Hello Hello Hello friends!
Sooo here’s a little something different, eh? A Saturday post!…I know. Who is this person?. It’s me ya’ll, and today I come with words and thoughts. Lots of them…so keep that in mind before you continue.
Before I get too far into things I want to give a huge thank you to my social media friend James, as he’s the one who really triggered this post. If you follow me on Instagram you know that earlier this week he started a really fun hashtag: #igglowup. He encouraged us to snap a pic of what our feeds currently look like and share it…
and then to scroll to the very beginning of our feeds, snap a pic and share that as well…
It was meant to be a way to show how much we’ve changed and grown, and to show how our feeds have evolved from hot mess to (hopefully) something much better. Let me just tell you it totally sent me down a rabbit hole and drudged up so many feelings and emotions.
January marked 7 years of blogging for me. I published my first ever post on January 10, 2012 via a free blogspot.com account with absolutely no expectations or clue as to what would come of it. I had just recently left design school and was working in a completely non creative job and I needed an outlet. I honestly didn’t even know what a blog was a week prior to me starting. And I certainly didn’t know what being a blogger meant. I just know I came across one. And they were writing and sharing pictures about design. And there were others out there doing the same thing. And, hold the phone, there was a whole community of people out there writing about design and home and I. HAD. TO. BE. PART. OF. IT. I had found my people. I mean they did know who the hell I even was, but they were my people.
I immersed myself into this world of creating content before the term “content creator” was an actual thing. We were literally creating to share. Back then the design blogger world was primarily DIY projects…from the super simple “how to paint a wall” and “how to arrange furniture in a room” type stuff, to the more complicated “how to install cabinets and replace floors” situations too. I was just so excited to have a place to dump all the things I was passionate about that my non creative friends and family didn’t want to constantly hear me go on and on about.
Digging back through the feed I ran across all of those projects and posts from the early days. One of my faves was the
polka dot plate art project I made with thrift store plates and sharpie paint markers:
And also the painted dining room table and stenciled kitchen floors projects
Our first tiling project together
And even the first blog refresh and upgrade
(My original welcome message brings such a smile to my face: “I’m Shavonda. Wife. Mother. Design Lover. Treasure Hunter. Chronic Re-arranger. And all around super cool chick. This is the story of how I’ll be blending colorful eclectic style with a smidge of modern to create a perfectly imperfect home.”)
The blogosphere was such a special space for me. I absolutely loved blogging. I loved writing and sharing and connecting with everyone. I loved that there wasn’t any pressure to perform. Content didn’t feel so perfectly curated, but rather more journalistic, and the community aspect was just the best. The linky parties. The side bar blog rolls highlighting your fave daily reads. Contributing to other blogs through project swaps. Good times.
And then the migration of doom happened. Well, that’s what I called it at least. After a solid 2 years of blogging I decided to make the switch over to WordPress and in doing so I somehow lost all the photos to all my posts prior to the switch. So every blog post published in those 2 years had its photographs wiped away. I was devastated and it threw me into a really negative space.
I was so upset that all the work, and content, and networking, and honing in on my photography skills had all been tossed out the door. The posts were still there, but it just felt empty and useless without any imagery…especially from a DIY and How-To perspective. It was just so deflating and it almost made me step away out from blogging completely.
Around the same time as the great migration dilemma Instagram really started to become king. While there had been an influx of new blogs pop up on the scene since I’d started, I noticed people were beginning to blog less and were investing much more time and energy on IG and other social media outlets. I was totally guilty of this myself….especially because I was working full time as well as blogging. IG is easier, faster, more flexible and far more convenient. Unfortunately, it was also an avenue for me to lose sight of how important blogging was to me. I honestly thought blogs were dying. I thought if everyone preferred IG what was the point of blogging anymore? Was the return on time investment even worth it even more.
Joining the hashtag challenge brought to the surface something I had been thinking about over the past year: my why? Why did I start blogging in the first place? Why do I continue to share my life and perspective with the world? For me its always been about my love of design and being a voice with a different experience and perspective. To be the person who made the case for imperfect, eclectic, and well lived in spaces. To be the person who highlighted those design details that maybe weren’t the most popular, but should totally be considered. To be the person who doesn’t do white walls or neutral spaces even though everyone else seems to love them. To share just how “normal” life as a LGBT POC is and how much more in common we have with one another than you may think. To share that even though we are few and far between, there are designers of color out there. To share the real life process of creating and curating an intentionally designed home.
When I left my job last January to pursue entrepreneurship full time my number one reason was to have the independence and power to do what I love and generate an income doing so. To be able to make my own schedule, be present for my kids as they were in their final years of school, and to continue to focus on design. For months I’ve been thinking that when I worked a traditional full time 9-5 schedule all those years all I wanted was to be in a position to have the time to be able to blog full time. Well…here we are. And I wasn’t doing a damn thing about it. Just a shame.
So I’ve decided to take back the blog and to take back design…like actual real good visual orgasm/holy-hell-no-they-didn’t design. To get back to being not only a blogger, but also a blog reader. To write about the things I want to write about. To blog for myself because its what makes me happy and fills my cup. To share inspiring projects and DIYs no matter how big or small. To share those spaces that aren’t complete or perfect. To share design and style details that have always been at the core of what defines my taste. To share those fellow bloggers who’s accounts I love and that bring me a ton of joy and inspiration.
The reality is I’m a designer and blogger first and I happen to also share on IG as an extension of my blog. The blog is owned by me and rather than giving it proper attention I had been operating more as if I’d just popped up on the IG scene a year ago. And see that’s what I not bout to continue to do. Things are about to change and for me that means taking it back to the beginning. Not necessarily starting over, but certainly bringing back that vibe both visually and from a content perspective.
I know this was a bit of a long one friends and if you’re still with me I appreciate it. I just felt like I really needed a bit of a brain dump. Hope you all have a wonderful weekend. Until next time friends….
Haley says
yay! I’m so excited for this! With the huge IG switch, I haven’t been able to keep up with as many content creators because I try to only use IG in small spurts. I love my time getting to relax and intentionally read blogs, so I’m excited you’ve been popping up more on my blog reading feed.
Britt says
Hello! I first found you via IG and was sad you didn’t seem to have as active of a blog because I loved your writing “voice” and am always looking for blogs to read over lunch at work. (So few of my old favorites still update consistently.) Can’t wait to read more as you take the blog back!
MILO says
I love this! So excited for the future of this blog!
Shavonda Gardner says
Thank you so much!
jana says
I don’t have anything insightful to say, just wanted to acknowledge you & tell you that this was great! I’m excited to see what you have in store for us! I’m going to be that 1 last person that refuses to stop reading blogs so anytime a blogger has a “resurgence” of any kind, I am all about it. I prefer a blog format over a video any day of the week.
Amy says
Keep the blogs alive! I love yours and my other regular ones. I’m not on IG and probably never will be. Reading my favorite design blogs is my wake-up ritual every morning! Thanks for sharing your life, your ideas, and your beautiful home with us!
Shavonda Gardner says
Hi Amy! I love that reading blogs is part of your self care routine! It was a part of my Saturday morning routine for the longest. Definitely gotta get back to that.
Faith says
I’m really looking forward to this shift! Even with the Instagram shift I continued to read blogs but the posts have become less and less which has been disappointing. I’ve been hoping that blogs were not dead and I’m hoping that is the case! Looking forward to reading!
Shavonda Gardner says
Hi Faith!
Thank you so much. Its great to hear other people hope blogs are dying too! Im very much looking forward to getting back to it.
Sentrell says
OMG I was just thinking the same thing a few weeks ago. I really miss blogs and blogging. I’m in the processs of revamping my blog and really putting effort into it. It is crazy how Instagram has taken over. I used to love spending hours reading design blogs. It is inspired me so much! It is why I decided to go back to school and get my masters in Interior Architecture. I’m excited to read your blog and I’m so glad there’s a movement to get back to blogging. I’m looking forward to the unpolished real content to come back from so many bloggers.
Shavonda Gardner says
Hi Sentrell!
My favorite weekend routine was waking up on Saturday with a cup of tea or coffee and reading all my favorite blogs from week. It was so inspiring to see what everyone was up to and to see all the creativity. Congratulations on your degree! Id love to read your blog when you get it up and running.
Tiffany Bello says
This made my soul sing! I started my first blog in 2009 back in the old days you speak of when we encouraged each other and knew we were pioneering and tapping into something extremely new. I stopped blogging to finish my degree via evening classes and told myself I’d start back once I graduated. Fast forward five years, a marriage, and demanding career later and I’ve given myself the deadline of 3/31 to launch again. I look forward to creating in the “new” blog space with you.
Shavonda Gardner says
Yesssss Tiffany! Congrats friend. Here’s to taking our blogs back!!!
Kimmie | KPFUSION says
Posts like this are exactly why I penned a post last Monday stating why I believe blogs aren’t dead. The current state of blogging, where IG takes precedence over everything, is slowly but surely winding down. Unless you’re a blogger that is fulfilled from hawking product 24/7, you probably long for the olden days when content was truly original and not just surface level entertainment. Every single blogger that I follow that has depth to them are having similar experiences and I for one am here for it bc it means that things are starting to shift. That personal connection that we get from being apart of this community has been missing for awhile but I truly believe it’s coming back. I’ve always enjoyed reading blogs and will make sure I do my part in supporting them!
Shavonda Gardner says
Hi Kim!!
Yesss friend. I’ve been talking to many of my old blogger friends and the overwhelming common thread is we all miss a lot about the early blogging days. Heading over to read your post now.
Kimmie | KPFUSION says
this makes me so happy! I hope more people get back to it, especially in the design space. I saw last week that Design Sponge is ending this year, which makes me wonder what/where people will go to publish original home tours that aren’t all cookie cutter.
Bonnie says
Very excited! I’ve only started following you on Instagram, and then the blog, about a year ago, but I so very much love reading blogs behind images with the longer explanation of the whys and the hows. So I can’t wait!
Linda says
I am so excited to read about your changes! I have only been with you for a short time but I am loving what I see. I am keen to continue reading and sharing in your experiences.
I am so glad that bloggers are feeling keen to continue but that they are wanting to bring back the imperfect. It makes you all much more approachable ?
Andrea Fenise says
I agree with every detail of this post. I took my blog back last year. Although, I never gave in to Instagram. I’ve always looked at my blog as primary. However, I didn’t engage much with other bloggers because their content was BLAH but feeds were gorgeous. There was something so flat and dull about blogging.
Kudos to you!! I’ve always enjoyed reading your blog and looking forward to your shift.
Shavonda Gardner says
Thank you Andrea!
Emily H. says
Yay! I’ve been following you on IG since you were on the Young House Love podcast and I’m excited to see more of you on the blog! Can’t wait to read your next post!
Tonia Grant says
Loved reading this!
cassie bustamante says
i read this at the right time because i totally came back to my why recently… i do this to share that you can have a beautiful home on a budget. so i am focused on getting back to that… there will be splurges here and there, but i am all about thrifty projects and finding things for less! excited about it again and i feel like i have focus!
Shavonda Gardner says
You’ve always been such an inspiration for affordable design Cassie! Looks like we both found our focus again and cheers to that my friend.