Happy one year blogiversary!!

September 28th… do you know what I was doing last year on September 28th?  Publishing my VERY FIRST post on The Frugal Homemaker!  (Wanna read it?  Here it is.)  Which means today is The Frugal Homemaker’s ONE YEAR Blogiversary! 

I wasn’t new to the world of blogging a year ago, as I had written a coupon blog for several years, but I was new to WordPress (oh, I lost count how many times I crashed my site in the beginning) and to the world of Home/DIY/Décor blogging.  A coupon blog and a home/décor blog, I would learn, were TOTALLY different!

The day after my first post, I posted my fall mantel

and then jumped right in and wrote for 31 days straight for my first 31 days series – 31 days to decorate your home on a budget.  That series is still my number one viewed post or posts on my blog a year later.

During my first year of blogging I also attended my first blogging conference – Bloggy Boot Camp here in Atlanta.   And then my second conference, Haven, this summer!   Haven was amazing and I think the things I learned, the friendships I made, and many other things I learned and applied have been a huge turning point in my blog.    I found a community in Home Décor blogging that has been amazing!  I not only have friends that are bloggers, but also have bloggers that have become FRIENDS!   And I love that.  I love that the Home blogging community isn’t competive, but rather inspiring and encouraging to each other.

Some of my favorite and most viewed posts have been:

1. My 31 days series – 31 days to decorate your home on a budget  And 3 posts in that series are among the most viewed posts as well.
2. 10 tips to a beautiful home
3. Using free printable as art
4. Decorating for free with nature
5. Of course my coffee filter wreath.  I still have it hanging in my dining room and love it!
6. Updating your vent covers with spray paint
7. Hanging plates on the wall with paperclips
8. My dining room before/after reveal
9. My spring green wreath
10. Pinterest-inspired Clothespin wreath

Of course I started out with no followers on my first post, one year ago today.  By November 1st, after my 31 days series, I had 107 email subscribers, and 110 people following me on facebook, and had 11,000 pageviews for the last 30 days.    Those numbers grew slowly, very slowly, over the next few months and then in March I published this post of my Coffee Filter Wreath

(something that has been done again and again in blogland) and it went crazy a few days later!!   One day, it seemed it was getting 1,000 pins an hour on Pinterest and it has gradually continued to get pins since then.  It now has over 29,000 in pins on Pinterest to date.

No, I didn’t gain 29k in subscribers (I wish!), but my pageviews that month tripled and I gained almost 100 facebook fans in a month.

Then after Haven, my pageviews, and facebook likes have been very steadily increasing each and every month.  So where am I at one year later?  I have written 222 posts (wow!), have 1400 fans on facebook, 560 email subscribers, 200 RSS subscribers, and in the last 30 days  – 39,000 people visited my blog, and I almost crossed the 90,000 mark in pageviews.  Wow!  Still amazes me that there are that many people that are coming and checking out my blog every day.

And that brings me to the thank you part of this post.  THANK YOU for checking in on my blog several times a week to see what new project or yardsale find I have posted.  Thank you for commenting on posts, on facebook, in emails and for being encouraging, inspiring readers.  I appreciate each and everyone of you!

I love decorating my home and would do many of the things that I do whether I had a blog or not.  ( I have always decorated my mantel for each season, made seasonal wreaths, and found frugal ways to add décor to my home.)  But I often did it all and then was disappointed because only my husband and I would see it.  I had no one to show it too and have someone else share in my excitement, give me feedback, share inspiration, and more.  Now I get share my home, décor, and frugal projects with thousands of you several times a week and that is one of the best parts of blogging!  You all are my virtual house guests each week and I love that!  Blogging would be no fun at all if I didn’t have anyone reading what I wrote.  And YOU make that possible!  The simple words, “Thank You”, can’t express how I really feel.

I am super excited about what this next year of blogging on The Frugal Homemaker is going to bring!  Starting with my 31 Pinterest projects in 31 days starting on MONDAY!

So Happy One Year blogiversary to The Frugal Homemaker and here’s hoping for MANY more!

(Just for fun, if you have read my blog since the very FIRST post or maybe you found my blog during the month of October, my first full month of blogging, or you found my blog through Pinterest, I would love for you to leave a comment!)  And if you just found my blog in the last few months, welcome, I am so glad to have you here!

Christina