The State of Blogging…
Blogging has been a part of my life since 2008! Actually, if you want to get technical I first learned of blogs in 2007 and consistently read them for a year until I decided to become a blogger as well. I never thought there would be a time where I wouldn’t want to blog on a daily basis, but I must say 2019 was tough for me on the blogging front. As one of the OG bloggers I felt like so many parts of blogging that I loved were gone. Comments are something of the past and it’s quite lonely blogging and not starting conversations with readers in the comments section. Did you like it? Did you read it? Do you have a tip for how I can do it better? All questions that I use to get answered from the comments section. I totally get why comments on blogs are dead. We simply don’t have the time. I wish there was a little heart section on blog posts where I could double-tap like on Instagram to let the blogger know I was there and enjoyed it.
So, last year I tried to focus more on growing my Instagram account and only blogging when I had researched the topic beforehand and saw how keywords for that topic were ranking on google in order to see if it was worth it to write it. Do you know what makes me detest blogging? Doing all of that! My blog originally started as a journal where I documented my love for interiors, my life, and the steps I was taking to break into the interior world. It was my happy place where I could connect with friends from all over the globe that had the same likes I had. It was bliss. I would constantly talk about my blog friends to my family as if they were people I saw in person every day. Having to just write blog posts in accordance with what was ranking well on Pinterest searches and Google was a bit soul-crushing. There were so many times when I wanted to write a short little post about something fun I saw and loved, or a family weekend recap post, but with all of the keyword must-haves, it just didn’t seem worth it. When I went to a blog conference I went to many sessions where I was told that those daily life posts or rounds up of your favorite 5 things on the web like my Friday Finds were worthless in the eyes of Google and SEO. Learning all of this really took the fun out of blogging.
I’m not a quitter and I didn’t give up, but I did slow down with blogging in 2019. I wasn’t driving myself nuts about posting Monday-Friday. I even went a week or two without a post at all! Totally unlike me! The joy of blogging had left me and it was something I never thought would happen. So, I took some time off during the Christmas school break to figure out what I wanted to do. Final decision? I want to go back to the way I use to blog. I want it to be fun again! I want to start doing my Treat Yo Self posts and Friday Finds and sprinkle in bits of my life, beauty, recipes, fashion finds and of course interiors and my design projects. This year will also include a lot of our new house! I’m so excited to share the whole renovation process with you! I also want to feature interviews with some of my favorite people and how they embrace color, and share some more of my artwork, which I have started working on again. It’s going to be a lot of fun and include lots of color and happiness. I want to keep the conversation going with you!
I know it’s hard as a blog reader to check in on a blog on a daily basis, but an easy way to catch up is to sign up for my RSS feed. A cute little elephant pop up shows up when you are on my blog and asks if you want new posts sent directly to your inbox. It’s how I keep in touch with my favorite bloggers. Another way is to follow my blog with Bloglovin ! They even have an app to make it easy to read while you are on your phone. Or just check in once a week to see what is going on around here. You can also follow along on Instagram! Please share it with your followers as well. I’m itching to get to 10k so, that I will be able to swipe up and send people to blog posts or get you that link for the top I’m wearing right away.
I know that some of you have been around since my High Heeled Foot in the Door days and I truly appreciate it! It’s been so lovely to share my life with all of you and I’m excited to continue to do more of it!
xoxo,
Camila
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get inspired with our own home tour
ON THE BLOG
My living room is one of the rooms that evolved drastically from when we first moved one. Originally I painted the walls chocolate brown and did accents of white, blue and orange. That lasted maybe 2 years.
Our dining room sat empty for months. Okay maybe it was empty for just a handful of weeks and then we couldn’t take it anymore and put in a folding table and plastic outdoor chairs, but in my mind that was still empty.
On the main floor of our house we have a Florida room. Being that it’s a Florida room it is a considered a 3 season room, because there is no heat in the room. The previous owners used it as an indoor patio with outdoor furniture and it looked like this when we moved in.
Thank you for continuing. I prefer to still read blog posts. Please don’t stop. I appreciate you sharing your talent and look forward to it.
Yay a blog lover! I still blogs too and check in on my favorites throughout the week. I actually miss old school blog rolls where I could immediately see when my favorites had written a new post. I will continue doing it and I’m going back to my old ways!
Thanks for sharing this perspective. I never think of commenting, but how rude would it be to have a conversation in person and then just walk away without saying anything to the other person who just shared a tremendous amount of info with you!?! Keep going with your passion, if you are excited, it will show and draw the right personalities to you.
Tanya, I love your perspective. Imagine just walking away from someone after they talk! Crazy! I know it’s hard to comment due to lack of time, but it’s so nice to get to hear from readers and see what they like/dislike and want more of.
Reader since High Heeled Foot in the Door days here! Please DO go back to the way you used to blog and ignore all that Google search word crap 🙂 I’ve stuck around because I like reading about your life and getting good shopping finds from you. Oh, and to also see if you would ever buy a house 😉 Keep up the good work!
Yay! Thanks for sticking around all this time. I feel like a grandma in the blog world. I went to a conference with all new bloggers and many had just started in 2015 and I couldn’t believe it! We did finally find a house! Hope you caught that blog post. Lots of before photos and we are currently renovating it.
Just wanted to let you know you’re one of the first blogs I started reading years ago (I think shortly after you started!). I’ve always found lots of inspiration in your posts and I’m happy you’re going to continue! I definitely follow along more on Instagram now then I do with blogs in general.
Thanks, Amanda. So happy you have been here since the beginning! So crazy! I love Instagram as well, but it’s nice to have a home where I can write longer-form content that I can refer back to. I don’t think blogs are going anywhere. Where else would people get all of the content that they post on Pinterest.
I’ve been following you since 2009 and I really appreciate all of your blog posts, even if I don’t always comment!
Thank you! I really appreciate your support! I totally understand that it’s hard to comment. It’s just the nature of our lives now. I get it. It was so nice to hear from you today!
Phew, I was worried you would stop!
I love your blog and your bold confidant use of color. It makes me happy! I am so looking forward to seeing the bright happy home you create for your family. I have embraced a lot more color in my life because of you and have bought a few of your recommendations. Thank you!
This is why I blog. I’m so happy that I have helped embrace color in your own home!!! That puts the biggest smile on my face!
I’ve been reading since about 2009 and still check in with you. I look forward to seeing your new artwork and the renovations of your new home. The completed home tour you did of your last house has stuck with me – mostly because of your use of colour. Also, i enjoyed reading your In-Her-Shoes posts.
Thank you for sticking it out with me! I’m so happy that you have enjoyed following all these years. I think everyone is going to enjoy the DIY artwork series. Lots of fun ways to add color to your home.
Another long time reader here, please keep blogging the way that you used to! I also loved reading the in her shoes post where you would interview other people.
Thank you so much for the commment! I totally appreciate the feedback. Lots of mention of In her shoes posts! I will be bringing them back!
Yay! So glad you are doing what feels right to you, and I would assume your readers. Not only have I loved following along with you over the years, but I love that your blog doesn’t feel like everyone else’s blog/content. Yours has always been unique! I check in pretty regularly, so I look forward to see follow along in 2020, esp. with your new house! But I also love your weekend recaps, Treat Yo Self, and the peeks of your other projects. Thank you for continuing with your blog. You are talented!
Thank you! Such a nice compliment. I’m happy to go back to my normal blog ways. I just kept feeling like I was not treating it seriously enough and doing what other professionals were doing, but I can’t live that. Blogging just to get a google ranking is soul crushing!
i love your Treat Yo Self and Friday Finds! i’ve been reading since Hudson was born (or maybe even before!) and i must tell you that your sweet boys have brought tears to my eyes when i read about your weekend recap. no, i haven’t commented but your blog is probably of 3 that i have not unsubscribed from after all these years. congrats on the house and just keep doing what you’re doing! we love you!
Awwww! That is so sweet. Remember baby Hudson! Craziness! He is so big now. I’m going to go back to the old way!
I have been following you since you started High Heeled Foot in the Door and classics always win! Go back to the old way! I appreciate your blog so much!
Thank you! So happy you have been following all that time! Amazing!
I love your blog and thanks for your decision to continue for the joy of it. That’s the real reason to do anything, right? I am guilty of not commenting and will try to do better 🙂
Thanks Cindy! Joy is totally the reason to do it. I’m happy to have decided to go back to the old ways and not stress about google rankings!
I’m also one of those who read all your posts but doesn’t comment. Thank you for continuing to blog! I love to sit with my coffee in the morning and click on Feedly to read all my favorites. I’ve been hearing there’s a trend toward being more authentic and not racing to keep up with algorithms/likes/perfectly styled photos; I imagine it’s difficult to live a balanced life while doing so. So you’re an early adopter of the old ways! 🙂
Hi Sarah, That is my favorite blogs to read as well! Nothing better than a cup of coffee or tea and then getting to catch up with my friends that have common interests! I’m all about going to back to my old school ways of blogging!
I, too, started blogging back in ’08 at Madras ‘n Pearls. At the time your blog was one of a handful I read regularly. I still look for posts from you on Instagram, and have your RSS feed on Feedly. I haven’t kept up with blogging, mostly because comments have dropped off, it stopped being fun, and content was harder to find for me. I find it challenging to compete in a saturated field these days. I’m with you, blogging ought to be more fun. I decided to write for myself this year and share interesting content rather than optimize for keywords all.the.time.
Hi Wendy! I remember Madras ‘n Pearls!!!! I totally understand the feeling you got from blogging. When it’s lost the joy then there really is no point in doing it. It’s good to step away and only go back to it if you feel inspired! Happy that you started write again! I will be heading over to check it out!
Glad to hear this! I follow my favorite blogs with feedly, so I see your posts regardless of what the title or keywords are. The type of content you enjoy writing is much more valuable to me than what can be optimized in a google search. Also, glad to know that you actually enjoy reading comments…I’ll be sure to write more of them 🙂
Thank you for your comment. I think I let the blog conference get into my head a bit too much. There are some bloggers that literally only blog in order to get on the first page of google. That’s great for them, but that’s not why I started blogging. I started blogging for the sense of community and sharing my passion. I’m happy to get back to normal.
So. Glad. To read this! Yay! I have been off Instagram for a while now. I get the allure, and the business aspect, but it was starting to feel like such brain clutter to me, and I think was hindering my creativity. However, I still check your blog now and then as I have followed you for YEARS, like since before Hudson was born, and have missed the fun and personality in your posts. Looking forward to reading on!
Oh! So happy that you have been with me for so many years! Pre-Hudson is crazy! He just turned 8! I’m happy to go back to normal!
Great post Camila. I started blogging in 2010 and in 2019 I also found myself feeling exactly as you described in your post. Like you I am not going to give up on blogging because I love to share and inspire others. Cheers to 2020 and our continued efforts to make an impact and make blogging fun again.
Hi Shelly! The blogging world has changed so much, but I agree I love to share and love that we both aren’t giving up.
I too read every one of your posts, and don’t comment.
Just know that I am here, enjoying your posts and appreciating your love for & use of colour!
Aww!Thank you so much for your support. So happy that you have been enjoying the blog.
I love your blog. And LOVED when you blogged about what you card about and NOT what some SEO told you to do. I loved your weekend recap even if it was about how your ran errands with all your boys in tow. When your personality shines & you blog about what you love, it is always the most enjoyable. Keep on doing what you love best and screw the rest. Can’t wait to hear/see about all the changes in the new house!!
Oh yay! Thank you for your support! So happy to go back to the old way!
I don’t think I’ve missed a post since 2009 maybe 2010…..and your blog was the first thing I checked at my 10:30 tea break. Love reading about your real life. I will be back to checking every day. Can not wait to see all the new house projects you take on! And I do regret not commenting more, you are right. Someone has spent all this time putting together all this information that they are generously sharing for free and I don’t even have 20 seconds to say I found value in that. Shame; I will try and be more mindful of that going forward.
Hey momma!
Just catching up with my in-box & I think this is fabulous!
Since I started my blog 2 + yrs ago – I always publish Wednesday and my content calendar is whatever strikes my fancy! While I’m in no means in your league – I think the reason I’m here is to hear your voice about whatever!
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Thank you for the sweet response! All about bringing back the fun to blogging!