Today I am heading to Berlin for the fourth Hive Conference for bloggers, which this year is aptly tagged ‘a gathering of digital storytellers, tastemakers & bloggers’. I have been to every one of the Hives and they just get better every year. Yvonne, the mastermind behind the event, has learnt from the early experiences as to what makes a great conference for bloggers. I must admit that I shy away from very commercial conferences, courses and forums out there, the kind that are moving blogging away from its original purpose and encouraging people to set up blogs just to make money. To me blogging is about a positive community, sharing experiences and thoughts on a personal level (how personal that is depends of the individual).

I digress, I have been blogging for a long time but I think that only in the last twelve months I have found my niche and confidence. You can read about my blogging journey here. Although I am not a newbie to the blogging scene, there is still new things to learn, new people to be inspired by and new friends to meet. I am also shocked when I see how some bloggers attract such vitriol and hatred from perfect strangers on-line. At the Hive, it is lovely to be in an environment where we can all be ourselves, whether we are new bloggers or more experienced. Some bloggers I met at the first Hive have gone on to make a huge success of their blogs and through their blog have published books, hosted TV shows, set up online courses,  run successful webshops but it all came from a genuine and authentic place.

I thought I would share a few of the blogs from the speakers at the conference with you today so perhaps you can be inspired too.

The big name (in the blogging world) speaking at the conference  is Natalie Holbrook from the blog Hey Natalie Jean. She has also just published her first book, which I adored and can heartily recommend. I am looking forward to hearing her speak about surviving vulnerability on-line – something sadly she knows a lot about. Another speaker I am looking forward to is Niki from My Scandinavian Home, she curates such a beautiful blog and is a lovely person.

Here are some other speakers’ blogs to check out….beautiful styling from Dietland Wolf, inspiring street fashion from Hauptstadtmutti (I was once featured on this website looking somewhat like a crazy person with no shoes on, but hey that is Berlin street style for you), design and sunshine from Cocorrina, a gorgeous glimpse of London from A Lady in London, and Copenhagen’s very own Scandinavia Standard.

I hope you enjoy checking out some of these blogs.