Fifteen years. I remember staying up late one night after getting my three babies to bed (ages four, three and newborn) and starting a Blogger account. I had no real direction. I just liked to do things around my house and decided to post it. There were so few blogs then, almost none doing it professionally. It’s been a lot of fun and was a mental lifesaver for me in the days I was drowning in diapers and spit up. I thought it would be fun to do a little reflecting and answer some of your questions that I recently received on Instagram.
What’s the first blog you ever read? I found Little Green Notebook and Brooklyn Limestone around the same time. It was such a treat to get up in the morning and see what new idea or project they had posted. I remember being obsessed with Jenny’s old dining room and dragon fabric settee with the red picture frames. I also spent hours on HGTV’s Rate My Room. Remember that site?
First project you ever posted on the blog? One of the first rooms I decorated and posted was this spare bedroom turned home office in 2011. It makes me a little nervous to look at now, but back then, I was just thrilled to have this little space all to myself. (A good reminder that decorating skills evolve over time. . .) In case you’re wondering, I had that dress form in the corner because I also bought and resold clothing on eBay back in the day.
What did you do before you were a stay-at-home mom? I started working for Time Warner around the time they launched their Road Runner internet service. Picture me sitting in meetings listening to technical details about how they were going to wire a hotel for Wi-Fi. Zzzzzzzzz…….(That also tells you how long ago it was that there was no Wi-Fi in hotels.) I eventually quit and went to work at Ethan Allen for a year or so before our oldest was born. I didn’t start the blog until about four years after that.
What’s your favorite thing about blogging? Two things. The interaction with people who love the same things that I do. It’s been a great outlet for me. And, the flexibility! That’s been a huge blessing for our family. You never know what a day will bring when you have five kids going in five different directions.
Is blogging profitable? Parts of blogging, yes–and what those things are seem to always be changing in regards to social media, brand partnerships, etc. It also, of course, depends on how much time you put into it. Links and commissions are nice but aren’t over-the-top profitable for most bloggers/influencers (a word I continue to hate, by the way). The best jobs for me are the ones where I contract with reputable companies to create and shoot a project and mutually promote on social media. I would add that it takes a while for any blog to become profitable. I didn’t make any money for the first 2-3 years.
How do brand partnerships work? Normally, a brand will email me with with an idea and if it’s a good match, we’ll work out the details from there. They’ll usually just give me a list of deliverables and a deadline. I have to weigh out the time involved, how much control I have over content and the compensation to see if it all makes sense. (Most don’t make sense, by the way.)
Weirdest brand collaboration request? The first one that comes to mind is a company that wanted me to send them my twins’ umbilical cords after they were born. They were going to paint a piece of art with them that I could feature on the blog. . . Yikes.
Do people stop you for photos? Ummm, no. Regardless of what my dad thinks, I don’t think anyone really knows (or cares) who I am or what I do. 
My husband, on the other hand, has been stopped on several occasions and asked if he’s married to “Emily A. Clark.” He thinks that’s hysterical.
Has blogging changed your view on trends? I would say that the longer I blog, the less I tend to care about trends. At some point, you just like what you like and that’s that. It’s been fun to see other people that started blogs around the same time I did find their own niche, too.
Most absurd comment you’ve received? Overall, I’ve had a really good experience. I do remember once saying something about how I’d rather get a root canal than stand in line at an IKEA on a weekend. A lady took great offense to that, saying her husband was a dentist. . . And, of course, I’ve had a few comments on something I’ve done wrong on mothering my kids (pacifiers too long, not giving them enough chores, etc., from people who have never met us). Overall nothing really huge. How offensive can decorating really be??!
Please post a pic of you coming home with the twins again. How did you keep the blog going then?
How old are your kids now? My kids are now 20, 18, 15 and the twins are 12. Our house definitely feels different with two at college, but everyone is busy and happy so I am, too. (And to young moms, good days are ahead! It’s sweet–and hard–when your kids are little, but big kids are so much fun and can bathe themselves!)
Favorite blogging-related gig you’ve ever gotten? I would say any of the times I’ve been able to travel with my best friend (and “assistant”) Katie. We’ve gotten to attend events and work on projects, and it’s always a hoot for us to try to act “business-y” together for any extended period of time. Off the top of my head, I would say our fun trips to NYC, a patio makeover in Utah that we did for Lowe’s and a beautiful fall weekend Colonial Williamsburg with Benjamin Moore have been the highlights.
Do you ever think you’ll go back to designing for clients? This is an easy answer for me. No. It was not for me. I like to create, I like to write, I like to thrift. I like to sit behind my computer. I do not like to deal with other people’s budgets and all of the business end of things that are involved in the design process. Online design might be an option at some point, but I’m still waiting for the inspiration to hit.
My biggest takeaway from blogging? Happiness doesn’t mean always striving for the next thing. I’ve written about this before but I have absolutely no desire to write a design book or have a design show or anything bigger and better, for now anyway. I’m happiest in my small corner of the world, blogging when I can, working on my house and just seeing what comes along day by day.
Does it still bring you joy? Does your family wish you’d grow it or quit altogether? As far as my family goes, I’m not even sure some of my kids know what I do, and if they are aware, they’re certainly not impressed. As for the joy part, yes, blogging in itself still makes me happy. What makes me tired is the shift from just being able to blog to also having to create all of this extra content for Instagram to “keep up.” I occasionally like to make a reel but I’ll never do it every day to satisfy an algorithm. I also think it’s risky to put your whole business into a social media platform (as evidenced by the recent TikTok ban). So, for now, I’ll continue to be here, blogging like the olden days.
Happy to answer any other questions you have in the comments.
Here’s a post I wrote about what I learned during my first ten years of blogging.