Don’t you just love the beginnings of a new decorating project? Even as a kid I would get giddy if my mum and I decided it was time to change my bedroom around. I love the possibilities and the endless choices that can be made to create something special, something that’s completely yours.
The fabulous Domino: Book of Decorating opens with a chapter about getting started and finding an approach to begin your decorating ….
“Impatient types might want to do the entire space at once, even if that means using less expensive pieces. More tortoise like characters are happy collecting slowly over time…”
I definitely fall into the latter category. We have the necessities right now, but I’m biding my time until we find all the things that will make our place ours.
Furniture can be beautiful but it doesn’t make a place a home. I really believe that the pieces of the puzzle that make rooms yours, are the little details. The photographs, the pictures, pieces found whilst traveling, things from your life that are sentimental and have meaning. It’s amazing how quickly familiar faces can make a strange place feel like home.
One of my favourite ‘me’ decorations sits above my desk smiling down at me as I work. A much loved cartoon that my best friend drew of our lives together before I left for Vancouver. It’s a silly little thing she did for fun but is really special to me and reminds me of all those happy times we had together. These are the things that build a home. The things that make you smile when you walk in the door…
I’d love to hear about what details you have in your home that make it special and essentially yours. What treasures grace your special rooms?
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postscript: Today is your last day to enter the CSN Stores give away. Leave a comment on that post to win. Winner announced next week!
post postscript: Words To Shoot By Call For Entries! I get lots of emails from people asking me how they can contribute to Words To Shoot By and I’m sure Steph gets hundreds more. Well, now you can join in the fun! Steph is asking for your entries for the coming theme of : Orange. The deadline for entries is Saturday 23 October- that’s tomorrow! Check out WTSB for all the details. Get shooting, kids!
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the details do speak to the people who live there. for me, it’s the family photographs i’ve taken + the children’s artwork. it’s also the dry erase calendar that everyone partakes in filling in. having the patience to collect pieces you absolutely love bring a space together in a way that doesn’t necessarily happen in designing the room all at once simply to complete the space. enjoy your time making your home yours!
oh, kiddie artwork is something I think should be framed in family homes. Such beautiful, special things to have!
i guess it’s more real when you collect over time, isn’t it?
thanks Allyn!
We’ve lived in a lot of rentals and each move seems to result in us shedding more possessions. That’s not a bad thing, but it makes it hard for a place to feel like home. In terms of constancy, I own a lovely timber dressing table that my father restored for me some years ago. He found on his fathers farm…in a worker’s hut! I always try to position it in the same spot in our bedroom, no matter where we live. And I always have the same photo of my mother and I (when I was a little girl) sitting on top. So we are all part of the dressing table, a little piece of home.
i love changing the colour scheme in my main room. i seldom buy anything new to do this – i just put away some things and dig out something else. it can be anything from a pair of shoes, a handbag or a nice dress to pictures from an old calendar. it’s so fun to go hunting in the closets for things that match and to make new displays with my old stuff! people always look at my displays and make happy comments, so i guess this is what makes the apartment essentially mine.
the photo in this post is so beautiful… it all looks so calm and serene and filled with light. i’m sure you’ll create lots of lovely things at this workspace!
This is a great topic. Eric and I have somewhat cramped living quarters at the moment and he is constantly urging me to get rid of my things. I inherited all the items from my grandparents purchased on their world travels…I have a beautiful blanket from Nepal, Kenyan masks and shields, and some beautiful little knick-knacks I’ve picked up on my own travels over the years. Most are boxed up at the moment, but I know one day we will find a bigger space and all the essentials of home will be right there in a heartbeat. That’s not to say I stay away from IKEA, however. I do find great organizational things there.
Paula, I love that you always position the dressing table the same way. That’s so beautiful.
BC, that’s such a clever way of redecorating. I think we all have things that are put away in cupboards and left there without being used. I find this with jewellery especially. Such a chic way to redecorate!
Nik! I bet your place is a feast of unusual and special items. It would totally suit you. One of my most treasured items is a little rock you sent me years ago..and my record store frisbee from Chicago! :)
And yes, IKEA do have great organisational items. We have some shelving from them too.