Welcome to the Kati Keksi monthly newsletter, bringing together the latest content from the Kati Keksi website as well as highlights from social media including Facebook and Instagram.

Hey!

October, my birthday month is past and now the next big focus is Christmas.

I had a really nice birthday, spending time with friends and family. I also received all the gifts that I dropped heavy hints (demands) to my husband. 😁

I got to go out to lunch and dinner, and you would have seen my brunch outing a few days later which was lovely on a rather hot day.

I was thinking I could write about Christmas but I might leave out to the next issue. Honestly, I'm not really much of a Christmas person.

I certainly don't get super excited about decorations or going shopping for oodles of presents. But I need to open myself up to Christmas a little bit more for our daughter who finds it all very magical.

Though I'm not going to change and start buying a ton of gifts for people I only see once a year. 😅

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Good ads / bad ads

You might have noticed last month I had a few paid posts, including a paid post over on Instagram.

Generally speaking, I do one paid post a month, sometimes two. Out of the 120+ posts a month this represents less than 1% of my content.

Yet, I had one person take umbrage against one of my paid posts and complain in my DMs.

Honestly, I think they may have just been having a bad day. Perhaps I was the first person they saw.

But maybe it's a good opportunity to share or maybe reiterate a few things.

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As I mentioned above 99% of my posts are my own - not sponsored, not an ad.

When I negotiate with brands I am very upfront. I tell them that I'm not going to use their marketing copy, and that while I'll be sharing product photos, I'll also also be sharing my opinion.

I just don't see the point of me regurgitating an ad from a magazine or their feed.

It doesn't add any value, and it detracts from my own credibility.

So being told that I'm only endorsing a product because I've been paid or that I'm defending a product price because I've been paid just isn't true.

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How do you perceive paid posts?

For me personally I don't mind creators having paid posts. But it should be ethical.

Posts should be clearly declared as an ad (or gifted product) and have their own words and own photos.

Too often I see posts from creators about products where I know they are running a promotional / gifted campaign. I don't care if someone has 100k followers or 100, there's no reason not to be up front. 🤷

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I had a conversation with a friend earlier in the year, about her changed perspective on paid posts and I think it's worth sharing.

She said previously when she saw an ad from a creator / person she followed, she tended to roll her eyes and scroll on. No reading the post, no clicking like.

I'm not sure if it was since learning about what I do and my process that her mind changed, but now she sees it differently.

When she sees a paid post she does stop and engage with it. She appreciates that the payment received is supporting that creator not only to do paid content but for all the unpaid work they do in between.

And that's just it, I make over 100 Facebook posts a month that are unpaid. I'm not on the payroll for Coles or Woolworths. I have just a few affiliate accounts and I always declare them.

And every ad is labelled with AD or sponsored.

What I do does bring in an income, but it's not my sole motivation. Some things I do take up far too much time for the return, but the feedback I get from people following is it's own reward and it's a powerful one.

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Kati's affiliates relationships

I'll do a small mention for the affiliates I do have, because I rarely share them and we're heading into the biggest shopping period of the year.

I don't feel bad mentioning it because I don't share them often and I certainly don't flog them all the time.

Here's who I work with and here are the links. Each store provides a commission (or in the case of Amazon may provide a commission, not everything qualifies) at no extra cost to you.

​Amazon

​Bask and Co

​Etsy (I've actually never made money from this one, so I'll probably close it)

​The GF Lolly Co​

​Happy Tummies​

In case you're desperately wondering, or just a bit curious about how much affiliates links can make I'll share what I know.

I saw someone post recently that they earn $5,000 a month from theirs (someone on Instagram with 100k followers posting mum content, fashion and more).

In my case however, it would be under $1,000 across the three years I've had affiliate relationships. Small potatoes.

So genuinely, like the post I did recently about Happy Tummies Christmas products, it is much more about helping you find hard to get products than it is about me making a few dollars in commission.

Though, I think of any earnings (or money I find on the ground) in terms of coffees. So I'll always cheer if I've earned enough for a coffee.

Oh and while we're at it, don't go buying things you don't need to send me a few bucks. That's lovely but not necessary. If you want to just pop some coins my way you can do it directly on my Buy Me a Coffee page (kind of like Patreon).

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Kati x

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Oh and if you're wondering how the Melbourne Gluten Free Expo was you can read my post!

Latest posts on katikeksi.com​

Not up to date with the website? Here's what I've been talking about this month.

Strawberry & Cranberry granola

Bask & Co's newest product is a special edition strawberry and cranberry granola. See how it holds up against their original.

2025 Gluten free Advent calendars

The most important right now if you've got kids (or a kid at heart). I've taken a deep dive into all the gluten free advent calendar options, including a few grown up ones.

October's new gluten free products

Everything is snack bars! Plus a gluten free Dubai chocolate and a special shout out to three "new" GF ready meals.

Most popular content on Facebook

What's been big on Facebook this month? Quite a few things, I've also included some product alerts that are a worth a read.

• ​British Aero bars are GF (no may contain) and also soy free.
• Lee Kum Kee's char siu sauce is now tested gluten free! LKK have been transitioning many of their products over to gluten free in the last few months.
• Aldi has some quick and easy pizza potato baskets.
• Sooo many people are excited for new Funday lollies.
• ​Viennetta has had it's allergen listing updated and no longer says "dextrose (wheat)" which was always safe, but often confusing.
• I did a little gluten free explainer on tricky product Buderim ginger bears.
• Red Rock Deli has gourmet snack packs with crackers, cheese and dip.
• There's a biiiig cheese stuffed, prosciutto wrapped chicken in the freezer at Coles. Pretty sure it's just for the festive season.

Instagram @kati_keksi

Do you follow me on Instagram? I tend to post different content there compared to Facebook so it's worth checking out both.

Here's what I've been sharing this month.

• All the latest release ice creams from Twisted Healthy Treats - so far my favourite is the chocolate.
• A rather funny, puzzling typo on a chocolate box.
• And of course the freshest reel, a summary of October's new gluten free products.

New product alerts

Here's just a few of the new gluten free products I've seen in the last month.

• Christmas releases are coming through, with a brand new cookie decorating kit.
• NZ brand Jon Jon have their GF brandy snaps ranged across Woolwroths stores.
• Coles has a bunch of new on the go fresh snacks.
• Not new, but I randomly spotted Kapiti in Coles. Potentially great news for cities without Aldi stores.
• Speaking of Kapti they've got a new plum flavour at Aldi.
• Pana Organic has a tonne of new products coming out. I haven't seen any yet but I'm keen for the black forest ice cream.
• Lots and lots of new summer grilling meats are available at Woolworths, I've already tried a few.

Be sure to follow me on Facebook where I post everything I find, and if you prefer, follow me on Instagram for a monthly reel summary.

Product warning / alerts

This month has been busy when it comes to product changes.

Here's a full list of everything I shared on Facebook in case the algorithm didn't show it to you.

• Lifesavers banana lollies finally accurately list wheat starch in their ingredients. This was personally satisfying after a long battle with the brand.
• Muscle Nation has been selling wheat protein bars in boxes labelled gluten free. Keep your wits about you.
• 7-Eleven hot chocolate now contains barley malt, it's not longer gluten free.
• Select Bounce energy balls are no longer GF and have a may contain for wheat / gluten.
• Frost Fruits Sorbet is no longer tested GF, it now has a may contain for wheat/gluten and also now contains dairy.

Article from the archive

Did you know I started my website back in January 2022? There's so many articles, including reviews that you can read. Here's one I picked for you.

Gluten free Christmas chocolates and treats

There is a real explosion of gluten free treats at Christmas. I feel like most of them are from Aldi. This is last year's guide and it's what I'll be refreshing for a relaunch for 2025.

Have a read and see what you can look forward to this Christmas.

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Thanks for reading! If you want to support my work you can Buy Me a Coffee ☕.