We started this with a focus on graphic and web design, but really design covers so many things. So, we’ve researched who the top “design” blogs are on the internet, and our chart has been updated accordingly. ‘Design’ now just means ‘design’. You make up your mind where the boundary begins, and ends.

And please feel free to continue submitting blogs. We’ll do another shake-up a lot sooner next time.

When did your blog launch, and how long was it until you felt ‘established’?

I’m not sure exactly at what point we started to have a blog but the beautifuldecay.com site was launched in 2001. At first we have a very basic system and every year we’ve added new functions.

What made you get into blogging?

We have a print art and design publication so having a blog was a natural extension of the printed publication. The blog allows us to cover time sensitive events and the printed publication allows us to go in-depth and really explore an artist or designers work.

What’s the ultimate goal of your blog – if any?

To document and promote interesting artist and designers.

How many of you work on the site?

there are 4-5 contributors at any given point.

Do you work from an office or is it a “bedroom blog”?

yes we have an office in LA but we have contributors scattered around the country.

Do you use guest bloggers, if so – what benefit do you think they bring, if not – any particular reasons?

Not usually.

How about guesting on other blogs, have you done this / considered this?

I haven’t done so yet but I wouldn’t rule it out.

How much effort do you put into promoting a) your blog as an entirety, b) individual blog posts. What are your main methods and practices for doing this promotion?

We have a dedicated and loyal group of readers so we stick to only promoting our site and brand on our facebook page and twitter.

How important do you feel a strong social media presence is to the success of your blog, what networks are you using?

It’s very important. Twitter and Facebook are an absolute must for any brand.

Where does your content come from? Seeking it out yourself, submissions, other blogs…

80% of it comes from me meeting artists, doing research and going to art shows. the rest are submissions

How important is it to you to deliver unique content, in an online world where so much is recycled?

We try to have a balance between unique and info that we’ve found on other sites. I think we do a great job of coming up with unique content. Lately we’ve been doing a series of Studio visits on our site. You won’t find that content anywhere else. They are an exclusive glimpse into the studios of our favorite artists.

What inspires you?

All the people that we feature in our books and on our blog.

Is making money from the website a big factor, are you doing so, and what would you advise for new bloggers getting into the game?

I think for an established company like us we have to take money into consideration. We have employees who depend on us. With that said we never sacrifice quality for a buck.

What made you get into blogging?

I became interested in graphic design by coincidence: my boyfriend is a graphic designer and when I met him I started to become interested in what he did. It became a passion gradually over the course of my internet research on the subject. Initially, I used to send emails to my boyfriend and some friends to communicate them interesting links. One day I started a small blog with few links… and visitors have increased rapidly. The activity then became more serious, more dense, and I started running side projects (exhibitions, publications etc).

My working method for the blog is still the same as the starting point for the Manystuff blog: all day long, most days of the year, I surfed the internet and shared what I liked: the same applies today, I simply share my daily fancies on a blog.

The name Manystuff came from a litteral translation of “many things/stuff” as at the start of Manystuff I used to post more different practices every day like illustration and photography.

I must admit that at the beginning I didn’t have any aim with this blog … but today it’s different: it is still a passion but also a work.

What’s the ultimate goal of your blog – if any?

The blog is not an end in itself. Manystuff database (the blog), large and daily updates, is the basis of my projects, curatorial and publishing: this raw material (graphic designers, projects, concepts, creation processes, contexts) is the starting point for developing projects (publications, exhibitions…) exceeding the Blog form.

Manystuff is a catalyst, I mean it is a stimulator. Manystuff is first a catalyst for myself : it is in contact (virtual – on the Net – or real – via in situ “reports” and immersions -) of this work, of these actors (graphic designers, curators, editors…), of these contexts, of these places (galleries etc)… that I am stimulated.

Manystuff also tries to be a catalyst when I work on exhibition projects: for certain projects, the idea is to stimulate and give the desire to graphic designers for doing a work different from their daily work of answer to a command.

How many of you work on the site?

Only one person: me.

Do you work from an office or is it a “bedroom blog”?

My flat is also my office

Do you use guest bloggers, if so – what benefit do you think they bring, if not – any particular reasons?

No, I don’t use guest bloggers as I’ve got a very strong artistic direction I want to give to Manystuff.

How about guesting on other blogs, have you done this / considered this?

I usually refuse these invitations. I already have a lot of work to do for manystuff (blog and other activities)

How much effort do you put into promoting a) your blog as an entirety, b) individual blog posts. What are your main methods and practices for doing this promotion?

I used to work on the promotion during the 1st year. Now I don’t do anything: it’s working on its own, alone….

How important do you feel a strong social media presence is to the success of your blog, what networks are you using?

I use facebook and twitter

Where does your content come from? Seeking it out yourself, submissions, other blogs…

I work alone and I really do research every day, without going on the others blogs dedicated to graphic design: my goal is not to collect the best information founded on several blogs. I make real research, from a graphic designer’s name, from exhibition places, from contexts … going from links to links, from related subjects to related subjects. I try not to work only with the information which comes to me (e-mails).
And the connections more or less built themselves. Internet is an incredible tool!

How important is it to you to deliver unique content, in an online world where so much is recycled?

I am honest in my daily selection … and really passionate. I begin to have a graphic design culture but my approach of graphic design remains visceral (“it works or not”). I am sensitive to the first force of the images… to the impact which they have on me: I think that maybe people can feel that.Is making money from the website a big factor, are you doing so, and what would you advise for new bloggers getting into the game?

Is making money from the website a big factor, are you doing so, and what would you advise for new bloggers getting into the game?

I am not trying to make money with the blog. I don’t want advertisings. I am working on earning money differently with my curator practice for example.