I don't just want us to talk about Jojo. I also want to talk about Leanne (from my new favorite HGTV show Restored by the Fords) and everyone else who does amazing design work and then shares it with us through TV, the internet or
by inviting us over.
Have you ever watched an episode of Fixer Upper, flipped through Better Homes & Gardens or scrolled through Instagram and suddenly felt like it was useless to even try to make your house into the home you've longed for?
I know I have. And I still do.
Sometimes I see these homes that are just stunning, and so my style (and FINISHED!) and then I look around at my own half-done home and feel like I did it all wrong. Or I picked the wrong house. Or I spent money on the wrong things. I'm such an idiot and my house is all bad decisions.
If I don't have the right
perspective, Joanna's finished homes, Leanne's gorgeous reveals or my friend's lovely home can put me in a major funk.
This is normal, but it's my job to change my thinking.
It's our job to find inspiration where we can and Joanna + Co provide SO MUCH inspiration fodder if we are willing to see photos as a suggestion, not as a rule. As ideas, not the standard.
I've realized that those times that seeing a pretty house puts me in a funk, are almost always
times that I see something and am mad that I can't copy it.
The problem is, I forget that my part in our relationship (If I will :) is to be INSPIRED. Not to copy. When I fall into the trap of believing that I need to copy these homes, it can lead to depression, hatred towards the home I have and a total waste of the hard work that Joanna, Leanna and all of those other women are doing for us.
What do we do with those pretty images?
When I see a home like the home on Episode 5 of this season's Fixer Upper that I'm obsessed with, I have a choice. I can take a speed train to funk town because I can't have that room. Or I can take a
moment and find inspiration and figure out how to turn a pretty photo into a win for me.
1. Take the time to figure out what it is about the photo that catches your attention:
Hmm, okay I LOVE that house because it's simple and has a ton of architectural detail. Hello beams, hello arched windows, HELLO wood shutters and HELLO STONE WORK! They are so
present that only rugs and furniture are needed--there's really hardly any extra decor. #CozyMinimalistForever
But womp womp, we aren't moving to a home that has vaulted ceilings or one that would look right with lots of extra heavy architectural details. I don't think I can talk Chad into creating a stone wall. We are not burning it all down and starting fresh. Forget it, I hate
everything...
Nope, now it's time for step two:
2. Focus on how you can apply things from the inspiration room to your own house
Okay, if I love architectural details so much, how can I add some interest to my house that make sense with my resources and the style of my home?
My solution to never having vaulted ceilings and beams in our house, was to install a non-intrusive paneled ceiling over our 8 foot popcorn ceilings. It wasn't until 3 years into our fixer upper that we got to it, but it satisfied
that need for interest on our ceilings without filling my house with extra decor. Amen.
Would I rather have a vaulted ceiling with beams? Of course!
But the paneled ceiling was a great solution. And I knew it was worth the trouble because every time I saw a photo with an interesting ceiling my heart skipped a beat, thank you pretty photos for helping me learn what I
love!
Finding solutions that work with the style of our home, within our budget is a fun journey for me, and I know it is for you too.
I need all the help I can get when it comes to inspiration, Joanna, Leanne, and everyone I follow on Instagram have worked so hard to help inspire me. I don't want to let that inspiration go to waste.
Maybe you are renting and it feels like you are just waiting on the next house.
Guess what, compared to your last house, this is your next house.
For years, we rented our house. The first 6 years of this blog were in a rental along with all the photos in my first book. I couldn't do much to the house so I had to rely on things I could take with me to add interest. I'd layer pretty rugs over carpet, change out the builder grade lighting for pretty lighting (yep, then we put all the builder lights back when we moved
out and I got to take the pretty lights with me.)
There's always something you can do, no matter your circumstance, and inspiration photos will help you figure out what is worth doing.
Keep 'em coming Joanna.
Meanwhile, I'm here in my little denim chair in our corner of the internet,
to encourage you on your home journey, as I take the next step in mine.
A Few New Items I'm Loving in our Home:
- We're currently redoing our walkout basement -- if you are on instagram you can see the progress in my saved stories above the photos. Follow me: @thenester (sadly you can only see saved stories on your phone)
- I've been finalizing the cover of my next book. It'll be a full color hardback just like the first one. I'll tell you more about it this
fall, it will release in October.
- We still need to finish the fencing in our backyard and the walls to our little covered porch. Not a glamours project but even though 95% of our backyard is done, it only looks 75% finished. I hate decorating math like that!
- The Cozy Minimalist Celebrates Spring! Our spring class opens in March, to be sure you're notified when it opens,
sign up here.
More Goings On:
New posts:
Did you get your New Year Cleaning Kit? They come with these DARLING Caddys filled with THREE full sized Mrs. Meyer's cleaning products in the scents of your choice--Free with your first $20 purchase with Grove Collaborative--they are going fast though, Caddies available while supplies last! Click here for all the details.
So far this winter
we've had about 8 mintues of snowfall here outside of Charlotte, NC. Although we might get an entire inch tomorrow so I am thrilled. Meanwhile, for any of you snow lovers suffering from lack of snowfall I found a new video to watch it's like yule log for the snow deprived
“Carving out a haven for yourself and those near to you is a sacred endeavor.” ---Sarah BanBreathnach
thanks for reading, I'll email you again in a few weeks!
xo,
myq
PS, if these emails are no longer helpful for you, for whatever reason, you can always click the "unsubscribe" button at the bottom of this email.
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