Listeners' Letters, in two parts


We asked and we got it. Thank you so much to all of you who participated in our listener, 'write in'. The experiment proved to be quite a success as we received so many tremendous comments and questions via Twitter, blog commenting and emails. Because of its success, the show went a bit over our normal time and will be broken into two parts. Thank you to all who contributed!

Part 1 Topics: Peggy Bryant asks about affordable decorators; Anon asks about designers working room by room; Nora asks about staging; Beth at Style Redux asks about blog etiquette; Jillian asks about blog etiquette and a design question that we forgot to answer (apologies to Jillian!); The NeoTrad asks about our mentors, muses and idols; Anon asks about our favorite white paints.


Part 2 Topics: Anon asks if we're all making a living as decorators; Patti Friday of Liberty Post asks about trends; Terry of Architecture Tourist asks about the value of a designer; Sam Twain asks our views on environmental topics as related to design; ElizGonz asks about lighting; and Sharon asks about placement of appliances on angled walls.

Comments

What a fun roundtable! I enjoyed hearing all of the questions and answers.

I have to say I personally don't like it when people I've never heard of before send me e-mails asking to exchange links--it just feels spammy. I think new bloggers should be advised against that sort of thing--it's just not good blog etiquette. Building relationships is always better in the long run, and a "Please add me to your blogroll!" e-mail starts things off on the wrong foot.

Adsense is paying off for me pretty well. I love getting the check in the mail at the end of each month. I figure it justifies some of the time I spend on the blog, at least!

I do worry about the links that sometimes appear, though, because we don't have much control over that. Ninety percent of the time they are well targeted, but then some bizarro things sometimes pop up. If anyone knows a way to make the ads "G-Rated," I'd love to know. It's something I need to figure out.

I really enjoy listening to your conversations while I work on uploading photos each week. It makes the time fly for me. Thanks, ladies! :-)
Terry said…
Sorry to keep repeating: I enjoy the conversation - quickly covers a lot of ground. And today in particular: a bit about how the design business works.

"Gypsy boho" what the heck is that?

It's "Kenneth Brown" his HGTV show is "reDesign." which is unique because he mentions budget, how long it takes, and things that went wrong. kennethbrowndesign.com

On communicating value: My architect friend says: the same money can produce a good house or a bad house. Ditto interiors and landscape.
My Notting Hill said…
This was a fun format - loved the variety of the questions.

On an unrelated topic - I can't help thinking if Karen Carroll had any idea about Southern Accents closing when she was on in June. Very sad news.
Lauren said…
Loved hearing the answers to all of the questions...

I actually loved hearing your answers to the snarky question about making a living decorating... You handled it really well & 'm in the same boat. I also think that in this business (it's nature being so creative) that most of us are drawn to other creative outlets & ventures & are constantly coming up with new ideas & new ways we can create beauty/make money/ get our names out there. It's who we are.

anyway, great one as usual!!
xoxo,
Lauren
I love the three of you because you have such a great sense of humor. seriously, aside from the obvious reasons {talented, smart, etc etc} thank you for being honest, fun and funny!
xo Lidy
Tina Ramer said…
Loved hearing you answer questions!Maybe you could do this once a quarter? Kenneth Brown was not a design show winner, he is a very talented, successful designer, just hipper and younger than most of us!
Linda Merrill said…
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Linda Merrill said…
Thanks everyone for your comments!

Just to set the record straight, Kenneth Brown hailed from Louisiana, not Cali or Canada - my bad. But, he was on HGTV's Designers Challenge, winning 5 out of 6 appearances, per wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth_Brown_(interior_designer)

His show reDesign, which did show more of the nuts and bolts of design, went off the air a couple of years ago. His website is: http://www.kennethbrowndesign.com/

But, we were right - he is the cute blond guy!
Unknown said…
Great job answering all of the questions. Thanks for the sweet shout out! :)
Debra Lea said…
This was a lot of fun to listen to, answering questions was a great idea :0) I look forward to hearing more.
Fargerike Dagny said…
I really loved this "episode" of TSR. :) Great questions and great answers!
Beth Connolly said…
Thanks for answering all my questions. It was interesting hearing what you had to say.
I enjoy you all & this forum so much! You were really great & candid with the Q & A. Wonderful!
All that is Pie said…
I am interested in 1. the snarkey comment about support and 2. "green" design. What if you could not support yourself in the ID field? SO WHAT? It would make no difference to me. I would still listen to you. And with reference to green design, cheap things that must be replaced are not green. The greenest design is the highest quality piece. When the city of Austin gives points for a new or remodelled home, more durable surfaces(real wood floors, stone floors) score better, of course the don't score interiors, but I am sure you would fare well if they did.
This was such a good idea, and the 3 of you did such a great job of responding. Very interesting and lively discussion. laurie
Anonymous said…
Miles Redd, Charlotte Moss, Ruthie Sommers? That's the best you can do? It's like saying your favorite ice cream flavors are chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry.
Teacats said…
Well -- another simply brillant discussion!! -- Even my DH sat here and listened through both segments -- and HE commented on your "hey, that's really interesting!" format! Well done!

As for Future Topics/Questions:


1) Favorite Movie Houses/Homes/Sets? Always a fun topic!

2) Decorating for Parties/Entertaining? Do you move your furniture around for parties? Add extra chairs/tables for big events? What about hosting for a charity group? Extra Lighting? (perhaps say a word here about candle safety LOL!)

3)As a decor book/magazine junkie (is there a 12-step program for that problem LOL!) what books are on your upcoming lists? I know that there are literally LOTs of decor books coming out in Sept. and October for the Holiday Season! I have at least SIX on my list at Amazon!

4)Perhaps for a Halloween Topic: Have you EVER been in a haunted house? I HAVE stayed at a very old haunted inn on Cape Cod (no -- I stayed awake and did NOT see the ghost!)-- and now ask my dinner guests: "Would YOU stay in a haunted room/house?" "Would you sleep or stay awake??" Just some fun questions! ((after all -- I really do live on Lot 13 on Cemetery Hill!!)) AND -- has a house/home ever given you the "willies??" or the "creepy" feeling? LOL!

Just some fun questions for possible future topics!

Jan at Rosemary Cottage
Hi Linda, Joni and Megan,
I always get excited when I stop by TSR and see new podcasts are up. :-) You guys are so generous to share your opinions on so many interesting topics. I just recently put a gentle request on my blog asking to be omitted from any future tags/awards...my time is so limited since I work outside the home full time. I recently had a bad experience with Adsense. I signed up and allowed a group of ads onto my blog. They were appropriate at first...all about porch design and even one about table skirts. Then the second evening of having the ads on my blog, I brought up my blog around midnight and there, flashing off and on in BRIGHT ORANGE color, was a 4 inch ad for a product that belonged on an X rated blog...I about died. No telling who all saw that! I wisked all the ads off and haven't participated again. And yes, I had even used their "filter" system that was supposed to eliminate any chance of those type ads and I still ended up with this x-rated ad! :-( I won't put any Adsense ads back onto my blog until I know something like that will not happen again.
Thanks for another great podcast!
Susan
Michelle said…
Y'all (that was for you Joni) are getting very comfortable with each other, and your podcasts are just getting better!! That was fun...thanks for having Sunday coffee with me :)and for the great new lighting sources!

Best,
Michelle
Ladies of SRT: Thank you so much for answering my questions about trends. The gloss white was on all items - mirrors, faux deer heads, bed frames, case goods, accessories...on many things in many booths. We have always been told that Canada is a few years behind the U.S. trends, however, I find that hard to believe now with the internet...years ago yes..but now...no. Perhaps I'm wrong.
Linda Merrill said…
Hi Liberty Post - I agree, I think that the internet has removed the long lag times between Europe, the US and Canada.
Another great post ladies, you've made my day working around the house so much more enjoyable as I've toted you from room to room!
Toma
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