121 with @AshlyLondon!

Hi everyone! The next blogger to be featured on The Creative Frontier is Fashion, Beauty & Lifestyle Blogger Ashly Rae! Read on to find out what inspired her to start her blog, and the beauty product she can't live without...


What's your name and where are you from?

Ashly, I am from Aberdeen up north in bonny Scotland.

Why did you want to start a blog?

To be honest I kind of started it by accident, I didn't really know what I was doing and found myself typing away about god knows what and here I am today!!

Where do you get your writing inspiration from?

Other blogs, magazines, shopping, what I have been up to.

What channels do you mainly use to promote your blog?

I love twitter, meeting and chatting to new people. Youtube is fab too.

What's your favourite high street clothing shop and why?

New Look because I find the prices are so great.

What's beauty product could you not live without?

My Arbonne intensive renewal serum, makes my face smoother than smooth.

Do you have any tips for someone looking to start a fashion/beauty/lifestyle blog like yours?

Just go for it. Be prepared to but in a lot of time and effort, it is not easy but in the end it is definitely worth it!!

Fashion, Beauty & Lifestyle Blogger
Web: www.ashlylondon.blogspot.com
Twitter: @ashlylondon

If you're a Scottish Blogger who'd like to be featured in the Creative Frontier then just drop me an email at melissa@247-design.co.uk!

121 with Rachael Tordraighen from @capturingbritain

I can't believe that we're into the month of April already - where has the year gone?? This month's interviewee is @capturingbritain co-creator Rachael who talks about her 'phongraphy' habit and why she started blogging...

What's your name and where are you from?
I'm Rachael Tordraighen @rachaeltor @rachaeltor2 on instagram and @rachaeltordraig on twitter and I'm originally from Yorkshire but have lived in the East Neuk of Fife for the past four years. Living near the sea and in a rural location with big skies and fantastic light were part of the reason I took an interest in 'phonography'. This grew to the point where I had a considerable amount of followers on instagram and with that to came the creation of @capturingbritain. The instagram community I co-created and moderate.

Why did you want to start a blog?
I enjoy writing. I do it in my regular job as a researcher but the tone is always very academic. I like sharing ideas and making people think about their actions.  I've always been interested in how people interact in a changing social landscape (My Masters thesis looked at this). That fascination continues to grow so it was obvious that I'd eventually start blogging on people and social networking with the scope that eventually I'll apply my talents to working in social media management.

Where do you get your writing inspiration from?
Conversations I have at random and people watching. People are full of ideas even if they don't realise it. I love people and people watching be that in the real world or even how they interact online - the things they post etc.

What would you say is the biggest misconception about a Community Managers job?
I think people don't realise the amount of time that goes into community management. To me it's like a labour of love. You also get a lot of feedback sometimes negative. You can't please everybody in the way that communities develop even if it's down to the font used on a post but i think it's key to remain my pleasant self. Any feedback is constructive. As @capturingbritain has grown and the interaction along with it I have had to recruit a team of moderators and 'manage' not only the page but them. In all fairness though as I like creativity and individuality there is no real regulation over what people post as long as it's relevant. 

Who is your favourite person to follow on Instagram?
That's a tough one to answer. @jimmybobbins @marcamachofebrel are among favourites - James has amazing BNW pics and Mar is diverse and posts from her phone often with little editing but still producing amazing captures.


Where would be your favourite place to photograph in Scotland?
I'd like to go to the Isles of Lewis and Harris if any one wants to take me :).

Do you have any tips for someone looking to start a blog similar to yours?
If you want to write just do it. Write just for you and if anyone else enjoys what you have to say it's a bonus.

Thanks Rachael!

If you're a Scottish blogger and would like to be featured on The Creative Frontier then drop me an email at melissa@247-design.co.uk 

Thanks, Melissa x

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121 with The Foodie Quine

As part of a new series on my blog I'm going to interview a different Scottish blogger every month to find out a bit about their blog, and their tips for people looking to start out blogging in their industry. I thought this would be a good way to build links with other bloggers in Scotland and to give readers a break from me nattering on! (please get in touch if you'd like to be featured)

*dramatic drumroll*....

The first blogger I'm interviewing is food blogger The Foodie Quine based in Aberdeen!

What's your name and where are you from?
I'm Claire Jessiman aka The Foodie Quine. Originally from The Black Isle and now living in a village to the south of Aberdeen. I've been blogging for almost two years. Married to Foodie Loon and have two bairns. One who is a complete mini foodie and the other is more of a chicken nuggets kinda gal.

What inspired the name of your blog?
My blog is called Foodie Quine because that's exactly what what I am! Foodie - foody, [ˈfu:di] Someone greatly (even excessively) interested in the preparation and consumption of good food.  Epicure, Gastronome, Gourmet, Bon Vivant  
Quine - quean (Scottish Doric dialect ) a young woman, girl or daughter. A female person from Aberdeen/shire

Why did you start food blogging in the first place?
I started blogging because it was suggested by some that I should share my ongoing adventures in food on the interweb. Bet they wish they'd kept their mouths shut now. The blog has brought me some fantastic opportunities and I've met some great people along the way. As a result of it I'm now a Freelance Foodie doing cookery demonstrations, foraging events, food education, community cookery classes, consultancy, radio and more. 

Where do you get your ideas for blog posts?
Food is all around us every day so inspiration is everywhere. I blog about events I attend, dishes I cook, places we visit and dates on the foodie calendar. I'm passionate about promoting the fantastic natural larder we have in Scotland and championing local farmers and producers. Blogger link ups and challenges are also great fun where time allows and I'm happy to undertake product reviews if anyone is nice enough to send me a food parcel.

What food item do you always have in your fridge? 

Cheese. See below...

If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life what would it be? 

That's a really tricky one. I'm going to turn it around and nominate the the food that I couldn't live without and that would be Cheese. I'm a huge fan of it. I had an amazing Cake of Cheese for my 40th Birthday Party. Can I have a drink too? Make mine a G&T.

Do you have any tips for people looking to get into the world of food blogging?
Don't go into it for what you think you can get out of it. 
Be yourself. 
Share your passion. 
Find your voice. 
Keep your integrity. 
Stick at it. Even if you think it's only your Mum reading. 

Blog www.foodiequine.co.uk
Facebook www.facebook.com/FoodieQuine
Twitter @foodiequine

Thank you very much to Claire (The Foodie Quine) for taking part and answering my questions. Best of luck with your blog in the future and I must admit I'm very jealous of your Cake of Cheese!

As I said I'm looking for more Scottish bloggers to interview, if you're interested please send me an email! :)

Thanks, Melissa x

Follow @_Melissa247

Melissa on Google+

Workin' 9 till 5...before the interview?

As part of a recent job application for a role as a 'Tourism Marketing Officer' I had to create a  7-8 minute presentation, to show at my interview.


The focus of the presentation was to answer the question 'How would you market Carrick's most attractive tourism facilities to a domestic tourism audience?' 


Needless to say, my first reaction was to Google where this 'Carrick' place was! I had 4 days to work on the presentation, so most of my weekend was spent working on it. I found myself falling back into patterns learned at University, which certainly helped in laying out the order of the presentation. First of all I conducted research about the domestic tourism market in Scotland, other popular places to visit in Scotland the area of 'Carrick' and its facilities. I then devised a marketing campaign named 'Carrick Rocks' and designed it's logo, based on the Gaelic word traditionally used to name the landscape based on its rocky terrain. I then outlined which digital platforms would be used, with a focus on new and emerging social media technologies in order to attract a younger audience. Although in the end I didn't get the job, the feedback from the employer on my presentation was excellent, and it allowed to me to discover some exciting new technologies which will be useful in future projects. 


I think it's a good idea for employees to set their candidates a small task before interview, as from how much effort they put into the task, the employer can gauge how enthusiastic they are about the role. It also helps to highlight their talents when sometimes a piece of paper headed CV and questions like 'How would your friends describe you?' don't really let the candidates true potential shine through. 


Here are the slides from my presentation (uploading the presentation to Slideshare has made the kerning / font go a bit crazy, apologies!)

Carrick Rocks

View more presentations from _Melissa247.

What do you think, should you have to do a lot of work when you don't even have the job yet?
Have you ever had to prepare a presentation for an interview?


Let me know, Thanks for reading!
Melissa x


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