http://www.chron.com/life/travel/article/How-a-Texas-dad-got-over-half-a-million-Instagram-12433374.php
How a Texas dad got over half a million Instagram followers with just photos of hotel carpeting
Updated 1:37 pm, Friday, December 15, 2017
When photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a Marriott in Cincinnati next to the airport. Amazingly since that first post Young's My Hotel Carpet Instagram has amassed over 670,000 followers who love to double-tap close-up images of carpets with sometimes strange, psychedelic geometric designs.
See more photos of the carpets that Young sees every week...
lessWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a
... moreWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a Marriott in Cincinnati next to the airport. Amazingly since that first post Young's My Hotel Carpet Instagram has amassed over 670,000 followers who love to double-tap close-up images of carpets with sometimes strange, psychedelic geometric designs.
lessWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a
... moreWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a Marriott in Cincinnati next to the airport. Amazingly since that first post Young's My Hotel Carpet Instagram has amassed over 670,000 followers who love to double-tap close-up images of carpets with sometimes strange, psychedelic geometric designs.
lessWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a
... moreWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a Marriott in Cincinnati next to the airport. Amazingly since that first post Young's My Hotel Carpet Instagram has amassed over 670,000 followers who love to double-tap close-up images of carpets with sometimes strange, psychedelic geometric designs.
lessWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a
... moreWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a Marriott in Cincinnati next to the airport. Amazingly since that first post Young's My Hotel Carpet Instagram has amassed over 670,000 followers who love to double-tap close-up images of carpets with sometimes strange, psychedelic geometric designs.
lessWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a
... moreWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a Marriott in Cincinnati next to the airport. Amazingly since that first post Young's My Hotel Carpet Instagram has amassed over 670,000 followers who love to double-tap close-up images of carpets with sometimes strange, psychedelic geometric designs.
lessWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a
... moreWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a Marriott in Cincinnati next to the airport. Amazingly since that first post Young's My Hotel Carpet Instagram has amassed over 670,000 followers who love to double-tap close-up images of carpets with sometimes strange, psychedelic geometric designs.
lessWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a
... moreWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a Marriott in Cincinnati next to the airport. Amazingly since that first post Young's My Hotel Carpet Instagram has amassed over 670,000 followers who love to double-tap close-up images of carpets with sometimes strange, psychedelic geometric designs.
lessWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a
... moreWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a Marriott in Cincinnati next to the airport. Amazingly since that first post Young's My Hotel Carpet Instagram has amassed over 670,000 followers who love to double-tap close-up images of carpets with sometimes strange, psychedelic geometric designs.
lessWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a
... moreWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a Marriott in Cincinnati next to the airport. Amazingly since that first post Young's My Hotel Carpet Instagram has amassed over 670,000 followers who love to double-tap close-up images of carpets with sometimes strange, psychedelic geometric designs.
lessWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a
... moreWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a Marriott in Cincinnati next to the airport. Amazingly since that first post Young's My Hotel Carpet Instagram has amassed over 670,000 followers who love to double-tap close-up images of carpets with sometimes strange, psychedelic geometric designs.
lessWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a
... moreWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a Marriott in Cincinnati next to the airport. Amazingly since that first post Young's My Hotel Carpet Instagram has amassed over 670,000 followers who love to double-tap close-up images of carpets with sometimes strange, psychedelic geometric designs.
lessWhen photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels he documents the carpets at the hotels that he stays at around the world. The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a
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Continue clicking to see Texas hotel pools that are worth traveling to.
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This boutique hotel lets you choose between two heated outdoor pools, plus there's a sushi bar.
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Choose a cabana our a lounge chair right in the water, then enjoy poolside food and beverage service at this chic, modern hotel. Just get out in time for the evening wine reception.
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The Marriott's pool bar keeps guests refreshed with signature cocktails and Texas-themed snacks like poblano hummus and tacos.
When photographer and corporate pilot Bill Young travels, he documents the carpets at the hotels in which he stays around the world.
The 49-year-old's hotel travelogue began in Aug. 2015 with carpet from a Marriott in Cincinnati next to the airport.
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Amazingly, since that first post, the Dallas resident's My Hotel Carpet Instagram has amassed over 670,000 followers who love to double tap close-up images of carpets with sometimes strange, psychedelic geometric designs.
The acid that the designer of the carpet found in a Long Beach hotel lobby must have been rather potent. Thankfully, hotel carpet has come a long way from boring vanilla Berber or forest green covered in gum stains.
Here’s where to find majestic Texas longhorns, old-school Tex-Mex and a brewery-turned-hotel on the road from Dallas to San Antonio.
Media: MicYoung's daughter Jill led a viral campaign in November to get her pop's Instagram project some traction among her friends at the University of Texas in Austin, where she is a fine arts major.
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It worked, almost too well.
"I basically went from 83 followers to over 500,000 in just a few days. The media took notice and we have had interviews from several outlets," Young said.
Of course, Young doesn't just shoot the carpets of the hotels he visits. He also has a busy photography career.
"I'm an avid photographer and I've been shooting for about a decade, as a side business. I like photographing people mostly but am interested in all facets of photography, " Young told Chron.com.
"My schedule has me traveling all over the world and I often find myself with time on my hands. Photography gives me a chance to explore with the mission of shooting the local flavor of wherever I happen to be."
He spends a ton of time in hotels. According to Young, his Marriott app shows he has 1,767 nights logged.
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"While staying at the various hotels I noticed that they often have crazy carpet patterns. I took a few photos of the more "intricate" designs and uploaded a few of them to my professional page," Young says. "The carpet images really didn't really flow with the rest of the pictures. My wife, Heidi, recommended starting a new profile to just feature the carpet so I did."
For being so successful, Young says it was basically done on a whim.
"It also gave me something to do on layovers. Search out crazy carpets and upload them to the site."
The proud pop gives all the credit to his daughter.
"I'm excited for Jill, and what she was able to make happen. Regardless of where this ultimately ends up, she will have a fun and sweet story she can tell for the rest of her life," Young says.
Follow the interior design adventures of Young on Instagram.
Craig Hlavaty is a reporter for Chron.com and HoustonChronicle.com. He's an intolerable native Texan with too much ink in his skin and too much brisket stuck in his teeth.
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