Update: Less than 12 hours after this post went live, we added a brief update at the end addressing a few common questions.
Hello again — it’s been a while.
The break we took has been refreshing and honestly a bit strange, but in a good way. We’re deeply grateful for your support, thoughtful comments, and for the way many of you helped us put words to feelings we’d been having for some time. While a month away didn’t answer every question about what’s next for us (does that ever really happen?), it did make one thing clear: after seven wonderful years of sharing our home and our lives here, it’s time to head into a new chapter.
This blog has been part of our daily life for more than 80 months — through almost our entire marriage and our experience as parents. We expected our urge to share to return in full force during this break, but instead we found a sense of peace about stepping back. Maybe it’s getting older, the kids growing up, or simply shifting priorities, but it felt right. The break gave us clarity — and the courage — to move forward and pursue better balance in our lives, something we’ve been thinking and talking about for a long time.
We’re not saying this is the absolute end of Young House Love or of blogging entirely. Maybe down the line, when the kids are in school or when our curiosity leads us elsewhere, we’ll find that itch to share again — whether here or in a different format. We don’t know what the future holds, but we do know that the best things in our lives have come from stepping outside our comfort zone.
We plan to keep the blog archives available as long as we can, and we’ll be freezing comments soon. We won’t disappear completely: some completed product designs with Liberty Hardware and Shades of Light may still appear, and our second book is scheduled for release in the fall. Those collaborators have been incredibly supportive of our choice to step back, and we’re so thankful for that.
Thank you doesn’t begin to cover how much we appreciate the opportunity to share this weird, wonderful corner of our lives with you. We have so much love and gratitude for this community and for the experience of doing this together for so many years. It’s a chapter we will always cherish.
Let’s not say goodbye; let’s say “see you another time.”
Peace, love, and ceramic animals,
John & Sherry
PS: During the break we took a few fresh photos for the House Tour page since some rooms felt dated. If you remember the dining room’s blue trim, it’s still there — feel free to give it the side eye for us.
Update: A few recurring questions came up in the comments, so here’s some quick clarification. Regarding work: we’ve kept the door open to freelancing in our previous fields (advertising, copywriting, consulting), which gives us the flexibility to alternate work from home with shared parenting. Projects like books and product designs are connected to the blog’s audience, so they aren’t our only source of income. We’ll likely pop up on social platforms from time to time to say hello, and we hope the blog archives remain available for reference (we use them ourselves for things like paint colors).
We’re sorry if this announcement feels sudden. Over the years we tried different ways to slow down and gain balance — after moves, after Teddy’s birth, and at other times — but our “all in” personalities often pushed us back into full throttle. This most recent break finally helped us get closer to the balance we wanted. We considered many alternatives — fewer or shorter posts, turning off comments permanently — but none felt like the right way to continue the version of Young House Love that excited us. We aimed to keep this message light because we truly feel immense gratitude, even though deciding to step back wasn’t easy.
We’re far from perfect at goodbyes, and we’ll miss you more than we can say.