Celebrating White & Woodgrain’s 1 Year Blogiversary!

Happy First Birthday to White & Woodgrain! Y’all I am so excited to be celebrating my 1 year blogiversary today!! I know this is nothing compared to the birthdays of my two little ones, but this blog has been like my baby this past year. I’ve poured my heart and soul into it, and it’s brought me so much joy to be able to share my life and my home with you in my little corner of the internet!

1 Fact for My 1 Year Blogiversary

Since this blog post is a celebration of my 1 year blogiversary, I thought I’d share one fact you may not have known. Ok well, one fact, but lets make it one fact about the blog, and one fact about me!

One thing you may not know about the blog is that I originally chose a different name before I thought of “White and Woodgrain”. I shared this story on my Instagram earlier this week for the first time. Originally, I chose the name “The Hearth of Our Farmhouse” because I liked the nod to the original 1800’s era fireplace of our farmhouse. And I also liked that it was a play on the phrase “heart of the home”, because I look at our chimney as the heart of our home. But it was such a mouthful so when I thought of the name “White and Woodgrain”, I knew that was the one for me!

One thing you may not know about me is that I am part of the last generation to have ever slept in “the old house”. When I came to visit Granny and Papa as a child, I always slept in Granny’s room… which is now the guest bedroom. I remember playing “kitchen” on the screened in porch. And I remember playing “school” in the kitchen. I remember playing paper dolls in the living room in front of this very fireplace. And I remember asking “please can I go upstairs Granny, I just want to look around!”

It’s a very bittersweet aching feeling, knowing I’m the last generation that will remember it as it was. And that’s part of why I share here on the blog and document these stories. I want to preserve the memories of “the old house” and our family’s history, so I can pass it down to my children. In a way I feel like the bridge between the old and the new. And I feel an overwhelming sense of responsibility to tell them our story, and be the bridge that connects them to our past. This is all a big part of why I started this blog!

_{(Me as a baby with my Granny and Papa in “the old house”… Both these photos were taken in what used the living room, but is now our bedroom! You can kindof make out the fireplace in the background of the second photo.)}

A Year of Blog Posts

When I look back at all the blog posts I’ve written in this first year, I definitely feel a huge sense of accomplishment! So I thought I’d share some blog posts from the vault with y’all today! I’ve included a few of my favorite posts, and a few posts that were fan favorites, and even some you may have missed along the way…

_{(Click any of the photos / blog post titles below to view that post on the blog.)}

Our Farm-Cottage Charm Style Bathroom – the one where I defined my style!

DIY Tie-Up Curtains – one of my favorite DIY’s this year!

How to Clean Vintage Glass Jars & Bottles – the easy way to clean out old bottles like these!

DIY Farmhouse Painted Cabinet – how I get this chippy look on furniture refinishing projects!

Old House Love Letter #1: To My Granny – the first post in my “Old House Love Letters” series. I hope to do more of these in my second year blogging!

DIY Farmhouse Headboard Makeover – one of my first big DIY’s after launching the blog!

8 Unique Ways to Incorporate Reclaimed Wood – this was so important to me when we re-built our farmhouse!

Our Very Own “Fixer Upper” Inspired by Joanna Gaines – my very first blog post, and the one where I revealed which episode of Fixer Upper most inspired our home!

Year 2 for White & Woodgrain

The Project I’m Most Excited About

When I think about this next year, and my second year of blogging… my mind is swirling with ideas for projects and blog posts. And I think the project I’m most looking forward to completing is our DIY fireplace in the living room! The goal is to have this project finished by Christmas. I’m not holding my breath, but I am hopeful that we’ll get it done in time!! You can read more about our plans for this project in [this post].

Three Future Projects On My Mind Lately

My list of DIY projects is never ending… And I usually prioritize them based on time, money, inspiration / motivation, and TIME (because mom life!) But lately these are three DIY prohects that have been on my mind a lot! I would love to tackle all three of these and share them on the blog in this upcoming year!!

• create an outdoor firepit area
• sew cushion covers for our dining room chairs
• refinish an antique wood trunk from “the old house”

A Wild Dream of Mine

My mind never stops, and that can be both a blessing and a curse depending on the day. I am forever dreaming up ideas for our home and our little property! Today I want to share one of those dreams with you! You may not have known this, but my mom is a local photographer. And I sometimes work with her as a second shooter and an assistant for weddings, family sessions, bridals, etc. Being so closely involved with her work, one thing I’ve learned is that a photographer is always on the look out for is a new location to shoot! So I have this wild dream of opening up our little farm to other local photographers as a photography venue!

Together, my mom and I have hosted several family photography sessions here already. And I love sharing our home with our community in this way!! While opening up the farm as a photography venue isn’t something we can logistically or feasibly do right now, it is something I would love to do in the near future! (The photo below is actually from a family session we held at our farm last weekend. I snapped this quick shot with my phone before the session got started.)

So there ya have it y’all! One year of blogging down… many more to go! Looking back I feel so many emotions about this milestone. In a way, it feels like this year has flown by! Like there was so much that didn’t get done, so many blog posts that went unwritten. But when I take the time to sit down and truly reflect on all that did happen… I feel an overwhelming sense of happiness and accomplishment. Like I did it! I made it through the first year!!

And yet, above all that, one of the most rewarding things has been all the friends I’ve made and the community I’ve found while pursuing one of my greatest passions! So I owe a huge thank you to you for being a part of that! You have made this such an amazing first year of blogging for me! And it makes celebrating my 1 year blogiversary that much more special!! So as always, thank you so so so much for stopping by the blog today, and as always, thank you for following along…

Love, Brittany