As I mentioned in my post, “How to Refresh Your Home for Spring,” I think spring and summer can be the most challenging seasons for which to decorate. Flowers are great, but when it’s March it can be difficult to feel like bringing a bunch of flowers into your house while there is still snow on the ground! This brings home the point of how important it is to have a strong base of staple decor. You may put your go-to’s away for a season or two, but you know they will be there when you need them! If you haven’t yet read my post, “Capsule Decor”, I suggest you read that post too as these two subjects go hand-in-hand!
Identify Your Style
First, you need to identify your personal decor style. What do you want your home to look and feel like? What do you already use and love using in your decor? These are the items that will be with you for the long haul. For example, I have a small dough bowl that my uncle made when he was young; it was my grandparents’ and was eventually passed down to me. I love it! Lately I have been really enjoying it on my entry table, but I could also use it on my kitchen counter or dining room table! I love this little bowl and I know I will use it regardless of what home I’m living in.
Your staple decor is not trendy. It will go where you go—in whatever home you live in! Your staple decor are the best friends out of your decor pieces—the ones that will be with you for the long haul! So you may be asking . . .
What Items Make Good Decor Staples?
Timeless Pieces
I think of staple pieces as the most timeless pieces you own. You don’t have these because they are trendy or because they are a specific style that you are trying to infuse into your home. Instead, these are pieces you love—that you will make sure if you move they will come too! It may be an antique mirror, a family heirloom, or a favorite piece of art. Regardless of what it is, it will be something you love!
Things Every Home Needs:
I want to be careful in saying what “every home needs,” because every home is different and styles differ from person-to-person, but on the whole these are the items that will help you add flair to your home. These items will help a collection of things to look styled rather than just bunched together and they may be items that you want just for practicality!
· Books: use as risers, as filler in vignettes, and on your coffee table.
· Plants: every house needs a little plant or two. Go faux if you really can’t keep plants alive.
· Trays: a good tray works magic! I’m always on the lookout for a good tray because it seems every time I turn around I’m wishing I had *just* one more.
· Candles: again, fill out vignettes, place on a book, or add a little glow to your kitchen.
· Candle sticks and pillars: these help add finishing touches to your home.
· A good piece of art or family picture: this is probably the easiest way to express your style in one fell swoop. Nothing says you like one statement piece of your choosing. While family pictures are a great way to add personality to a room, if not done well, it can feel a bit dated. If you want to go bold with a statement piece that isn’t a family picture, go for a painting, botanical prints, an old map, or a vintage poster.
· Pinecones, moss balls, or twine balls: these will help fill out a vignette or table center piece.
· A few different size cutting boards or charcuterie trays: use them behind your faucet as they are easier to wash than your backsplash. You can set your kitchen soaps on a small cutting board to make them look more like an intentional gathering. And, have a cutting board or two handy so when you get the whim to cut carrot sticks, you can act before the moment passes!
Where to Use Staple Items
Ok, you have the staple items but now what? Why do you have all these things??? You have them so you can use them of course! A tray, a few books, and a candle, picture frame, or plant make a lovely vignette for your end table. A tray can add some class to that mess of bottles on your bathroom counter. Having a variety of staple items in your home helps to give your decorating flexibility and not get stale. You can switch things up when you start to get bored, or you can keep things the same all year if you would rather not be bothered. Which leads to the next thing to consider when purchasing staple items . . .
A Few Rules for Staple Decor
Buy neutrals or only the colors that you absolutely, positively, know that you will love forever! Buying neutrals, or colors that you love and use all over your home allows you to be able to move items from room-to-room, and will still work as your style evolves. Check out my post, “How to Create a Cohesive Color Palette” here. If you are debating between a really modern, trendy piece and one that is clean-lined and classic, I would go with the classic one and save the trends for a piece you know you will tire of before too long.
Refreshing Staple Pieces
You may have pieces that you bought and loved but now the color or the finish isn’t to your taste—or perhaps you are just bored with it—don’t forget what simple things like a coat of paint, switching out hardware or knobs, or reupholstering or recovering can do!
I hope this helps you to think through your decor and overcome any decorating obstacles you may have been having. Remember, a good base is the foundation of great style. Happy decorating!
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Well it is winter. Still. And here in Pennsylvania it will continue to be for a while, but we are finally at the point where the end of winter is just about in sight- we hope!! However, while I am still trying not to succumb to total spring fever just yet, I am cleansing my home of any remaining winter items, and refreshing my home for spring. I will not be pulling out anything overtly springy yet, but the stage will be set to add touches of spring when the weather breaks and I feel that I can safely do so without fear of the winter weather coming crashing back in and destroying hopes and dreams of winter’s end.
In my post, How to Decorate for Winter, I said that I do not take down all of my wintery things in January- it’s just too depressing! So now is when I do a clean sweep, and when my house will be a little more bare than it has been since fall! I try to look at it through new eyes. Is there a way I keep arranging things that I don’t love but have just gotten used to? Would I like to swap rooms with some of my pictures? Is there something that has seen better days and I finally need to let go of it?
In all honesty, I find this season the most difficult to decorate because while it totally makes sense to take all things seasonal down and give my home a season of rest, I struggle to do this since I feel like it’s already so bare boring everywhere I look. Outside is gray, and while I love the four seasons we experience here in PA, I have to say this is probably my least favorite season- a season of waiting for winter to end and spring to fully begin. In addition since I am not decorating for a season, this is when I rely on the core of my decor more than any other time of year. If you haven’t built a decor capsule yet check out my post here on How to Build Capsule Decor.
Now, when I am doing my spring refresh is when I always find a few “holes” in my decorating. Seasonal items that have filled out a space quite nicely are gone and I am left scraping for something not-to-seasonal to replace what I just took down. But, you know what? It’s ok! It’s ok to look around your house at least once a year (maybe even more!) and assess the bulk of your decor and decide if you are happy with it. Has your style changed slightly? Is there something you’ve been meaning to buy for a while and just haven’t made time to do it? Now is the time! If you are on a tight budget and really don’t have extra money to spend right now don’t let that stop you from playing with your decor! Sometimes we need to buy something, but we can often fill or fix, even for just a little while), a decor glitch with something we already own. Look through your dishes in your cabinet, take a peak in your craft supplies, see what you come up with and if you are still stumped, try googling or looking on Pinterest for creative ways to use the items that you found! Have fun with it, and I know this is annoying advice but try to approach it from a fun creative point of view, rather than one in which you are upset because you can’t buy or find something new at the moment. I have never had a great idea while throwing myself a pity party, but some of my favorite decorating ideas have come when I have challenged myself to use what I have and try to come up with something fabulous just using those items.
Keep Some Cozy
This time of year I really like to focus on candles and blankets to warm up my home and keep it from feeling too sterile! I still love a chunky knit blanket at this time of year, and while it may be about time to pack up the fur pillows and throws, make sure to still leave enough around to snuggle up with on the cold days that are still to come!
Is Your Home Friendly?
Did you switch things up over the holidays and never return? Did you make your home slightly less livable in the name of beauty? It’s ok for your home to look like people live there- at least to some extent! Find a box for your tv remotes to live in on the coffee table, have a mat by the door for shoes, style a few cups near your coffee or tea station for a quicker grab in the morning! Make it easy to live in- it can still be beautiful!
Re Introduce Greenery
Plants are definitely welcome all year but when is more appropriate than in the spring? I know for me I moved a few plants around because of my Christmas decor and now I really like where they are living and I just may need to pick up another new plant or two!
Add Pictures
I have a few pictures in prominent places like my piano and mantle but I looked around and realized that there were startling few personal touches around my house. I have a bunch of pictures- time to pull them out! A picture is a great way to fill out a vignette! See my post on Vignettes: Tell Me A Story, and add a personal touch to your home!
Color Check
No matter what colors you have chosen for your home’s color pallet, see How to Create a Cohesive Color Pallet, there will be a color or 2 that is more suited to spring than the rest. If you are looking at getting a few new throw pillows lean hard into these colors!
Collections
If you are someone who likes to collect and has a collection now is the time to show it off! Generally with a collection you want to rotate through how much of it you show off at a time, (unless you have a huge collection and a great place to show it off where it can really be a wow factor!), however now, when your house is a little more bare is a great time to display more of your collection than you normally would!
Need a little Inspiration?
Ok so you have all your winter decor down but you also have cabin fever and you don’t want it to just be plain?? What else can you do to refresh your home for spring and add some transitional coziness to your space?
Here are a few ideas: Plants Lanterns Candles Deer antlers Flowers- fresh, faux or dried! Handmade pottery Vintage glass bottles Unique or vintage figurines- try crowning a stack of books with these! Geometric spheres Adding a touch of rustic Vintage busts or small animal figurines.
As always happy decorating- enjoy!
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Have you noticed that no matter how big our homes are we tend to accumulate enough things to more than fill our home- or am I the only one that thinks this? It takes conscious effort to keep our homes from getting overrun with stuff, and regular purging is always a good idea. But. What happens if you are purging, and you have already tried to organize your home, (see my post on how to organize your home), and it still seems like you don’t have enough room?? Or you have room but you’re having a hard time making your storage functional and fabulous at the same time? This is when you have to get creative to maximizes your home’s storage- enter hidden home storage.
There are lots of little ways to maximize storage in your home for example:
What’s under your bed?
Under your bed is a great place for extra storage. In our guest room, which also doubles as an office, we have a tub on wheels in which we keep extra printer paper, extra file folders, and the like. In our bedroom we use tubs under the bed to store our shoes. Many bedframes have built in drawers underneath the mattress- brilliant!
The Tv Stand
Tv’s are so hard, who wants to decorate around a big tv that we would rather not when we aren’t watching it? Perhaps though we can use it to our advantage! If it can not be hung on a wall then on a stand it must go! Instead of buying a traditional entertainment stand try repurposing a short dresser- that way you can use the drawers as storage but have none of the clutter visible! An added bonus when using a dresser is that the tv cords can drop behind the dresser and no one has to see the mass of wires hiding back there!
The Ottoman
We opted for an Ottoman in our small living area rather than having a coffee table to save space. The plus is that when we bought an ottoman we made sure to get one that opened to contain extra storage inside! It’s so nice that now when I get settled on the couch and immediately decide that I’m cold, I just have to lift my feet and pull out a blanket!
End tables
End tables are a great opportunity to squeeze out some extra home storage too! Some like the ottoman I just mentioned have a lid that you can lift off to reveal storage, while others, like the ones we have, are open underneath and you can fit a cute bin under the table to hold magazines, books, games or whatever else you’re always wishing you had within arms reach!
Chairs
Whether we just have more stuff than people used to, or whether we are just getting smarter about how to hide the amount of things that we have, companies are getting better about building furniture with hidden spots for storage. Some chairs, or chaise lounges have cushions that lift up for maximum storage, so if you are in the market for an accent piece see if you can find one you like with a little extra storage! If you can’t, remember a slim decorative basket slid under the chair can not only look nice but be functional too- what a good place to hide dog toys!
Closets
There are many ways to squeeze extra storage out of a small closet; you can place a hook over the door of your closet to store bags and items you don’t often use. If you have racks that not only have the bar on which to hang your clothes but also have built in racks above them then you can place bins for added storage. I also have a hanging shoe holder in my closet but instead of storing shoes in it I roll my T-shirts and keep them in it! I really like doing this because in a quick glance I can see all the shirts that I have and then I don’t get stuck wearing the same shirts that are on top in my dresser!
Under Cabinets
A wire rack that unfolds into a shelf is great for under the sink, but don’t forget about the magic a good tension rod can do either! Using a tension rod under a sink from which you can hang cleaning bottles will free up space on the bottom of the shelf for more items that you can’t hang! Or in a tall narrow cabinet, use the tension rods vertically as dividers!
I hope this helped to spark some ideas of how to squeeze more storage out of your home, and to do so more beautifully too! For more ideas on how to make your home functional and fabulous check out the book: Beautifully Organized by Nikki Boyd! Stop by and follow me over on Instagram and I would love to see your innovative organizing ideas- just email me at Essentiallyemmamarie@gmail.com!
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I have mixed feelings about the beginning of the year, part of me is so excited by the prospect of a new year and all the possibilities it holds and the other part is still in mourning because I’m so depressed that the holidays are over! It takes me a while to acknowledge that Christmas is over and I have almost a whole year to go before it comes again. I need a way to cope.
One of the ways in which I cope is by doing a deep purge/organization overhaul of my house, with my husband’s help of course- I am so much fun to live with! Purging your house over the holidays may not be your idea of a good time like it is mine but before you write me off as a crazy try it- you may enjoy it as much as I do!
What an Organized Home Means to Me
First off though I want to say that I am all about functional organization; meaning some of my organization isn’t terribly Pinterest worthy. I don’t buy a container of cereal at the store and then come a home and transfer that into a different container so that when I open my pantry it is a pretty array of white and glass labeled canisters- I am into working smarter, not harder and for me a color coordinated pantry isn’t worth the time it takes at this point in my life. However, having a good organization system that helps me to put groceries away more quickly, find what I’m looking for when I need it, and the ability to tell when I’m out of something, are all things a value so that is where I focus my attention when it comes to organizing.
Our Journey Towards an Organized Home
It all started last year, I had been wanting to do a total overhaul of our basement which had become overrun with boxes, stuff for goodwill, and various items that were “almost” put away, but not quite and were just creating clutter. During the week between Christmas and New Year’s we sorted and pitched, organized and donated- and it felt great! By the end of the week we had transformed a cluttered mess into a nice usable space. My husband, understandably, had been reluctant to spend so much of our time off on this activity but he too agreed that it was time well spent and he was glad we had invested the time into- plus there was now room to set up the ping pong table he had been wanting to play on!
Getting Started
When beginning a purge remember, if you haven’t used it within 6 months to a year it’s probably safe to get rid of it. If you have multiples of something, and can’t remember when you last used one of that particular item, you are safe to get rid of at least one if not all of them. Lastly remember to set up 3 different piles: keep, give away and throw away. It is so much easier to let go of something if you know it is going to someone who needs it more than you do!
This year we weren’t in need of a deep purge in our house as badly as we were in need of a light purge with new organization measures put into place. I had several spots in the house that I had started referring to as “hot spots.” Certain closets like a miscellaneous cabinet in our bathroom, the space under the kitchen sink, and the closet where we keep our games had become totally out of control. In the weeks leading up to Christmas I started keeping a list of little projects that would only take an hour or so but still ended up on my to do list each week, having gotten pushed to the end of the list in favor of something more pressing.
After doing a light purge on these areas, (we did a lot better this past year in not allowing clutter to come into the house so a deep purge was unnecessary), I realized that merely purging would not be enough. I needed storage help! Over the years I have heard a lot of professional organizers say to hold off buying bins and storage containers until after you do a deep purge. I had done this but I had never gotten back around to purchasing storage containers and putting them into use. I finally did, and boy, did it make such a difference! Not only is having nice uniform storage bins more aesthetically appealing, but we were able to squeeze out a lot more usable storage from these areas as well.
You Can Have a Junk Drawer
Another thing: You can have a junk drawer! Having a well organized home means having a home that functions well. This means you may have a junk drawer! Really, it’s ok! You do not want this drawer to contain stuff that should go somewhere else- the random crayon needs thrown out or put away- but you need a place for miscellaneous stuff to live. We should probably call this a miscellaneous drawer rather than a junk drawer come to think of it! Take my kitchen “Miscellaneous Drawer,” for example; I keep birthday candles, packs of gum, the touch up pen for my cabinets, chip clips, pencils and a small notebook in this drawer. I need all of these things in the kitchen, so I keep them there. In my bedroom I have a decorative box where I keep spare buttons, and other such paraphernalia that I want to make sure I have but that is just random. I don’t have a million of these random catch all places but I do have a few, I keep an eye on them so they don’t snowball and it helps to keep all the other clutter under control because this way odd items that I do want to keep have a place to live.
I realize that we are now way past the week in between Christmas and New Years but that doesn’t mean that you can’t start chipping away at areas of your home now! Gretchen Rubin talks in her books of how she implements a power hour every week in which she powers through any unpleasant or annoying task that she had been putting off that week and when the hour is over she stops, check out my post on books to help you build the life you want here). I plan to do this in the form of a “Declutter Hour,” and at the end of every week if there is a spot that has been annoying me to clean it out before it has the chance to become overwhelming. I will rotate through my house to help stay on top of things and tackle and clutter before it gets out of hand.
You can also use this approach to get on top of things. You may not have a week in which you can just purge, but do you have an hour a day or just an hour a week? Make a list of areas that are driving you crazy and start tackling it little by little- you’ll be so glad that you did!
Christmas seems like ages ago, and long gone is the Christmas tree and hustle and bustle of the season. I always feel a bit bereft after taking down the Christmas tree and so many of my Christmas decorations, so I decided a while ago that I wouldn’t take it all down! Here in Pennsylvania it is cold and except for the sporadic snowfall, it is quite bare outside as well. I don’t want the inside of my house to feel bare as well! I want it to feel cozy- extra cozy! I want to decorate for winter, after all winter is a season too!
What should you take down and what should you leave up?
Since I just can’t quite cope with taking away all of my Christmas and winter decor at once I tend to leave up greenery,(I use faux so I have the ability to do this), my little trees that look wintery, and instead only take down the things that are expressly Christmas related. Now there is some discussion over whether to leave up any decor if it is very glittery and my feeling is this- if you like it leave it, and if you’re tired of it take it down! I would say by conservative standards you should take down anything glittery but since I like glitter to brighten up winter’s darkness I leave it.
I don’t typically use any red in my decor throughout the year. I’ll add in a touch or two of red in the Autumn and I use red at Christmas. So I take down most touches of red except if I have berries in with my greenery.
My rule is if it’s true in nature it can be true in my decor!
For this reason I also keep up certain glittery accents as well; trees, frosted every green accent balls, etc.. I love the look of white, glitter dusted branches, I love it outside my house when the branches glisten with snow and frost and I love it inside as well- faux snow and frost that is!
But you don’t want everything to be bare?!
I call this decorating for winter. In our excitement over the holidays we forget that winter too is a season. Maybe you decided to take down the glittery accents and trees but still you want something to make your come special through winter! Think cozy! Throws, pillows, and candles can really warm up and transform a space you want your decor to appeal to all the senses, and in winter I love to appeal to the eyes, and the sense of touch. It has been said that we feel texture with our eyes as well as our hands so bring in lots of different textures! Replace pristine books with worn, warmer looking ones, faux fur pillows too look soft and warm, woven baskets to chase away the sterile feel of a Christmas ridden home.
Here’s a quick list of some of my favorite winter decorating items:
Branches- bare branches in a big vase can be a show stopper! Pinecones Every green and Frosted evergreen branches Candles, candles, and more candles! Faux Fur pillows and throws Deer sheds, (antlers) Twinkle lights Logs in the fireplace- even if it’s not a working fireplace! Faux Sheepskin Throw
Want Other Touches of Winter?
Just because the Nativity Scenes and Santa’s have been put away doesn’t mean that the snowmen have to leave yet- where I live we still have another 2 or 3 months of snowman making weather! In addition you can leave up decorative little trees, silver deer figurines, and wintery accent balls like I did below!
Remember What You Like
I know myself and I want glitter and branches and basically want my home to transform from a Christmas wonderland, to a winter wonderland for the next few months. But what do you like? I think winter is also a great time to add more white to your decor than usual. Also maybe you keep a pretty traditional style home but would like to incorporate more vintage elements into your home then why not try it now?!
Maybe you are tired of some of the colors and decor that you have been using as staples in your home, take this season as a little breather and an excuse to play and have fun with your decor! I think the number one reason we get bored with anything is because we stop having fun with it. So have fun! And check out my post on Creating a Cohesive Color Pallet as a springboard for ideas if you have the urge to switch up some of your decor!
The most wonderful time of the year will be here before we know it- Christmas! I love Christmas, the sounds, the smells, the events, and of the course the decorating! I think I was born in the wrong era because at Christmas I want to ditch any signs of minimalism and pull out everything; garland, greenery, and Christmas bulbs – oh my! My heart starts fluttering just thinking of it all.
But of course it’s not quite as simple as all that; we want the garlands, greenery and Christmas bulbs but it also takes planning and consideration to decide what color themes and look we want to stick with. Capsule theory – Cohesive Color Pallet
The most renown color theme for Christmas is most definitely red and green, tossed with touches of silver and gold. Now, what I call a traditionalist when it comes to décor- meaning I love red, green, silver and gold, and generally don’t hunger to switch up this pallet too much. This works for me but I also live in a neutral colored house that adapts easily to this color scheme- but what if your house doesn’t?
One of my favorite things is to play with color- there is nothing like a new box of crayons, or looking at all the color swatches in a paint store to make me excited-yes, this is a little pathetic, but so be it! I don’t know why all the different colors excites me so much, but they sure do! There are endless combinations and pretty pallets to be created, if one only takes the time and encourages their creativity, the same is true for Christmas decorating!
You may have a house where your walls and decor are primarily blue, and you don’t want a bunch of red and green. Your house may be bright and welcoming with yellows, beige and other warm tones. You can add red and green because after all it is Christmas but what if you want a little more cohesion and less tension within your color decor?
May I suggest you work with what you already have in your home. If you want cohesion and your house is full of blues and grays, make a Christmas color pallet, (insert capsule the Rory) of 5 or more colors made up of gray, silver, navy, gold and perhaps a touch of burgundy.
If your house is inclined toward the warmer side of the color wheel, try a color pallet of gold, cream, white, silver, and a soft greige.
Do you love pastels? Blush, gold, silver, gray, and navy make a breathtaking outline to work within.
Below I have included several sample color pallets to get your creative juices flowing; have fun! You don’t have to follow all the rules, and if you need even more inspiration search color pallets on Pinterest and then let your creativity run rampant!
