Five years ago today this blog began. The first post ever started with the words:
We are thrilled you have come by! In our home in the (cyber) world, we offer inspirational ideas for your life, home, family and self…
I had to stop and count a few times and check the dates, but yes, we’ve been at this now for five years. You can read the whole story on how this got started, and it really wasn’t a “hey let’s start a blog” story, rather a website that evolved, but all that can be found here.
I was thinking about this journey and how far we’ve come as I sat down to write this post. Christy and I have been friends for {gulp} over 20 years despite living in different states 99% of the time. Terry was a huge part of the beginning of the blog {you can see what she is up to these days with her booming event business here}. Doing this alone wouldn’t have been half as much fun–and honestly it would never have happened had it not been a joint effort from day one. There were countless times during the last five years–during a moving crisis, an illness, and so much more that just happens in life— when this blog would have sank if it wasn’t for our teamwork.
I feel like there is more to write about today than just a few popular posts, though for tradition’s sake I’ll recap our five most popular at the end here. When we launched this little site five years ago, I never would have believed we would get to do some of the things we’ve done. Being featured in Better Homes & Gardens, Cottage & Bungalows and Working Mother magazines and this book here is still quite surreal. Traveling to the Rust-Oleum headquarters for a blogger event, amazing! Our Haven Conference trips have become a highlight of the summer and becoming real-life friends with other bloggers is just one of the many joys of this experience.
Over these last few years our website has slowly grown into a brand and consequently we have started two online stores, an ETSY store {HERE} which offers vinyl and monograms and just this summer we launched our Organizing Products line, they are available HERE.
In addition to our virtual turned real-life friends we have the privilege of working with some amazing brands and sponsors. Our ongoing brand partnership with HomeRight allows us to work with some of the best paint and DIY products in the industry. It has been an honor to work with Mohawk Flooring and create content for the Creative Home website. We also work with HomeGoods as a Pinterest content partner which is literally a dream come true for two new moms who used to strap down our toddlers in HomeGoods carts and cruise their aisles at any given opportunity. Other brands like Floor&Decor, Rust-Oleum, FUA Window Coverings, Osbourne Wood Products and so many more, have been supportive of our site and our DIY projects and are some of the best people in the industry.
Most importantly, Christy and I are grateful that you all come by, read what we have to say, and allow us to share a small part of our lives with you. We read every comment, we do our best to answer them all {and sometimes fail miserably} and we adore our social media interactions with all of you each and every day. So, thank you for reading, for being here and for coming along with us on this journey!
OK, here is our {drumroll!} recap of our top five posts in five years…
1. Tutorial: How to Paint Upholstery Fabric and Completely Transform a Chair! (September 2013)
2. Painted Tile Backsplash in My Kitchen–A Year Later (March 2013)
3. Salted Caramel Martini Recipe (October 2013)
4. Tutorial: How to Make a No-Sew DIY Burlap Window Valance (August 2013)
5. How to make a Rental or Military Housing Feel like Home.
I can’t wait to see what the next five years brings us, and as we always say–thank you so much “for stopping by” 11 Magnolia Lane– for the last five years!
XO,
