Holy. Crap. The last little bit has been a little rough round these parts with summer being in full chaotic swing and all (which means 110 degrees at.all.times. blech.) but after a break I am finally BACK! I don’t mean just posting here on the blog, like my sparkle that sort of fizzled out for a bit is finally resurfacing! It feels SO GOOD to feel like me again!!!
Now that I am finally up to it, the projects that I’ve been side eyeing are now in high gear. Remember when we started on the makeover at our family restaurant Durango’s? Like in December? Yeah…. It is getting so close to being finished, I’ll have a post all about the updates that we’ve made and so really incredible tutorials (like how to make seriously chic tables out of plain old plywood) in the next little bit.
I am DYING to get re-started on my kitchen makeover. The herringbone floors got put in and it took a backseat to about a million other things. Mostly because I didn’t have a clear execution plan for those dang cabinets that are sucking the life. Buuuuuut, I’ve caught the vision and I know exactly where I want this thing to go.
Because honestly, anything is better than where it began. (Picture from the MLS listing for our house)
In a few weeks I am heading to Atlanta for Haven, (its the best thing since a sliding compound miter saw) and get this, I’m the closing keynote speaker.(!??!) I am so excited and humbled. My topic revolves around blogging with authenticity so I thought it would be super insightful to ask you guys, who (or what blog) do you feel really embodies that characteristic? What makes you feel like a blog is/is not authentic? If you could tell a group of 500 bloggers one thing what would it be? Feel free to add any other comments that you might have on this subject. It would be super appreciated!
Phew, I think that is it! Can we have a group hug about it?
I love a lot of blogs, but I still feel like there’s something not authentic about a lot of them. I think it’s hard to find the balance between salesman and blogger. I feel like I’m being sold to a lot. I hope I don’t come off that way to readers! I’ll be at Haven this year, I hope you’ll have time to take selfies with some of us (especially me!)! Can’t wait to see what you have to say!
View Along The Way is a very authentic blog. She’s been busy/absent as of late but her posts are always very genuine & transparent. I personally enjoy hearing the highs & the lows, not just the highlight reel. It helps me keep things in perspective.
I also really love maskcara 🙂 (don’t we all?!?!). She’s super encouraging!!
Authentic blogs… showing not just the triumphs but also the fails, speaking on what’s up truthfully even when you are in a rut and realizing your vulnerable and thus human.
Life may be great most of the time but sharing even when it isn’t rainbows and sunshine makes the reader feel more connected and the blog more authentic at least to me.
Un-Authentic: Posts that are obviously done just because a blogger needs material for posts. Ideas/Crafts/Home DIY that most normal non-bloggers would never do/attempt.
Inauthentic:
-Just buys a bunch of pretty things, stages the space and blogs about why it all works together. There’s nothing fun about that and it is unattainable for most of us. Snore.
-Doing sponsored post about products unrelated to the main theme/content of your blog. DIY blog showing an awesome water pitcher or a snack box plan seems a little grabby to me. DIY blog showing how awesome Scotch tape is or a specific brand of paint – bring it on! I want to hear about that! I know a lot of blogs fall in the gray zone of “lifestyle” so they think every product is okay but, eh, I think it feels inauthentic.
-Wordy with perfect diction & grammar and/or super cheesy over the top humor – I know everyone feels differently about this but I like a couple purposeful slang terms and amirights. I think if a blog writing feels somewhere between a text and game of pictionary (show not tell) you are on the right track. If it is too perfect and not very conversational it is just dull.
-All the round up posts! Yuck. If it is not super quirky – ie I would not have searched that on Pinterest myself or a legit moodboard you are about to use for a space then I do not want to see it. We don’t need anymore best brass light fixture posts.
That’s my 2 cents.
I couldn’t have said it better. Especially the round up posts. I hate those. I’m a big girl. I know how to plug some words into a search engine. I’ve stopped following blogs because I felt like they were in a rut and so they just did a bunch of roundup posts. Hey. If you are in a slump, that is totally ok. Own it. I don’t expect every post to be mind-blowing. But, give me some credit, I can navigate the internet. One exception: Centsational Girl’s best of the blogosphere posts. Those I can get behind because they are curated. And it doesn’t have the feel of ‘I’m too busy to post today, so here’s some crap I’ve been looking at’
I also want a blog post to feel like a conversation, where you write the way you would chat with your best friend. It makes me feel like we’re good pals, and you sent me an email where you are super excited about something. That makes me feel like I know you, and makes me feel like we’re pals. Mandi, you are really really good about this. Fo realsies. I also think Pioneer Woman and View along the way are really good about this.
Totally agree!! It’s crazy… My mom likes to say, “That is NOT DIY, that is arts and crafts” Check out my mom’s blog, after 5 years cancer-free, she is still able to remodel kitchens, bathrooms, and build furniture (with a little slave labor from myself)!!
One big thing that I think makes your blog seem really authentic is when you show the failures, but then also ways to fix them. So so so many of my projects are EPIC fails, and sit in a giant pile in the corner of my craft area for months, sometimes years, until maybe inspiration strikes or I bite the bullet and realize it was not meant to be.
I don’t like blogs that feel like they are catering towards certain trends too much. Like a certain blog that I do really love, but tends to make one thousand projects based on emojis. I mean, maybe they love emoji based crafts, but I don’t need to see more than a couple of those. Don’t focus so much energy on trends, because those can shift so fast. I would rather see blog posts from people who know more about techniques and process, because then you can apply all sorts of different things. Once you know the basics you can throw in some trendy elements every once in a while based on your own tastes.
Don’t know if this makes any sense. My coffee hasn’t quite kicked in yet.
<3
I really dislike sponsored posts, or at least posts that are so tangentially related to the blog itself that it’s obvious that the blogger is only writing the post to fit with a sponsor. That being said, I understand that sponsors are necessary and it’s likely difficult for bloggers to find a balance with sponsored and unsponsored posts. I’ve gotten to the point with a few blogs where I feel like they’re doing way too much sponsored content, and I just can’t read them for a while. On the other hand, when a blogger writes about products that she actually loves and uses, (whether or not it’s sponsored), I tend to love it, and I’ve bought plenty of things from posts like that. I guess it comes down to how honest the post feels and whether I believe that the blogger is speaking from the heart. One example: LGN and Emily Henderson are both sponsored by Target, and when they write about their favorite products, I believe that they really love them and I’ve totally bought things from Target after reading their posts. Another home designer blogger, whose name I won’t mention, recently had a sponsorship with GE or something, writing about light bulbs, and it seemed so tacked on and inauthentic that it just annoyed me. Incidentally, in a different post this same blogger mentioned (completely in passing) a different light bulb that she loves, and after reading that, I added a pack to my amazon shopping cart. So it isn’t that I’m against light bulbs, it’s that the way in which she wrote up a post seemed so contrived to sell light bulbs; yet when she mentioned off-hand a certain type she loved, I was all ears. Everyone needs lightbulbs!
I guess it comes down to whether I feel like a blogger is being paid for their time, and ultimately talking about something that they know very little about, or if they are writing about something they actually like and/or believe in. When I read NatureBox or Blue Apron posts, for example, it’s a little boring, but ultimately I believe that the blogger really likes the product. Because really, why read blogs unless the passion of the blogger shines through?
Hope that helps!
This is a great topic but a tough topic, too! I feel like authenticity often goes hand-in-hand with knowing or believing strongly that what you have to say is valuable. When you have that confidence, it seems like it would be easier to be honest and not have to try to maintain some kind of blogging persona (granted, this may not be true at all, but it seems like it SHOULD be, at least). Some of the practices people listed above as being inauthentic–it strikes me that many of those things are maybe done in an effort to try to convince (or sell, like Corinna said) people (or yourself) that you have something relevant to say. In any case, authenticity makes you vulnerable, and that is tough for anyone. There are so many wonderful blogs out there, it’s easy to ask–How can being yourself be enough? I’m rambling here, but this is something I’ve thought about and grappled with a lot myself. Don’t know if you’ll be able to share any of your remarks here, but I’d love to know what you come up with!
If I could tell your blog writers audience one thing: take a writing course. Your blog and a few others are well written, but so many of the DIY blogs particularly, have extremely poor writing and let’s face it; blogs are to be read. A lot of times, bloggers try to write like they’re trying to ‘relate’ to their audience and it just comes off as unauthentic. There are several bloggers that start their post with ‘I am working in collaboration with —–‘ and that feels authentic. But to start out and say ‘this is a sponsored post’ or ‘I received compensation to say this’ instantly negates any value, for me, of what they are trying to say. So if the writing is bad, many times I won’t follow that blog. I enjoy blogs that are good reads. I mainly read décor/design/diy blogs. I have one pet peeve with DIY bloggers that makes it feel unauthentic for me: when they always preface their post with ‘please excuse these horrible, awful taken-with-my-iPhone’ disclaimers or the ‘I obviously haven’t styled this so please excuse’ disclaimer that so many of them put out there. When in reality the pictures are fine or the styling is fine. To me it feels very unauthentic and like they are just fishing for somebody to say ‘oh girl, you’re great! even your bad is so so so good’. Just a simple ‘in progress’ post makes it okay for me, whereas a ‘these are horrible pictures/styling/’ preface makes me go blaaaaargh. I also hate, and I mean hate in such a way that I won’t even read the rest of the post, when bloggers that are DIY bloggers or home improvement bloggers or even design/décor bloggers, blog about Blue Apron. I get it that they are trying to make a living with their blogs. I get it, I get it. But make your sponsored post relevant to your blog and please try to find a way to introduce it that feels authentic (hence the writing course). I only follow a few foodie blogs and NOT A SINGLE ONE has ever done a sponsored post from Home Depot. But most of them do sponsored posts from All-Clad. Or Wusthoff. Or Le Cruset and it always involves a giveaway. But it seems as if all DIY/Design bloggers want me to subscribe to Blue Apron and get $40 off my first week. if you are a DIY/DESIGN blogger and you want to promote Cricut every other post? Go for it. You want to sell me on the 56 different types of painters tape out there; I’ll read to the very end. I love the round up post that shows you different faucets in every price point (unlike the previous poster, I get a lot out of round up posts) and I don’t care if they are sponsored. But for all that is holy, stop trying to sell me on the Blue Apron if you are a DIY blogger.
Yes, a writing course please! I agree with you 100%.
Authenticity is in the voice and a signature style. Your voice strikes me as authentic, and there’s no question you have a style that is very much your own. Likewise Emily Henderson. I’m rarely interested in family content, it’s all about decor/DIY for me, yet I do read her Charlie posts because I like her voice so much.
I think the two of you have another commonality that makes you genuine for me and that’s heart. Also, I think she has some of your trademark fearlessness. Those qualities combine to makes yours my number 1 and 2 favorite blogs, and I follow many.
If I could say one thing to 500 bloggers it would be that “I am loving XXXXX right now” sets my teeth on edge and my hair on fire. “I love XXXXX right now” captures the sentiment just fine. Which sounds more genuine, “I am loving my husband” or “I love my husband”? To my ear, the first sounds anything but. And find a euphemism for love now and then. Do you really love every last thing? Perhaps you admire X, appreciate Y, and love Z.
Funny you should ask this question today, because I just found an amazing blog (Eye Swoon) that, while slick and beautiful, could not be further from who I am, and it made me realize that I just completely need to be me – authentic – which is sassy and sarcastic and inventive, not attempting to be sophisticated and and crisp and urban (like Eye Swoon).
Because it’s my unique blend of whatever I do differently that will make me interesting in a sea of design blogs.
Authentic to me is when a blogger doesn’t try too hard to run their blog like a business, i.e posting five days a week regardless of whether they really have anything to say or not. I would totally rather wait two weeks for a great post than become bored reading ten posts about the same project that could basically have been rolled into one.
I like it when a blogger admits when they messed up, or when things aren’t as great as they seem in the photos. I hate pretentiousness, and there are a lot of blogs that I’ve stopped reading cos they got bigger and suddenly the cheap and cheerful, diy approach wasn’t good enough anymore. Now I know that’s totally a personal taste thing, and there are plenty of people out there to whom these blogs are relevant, but I don’t have money to burn when it comes to home decor, so I don’t really want to read about how you just got such a bargain on your new bed linen…which cost $300!
The blogs I love that I think are “authentic” would be “domestic imperfection” and “the nester”, both of these bloggers have a style that is actually pretty different from mine, but I love how real they are with what they share. I also like “view along the way” , but I was pretty irritated that she just dropped off the earth with no real explanation-I know she doesn’t owe us anything, and she had her reasons, but when you’ve been following a blogger for a long time you do feel like you know them, so it’s a bit of a kick in the guts to feel that they don’t really see you that way at all.
So I guess if I was to tell a blogger anything, it would be…”be kind to your readers, and understand that they really do feel like they know you. So answer questions, reply to comments when possible, be honest with them. In the long run I think you will end up with much more loyal readers if you work that way.
Agree with Linda! I feel like I know you, Mandi. That to me is authentic. If I ran into you at the DI in St. George, I would totally be like, “Hey Mandi!” And hug you like I would my girlfriend/neighbor. It does feel like a kick in the guts when I email a blogger with a question and they don’t respond. Or when I actually, by some miracle, win a giveaway (and cry real tears!) and run to my mailbox every day for 4 months and then finally give up on ever receiving the prize. (Which I know that isn’t necessarily the blogger’s fault, but it feels like being let down by your best friend. Bloggers should try to collaborate with people/companies that can deliver, are trustworthy, and maybe follow up to see if the prizes were actually given.) That is a way specific example but I think the main message is to remember that the readers are your customers and support group. If a blog gets “too big” that the writer forgets about the individual, then they lose that authenticity and the ability to relate to them as your internet bestie is diminished.
Vintage Revivals is still my favorite blog and the reasons are your aunthenticity and unique content. I love that you are fearless, will try anything, and encourage us to do the same.
I’m a long time blog reader, but I’m not a blogger. I feel like your blog is very authentic. I also really love Bower Power, the Nesting Place, House Tweaking, and Under the Sycamore.
I like bloggers who just share their lives…good, bad and ugly. They don’t have to share every detail, but I don’t want to see perfect vignettes all the time. I want to be friends with the bloggers I follow.
Authentic blogs: Emily Henderson’s, Manhattan-Nest, and The Bloggess. I wish I could pinpoint what it is about them that I trust so much, but they are the gold standard, in my opinion.
I hate sponsored posts. Even if I am interested in the product, I won’t read them. I actually appreciate when a blogger states in the very first line that a post is sponsored, because I can click away without feeling like I’ve been tricked — because I can detect a sponsored post from a mile away. (Having said that, Emily Henderson does amazing sponsored posts. Again, I can’t put my finger on what she does that works so well, but they are so well done.) I know sponsored posts are a part of the blogging life, but they are about as inauthentic as you can get.
I mentally eye-roll whenever a blogger says something like, “I have the most amazing such-and-such to tell you about today” or something like that. I appreciate excitement, but this is a long journey, people, and not everything can be over-the-top exciting.
If I could say one thing to 500 bloggers, it would be this: I do not expect content every single day. In fact, I far, far, far prefer quality over quantity. Surely most people use some sort of reader now, so it’s not as though we are clicking to your website every day and experiencing disappointment when we see the same thing several days in a row. When one of my favorite blogs pops up in my reader, I’m thrilled beyond measure because it is always worth the wait. If you need to take a break, take one. Tell us if you want to, or don’t. Don’t apologize when you come back after a hiatus; just say hello and move forward. Again, all the best blogs are totally worth the wait.
(Also, I probably should have said this first, but I really like Vintage Revivals! My favorite series was the Nugget debacle. That was authenticity at its best. I still think about those posts.)
First of all let me say your kitchen HAS come a loooong way, can’t wait to see where you’re headed.
Authentic bloggers to me are ones that aren’t afraid to show their “true” side. For example, in a blog about home decor, I appreciate when bloggers show the “before” pictures. When they show the mess, the “real” life, the one that’s more like what I see when I look around my own home. I like when they tell me that they staged the picture so the furniture looks great but that their five year old ripped the books from the shelf seconds after taking the picture. I appreciate when bloggers ask for and respond to feedback. I think an authentic blogger adds a little soul to their posts, sparks a conversation and actually listens to what his/her readers are telling them. I appreciate so much when I take the time to comment on a blog, and I get a response from the writer where they say more than “thanks!” and actually listen to what I have to say. Finally, an Authentic blogger blogs because they love to and because they want to share their story to the world.
I’ve been waiting to see how the remodel went of your restaurant. Very curious to see what kind of interior you went with. Good thing you decided to remodel the place BEFORE the popularity waned! Good luck in Atlanta!
I feel like authentic is what happens what being realistic and unique play nice together.
I love to be inspired by bloggers but it irritates the shizzle out of me when I see bloggers knocking off other bloggers. I get that’s a product of Pinterest but it kind of sucked the fun out of being different.
I dig a blogger that needs 10 words to describe their style.
Like if you’re shabby chic or bohemian or mid mod I call BS on your trendy ways.
A while ago I described you as South-Western-Mid-Century-Industrial-Desert-Garden-Fairy. I’m down with any blogger that creates personal style described by no less than 5 themes slammed together and when you see it you know.. it’s Mandi.. or Brooke or whoever.
My personal style may not be the same but I can look at the pics and dig em because they’re real.
I also love a true story. Nugget for example. I know. Sucked the life out of you. But the process and failures that ended with a true Mandi creation is a total win.
And a melt down here and there. A lot of bloggers share personal stories in a compelling way that allows us to feel them on a legit level. Not in an over sharing weird facebook drama way. In a bomb. this sucks and if you think me and my homies are perfect we’re totally not but rolling with it kind of way.
All that and random stories of dirty, funny kids and cute dogs and a mad hubs that want to know where the hell you put the circular saw and why all the drill bits are broke in half make for rock star blogs in my book.
Good luck and CONGRATULATIONS!!
Young House Love (R.I.P) felt so authentic to me because they kept a really light, playful tone that made you feel like you truly knew John and Sherry even though you’d never met them. One thing that puts me off of blogs is too many sponsored posts. I won’t name names, but a blog I follow has basically been all sponsored posts lately and it makes it feel so cheap and forced. Another thing that puts me off a blog: poor grammar. Use proper punctuation, people! (Not you. You’re good.)
I really felt like young house love were very authentic bloggers. I felt I was friends with them which is kinda weird since I only met them for a min at a book tour. I still miss their blog. If a blogger is trying too hard to do things they think will be popular but not their own style I think readers can see thru that.
I think like with any writing if someone is being authentic they have their own voice and point of view and somehow it rings true to an audience. Though I think you learn to write by reading others’ writing ,you still need your own unique perspective to offer the reader. I agree with many others here that think you, Emily Henderson, and younghouselove were/are very authentic. I think that is because no matter what the content each of you is/was posting your personality comes through/there is a unique voice behind it. It doesn’t sound like you are writing what you think someone else would say or what you feel the audience would like to hear because you saw it on someone else’s blog . . . obviously you all get your inspiration from somewhere, but I can’t tell where. I guess for me, something sticks out as inauthentic when it seems I’m reading a bad version of someone else’s blog. Maybe thinking about your own true creative inspiration, not trying to paint a perfect picture of your own life, not thinking too much what a blog should say and throwing some of the “blog rules” or formulas out the window? It’s obviously easier to do anything with a formula, but I’d say people won’t want to read something that is just a rehashed version of someone else’s blog and not done as well? People like originality and creativity–that’s a huge part of what writing is and blogging is writing!:) Think of all the great writers in general. People didn’t say that e.e. cummings. I love him because he’s really reminiscent of . . . who? He wasn’t like anyone that I can think of . . . I don’t want to read a crappy e.e. cummings rip-off poem, I’ll just go right to the source.
my faves are Mother, A Cup Of Jo and DesignSponge. I know bloggers have to eat, but I do feel that there needs to be a balance with the sponsorship. These blogs pull it off pretty well!
So glad you are back Mandy. You are crazy authentic. I love what you do on your blog but your story is what really hooked me. I love that you don’t have the perfect marriage, that your life was and is messy and that you have found the ways that work for you to embrace it all. Your partner is really lucky to have you.
Good luck in Atlanta!
Just a note– I hate when bloggers focus an entire post on a free item they’ve been given by a company to advertise. It doesn’t feel authentic.
Authentic:
When bloggers share tidbits about their lives, mixed in with their regular topics. When they’re real about how long a project took and how much it cost. When it feels like they’re doing a project because they need it done, not because Home Depot is sponsoring the post and they needed something to blog about. (I’m all for sponsorships, but not at the expense of authentic blog content.)
Inauthentic:
Just posting something because it’s Thursday and you’re supposed to have a new post up on Thursdays. I would rather wait and read something on Monday that I actually want to read! Spare me the round-up or the “best of” or the “look at this great post that I wrote last year!”
Fashion bloggers whose entire wardrobe is “c/o”. It makes me wonder if they would actually wear/buy those things in real life, if a retailer wasn’t giving it to them. Also, when I never see a repeat article of clothing. No repeat outfits, that’s fine. But never wearing the same pair of jeans?! Give me a break. Hi Sugarplum is the most authentic fashion blogger I know (hi Cassie!) – even though she’s equal parts DIY/decor and fashion. She keeps it real. She wears things multiple times, but always in a cool and different way. She buys almost all her own clothes. She’s the real deal.
The biggest thing for me is a blog without guest bloggers. If I wanted to see what they’re doing, I would go to their blog. I’m on the blog I’m on because I want to see what that blogger is doing in their house. I get that people think they need to post something new and exciting every day and that’s very time consuming and overwhelming, but I would MUCH rather see fewer posts with no guests. Sarah from Thrifty Decor Chick is a perfect example. She never has guests but occasionally features a blog she loves. Perfect. I can’t tell you how many blogs I have stopped following because they start having guests every day and rarely post themselves.
I just started a blog so obviously I’ve been thinking a lot about finding my own voice and authenticity. It’s tough because I think most of the blogs I come across these days have been around for a while and have big followings therefore the authenticity that may have existed in the beginning is gone. It doesn’t bother me if people advertise, because I know if this is how you make a living it’s what you need to do. What I don’t get is the filler posts, and the corny projects. I’ve seen some diys that I question whether the person or blogger posting them would ever display, wear, use, or eat them.
Having just started my own blog I’ve recently been thinking a lot about authenticity and finding my own voice. I think when I visit other blogs the biggest thing that sticks out with me as being un-authentic are the filler posts and the cheesy projects. I have definitely come across some DIY projects that I question if the person writing the blog would ever use, display, eat the thing they just wrote about. To me it seems kind of lame to just write something for the sake of writing it. Anyway…I love your blog and look forward to see what you’re doing next. You remind me of me but your a much cuter version 🙂 Good luck with your presentation!
I couldn’t believe it when I first discovered your blog… It was perfect. I was looking for a modern-boho-yet-clean type of blog, and you were perfect. Not only did you have what I was looking for, you showed me different things and that not everything had to be symmetrical and perfect. Sometimes, it’s the imperfections that make it feel real, authentic and most importantly; comfortable.
Thanks Mandy,
Tashie
I’ve always wanted to speak at a conference for Bloggers, probably because I am in PR/Marketing and some things I read in blogs or see how situations are handled is like nails on a chalkboard to me. Funny, I was just thinking about this the other day and thought I should write a post on it.
For the bloggers that are more like hobbyists, I think they’re fine. They feel most authentic to me because they’re not trying to impress, they’re just being themselves and that’s enjoyable to read. But for those that are trying to make a living, receive sponsorships, be authentic and have a large following need to hone some skills. The first I would say is to take a writing course (as has been stated) and learn to write for the masses while still keeping your style. I think one of the best ones to do this is Emily Henderson. She has an amazing way of crossing over generational lines and not just talk to the 20/30 set which I feel most bloggers do. Another great one is Lauren Liess. She has gotten this ability down as well. For me, the way someone comes across in their words is far superior than their projects. It inspires me to maybe try a variation of a project or see what I can pick out of their portfolio that might work in my home (even if it’s more high end which my budget doesn’t reflect.) That is where they are authentic, they inspire without trying so hard and probably don’t question if they’re being authentic.
The amount of sponsored posts I read are killers. I seriously have dropped blogs for that reason. It just screams, “No original content.” Someone also said that to put a project out there for the sake of having blog content is a turn off. I agree. Quality over quantity is ok. Most of us will not leave when there isn’t a daily update.
Thanks for asking our input!
i i ii agree
i agree about emily henderson. she is the only mjor blogger who produces a quality post almost daily.
too many sponsored posts — any, actually. YHL was great at just saying no, which lent them all the more credibility when they did say something was worth using. they were never compensated for saying so, and their word is still gold. even their disappearing from the scene adds to their integrity and credibility.
Hi Mandi,
That’s such a great topic and question. I think authenticity in a blog shines through when posts are about what the author really cares about and not just a trend. I read your coverage on The Nugget awhile back but I only recently read your “Real Life Story.” I was blown away by your honesty and sincerity in sharing both your life experiences and beliefs “as is.” That’s when I bookmarked your blog. I also think how a blog handles sponsored content is key–like the ScotchBlue Retro Cabinets post (gorgeous by the way but way above my skill level!) While they aren’t design blogs, I read GirlOfACertainAge.com by founding Lucky magazine editor Kim France and SmittenKitchen.com by Deb Perelman. Both are sincere and well-written with obvious care. I also like A Beautiful Mess. None of these peoples lives look just like mine but they don’t look too posed or perfect. They make me think of new ideas and want to grab a cup a coffee with the authors–I think that’s just what a good blog should (or could!) be.
The Pioneer Woman is the best example of an authentic blog that I have ever read. She has lots of humor, adores her family, and admits her faults to the hundreds of readers that she has. Sometimes I use her recipes her at home, but mostly I just like to read her blog. She is “real”.
Non-blogger but blogger reading addict right here! I feel your blog is authentic in every way. You have a tab that reveals your biggest trials and triumphs for goodness sake. I am hating those blogs or instagram accounts where everyone comments “family goals” or “you are so perfect”. A beautiful 20 year old pushing a $300.00 stroller is not a blog I’d follow. There isn’t a 20 year old that I know that can afford $200 shoes, $300 strollers and blowouts every week. Keep it real people. Some examples of legit blogs to me are Emily Henderson, Amber Interiors, A House in the Hills. Keep up the great blog! Glad your sparkle is back:) FYI, I stopped by Durango’s last time I was in St. George. The brick wall is a.maz.ing. Cant’ wait to see the rest of the update.
For authenticity: show your process and talk about what went poorly and also well. Not to bash others, but when I occasionally pop over to Cupcakes & Cashmere I so often see a headline that looks interesting, but when I click through there is no process, just an end result, such as: I made cupcakes! Although we all know what cupcake batter looks like, I still want to see it being made (Pioneer Woman is great at showing process, as are you). Details make for authenticity, if we just want pretty pictures with no substance we’ll turn to Pinterest, for the story behind the end product we turn to blogs. Also, it’s so important to have creative and unique ideas, not just recycle Pins you’ve found – again, your’e so great at that! x
Sponsored posts! Not a fan at all. I know they’re necessary to pay the bills, but I bail pretty quickly. There was a home blogger that had a lingerie sponsor…so not cool. Keep it real, show us your fails! Your “this will tide things over but I so don’t love this coffee table” things. And finally, I don’t love electrical/plumbing/construction posts.
So much good insight from your readers! In my nursing profession as well as in life…we all have those things that are our strong points–and others areas where we may not excel but can certainly celebrate in others and even learn from them. My dad always used to say, (and it’s the premise of my blog) “We all have something to teach and something to learn!” We owe to each other, especially as women to be “real” and celebrate each other! Good luck with your presentation! Mary Wilding
I think your blog is pretty authentic all around. A lot of the blogs I read are good at still being authentic when they do sponsored posts. Either because they only do ones that really go with the themes of their blog or they just happen to be fantastic writers. Too many sponsored posts makes it start to feel like the blogger is just in it to make some cash and doesn’t really care what they present. I quit reading one blog I used to love because it turned in to 2-3 sponsored posts a week, that read basically like commercials, with very rare actual blog posts thrown in. I also tend to lose interest in blogs once the writers make it a group effort and have more posts from contributors than from themselves. That also makes it feel like they are just trying to put as many new posts up to get page views without really caring about the content.