Autumn is the time of year for gearing up and slowing down, all at the same time.  I find myself unwinding from summer’s busy wedding season and trips to the beach, I finally unpacked our suitcases and feel like I can sit back and take in a deep breath of cool crisp air.  But on the other hand, suddenly we’re found on a schedule with school, dance classes, work and my self-imposed ridiculously long to-do list that I put off all summer, plus the holidays are right around the corner.

March 2016, we moved into this house and have now lived here a year and a half.  I promised myself that I’d complete projects in a timelier manor than in our last house.  I thought we’d live in our last house for at least 10 years or so, which mentally made me feel like I had all the time in the world to make our house a home, and get everything just how I envisioned it being.  But I hated constantly feeling like I needed to explain myself when guests walked through the door and saw our kitchen’s mauve wallpaper and the bathroom’s Berber carpets.  We had bought the house from an elderly lady that had lived there for 40 plus years, and in many ways, that showed.  I never wanted people to think that I was settling with the house the way it was and had zero taste in home décor. I constantly felt judged due to our unfinished projects, and I realize in reality there was probably not a soul out there who thought anything of our less than perfect home but it still seemed that way in my over thinking mind.

So when we moved here, I loved that it already felt fresh.  We didn’t purchase with the intensions of having to do extensive renovations and I thought it would be a quicker process of making this house ours. Within a week, I had painted Gretta’s bedroom a soft shade of blush.  Within three weeks’ time, we were celebrating Willa June’s first birthday, so naturally I decided to paint the entire living room and kitchen a softened shade of alabaster and finished that at midnight the day before her party.

Every room in our house was painted the exact same shade of khaki and it’s not to my liking.   While it all matches the tile and floors and it all flows together really nice, it feels a little too much like a mud hut for my preference. I love a very collected feeling home.  I love layers of richness and warmth, lots of texture and I love vintage treasures.  So touches like modern espresso cabinets and their sleek hardware have been a little difficult for me to adjust to but I’m coming around and learning how to make it all my own.

My goal, however, is while I understand that design is a constant evolution, I want to feel by the end of the winter that I’m living in a space that truly represents our style and works for our family and not in a house of unfinished “someday projects”.  Right now, I’m mentally sorting all of this out and have several paint brushes in the fridge, because I’ve got a couple pots on the stove already.  Perhaps I should focus on one at a time, but I go as far as I can on my own until I need my hubby’s expertise with the power tools, and then I move on to the next.  And I think the most annoying part of any project is getting the supplies out and then cleaning them up again, hence the paint brushes in the fridge.

For anyone curious, here’s what I’m hoping (fingers crossed!) I will accomplish in our home this winter:

1. Update Willa June’s Bedroom

We haven’t done anything to it since moving in, and she’s about ready to switch from a crib to a big girl bed, so we’re going to do a little shuffling of the girls’ bedroom and make them sweet spaces that they will love to sleep and play in with a little woodland creature and floral theme – I can’t wait!

2. Finish Our Bedroom

Last winter we turned an extra living space into a master bedroom (You can read more about that here).  It’s a really awesome room and it’s almost there but it’s just needed a little something extra to really bringing it home which has taken some living in it to really recognize what’s missing.  I did do a little extra painting in there last night so we’ll see how that brings the progress along in the daylight hours.

3. Finish My Studio/Basement

I started describing this project here.  This one has been tricky, we thought it would be finished months ago but halfway through we had to stop and focus on our master bedroom and progress has just been slow and hindered.  However, I can happily say that I’ve seen much improvement in the last couple weeks.  I have fully painted the back half, floors are finished and I’m ready for shelving and so much organization.  I’ve almost made decisions on finishing touches for the front half of the space and I’m giving myself a Christmas deadline to have this completed, wish me luck.

There are more ideas floating in my mind, but for now, that’s where my focus lies.  For those of you who haven’t yet caught on, I did start another Instagram account for more of these home décor type projects and more of the lifestyle behind being a work from home mom and entrepreneur.  Follow along those updates here.

Here’s a little glimpse into our home and a table scape I designed last fall.  Happy October!

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