Designing Home Blog 2014

 I just wrote my 200th post on Designing Home and I’ve had a very laid back Christmas with lots of time to consider what is working on my  blog and what I might like to add, change, or improve.  Here are the results of my mini conference with self:

Practical posts for  homeowners

 I usually write about  topics that I think  average homeowners are interested in as they go about refreshing  or designing new spaces.  I will still continue  to address these topics  because I can see from my stats that these are my most read posts especially any that address designing smaller spaces. Aren’t blog stats a wonderful thing? I also know that my  largest blog readership is in United States.  Hey, where are the Canadians?

Lori Harrison Collection

 
Canadian focus 

I’ve decided it’s time to seriously ramp up my Canadian content. Stay tuned to meet some great Canadian designers over the next year.   I will include product designers (furniture, textiles, housewares etc. ) and also Canadian interior designers and  visual artists. 

 

 I am also on the search to add more Canadian bloggers to my reading list and encourage you to do the same.  I found a good source on Pinterest (where you find everything) that I am wading through and choosing my favourites.  

Paterson Woodworking Fisher Table

Local Design

 Newfoundland Labrador has some very creative people and their products can enhance any living space.  You will meet some of them this year as I encourage  my NL readers to buy local, and other readers to spread their wings our way when purchasing.

 

  Fine art focus

Anyone
who knows me is aware that I am also a visual artist  with an art
blog called Painting On.  It is becoming increasingly more difficult to
keep both blogs current.  I am seeking solutions to this problem and I’m sure there will be cross posting or artist highlights on Designing Home. They will support my belief that no home is complete without art.  I also want to write more posts about
the arrangement and display of art in your home. 

 
Google+ 

I just took the plunge and joined Google+ .  It’s a little overwhelming right now, but I hope it will be a community where I can meet other  interior design bloggers.  


Welcome 2014

 

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Does anyone actually read my blog?

Your friends and family keep you on your toes and often unwittingly provide great fodder for blog posts!  They also cause a scattered examination of conscience.  Two recent questions about my blogging ( I have a painting blog and a home decorating blog) got me thinking about my purpose and audience, and the time I invest in this activity. This post is about Designing Home blog

Audience
  I am happy to report that people do indeed read Designing Home blog. Since I began it almost three years ago,  I’ve had over .25 million page views.  That surprised even me because I originally began to write this blog with a local audience in mind.  I couldn’t be further from the mark.

  My readership is 6 times larger in the United States  than Canada.  Canada, Great Britian, Australia and Germany are almost tied in interest.  Only a small percentage of readers are actually from Newfoundland.  No doubt it is a global village.

Topics
I am glad that my original prediction about audience was correct. The average homeowner appears to welcome clear information about basic decorating issues.  You now, the kind of questions you have if you live in an  average size home and decorate with a modest budget.  Personally that means a very modest budget layered with a lot of DIY.  While I write about other topics that appeal to smaller audiences, I try to keep my focus “sensible”.
Here are the top five posts on

10 Tips for decorating a small living room 75522 page views May 2, 2012, 38 comments Houzz
10 Design Solutions for Small Bedrooms 26956 page views Mar 17, 2011, 10 comments
Current trends in window treatments 17163 page views Mar 4, 2012, 16 comments Lisa Ferguson via Houzz
5 Window Treatments for Patio Doors 9914 page views Jun 14, 2011, 9 comments
Mark English Architects, AIA via Houzz 5 Reasons to have an accent wall 8484 page views Jan 30, 2011

 

                                                     PSCBATH

It appears that many people have issues with small rooms and are looking for creative ways to use space.  Window treatments, accent walls and hanging light fixtures are topics that everyone thinks about.

Purpose 
Why  would I use a chunk of my valuable time to write?

 The biggest joke of all is I don’t actually enjoy writing.  I find it labour intensive and a clumsy way to provide knowledge although I am an avid reader.  I am definitely a face to face communicator who needs the visual signals of my audience to be completely comfortable.  It comes from years of teaching both children and adults. I am also a huge synthesizer. I like to get things down to the bare bones quickly.  A colleague once told me I write like a machine gun.  I am obviously not a highly verbal person – I am a doer.

But…. I love to organize and share information. It just makes me happy.  The learner/ synthesizer function wins.  

Blogging also provides a forum to research questions or problems that arise as I work with clients.  It has expanded my horizons in so many ways when it comes to interior design. The design community is diverse and blogging keeps me in touch with trends from around the world.  That is a necessity when you live on an island where attitudes can tend toward the provincial and predictable.

Blogging  increases your credibility.  When you have a blog /website as I do, you have a showcase for your understanding of design issues and people can anonymously ” check you out”.  There are lots of lurkers out there from my stats.  2542 people checked out my portfolios , 798 read my design statement and 540 wanted to know more about me.

Yes, people are reading my blog.  It serves its purpose.

Signing  out from my not so decorative small computer space….

    

  As you can see, I live in a very average space and I am also a little sloppy at times. Why I have a pair of pliers on my desk is a mystery. This desk came  from a contractor friend  who  renovated a  university residence.  The walls are BM CC 460 inukshuk  and the desk is painted BM
HC 69 whitall brown. The resident carpenter built the bookcase to fit the equipment. 

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