08.02

Do What You Love interview – Victoria Smith (sfgirlbybay)

thebiginterview1

It is a huge honour to welcome the esteemed Victoria Smith, aka sfgirlbybay for this Do What You Love interview.  Victoria Smith is editor/stylist of sfgirlbybay, a San Francisco based design and decor blog. With a cult following of 20,000+ daily readers Victoria has been voted #10 in the London Times Top 50 Design Blogs, and MSN/Glo’s 10 Décor Experts To Watch.  Prior to taking up blogging full-time, Victoria worked as a freelance art buyer producing photo shoots for advertising agencies and designers on accounts such as Condé Nast Publications. She has an Advanced Arts degree in Interior Design. Victoria talks to us about her life as a top blogger.

Do What You Love interview - Victoria Smith (sfgirlbybay) victoria smith

(Image courtesy of Victoria Smith)

1. Several years ago you took a huge leap of faith and quit your job to blog full time. What gave you the courage to do that at that moment?

I had enough savings that I felt confident I’d be all right without a full time job for at least six months, and could take a chance with blogging as a career. I had freelanced in my advertising career before, so I knew I had that to fall back on if things didn’t succeed as planned. Ad sales were going well, and my etsy shop was bringing in additional income. I knew I’d have to be a bit of a ‘renaissance woman’ – dabbling in a little bit of everything to maintain financial stability.

2. What has been the single most important piece of advice you have received along the way?

I got a lot of great advice from Grace Bonney of design*sponge. She was very helpful in helping me create a digital press kit to send out to potential advertisers that looked professional and got across my mission as a blogger in a concise way. I think that helped enormously with gaining new advertisers.

3. What does a ‘normal day’ look like in your life?  Is there is such a thing?

It’s not that normal. At least as far as structure. I’m trying to be better at that aspect of working from home. But a typical day starts with coffee and cleaning out my inbox and prioritizing emails I need to reply to, followed by a trip to the dog park with my pup Lucy. Then home to reply to urgent emails and write the following week’s posts. I write 2-3 posts a day, and try to get ahead of the editorial calendar, but it doesn’t always happen. I also update my etsy shop, keep track of advertising schedules and invoicing, and search the internet for new ideas – some of which involves social media in the form of twitter and Facebook. I keep pretty busy on those sites as it tends to drive traffic to the site, and I really enjoy twitter and the creativity I find there. Back to the dog park around 5 and then try to finally feed myself.

4. How has blogging helped you develop as an artist?

I’m still a struggling photographer, but it’s fun to share my work on the blog. I do a series called Sunday in the City, where I share my photographs taken around San Francisco. I get feedback from the blog that helps me grow, and was invited to have an exhibit of the work, which was both terrifying and fun.

Do What You Love interview - Victoria Smith (sfgirlbybay) sunday in the city image

(‘Sunday in the City’ image by Victoria Smith)

5. You post 2-3 times a day – where do you get all your inspiration from?

All over – twitter, magazines, other blogs, and galleries. I get on the internet and I go from one link to another. I love the Scandinavian aesthetic and some of those blogs like emma’s design blog, which inspires me endlessly.

6. What has been the most important thing you have done to grow your creative business over the past few years?

I think social media has helped significantly. I tweet and post on Facebook links to my daily blog posts and it drives a lot of traffic and creates a great word of mouth following. It helps like-minded design afficiandos find my blog.

7. With hindsight, what would you have done differently when starting out?

Probably the most significant thing would to have thought up a different name. It was just a hobby and a whim to start the blog and sfgirlbybay is not a name that screams ‘design’ or ‘decor’. I would have thought that through a bit more.

8. And where do you want to take it next? What is the big dream?

I love blogging, so I’d like to keep on doing this for a long while to come. I am redesigning the site, so I’m looking forward to that – a new, clean look, with less clutter. I’d love to add video to the blog, and collaborate with magazines and artists. I still love magazines, so I think a collaboration with the blog could work well.

Do What You Love interview - Victoria Smith (sfgirlbybay) curiosity shoppe

I am heading to San Francisco soon – quickfire round of recommendations please!  What would you suggest is a must-visit…
…interiors shop?  Nest, Monument.
…stationery shop? Arch is a favorite of mine – but also an art supply store.

Nest(Image by Victoria Smith)

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To find out more about Victoria visit her website sfgirlbybay or connect with her on Facebook or Twitter

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Get more inspiration from other Do What You Love interviews here.

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