Why I Started Shela’s Chocolate Diary

In this blog, I usually focus on the chocolate and don’t share much about myself. However, since today is a special day, the day I finally launch my blog, I want to make an exception. I want to share the story of why I started Shela’s Chocolate Diary.

How It Started

In December of 2021, like many others, I was so burned out from the pandemic. At that point, I wasn’t able to visit my family in Indonesia for almost 2 years. I also lost my mother and grandmother during the pandemic. It was very difficult to process and navigate the loss when I couldn’t grieve with my family. 

In the middle of all that, I just wanted to treat myself. I wanted to do something small to make me feel a little bit better – so I turned to chocolate. All my life, I have always loved chocolate. I also had fond memories of my mom buying me chocolate on my birthdays.

I wanted to buy the best chocolate possible. When I was trying to recall the best chocolate I’ve had, I remember being really impressed by a box of Neuhaus chocolate. I did some research before buying their chocolate. I was so surprised that I couldn’t find any reviews at all for these expensive boxes of chocolate. Eventually, I decided to buy myself a box of Neuhaus’ $55 milk chocolate collection for Christmas. Luckily, I really enjoyed it. However, I’ve always been someone that is really careful with how I spend my money. I wanted to make sure that what I was spending my money on was worth it. Thus, the idea for Shela’s Chocolate Diary was born.

The Process

I brainstormed the blog name and concept on one day and bought the domain name the next day. The website took much longer to get to where I wanted it to be. Over the past year, I have put a lot of my money, time, and energy between my full-time job and part-time master’s degree to work on Shela’s Chocolate Diary. 

I’ve learned so much during this journey. I learned about unethical practices rampant in the chocolate industry, the difference between craft and mass-produced chocolate, and how to buy high-quality, ethical chocolate. I even learned food photography and how to optimize SEO.

Working on Shela’s Chocolate Diary helped me through a really dark time in my life. I wouldn’t have been able to process such great pain and loss without my passion for chocolate reigniting my passion for life, and also the support of my partner, family, and friends. 

Thank You, Dear Reader!

Thank you for reading why I started Shela’s Chocolate Diary. I feel so grateful to share this same passion with all of you today. I hope that you find my blog helpful and that chocolate will also bring a lot of joy, love, and magic into your life.

With love,

Shela