Making a House a Home

“Ignore the trends. You do you.”

My friend, Cheri, gave me that advice recently. And it was good advice. As I wrote earlier this year, I hit a wall with home decor in our new house. Just as I was starting to get excited about trying some ideas, I became inundated with sewing masks. I have been busy sewing ever since, but over the past few weeks, my mind went back to the tag line I created when starting this blog almost a year ago: To create beauty and comfort in the home. To share creative ideas and inspire others on their creative journey.

I had gotten so busy with other things that I went off track—away from my whole purpose for starting this endeavor. Also, I felt self-conscious about sharing my style because it is not trendy or popular. But trying to force other’s styles onto my personal taste just doesn’t work. And so, I am trying to get back to my original purpose. In the future, you will see more home decor posts intermingled with the other posts.

The first room that I decided to work on was the living room.

Part of the issue in the living room was not having the right furniture. After a friend gave me a used desk, the magic began to happen. In this corner previously, I had a rocking chair and a tall lamp, but I didn’t have anywhere to keep books or knitting, two vital things to have nearby when sitting in a rocking chair! I would often put my basket of yarn on that stool you see pictured, but then the stool would be needed in other parts of the house, and so my knitting basket would be back to not having a home.

Before:

After:

Because the lamp didn’t seem the right size for the space, I increased its height by adding some colorful hardcover books under the lamp. The topics include some of my favorite things: tea, cooking, decorating a home, and the book on the bottom, Imagining Anne, was a gift from my brother and his wife on my 32nd birthday when we were in Prince Edward Island with my parents. (I will write about that trip sometime—maybe on the the tenth anniversary of when it happened.)

Only one of the books in this stack has been purchased recently. I have owned everything else there for nearly a decade or more. You can find this book on Amazon: Early American Country Interiors by Tim Tanner.

Although my personal style is a combination of styles, it is very heavily influenced by my love of Early American decor. Maybe it’s because of my heritage? Maybe it’s because I love handmade items and that style of decorating represents a time when everything was hand-crafted by an artisan? Whatever the reason, I am drawn to the wrought iron, pewter, baskets, wood, pottery, as well as, textures and fabrics of that era.

As I wrote about in this post, I received a number of pillow inserts that are waiting to for me to cover, and so I made this linen pillow cover out of a remnant of linen fabric that I had ordered recently. Blue and white is my favorite color combination, and this fabric made a lovely pillow cover.

The changes in this corner made such an impact that my husband said, “This feels so homey! It feels just like [our previous home].”

In addition to the linen pillow cover in the picture above, I made a linen table runner to put on this small cabinet under the clock. Eventually, I want to move the piano from the playroom/schoolroom to this spot, but for now, I wanted the cabinet to be styled. Before this, the top of the cabinet was a spot without purpose or decor, and it ended up being a hot spot for papers and toys…now that I have added these items, it doesn’t attract the clutter that everyone used to put there.

I also made linen cover for the battery-operated candle that had broken when I dropped it when cleaning a few months ago. Because it still worked, I didn’t want to throw it away. Last Friday evening, I quickly measured it and used some linen scraps to make a fabric cover. This project took less than 30 minutes and it certainly wasn’t a perfect result, but it works for now. And I like the vignette of candle, books, and pewter mug.

One other spot that needed some sprucing up was the top of this pie safe. I plan to paint the pie safe soon, but I made it prettier now instead of waiting until I get it painted. In fact, now that I have it styled, I can’t wait to get it painted! (Stay tuned for pictures of the finished results.)

I placed this pillow that my Grandmother made on top of it—I like having it displayed and not stored, but with a dog and two small children and the fact that it isn’t washable, I found that I was nervous having it used in the living room. Now, it is displayed and out of the reach of little fingers—a win, win.

The books here came from my husband’s collection that he had received from his father. I love how the colors coordinate so well with the pillow! And the vintage (maybe antique?) quilt came from my grandmother’s family, but she doesn’t remember who made it.

Although these changes were really small, they really added to the comfort and beauty of our home. I look forward to making many more changes and sharing those with you. And as I wrote on an Instagram post this week: I have to live in this current century, but I can at least decorate as though I don’t.

What is your favorite style of decor? What are some simple things that you have done to your home to make it feel like your own style? Please comment below!

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