Top 10 Posts of 2016

Top 10 Posts of 2016

Gathering my Top 10 Posts of 2016 was so much fun. I don’t know about you but I love looking back and seeing what I have accomplished, enjoyed and/or not the past year.   Why, you may ask?

That is easy, it gives me direction and ideas for the coming year.  I can see what you all really enjoyed on the blog and where I can focus my energies in the new year.

First I must say I truly appreciate all of you who come back post after post to read my humble ramblings and especially those that leave a comment, or send me an email saying how much something I have shared has helped them individually.  Those little comments can really keep me motivated to keep on writing when I feel I am speaking to the air.

Now on with reader’s favorite Top 10 Posts of 2016.

10. Rooting Roses from Cuttings

I have tried several methods and I share which ones worked the best for me.  I aim to make it doable for just about anyone.  I expect my post on Rooting Roses using Air Layering will be even more popular in 2017.

9. Learn to Paint Hydrangeas

I plan on doing a revised version of this in 2017.  I have learned new methods that are just as easy and fun which I know my readers will enjoy.

8. Easy Garden Obelisk

This project is still a reader favorite.  I can’t blame them, it is inexpensive, useful and so versatile.  We also added a couple others designs like the Obelisk 2 and the Obelisk Arbor.  What is great is you can size it to your own needs.  Personally, I like the design of the Obelisk 2 best.  I used it to demonstrate How to Pillar a Rose.

7. How to Paint a Beach Scene

The How to Paint a Beach Scene was a spur of the moment idea that just came together (I love those days).  It immediately was a huge hit and that told me that I need to do more complete scene tutorials.  I am planning more for 2017, maybe another with a palm tree.  More on my painting plans for 2017 later on in this post.

6. Learn to Paint Flowers

This was more of a general link to many of my Flower Painting Tutorials.  Pinterest really shot me quite a few viewers for this one.

5. Rooting Lilacs from Cuttings

This post went viral last March and stayed popular for months.  Everyone was swooning for Spring and all that it brings.  I can’t blame them, there is such a rush from getting plants to grow from the simplest little twig.

4. Building My She Shed

This post never leaves the top 10 most read.  It is a dream for many to have one.  I can say this little Garden Cottage (she shed or studio cottage) is worth every dime spent on it.  I use it daily year round.

3. How to Paint a Rose

One of my oldest posts that also remains in the Top 10.  I break down painting a rose step by step to make it as easy as possible for everyone to paint gorgeous roses.  I have another rose painting post with a video where I paint three roses in a row to demonstrate how different they can look with the same technique.

2. How to Grow Lilacs

Did I mention that Lilacs were a popular subject for this blog in 2016?  I am surrounded my vintage Lilacs in this neighborhood, many planted back in the late 30’s and early 40’s.  Spring smells so sweet! Our climate must be ideal for them but I did find many other types of Lilacs and linked to them for many other types of climates.  Just about anyone could grow lilacs!

Now on to #1!  What is rather interesting to me is when I first published this next post it had a rather dismal reception.  I am not sure why but it had a lackluster performance and then out of the blue around January 2016 it started to gain ground.  It was second only to the How to Paint a Rose Post which held the #1 most read post for a couple years.  In March 2016 the Lilac posts shot to the top and stayed their until July when once again this post shot to #1 and stayed their through the Fall of 2016.

1. A Harvest sign and How to Paint Lettering

Though it seems seasonal because of the Harvest sign topic it really is universal.  So many would love to paint signs without having to use expensive stencils or popular cutting machines.  I shared a post this year too on how to Use Microsoft Word to Create Wording for Signs.  In that post I go step by step in Word and show you how to create wording with screenshots.

So what is planned for 2017?  Quite a bit actually.  I have started a new website for pursuing more painting tutorials, it will either be a subscription website or a paid e-course site.  We shall see how things pan out.

I will be trying tons of new garden plants, new to me methods and different products I think may be useful to many other gardeners out there and I will let you know how it goes!

Want to see how 2016 stacked up against 2015?
Top 10 Posts of 2015

Here is to 2017!