Happy 1st Birthday Blog !!!

Yes, it's been a year since I started my blog and Oh boy! What a creative journey it's been. Today, join me in celebrating this wonderful day with a little tea party outdoors:) 

Firstly, I'd like to Thank you for accepting "The East Coast Desi" with wide open arms and the love and appreciation has been overwhelming:) In the past year, we've celebrated home decor, photography, food, travel, seasons, festivals, chai time and the everyday life, right here on TECD !!! 

With summer sporting more mature gardens in deeper tones of green, the outdoors is a perfect place to enjoy a tea party.  

The initiatory thought behind starting a dedicated blogging space was to share my experiences in decorating my home and inspire my readers along the way to shape, enhance and accentuate their very own space. But over the past year, I've come to realize that TECD has grown to be much more than that. It's come to be woven into the fabric of my readers daily lives. It's come to be associated as a virtual archive for visual therapy through pretty imagery, as a muse when it comes to Indian interiors and color inspiration and also as a space to take a breather and enjoy some "ME Time" (while you sip on your tea, reading through the day's post).

Couldn't resist this tea pot sporting the paisley pattern. 

I'm often asked, what sparks my passion for blogging. And I find myself answering, "it has to do something with the act of creating". Let me elaborate on that. My need to make my home a personal retreat through the process of curating, designing and styling is a creative exercise. When I'm consumed in this process, it's like I'm almost in a meditative state and the rest of the world melts away. And as I blog and share it with you'll, the act of creation is magnified. 

Containers from my spice box are used to hold snacks for the outdoor tea party.

Blogging has been both eventful and gratifying. If I have to weigh the success of my blog in tangible terms, it's these mile stones I'm so proud of having achieved. (It may sound like I'm bragging but humor me today as it's my blog's birthday). To mention a few : A 22 page spread in the April issue of the "Curated" Magazine; Spotlight on IKEA Family Live Facebook  and India Circus Facebook; Rated top 10 Indian Interior design blogs on IndiBlogger (as of June 2014 stats); Showcased on the best Indian Home/Design blogs such as My Dream Canvas, Aalayam and All Things Nice, Mentions in the press - Indian express and Times of India (Times Property - photo shown below : article dated March 28, 2014) and 135 refreshing and artistically stimulating posts.

The East Coast Desi's  festive decor inspiration featured in the Times Of India.

But in intangible terms, it's my enthusiastic readers appreciation, interaction and acceptance that makes it all worth while. While my blog is brought to life by photographs and text, it is really the many encouraging and supportive readers who give it soul. Be it the growing members via Google Friend Connect or the host of like -minded friends who connect through Facebook, I am grateful to each and everyone of you who stops by every single day and showers me with their wonderful compliments and appreciation!!! If my blog brings a smile to your face and you know of family and friends who would enjoy this blog, then I kindly urge you to share the link to my blog, as my blog thrives on promotion by my wonderful readers (via word of mouth and Facebook). 

I would also like to thank my wonderful family and friends (close to home and in the blogging fraternity) whose unwavering faith and confidence in me, has been instrumental in the success of this blog. Love you guys:)

All it takes are a few accessories to create outdoor spaces with indoor comforts.

The journey has just begun and my blog and I have so much more to share with you'll. We have some wonderful home tours, decor inspiration, giveaways and more coming up this year. I have come a full circle in my blogging year. Happily, it is a circle and I'm ready to go around again.

Images: Clicked by me. Please do not use without prior written permission. 

Images are the property of Sruthi Singh and subject to copyright.