My Blog Story

I am so honored and beyond giddy to share today’s post with you! I may be a little wordy, more than normal, but I have a story to share, my blog story, that I hope will inspire you. Let’s just start from the beginning…go grab a cup of coffee or glass of wine and stay for a bit!

For the past two years I have had the desire to start a blog as an outlet to share my passion for design, decor, and a little DIY.  I would spend hours on Pinterest, especially around the holidays, pinning rooms that I love.  The whole time thinking that having a blog would be so much fun (little did I know the work involved). One of the bloggers I always felt drawn to was Melissa Michaels, creator of the award winning blog, The Inspired Room. I would read her blog and get a warm fuzzy feeling inside. Sappy, I know, but she truly has been such an inspiration to me!  I love how she encourages her readers to “love the home you have.”  In fact she wrote the best selling book, “Love the Home You Have.” Whenever I feel a sense of discontent in my home, I find Melissa’s approach to “delighting where you are” to be good food for the soul.

In a perfect world we all have pinterest “pin worthy” homes, right? That’s NOT reality for most. Reality is the sofa that harbors dried milk from years of our babies sippy cups, where we intentionally place a beautiful, fluffy pillow to hide the crusty stains.  Reality is also the smashed pillows on the sofa that are most of the time “not fluffed” and picture perfect.  We live in our homes. Life happens in our homes.  The pretty photos that are shared on Instagram, Pinterest and other social media almost always are guaranteed to have a pile of junk just around the corner.  I can connect with Melissa because she often just “keeps it real.”  That’s my kind of girl!

Back in February this past year, I took my first step in starting a blog. The doubt set in more often than not however, who would even want to read my blog.  There are so many amazing blogs out there.  Mine would be a needle in a haystack! So I did what I do, I got on my knees and I prayed!  I prayed for guidance and wisdom. I prayed for God to open doors if this was His plan for my life.  I also prayed for Him to close the door if it was not. The nudge in my heart kept beating. God did not close doors, instead more gentle taps forward.

The first hurdle was to come up with a blog name. Easy right? Umm…no. For years I’ve enjoyed decorating homes and encouraging my friends and clients to “find the silver lining in your home.”  Not happy with the sofa? Buy some pretty throw pillows to give it new life! Don’t like the color of your walls because your home feels drab and boring? Paint them! So you see, Melissa’s practical advice she always shared in her blog and her book resonated within me and spoke through me. The House of Silver Lining, my new blog, was born to inspire others.  You can read a little more about me here, or just keep reading along to the moral of this story.

 

Backtracking a bit to before the blog was launched, in March I started an Instagram account for The House of Silver Lining as a trial run.  Just to see if anyone liked my content.  I figured if I failed at Instagram then I for sure would fail at a blog.  I plan to do a whole other blog post on how I grew my Instagram, but in a tiny nut shell I’ll say that it was the catalyst to the amazing opportunities that were ahead of me.  I was having so much fun with Instagram and forming many wonderful relationships that I put the launch of my blog on the back burner.

In May, I received an email from Better Homes & Gardens (SHUT.THE.FRONT.DOOR!!!). Eddie Ross, the East Coast Editor of BHG invited me to the Better Homes & Gardens Stylemaker Event in New York City!  New York City friends!!! The event is an amazing venue for amazing bloggers.  Excuse me, where did I fit in?  My blog was not even launched yet.  My Instagram had become “my blog” and I was loving it!  So you better believe I speed dialed one of God’s best gifts to me in the techy world, Tana Nelson at YourMarkettingBFF.  I learned of her through…Instagram, of course!  She got the ball rolling on getting my blog glitches smoothed out, creating my beautiful banner heading and spending hours with me on the phone basically teaching me how to operate my new site. LIFESAVER!  Yes, she is! On June 24, 2015 I hit publish on my first blog post.  Now I could say I was a “blogger” very loosely with a ton to learn!

When I read through the attending bloggers for the BHG event, I was beyond thrilled when I saw that Melissa Michaels was going to be there!  Among many other incredibly talented bloggers that I’ve admired! That moment was another confirmation from God to me that He set this in motion.  The reason I was inspired to create The House of Silver Lining was from The Inspired Room.  Now I get to meet her!! You can imagine the celebrity star glazed eyes I had when I finally did meet Melissa this past September.  I gave her a big hug {she probably thought I was crazy} and introduced myself. “Hi! I’m Shauna, I have a huge crush on your blog, I’m probably stuttering, can I have your autograph??”  It went something like that and she was so sweet and gracious.

Star glazed eyes!!  Melissa is just as beautiful and kind hearted in person as we all know her to be on her blog.  She actually took the time to chat with me about my blog and share some very valuable blogging advice.  Advice that I cherish as pure gold.

I’m holding the Stylemaker booklet here with our photos side by side! Say wha??  I know, I sound maybe a little ridiculous but seriously friends, Melissa Michaels in the house! Please excuse the grainy awful iPhone photos.  I’m the girl who brought her camera but forgot to charge her battery…ugh.

I hope this story gives you hope in a journey you are doubting to take. You never know what lays ahead until you just put yourself out there and go for it!  I’ve been blogging for only four short months.  I’ve learned so much over these past few months and I still have so much to achieve.  I look back at where I was in March with an overwhelming desire to start connecting with all you creatives out there!  I can’t say that it’s anything special that I did to receive a letter from BHG with the invite of a lifetime.  My Instagram has always reflected what I do in my home, but I’ve taken great effort to get to know all my fellow instagrammers and bloggers who started to notice my little account.  I now have over 30K followers which is mind blowing for me since I honestly didn’t think I’d ever get to a 100. The numbers really don’t matter to me though, it’s the relationships that have formed.  I most likely would have never met Melissa had I not taken the plunge and started my Instagram account.

I always want to give God the glory in all good things that happen in my life.  I can’t imagine trying to stumble my way through this journey without daily conversations with Him.  I have no idea where this blog of mine is headed but I know that it has already accomplished greater than I ever dreamed.  My heart’s desire for this blog is to inspire you and encourage you as much as Melissa has done so for me.  When I receive comments on my Instagram or blog that say someone has discovered a new creative idea for their home or that I’ve motivated them to decorate a room they love, that is a very happy moment for me. My heart swells with so much joy and gratitude!

Now I have some really exciting news to share with you.  Melissa has written a new book, The Inspired Room, that is officially published today!  Friends, this book is downright GOOD!  You can’t help but be inspired by the beautiful photos of the home she so thoughtfully created.  She shares many easy and affordable DIY tips as well.  In celebration of her book launch, Melissa has asked a group of bloggers to share a room in our homes that has inspired us. Tomorrow, I get to share my room!  I am so thrilled to be part of this amazing Inspired Room Tour!  You will also see who else is participating in the tour so you can hop on over to each room.

See you all tomorrow in my Inspired Room!