Fall in Love with your Home!

We all want our homes to be a place where we can relax, escape the world, and just feel free to be ourselves.  it sounds so easy to make our homes a place we love to be, but sometimes in practice, it just isn't that easy!  Keep reading or watch the video for some simple steps to make this a reality!

Some people don't know this about me because I don't really talk about it often– I used to be painfully shy.  My close friends can attest to this.  It was hard for me even to go in and order food sometimes.  I hated talking to strangers, and I would just do anything possible to avoid talking to people I wasn't close to.  Because of that, my home was always the place I went to help me deal with the stress and overwhelm of the outside world.

I'm no longer that shy (not at all!), but I still cherish my home and want it to give that feeling of relaxation, love, and a breath of fresh air to me, my family, and anyone who comes into my home.  We have so little control over the outside world.  Your home is a place where you have at least some control!  It sounds easy to make your home a place you love, but when you actually start to make changes, it can feel daunting.  Here are my best suggestions on where to start!

Declutter

Decluttering is the easiest step because you're just taking things away instead of dealing with the effort of adding things.  It does take diligence and persistence to keep the clutter at bay.  The beauty of decluttering is that once you get rid of an item (either by donating, selling, recycling, throwing away–whatever!), then you never have to touch it again.  You'll never have to use your mental or physical energy to think about it, clean it, organize it, store it, etc.

When I walk into a room that's cluttered, I get low-level anxiety.  It's not like I can't function, but I'm just not relaxed– know what I mean?  It still happens to me.  I get busy, and a room just starts to pile up with things I need to do, and I lose control.  This started in my bedroom a few weeks ago.  I had a pile of returns that was getting excessive, random things all over my dresser– which is where I watch TV sometimes, so I got to look at the clutter every time I was “relaxing” and watching TV.  And I had a bunch of stuff strewn across my makeup table.

I just felt on edge whenever I walked into my bedroom, which is totally NOT what you want in a room where you're trying to sleep!  It took me about an hour to get things put back in order, so things really had gotten out of control.  But after that hour of work, I felt like a new person when I walked in there!  It made such a huge difference in my mental state, and it was SO worth the effort.

If you're just beginning with decluttering, I would start with whatever room bugs you the most, or whatever room you're in the most often.  That will make the most impact.  Once you can really feel the difference it makes, that will help with motivation to continue with the rest of your home!

Make it your Own

I struggled with this for SO LONG!  I don't have a natural decorating skill like some people do.  My houses looked like people barely lived in them.  There was nothing on the walls.  I think i was just too intimidated to start because I knew I would break some decorating rule, and it wouldn't turn out as well as I had hoped.  It took two years for me to start decorating my new house, but I finally decided that I wanted to start putting things around me that I loved and made me happy.  I stopped worrying if it was “right” or Pinterest-worthy.  If it made me or my family smile, then that's what I wanted on my walls!

Something I NEVER thought I would do is decorate seasonally.  Now I love changing things up for the holidays!  It started with finding a fall themed little truck at Sam's Club, and things just took off from there.  I change up my fireplace decor with every season or holiday.  I just love reds and pinks, so I go all out for Valentine's Day.  My kids get so excited, and I love it, too! My house just seems more festive and happy these days.

If there's something you want to do that makes you happy, then just go all out and own it!  Do weird things like turn a coat closet into a pantry if you want!  Make your home your own, and decorate and use it how it serves you best, without worrying what anyone else thinks!

Planning, Systems, and Organization

It seems obvious that you'll need some organization, but I think this is really the hardest part.  Despite being way into organization myself (obviously LOL!), I still sometimes struggle with knowing where to start or what will work best in a space.

Organization and systems can take so much stress from your days and help your life run more smoothly.  We all want less stress and more peace!  A plan and some home systems will give you that! But where do we even start?

If you want better organization but just don't know how to begin, then give yourself permission to get some help!  We have a Fall Back in Love with your Home sale starting soon, so you won't be left to do this all on your own!  Sign up for the emails, and get a little guidance and motivation for whatever organizing project you need to tackle.

My greatest hope for you is that you can create a home you love and that gives you peace.  You deserve a place where you can let down and be yourself.  We all need a little haven of our own.  Small changes can make such a huge difference.  You and your home are worth the effort!