Welcome to Week Five of the Skirted Roundtable. The Blogging Topic this week is "Blogging Without an Audience and Finding Your Voice" This intriguing topic - something every single blogger deals with - was sent to us by Victoria who writes the blog Art House Design. If you have a specific question you want us to address, please leave a comment. We are processing all the requests and will try to answer them one by one.
The Interior Design Topic this week is "Hanging and Displaying Art." A highly personal topic, we give our views on how high to hang a painting, how to display photographs and we hotly debate whether art should match the interior! Don't miss it!!!!
As always, thank you so much for tuning in - we hope you are enjoying the Roundtable talks enough to return for the next installment!!
Linda, Megan and Joni
Comments
Have a great day.
I've just been WAITING for "the right time" to sit down & enjoy/learn from your last several round-tables~~~~ and was SO happy "NOW" was the time! (I just REEEALLY needed a "break" from my OVERFLOWING DESK w/ a gazillion design-related things allll over it. That's pretty understandable for a layman, BUT, how do you PROS keep things in ORDER???)~~~
ANYHOOOO, I actually made myself a really LOVELY TRAY~~~ Grama's old silver tray w/ some chilled Pellegrino & fresh lime in a "VERY special" crytal wine goblet, a yummy apple, some nuts & a fab piece of Belgian chocolate (ok, I admit it~~~TWO!!!) all set & ready...
In my haste to "find/clear off" a SPACE here, I knocked over my speakers~~~~ have done that MANY times, so didn't think a thing about it, ONLY to find they're NOT WORKING NOW!!!
Aycaruba! Talk about a "bad moment"! Geez!!!
Well, so, I guess I'll see you later~~~~ MUCH later, at least til DH gets home & can ATTEMPT to fix them!
Blessings,
Linda in AZ *
I agree with Joni re: the personalised blogs - I like to read the person's opinion/views - the most successful ones to me are those that display passion and personal idiosyncracies. I also follow Desire to Inspire but flick through the pics like I might pick up a magazine and flick through. There is not much written content - so I wouldn't really feel moved to write a comment - as it would be rather inane like "gee - really like the blue chair in picture 3". Blogs like Joni's on the other hand are well researched, well written and has a respectful (to the audience) but instructive in tone - I come away feeling like I learned something - about her, the designer or design elements in the post. The difference is the passion. I also hate ones that are written just to schlep product - so disrespectful to the audience.
I write just for myself - like an online diary - my blog is not a design blog it's an eclectic mix of things I am interested in - I don't think too much about audience because I think I'd start editing myself - but then I am not one to hang all my dirty washing out there either!
OK, not really speechless, of course!
Sarah - don't second guess yourself! There isn't really a right or wrong way. It's what makes you happy and also attracts the kind of readers you want, I guess.
Megan (not BB8), I agree, I enjoy looking at the pics, but they usually don't bring out the comment from me. However, something personal or an unusual take on something usually does. As for businesses writing blogs - I'm not inherently against it. I write a blog for an upholstery company www.upholsteredfurniture.blogspot.com and we try to always keep it educational. It's not particularly personal, but does represent the work of real people who are doing an age old craft. I think that's a legitimate use for a blog. It's not one that gets regular readers, but it comes up in google searches for related topics. And then provides real information or inspiration (I hope!). I agree, a blog that does nothing but say "here's a great product" is dull - same as those who do that on Twitter. A little creativity is required!
Before that I didn't even know the design blogs were out there! Anyway, one reason I'll "drop" a new blog is if they don't post every day. If it's one I really like (Eddie Ross) I don' mind but if it's not one of my favorites I figure I'll just drop it and try something else. As you said, one reason Eddie is successful is because I knew who he was but that only got me in the door. The fact that it's personal, as you said, but also because it shows things that anyone can do and find is what keeps me.
Great work ladies!
Ann
Ann
XO,
Sheila :-)
The other great thing about blogging is I have met so many other talented people who are a consistant source of inspiration for me as an antique dealer.
Anyway I really like what you are doing on here and I think your topics are so relavent to other bloggers.
Thanks for all the info and insight.
Keri
Interesting topic as I have been thinking alot about this lately. Do I blog because I really want an audience or do I blog because it is fun and as others have said a creative outlet? I started out not caring if anyone looked at my blog. I started it with the intention of showing paint jobs I did for clients. Now I feel really different about it, I want followers. I want to know if there is anyone out there. I don't want to feel dissapointed when I see there are no responses but I do. I don't share much personally with my blog but do share alot of my projects and pics of my home. The truth is that I really wouldn't mind not getting the comments as long as I knew people were coming to my sight for ideas and inspiration. Thats all I want really. Then I would have more reasons to keep my post fresh and updated.
the photo you have chosen for this post definitely made my day! In one way or another I will always have that in mind when I write my next post!!!
Greetings from Munich, Petra
I was referring to blogs that are thrown on, to say, a used medical supply website, or some other business website that seems to have created a blog only because they were told by an optimizing specialist that, they needed one.
I may have just offended the majority of shoe lace manufacturers with blogs on their business site. but it's just my opinion.
thank you for listening to us. Hopefully you'll come back.
Megan
THANK YOU!
You are lovely and I think you are so right, it has to do with being personal and professional at the same time. I feel it is also learning how to write and how to say what you want to say, yes, finding your voice!
XX
Victoria
And I also have to say to Joni that her blog was one of my "firsts" and I was honestly too scared to even write comments in the beginning!! :) I'm so glad I did as I consider her a friend now!! :)