3 questions for a home decor blogger

While I’m visiting family in Toronto, and thus incapable of crafting or building things at home, I thought I’d take the time to answer some questions about PMQ for two, being a home decor blogger, and blogging as a business.

Q: Why did you start writing a home decor blog?

A: It all started with documenting my style choices and rationales in our first PMQ. We were just married, freshly posted, and we had a blank canvas to work with. I was making some important style decisions for our home that we would have to live with for the next couple of years, and I thought that if I could justify them in writing, then maybe I could get away with justifying them to DH.

At first, it took some convincing to have our dinning room occupy what is normally a living room. DH wasn’t sure that we should be turning one of our bedrooms into the TV room and lose the extra space, or that the table couldn’t fit in the kitchen. After writing a list of reasons why, I figured with a little more flourish I could make a compelling argument for anyone else who might be considering it. From that point on it kind of snowballed and then suddenly I was blogging at all hours of the day, investing in the website and muttering “do it for the blog” or “this is for the blog!!” under my breath when it’s 11:30pm and I’m still editing photos.

Q: How can you afford all the projects and styling? 

A: This one is tricky. Ceramic pineapples and fancy wallpaper samples aren’t cheap.

On the one hand, DH and I are both employed. As Dual-Income No Kids (DINKs) we are able to  “invest” in things like faux-gilded drawer pulls and new drill bits without too much hassle.

On the other hand, I treat my blog like a startup. Like with all good start-ups you have to invest your time, money, energy and maybe even your first-born into the venture. But what if you don’t have the perks of the DINKs lifestyle, and you want to undertake more home decor projects and renovations, or launch your very own Etsy store?

I’ve recently heard about a company called Borrowell, a new lending marketplace which offers personal loans and small business loans (for people like me). Getting a small loan from the bank can be tricky (I’m told they prefer to deal with larger sums of money) and using your credit card at 19% interest is crazy, so if you’re looking for a smart, safe way to borrow to renovate your powder room or invest in some new furniture and a robot-vacuum for your next posting – it’s worth looking into. Oh by the way, for the moment they are able to provide loans to residents of all provinces except Quebec and Saskatchewan.

Apparently one of their biggest Canadian demographics is military families, so it looks like you’ve all been in on the secret for a while and just never bothered to tell me.

Q: Where do you get your inspiration from and what guides your choice of projects?

A: I’ve coupled these two questions together because they form a feedback loop. I don’t build, buy, or recommend anything that I wouldn’t do if I didn’t have a blog. As a blogger, the need to drive your numbers (page views, clicks etc.) can be overwhelming, and some bloggers will create content on a never-ending cycle at any cost. At the end of the day though, you’re left with whatever you’ve made or bought, so it might as well be something you really like.

I only built the rolling laundry and utility table because I needed one. I only put together a list of my favourite etsy pillow stores because I would be buying from them anyways. I am pretty sure I only created a tassel garland for the bar because I thought the cart needed some razzle dazzle. My goal with PMQ for two, is to bring you compelling and affordably content.

Once I’ve got a project in mind, I head over to Pinterest to see what others are up to. I get a lot of inspiration from my boards because chances are, I’ve already pinned and hoarded a million and one variations on what I’m thinking of doing. For example, my Backyard board has a couple of ideas and projects (copper lawn flamingos, updates to box planters, and our harvest table), that will be familiar to you if you’ve been following my posts this summer.

Taking inspiration from others, magazines and Pinterest also helps fuel my project list. Do I need to create a custom stencil for the bathroom? Well after seeing how someone made theirs, I pretty much have to!

Q: What’s next for PMQ for two?

A: Well, I’m always working on the back end of the blog. Even if  there is no fresh content that week, you can be sure that I’ve spent a least 10 hours working on SEO, my post calendar or networking. This is all time and energy that I’m putting into expanding the blog’s reach and credibility.

 

I’m attending Blog Podium in Vancouver this fall, I’ve got some business cards in the mail, and I hope to work with more great brands to bring you guys some good deals, great products, and exciting projects. Stay tuned!