Food bloggers have a lot of pressure on them to make fantastic photos. While magazines have a whole staff of experts to bring you those delectable, gorgeous recipes you drool over, we’re one-man shows, forced to become as close to experts as possible in recipe development, recipe testing, recipe writing, storytelling, and photography in order to gain enough exposure to have anyone read about the recipes we make. It’s a little more work than you count on at first when all you want to do is share your love for baking, but it also teaches us to branch out more and become better at everything we do. It’s a good kind of pressure.
Perfectly composed photos generally are not of the food item alone. Browse through Pinterest, Foodgawker, or your favorite culinary magazine and you’ll see all sorts of extras–props–that help make the photos pop. Whether they are fancy plates, colorful napkins, or funky silverware, they help bring the photo together into something more than a snapshot. Each piece is carefully selected to accentuate the food best. And each blogger probably has a prop cabinet just full of the items used to achieve these results.
What do you do with the props you’ve grown tired of? The ones who have given their all and you just don’t think they have anything left to give you? That’s where the Food Blogger Prop Swap comes in.
The Food Blogger Prop Swap is the brain child of Alyssa of www.EverydayMaven.com and Faith of www.AnEdibleMosaic.com. Each of us was given the name and address of another blogger to send a medium flat rate Priority Mail box full of props to. In return, we would receive one from another blogger. What a great way to change things up!
When it came time to ship out my box, I had a hard time parting with the props I had. It was my intention to recycle them from the start, but I just couldn’t do it–I couldn’t send them on their merry way. Instead, I went on a bit of a shopping spree at HomeGoods. HomeGoods is a food blogger’s paradise; a place where you can buy plates and linens individually, suiting our needs perfectly. I packed up my box of goodies and mailed it to Anne of From My Sweet Heart. I was a little nervous selecting items for someone else–what if she hated them?–but Anne not only loved every item I selected for her, but she also sent me an early thank you to be sure I knew just how much she liked them! I’m sure they’ll get great use in her house!
When I arrived home a few days later and saw that my Food Blogger Prop Swap box was from Shea of Dixie Chik Cooks, my heart raced. I love her blog! How exciting to be on the receiving end of her re-gifted props! She sent me some lovely linens, a cocktail shaker (oh, yeah!), a bowl with a rooster on it, and a fork and knife (which I badly need some flatware!). Some American flag toothpicks topped it all off. LOVE it! Can’t wait to get to work with all these new goodies!
In the end, I would gladly participate in a Food Blogger Prop Swap again. It gave us a chance to reach out to bloggers we may not have heard of before and make an impact on their lives, even if in a very small way. Plus it’s just plain fun getting a box of goodies even though it’s not your birthday or Christmas!
Love it! I had so much fun participating in the prop swap. I would totally do it again… more than once a year, in fact!
Would quarterly be too often? 😉 It is nice having a way to change things up and help others in the process, isn’t it?
What a FANTASTIC idea!!!!
Hi Carrie! Wow you got some really fantastic props in your goodie box! This was truly such a fun event. I can’t believe you shopped for me! But from what I got in my package from you….it looks like you’ve been over my shoulder every time I have shopped for myself! I LOVED everything you sent. And I cannot thank you enough for your generosity. Every time I use a prop….I’m going to link right over here to you! (I’ll be using one this Thursday!) Thanks again, Carrie…..and now I feel like you…..the props you sent me….I could never give away! : )
You are such a sweetheart, Anne! Truly, a treasure! Thank you! I’m so glad I was matched up with you and that I was able to make you so happy with the props I sent you!
I love the linens! This was such a fun swap.
I’m just so happy to have received some burlap out of it–I needed that! (How sad is it that I just wrote that? 😉 )
Love your photography!
Thank you! It means a lot to me that you said that!
You certainly hit the jackpot with your surprise box.
This swap was so much fun!!! Really looking forward to seeing what everyone does with their props!
Such a genius idea. And thankfully for my husband, it might keep me from flexing those credit card muscles a bit more!
I’m sure my husband expected that it would stop my spending on props, but that’s not quite what happened. 😉 It is nice to change things up periodically though!
What a fantastic box and post! Thanks for participating 🙂
Isn’t it all so lovely? So much fun–count me in for the next one!
Oh my goodness! I’m SO jealous!! I wish I had known about this. I would have given a limb to participate 😉 But seriously, what a great idea. So what’s the deal? Was this just a one-time thing? Will it be done regularly? And how do I get in on the next one. Detail please!
Check out the link to the swap–they’re taking a poll on what kinds of swaps bloggers would be interested in. Sounds like there will definitely be another one!
I looked but don’t see a poll 🙁 Maybe it already closed? Either way, I’ll keep my ears open for another one! Thanks for the info!
Try this link: http://foodbloggerpropswap.us2.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=332a0f323cd66226a93769001&id=53ce86b464
The swap was fun! I love the rooster!
G’day! What a fun swap indeed, TRUE!
I also like the linen too! 🙂
Cheers! Joanne