The Evolution of a Creative Voice: Reflecting on Seven Years of Blogging and Design

Welcome, dear friends and fellow design enthusiasts! Today marks a special moment of reflection and renewed purpose on the blog. While a Saturday post might be a little out of the ordinary, the timing feels perfectly aligned with the deep dive into my creative journey that I’m about to share. Grab a cup of coffee, settle in, because there’s quite a story to tell – a narrative of passion, evolution, and rediscovery.

Before we embark on this journey down memory lane, I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to my wonderful social media friend, James. His brilliant initiative, the #igglowup hashtag, was the spark that ignited this entire post. If you follow my updates on Instagram, you’ll know that earlier this week, James invited us to participate in a truly insightful challenge: sharing a snapshot of our current Instagram feeds and then scrolling all the way back to the very beginning to reveal our initial posts. It’s a powerful visual testament to how much we’ve all grown and evolved, both personally and creatively.

The essence of the #igglowup challenge was to illustrate our transformation, showing how our online presence has matured from what might have been a “hot mess” to, hopefully, something far more refined and authentic. For me, engaging with this challenge was more than just a trip down memory lane; it was a profound journey into a rabbit hole of emotions, memories, and significant personal milestones.

The Genesis of a Design Blog: A Seven-Year Odyssey

This past January marked a remarkable seven years since I first ventured into the world of blogging. On January 10, 2012, I published my inaugural post on a free Blogspot.com account. Back then, I had absolutely no grand expectations or a clear vision of where this digital endeavor might lead. I had recently concluded my design school education and found myself in a job that offered little room for creative expression. I desperately needed an outlet, a space where my passion for design could flourish unchecked.

Truth be told, a week before starting, I barely even knew what a “blog” was, let alone what it meant to be a “blogger.” However, fate intervened when I stumbled upon one. I saw someone writing and sharing captivating pictures about design, and then I discovered an entire network of individuals doing the same. It was a revelation! There was a thriving, vibrant community of people discussing design and home aesthetics, and I felt an immediate, undeniable pull to become a part of it. I had, quite simply, found my tribe – even if they didn’t know I existed yet, they were *my* people.

The Golden Age of Design Blogging: Creating Before “Content Creator”

In those early days, I wholeheartedly immersed myself in this world of creating content, long before the term “content creator” became a widely recognized professional title. We were driven purely by the desire to share, connect, and inspire. The design blogger community at the time was predominantly focused on DIY projects. These ranged from the wonderfully simple – think “how to paint a wall” or “how to arrange furniture in a room” – to the more ambitious and complex endeavors, such as “how to install cabinets and replace floors.” For me, it was an exhilarating space to unload all the design thoughts and ideas that my non-creative friends and family, understandably, couldn’t constantly indulge. It was a haven for my passions, a platform where every idea found its audience.

Scrolling through my early feeds for the #igglowup challenge brought back a flood of memories from those initial projects and posts. Each one represents a stepping stone in my journey, a lesson learned, and a moment of creative triumph. One particular favorite was the whimsical polka dot plate art project, crafted using thrift store finds and sharpie paint markers – a testament to budget-friendly creativity:

I also fondly recall the transformative painted dining room table project and the bold stenciled kitchen floors, which added character and personality to our home:

And then there was our very first tiling project together, a true test of teamwork and perseverance, ultimately yielding a rewarding result:

Even the earliest iterations of the blog itself hold a special place, including its first refresh and upgrade:

(My original welcome message still brings a genuine 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.”) It perfectly encapsulated my burgeoning style and personal philosophy.

The Heart of the Blogosphere: Community and Authenticity

The blogosphere, in its purest form, was an incredibly special and nurturing space for me. I absolutely adored every aspect of blogging. I cherished the act of writing, the joy of sharing my discoveries, and the profound connections forged with fellow enthusiasts and readers. There was an empowering absence of pressure to perform, to be flawlessly curated. Content felt more journalistic, more raw and real, reflecting genuine experiences and processes. The community aspect was, without a doubt, the best part – from engaging “linky parties” where we discovered new blogs, to the “side bar blog rolls” that highlighted our favorite daily reads, and the collaborative “project swaps” that fostered creativity and mutual support. These were truly good times, brimming with authentic interaction and shared inspiration.

The Shifting Sands: “Migration of Doom” and the Rise of Instagram

Then came what I affectionately, or perhaps dramatically, termed the “migration of doom.” After two solid years of dedicated blogging, I made the decision to transition my platform to WordPress. In what felt like a cruel twist of digital fate, the switch inadvertently wiped out all the photographs from every post published in those initial two years. Every single image from that foundational period was gone. I was utterly devastated. The loss plunged me into a significantly negative space, causing me to question the very foundation of my creative work.

The upset was immense. All the effort, the carefully crafted content, the valuable networking, and the hours spent honing my photography skills felt erased. While the text of the posts remained, they felt hollow, incomplete, and utterly useless without their visual counterparts, especially from a DIY and ‘How-To’ perspective. It was profoundly deflating, pushing me to the brink of stepping away from blogging entirely, wondering if all that labor was truly for nothing.

Around the same challenging period, Instagram began its meteoric rise to prominence, quickly becoming “king” in the social media landscape. While new blogs continued to emerge after my start, I noticed a palpable shift: people were blogging less and increasingly investing their precious time and energy into Instagram and other nascent social media platforms. I must confess, I was entirely guilty of this migration myself, especially given that I was juggling a full-time job alongside my blogging endeavors. Instagram offered an undeniable allure: it was easier, faster, more flexible, and infinitely more convenient. Unfortunately, it also inadvertently became an avenue for me to lose sight of just how important blogging truly was to me. I honestly started to believe that blogs were a dying medium. If everyone preferred the instant gratification of Instagram, what was the enduring point of maintaining a blog? Was the return on the significant time investment even justifiable anymore?

Reclaiming My “Why”: A Journey of Rediscovery and Purpose

Engaging with James’s #igglowup hashtag challenge unexpectedly brought something profound to the surface – a question I had been silently grappling with over the past year: What is my “why”? Why did I initially embark on this blogging journey? And why do I continue to share my life and my unique perspective with the world? For me, the answer has always been deeply rooted in my unwavering love for design and my desire to be a distinctive voice, one that offers a different experience and perspective within the design sphere.

My “why” is multifaceted:

• To advocate for imperfect, eclectic, and well-lived spaces: In a world often dominated by sterile, unattainable perfection, I strive to showcase homes that breathe, that tell a story, and that celebrate the beauty of lived-in authenticity.
• To highlight overlooked design details: I aim to bring attention to those subtle yet impactful design elements that might not always be trending but absolutely deserve consideration and appreciation.
• To champion bold design choices: I want to be the person who confidently embraces color and character, who doesn’t shy away from vibrant palettes or unconventional layouts, even when the mainstream gravitates towards white walls and neutral spaces. My home is a reflection of my soul, not current fads.
• To normalize diverse experiences: It’s crucial for me to share the reality of life as an LGBT POC, illustrating how much more we have in common with one another than superficial differences might suggest. Authenticity and representation are paramount.
• To uplift designers of color: To bring visibility to the fact that, despite being few and far between in mainstream media, there is a thriving community of talented designers of color whose work deserves to be celebrated and amplified.
• To demystify the design process: I aim to share the authentic, real-life journey of creating and curating an intentionally designed home – the triumphs, the challenges, the compromises, and the immense satisfaction. It’s about transparency and empowering others to embark on their own design adventures.

The Entrepreneurial Pivot and a Call to Action

When I made the pivotal decision last January to leave my traditional job and fully pursue entrepreneurship, my primary motivation was to gain the independence and autonomy to do what I love and generate income from it. The dream was to craft my own schedule, to be more present for my children during their crucial final years of schooling, and to dedicate my full focus to my passion for design. For months, I found myself reflecting on all those years spent working a demanding 9-to-5, fantasizing about a time when I would have the luxury of blogging full-time. Well, as I realized with a jolt, here I was – in that very position. And yet, I wasn’t doing a damn thing about it. It felt like a profound shame, an opportunity unseized.

Taking Back the Blog, Taking Back Design

This realization has spurred a profound decision: I am taking back the blog, and with it, I am taking back design – not just superficial aesthetics, but actual, real, “visual orgasm / holy-hell-no-they-didn’t” kind of design. This commitment involves more than just posting; it’s about reconnecting with the very essence of why I started. I intend to get back to being not only a diligent blogger but also a curious and engaged blog *reader*. I will write about the topics I am genuinely passionate about, the things that truly resonate with me, because blogging for myself is what brings me happiness and truly fills my cup.

This renewed focus means sharing inspiring projects and DIYs, regardless of their scale or complexity. It means bravely showcasing those spaces that are still evolving, that aren’t yet “complete” or “perfect,” because real life isn’t always polished. It means delving deep into the design and style details that have always been at the core of what defines my unique taste. And, crucially, it means shining a spotlight on those fellow bloggers whose accounts I genuinely adore and who consistently bring me immense joy and inspiration.

The unvarnished reality is this: I am a designer and blogger *first*. My presence on Instagram, and other social media platforms, serves as an extension of this foundational platform. The blog is my owned territory, my creative home. For too long, instead of nurturing it with the attention it deserved, I had been operating as if I had just stumbled onto the Instagram scene a mere year ago, chasing fleeting trends and engagement metrics. That, my friends, is a pattern I am no longer willing to continue. Things are unequivocally about to change. For me, this transformation signifies a deliberate return to the beginning – not necessarily a complete restart, but certainly a potent revival of that initial vibe, both visually and from a comprehensive content perspective. Expect more depth, more authenticity, and a stronger voice.

I understand this has been a rather lengthy post, dear friends, and if you’ve stayed with me until this very sentence, I genuinely appreciate your time and attention. It felt like an essential brain dump, a necessary articulation of my thoughts and renewed direction. I hope you all have a truly wonderful weekend, filled with inspiration and joy. Until next time, friends, let’s continue to explore the beautiful world of design together.