A couple years ago I looked around my house and realized that I did not have anything alive in it … I mean beside myself, my husband, and our pets! But there was no greenery! No plants! There are several reasons to incorporate plants into your decor:
· Plants add life and dimension to our décor, and
· Act as natural air purifiers
According to the list I found, the spider plant, English ivy, and pothos are on the list of the top 20 indoor air purifying plants.
I will be the first to admit that plants are not my forte—in fact I have killed quite a few over the years but, unfortunately for the poor plants, I have persisted and have now kept a number of plants alive, some even thriving! Through this process, I have learned of a few plants that are hard to kill house plants and easier to care for than others. The following are the plants that I like and have been able to keep alive—and the ones I really like in my decor!
Spider Plants
While I detest the name, I really like the plant! My mom always had spider plants when I was growing up and spider plants are the easiest plant to keep alive that I have yet tried. Seriously. I have over-watered (you can root a new plant in water so I don’t really think you can overwater them), under watered, and everything in between and they have still lived. They also don’t necessarily need a lot of natural light in my experience! They tend to grow to fill the size pot you plant them in so if you don’t want a bigger plant—don’t give them more room!
Ivy
I have had my ivy plant for about two and one-half years; my mom gave the ivy to me for Christmas a few years ago and she is astonished every time she comes over and finds the ivy still alive! Ivy is the second longest plant survivor in my house—the first being my spider plant. I water the ivy once a week and she seems very happy. I did move her at Christmastime from our front room (that gets lots of light) to our bedroom (which does not get a lot of natural light) and she did not like that. Except for that, the ivy has been happily growing and I believe she will continue to!
Pothos
I am on my second pothos—the first one I killed. This was especially bad because the plant I killed had been grown by my sister-in-law from a clipping of my husband’s now-deceased grandmother’s plant. Thankfully she knew better than to entrust the main plant to me! She also has a difficult relationship with plants and therefore did not judge me (at least to my knowledge) for killing her plant. She has since given me a second plant-clipping and this one is doing much better than the first!
Air Plants
Ok, I will admit to having killed one of these too—but he lived for two years before his death! (I had named it Harry-because he looked like a Harry of course!) These little air plants can be tucked in so many different places in your decor and look so cute! They don’t take much water; some you have to run the water over for a second or two a few times a week, others you may have to soak in water weekly. Other than that, they really don’t require much. We were away for several days during the winter months and had our thermostat turned down much cooler than we normally would and I believe Harry died because it was too cold for the few days we were away. Air plants are native to the tropics.
Pearl Plant
This plant is technically categorized as a succulent but I don’t think of it as a succulent at all. I find it to be easy to care for, like an ivy, but not requiring a great deal of natural light. With a little water once a week, this plant has been growing very nicely for me.
Succulents
These are not plants that I have had very much luck with. I know, I know—they are supposed to be very easy to take care of, and so hard to kill but I’ve lost track of how many I have killed over the years. I mention succulents in this post, not because I have had great success with them, but because I know others who swear by how easy they are also. If you think you are hopeless when it comes to plants because you can’t even keep a succulent alive, you are not alone! Please try a spider plant or an ivy. If you do decide to try a succulent, here is what I have learned: succulents are supposed to be easy because they don’t require much light or water. I think I have drowned mine by giving them too much water. Apparently they don’t want water every week, or at least as much as I was giving them.
All of the above plants are currently enjoying their life in my home; they exist on one watering a week and a moderate amount of natural light—minimal care that even I can handle! If you have tried having plants in the past and have given up on them altogether, I hope this post encourages you to try again and see what happens!
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I’ve talked about How To Refresh Your Home’s Decor For Spring of 2022 and I’ve talked about Spring and Easter Vignette Ideas, but what about the infamous spring cleaning that we’ve heard about our grandmothers doing? Is it really necessary to tear our houses apart and give them an in-depth scrubbing from top to bottom every spring?
In short, no. Or at least not as necessary as it was in days gone by. Back in the day when everyone heated with coal, and you could see a cloud of smog hanging over cities, houses needed to be scrubbed to keep the dirt and grime from overtaking the house, but in this day and age, such aggressive cleaning tactics are not needed every spring. However, spring is a great time to look around and tackle at least a few of the in-depth cleaning items that get overlooked (and are often unnecessary) on a weekly or monthly basis.
Walls
Do your walls need scrubbed down every year? If you keep up with wiping off dirty handprints and drips as they appear on the walls then your walls most likely do not need an in-depth scrubbing every spring, except in a few key areas, namely the bathroom. Because of all the condensation that collects in the bathroom and runs down the walls, you will notice that your walls get drip marks on them over time. These drips look are on the yellowish side of the color spectrum and just look gross. But don’t worry—you’re not alone! Most homes have this unless the bathroom is very large or extremely well vented. Take a dampened towel with just a drop of dish soap (not enough for you to even see suds) and wipe it over the walls; this will erase most of these marks, especially if you do this semi-annually or annually.
Pro tip: Lightly wet a mop and in essence mop your walls. This usually is enough pressure to do the trick and is so much faster and easier!
Baseboards:
Speaking of walls, what is at the bottom of the walls that usually misses out on receiving the proper amount of attention? Your baseboards, of course! Take a look at your baseboards. You may need to just take a Swiffer along the top of them, but if your baseboards have marks then you’ll have to get down and wipe them—there’s really no great way to clean them without getting down on your hands and knees. Unfortunately.
Cabinets:
Your kitchen cabinets get dirty, even if they don’t look dirty. Using a lightly wet cloth with just a tiny amount of cleanser on it, wipe all of your cabinets down. Pay special attention to the area around the handles, in front of your sink, by your coffee maker (if you have one), and above your stove and microwave.
Sink:
Speaking of sink, your drain probably needs a good deodorizing! You can buy different options from the store or you can pour about a quarter cup of baking soda down the drain, followed by a half cup of vinegar. Let it sit for a few minutes and then run hot water for a couple minutes to rinse.
Pro Tip: To make your drain smell good, add a little bit of lemon or lime rind to your garbage disposal and then run your disposal.
Coffee Maker:
Most water, even city water, has minerals that can and will build up in your coffee maker over time. Most brands have their own brand of descaler that can be run through your coffee maker to remove this build up. If you want another at-home solution, use a 50/50 water and vinegar solution as your descaler (check your coffee maker manual to make sure this is an approved option—in most cases it is). If your coffee maker has a clean function, run it on a clean cycle; if not, do a regular brew cycle, followed in both cases by two brew cycles of just water. This will prolong the life of your coffee maker!
Washing Machine:
Washing machines need cleaning too! Again, most manufacturers and other companies have specialty cleansers you can buy, or you can revert to our old standby—vinegar and baking soda. I like to spray down the inside of my machine with a 50/50 vinegar and water mix, let it sit for 5-10 minutes, and then come back and wipe down the inside and around the plastic seal. Next, add vinegar (2 cups to a front loading washer, 4 cups for a drum washer) and run a cycle on the hottest and highest setting, followed by running an additional empty load cycle with ½ cup of baking soda, again on the highest and hottest setting, followed by a rinse cycle of just pure water. Check with the manufacturer or your washing machines manual to make sure this is an approved option—in just about every case it is.
Upholstery
If you have pets or little kids, your upholstery needs cleaned! You’ll be shocked at how much additional hair and debris you will extract from your carpets! Vacuum first, then clean with a home-grade carpet cleaner. This applies also to chairs and couches. If your couch has removable cushion covers, these can be washed in the machine but be sure to check to see if they can be dried in a machine or if they need to be air dried. Regardless, when they are about 80/90% dry, put them back on your cushion. This is not something to do when you have guests coming over in the evening!
Air Vents
Air vents collect dust on the outside and the inside. Clean the outside with a Swiffer or a soft brush vacuum attachment. If there is a gray residue left, wipe with a damp cloth. If you have vents that sit in the floor, it is worth taking the cover off and vacuuming the inside and the outside of the vent—whatever is down there is filtering into your air. I realized it was time to clean the floor vent in my dining room after the third person commented on the dozen or so hair bands that my cat had dropped down it!
Air Filters:
Air filters get dirty and when they do they don’t work well, they could even allow dirt to be filtering into your air! Most manufacturers recommend changing your air filters every 90 days, so if it’s been 6 months or a year you are most definitely due!
I hope this helps to shed some light on some often overlooked cleaning tasks! My goal isn’t to overwhelm or make you feel shame if you have never cleaned any of these; rather, I am hoping to shed some light on ways you can get your home looking and in the case with a lot of these, also smelling better, so that when you come home you can truly relax in your beautiful and clean home.
A vignette is just a grouping or gathering of items, arranged together in a manner that is pleasing to the eye.
Here are a few things to keep in mind when creating a vignette:
· Add an odd number of items to your vignette
· Use objects of varying heights
· Use objects of varying texture
· Try using something quirky or unexpected in your vignette
· Add a natural element when possible
A Few Ingredients
Here are a few items (I think of them as the key ingredients) that I like to keep on hand for spring. Just as flour, sugar, and baking soda make a good base for some baked goods, so too these items will help you to pull together a vignette.
In a vignette, you want to have a few items that you are showcasing. What really upgrades your vignette are the little connecting pieces that don’t steal the show but support the showcase pieces. For a spring vignette, I like to include:
· Green moss balls
· Faux moss
· Twine balls
· Pinecones
· Faux eggs
· Something seasonal like dried flowers, bird or bunny figurines
Things to Keep in Mind
· Remember you want to keep an odd number of items in your vignette but some items, grouped together, will read as one item. Say for instance that you have two faux eggs with a pinecone grouped together—that will read as one item not 3.
· Don’t overcrowd your vignette. If you are putting items together and feel like there is a lot going on—there just might be! Try taking a few items away and see what you think.
· Set it and then walk away. It is easy to start over-analyzing everything you are doing so try setting the vignette and then walking away for a bit before coming back. If you do this, you will most likely easily see what needs to be changed—or you may decide that it is perfect the way it is!
Especially for Spring
I love adding faux moss and moss balls, Easter eggs and twine balls to my vignette but what about the bigger pieces? For spring, I love adding bird figurines, little bunny figurines, a plant, and possibly even an Easter sign or vintage floral postcard.
Easter Vignette Ideas
Here are a few things I have added to my vignettes this spring.
This vignette was done in a dough bowl and I added:
· Moss balls
· Faux Easter eggs
· Pinecones
· A twine ball
Birdcage Vignette:
· A wooden bird figurine perched on a candlestick
· Two antique bobbins
· A round little vase for some dried flowers
· A Faux Egg
· Moss in the bottom
Vignette in a box:
· Moss
· Two bird figurines
· Vintage bottle vase
· A sprig of dried flowers
I hope these ideas help to inspire you to have fun and get creative with your decor this spring/Easter season. As always—happy decorating!
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We have made it to March—my official least favorite month of the year. March is the month when we get our first few nice days and I decide I’m ready for spring and then it decides to snow again. Given this tug of war that the weather plays on us, it quickly begins to feel like spring lingers on forever, but never really arrives. However, while I may have to wait on spring outside, it can be spring inside my home. I have decided to start decorating for spring!
Spring is such a fun time of year to do a decorating refresh! After the Christmas decor has been put away, things can seem a little bare. Sometimes it is nice to keep out some of the sparkly branches, and other times it’s refreshing to just rest in the minimalism of having very limited decor. Usually though, by early spring I am itching to add a little bit of color and a few other spring touches to my home!
As always, I like to start with doing a little audit of my home. I ask myself these questions before I reward myself with the fun part of decorating:
· Has my home gotten cluttered? What needs to be purged?
· Is there something broken that I’ve been putting off fixing or touching up?
· What isn’t working well? Do I need to rearrange or rethink anything?
· Is there anything I’ve been meaning to buy that will make daily life easier that I just need to sit down and order?
After I have gone through those questions I get to the fun part—the actual decorating!
Flowers
I love flowers in my decor. I tend to stick to decorating with dried flowers as they last practically forever, generally look better than faux, and are lower maintenance than real. Spring is a great time to reintroduce some flowers and greenery to your decor. I like to keep the colors of my flowers muted for spring because: 1) that’s more my style, and 2) I like to save bright pops of color for summer.
Greenery
Speaking of flowers, spring also a great time to add in greenery. Faux moss or moss balls add natural touches of the season; if your home is still feeling a little sterile maybe think about welcoming an additional house plant or two into your home. Plants are natural air fresheners and even a plant killer like me has managed to keep air plants, spider plants, and several different types of ivy alive!
Color
Spring is a time of year when we see a lot of pastel colors… I’m not the biggest fan of pastels though. If you are not a pastel person or don’t have a color pallet in your home that works well with pastels consider adding a few of these colors to your decor for spring if you are craving color after winter’s barrenness:
· Salmon Pink
· Deep Turquoise
· Light Aqua
· Sea Green
· Sage
· Green Grass Green (also known as John Deere Green..)
· A Bright Daffodil Yellow
· Bright Tulip Red
· Spring Crocus Purple
Cute But Not Too Cute…
Spring is also when we see a lot of bunnies, birds, chicks, and other such little cuties appearing in decor. The key to adding these to your decor is to not get too cute with them. Usually a safe way to do this is to try to find vintage versions of these (or at least ones that look vintage), or versions of these done in an unusual medium such as wood or glass and then adding them to your decor. Also, instead of pairing a chick with an egg try mixing it up; don’t add more than one little cute figurine to your decor or vignette at a time. Instead, pair a cute bunny with a few vintage items. This will add an unexpected touch to your decor, lending just a touch of visual tension and will keep things interesting!
Keeping Your Decor From Getting To Summery
Besides keeping your colors more muted and toned down, I like to pair my spring decor with vintage items. I love adding soft white flowers to a dark amber bottle as a vase. I will always love white vases and such but during spring I love playing up the vintage with the lighter spring colors as I think this juxtaposing adds an earthy depth to your decor that really makes it pop!
Holes
Do you have any holes in your decor? Is there something you’ve been telling yourself for months or maybe even years (like last spring and the one before that) that you’ve been wanting for your decor? While I am not a big proponent of buying new decor every season (See my post on how I repurpose my decor for my centerpiece here: Centerpieces Throughout the Year), I am a proponent of thoughtfully adding a few new touches when needed—-especially if it is something that you keep wanting season after season.
I hope this helps to inspire you to refresh your home and to get excited about the season we are about to enter! Be sure to check back next week when I’ll be giving some ideas for different spring and Easter vignette ideas. Be sure you’ve joined my email list (you can do this by inserting your email address in the box at the bottom of your screen) so you don’t miss it!
I’d like to start off by saying, I am not here to point fingers! We all have had our less-than-stellar decorating moments. Some decor faux pas you may be aware of, other you may not. There may be a few sections in your house that you have a feeling that something isn’t quite right but you just keep hoping that if you ignore it may fix itself…
Feeling Off
Do you have a spot in your home that just doesn’t feel quite right? You just don’t quite like it. You think you need to repaint, or reupholster an item, or buy something new, but even when you do these things you still don’t like it, then something is definitely off. Here are a few of the top mistakes I’ve observed that can make a room feel off.
A Too Small Area Rug
An area rug should comfortably gather all your furniture together. What does that mean? It means at least the front two legs of all your furniture should rest on the rug—hopefully by at least six inches! Please do not leave a slight gap around the edge of your rug and the front of your furniture. If you think your rug is too small it will be worth the pain to pack it up, return it, and get a larger one. Trust me on this one—your rug is not going to grow! If your rug was very expensive or perhaps a one-of-a-kind vintage rug and is too small, try layering it over a larger rug. This will add depth to your home will allow you to keep your favorite rug.
Furniture placement
Speaking of furniture—don’t push it all back against the wall! This is something common that we do especially if your house isn’t huge. Pushing all your furniture back against the wall can backfire, making your room feel smaller rather than larger. If you can, pull at least a few pieces out from the wall by six inches or a foot. Try it!
Too Much Stuff
Are you a collector? Do you love an eclectic vibe? Collections are great but display them with care. If you don’t have a large collection that can be displayed together to really make a visual impact then display only portions of that collection at a time.
Likewise you may prefer a fuller room rather than a minimalist feel. Again that’s fine. Just make sure that you are:
· Displaying things that have meaning to you and aren’t just taking up space, and
· That you leave a clear walkway to create flow in the room.
White Space
Speaking of too much stuff, remember to leave some white space where your eye can rest. Even if you are a maximalist, there should be some space in each room where your eye can rest without being bombarded with stimulation. As I mentioned above, make sure there is a defined walk way to each area of the room. You want to be able to vacuum or have someone with a cane to be able to easily navigate your space, without having to move things first!
Too Many Cords
Electronic cords are part of modern day life but make sure they aren’t the focus of it! You want to hide as many cords as possible out of the way and out of sight. Try taping cords down the back of a console stand to keep them hidden. If possible, plug end-table lamps into an outlet behind or even under your couch. If you have a bunch of cords laying on the floor beneath your TV stand, try applying a few Command hooks to the back of your TV stand and loop the cords over the hook so the cords are hidden behind the TV stand and not on the floor underneath it.
Keeping Something You Hate
At some point we have probably all been given an item that we do not love; in fact we may hate it. If you never liked a piece don’t try to style around it. You could try painting or reupholstering it but if that doesn’t work then it is time to let it go. It’s okay if it was your great grandma’s—if you hate it, it is better to pass it along to someone who will love and cherish it as much as your great grandma did.
Trends
Maybe you have all the new trendy item displayed in your home; maybe you have a bunch of items that used to be trendy in your home—a long time ago! Either way, having too many trendy pieces in your home can make your home start to feel cheap. Add a few touches and ask yourself if you like the item because you like it, or if it’s because you liked it back when you bought it many years ago.
Curtains
Curtains are not to just cover your window. They are to be a statement! Hang the curtains within 4-6 inches of the top of your ceilings if you live in a standard 8-10 foot ceiling home. If you live in a house with very tall ceilings then I probably wouldn’t go more than 8 inches to possibly 10 inches above the window itself. See how low you can go; you can let them puddle (crease) on the floor with several inches on the floor for a romantic look; you can let them kiss (just grazing the floor) for a modern luxe look, or you can have them just hover about a centimeter above the floor which may be the best option if you have little kids, or rambunctious pets!
Add Character
Hotel rooms done by a designer are nice, but they are just that—a place where you swing by and stay for a day or two before departing. Your home should not feel like that. You want to add character to your home. Add a few pieces of art that you simply adore. Add a few pictures of your family. (Just don’t go overboard with too many everywhere!) Display the weird knickknack that no one other than you knows what it is—this is your home and if you love it, it should be displayed.
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I love history, I love vintage items, and I love using vintage items and antiques in my decor. But, I also think this is something everyone should do. Adding vintage items is one of the easiest ways to make your home timeless. Few and far between are the homes that can’t benefit from a few touches from the past. You may not want to add so many that your home starts to feel like an antique shop, but sprinkling in a few vintage pieces here and there will give your house a collected feel and depth that you simply can’t buy at the nearest chain store.
By adding vintage to your décor, you give your home a timelessness and collected feel that cannot be gotten any other way. Look at homes in magazines—I’ll bet just about all of them contain one element that you could not just go to the nearest chain store to purchase. That is the other thing about adding vintage items to your decor—it makes your home unique. It is very unlikely that anyone else will have the exact same vintage piece as you do and, even rarer, that they would use it the same way as you do. Is it expensive? I suppose if you are buying original antique chairs from the 18th century then yes, they will come at a price; however, so many vintage items can be found for a song at thrift stores, flea markets, and yard sales. You most likely already have a few things handed down from a relative! Have I sold you yet on using vintage in your decor? I hope so! If you would like to start incorporating vintage into your decor here are a few ideas of where to begin.
Books
Vintage books are one of the easiest and cheapest ways to start incorporating vintage elements into your decor and to make your home feel timeless. You can find them at library book sales, yard sales, online, Goodwill, and just about every thrift shop. Use a couple of books as a riser for a candle. (You may want to cushion the bottom of the candle with a coaster before sitting directly on your books—we are not fans of book burnings here!) You can tie a few books together with a piece of burlap cloth and slide a faux or dried flower in the ties and use it as part of a vignette. Vintage books can also look great next to a candle on your mantle.
Vintage Candle Sticks
These too can be found almost anywhere and quite cheaply. Use them in your centerpiece, to frame a large photo or sign, or in any vignette you assemble to give dimension. Also, think of how you can use them in unique ways—candlesticks don’t have to just hold candles! In the fall they can hold a baby pumpkin, or a small bird figurine, and I have even used candlesticks to hold my air plants! (Before I killed them..)
Vintage Clocks
Does anything add feeling and depth to a house like an old clock? How much time has passed through its hands.… I would even go as far as to say it doesn’t have to work! A truly beautiful clock is a work of art and can thus be hung on a wall as such.
Old Photos
An old photo adds so much sophistication—bonus points if it’s a photo of your family and you know who the people are! You can look around and find a gorgeous vintage frame, or update the photo with a modern frame—either way will create a great talking point in your home’s décor and give your home a timeless feel!
Wall Decor
While we are talking about things to put on walls, let’s not forget old paintings and other art. Purchasing old art that may have been reproduced quite a bit during its day and has now faded from popularity can be an inexpensive way to bring taste and style to your home. Instead of opting for a sign from a big box store, do a little searching and see if you can find something older that speaks to you. Art doesn’t have to be limited to paintings and drawings—a beautiful piece of needlepoint, an old mirror—these count too!
Furniture
Antique and vintage furniture is oftentimes made so much more solidly than today’s modern furniture! Sometimes you may need to paint or refinish the piece to bring it into style, other times the patina may have aged it nicely. My large upright piano has had a hard life in its 100+ year lifespan and is no longer in pristine condition. I love how it looks worn and well loved! And as they say, if it’s been around for a 100 years or more and is still going strong, you probably won’t be able to hurt it either—at least not easily!
Kitchenware
Ironstone pitchers, wooden dough bowls, and vintage serving trays are goldmines! You can use antique pitchers and crockery to hold unsightly paraphernalia: rubber bands, twist ties, etc. A crystal dish to hold sugar will add elegance to your coffee or tea station. Also don’t overlook the antique china—you don’t need a full set! You can mix and match different pieces for an even more unique and collected look.
Antique Tins and Baskets
You can use these to store items ranging from office supplies to cotton balls in your bathroom. You can also place a plastic cup within the tin and use it as a planter. The same goes for old baskets.
Miscellaneous
Antique irons, baskets, vintage rug beaters and basically anything under the sun can add an old soul to your decor. If you see something you love, try reimagining it outside of its intended use. Maybe a vintage hat can be turned into a front door hanging. Keep your eye open for little bits and bobbles as well; an antique knob off of an old dresser can replace a modern hardware on a drawer, giving it more of a collected feel. Can you add flowers and use the rug beater as a wall hanging? Get creative! And as always—happy decorating!
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