How Haven helped ‘Treasure Hunters’ come to Life

The 2022 Haven Conference is happening this week in Atlanta and I’m having a little FOMO.  I attended the conference in 2019 and learned so much.  We all have experiences in life that give us inspiration, open our eyes to something, maybe even set us on a new path.  When it comes to this blog, attending the Haven Conference was instrumental in helping me bring my vision to life.  I’m not new to blogging, I wrote one for a few years in the early days when it was largely a hobby and social media wasn’t really a thing.  Beck on Melrose was a fashion blog, where I wrote mostly about trends and what celebs were wearing.  After some major life transitions (a divorce, a big new job and a brand-new house), I let the blog go.  Ten years later I truly missed having that creative outlet, so I wanted to start again.  But, after all that time my interests had changed.  I had really discovered my passion for decorating, flea markets and all things thrifting.  I just wasn’t sure how to filter those interests into a blog that others would find interesting.  I was also mindful that I didn’t want to do something that others were already doing really well – because in the 10 years since I last blogged, the industry has changed significantly.  People have turned blog hobbies into careers – everything from content creators to social media stars.  I knew if I wanted to blog, I needed to define my niche and be clear about what I wanted to accomplish with it. 

Along Comes Haven

I started doing a lot of research and learned about the Haven Conference, specifically designed for bloggers, influencers and entrepreneurs focused on the home design niche.  I heard such great things that I decided to buy a ticket.  The event was created to give DIY, design and lifestyle bloggers a place to be inspired, find community, share ideas, learn from niche experts, build collaborations and connect face-to-face with sponsors.  It’s a 2 ½ day event packaged with hands-on demonstrations, business-building sessions, networking events and more. Conference presentations are led by top influencers in this space, all willing to share their best tips and inspiration to help other bloggers achieve their goals. 

My Mentors

As a first time Haven attendee, I was thrilled that organizers assigned everyone to a mentor group.  All mentors have attended the conference before and have an array of experience to share.  I have to say, I got so lucky with my mentors – Erin of Erin Spain blog and Charlotte of At Charlotte’s House.  They met at Haven a few years back and even did a podcast together for a few years.  Their friendship was a great example of the community you can build through this event, and in the blogging world, and how special that is.  Erin and Charlotte pulled our small group together a couple of times during the conference.  We all had the opportunity to introduce ourselves, talk about our blogs and share what we were hoping to gain from the conference.  I was the only one there that didn’t have an active blog.  I shared that I was planning to start blogging again, and what some of my struggles were with determining the right niche and getting it off the ground.  What followed when I said that out loud was hearty conversation from Erin and Charlotte and other members of the group.  It seemed everyone had either experienced a little something similar when they started, or they had tips they knew would be helpful as a starting point. I couldn’t take notes fast enough.  Many of my doubts were replaced with confidence after that conversation and set me up to develop the blog you see today.

My biggest takeaways from Erin and Charlotte were to a.) focus first on creating the best content – if you do that your audience will follow; b.) be prepared for the tremendous amount of work it takes to run a blog – and know that it’s all worth it c.) build your community and hold them close.

Building a Community

That third lesson on building community was the number one thing I took away from the conference overall.  It was discussed in just about every session. I mean isn’t it true with everything in life – having your people makes everything better?  It was a key focus of the session ‘Collaboration over Competition’ hosted by Carmel from Our Fifth House and Jewel from Jeweled Interiors. They talked a lot about how to find your tribe and make meaningful connections. And the magic that happens by the simple act of showing up, whether face-to-face or online. It’s so important to build a community of people who share your passion and are interested in your content, but also that you find a supportive blogging community.  These are the people that can give advice, support and be your cheerleaders when you need it.  As a ‘new’ blogger, I am so looking forward to building relationships with other bloggers that are on the same creative journey.  And even more, Jill and I have loved hearing from people who are reading this blog and enjoying it.  For a couple of creative spirits who love sharing our found treasures and decorating triumphs, that has been the best part of all. 

Treasure Hunters is Born

I can’t say enough about the inspiration I took away from Haven.  It really helped me determine how to narrow the niche focus of this blog – treasure hunting and how we translate that into life and decorating.  I left feeling like my vision was clearer and I had the tools to make it happen. The pandemic slowed me down a little bit, but using what I learned at Haven, the Treasure Hunters blog came to life earlier this year and we are loving every minute of it.  We have so many ideas on future content and even about where we can take the blog in the future.  Even if you aren’t a blogger, or a creative type like us, I hope you can still take away from this blog that it’s never too late to try new things or to make time for things you love.  And if you have been thinking about blogging, the Haven Conference is an ideal place to help get you there.  From the mentors, to the great keynote speakers and excellent sessions, to the people you will meet – this conference is worth its weight in gold.  Jill and I can’t make it this year, but it’s on our calendars for 2023.  I’m so excited for everyone attending this week and hope you all have a great time! 

~ Beckie

Photo Credits: Haven Conference, Erin Spain, Charlotte Smith, Carmel Phillips