At the beginning of the new year, I always like to check out my analytics to see the list of the most popular blog posts from the previous year.  I don’t pay too much attention to analytics generally, because I write for people, not for algorithms and search engines, but it’s nice to know which posts were most visited, perhaps most helpful, timely, or resonating.  Interestingly, the top posts were rarely written in that same calendar year.  They are usually posts that have gained some traction on Google, Pinterest, or a social media platform.  For years, my top post was how to make a seat cushion!  (You can find that HERE if you need it.)  It has fallen off of my top ten list and other practical posts have replaced it.

Here are the top ten blog posts from 2024…

Salt dough, humble as it is, has been having a moment, and that made Salt Dough Ornaments 2022 my most popular post of 2024.  This was the second year I made salt dough ornaments, but I added some new molds that made them even more beautiful.  I also had a great time styling and photographing them.

Practical how-to posts seem to be evergreen when it comes to traffic, so this nuts and bolts post on how to remove wallpaper glue from walls came in second.  While I was able to find a lot of articles about removing wallpaper glue, they were very impersonal and vague.  I got the feeling that whoever wrote it had never actually tried to remove wallpaper glue.  The frustrating task, which was a series of trial and error, was fresh when I wrote this post, so I figured it would be helpful to those in the thick of the same experience.  The post is detailed, includes sources, tips, and some of the most helpful things we learned.

One of the top questions I received when my primary content revolved around furniture was about removing odors from used and antique pieces.  I’ve done various posts on cleaning and addressing odors over the years, but my post from a few years ago on cleaning a smoke smell out of wood furniture became popular this year.  This table was gorgeous, but it had such a strong smoke smell that I wasn’t sure we were going to be able to keep it.  I wasn’t even sure if my tried and true methods would work, but they did!

Weight-loss is always a popular topic, so it’s not surprising that the post about how I’ve lost 30 lbs this year performed well.  This isn’t a click-bait, get-thin-quick post, though.  It’s just about getting back to the basics.  Walking, eating healthy, tracking everything, and taking a balanced approach.  It was slow and is still ongoing, but it’s working.  This was one of only three posts I wrote in 2024 that ended up in the top ten.

I shared my Chicken Patty recipe last year and it’s still a popular post.  I also still make a batch every week!  I like making them because they keep and reheat well.  Cooking a batch of chicken breasts sounds convenient, but it always seems to dry out when it’s reheated.  Gound chicken patties still have great protein, but they have more flavor and won’t dry out.  They are easy to pop in the microwave and have with some rice and vegetables, on a salad, or as a sandwich.

I usually don’t make simmer pots, but I was feeling particularly festive in 2021, so I made this simple fall simmer pot and it rose to the top of the blog post ranks this year.  I’m sort of wishing I saw this post over the Christmas break as a reminder to put a simmer pot on.  It really does make the house smell amazing.

Seeing this post in my top ten made me sad that I no longer have a jetted tub or a bathtub for that matter.  This bathroom was such a treat and it makes me look forward to when we can renovate our current bathroom.  Anyway, in this post I shared how to clean a jetted tub.  They are sort of a pain to clean, but I loved it so much that I didn’t mind cleaning it.  My mom has a jetted tub, too, so we collaborated on the best to clean a jetted tub for this post…

The second blog post from 2024 that made the top ten list was the Sherwin-Williams color match to my cabinets.  I’m frequently asked for the paint color and, since it’s a factory color by Waypoint, I set out to find a good match and I found one that is about as close as you can get.

I think this post, crochet vs. knitting updated, made the top ten list because of Google searches.  I was curious about it so I tried both, but some people might want to try one or the other or appreciate knowing the differences.  After knitting and crocheting for a few years, I think I enjoy knitting more and have an easier time reading patterns, but I still life crocheting certain things.  I sort of jump between the two and sort of like that I at least know how to do both.

Now, I am sorry to say that my post about the war on Bishop’s Weed eeked into the top ten because that means other people are fighting this botanical beast.  It might be taking over the world.  Just looking at this picture is traumatizing.

I actually have made some good progress on the battle, but the war will continue.  I’ll better know what’s working and what’s not once little shoots start popping up in April and May.  I’m sure this is not the last you’ll hear of Bishop’s weed…