Reggie Darling: A First-Anniversary Thank You

Today marks the first anniversary of this blog.  And so I use it as an opportunity to look back and thank those who have encouraged me along the way, many of whom have blogs that have become a daily "must read" for me, and whose comments on Reggie Darling are a meaningful contribution to the pleasure I derive from writing it.  I had no idea when starting out one year ago that I was launching myself into a medium that would provide me with access to such an interesting community of like-minded fellow travelers as I have found.  It is appropriate at this point for me to pause and give thanks where it is most deservedly due.

The following people were especially kind to me as I was first starting out in the blogosphere, and I will be forever grateful and thankful for their support:

• The Blushing Hostess, also known as Catherine Coughlin, who graciously asked me to guest post on her marvelous blog before I had begun Reggie Darling, but after I had become a regular commenter on others', including hers;
• Diane Dorrans Saeks of The Style Saloniste, who encouraged me to start a blog after we exchanged a series of amusing emails on various subjects, and who has championed me ever since;
• Mrs. Blandings, also known as Patricia Shackelford, who featured Reggie Darling on her own heavily visited blog just as I was starting out; and
• Emily Evans Eerdmans, who asked me to guest post on her eponymously named blog shortly after I had begun Reggie Darling, and whom I have since had the pleasure of coming to know.

Once Reggie Darling was up and running, and as I developed my blogging sea legs, I came across a handful of bloggers who I have enjoyed communicating with, and then meeting in person, often over a delightful and conversation-filled meal or two:

• Little Augury, one of the most prolific, creative, and interesting bloggers I know, and who graciously bestowed upon Reggie two blogging awards;
• Aesthete's Lament, the greatest of them all, who encouraged Reggie and whose contributions to the blogosphere are a lofty beacon for us all to follow;
• Privilege, a fellow traveler on the parkway of High WASP-dom, and with whom Reggie traded guest posts about attending our Ivy League colleges' 25th reunions;
• The Blue Remembered Hills, an English expatriot living in Atlanta whose fascinating series of posts on near-forgotten men decorators is worthy of a book, which Reggie hopes Blue will have published one day;
• Maxminimus, an hilariously funny Southern gentleman and sartorial dandy, whose ramblings regularly bring tears to Reggie's eyes, usually of laughter but also, at times, of recognition; and 
• Lindaraxa's Garden, the recipe-rich blog of Julieta Cadenas, a former New Yorker now living in Georgia, who doesn't miss a trick.

In addition to these bloggers there are a number of others I look forward to reading whenever they post, whose comments I am particularly pleased to see whenever they appear in my inbox, and whom I hope meet one day:

• The Down East Dilettante, a Maine-based antiques dealer whose well-researched essays on New England architecture and the people who built it are always richly informative and often wildly amusing;
• Rose C'est La Vie, a talented English artist whose musings on domesticity, family, and service to her country are a pleasure to read, and at times verge on poetry;
• The Corinthian Column, an aesthete who divides his time between Thailand and Scotland, and whose escapades in the world of auctions are much fun to follow;
• Edith Hope, a dedicated English plantswoman with a dry sense of humor who divides her time between her native land and Hungary; and 
• Architect Design, a residential architect based in Washington, D.C., who was the first person to leave a comment on Reggie Darling one year ago, for which Reggie will always be grateful. 

There are a number of regular commenters on Reggie Darling who do not have blogs (yet), but whose bylines alone are sufficient to excite Reggie's interest, for he knows that what they have to say is going to be worth noting.  He would like to thank each of the following:

• Magnus, a true connoisseur of design and social history, and now a friend;
• Magnaverde, whose stories from the trenches are hilarious and right on point;
• Toby Worthington, who has a remarkable eye for detail and the knowledge to back it up;
• The Ancient, who lets Reggie have it when he gets too big for his britches; and
• My darling siblings Camilla, Frecky, and Hermione Darling, who help me fill in the gaps and details in my stories about our family when I have less than a complete memory of them.

And then, of course, I must thank my partner on Reggie Darling and in life, Boy Fenwick, who takes most of the photographs that appear on this blog, is the inspiration for many of the posts on it, edits my scribbles to make them grammatical, and who puts up with my spending most of my waking hours hunched over my laptop, blogging away, when I should be doing other, more productive things.

Reggie is, indeed, a fortunate fellow.

Graphic courtesy of Rifle Paper Co.