You might notice that the bi-weekly posting schedule has dropped to weekly. Don’t worry I’m not going away. I am just taking time to make some fresh changes.
A Little History
I started Craft Thyme in February as a hobby, though you may see some older material I moved from a personal blog. Because I am crazy motivated I thought it was good time to start that, while finishing a degree in computer information technology, trying to find a new job, etc. Craft Thyme languished unloved and somewhat haphazardly posted.
I really think of June as the true start date for Craft Thyme and since that time I have put steady part-time hours each week towards creating tutorials and networking this website. And guess what? I have seen steady growth from just a few page views to regularly close to 200 hundred a day.
While that isn’t a lot of views, that increased traffic coupled with the fact some regular readers have taken the time to comment, pin pictures and email, has given me the motivation to create a better, more professional website with better pictures, tutorials and projects.
Where We Are Headed
Here is a list of things I have in the works with hilariously impossible aggressive timelines.
Redesign Website: Jan 2014
Write First Ebook: Nov 2013 (always wanted to try that, so that’s more a personal goal that relates to crafting than something that will intrinsically change Craft Thyme)
Develop a Biweekly Newsletter: Oct 2013
Add a sub blog on Crafting a wordpress blog: Oct 2013
Marketing Plan for Craft Thyme: Dec 2013
Some of these items require a lot of substeps. For example, I am learning PHP to better control the design of my website. The ebook will have brand new tutorials on garland making for the Christmas season. Marketing is going to take a lot of research…
The sub blog is my answer to annoyance. I have spent the last couple of weeks reading about how to make a professional blog and website that is useful/fun for readers and allows me to make a little income to offset this time consuming hobby and pay for all those lovely craft supplies. There is great information out there, but from a technical stand point there is some crazy or outdated shit that people keep posting. For example: Facebook no longer penalizes posts from third party API, there is no need to go hand edit every link out of your comments because Google offers tags and tools like (nofollow attributes) to handle these types of content, plugins and why they aren’t so great technically (why I am learning PHP)… The list goes on and on!
Since I spend a lot of time reading up on technical items like jquery, PHP, SEO, etc I figured sharing that info for the less technically inclined would be a good way to document my website tests and growth, as well as, make notes of my research. Plus it just drives me bonkers when I read advice I know is just technically bullshit and internet marketeering witchcraft.
So Why The Lack of New Tutorials?
Yeah, well all the above items will set the stage for easier to read and better tutorials. Plus other things like practicing better photography, working on my writing style, and coming up with fresh ideas happen without timelines and are part of the day to day work that needs to occur behind the scenes in the coming months.
All these items take time. Lots of time. As we say in Western North Carolina ‘Shit Tons’ of time. You’d be amazed the time and think I am cray-cray for doing this as a hobby.
I currently work full time outside the home in a brand new field AT a brand new job (So nightly reading of technical concepts has become my defacto existence), have two children ages (3 & 1), a husband back in school, plus I like to sleep. I’m not Martha Stewart. I literally can not function without sleep, though, I sooooo wish I could.
I’d rather give one good and useful post a week as opposed to slapping some crap up in a haze of sleeplessness and I think readers would prefer that too. If not, I am sure I can ramble on like today’s post :). Just let me know!
So while I am embarking on these changes please let me know if I can offer anything in the way of readability, tutorials, or other things you might want to see! My door is always open:
Email: Brianna @ CraftThyme.com
Facebook
Pinterest
Or the comment section below
Thanks in advance for everyone’s support!
Oh and while you are ‘supporting’ sign up for that biweekly email by clicking here. It will start soon and hopefully offer tidbits beyond what simply shows up on the Craft Thyme.
