100 Followers!!!

This is it! It's the moment we've all been waiting for! Um... well, a moment I've been waiting for anyways.

REGENCY DELIGHT HAS 100 FOLLOWERS!!!!

*squeals*

I went away from home last week with 98 followers, and when I came back I was thrilled to see this:

:D

Lots of thanks to everyone who follows!

Some Changes and Additions

After a year and three months of the same blog design, it seemed time for a change, despite my Mr. Woodhouse-ish disdain of change in general. As well as a new header and background, I've added three new blog buttons and a new page.

Here's what the old header looked like... 

A few of my reader expressed a little sadness at the thought of saying good-bye to that picture (drawn by one of my sisters, by the way), so I've put it on the sidebar. 

The new header, for those of you who don't know, is a picture from My Favorite Scene in All Jane Austen Movies and Probably All Period Drama, which is the scene where Emma and Mr. Knightley dance in BBC's 2009 adaptation of Emma. The picture is right when he asks her to dance. Oh, I just love the picture... and the scene... but I'll stop gushing before it becomes the subject of this post. (Hey, maybe I should do that sometime.)

The background I got, in a roundabout way, from Miss Laurie. Thanks, Ladybird! ;-)

These are the three new blog buttons, and they can also be found, along with the others, on my blog buttons page. 

 

<center> <a href="http://regencydelight-janeaustenetc.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="Regency Delight ~Jane Austen, etc.~" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr2GeZUYUy6pVUXloyPrQyw09lFkTcFE8KWqKYZg6s3duqKX7uVYbcdPeSLrZ-5v-wpJnGHmHDiAHHlg_U4C0wEoDpMB44mEu-HDqrz86dSjUc16wSsQKBB351_Dy0VpO1vCeckawWvuc/s1600/New+Blog+Button+3.jpg"/></a></center>

 

<center> <a href="http://regencydelight-janeaustenetc.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="Regency Delight ~Jane Austen, etc.~" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY-7Z9wYEg7YLW-pfpLB0xd8o-ZyuOElbEnjZ1NSzlco-O99Je022qLKYv7LpelHFql4xx4T12GyrnGetc6JBkV0Evgrbvh6ZbB8RboIVcBbqfioSP8LTHIusYAD9jpi7RM8jF0-P59Ec/s1600/New+Blog+Button+1.jpg"/></a></center>
(That's where the 'etc.' part of 'Jane Austen, etc.' comes in, as the picture
is from Anne of Green Gables. But I like it.)

 

<center> <a href="http://regencydelight-janeaustenetc.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img alt="Regency Delight ~Jane Austen, etc.~" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqq04X13xYdVY57BbUzuAQHwBFcXj9N_PCF42yXRs1Oz_U5fpzWhyphenhyphenfoEznJAAwVLHe__duXWbkLp1VdrbAS15LP4Byqd-FMCvWoiF94uj6oijsgsbubNOdEvWXql_bn93JW5rR2JoigYc/s1600/New+Blog+Button+2.jpg"/></a></center>
(This one will only work if you have a slightly larger sidebar.)

And the last addition is the 'My Favorite Music' page. The idea was first put into my head by my Mouse (er, I mean Miss Dashwood) quite some time ago, and after a while I put up a poll on the sidebar about it, and as 20 people were interested, well, there it is. I had great fun making two playlists: one with a lot of soundtrack music, and the other with some Classical pieces. And if you check at some other point, both playlists will probably be longer. ;-) So far everything is instrumental, which I generally prefer, but after a while I might add another playlist with some of my favorite Singing-songs, heehee. 

I think that's it! Also, I am excited to have hit my 75 Followers mark. (And now I have 76!) I greatly appreciate all of my readers.

So... what do you think of the newnesses? (I know, that's not a word. But I like to use words that aren't really words, unless they're words that aren't really words but everyone else uses them. Because then I'm just being like everyone else, and that's not very fun. --I also like to ramble...)

Regency Delight - First Anniversary

Happy 2012, and happy birthday to my blog! Exactly a year ago today I created Regency Delight. I gave my Janeite story in my first post, so today, in honor of this occasion, I am going to relate the history of making this blog.

My oldest sister, who had been blogging for a few years, was staying with us for Christmas. I don’t remember how the subject first came about, but she suggested/encouraged me to make a Jane Austen blog. I had been interested in Jane Austen (which began when first I learned about her) for less than two years, but already knew more on the subject than anyone in my family; who were, I think, becoming rather irritated by my endless prattle. The only Jane Austen blog I was really acquainted with was Jane Austen Today. I’d seen, though, how many Jane Austen fans were out there, and thought it would be great fun if I could go on and on to people who would actually want to hear (er, read) me doing so.

The original idea came from a “magazine” I was making. I’ve always liked writing, and I used to make a family newspaper; but as that had never been very prosperous, I was moving on to something else.

I’d only actually completed one Jane Austen novel (shocking, I know), but I planned to feature one as the focus for each issue of the magazine (which I was hoping to  produce once every two months - I intended this to be good motivation for reading all the novels before too long). I’d also include other tidbits about Jane Austen, the Regency period, other literature, etc.

I took most of my ideas and used them here instead. I used the picture I was planning to put on the front cover, drawn by my other sister when she was my age, as the header, and ‘Regency Delight’ was one of the names I’d been contemplating; I added ‘Jane Austen, &c.’ (&c. is just an old-fashioned way of saying etc., in case any of you didn’t know) at the end so my blog’s theme would be perfectly understood.

Now I’ll back up a little. As soon as the idea/possibility of a blog arose, my head was spinning with ideas, and I began a list of possible posts, as well as planning to have ‘sections’ featuring each Jane Austen novel, beginning with Pride and Prejudice, since that’s the one I’d finished. I’d have a post about the book, a review of the movies, quotes, and more. The book and movie reviews for P&P I had already written, and if you look at them now you’ll see that they are much shorter than the ones for other books and movies, which I later wrote. I might actually write new ones for those one of these days…

My goal was to finish reading the next book by the time I was done posting for the other. I usually did, and was even a couple books ahead of myself by the time I finished the 6^th.

I decided January 1^st would be a splendid time to start my blog; and so I did. It was all said and done much faster than most decisions I make!

After a nerve-wracking ‘making-the-blog’ period and I had everything set, I think I found some blogs from people who followed/commented on Jane Austen Today. I remember looking at other people’s followers too; going to their blogs, finding the blogs delightful – and the writers so much like me! – following, and leaving a comment. The first three were, I think, Old-Fashioned Charm, Austenitis, and Elegance of Fashion. I also remember thinking how similar the names were to some I had been considering!

I was so delighted to gain my first few followers – three of which were, in fact, the ladies who write the blogs mentioned just above. I am still very excited when I get a new follower!

2011: blogging year in review

These stats and such are as much for my own future reference as anything else; lately I have learned to keep minute records of things, so I won’t forget particulars that I wanted to remember.

Followers: 55

Total Pageviews: (approx.) 14,682

Number of posts: 90

3 most popular posts:

Guest Posting and My Regency Dress (253 views)

-(I never would have guessed!)

Pride and Prejudice: The Movies (224 views)

Sense and Sensibility: The Movies (198 views)

Top 3 referring blogs:

Creekside Cottage (410 views)

Elegance of Fashion (258 views)

Old-Fashioned Charm (218 views)

~Thank you very much Mrs. Rabe, Miss Elizabeth, and Miss Laurie!

36 direct searches for my blog (“regency delight” or “regency delight blog”)

Giveaways I’ve won

Persuasion by Jane Austen at Old-Fashioned Charm

Livvie’s Song by Sharlene MacLaren at Austenitis

Guest posts

(Austenitis) Anne of Green Gables, Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel, Bleak House, The Love Letter, Sense and Sensibility 1995 and 2008 comparisons

(Yet Another Period Drama Blog) Jane Austen’s Romances

Blog events

Helped with the profiles for characters in the 2nd Period Drama HeroineTournament at Elegance of Fashion

Giveaway: Old-fashioned Christmas Music
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Now that I’ve finished with all that boring stuff, I have a question for you, if you are interested: how do you remember finding my blog? I'd love to hear if you happen to remember.

Thank you to all my followers and commenters! I’ve learned so much this year, and am eager to learn more! It’s been truly amazing to find out how many people there are whom I have so much in common with! I hope during the following year, my blog will bring you much Regency and Jane Austen delight!

50 followers!

                                                            

Today I was very happy to see that I have reached the 50 followers point! Thank you to everyone who follows, I am very grateful for each one of you! =)