The New & Improved Addicted 2 Decorating
I didn’t get any work done on the studio this weekend because I spent all weekend giving the blog a complete makeover. And let me tell you, completely redesigning a 14-year-old blog is no easy task!
The redesign wasn’t all about how the blog looks. If that were all it was, I would have put it off a few more months because I’m way more interested in how my studio looks than I am in how my blog looks. I mean, it’s nice to have a fresh, new look for the website, but the main goal was to make it function more efficiently.
The internet is always changing. Google and their requirements are always changing. So if a website isn’t continually updated (and mine hadn’t been updated in several years), things start getting sluggish and outdated and user unfriendly, and Google starts punishing the owner of a sluggish website by sending less and less traffic, which means that the website owner takes a hit on income. It had gotten to the point that I couldn’t put it off any longer. So Addicted 2 Decorating has a new and improved look, but more importantly, it now has a much more efficient engine running the whole thing.
While I’m still trying to organize thing, and some pages may look like a complete mess (I’ll get to them eventually, but like I said, this is a monumental task), I did want to draw your attention to a couple of things.
First, the home page has a completely new look, and it’s jam packed full of useful information, with more useful information to be added very soon. Chances are that if you’re looking for something specific, you’ll be able to find it from the home page (or you will be able to very soon).
If you’re used to accessing my most recent blog post(s) from the home page, that’s still very easy to do. You can click/tap one of these two circled buttons/links and those will take you to all of my blog posts, listed in order from newest to oldest.
Also, if you’re looking for specific information about a specific room in our current home, you can find that info using these buttons on the home page. Each button will take you to every single blog post I’ve written about that room.
And finally (for now), you can search for DIY projects using these buttons on the home page…
Like I said, I’ll be adding more information to the home page very soon, and you should be able to find just about anything you’d need from that home page.
But probably the most exciting thing is that I finally have a decent “home sources” page. The most-often asked questions I get are, “Where did you get that?” and, “What paint color is that?” So I finally have a user-friendly home sources page. I have most of the products on there (with a few more to add), and I still need to add all of the paint colors. But when it’s finished, it will be a huge improvement over what I’ve had in the past. So if you’re looking for something in our house, you can find it on this page.
So I really do hope that things will be much more user-friendly and easy to find than they have been. And mostly, I hope Google starts liking my blog again! 😀 Website owners have to continually try to stay on Google’s good side. I’d rather not have to do that. I’d rather not ever have to worry about website and techy stuff. I’d rather just be able to create and not have to give a thought to any of that Google stuff. I wanted to be painting a floor this weekend. But we can’t always do what we want to do, huh? Adulting can be so tough sometimes! 😀 But today, I will paint.
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
What a job! 😯 Well done!
Oh my! That is a monumental task! Love it!
Looks great – I LOVE it!
Looks lovely but above all overwhelmingly informative…
I love your website, and I love you, Christie, but I have to tell you that your website is absolutely unusable on mobile. All of the ads, and the videos that just WILL. NOT. STOP. PLAYING. are so frustrating that if I MUST read a blog post on the phone I immediately switch to “reader view” which gets rid of all that, but I mostly refuse to click on your posts unless I’m on my desktop where I have an ad blocker. There has to be a point of diminishing returns, where if you would stay this side of it, people wouldn’t go to such lengths to completely block ads, and would let some through. There is no other website I frequent on a regular basis that has such intrusive ads. I want you to make money, but it needs to not interfere so wholly with the use of the site.
I can’t do anything about it unless people tell me exactly what ad is the problem, what platform they’re using, what page they’re viewing, etc. I’ve only had a handful of people complain about it, but when I look at my website on my phone (iPhone 14 Pro Max), I don’t see any of those issues. I saw one thing pop up with a very clear “X” in the corner that I tapped and it went away. Everything else is inline, scrolls with the blog post, and doesn’t cover up any information.
I need very specific information, preferably along with screenshots, if I’m going to do anything about it.
I use a cheap Android phone and don’t have any problems with ads, either. He only thing I didn’t like was how comments looked, and it seems that’s been fixed with this latest update.
I cannot find your about me/contact me page to send you screen shots.
[email protected]
Put an ad blocker on your phone, and you won’t get ads. I have no ads on my phone because I use an ad blocker on it.
Oh My seems like a whole lotta work😳I hope the dividends are huge & I’ll sit over here in my home & just enjoy all the things you work hard at❣️
It looks great! I love all the search features. Hope Google shows you lots of love for all your hard work! 🙂
It looks amazing!
Bless you for doing this! I wouldn’t even know where to start 😊
Well done!
I love the buttons, big improvement!
Yes, it’s easier to navigate by categories. Thanks for all that work.
And, how about giving us an updated picture of you?
Best wishes to you and Matt.
That’s on my list of things to do! There’s so much to update, and it can get a bit overwhelming. But I will do my best to get new pictures soon.
What an awesome job you did on this site!!!! Well done!
Looking great there. Only thing for me are the adverts. They have got to the stage I can hardly see the post or pictures. Sorry, just had to say. Had to come off the other day, couldn’t stand them anymore. Been here a very very long time 👍😊
Put an ad blocker on your phone. I have ad blockers on both my phone and tablet. I don’t get ads.
So far it looks wonderful and so user friendly. I love the buttons. My grand-daughtere has been saying “adulting is hard” for years and I’m pleased she recognizes it. Even adults say that 🙂
I have to say – for a moment I was quite discombobulated. I thought I had been redirected to a bogus duplicate site. 😉 I was expecting the same view I usually get. Once I gained my bearings it was like “Ooooh! Pretty!”
This is a great update and it looks amazing. Good job. I know that was a labor of love and a ton of effort. Well done!!
Can’t wait to see the paint job!
Love what you are doing. I have always enjoyed seeing what your next project is going to be. You are so talented.
Love the new look!
Creative minds don’t usually like paperwork or the “housekeeping” part of business, but, it does have to get done once in a while. Sorry the time finally came, but it’s looking different already, and looking forward to some more. Meanwhile, today, I picture you working in your studio on that painted floor, and will look forward to the update later this week. Hope it is going smoothly!
This looks great, user friendly with lots of info. Thanks so much.
Ads don’t bother me. Without ads, costs would be a lot more. Like you said, they scroll with the posts. I’ve been following for a long time. You either just get use to it or ignore it.
REMARKABLE! Everything you do is amazing and remarkable and I think that is what you are and while I admire these wonderful traits you possess, I have to admit that I’m somewhat envious! You seem to have so much on your plate and yet you seem to have the ambition and drive to accomplish so much. Thank you for making our days a bit brighter and I always look forward to your next post!
I’m so glad that I can get your posts in an email so I don’t have to worry about losing you to Google. Tech is not my thing but I love your content. Thanks for all your extra work and I hope you benefit greatly from it. I try to click on links you give so your data gets a hit. Hope it helps.
It’s really nice, Kristi. Very clean and I think it’ll be easier to navigate. Good work!
( Not fun but very useful)
I have noticed a few other blogs are having to do updates also. But not that many (at least the ones I follow) don’t post much anymore either. If I’m lucky, they post once or twice week. But they are on Instagram most every day.
I like this clean look, and hope it helps new followers! I’ve been with you since you bought this house!
Love the new features and design of the blog it will definitely make finding projects/sources easier. One thing I hope you can change/bring back is in the comments section your replies used to be in a different color than reader’s comments. I liked being able to scroll quickly through the comments and stop on your replies and then only read the reader comment right before it that evoked your response.
I absolutely love how it looks!! It’s so colorful and very easy to use. Usually when websites update and make changes it takes me a bit to figure it out but not with yours.
I’m so excited for your updated site. I know I have some lamp rewiring projects coming up and I remembered that you had a beginners tutorial on how to it. I hope that one makes the cut.
WOW…That was a lot of work but definitetly well worth it… LOVE IT..!!!
I only can imagine how boringsome that must be for you. You are not one to sit and do nothing. You constantly amaze me.
I cannot find your living room sofa information!! I remember reading the blog about whatever velvet the cat doesn’t bother but cannot find it. Please help.
I miss the flowers in your logo! Otherwise, everything else looks amazing. 🙂
I miss them, too. Those were among the thousands upon thousands of pictures that I lost when I dropped my external hard drive. 🙁 Maybe I can find another way to get them back, but I haven’t had time yet.