DesignUntapped

Well this is a new channel for my blog and I have to say it's one of the most terrifyingly daunting prospects I have faced, not writing this blog but what comes at the end of it........a little pink thing that depends on me.

That's right a baby. 

I'm gonna be a dad. 

Thats terryfying. 

   So someone has news, fantastic news

So a few weeks a go the missus came home and dropped the bombshell, "so I have some news, I'm pregnant!" holy shit that's not news , news is Brexit, news is a glamour model with her weapons on display (actually that's not news, but it is in the papers), news is Roy Hodgson caught in scandalous love triangle with dean garney and Janice street porter. That's news, no what you have told me love of my life is earth shattering, life changing, a soul rattling joyous bombshell.

So what's a prospective dad to do  

Panic! 

Cry with joy,

Laugh historically,

Learn as much as you can for this is one deadline that you need to be ready for. 

Well that's what I have decided to do, learn everything I can. But use design untapped to expand my latest channel, channel baby. 

A Baby Blog for future Dads

So welcome to it. 

There is a whole new world of design out there that I can now legitimately take an interest in.

This blog is gonna add a more personal take on my experience and offer an insight into the products, experiences, learning and little titbits along the way.

love n stuff

You aren't tied to your desk. 

Its a big wide fun world, you are a busy person and you want to experience it.  Howver you also want to build your blog consistently and with quality content. This takes time, correction, lots of time. 

If, like me, you have started your blog for fun, for a break from the nine to five and to experience, to learn and to develop. Then you don't want to spend endless hours in a home office, no matter how quirky and fun you have made it.

In this post I am going to discuss a few helpful hints and tips for blogging on the go and how t squeeze in some time around your life.  Not squeeze in life around your blog. 

 How often should we blog

The experts recommended blogging consistently, some recommend that as a new blogger you should blog 3-5 times a week. Others state that generating new content ensures the almighty algorithms of The Google overlords will reward you ten fold.  Personally I think you should blog when you can and as often as you can, but don't burnt out, if the fun is lost then your blog will die. 

So often creating content can be a long and involved process. Researching, Writing the first draft, editing, re-writing, creating images and then promoting. Not sure about you but it take hours and hours for me.  However some times when you are in that sweet spot, the words flow continually and you feel you write an epic tale in a matter of moments, other times you can stare and stare at the blank computer screen and nothing comes. So how can you avoid this sticky situation.

Embrace Technology - 5 Mobile Strategies I use for Content

Iphone Notes

The notes app on your phone is fast, easy and incredibly useful to document ideas.  Waiting for a bus and see a sign that's sparks an idea? Quick get on you phone and save it.  I keep a number of lists for different categories and keep these topped up with ideas as they come. 

Carry a Good Old Fashioned Note Book and Pen

The notes app may be good for capturing quick ideas, but don't neglect how good a notepad can be for scribbles and developing an idea. Doodling, sketching, working on titles or just writing nonsense can really spark something and help to formulate a piece of content.

Use Evernote or Similar to Keep Stuff in The Cloud

Evernote is the next step of notes and essentially a digital note pad.  It's the iPhone notes app on steroids.  It is a great tool for keeping your projects ideas and inspiration in a handy spot that can be accessed over a number of platforms, mobile app, desktop etc.  You can also make little doodles, capture photographs, copy and paste text, make notes on text. The best bit it starts on a free tarrif so you can give it a go without committing any of you tight budget.

Use the Squarespace Blog App

This one I actually love and have wrote this post on.  My website is made via Squarespace, which is so intuitive and easy to use.  They also have a number of apps that make life a little bit easier, the blog app is so easy to start writing content and (Similar to Evernote) can be accessed from multiple platforms.  I like working directly into the Squarespace blog app when I can as its saves on doubling up on work and allows you to add SEO, links and images as you develop your post.

Create Images on the Go

Creating images to develop your post and promote your bland is a essential part of any blog post.  This is often very time consuming and one of the tasks you just have to be at your desktop for.........WRONG!  There are now some great tools to help develop images on the go I use two regularly. Firstly there is the Adobe creative cloud, I pay a monthly subscription to Adobe to access photoshop, illustrator and their other amazing products.  Recently Adobes suite of mobile apps and cloud storage has made it easier to develop images on the go.

  Howver not everyone fancies his or herself as a designer and their products are fantastic (when you know what you are doing). Canva is an amazing website that you can use to make images and is free. It's very intuitive, fast and looks very professional.

  Happy blogging folks, 

love n stuff

You aren't tied to your desk. 

Its a big wide fun world, you are a busy person and you want to experience it.  Howver you also want to build your blog consistently and with quality content. This takes time, correction, lots of time. 

If, like me, you have started your blog for fun, for a break from the nine to five and to experience, to learn and to develop. Then you don't want to spend endless hours in a home office, no matter how quirky and fun you have made it.

In this post I am going to discuss a few helpful hints and tips for blogging on the go and how t squeeze in some time around your life.  Not squeeze in life around your blog. 

 How often should we blog

The experts recommended blogging consistently, some recommend that as a new blogger you should blog 3-5 times a week. Others state that generating new content ensures the almighty algorithms of The Google overlords will reward you ten fold.  Personally I think you should blog when you can and as often as you can, but don't burnt out, if the fun is lost then your blog will die. 

So often creating content can be a long and involved process. Researching, Writing the first draft, editing, re-writing, creating images and then promoting. Not sure about you but it take hours and hours for me.  However some times when you are in that sweet spot, the words flow continually and you feel you write an epic tale in a matter of moments, other times you can stare and stare at the blank computer screen and nothing comes. So how can you avoid this sticky situation.

Embrace Technology - 5 Mobile Strategies I use for Content

Iphone Notes

The notes app on your phone is fast, easy and incredibly useful to document ideas.  Waiting for a bus and see a sign that's sparks an idea? Quick get on you phone and save it.  I keep a number of lists for different categories and keep these topped up with ideas as they come. 

Carry a Good Old Fashioned Note Book and Pen

The notes app may be good for capturing quick ideas, but don't neglect how good a notepad can be for scribbles and developing an idea. Doodling, sketching, working on titles or just writing nonsense can really spark something and help to formulate a piece of content.

Use Evernote or Similar to Keep Stuff in The Cloud

Evernote is the next step of notes and essentially a digital note pad.  It's the iPhone notes app on steroids.  It is a great tool for keeping your projects ideas and inspiration in a handy spot that can be accessed over a number of platforms, mobile app, desktop etc.  You can also make little doodles, capture photographs, copy and paste text, make notes on text. The best bit it starts on a free tarrif so you can give it a go without committing any of you tight budget.

Use the Squarespace Blog App

This one I actually love and have wrote this post on.  My website is made via Squarespace, which is so intuitive and easy to use.  They also have a number of apps that make life a little bit easier, the blog app is so easy to start writing content and (Similar to Evernote) can be accessed from multiple platforms.  I like working directly into the Squarespace blog app when I can as its saves on doubling up on work and allows you to add SEO, links and images as you develop your post.

Create Images on the Go

Creating images to develop your post and promote your bland is a essential part of any blog post.  This is often very time consuming and one of the tasks you just have to be at your desktop for.........WRONG!  There are now some great tools to help develop images on the go I use two regularly. Firstly there is the Adobe creative cloud, I pay a monthly subscription to Adobe to access photoshop, illustrator and their other amazing products.  Recently Adobes suite of mobile apps and cloud storage has made it easier to develop images on the go.

  Howver not everyone fancies his or herself as a designer and their products are fantastic (when you know what you are doing). Canva is an amazing website that you can use to make images and is free. It's very intuitive, fast and looks very professional.

  Happy blogging folks, 

love n stuff

You aren't tied to your desk. 

Its a big wide fun world, you are a busy person and you want to experience it.  Howver you also want to build your blog consistently and with quality content. This takes time, correction, lots of time. 

If, like me, you have started your blog for fun, for a break from the nine to five and to experience, to learn and to develop. Then you don't want to spend endless hours in a home office, no matter how quirky and fun you have made it.

In this post I am going to discuss a few helpful hints and tips for blogging on the go and how t squeeze in some time around your life.  Not squeeze in life around your blog. 

​

How often should we blog

The experts recommended blogging consistently, some recommend that as a new blogger you should blog 3-5 times a week. Others state that generating new content ensures the almighty algorithms of The Google overlords will reward you ten fold.  Personally I think you should blog when you can and as often as you can, but don't burnt out, if the fun is lost then your blog will die. 

So often creating content can be a long and involved process. Researching, Writing the first draft, editing, re-writing, creating images and then promoting. Not sure about you but it take hours and hours for me.  However some times when you are in that sweet spot, the words flow continually and you feel you write an epic tale in a matter of moments, other times you can stare and stare at the blank computer screen and nothing comes. So how can you avoid this sticky situation.

Embrace Technology - 5 Mobile Strategies I use for Content

Iphone Notes

The notes app on your phone is fast, easy and incredibly useful to document ideas.  Waiting for a bus and see a sign that's sparks an idea? Quick get on you phone and save it.  I keep a number of lists for different categories and keep these topped up with ideas as they come. 

Carry a Good Old Fashioned Note Book and Pen

The notes app may be good for capturing quick ideas, but don't neglect how good a notepad can be for scribbles and developing an idea. Doodling, sketching, working on titles or just writing nonsense can really spark something and help to formulate a piece of content.

Use Evernote or Similar to Keep Stuff in The Cloud

Evernote is the next step of notes and essentially a digital note pad.  It's the iPhone notes app on steroids.  It is a great tool for keeping your projects ideas and inspiration in a handy spot that can be accessed over a number of platforms, mobile app, desktop etc.  You can also make little doodles, capture photographs, copy and paste text, make notes on text. The best bit it starts on a free tarrif so you can give it a go without committing any of you tight budget.

Use the Squarespace Blog App

This one I actually love and have wrote this post on.  My website is made via Squarespace, which is so intuitive and easy to use.  They also have a number of apps that make life a little bit easier, the blog app is so easy to start writing content and (Similar to Evernote) can be accessed from multiple platforms.  I like working directly into the Squarespace blog app when I can as its saves on doubling up on work and allows you to add SEO, links and images as you develop your post.

Create Images on the Go

Creating images to develop your post and promote your bland is a essential part of any blog post.  This is often very time consuming and one of the tasks you just have to be at your desktop for.........WRONG!  There are now some great tools to help develop images on the go I use two regularly. Firstly there is the Adobe creative cloud, I pay a monthly subscription to Adobe to access photoshop, illustrator and their other amazing products.  Recently Adobes suite of mobile apps and cloud storage has made it easier to develop images on the go.

Hands up who likes lollies (Aus), or sweets (uk) or candy (USA). That sugar rush, the colours and the intricate designs.  What was your favourite?

Lollies can take you back to a happy time, the first time you had a jelly baby. Saving up your pocket money for a quarter ounce of midget gems.  Grandma taking out her teeth to have a werthers original.

DesignUntapped has been helping with branding for the lolly cart company, a new startup business launching in Perth, WA. 

 The Lolly Cart Company Logo Design

  The lolly cart company aims to offer a selection of lolly carts, jars, sweets and additional rental items to cater for any event.   

Firstly to understand their requirements I wanted to know their plan, key items from their brief are: 

their aspiration is to be simple and intuitive, their plan is to develop a webpage that makes ordering easy; 

to provide choice , everyone is different some people want a wedding some people want a corporate event, they want to cater for multiple events; 

expansion, following a test launch in Perth, they would like to roll out the brand. 

 so what did I take from this, the design needed to be simple, clean and striking. It needed to be instantly recognisable yet be able to look good in multiple environments.  Whether it be printed on high gloss corporate material or equally at home on a plywood pop-up event. 

It also needed to be customisable so that if expanding into other regions or cities, it could be edited but still remain part of the brand. 

So what do you think of the design?

What next for the Lolly Cart Company and DesignUntapped

We aren't sure when the lollycartco are launching but DesignUntapped can't wait to see our design work running around town.  If you are interested in the Lolly cart co check out their Facebook,

Interested in working with DesignUntapped, get in touch we'd be delighted to have a chat,

love n stuff,

Hands up who likes lollies (Aus), or sweets (uk) or candy (USA). That sugar rush, the colours and the intricate designs.  What was your favourite?

Lollies can take you back to a happy time, the first time you had a jelly baby. Saving up your pocket money for a quarter ounce of midget gems.  Grandma taking out her teeth to have a werthers original.

DesignUntapped has been helping with branding for the lolly cart company, a new startup business launching in Perth, WA. 

 The Lolly Cart Company Logo Design

  The lolly cart company aims to offer a selection of lolly carts, jars, sweets and additional rental items to cater for any event.   

Firstly to understand their requirements I wanted to know their plan, key items from their brief are: 

their aspiration is to be simple and intuitive, their plan is to develop a webpage that makes ordering easy; 

to provide choice , everyone is different some people want a wedding some people want a corporate event, they want to cater for multiple events; 

expansion, following a test launch in Perth, they would like to roll out the brand. 

 so what did I take from this, the design needed to be simple, clean and striking. It needed to be instantly recognisable yet be able to look good in multiple environments.  Whether it be printed on high gloss corporate material or equally at home on a plywood pop-up event. 

It also needed to be customisable so that if expanding into other regions or cities, it could be edited but still remain part of the brand. 

So what do you think of the design?

What next for the Lolly Cart Company and DesignUntapped

We aren't sure when the lollycartco are launching but DesignUntapped can't wait to see our design work running around town.  If you are interested in the Lolly cart co check out their Facebook,

Interested in working with DesignUntapped, get in touch we'd be delighted to have a chat,

love n stuff,

Hey mateys, how ya doin? I'm triffic thanks.

In my Pinterest post I referenced creating Pinterest boards to up your pinterest game.

We if you are struggling for board ideas here is 50 of them.

Black and White

Red

Blue

Green

Tshirts

Fashion

Fashionista

Hats

Inspirational Quotes

Comedy

Tattoos

Hot Guys

Hot Gals

Style Gurus

Sustainability

Environment

Architecture

The Sea

The Sky

Sport

Sporting Icons

Design

Furnature

DIY projects

Illustrations

Typography

Blogging

TV shows

Colour Schemes

Cats 

Dogs

Rain

Beach

Surf

Horror

Portraits

Photography

Street Art

Voodoo

Travel

Cars

Mopeds

Shoes

Sneakers

Cold

Heat

Dream Homes

Snooze

Food

Drink

Pin It. Pin it real good.

Pinterest is a bloggers dream, or so they say.  Who are they? The bloggersphere that's who.

Depending on your niche, Pinterest can be a real source of traffic for your budding blog or newbie business.

I've used Pinterest for years but always passively. I've been a voyeur, lurking, pinning to secret boards. No more. I have stepped out of the shadows and committed to the dark overlord that is Pinterest. Now bring me traffic oh great Pinterest gods.

The Top 5 How-to-Use Pinterest Blog posts.

First things first if you, like me, have been using Pinterest in the past to research your latest wall paper or to save that Vegan recipe you will never try. Then chances are you need a crash course in Pinteresting.

There are some amazing bloggers out there who have figured out this social space and their pinterest game is on Point (or on Pin). Here is my 5 recommended further reading:

Jeff Bullas - 5 ways to flood your blog with Pinterest Traffic

Cursive Contents introduction on how to use group boards

Blog Ambitions - 10 things you Shouldn't do on Pinterest

Amy Lynne Andrews - Pinterest Tips

Fast Company - The Ultimate Guide To Pinterest

5 actions to take to improve your Pinterest game

So what did I do? 

What can you do?

1. Conduct a Pinterest Audit and Remove any Poor Quality Pins

Go back through the pins you have and make sure they are of the highest quality. Unpin the poor quality posts and only select fine images. Your pins will be the window to your brand so make sure they represent the best there is.

2. Rename you Pinterest Profile

Add a description to your Pinterest name that relates to what you do.  Become an authprity. For me I renamed my pinterest DesignUntapped | Business & Blogging | Lifestyle & Design. 

3. Create some Pinterest Boards and Start Pinning

If like me, you were using the Pinterest group without an underlying strategy you would have had a random collection of pins without any theme. Well correct this right now matey.

Brainstorm what your blog is about and create a board specifically for that topic.  The more boards you have and the higher the quality increase your chances of gaining followers.

Need some inspiration then take a look at my 50 Pinterest Board Ideas post.

4. Start Following Others on Pinterest

Although it may not seem like it, Pinterest is a social media platform so lets get social. Interact with others, comment on their pins, follow them, like them. 

5. Join Some Pinterest Group Boards and Use Them

This is a really good one. Find some group boards and request an invite. Pinterest group boards can be a collective of 100s or thousands of pinners, these group boards have a significant following and therefore if you pin to them you increase your chances of exposure.

What Should You Do Now

We all love Game of Thrones.

Why wouldn't you, sex, murder, excitement, deceit and betrayal. You can't guess what can happen even if you have read the books.  It could be the most popular fantasy fiction series of all time. 

But what if Game of Thrones wasn't fiction, and it was today and in this world not in Westeros.

Love GoT? Then share this with someone who will enjoy it! Give them a giggle.

Could Tinder mean more Sex for the Game of Throne Guys n Gals

I don't thin promiscuity is a problem in westoros.  Tinder would be a smorgasbord board of lovin choices for the hot n heavy characters.  Who would dare swipe left on Queem Margaery. 

Social Media and the Self Image

  Even the smelliest and nastiest of characters could have an online presence and celeb followers. That's right Reek you work that body boy. 

There is More Evil in The World Today

There's evil a foot in the real world. People with such immense wealth and far reaching power, who knows what they could achieve. 

 Image is Everything, and the web is a nasty place

Cersei walk of shame would break the Internet.  Forget the Fappenning of 2015. The web would have a field day on Cersei.  Reddit comments would be in the millions.

Text Messages May Ruin the Suspense

We are all slaves to the mobile phone. The game of thrones characters would be no different. Especially with the boredom of being up on that remote wall.

Speaking of the wall, i dare say Presidential Candidate Trump would be looking for those wall blueprints for his mexico border. I don't think the ice wall would work though Donald.

Khaleesi Wouldn't take any Prisoners, ISIS wouldn't stand a chance

She's the Queen with the Dragons, used to fighting in hot climates. Doesn't stand for acts of inhumanity or terror. See ya later ISIS, Khaleesi would be coming for you and her dragons would be full on the barbecued terrorist.

Enjoyed this? Wanna see more? Then let me know?

We all love Game of Thrones.

Why wouldn't you, sex, murder, excitement, deceit and betrayal. You can't guess what can happen even if you have read the books.  It could be the most popular fantasy fiction series of all time. 

But what if Game of Thrones wasn't fiction, and it was today and in this world not in Westeros.

Could Tinder mean more Sex for the Game of Throne Guys n Gals

I don't thin promiscuity is a problem in westoros.  Tinder would be a smorgasbord board of lovin choices for the hot n heavy characters.  Who would dare swipe left on Queem Margaery. 

Social Media and the Self Image

  Even the smelliest and nastiest of characters could have an online presence and celeb followers. That's right Reek you work that body boy. 

There is More Evil in The World Today

There's evil a foot in the real world. People with such immense wealth and far reaching power, who knows what they could achieve. 

 Image is Everything, and the web is a nasty place

Cersei walk of shame would break the Internet.  Forget the Fappenning of 2015. The web would have a field day on Cersei.  Reddit comments would be in the millions.

Text Messages May Ruin the Suspense

We are all slaves to the mobile phone. The game of thrones characters would be no different. Especially with the boredom of being up on that remote wall.

Speaking of the wall, i dare say Presidential Candidate Trump would be looking for those wall blueprints for his mexico border. I don't think the ice wall would work though Donald.

Khaleesi Wouldn't take any Prisoners, ISIS wouldn't stand a chance

We all love Game of Thrones.

Why wouldn't you, sex, murder, excitement, deceit and betrayal. You can't guess what can happen even if you have read the books.  It could be the most popular fantasy fiction series of all time. 

But what if Game of Thrones wasn't fiction, and it was today and in this world not in Westeros.

Could Tinder mean more Sex for the Game of Throne Guys n Gals

I don't thin promiscuity is a problem in westoros.  Tinder would be a smorgasbord board of lovin choices for the hot n heavy characters.  Who would dare swipe left on Queem Margaery. 

Social Media and the Self Image

  Even the smelliest and nastiest of characters could have an online presence and celeb followers. That's right Reek you work that body boy. 

There is More Evil in The World Today

There's evil a foot in the real world. People with such immense wealth and far reaching power, who knows what they could achieve. 

 Image is Everything, and the web is a nasty place

Cersei walk of shame would break the Internet.  Forget the Fappenning of 2015. The web would have a field day on Cersei.  Reddit comments would be in the millions.

Text Messages May Ruin the Suspense

We are all slaves to the mobile phone. The game of thrones characters would be no different. Especially with the boredom of being up on that remote wall.

Speaking of the wall, i dare say Presidential Candidate Trump would be looking for those wall blueprints for his mexico border. I don't think the ice wall would work though Donald.

Khaleesi Wouldn't take any Prisoners, ISIS wouldn't stand a chance

We all love Game of Thrones.

Why wouldn't you, sex, murder, excitement, deceit and betrayal. You can't guess what can happen even if you have read the books.  It could be the most popular fantasy fiction series of all time. 

But what if Game of Thrones wasn't fiction, and it was today and in this world not in Westeros.

Could Tinder mean more Sex for the Game of Throne Guys n Gals

I don't thin promiscuity is a problem in westoros.  Tinder would be a smorgasbord board of lovin choices for the hot n heavy characters.  Who would dare swipe left on Queem Margaery. 

Social Media and the Self Image

  Even the smelliest and nastiest of characters could have an online presence and celeb followers. That's right Reek you work that body boy. 

There is More Evil in The World Today

There's evil a foot in the real world. People with such immense wealth and far reaching power, who knows what they could achieve. 

 Image is Everything, and the web is a nasty place

Cersei walk of shame would break the Internet.  Forget the Fappenning of 2015. The web would have a field day on Cersei.  Reddit comments would be in the millions.

Text Messages May Ruin the Suspense

We are all slaves to the mobile phone. The game of thrones characters would be no different. Especially with the boredom of being up on that remote wall.

Speaking of the wall, i dare say Presidential Candidate Trump would be looking for those wall blueprints for his mexico border. I don't think the ice wall would work though Donald.

Khaleesi Wouldn't take any Prisoners, ISIS wouldn't stand a chance

The ultimate tool for a blogger is their phone.  Always checking stats, replying to comments, emails, leads, customers, researching, reviewing, contacting, calling texting....

This cover is designed in a purple shade and features an old style typewriter.  A play on words of the famous Cogito ergo sum,  by philosopher Rene Descartes which transaltes into english as I think, therefore I am.

"I Blog, therefore I am" you blog therefore you are a blogger. Go forth and share your story.

Made of a thin, light polycarbonate plastic with a smooth, matte finish

Design is UV printed on a transparent polycarbonate case

Solid, one-piece construction

Snaps on and off with ease

Get off!!!!

Get off it!!!!

You Little b@stard, you've wrecked the sofa!!!

Sound familiar, you gave that kitten a home and he repays you by scratching all your possessions.

Well thats your fault. I'm gonna show you a little cat scratching post project I completed to try and save my furniture from those active kitties.

Inspiration for the Cat Scratching Post

My partner and I have put a lot of effort into attaining the look we want for our living area and the scratchy posts available in the shops, although functional, are completely devoid of any style or individuality.

The very boxy, mass produced mdf scracthing posts are easy to assemnble and some are designed well for usability. The cats can stretch out and they have enough mass to be sturdy and often have a high perch for your kittie to dream the day away.

I wanted to combine this functionality with a recycled product, while achieving something a little more natural. What would cats use in the wild, well it would be a tree wouldn't it.

Then one day cycling home i noticed the council were cutting some long branches of the local trees.  That was enough to get my creative juices flowing. I got home, changed into my ninja outfit and under the cover of darkness went back and liberated one of the branches. (not really). I actually asked the guys cutting them down if there was anything wrong with the trees, there wasn't, it was just a safety measure and they didn't mind me taking one of the branches for a project.

Ingredients for a Cat Scratching Post

What you'll need:

The branch, or some sturdy dowel, just make sure its long enough for cats to stretch out, my cats like to climb so I wanted an extra long section;

Some Sesal Rope, don't underestimate how much you'll need, about 40m worth ended up going into this;

MDF for the base. I used a .5inch thick section to give some extra weight, I also used the offcut to make a seating area;

Some door matts for the base, try to get something that is inkeeping with your home but also a texture that the cats may like;

Drill and Saw;

Square edge;

Stapler;

Glue;

Screws and screw driver.

Here is the final post. I love it but more importantly the cats do, and they use it constantly. Sure I had to bribe them at first with some treats but they took to it so quickly.

The rope has come loose once but i reattached it with a staple.

I'm not one of them cat crazies (yet) but if you wanna read more about my cats head over to the Cat Page. Or head over to my post if you want some tips about looking after your cats in a heat wave.

Hope you like it

Love n Stuff

Get off!!!!

Get off it!!!!

You Little b@stard, you've wrecked the sofa!!!

Sound familiar, you gave that kitten a home and he repays you by scratching all your possessions.

Well thats your fault. I'm gonna show you a little cat scratching post project I completed to try and save my furniture from those active kitties.

Inspiration for the Cat Scratching Post

My partner and I have put a lot of effort into attaining the look we want for our living area and the scratchy posts available in the shops, although functional, are completely devoid of any style or individuality.

The very boxy, mass produced mdf scracthing posts are easy to assemnble and some are designed well for usability. The cats can stretch out and they have enough mass to be sturdy and often have a high perch for your kittie to dream the day away.

I wanted to combine this functionality with a recycled product, while achieving something a little more natural. What would cats use in the wild, well it would be a tree wouldn't it.

Then one day cycling home i noticed the council were cutting some long branches of the local trees.  That was enough to get my creative juices flowing. I got home, changed into my ninja outfit and under the cover of darkness went back and liberated one of the branches. (not really). I actually asked the guys cutting them down if there was anything wrong with the trees, there wasn't, it was just a safety measure and they didn't mind me taking one of the branches for a project.

Ingredients for a Cat Scratching Post

What you'll need:

The branch, or some sturdy dowel, just make sure its long enough for cats to stretch out, my cats like to climb so I wanted an extra long section;

Some Sesal Rope, don't underestimate how much you'll need, about 40m worth ended up going into this;

MDF for the base. I used a .5inch thick section to give some extra weight, I also used the offcut to make a seating area;

Some door matts for the base, try to get something that is inkeeping with your home but also a texture that the cats may like;

Drill and Saw;

Square edge;

Stapler;

Glue;

Screws and screw driver.

Here is the final post. I love it but more importantly the cats do, and they use it constantly. Sure I had to bribe them at first with some treats but they took to it so quickly.

The rope has come loose once but i reattached it with a staple.

I'm not one of them cat crazies (yet) but if you wanna read more about my cats head over to the Cat Page. Or head over to my post if you want some tips about looking after your cats in a heat wave.

Hope you like it

Love n Stuff

StumbleUpon is one of my fave social media platforms. 

Or at least it used to be. 

Before I launched DesignUntapped I have been a user of StumbleUpon, but I must admit, I had missed the social aspect, I was unaware of adding pages and getting followers. 

But once I realised that you could add pages, I mean it's obvious, someone was discovering the content that you stumble upon. 

However I have fallen foul of the platform.  My account is now ghost blocked as a result of my attempts at self promotion.  In this post i want to help you make sure you don't make the same mistake I have.

Please share this (probably not on stumbleupon) to help raise awareness in the blogging community.

So What Did I Do Wrong

Well I have committed a StumbleUpon sin, I used it for self promotion. Initially I added one of my posts about making an about me page.  I added it as a trial to see whether StumbleUpon could actually generate the traffic that a lot of other bloggers have been saying. 

Well the result was outstanding, not only for that post but also the follow on affects of people reading other posts on my site.  I was generating more comments and more sign ups to my mailing list. 

I thought I had cracked it.  

However I had not read the T&Cs and who can honestly say they do. StumbleUpon forbids self promotion, however because this was my first share, how would they know it was me. 

So the next few posts I did I would promote on my Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Stumble Upon platforms.   

Suddenly, no more referrals from StumbleUpon, was it the quality of my post, was it my writing style, well "it's not you, it's me", this was the start of StumbleUpon kicking me to the kerb. 

What is a Ghost Ban?

StumbleUpon don't admit to ghost banning, but they do say that they impose restrictions if you are caught going against their T&Cs or end user agreements.  Which I had innavertantly done.

Howver a Ghost Ban is the equivilent of a girlfriend carrying on with you as usual but you don't get anything in return. You can text her, send her presents, flowers, love letters but you don't get to go out and you certainly don't get any lovin.  StumbleUpon lets you continue to use the platform as usual, you can still see all the user content, you can still add pages and you can still like and comment on pages. However nobody else can see your activity. 

You are left in limbo bimbo, shining your mirror balls for all eternity. (Mighty Boosh Reference for ya there). 

So What Can You Do About It?

This I currently do not know. 

At the moment I haven't contacted StumbleUpon, i am still using it, but just for research and for boredom and will continue to do so, just because I like the platform. 

Now that they have launched their paid advertising, I a unsure if I do this, will this in ghost ban me?

How can You Avoid a Ban? 

Abide by the rules sucker. Don't self promote. 

If you do wanna risk it.  Don't get greedy. Share more of other people's pages than your own. I have read elsewhere to keep a ration of 20-1, 10-1, 5-1, no-one really knows what makes StumbleUpons Algorithm notice you.  So my advice would be to be cautious. 

So What Does It Mean for the Beginner Blogger

Exposure is one of the most difficult things I am struggling with. It's the catch 22 that you need exposure to be seen, yet you need to be seen to get exposure.  Social Media algorithms are increasingly becoming more and more driven to make people pay for advertising.  The quality of content is suffering as a result  the larger the marketing budget the more exposure. Those that can afford it will continue to grow exponentially.  Us new bloggers must continue to chip away and work harder and harder to gain a readership.

What can I do?  

I'm going to continue to write and continue to focus on developing my quality and my enjoyment for my readers.  It's becoming more obvious to me that I will have to invest more and more into advertising to build a base readership. 

What can you do?

Spread the word, share this blog using the side buttons, it's just one click.

Help build a community and go and share 3 blogs today on 3 of your fave platforms.

We all need to help each other.