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You are here: Home / Stories from the Bungalow / Remember Why You Started

Remember Why You Started

September 22, 2016 By Karen Cooper 4 Comments

I was the kid who rearranged her room all the time.

Even though my room really couldn’t be rearranged that many ways, given its size and furniture, I tried.

I even redecorated – changing out photos and posters, moving around the stuff on my desk and dresser, setting up my night table just right.

Were you one of those people, too?

I suspect that, today, those people – we – are the DIYers, readers of DIY and home blogs, and watchers of HGTV and DIY Network.

Ultimately, I started this blog because I was/am that person. I decorated and did DIY projects for my first apartment and my friends wanted me to teach them how to do what I had done.

I was listening to some of my favorite podcasts yesterday (my new favorite thing to listen to in the car), including Young House Love Has a Podcast. John & Sherry from Young House Love blog fame now have a podcast in which they talk about DIY, blogging, and more.

Yesterday, the episode I listened to was about how they quit blogging for a year and what they learned.  They talked about (among other things) knowing your purpose in blogging, how you are more than your blog, and remembering why you started as a way to keep the creative juices flowing.

“Remember why you started.”

This hit a chord with me. After my ankle injury and dealing with other personal challenges over the past year, in some ways, I feel like I keep effectively starting over with this blog. I have wondered whether I’ve lost my purpose and that’s why, or if it’s just that sometimes real life gets in the way of running a blog, whether as your passion or your business (or both, as in my case).

I started asking myself new questions: Should I keep the name “Dogs Don’t Eat Pizza,” even though it has nothing to do with DIY? Should I just give the blog a cosmetic facelift, rather than a whole rebranding?  Am I fulfilling my blog’s purpose in what I’m posting?

Ultimately, I came to several conclusions:

    • I can’t – I don’t want to – rebrand. Dogs Don’t Eat Pizza is part of who I am (to the point that I’ve had people come up to me and say, “Hey! You’re the dogs don’t eat pizza lady!”) and, in my heart, I know I don’t want to change that.
    • I decided that I did want to freshen things up around here – doing a little redecorating and rearranging. As you may have noticed, I’ve been playing with the fonts and headings and stuff on the blog lately. I finally have found the fonts and styles I love and am working on incorporating them into all parts of my brand (the blog, social media, emails, etc.). The design I’m going for is clean, uncluttered, sophisticated, and fun. (Perhaps not surprisingly, that’s the same aesthetic I’m going for in my home, too.)
    • The feeling of starting over is not necessarily a bad thing. I have learned and continue to learn so much about DIY, decor, blogging, even coding (!!) and it’s just part of growing and developing a business. It’s an important and good thing to take stock of where I’ve been, where I am, and where I’m going.
    • The purpose of my blog has been and, I believe, always will be:
      • Empowering you to DIY projects in your home (if I can do it, you can do it);
      • Showing you how to have a beautiful home by mixing old and new; and
      • Demonstrating how to repurpose or upcycle materials and pieces, giving them new life rather than sending them to a landfill.

To that end, you may see a few more changes around the blog, although not a whole lot. I’m working on how to showcase not just newer posts, but older posts that demonstrate and reflect the blog’s purpose. And, as my ankle heals, I’m excited to embark on more DIY projects in our home.

I’m still that girl who likes to rearrange the furniture.

I’m the girl that walks into a space and mentally redesigns it so that it’s more efficient or more comfortable.

I’m the girl who wants to keep as much home stuff – furniture, decor, house parts – out of landfills.

As always, thank you for joining me on my DIY adventures. Thank you for bearing with me while I recover from my injuries and find my way on this blog. If there’s ever anything you’d like me to talk about or if you have questions about any project here on the blog, please leave a comment below or email me at karen@thediybungalow.com.

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Filed Under: Stories from the Bungalow 4 Comments

About Karen Cooper

Hi! I'm Karen. I call myself a “recovering lawyer” - I traded in my power suits for power tools and a life of DIY adventures. Join me for DIY, home decorating, repurposing and upcycling, and organizing projects and tips as I transform a 1929 Tudor bungalow into our home. I believe in merging old and new to make a house a home.

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Comments

  1. Carol Owens says

    September 22, 2016 at 2:50 pm

    I am so glad you are keeping your name!!!!! If nothing else to honor Bear. I even starting telling my fur babies “dogs don’t eat (fill in the item here).” You do rock.

    Reply
    • Karen Cooper says

      September 26, 2016 at 8:58 am

      Awww…thank you, Carol! I really appreciate that!!

      Reply
  2. Linda says

    September 23, 2016 at 11:36 pm

    You just keep on blogging, Karen! I hope you recover completely very soon and I think revamping your blog is a really good start.

    Reply
    • Karen Cooper says

      September 26, 2016 at 8:59 am

      Thank you, Linda!!

      Reply

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Hi! I’m Karen. I call myself a “recovering lawyer,” because I turned in my power suits for power tools and a life of DIY. This blog is all about DIY, home decorating, repurposing and upcycling, and organization. I believe in merging old and new to make a house a home.




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About Karen

A "recovering lawyer," I turned in my power suits for power tools and a life of DIY. I believe in merging old and new to make a house a home. Read More…

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