I have been a follower of Sonya's blog since early 2011. I was surprised to find out that she started her blog in March of 2011 and has built a thriving blog community so quickly. Sonya's Blog is an inspiring mix of eco-friendly and simple living posts, two important things in my life making it easy to be a regular reader of her blog.
Sonya is not only a great writer and blogger, she is an amazing artist. Her Etsy shop is filled with dreamy photographs that are inspiring and creative. She is also the editor of The Studio Magazine. A magazine that is filled with a beautifully curated collection of eco-friendly art.
I am thrilled Sonya was able to take the time to share with us a little about her passion for living green and building a thriving blog community.
1. As a long time follower of your blog, I am always inspired by the
information you share about living simply and eco friendly. Could you
please share why you are so passionate about this way of life.
Thank you, Valerie. Knowing that you, as a regular reader of
Kanelstrand and the greatest motivator I know, find inspiration in my
words is a great motivation for me!
Thanks to my family I was brought up to respect the riches of the
land. My grandfather taught by example, which I believe is the only
way to teach. Although he was a dentist from the city, he learned from
his mother-in-law (my great grand mother) how to take care of the
garden and started building upon this knowledge to reach a level of
feeding 3 families with his produce. Of course, we children were
always there to help in the summers.
My grandmother knitted my winter sweaters, hats and scarves and
although she never requested acquiring this ability from me, there
came the time when I naturally turned to knitting myself.
My mother is the perfect cook (whose mother isn't!) and we have never
(believe it or not) had pre-fabricated food at home. Apart from that,
she is a one-man-orchestra, basically doing everything by herself,
which taught me to be a handy person myself, paying attention to
detail and a perfectionist at times.
Family and surroundings play a very important role for the forming of
a young mind and I grew up to become a "slow" and deliberate person,
who appreciates nature and the depth of the human soul. I live simply
thanks to that stable, nature-inspired foundation I was exposed to in
my childhood and that is the way I feel comfortable living. I wouldn't
change it for anything because it is an integral part of how I view
the world.
My passion to discuss simple and eco-friendly living appeared when I
realized that unlike so many people out there bragging about their
eco-achievements or getting tired of being green, I actually lived a
pretty simple and green life without any outer forces and norms
telling me to do so. At that moment, when I compared myself to the
wide world I knew I had some things to share with it.
2. You started your blog a year ago, and have built a thriving
community of readers. What did you do to build your community so
quickly?
When I started the Kanelstrand blog I knew I needed it to promote my
etsy business but was in the dark as to what I should write about. The
only clear idea I had was that this blog would have to be successful.
I read a lot, I educate myself constantly and I give the Kanelstrand
blog 150% of myself. That is the secret behind it, I am fully devoted
to creating a intelligent, informational and inspiring place for
anyone interested in simplifying their life or simply making it easier
on the planet and themselves.
As an added bonus I have this amazing green community of readers who
not only support me but also inspire me daily. And I really mean that!
I am a curious person, and although I have more than 1000 GFC
followers I still find time to check every new follower's blog. There
is so much talent out there!
One thing I have noticed is that whatever you create with love and
devotion, be it a shop, a school or a blog, it gets the power to
attract like-minded people and this is what I see happening daily on
the Kanelstrand blog. People drop by and if they are in the same vibe,
or feel the need to take something from the vibe, they keep coming
back. My job is to make them feel welcome and to keep offering amazing
and thought-provoking information.
In that line of thoughts, I recently stumbled upon a precious thought
by Jonathan Fields that holds in itself the secret to success: "Forget
about what you want to sell. It’s not about you or it. It’s about who
you serve and how you remove their pain."
3. Your Etsy shop is filled with beautiful photos and handcrafted
felted bracelets, what inspires your creative collection?
I like the line which I use so often, saying that my inspiration comes
from the pine forest by the sea, in which I happen to live. I use that
phrase because it is so true! My major inspiration in life, ever since
I remember myself has been nature - the colors, the aromas, the sounds
and shapes - they all hide so many details that still attract my
attention and I keep re-discovering them with every new season, and
every sunrise.
Photography, poetry, hand-work have been with me for decades and are
my preferred way to express myself. I am very proud with my felted
bracelets because they are unique, I had to combine crafts and invent
methods in order to fulfill this dream of mine and they carry the
Scandinavian spirit not only because they are made with Norwegian and
Icelandic wools, here in a Norwegian forest, but because they have
that emblematic simplicity about them.
The photography prints that can be found in my etsy shop are also very
much Scandinavian. Most of the surreal ones are inspired by the Old
Norse Mythology and the idea of Middle Earth. A curious fact about
them is that they take about 24 hours of work to create, after the
click of the camera shutter. The crystal clear landscapes present
colorful Scandinavia in all its dreamy gorgeousness.
I love what I do!
4. You mention on you blog that you live in a pine forest by the Sea
in Scandinavia. I can only imagine the view out of your window must be
very inspiring. When you are working how do you keep your space
inspiring?
You are right, the view is magnificent! I see the pine forest, which
is frequented by a family of deers, and hundreds of birds. Because we
live some 200 feet from the beach I can also hear the waves.
You got me thinking though, where exactly is my working space? As a
photographer, I spend hours outside, as a nature lover I try to
transfer as many activities out too. I often write or knit on the
beach but my online life starts from my desk which happens to be (you)
guessed it) in front of said window. I don't have much inspirational
stuff on the walls, just a big calendar to keep track of my online
commitments, a photo printer on the desk, and a notebook to write down
ideas and schedules. With all that beauty behind the window, I can
hardly get more inspired!
5. How do you stay motivated on a daily basis to create and write your
blog posts?
I have found out that waiting for inspiration is never helpful. That
is why I like to provoke it by simple scheduling. Ever since I started
my blog I have stuck to a weekly routine, which has proven lucrative
and prompts my mind to be productive in the right time.
I recently opened my blog for regular contributors, all bloggers I
respect and admire, who add their wisdom to the Kanelstrand
experience. This big step is another great motivator for me - now it
is not just me behind the blog, but I work with this talented team of
writers who I want to be proud of contributing to a fabulous blog, so
I am beyond motivated to keep the standard high.
But my greatest blogging motivation is the feedback I receive from my
readers. The thing I like most about blogging is that it is a work in
progress that has a life of its own, because there are so many minds
involved. Your cleverness and originality become unimportant if you
don't have an audience. That is why I thank all my readers for always
being my rock!
Thank you so much Sonya, for sharing your amazing story!
Connect with Sonya ~
Blog ~
Etsy ~
Twitter ~
Facebook ~
Google+ ~
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