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Blogging Dreams & Goals for 2013

We’ll make new traditions in place of the old

‘Cause life without revision will silence our souls.

-“Snow” by Sleeping at Last

Blogging Dreams & Goals for 2012 by The Thinking Closet
Graphic created using Recite This.

Tomorrow marks the start of a new year.  A fresh start.  An uncharted path in the woods.  My lantern is at the ready.

After reflecting on my blogging highlights from these first four months, it’s time to look forward.  I have so many dreams and goals for The Thinking Closet – – in fact, some might argue too many.  But I’ve never been a gal for short lists…especially where dreams are concerned.

Here’s what I hope for:

  • To be self-hosted!  I’d like for this blog to be a self-hosted WordPress blog with my own url (fare thee well, wordpress.com).  Why?  There’s so much more I want to do with this blog (involving java script and plug-ins…jargon that I don’t quite fully understand myself) that I cannot do simply by having a free wordpress.com blog.  It will be an investment of time and some money to make the switch.  And in truth, this is my most intimidating goal because I have fears of making some huge blunder in the switchover and losing my content or my followers.  However, I know that if I want to take things to the next level, I must take the plunge!  (If anyone has experience in going from wordpress.com to self-hosted wordpress, please email me.  I’d love to pick your brain over virtual coffee.)

    Wordpress
    {Source}
  • Revised blog design.  This blog is patchworked together using things I found for free on the web and things I’ve created from scratch, and I’ve been pretty pleased with what I was able to muster.  However, I’d love for more of a clean, cohesive look to my blog design…from the background to my font to a logo.  Whether I bring in a professional or figure out how to do it myself, it’s a step I hope to take in 2013.  I want The Thinking Closet to be as welcoming and homey as possible, and layout and design have a lot to do with that.  For my blogger friends, have you worked with any designers that you recommend?

    The Thinking Closet
    Believe it or not, I made my current header using pixlr and Microsoft Word.
  • Invest in photo editing software.  Between iPhoto and the free online site, pixlr, I’ve been able to do a fair bit in the photo editing department, but I still feel limited, especially in terms of adding graphics and text to my images.  So, I think it’s time to upgrade.  My sense is that Photoshop would be more power than I need, so I’m leaning toward Adobe Photoshop Elements or Illustrator.  I also want to purchase some plan white foam core in order to use as a simple backdrop when I’m taking photos for a cleaner and less cluttered look.  Rachel from Lines Across is the queen of clean and uncluttered images!

    Clean white background by Rachel from Lines Across.
    Example of the clean white backgrounds in photos on Lines Across.
  • Attend my first blogger conference!  As I said in my highlights post, a part of what I love so much about blogging is the community I have found.  I would absolutely love to build that community even more through attending a blogger conference; I also think it’d be a great way to grow and improve as a blogger.  (As a teacher, I was one of those dorks who always loved professional development days.  I guess I’m a perpetual student!)  Katie from Sew Woodsy and my college friend, Stephanie, from 321 Delish recommended Florida Blog Con, which is a conference for bloggers of all niches from Florida.  The nice thing is that it takes place in Orlando where we live.  How convenient is that?

    Florida Blog Con
    {Source}
  • Plan out more posts.  I started to map out my posts several weeks out in December, and it made a world of difference in my brain.  So, I’d like to plan ahead more, and even “schedule” more of my posts.  (I was two months into blogging before I realized that I can write a post on Friday and click a button that schedules it to post at 7 a.m. on Monday…while I’m still sleeping!  Sooooo nice.)  I’d even like to create my own calendar format that works for me.  Right now, I use a combination of a printout I found, post-it notes, and scrap paper.  It’s not quite as organized as I’d like…but it’s a start. Blog Planning by The Thinking Closet
  • Revamp my “About Me” page.  Right now, I have a measly paragraph written in the third person on my About Me page.  For a while now, I’ve wanted to sit down to revise that page with more photos, more of my own voice (in first person), and more creativity…so that folk get a stronger sense of who I am.  It’s high time.
  • Start a Facebook page for The Thinking Closet.  It feels a little bit like my worlds are colliding when I share blog posts on my personal Facebook page.  I also know a lot of people check Facebook more than they do their email!  So, one of my goals is to create a Facebook page for The Thinking Closet where I not only share posts from my blog, but posts from my bloggy buddies and great pins that I find.  Coming soon to a Facebook near you….  {Update: It’s HERE!}

    The Thinking Closet on Facebook
    {Source}
  • Add new social media buttons.  I’m dissatisfied with the way my subscription options are currently displayed on my sidebar.  They’re all over the place.  So, I’d love to add buttons at the top of my sidebar with everything all together.  Carrie from Carrie Loves offers up 19 different social media icons for free in a variety of 30 colors.  Check ’em out.

    Social Media Icons by Carrie Loves
    Free Social Media Icons by Carrie Loves
  • Create a Project Gallery.  I want to create a project gallery that features a collection of my posts in hyperlinked pictures.  It’ll be a great way to catalog my projects by category.  I plan to use this nifty tutorial by Taryn from Design, Dining, & Diapers when I do it.

    How To Project Gallery by Design, Dining, & Diapers
    (Tutorial geared toward WordPress blogs.)
  • More collaborating!  I’m eager to collaborate with other bloggers more, whether it be through guest posting, participating in projects together, or simply bouncing ideas off of each other.  In that vein, I also have an exciting opportunity to serve as a monthly craft contributor on the blog, Or So She Says, in the new year.  More to come on that!

    Or So She Says
    My first post goes live January 8th!
  • More honesty.  More mess.  Some of my posts that were the most well received by readers (in that I received an outpouring of support through comments) were posts where I expressed my honest feelings, raw though they may be.  Remember when craftgawker rejected me time and time again?  Yeah, well I found so many kindred spirits through that post.  While I don’t think this blog is my diary (nor do I want it to be), I know I have been most drawn to blogs where the writers revealed a piece of themselves in their posts, sharing about their struggles and frustrations in addition to their victories.  Life is messy.  Houses are messy.  So are crafts (especially when glitter is involved).  So, I want to take more risks in sharing more mess in 2013.  And by the by, if you want to see one-of-my-favorite-blog-posts-ever that is chock full of honesty and mess, check out House of Hepworths’ Confessions of Christmas 2012.  It’s AWESOME.

    Confession of Christmas 2012 by House of Hepworths
    Click here to read the original post, “Confessions of Christmas 2012.”
  • Learn more about sponsorship.  You may have noticed that a lot of d.i.y. blogs have sponsors (paid advertising on their sidebar or in posts).  When considering opening up The Thinking Closet to sponsors, I have mixed feelings, especially because I’m blogging for pleasure and want to be able to stand behind every single piece of content on this blog.  However, I also have this idea that I’d like for the blog to pay for itself.  For instance, if I hired someone to redesign my blog, it’d be great to pay for that service with income made from sponsorship or a service I offer.  Ya know?  I’m really torn on this topic and almost didn’t even share it for that reason, but more honesty, more mess, right?
  • Our D.I.Y. Wedding Series.  I had the idea that it would be fun to do a set of posts sharing photos and tutorials on our d.i.y. wedding.  It would be reflective as Mark and I got married back in July 2009, well before I had a blog or the time for one.  However, I think it’s still fresh enough in my memory that I could share several how-tos from my bridesmaid newsletters to the stamp flags on our cupcakes.  I’d even share about the d.i.y. invitation disaster (and what a disaster it was).  I’m thinking I’ll do that series in the summer, right around the time of our 4th wedding anniversary.  Yay!

    Our D.I.Y. Wedding Series
    Photos by the amazing Emily Johnston Anderson
  • Overall blogging goal: create quality content.  My number one priority is to share content with my readers this quality: well-written with eye-catching images, educational, helpful, entertaining, and most of all, inspiring.  My hope is that readers come away from one of my tutorials with an impish grin on their face, thinking, “I could do that.”

So, as we bid 2012 farewell and welcome in 2013, let’s raise a glass to life with revision.  Cheers.  *Clink.*

Dear reader, what are your dreams and goals for year 2013?  Blogging or otherwise?

This is Lauren, signing off.

P.S. Shout out to my dear friend Rebecca Bea who first introduced me to the concept of “dreams and goals.”

P.P.S. I like to link up at these partays.

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61 Comments

  1. You counted so many things here, that go for me as well! I understand a little bit of HTML and such, because of my job and studies, so I could trick my blog design a bit (I just got rid of the borders and shadows under every pic, hooray!), but there’s still a lot of what I’m not allowed to do on wordpress.com, so I’ll be trying as well to move to a self-hosted blog!

    But if you would like to get some help with the buttons or a header or whatever, you can definitely mail me, because this was my job once and I’ll be happy, to teach someone about graphic and design (this will be my future job…).
    Nevertheless I still have to improve my photography skills as well and so much more to build around my blog… It’s gonna be a funny but busy year 2013! 🙂

    Love, Midsommarflicka

    1. You’re too kind. I actually found a designer to work with and we’re wrapping things up now, but I appreciate you offering your assistance! Blogging is a neverending endeavor isn’t it? But oh so much fun! Best of luck to you as your grow and build your blog this year.

  2. Lauren, I am totally with you on almost all these goals! I started my blog just a month after you so I think we’re sorta at the same point on our blogging timeline. We should totally chat over some virtually coffee! I’ve spent COUNTLESS hours researching, reading forums, talking to friends, etc. trying to figure out WP and finally I reached out to my blogging buddies for some support and guidance. I love your blog and your spirit! I hope we can work together to reach our goals in the future : ]

    1. I’m all about virtual coffee, Jennifer. That would be loverly! It’s great to connect to other bloggers and walk alongside each other; we’re so much stronger when do. I’m also a researcher type and would love to swap findings with you, especially since, as you said, we’re at a similar stage in the game. (I think a lot of folk started blogging this fall/winter.) Looking forward to getting to know you more and helping each other out as we navigate the uncharted waters in WordPress!

  3. I think you have set up some wonderful blog goals for 2013! I can see you achieving them all! As you know–blogging takes time and lots of energy! Only the strongest survive!

    1. Thanks, Katie! And yes, it definitely is a time-commitment, but a worthwhile one. I’m fueled by so many elements of blogging. I know you maintain a few blogs AND work (full-time?), which makes me start to wonder if you have some secret blogger superpowers…but, I’m sure I’ll be stopping by Sew Woodsy to glean inspiration along the way!

    1. I’m still mustering up the courage needed to make the migration myself. From what I hear, there is a period of horridness (where a person like me without coding experience would need the help of a professional), but that it ends up being worth it in the end, and that it’s quite user-friendly once you get it all set up. I’ll definitely keep everyone posted with how it goes for me, and hopefully offer some concrete tips and words of encouragement for those who need it. Thanks for your comment, Alison!

  4. Great variety in your blogging dreams and goals. I’m not sure about the white foam core. I like the warmth in your photos and white backgrounds might be too sterile. I DO like the idea of you blogging about your DIY wedding! I DO like the idea of sharing mistakes and messes! I like that you want quality, excellence, collaboration, and sharing! Can’t wait to follow you at the Thinking Closet in 2013!

    1. You make a good point about the white foamcore losing some of the warmth; I’ll still keeping shooting plenty of photos on our scuffed up wood table…but I think for certain creations, a clean white backdrop could be fitting. We’ll see!

      And you can be sure I’ll be consulting you on many aspects of the DIY wedding – – as you were might right-hand woman! And you did so much behind the scenes that I didn’t even take part in…(i.e. the welcome buckets, the sweets station, etc.).

      Thanks for being one of my biggest flans! 😉

  5. I’m SO impressed with how you’ve thought everything out. It will be fun to see your new adventures! And I definitely bookmarked this post so I’ll remember all your great tips. Thank you! 🙂

    1. Glad to know you found this helpful! I’m a bit of a planner…though my plans to always go as I expect, so I’m definitely open to being taken in completely different directions than I intended. It’s just good for me to have a sense of where I want to go; then, I’m not spinning in circles.

      1. Have you started creating your project gallery yet? I thought is sounded so perfect for a few recipe pages that I have so I checked out the tutorial to start working on it. Having issues with plugins so I thought I’d see if you had started yet. 🙂 Thanks!!
        Kenely

        1. Kenley, I’m sorry to say that I haven’t yet tackled this goal. I have to make the switch over to self-hosted WordPress before I can install any new plug-ins like the ones required for a Project Gallery. Do you have any bloggy buddies who know a little bit about html and coding who could help? Or perhaps contact Taryn from Design, Dining, and Diapers to see if she can offer some insight. Best of luck! Let me know how it all pans out.

  6. I LOVED that post by HoH. It was so funny and relatable.

    So many of your goals mirror my own. I kept saying, “me too!” to so many of them.

    The biggest thing I feel like I am struggling over are my pictures. I feel they aren’t quite doing it for eye catching content. I took a whole bunch of pictures this weekend for a jewelry tutorial and felt so much anxiety over them. I just didn’t feel confident with them at all.

    I also would like to move to a self hosted site. Maybe for my 1 year anniversary? The free site has so many limitations that are frustrating. I’ll be interested to see how well the move goes for you. (you won’t lose my readership!)

    Thanks for sharing so many tips. I’m going to go read some of them now. 🙂

    1. I’ll definitely keep everyone in the loop on how the migration to self-hosted WordPress goes. I’m doing research right now, and gearing up for the big switch. It feels really daunting, but several of my bloggy friends have offered their support which is HUGE. And thanks for being committed to following me through the switch.

      As for photos, natural light has been KEY for me, and also finding a simple, plain background (just picked up some white foamcore today). My friend Aubrey posted on how she used cardboard as a backdrop for her earrings, and the photo got picked up by craftgawker. Here’s the link if you want to check it out. I think a lot of photography is about experimenting with settings and learning as you go. Do you have any photographer friends who could teach you a few tricks of the trade? I would have been lost without my husband Mark showing me the ropes on his fancy camera. (I still don’t know what half of the buttons do.)

      Thanks for your faithful readership and oh so sweet comments, Bethany. I delight in every one.

      1. Thank you for the tip. Her cardboard display is pretty similar to the displays I made for my family-in-laws. I felt those pictures did turn out pretty good. I’ve seen lots of posts on making your own light boxes out of cardboard for jewelry and food bloggin or etsy product photos.

        It’s funny, because I have actually taken black and white, darkroom photography classes (a couple in high school and one in college). I own a completely manual, old Nikor (Nikon sister) camera, but for digital I just have this little point and shoot camera. I always feel like my camera phone takes better pictures than it. At least on the phone I can touch where I want it to focus. I really want to get a DSLR for my birthday pressie to myself.

        I also have space issues, which is why I’m working on building my own kitchen table. I’m picking up the counter this Saturday! So excited! I’ll hopefully have a post up about the construction by the end of the month.

        1. I know exactly what you mean about your camera taking better photos than your point-and-shoot! I feel the same way! That’s why I only use Mark’s DSLR…or instagram on my phone!

          Oh, I hope you can splurge on a DSLR for your birthday! You’re probably itching for one since you have the photography experience and knowledge. It’s definitely a worthy investment! And I bet you’ll notice a world of difference right away.

          And I’m eager to read your posts to come on your kitchen table construction; I’m so impressed you’re doing it yourself. Can’t wait to see what color legs you decided on and if you went with the butcher block top.

  7. Yowzah, I LOVE that first picture! Your dreams and goals are fantastic, and they are motivating me as well as others, I see. I also think it’s high time to revamp my “about me” page. And I like what you wrote about more honesty, and more mess. I think the craftgawker post has been my all time fav of yours so far…though this one is vying for the number one spot, too. Excited to see how the Thinking Closet grows and changes in 2013!

    1. Oooo…that just gave me an idea for a Sister Wintercamp About Me Page Revamp Fest! (Maybe we could write a post together on it.) I keep bookmarking About Me pages on other blogs that I love…so I’m hoping to glean inspiration from those when I get down to it.

      That makes me smile to know you loved the craftgawker post. You were the one to point how my negative experience had turned into a positive one with so many bloggers encouraging each other. Love how you help me to see the blessings where I don’t expect them.

      1. Hey, great idea! I’m definitely up for a “wintercamp about me page”….keep thinking about it, I will too! Though things are busy, as long as I have enough time to work on it, I can do it! Thankfully you’re a planner, so that’ll help us plan in advance…I’m excited! And thanks what you said about seeing blessings…you do the same for me too, sister.

  8. Thanks for sharing your goals with all of us, Lauren. I may have to “borrow” a few myself! My calendar for blogging currently consists of a list of ideas which is covered in crayon..not sure which of the rascals added that artwork! Seriously, though, you’re doing a great job and your work is an inspiration, especially to those of us getting started. I’m looking forward to seeing what is new to come on your lovely blog! Wishing you and your husband a Blessed New Year!

    1. Ha ha! Love that your kids have added some creativity to your list of ideas. I managed to get water stains on mine! Thanks for your sweet words, Jessica. A very happy new year to you and your family, too!

  9. Good goals! Your calendar is pretty good compared to mine…I made 2 chalkboard frames and I add ideas on them as I pass thru in the hallway! And I am checking the follow up comments via email this time!

    1. Thanks so much, Cindy! I’ve enjoyed getting to know you through your blog and sweet comments over here. I can’t say enough about what an incredible sewist you are – – and an inspiration to me. Happy 2013!

  10. I would like to nominate you for a blog award – I think your posts are fab and I love reading your posts. I love the way you connect lots if ideas together. I have recently been lucky to recieved 2 to pass on, The Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award and Liebster – so please feel free to pick which ever one you would like. Happy New Year and Happy posting!

  11. This is totally inspiring me to kick my blog into a higher gear. (I’ve been a lurker here for a while, and I just had to say hello and thanks!) I had a baby a little over a year ago and it killed my blogging momentum for pretty much the whole year. And while it’s true that my baby is a much higher priority than my blog, I’ve still been a little sad at how quiet my blog has been. The truth is, I’ve stopped putting effort in. I still totally have time to do it, I just need to get back in the habit. So thanks for the inspiration! 🙂
    My husband is a graphic designer and web developer by trade. He completely redesigned my blog and created a new logo for me, and coded the back-end (on wordpress.org). He might be interested if you’re looking for someone to help with design and programming and domain transfer. Just let me know.
    Thanks for the awesome work you do. And good luck with all your 2013 goals!

    1. Just came back from visiting your site and my mouth is literally watering! Wow, you’ve made some scrumptious looking treats and have taken some gorgeous photos of them. I’m in awe.

      And that makes me smile to know my post today may have encouraged you to get back into more of a rhythm with posting. I know that when Mark and I start a family, my blogging rhythm will have to change dramatically. I’ve already pondered what that might look like (shorter posts, less tutorials, more photos taken of “life” on my phone, more conciseness – – which is something I need to work on anyway!).

      Although your blog is clearly geared toward yummy treats, I know I’d be curious to hear your thoughts on motherhood, those humorous moments at the grocery store when strangers ooh and ahh at your baby, even photos of a dinner thrown together in five minutes that turned out pretty yummy…. Perhaps to help you get back into a rhythm of posting, you can share more of those ordinary moments. Something that has helped me in the past with routine has been setting a time limit and writing each day, for even 5 minutes to see what spills. It definitely conjures up those creative juices.

      That’s so neat that your husband has been such a resource for you in redesigning your blog and coding. I’ll definitely keep that in mind as I ponder my next moves with design.

      Thanks for leaving a comment, LaChelle, and for your support! So great to “meet” you tonight.

  12. I take photos with a giant piece of white bristol board/foam core stuck to my kitchen wall on top of my freezer. That’s my make shift lighting studio. High tech or what? It helps me to avoid having to use a flash.

    I went from free WP to self hosted this year. Check my page I did a big entry on it as it was eye opening. I’ll probably do a big more of a recap in my 1 year blog write up in Feb about it. Lots of surprising things about that change that I did not expect.

    The project gallery has been on my To Do list for a long time. I think unfortunately I have little kids and well, they take up most of my day so a website design overhaul is something that if I decide to do I am going to have to hire someone to do it b/c I physically do not have the luxury of time to re-do it. I am spending this winter fixing up my photos on entries that I love. Half of me is actually contemplating deleting over 6 months worth of blog posts right now from my old blog. That’s been sitting on my mind for some time and I don’t know what to do.

    Regarding honesty in posts I am a HUGE proponent of showing the ‘real’ side of life. I know that’s not everyone’s cup of tea and I respect that a lot of bloggers like to write about the best parts b/c that’s what they focus on as it makes them happy. For me the funniest and rawest stories are the ones readers connect with the most. The craft fails. The mishaps in baking. The mishaps in day to day life. And it makes for much funnier story telling and writing is a huge part of my DIY section. What’s the fun of reading a DIY that reads like a manual when you can explain how much wine was consumed when prototype # 1 and 2 failed.

    One other thing that I think I can suggest is quality over quantity in posts (not yours as I am realizing how that sounds – Oh Lord – I mean overall as bloggers). That took me a bit to figure out. That is, I used to feel like oh my God I haven’t posted in this much time I need to write something up. And then you look at a post and think that’s so half assed why did I bother? For me balancing blogging and real life takes precedence in the coming year and that may mean less posts but better posts.

    Looks like you’re all good to go! 🙂

    1. Love the image in my mind of your studio on top of the fridge – – hey, it’s out of the way! I’m definitely going to pick up some foam-core during my next craft store run. Can’t beat the price for my own home “studio.”

      And I didn’t realize you had done the switch from free WP to self-hosted! I’ll definitely head over to check out your post on it and glean any insight I can. That’s sort of number one on my to do list – – I feel like a lot of the other changes need to happen AFTER I changeover. Just hope I don’t turn into a pest, bugging you with questions!

      I remember you telling me about your dilemma with changing your blog title and hence, the need to change watermarks. Is that why you might delete those old entries? I personally would advocate for keeping them – – but I tend to be a sentimentalist. And to me, it would seem like a crime to delete all of those old posts that you poured so much time and effort into. But I’m guessing the entire thing has been a source of great frustration for you and you’re probably ready to throw in the towel. Maybe whoever you hire to do your project gallery can help with that, too?

      And Alex, I know you understand incorporating honesty and mess into your writing – – it is part of what I love so much about your blog. (The post you wrote on coming up with candy-canes for your daughter to take to school had me rolling.) You have a great sense of humor about it all, too, which is truly refreshing to read. When I need a boost of encouragement to take more risks with honesty, I’ll just head over to Northstory and read a post or two. That should be all I need.

      And you make a really great point with quality over quantity. Although I try to post three times a week, I won’t post just for the sake of posting. It needs to be something I can stand behind. However, my writing has always struggled in the “wordiness” department. I’m definitely trying to get better about slashing and burning words, sentences, even paragraphs that aren’t necessary. But I’m still working on it. I love that you’re committed to writing better posts, even if that means posting less frequently. I already hang on your every word, so I think you’re on your way, missy!

      Thanks for your thoughtful response! Your feedback bears much weight with me.

      Cheers.
      -Lauren

    2. Alex, I love what you said about honesty and I couldn’t agree more. Every blogger (or anyone on a social network) has to make the decision of how “real” are they going to be. I believe in full fledged honesty and sometimes it’s offputting to others but you can’t please everyone.

      I also like what you said about reading a post like a manual whereas it’s so much more fun to explain how it “really went.” It’s why I often share my “messy photo” where I show that, hey this is how it really looked pre-final-Photoshop-picture. 🙂

  13. Oh I just love that picture in the woods! It’s breathtaking! Did you take that? If so where, because I so want to go now!

    Foamcore is soooo worth it! I made a post on taking pictures indoors and mentioned three photo shooting stations I created. One of them is a foamcore one. 🙂 The other a light box, which uses an old box that I cut up, tracing paper, LED lights, and white fabric and the last is for any profile shots (which is rare for me), for when I have clothing DIYs and involves those same LED lights and lots of drop white fabric for the background.

    Thank you so much for mentioning my Tips on Decluttering post!!! I think making those social buttons will just free up so much space and draw more attention to your wonderful writing! There are sooo many out there already, like you mentioned, website after website of free icons. I created mine in Photoshop (though you can use other software) then made sure that the color number was the same, to keep consistency, and then used the code that others have out there.

    I love that you are going to reflect back on your diy wedding. If I had a wedding it surely would have been DIY one. 🙂 I do have quite a few posts I’m planning that involve looking back at some great times and hopefully offering inspiration.

    Cheers to the new year and many dreams and aspirations! Like you my list of dreams is endless. 🙂

    ~Aubrey

    1. I wish I took that photo! I actually recently discovered Recite This where you can type in a quote and transform it into a masterpiece with a few clicks! It’s sweet. And I want to go there, too!

      Well then, it’s settled: foam-core will be one of the first items on my shopping list in the new year. And I actually bookmarked that post you wrote on “Taking Pictures Indoors” because I found it so helpful. Thankfully, we get some great natural light in our living room (pretty much 2 out of the 4 walls are all windows), so we might not need artificial lighting, but I’d like to set up a foam-core station.

      That post you wrote on Decluttering was amazing; I know I’ll be referring to it quite a bit moving forward. And I actually got inspired last night about the potential of making my own social media buttons with whatever photo editing software I end up investing in…. I have a vision – – just need the tools and skills to execute it. Thankfully with all of the resources out there on the internet, it doesn’t feel unreachable.

      Thanks for the encouragement about the DIY Wedding Series. I’m actually really looking forward to reflecting on our experience, dredging up memories of how we did things, and sharing tips and tricks (some of which I learned the hard way). It was a pre-Pinterest world back then. 🙂

      Glad to have found a fellow-dreamer in you, Aubrey! Happy (almost) new year!
      -Lauren

      1. It is so funny you say that because the blogger I follow who I was telling you guys about, Aunt Peaches, just blogged about it (well it was in part of her post). So I went there and saw that black bubble and said, hey I saw that on Lauren’s blog! 🙂 I haven’t used the website yet but I’m surely going to check it out now.

        I’m so jealous of your natural light! The house that we are planning to build will have so much natural light!

        Ah, those pre-Pinterest days! I miss them and yet I don’t because I love Pinterest so darn much. 🙂

        ~Aubrey

        1. I’ve already used Recite This three times in my last three posts…so yes, I’m a little obsessed! Hoping they continue to create new templates.

          Love that you’re planning to build your own home! Now that we’re living in a home soaked with natural light (in the living room), I don’t think we can ever go back. It’s amazing what a difference it makes, not only in photos, but in your personal well being!

          Ha ha. I know! I’m a HUGE fan of Pinterest, too! I think it was a big part of how I even came to know there were craft blogs and started one myself.

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