Raising Richmond: Love for Young House Love
The duo from Young House Love is taking a break from their blog. While they regroup and consider what to do with the site, here’s a look back at some of my favorite things they’ve done.
I’m not really a “do it yourself” person. Nor am I a “get someone else to do it” person. My philosophy for maintaining a home is a combination of “ignore it and maybe it won’t kill any of us” and desperation. It tends to take a floor covered in water for me to take action on something.1 So it’s strange that one of my favorite blogs is Young House Love, since it’s a DIY/home repair site most of the time. I read through their posts about repurposing and fixing and decorating with a distant interest that one day I can be like that. But it’s the other topics that cover life in general that have made me a dedicated reader.
If you don’t know about Young House Love, 1) Really?, and 2) They are a couple who moved to Richmond and started a blog to keep family posted on their home renovations. Now it’s years later, they’re on their third house, are working on their second book, and are still young (or pretty young for having owned three houses). I began to read the blog back when it was “This Young House” because it was amusing, informative, and local. After they started to post less earlier this year, I stopped visiting daily, but I still check it at least once a week.
I don’t know John and Sherry Petersik, but it’s been really impressive watching their brand grow from blurbs on other blogs to national media to books to their own product lines–all while maintaining their website. When they announced their hiatus last week I was surprised that I found out through reading their post that explained why, and not by hearing cries of distress about it from my online acquaintances. How could this not have sounded alarms locally? Why is it that when a restaurant changes a light bulb in Richmond I see 20 Tweets and four articles about it, but when our local celebrities decide to shut it down, I hear nothing?
That they’re on hiatus for at least a month made me a little sad, especially since it seemingly stemmed from well-meaning criticism in the comment thread of another post. I can see how they’d run out of steam. They have other non-Wordpress based projects that they’re into. Plus they just had a second kid, and I firmly believe that you can’t ask anyone who just had a baby to do anything for one year. Who can blame them for wanting to cut back on what is sure to be a time consuming task of writing daily posts?2 The Petersiks probably get, like, four hours of sleep a night–let them throw some cool wall decals at you for free and call it that day’s post so they can take a nap/rewire kitchen lighting.
When I turn to the Internet for advice, YHL is on my short list of places to check. I like their thoughtful and practical approach to purchases and projects, and I trust their recommendations. Their daughter is about six months older than mine, and I like reading how they handled and prepared for the milestones I was getting ready for (theirs was the final opinion that pushed me toward Bum Genius cloth diapers). Reading about their daughter is a happy glimpse into the future, as they are pretty similar (and have a lot of the same clothes–that’s not on purpose, though).
I would love to see YHL come back and deliver that same pleasant pop, but if they don’t, they’ve created a cool corner of the Internet to which I will continue to refer. A lot of what I’ve read from them still sticks with me. Part of their appeal, too, is that they are around my age and have gone through similar life changes. They didn’t plan to, but they’ve created a step-by-step guide for how to build a well-adjusted adult life. Sharing more of their personal life has been a nice touch, too. Plus, they are huge cheerleaders for all things Richmond. Whenever they post about something local, there are always comments from their readers that didn’t know that Richmond had anything going on and how they want to visit because of them. Someone give the Petersiks the keys to the city’s website!
As an appreciation for the entertainment they’ve provided me on my past work breaks and beyond, here are five of my favorite YHL recurring segments and posts:
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“Save It”
I don’t like to spend money. I like to save money, and I like to learn how other people save money, so their “Save It” posts are super fun reads for me. It also shows the restraint they need to be able to afford to do what they do. They save money by having one car, not buying specific products, and having one pair of magical pants that fits everyone in the family perfectly.3
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Their wedding
The planning and execution of their at-home wedding is a sweet read, especially if you’re into budget-conscious weddings. I find the details fascinating.
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“Clara Conversations”
These are delightful, and also inspired me to be better about writing down what my daughter says.4
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Birth stories
Do not read Clara’s birth story unless you are prepared to have an ugly cry. And also make sure you’re not pregnant when you read it (or if you are, just remember that everyone is well at the end).
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Sherry’s episode of FANatic
Way to own your Eminem-worshipping past, Sherry. It really is a wonder these two don’t already have their own TV show.
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I wish them the best in the future, even if that means they move on to non-blogging pastures. They would have the best looking non-blogging pasture, though. So many ceramic animals and big-patterned rugs.
- I’m currently considering fixing a leak in my kitchen sink. I’m going to wait and see if it fixes itself first. ↩
- I can imagine that writing a week’s worth of posts is a full-time job for them, especially since writing this column takes me eight hours a week, plus I manage two unpaid interns who sit next to me and refill my cereal bowls while I type. ↩
- That last one is actually from my Young House Love fan fiction where I am their best friend and they fix my sink in exchange for home cooked meals. ↩
- It’s weird for me to write their daughter’s name here when I don’t even share my own daughter’s name–she would probably tell me to tell you it’s Celestia. ↩
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Kelly Gerow
Kelly Gerow lives and writes in Richmond. She probably does other stuff in Richmond, too.
Notice: Comments that are not conducive to an interesting and thoughtful conversation may be removed at the editor’s discretion.
Kelly, I’m so glad you wrote an article! I too am a huge fan of John and Sherry and was very saddened by the news to go on a hiatus (actually, if I am being honest, I read the post and let out a “NOOOOOOOOO!!!” at my desk at work). I totally understand their need to cut back on posting – I have no idea how they did it for so long, especially right before Teddy was born with the show house, the nursery, the book, the target line, the lighting line – whew! I’m tired just thinking about it! But, I want to be selfish – I miss them in a your “best friend just moved away” way. With a crazy busy work and home schedule, I turn to them for inspiration and ideas for projects that I usually don’t have time to do on my own and file it away for later. And, I love their approach to almost everything, from how to save money on DIY projects to quick decorating posts. I REALLY hope they come back to blogging (did I mention I have a 30 day count-down for their hopeful return?!).
Saving? Have we been reading the same blog? They’ve spent close to $10k on mostly useless junk this year. Frames from Michaels’ when they have a “bunk room” full of them, IKEA shelves as major furniture, a not-my style painting. I think the laundry is fine (nothing special, just fine) but that should not have cost $4k+. The creepy shadowy light fixtures!
They could’ve spent less money for better quality and more interesting pieces by getting out of the Target/Homegoods/IKEA rut. Richmond has lost of great places to shop!
“They didn’t plan to, but they’ve created a step-by-step guide for how to build a well-adjusted adult life.”
You’re kidding, right? How is their adult life well adjusted? Do you know any other couples who are together 24 hours a day? Or any another couples who work from home, and yet cannot manage to put in 40 hours of work a week between the two of them?
Their blog is a business. A business they created. It’s not just something they toss out there for their fans enjoyment. They make money everytime someone clicks a page. They depend on that income for a living. Despite all the boohoo commentary from fans who think John and Sherry don’t owe their readers anything…. they do. They are no different than a storefront selling merchandise. If they can’t produce a quality product… they will lose their customers. In this case… readers.
I’ve been a fan, too. But you cannot deny that the quality of this blog has seriously deteriorated in the last two years.
These two are not the “friends” that their delusional readers seem to think they are. They are business people. Business people who have seriously dropped the ball. It remains to be seen if they can salvage Young House Love.
Um – YHL readers must realize at this point that the blog jumped the rainbow duck, right? Those two are talentless hacks that just happened to jump on the success blog train at the right time. Talent, no. Timing, yep. Move on folks. YHL is dying and I’m posting a “do not resuscitate sign.”
I just wanted to put some more love here to offset some of the hate. I miss Young House Love too, and I wholeheartedly support them in whatever direction they decide to go in from here. Glad to see RVANews doing the same.
Me too! I love YHL and will be happy whenever they decide to return! I read their blog because I like it and enjoy what they do :)
I’ve been a fan of YHL for years and while I don’t always like everything they do, I don’t understand the need to insult them. Isn’t it enough to say that you don’t agree with their design style? Just because they make money off the blog, doesn’t mean that common courtesy should disappear…would you spew your hate-y comments to someone in person? To the face of an owner of a small business? No, you’d walk by that storefront…walk on by people, walk on by.
They’re only taking a break for a month, right? Chins up, folks. Think of all of the DIY projects we readers can get done now that we’re not refreshing their site ten times a day (yes, I’m guilty). Now, get out there and paint your own teardrop wall!
Have you SEEN some of the crazy comments their readers leave them? Even some of the above on this ‘article’ are alarming, Comments about how Sherry is the readers best friend. Comments about “living for” YHL posts. Comments about wanting to squeeze/pinch/eat their children, comments about wanting to “climb through the screen” to hug their children, comments about only coming to YHL for photos of their children. That is the scariest thing to me about this “duo”. They post photos of potty training, and share every small detail. Worse still, their address is available publicly. The break was necessary for many reasons, one of which was to give those kids some time away from helping to sell the blog and protect their privacy for a while.
For those saying that readers should “walk on by” like they would to a store that’s gone downhill, know what happens to that store if nobody tells them they’ve lost the quality they once had? They go bust.
Wow. How people can feel such entitlement is amazing to me. John and Sherry are the most humble bloggers I have ever read. They juggle so much and to have people say they don’t put in a 40 hour work week? Ha. Ha. Ha. Do people realize that their business is more than just the blog posts we see and the time it took to write those posts? First they had to plan the project, then they had to buy the materials for the project, then they had to actually do the project, then photograph the project along the way, then write about the project, then edit and post the project, then, spend countless hours answering questions and comments about the project. Oh, not to mention all the other things besides the actual blog projects, like the book, the Showhouse, the Target products… And after all that, people complain that they are not pulling a 40 hour work week?? 1) Why are we entitled to even one minute, let alone 40 hours of their week? 2) These are some of the hardest working individuals I have seen in the blog world. They juggle family and blog projects and I believe that every single one of their critics are simply jealous that John and Sherry are successful and manage to do something that they (used to) love. They pursued a dream and were successful. How sad that thousands and thousands of people saw that as an opportunity to criticize and bring them to the point of possibly quitting something they once loved.
And that hasn’t happend yet so stop reading them and see if it does. Why can’t the people that don’t like the furniture they buy or the decisions they make find another blog that they do like? If they don’t inspire you anymore then why would you continue to read them? I really don’t understand why anyone would keep reading something that makes them this angry.
Trolls and haters really like to comment, don’t they? If you don’t like a blog, MOVE ON! No one is forcing you to read anything. The comments on some of their posts were so incredibly rude that I don’t blame them for stepping back. It’s amazing how confident people are when they don’t have to talk to someone face-to-face. I miss YHL & hope they’ll be back soon. I’ll be ready to read when they do, as will many, many other fans.
I am so glad to see that you wrote this article about Young House Love. I loved their blog too, and was shocked to see them go on hiatus. Hadn’t noticed the shift and never really read the comments sections. But I have to agree about people being willing to spew hate when they’re not doing it face to face. It’s a a sad part of the ‘social media world’. I look forward to reading if they do come back. I also don’t live in Richmond, but their posts about the city did make me want to visit!
I used to love reading YHL. I started when they had house 1. Since then, they have made very disappointing moves and have digressed. I don’t understand why they do the crap that they do now. None of it is realistic or relatable. My “favorite” was the painted striped duck. What?!!! These people need to study home interior since it is their job!!!
I miss them, but I’ve missed them for a long time. Remember the days when they did things with Quirk and La Diff? It seems like they left Richmond behind in recent years. There was a lot more about Target and Ikea. We’re wild about our local businesses and I think the reason there was much commotion over their announcement was that they aren’t really part of the local scene anymore.