Maidenhead Mum: 10 great Birthday ideas for bloggers

Whether you're friends with one, related to one, live with one or are married to one, this list is designed to help make you become a birthday 'Fairy Godmother' for the blogger in your life.

Compiled from extensive personal research (!) and chatting to bloggers I’ve met over the last year or so, this highly scientific* list will give you some great ideas to inspire you to give them a fantastic birthday gift. (*no real science involved in making this list)

As a side note, any of these gifts would also be well received at any time of the year, so if you’re feeling generous, don’t feel you need to just limit yourself to an annual event! (shoots sideways glance and smile at husband who might be reading this)

So, in no particular order, and with a varied price range, here are my Top 10 things that you could buy a blogger for their birthday:

1. Keyboard for iPad or iPad mini, from £49.99

Admittedly this is going on the assumption that they have an iPad or iPad mini, and if they do, that they can reclaim ownership of it back from the kids. (I often have a fight!)

These clever keyboards from Logitech work on Bluetooth, hold a charge for ages, and mean that you can get typing, anywhere. Not only is it a practical way to sneak off and find a quiet corner to do some writing, wherever you are, but it also makes you look super cool when you whip it out at blogger events and press conferences. I've seen quite a few professional journalists sporting one of these too.

2. iPhone/Smartphone from £469 or from around £30 a month

Most of the best performing blogs are underpinned by great design and great photography. Now while we can’t all be David Bailey, or live with a Graphic Designer (although I managed to marry one, whoop!!), it goes without saying that a good camera can work wonders on your photography and the look of your blog.

A smartphone is the camera option your blogger is most likely to have with them at all times, so it makes sense to make sure that they have a good one. The quality of photography apps available for iOS, and the consistent high standard of images the iPhone takes means that Apple wins hands down for me in the smartphone stakes. If you don't think that they're an Apple fan then they might also like the Nokia 1020, the HTC M8 or the Sony Z2. I’m lucky in that I’ve been able to have a play with all of them and great as they all are, it’s the iPhone that I can’t live without.

If you are splashing out, be mindful that bloggers take a lot of photos and use a lot of apps, so 8GB storage on the phone wont last them for long- go for the 16GB or 32GB if you can! Also, if you're looking for a bargain on ebay, make sure you get the iPhone 5 or above, as these have the best cameras.

3. Eyefi WiFi SD card from £33

If you don’t have the budget to buy an iPhone as a birthday present (which is pretty likely, I just threw it in on a whim because there are some very generous husbands/boyfriends/family and friends out there!) then this Eye-Fi Wi-fi SD card could be another ingenious present.
You put the SD card into any compact camera (it doesn’t have to already have Wi-fi built in) and it means that you can access your photos from the camera straight away on your phone or tablet via an app. The days of having to wait until you get home to upload your photos onto the computer are long gone. Bloggers love to be able to react to things as and when they happen so this is a great, cost effective way of giving us access to great quality photos that can be instantly shared on social media or in a blog post.

4. Funky business cards from £28

Sometimes the thought of printing business cards can be a bit like writing your own CV - you know you should do it but you never quite get round to it. Having a lovely presentation box full of business cards that someone has made for you would be a great surprise. The software at Moo means that its quick and simple to design business cards so you might even be able to do this in a super sneaky way without them knowing.

Their 'Luxe' range has a premium feel and the short print run means that you don’t have to be stuck with the same cards for years.

5. Business card holder from £7.50

Such a simple idea, but why bother to get lovely business cards made if they’re going to get shoved in their purse along with their Tesco Clubcard, or they’re mixed in with the other shrapnel at the bottom of their bag. Whipping out a business card holder full of your funky business cards helps make you look that little bit more professional. They can even be a great conversation starter- super helpful if you’re out networking with people. I love this one from the French Design shop Pylones, but you’ll find lots of different styles on the web.

6. Posh pens and paper, from £1

Us bloggers are all united by a love of words… and writing… so I’d say it’s a pretty fair bet that we all used to get a little bit giddy at the start of a new school year and the impending ‘new pencil case’ opportunity. Personally, that excitement hasn’t ever really gone away and shops like Paperchase help to bring out that inner schoolgirl in me. Yes, I know that I’m meant to be embracing the digital world and that I can make notes on my phone, but you cant beat a good notebook. Either a big posh one to keep at home or a small pocketsize one that you can take anywhere with you, or both! You might want to go super swanky and get a leather Smythson one. Whatever you go for, you can be sure that a lovely notebook or fancy pen will be a gift that definitely gets used regularly.

7. Blogfest/ Britmums Events from £59

One of the best things about being a blogger, and particularly a parent blogger, is the community of other bloggers that exists out there. Throughout the year there are various events where we all get together to network, share ideas and experiences and learn as much as possible about the craft of blogging. The events vary in location, size and price. One of the most famous is Mumsnet Blogfest which currently has Early Bird tickets available for £59 until the end of July. (*update on 1st August* I got my husband to buy me an early bird ticket to Britmums Live 2015 last night.... Just 10 months to wait!)

Receiving a ticket as a gift would be great for two reasons:

Firstly, despite the fact that we all love to chat on social media, the thought of going out there and actually talking to a room full of real people can be a bit intimidating. Having been to Blogfest last year, its not as scary as you think, and the amount of knowledge you get from listening to the speakers is invaluable. A day of professional writing training could cost £500, so by comparison this is much better value for money as you get training and networking thrown in together. Rather than spending ages pondering the ‘should I go or not debate’, having a ticket bought for you pushes you into action! (In fact, I found that being at Blogfest was a bit like being at Glastonbury, (!) read about it here)

The second reason why this would make a great present is that attending one of these events can amount into an expensive day when you think about the travel, the ticket price, and whether you need to pay for additional childcare, and this can sometimes be off-putting. Being treated to the ticket means there’s just one less thing to worry about!

8. On the go battery charger: Kit Powerbank, £29.99

I would imagine that most bloggers use their phone at least twice as much as the average person. Whether its checking social media, taking and editing photos, writing notes, checking emails or reading other blog posts, you can be pretty sure that their phone is in constant use. And when you’re out and about that sucks. Because invariably you’ll find yourself low on battery by the end of the day, and if we’re unable to communicate with anyone its like having a limb cut off. These portable chargers are really handy. There are two sizes, the smaller one (around £15) holds one charge, but if they have room in their bag or you have budget for the bigger one you’ll find it holds enough charge to re-charge your smartphone at least three times. Trust me, they’ll love you for it!

9. A trendy and practical bag from £50

Bloggers might find themselves attending a networking event, or perhaps even more excitingly, get invited to a press event or product launch for a brand they're working with, or hope to work with. As they pack the night before there will be a moment where they realize that for the last few years they’ve ditched all of their handbags because they’ve been carrying all of their stuff in their child’s changing bag. You can help prevent this panic! Giving them a new bag, you can help your blogger be prepared in a girl/boy scout kinda way. Just make sure its big enough to fit in an iPad/ phone/notebook/ umbrella and mini stash of chocolate!

But regardless of any of the things listed above, there is one amazing, sure fire winner that you could give your blogger for their birthday....

(Dramatic pause....)

10. Time off (Free)

The simplest thing you can do that will potentially surpass all of these gifts, is to give your favourite blogger person the gift of some spare time. Most of us fit blogging in when we can around or jobs and parenting responsibilities and there is a constant feeling of ‘if I just had one spare hour/afternoon/ day’ then I could re-brand myself, redesign something, write 3 more posts… the list goes on. So if you can find a way to give an afternoon or day to them that they can use to get all that stuff done, they’ll love you forever!

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