Making Yourself At Home – Part 1

I am excited and happy to share some ideas about making yourself at home, in YOUR home.  Let me just say that it doesn’t matter if you are in a house, a manufactured home, a cabin, a simple apartment or a high-end apartment, or a tiny house, you can make it into something that feels like home when you or your guests walk inside the door!  I hope you will find some fun and creative ideas over the next few posts.  As you may know, some places are just a place to live, and others are places that are more like a trip to one of your favorite places.  So let’s dream a little and see what we can come up with for your situation.

I’m a vintage gal.  I think back to the time of growing up and our home place.  My mom wasn’t an interior decorator by any definition, but she loved to try different things in the home to make it more comfortable, attractive for herself, and anyone that came to visit.  She didn’t have lots of money to work with but she made things she could make to add that special touch.   She even had such things as a big chest freezer in our kitchen to deal with!  Working around objects like that made it hard to have that country kitchen that I think she would have liked to have.  But she would often put a cloth on the top, and add something pretty to the top just to give her something else to look at.  As kids, we never knew what we may come home to.  We might have newly wallpapered walls, completely changed decor on the wall, and furniture all changed around.  It was always interesting to see her sense of adventure play out in our home.

I can recall viewing “homemaking” as something a wife was supposed to do with the home and family, but not always about how the home looked and felt.  When I think of my home, I want to be surrounded by things I like and enjoy, family heirlooms, and things that motivate me.  When I see that in my home, it lightens my mood, I feel gratitude, and I have a deep sense of well-being in my surroundings.  So I spend time keeping my home in that state so that I can enjoy it. But, I also want for others to feel welcome the minute they step in the door.  It is kind of like arms open wide to welcome me or a guest home every time the door opens.  It’s not just a house and roof I live under, it is my sweet spot.  Now, before you think that I have this great home, I have a home that was built in 1971 and a typical rambler.  I won’t even begin to tell you how it looked when we got it.  I had walls that were all different colors and none of them went together!  Old cabinets, small kitchen, and it was a previous smoker’s home.  It required a lot of work but the transformation has been so rewarding!  Decorating your home, for the most part, is a process.  You make changes little by little.  That is what we have done and I am very pleased with its cozy and comfort atmosphere.

So…where do you start?  I have been married to my sweetie now for 17 years, and in that 17 years, we have moved 11 times.  However, each time, with each house had a different personality.  I have looked at the house and designed what I wanted each house to look like.  I had to change some things up quite a bit sometimes, but each time I knew the look and feel I wanted in my home.  I like a cozy, warm and inviting look.  Sometimes others have said it looks like an antique shop that they like to come in and look around to see what has been added or changed.But all who have come in have usually mentioned how welcoming my home is and they always feel so relaxed when they come.  That is the key for me when it comes to my house.  But as hostess in my home, I feel it reflects how my hubby and I want it to look and feel.  So, stop in your reading a bit and think about what it is you want your home to look like and what environment you want to have.  You want it to be a place you can work, play, cook, relax, and do the things which you enjoy.  Each of you will be different.  That is the joy of decorating…no one will be the same.

Take a look at where you live.  We usually have ideas of how we would like it to look if we allow ourselves to dream a bit.  Here are some points to consider:

• What do you want your home to be?
• What are your dreams of how you want(ed) it to be?
• How will you use your home?
  • Will it be for you and family mostly?
  •  Will you entertain quite a bit?
  • Will it be used for work?
  • Ministry?
• Do you like clean lines in the home with not many things out?
• Do you like to have your utensils out so they are easy to get when you are cooking?
• Appliances or no appliances out on the counters?
• Do you like to see books, an open book, or even a puzzle in process?
• Do you like antiques?  Modern look?  Retro?
• Is there kids that will be in your home?  They sometimes like stools and small chairs to sit on.
• Is there a man in the home that prefers larger pieces of furniture to sit in for comfort?
• Is there a woman who likes to sit in something where her feet hit the floor?  (Me!)
• What about your lighting?  You want good lighting if you do handiwork, or reading and so well placed lights are important.
• Do you like something soft to put your feet on first thing in the morning?  Then you might want to add a furry rug to your side of the bed.

When you start considering these things, then you will be making a home comfortable for all.  I like Afghans in my home and I like them draped over the end of a couch or chair.  Hubby doesn’t like that.  So I have smaller throws that I have made that makes it easy to pull them up for an extra warmth, but not something that my hubby has to move around.  And I use them in the place I sit and not on his chair.  When we put in our gas fireplace/stove, I wanted to make sure we could enjoy it from where ever we were sitting in the living room and even the kitchen as I cooked.  So that was a big consideration to its placement in our home.  Not just where it would fit best, but where it could be enjoyed most was also a consideration. My house is overflowing with heirlooms from my life, my hubby’s life, my parents and grandparents lives and our antique shopping. When you consider these areas of a home, you want to feel like there is no place like home and you like well enough to stay there and enjoy it.   Maybe even prefer it to going out somewhere.  

I like home objects that really touch the inner places of my soul and lift my spirits.  It may be a candle burning, essential oils diffusing, flowers in a vase, soft music in the back ground, running water from my rain chain that I can hear when my door is open, the smell of bread or something cooking, working in my office, and a mocha in my hand.  I love taking pictures of these cozy places.  Those are the things within my home that make me happy.  This is what bring happiness in to my life.  You could find me at times dancing through my house apply to have my little home on the hill.  If I can share that with someone else, it gives me a deep sense of satisfaction and gratitude.  I just finished putting a “new to me” desk in my office and it gives me great pleasure to sit right here at that desk in my office, surrounded by objects that encourage me and uplift me even now, as I write this post.  Each of my rooms reflects a bit different personality because of the items that are in that room.  But, I will share a little more about that next time.  

If you are already happy with your home decor, don’t stop reading but maybe consider ways you could change a few things up based on ideas here.  Please feel free to share your ideas in the comments.  I hope that you will find these next few posts will cause you to want to step in a little deeper with making yourself at home!

Walking the journey with you…