Week 3: Many Things to Many People

One of the first things I realized when I said I wanted to blog about design is that it means many things to many people. It can be fashion, jewelry, packaging, art, graphics, photography, events, weddings, architecture... the list goes on.

The majority of the blogs I read and, given the time and attention span, emulate are about home design. Here's my take on the major ones:

Apartment Therapy

I call Apartment Therapy a clearinghouse because you can expect to see no fewer than 150-200 posts a day from the main RSS feed. The blog is so popular that they actually own several spin offs including The Kitchn, Ohdeeoh and Unplggd. They also cater to regions of the country with specific content for cities such as San Francisco, New York and D.C. There are a mix of home tours, practical tips, recipes, contests and round-ups. It's inspiring, it's overwhelming, it's like Martha Stewart on crack.

Design*Sponge

I see Design*Sponge as the internet's answer to the demise of home design magazines like Blueprint and Domino. More focused than Apartment Therapy, Design*Sponge can deliver up to 25 posts in a day. The regular features include city design guides, artist and designer spotlights and do-it-yourself projects. I like Design*Sponge because of its editorial polish. Grace Bonney, the founder and editor, clearly has a viewpoint and an aesthetic and it comes through in every post even though she has hired several additional writers to create content. But the original, creative content makes me want to organize my apartment and break out the glue sticks and sewing machine (if only I could sew, hmmm).

Once Wed

I debated whether I should add this one to my list because yes, it is a wedding blog and no, I'm not planning a wedding (right now). However, this blog also has a clearly defined editorial voice and weddings combine several aspects of design that I love from table-scapes to save-the-dates. They also feature photography and original art that is downright amazing. I enjoy the motivation to do-it-yourself on tasks as small or big as a wedding. I need as much motivation as I can get.

Overall, I think these are three of the most inspiring blogs and I love the amazing things that they share.