Showhome Tour {A Few Highlights}

Apr
8
2013
11 Comments

Although we planned on making our way to visit our new baby niece this weekend, freezing rain forced us to stay fairly close to home. I was itching to get out of the house for a bit, so my husband and I decided to check out a few showhomes we hadn’t been through yet in our area. Although there are few homes I walk through that I absolutely fall in love with, I often find there are parts of homes or certain features that give me ideas for client projects, our current home, as well as the one we plan on building within the next couple years.

The first home we visited had great flow, and we particularly liked how open the kitchen, breakfast area, and living room were to each other. It would be the perfect space for entertaining. We also liked how the stools tucked neatly under the island.

 

Showhome Neutral Great Room

 
The warm color palette was also appealing for the snowy/rainy day we were having. Although I tend to like light and airy spaces, they can feel cold in our Canadian climate. Achieving the perfect balance can be tricky.
 
Showhome Tour- Neutral Living Room and Dining Room
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Filed Under: Decorating, Inspiration Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Growing a Creative Blog

Mar
11
2013
21 Comments

I’m not sure where the weekend went, but I think it may have something to do with losing an hour from daylight savings or the crazy “weekend list” that was a mile long! On Friday we toured a college campus with my son and I think he has made a decision about where he’ll be in September. I really can’t believe we’re at this stage already, but I’m thankful I have several months to prepare.

As some of you may have noticed, I opened up the Satori Facebook wall for design and decorating questions over the weekend. I’ll be getting to one of those on Friday, but I first wanted to address something that keeps coming up this year- How did I grow my blog?

I’m relatively new to blogging and still have a ton to learn. I certainly don’t pretend to be an expert on the topic. In fact, I really didn’t focus too much on the “numbers” for the whole first year of blogging. For me it was about sharing my journey, connecting with other designers, and showcasing my work. Then, as I started to enjoy blogging more and more, and opportunities started to present themselves because of it, I took the numbers a little more seriously. I started to pay attention to how many people were reading daily, where they were coming from, and which posts they were most interested in. It was then that I started putting two and two together and was able to formulate and implement strategies for growing my blog, my brand, and in turn, my business.

 

Grow Your Creative Blog- Tips for Beginners

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Of course there are always many pieces to the puzzle, but a few key adjustments or tweaks to the way I was previously doing things really made all the difference. If you’re an established blogger these may seem like a no-brainer. But for those of you who are new, these simple changes may help you see a growth in blog traffic like I have over the past few months.

1) Write posts that include good SEO.

In January I was introduced to SEO for Creative Bloggers thanks to Beckie from Infarrantly Creative. It’s a fantastic free e-book written by Court Tuttle of The Blog Builders that outlines simple ways to maximize search traffic without compromising your voice (or “awesomeness” as he puts it). I find the techniques simple to understand and relatively easy to implement (still working on it). And the best part is you don’t have to be yucky about it all (if you know what I mean).

SEO for Creative Bloggers Free E-book
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Filed Under: Inspiration Tagged With:

Time to Refresh

Feb
19
2013
7 Comments

Yesterday was Family Day in Alberta, and as mentioned on Friday, we extended it to be a bit of a family week. Because my husband travels A LOT  for work, we really wanted to spend some quality time together in a hot destination soaking up the sun (we are from Canada after all), sipping a few cocktails, and doing whatever our little hearts desired.

 

Beach Vacation in Mexico

 

I think what’s so fantastic about vacations is being able to escape from the everyday to-do list that often becomes an energy-drainer, especially this time of year. Do you feel it? I love that I’m able to let go of responsibility for a short time and “just go with it” (something my type A personality has difficulty doing in real life!). I feel so grateful for the opportunity.

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Filed Under: Inspiration, Life Tagged With: , ,

Blogging Milestone and What I’ve Learned Along the Way {Part Two}

Jan
24
2013
12 Comments

Thank you so much for your kind comments this week! After reaching 200 posts, I feel like I have learned a few important blogging lessons. Let’s just say there have been some mistakes along the way, but I’ve learned to pick myself up, brush myself off, and keep going.

I’ve come to realize that blogging is no different than life with its ups and downs, and the important thing is to always remind myself why I started the blog in the first place. It wasn’t to be like everyone else or to see how popular it could get. Instead, it was to tell my individual story, and perhaps inspire and resonate with a few people along the way. If that’s what I set out to do, then I’d say I’ve exceeded my expectations.

 Tips for New Bloggers- Satori Design for Living

 

Before I get to the list of blogging tips I promised for those of you who are starting out or are considering it down the road, I want to touch on a few stand-out moments from the last 17 months or so of blogging. Earlier this week, I shared a few of my favorite posts and gave thanks to many of the people who inspired me along the way. I want to share a few more, but have to mention that these are only the tip of the iceberg, and there are so many other people who were an important part of my journey.

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Blogging Milestone and What I’ve Learned Along the Way {Part One}

Jan
22
2013
24 Comments

Today marks Satori’s 200th blog post and I thought it would be fun to take a little look back. When I started the blog in September of 2011, I really didn’t know what to expect. I definitely couldn’t have predicted how much joy it would bring to my life, and quite often have to pinch myself that I have hundreds of daily readers- say what?

I know there are blogs out there that easily reach visitor numbers in the thousands every day and mine pales in comparison.  I hope to get there eventually, however, I can honestly say for me what’s important is the interaction I have with so many of you on a daily basis. I am truly thankful for the comments, questions, collaborations, and opportunities that have all come about because of the blog.

So after 199 posts, what stands out to me? Or most importantly, what have I learned?

When a blog starts out the readership is usually pretty low. In the movie Julie & Julia, Julie is thrilled to see that she has a comment on her recently started blog, only to realize her mom is the one who wrote it. I think anyone who has started a blog can totally relate.

 

Julie and Julia Movie{via}

I happen to remember my very first comment written by Arianna, a popular blogger I had been following for quite a while. After sharing why I choose the name Satori, as well as the journey I took to start a blog, Arianna was very encouraging, and probably doesn’t realize the wind it put under my sails at that time. To this day I have never forgotten about her thoughtfulness, and try to visit and leave comments on new-ish blogs regularly. It’s a pay-it-forward attitude that I believe is important in life.

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Reflecting on 2012 and Welcoming a New Year!

Dec
31
2012
5 Comments

I’m just popping in to wish you all a Happy New Year, and want to thank you so much for making 2012 a year to remember. As the calendar is about to turn to 2013, I can’t help but reflect on all that has happened this past year, and look forward to what is to come. Cheers!

 

Champagne at Midnight{via}

 

I think we’re all guilty of being a little hard on ourselves for what we set out to accomplish in 2012, but didn’t get around to. However, if you take the time to look back on 2012, I’m certain that at least a few lessons were learned and lives were touched. Isn’t that really all that matters?

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Filed Under: Holiday & Seasonal, Inspiration, Life Tagged With: , , , ,

Pinterest for Holiday Inspiration

Nov
1
2012
3 Comments

It may only be the first day of November, but I find that the time between now and Christmas flies by quickly. Last year I got into the groove a little sooner than normal and found the time to create some handmade gifts and crafts, two things I’ve wanted to do more of, but never really found the time to squeeze them in. So what was different about last year? First of all, my son no longer plays hockey, which has freed up a lot of time because we’re no longer running around all over the place. Another reason has to do with planning.

I start looking for ideas online and in magazines at the end of October so I will have time to gather everything I need and still have time to put it all together. I find inspiration from Better Homes and Gardens, Martha Stewart, Chatelaine, Style at Home and several blogs. These are all fantastic, but my favorite source of inspiration at the moment is Pinterest, where I can find all sorts of DIY, craft, decorating and gift-wrapping ideas. Currently, I have 4 boards on Pinterest related to Christmas.

Holiday Decorating and Ideas is a general board I created last year for pinning project ideas, music, decorating ideas and other photos to do with the Christmas season.

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What’s Up in the Blogosphere?

Oct
2
2012
8 Comments

As you would probably guess, one of my favorite things to do is read blogs. It’s really what inspired me to create my own. You may remember one the first posts I wrote just over a year ago, where I explain my thought process for starting a blog. Looking back, I wonder why I didn’t do it sooner.

As mentioned in that post, one of the blogs I was really drawn to (and continue to be to this day) was Nesting Place. Nester has a way of digging a little deeper to find meaning within our homes, rather than just focusing on the physical aspects. For the month of October, she is hosting her 31 Days Series, which has grown to be very popular (you’ll know why if you follow along).

 

 

Perhaps next year I will join along and commit to 31 days of blogging about a topic, but for now, I’ll become inspired by some of the other participants. I will say, though, I’ve pledged to myself to focus on “31 Days of Finishing Up Half-done Projects.” Anyone on board?

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