Fellow Madeit Sellers who blog - Patchwork Family Art

One day, during my weekly Madeit wonderings,  I saw a pink typewriter print (see picture below) and was captivated by little details,  colours of this retro style illustration and the sweet quote "Home is where your story begins". There are so many delightful illustrations in the shop and this sewing machine print is a must have, in my opinion, for any craft room! I was so happy to find the blog link too and I contacted the shop owner immediately. I wanted to know the story behind this lovely brand!

Please welcome Ruth-Mary from Patchwork Family Art blog! 

Why did you decide to start a blog? 

I am a bit of a blog junkie and as a visual person I love how blogs give you a window in the lives of other creative people from around the world. I love to watch evolving trends. I was keen to start to have a place to get to know others and showcase my illustration. It was ( and is) a huge learning curve for me as I had very little computer knowledge and so I am still in the steep learning phase.

 Is there a story behind the name of your blog?

The name patchwork family art is very special to me. I had a long, looonnnggg road into motherhood and finally adopted my first daughter from Taiwan after a difficult eight year journey.  During the process I fell pregnant but because of the hold up in Taiwan my husband and I ended up flying back from Taiwan when I was 71/2 months pregnant- long story there about almost not being allowed on the aeroplane! My second daughter was born 6 weeks later. We were a happy brood but not complete yet so we decided to foster a baby and ended up with daughter number three who came into our family at 3 months old. We are still in the process of adopting her. So my "patchwork family" name came from my beautiful "patchwork family!"

Have your blogging style changed since you've started? 

It has changed recently, this will become more obvious during the month of May. My illustration which had a vintage home focus is moving towards adding a motherhood focus. Of course I will still be doing some more vintage inspired art works but the motherhood subject of art has me gripped- even to the point of asking mothers I don't know if I can photograph them for my paintings! The other change is that I have set up a structure to follow so will have regular spots to post on. This is key for me as I am so busy sadly the blog has been the thing to suffer.I am doing a 20Artworks 20 Days promotion here and am releasing a new artwork everyday from May 1st- May 20th based on a mother and child theme. It's exciting and great to blog about!!!

 Do you think blogs are moving to the second place now since Facebook business/social pages are becoming more popular? 

I love the speed of Facebook and Twitter and find myself updating them more frequently than my blog. I have been reading that there will be a shift in this direction as time goes on but I don’t think these social medias really let you into a persons heart and world like a blog does. I feel like they are more like a quick chat than a sit down and have a cuppa which a blog is to me.

 Do you have a blogging routine or any themes that you join?

I am starting in May

- Motherhood Mondays - these will be interviews or stories of motherhood experiences. I hope this to be a positive and uplifting section

- Thankful Thursdays - a post about something I appreciate

on Fridays I will be alternating between Artisian interviews and some of my favourite crafty picks!

 What are your 5 most favourite blogs to visit and why?

http://vintagesheets.blogspot.com.au - I'm addicted to vintage sheets

http://naughtyshorts.blogspot.com.au/- very honest and love her sewing

http://thecraftymummy.com/ - lots of great tips that I use

http://www.danielleburkleo.com/ - an American Christian mamma- very honest and down to earth- she just had a baby and is also adopting so I relate to her

http://decor8blog.com/ - trends, designers and she comes across as so lovely!

Any tips for the bloggers who just started? 

I've read so much advise but for me as someone who had no knowledge I did get help with setting up the blog, secondly I would say, be consistent ( got to follow this one myself!) and finally- keep going!!!

Thank you so much Ruth-Mary for sharing your story with us!