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In the lifestyle blogosphere, it’s pretty popular for bloggers to write posts explaining all of the tech and tools that they use. They are interesting because everyone has different preferences and workflows. It is about time that I do a tea blogging version of this. I do get questions about what gear I use from time to time so it will also help to have a blog post that I can refer people to. Particularly for new bloggers, it is easy to believe that you need the top of the line of everything to succeed. Nothing could be farther than the truth and I think you’ll find this list to be proof positive of that.
Tech
Laptop – HP Pavillion G7
My laptop, a thoughtful gift from my soon-to-be-husband, is several years old at this point but it is pretty much the command center for the blog. I use it for everything from writing blog posts to filming YouTube videos. It isn’t the fastest or most advanced computer out there but I’ve been very happy with it. It does run a bit hot but that is easily solved with a USB cooling pad.
Chromebook- HP Chromebook 11
Life gets pretty busy so I needed something that would allow me to keep the blog updated while on the go. I had a Chromebook years ago but somehow managed to leave it on a bus. Jason once again saved the day by buying me a replacement last Christmas. I love that it is lightweight but still has a full keyboard. There isn’t much internal memory but Google Drive pretty much takes care of that issue. I often bring it to work, especially if I wasn’t able to finish the Friday Roundup on time. Amazon makes a nifty carrying case for these that is very inexpensive.
External Hard Drive – Western Digital 1TB Elements
An external hard drive is essential for backing up all of my photos, videos, and other important files for the blog. I’ve been using this one since 2011 so there are even cheaper models available with more storage space nowadays. It is just now beginning to fill up so I may need to upgrade soon.
Phone – Samsung J7
I’m an Android girl through and through. In recent years I’ve stuck mostly with the Samsung Galaxy family of phones. When I recently made the change to T-Mobile from Verizon, I received a J7 as the basic smartphone option. I was pleasantly surprised to find that this it offered everything I liked about the other Galaxy phones for a MUCH lower price tag.
Website Host – Cloudways
I finally moved my blog to WordPress after being on Blogger for many years. That is a move I should have made a long time ago. Cloudways is my current host and I have been very happy with them. It was easy to scale my servers when I needed to, but their monthly billing and affordable prices kept things reasonable too.
Photography
Camera – Canon EOS Rebel T7i
After years of shooting all of my pictures with a Canon PowerShot that was bought off a stranger on Facebook, I finally upgraded to a DSLR. There is a learning curve but photography is much less frustrating than it used to be. It took such a long time for me to decide what camera to get but the T7i has been the perfect starter camera. I’m looking forward to creating more video content now that I have a camera that will make higher-quality videos.
Lighting – Folding Light Tent and Selfie Ring Light
I was spoiled by having a ton of natural light when I was living with my parents. My current basement apartment…not so much. There was a major adjustment period but finding an inexpensive folding light tent has made a world of difference. It is small in size and has a built-in LED light strip, perfect for getting close-ups of leaves for blog posts. When I need to take pictures outside of the light tent, I use a Kardashian-style selfie ring light. Just turn it around to your forward-facing camera and it is a perfect way to illuminate objects.
Brewing
Heating – Fellow Corvo EKG and Zojirushi CD-WCC40
My early tea reviews used an old-fashioned stovetop kettle or a Zarafina Tea Maker. I won a Breville One-Touch at a Steepster meetup years ago and used that for nearly a decade. The pitcher was a bit hefty but this unit has been a real workhorse. Now I used a Corvo EKG from Fellow and I love it.
Water – Brita Metro Filter Pitcher
Tap water quality can vary widely across the U.S. but I’m pretty lucky in that respect. My municipal water is dependable, clean, and fairly odorless. Just to be on the safe side, I usually filter my water for tea with a Brita pitcher. It’s a small step but I feel like it does make a significant difference in the taste of my tea.
Is there something you’d like to know about that I missed? Let me know and I’ll be sure to add it to this post. I’d love to hear about your setup or better yet, share a post like this one on your blog!