I must confess that I have already swapped out my winter boots for some sandals! Spring is around the corner and I’m ready!
This got me thinking…how can we add some fun to those dreary winter days?
I’m here to give you a little inspiration…let’s start with these adorable cards pictured above that I found at Trader Joe’s for 99 cents! They have the cutest cards and designs for all different occasions.
Do you know one of the biggest benefits of getting rid of the excess and de-cluttering your home? You have time for those fun projects and extra details that elevate your home. This is a way to add your style and personality and enjoy those simple luxuries; like sending a handmade card or buying yourself fresh flowers.
What small thing can you do today to brighten up your space?
The weather cools off, the leaves start falling and I love the cozy feeling it all brings. If you start planning and getting your house organized now then you can have more time to enjoy the holidays.
Some ways to get ready for Fall:
-Swap out your closet and bring out your Fall and Winter pieces. Don’t forget to do a shoe swap as well!
Fall is all about layering in North Carolina so remember there are lots of pieces in your wardrobe that can be worn year round. Once you add those third pieces like cardigans and jackets then your wardrobe can be more versatile.
-De clutter to be ready for entertaining and guests.
Don’t stress at the last minute when you are hosting a party or having family come visit. Doing some reorganizing and creating household systems will make your house much easier to maintain.
-Add some cozy accents and accessories to make your house more calm and inviting.
Think throw pillows, blankets,cozy bedding, candles and twinkle lights. All these accents can make such a difference in how your home feels.
-Create some go to outfits for Fall and Winter by shopping your closet.
Once you take inventory of what you have creating new outfits by shopping your closet is part of the fun. This will also help you make an intentional shopping list for any pieces you may be missing.
Have you ever looked around and thought your home might be missing something?
Maybe it just doesn’t feel warm and inviting. It lacks that calm and cozy feeling?
One of my favorite ways to add a calming cozy vibe to your home is by decorating with candles.
My husband and I suffer from allergies and live in a small space so I try to limit my real candles to one lightly scented candle.
I might be a little obsessed with adding battery powered candles around our home though! The soft amber glow reminds me of a fireplace and has an instant calming effect on me. I set my battery powered candles on timer mode and they come on at night after dinner and are perfect for setting a relaxing mood.
I am picky about the quality of my fake candles and like them to flicker and look realistic. Battery powered candles are definitely not all the same.
Another way you can elevate the look is by placing the battery powered candles in glass or metal votive. I love the way the light reflects through the metal cut outs or off the glass. I mix my real and fake candles on the same tray so its hard to tell they are not real.
How do you feel about candles? Do you have certain nightly rituals and routines that you follow in your home?
I love decorating with real and fake flowers. They can add so much color and life to a space.
It doesn’t matter what season we are in…flowers can be changed out for spring, summer, fall and winter.
You can reuse some of the stems and alternate others depending on the time of year.
I like to choose vases that can pretty much work year round so I don’t have to store too many extras.
Flowers are perfect for decorating an entryway table, bathroom counter, dark corner… the possibilities are endless.
I truly believe if you add these extra details to your home it will make you more accountable in keeping your home organized and de cluttered. Do you really want to create a drop zone next to a beautiful arrangement of flowers?
Adding extra finishing touches to your home will help you be more intentional about maintaining your newly styled space.
I am very picky about the flowers I choose looking real. These roses are a favorite and have fooled many people from a distance! They are a little more on the expensive side but totally worth it! I get them at Michaels believe it or not.
Some tips I use when decorating with flowers and creating vignettes:
-Choose stems and flowers that look more realistic.
-Create a cohesive color palette with other decorative items. This will create a “vignette” and make things really stand out and flow.
-Selecting flowers with texture adds another layer of interest and warmth to your space.
-You are not limited by a small space. There are so many cute bud vases you can use on bathroom counters and places where space is limited.
-Get creative and play with some arrangements and you will be surprised how flowers can brighten up your space and instantly lift your mood.
Have you noticed when you take down the holiday decorations you feel better without all the clutter BUT it can look a little sparse and sad?
It is a New Year after all so change some things up and refresh your space!
My favorite thing to do after the holidays is give all the surfaces a good wipe down. (get all that glitter off).
Once you have cleared the spaces and wiped them down then get creative when putting things back.
Is there any excess clutter or things that have just landed there accidentally? This is your chance to start with a clean slate.
Only put back what you love. I realize things have to be functional as well. But they can be beautifully styled and be functional. One of my absolute favorite ways to elevate a space is to add a decorative tray. We have 2 decorative trays on our entryway table. One has to be functional and holds a bowl with our keys, my husband’s sunglasses and a few other things.
But the second tray is my fun area where I like to decorate seasonally. I have battery powered candles in various styles of votives on there. And I also have my favorite scented candle and I burn it all year long.
I have a faux plant or a vase of faux flowers depending on the time of year and then I add some twinkle lights.
You would not believe what a difference these details can make. They add so much warmth and coziness.
There are so many ways to accessorize your home without spending anything or spending very little.
Some of my favorite accessories to change the look and vibe of your home:
-Throw pillows and blankets
-Candles and twinkle lights
-Faux or real plants and flowers
-Decorative trays, bowls, boxes (these are a great way to add beautiful storage and still have a practical space.)
-Display favorite mementos from travel or sentimental items in creative ways.
-Go to thrift stores and find unique pieces that tell a story. Mixing old and new gives a home some interest.
-Do not display and keep things out of guilt. (because someone gave it to you or you spent too much money on it).
Display what you love and what represents your personal style.
What do you already have in your home that you can restyle and refresh your space?
I got a call from some clients that I have worked with for years. They are a sweet older couple in their late seventies and wanted to convert one of their guest bedrooms into a cozy den. I was so excited to help with this project! The only things they really had in the room were 2 new recliners and a TV stand that had a fireplace insert. (Which they said they absolutely loved the coziness the fireplace added so that right there gave me some ideas.) So the design was a clean slate!
I suggested we do a cozy library feel with lots of browns and oranges. Soft glow of candles and fireplace.
They had an eclectic mix of artwork so we discussed that 3 different types of art would not work in the room. Southwest, Thai dancers and a barn. We decided to use some beautiful prints we had discovered while de cluttering my client’s office. They were beautiful brown sketches with an old world feel and would definitely go with the vibe of the room. We redistributed the other pieces of art to different areas of the house.
We started with a Pinterest board to narrow down color palette and general aesthetic. I encouraged them to order a low bookcase to go on an empty wall to add some warmth. I suggested we style it with some mementos from their travels, old books and a few new accessories. It would also be a good place for my client to keep his lap top and any reading materials he wanted near his recliner.
I took them shopping and it took us a little over an hour to find everything left on our list!
It really is amazing how a cohesive color palette and accessories can completely transform a room.
We still have a few tweaks and things to add but I love the way it turned out. It is such a cozy relaxing room. And the best part… the dog agrees!
Things I envisioned for the room:
-Low bookshelf in a dark wood to match TV stand
-Vintage sketches framed above bookcase
-Panoramic picture on long wall above recliners
-Faux plant to bring outdoors in (they did not want maintenance of a live plant and very little light comes in room).
-Battery powered candles in metal votive holders to create a cozy relaxing vibe
-Rug with warm colors like brown, orange and green
Have you ever thought buying fresh flowers for yourself was a luxury? Maybe it seems too expensive and frivolous? I used to feel the same way until I started following the amazing Amanda Gibby Peters and bought her book “Simple Shui for Everyday.” You can read more about the advantages below in her post.
If you are at all interested in Feng Shui she is a master and so inspiring. And even if you think Feng Shui is too woo woo…buy yourself the flowers anyway because you are worth it! I truly believe it’s the little details that make such a difference in our homes and how we feel!
One of the often overlooked aspects of maintaining an organized life is your own sense of well-being.
There are many reasons that people find their lives and their surroundings in varying degrees of disarray; They’re busy with kids, jobs, there may be an illness in the family, and sometimes they’re just trying to make ends meet on a day to day basis, which as many of us know can occupy our minds with worry and stress to the point that everything else in our lives gets overlooked or postponed, often with undesirable results.
When our lives become so full of stress, or a series of tragic or unfortunate events occur, typical clutter can spiral out of control, often resulting in situations of hoarding, a state of living (mental as well as physical) that is very difficult to recover from.
But that extreme condition is a topic for another post. The point is, and this may seem obvious, your mental and physical states are closely tied with how you maintain your life. When your mind is filled with the clutter of stress and worry, your surroundings will most likely reflect that to some degree. Conversely, when you feel good mentally and physically, not only will you have more energy to tackle the organizational issues at hand, but you will be more likely to see the problems for what they are, before they become insurmountable.
One book that I would suggest for further reading along these lines is Feng Shui Home, by Hale, Martin and De Winter. Feng Shui, if you are unfamiliar with the concept, is the “Chinese art or practice of creating harmonious surroundings.” While there are many books available to help people understand their organizational problems, this particular book addresses these issues with the view that replacing negative energy in your home with positive energy can help you on the path to better mental and physical health. It may not be your particular cup of tea, (to use an Eastern metaphor), but it does offer a lot of good advice on how to keep the spaces in your home simple and clutter free. I highly recommend it.
