want to give too much away. I'll be doing a blogmas announcement later on in the month where I'll be revealing everything to you. I'm so excited to share with you what I've been working so hard on!!

In case you have clicked on this post, and have no idea what blogmas is, let me explain. Blogmas is when you post Christmas related post throughout December. It can be a lot of work, but if you love the festivities, it might be something you'd consider doing. I have never completed a full blogmas before, but hopefully, this year will be my first. I have attempted it in previous years, and have learnt from my mistakes each time. You can think of this post as a way of me passing down my wisdom, so you don't end up making the same mistakes I did, and wasting a lot of your time.

CHOOSING A THEME

Yes, the theme is already Christmas, but are you going to stick to your regular style of posting, or do something a little different? If you're a beauty blogger, you can create a new festive look each day, whether it's hair, make-up or nails. For fashion bloggers, you could share a new look each day inspired by a different concept of Christmas. For example, look 1 could be inspired by the colours of your favourite decoration. You might want to do something completely different from your usual content and just post recipes, or homemade gifts. Think about what kind of posts you enjoy reading the most during blogmas, and see if you can think up 24-31 post ideas around that concept. I have 60+ post ideasif you're looking for even more inspiration.

PHOTOGRAPHY IN BULK

It's not a shock to you that the weather is always playing tricks on us. Daylight hours are getting shorter, and you don't want to end up rushing your photographs just to get them done, or end up using dark photos as that's all you can get. Once there is a good amount of sunlight, plan to take as many photographs as you can. If you need to take 5 flatlays, plan ahead 5 sets of different objects so you're ready to take photos straight away. You can even do little test runs to make sure you like the layout if you work better that way. If you're making a recipe, make sure you check the weather so you don't end up leaving your food around waiting to be photographed... plus, you want to eat that food asap.

PHOTOGRAPHY PROPS

Don't spend a lot of money on props for your photographs. Take down your decoration box and use things from there as your props. Tinsel, baubles, even laying down a few branches from your tree. There are a lot of discount Christmas decor available, but you'll probably have things lying around your home.

• Knits - scarfs and jumpers
• Beauty products
• Candles
• Christmas ornaments
• Books
• Cushions, pillows and throws
• Lush bath products
• Christmas food - candy canes, gingerbread ect.
• Yarns, twine, sequins, glitter
• Festive fabrics
• Wrapped up gifts

It's very easy to turn your usual photography style festive, I know I have really enjoyed doing it. Let's just say, I have a very pink Christmas ahead.

KNOW WHAT YOU NEED TO BUY

Talking of extras, if you need to buy something like cutters for Christmas cookies, or a certain fabric for your diy,

BUY IT NOW.

Finish reading this post, and buy it. Everything sells out so fast around Christmas, so buy them as soon as possible. You don't want to end up delaying your posts, or having to change them completely to fit in the time frame.

HOW COMMITTED CAN YOU BE?

No matter how much you want to take part in blogmas, don't give yourself too much work and put yourself under a lot of pressure. You've got to be honest with yourself, and with the time you have. You want to make the most out of blogmas, but it's still got to be the best quality you would expect from your blog. Blogmas usually runs from 24 to 31 days, but there are no set rules, so you can do as you please. You might want to do 12 days of Christmas instead, or post every other day. I know how fun it is, but you have to be realistic. You don't want to overload yourself with unnecessary work. I've done this in the past, and the results were never good.

GET ORGANISED

Now you've got the full lowdown on blogmas, it's time to get organised. Here's a little checklist of questions to help you get started.

1. What theme is your blogmas going to take?
2. How many days is your blogmas going to run for?
3. Write down a list of potential post ideas.
4. What extras do you need to buy?
5. When can you schedule the time to photograph and write?
6. When do you want to schedule your first post by?
7. When would you ideally like to finish all your posts by?
8. Is your usual blogging schedule going to change? How will you work around that?
9. Is there a special way you're going to promote your posts?
10. Are you going to update your blog theme in a creative way?

For my final point, and probably the most important...

MAKE SURE YOU ENJOY ALL THE FESTIVE FUN!

EAT WHAT YOU LIKE, DRINK WHAT YOU LIKE

AND JUST BE MERRY!

I am so excited to start blogmas, and share with you everything I've been doing. Let me know in the comments below your top tips for having a fun blogmas. If you're doing blogmas, make sure you tweet me your posts, as I can't wait to see what you create!!