He looks at me like that all day long...

I haven't named him yet, but I know he makes me smile. 

This funny little Scotty dog was a find I came across this past weekend on a family antiquing trip. For just $5 I scooped him up, knowing that he would add a touch of whimsy to my new office--a pretty important thing. :)

This week I want to remind you how important it is to have things in your home that make you feel good. The things you choose to surround yourself with should make you smile from your head to your toes.  

p.s. what do you think we should name him?? 

A couple of friends have brought this up recently...

In the past month, a couple of friends and clients have mentioned an article to me that I wrote back in 2012...and to be honest, it has been on my mind, too.  

We get the message all too often that we are consumers, and our homes certainly reflect that we readily live into that identity--with our closets and pantries and basements FULL of stuff we have bought and now have to manage. 

I hope this week's article--the one from 2012-- helps to bring you more peace and elbow room!

So, do you belong to Costco? Do you frequent Sam's Club? Do you delight in having a year's supply of toilet paper and canned beans at arm's length at all times?

Shopping at these stores can be fun~ we feel we are saving money AND preparing for Armageddon all at the same time. How efficient! But because I spend a lot of time helping people manage the items in their homes, I would like to invite you to think about buying in bulk in a different way...

At this time there are two things of which I would like to remind you:

First, despite what the media may tell you, you are NOT a "consumer," but a human being. Hopefully you know you are so much more than your ability to consume and accumulate...

Second, as you shop for your needs week in & week out, keep in mind your goal is not to run a storage facility, but to create a home.

If you are wooed by the thought of saving some coin, and made giddy by the thought of all that abundance right on hand at home, let's think about the real costs involved in investing in palettes of paper towels and tons of toothpaste:

• Carrying inventory (which is what you are doing, just like a store or factory) requires time...time to make sure it is stored properly, that it is used in a timely way, and that it gets used at all...it is easy to forget what is on those shelves way down there in the dark basement.
• Carrying inventory requires space-- space that could be used for other productive things, or enjoyed with other activities. How many of us feel our houses need more space? Create some elbow room by not having so much of it occupied by things you aren't currently using.
• Carrying inventory has a built-in percentage of waste--we are busy people with lots of things on our minds. There will always be a portion of things that we are storing that we simply forget about. We will buy duplicates. The product will get dusty, spoil, pass its expiration date or just become undesirable as it waits on the shelf. It will end up in the trash unused.
• Carrying inventory ties up cash in things that aren't currently being used, which maybe can make sense if we are investing in something like real estate or gold, but we are talking about things like shampoo and soda. Enjoy your money now, or put it in the bank so that it is there for a rainy day. Don't tie it up in things that are readily available at the corner store that you won't need for months, or maybe never at all.

Allow the stores to provide a wonderful service to you: let them store your stuff until you need it! You are right to think that your house is much like a factory or machine that needs supplies to run efficiently. However, from Benjamin Franklin, to Henry Ford, to current day Toyota manufacturing  processes, it has been proven that efficiency does not include managing inventory, but rather what is called "just in time" or "lean" practices. We can employ these same ideas, and have less waste and more time to do the things we really enjoy.

The product our little cottage factories (our homes) should produce in abundance is comfort and peace, providing an environment that supports how we want to live. Don't manage inventory, enjoy living!

So, Your Room Feels A Little BLAH. What Now??

So, maybe the way your house feels to you right now isn't so great. You aren't sure why…since you have nice furniture, the paint is in good shape, & things are pretty tidy. But nonetheless, it just feels BLAH--like a big ol' yawnfest. 

What can you do?

This is the perfect scenario to do what I call a "redesign"--the reworking of a room using most of what is already there, but creating an entirely new feeling for the space. 

You really can't have more fun than this! :)

The above picture is from my clients' house in Louisville, KY. I had originally worked with them when they lived here in Ridley Park, but last summer they relocated for work and asked if I would visit for a "Redesign Weekend" of sorts! It was amazing. 

The family room was one of the rooms we focused on during our time together.  The furniture was spread out across the room, the floor was bare, and there were lots of small pieces of furniture that were confusing things a bit...

The first step in a redesign is to get the big pieces of furniture in the right place. After that step, smaller items such as side tables and lamps can be added, as well as decorative items. 

Pulling the furniture closer together was a important step in making the room feel more welcoming and less like a waiting room. Adding a rug and throw pillows that pull together the colors in the room, and then reworking my client's own accessories made this den feel like a totally new space. 

Take a look at what a difference these small changes can make :

The only new purchases for this room were the rug, throw pillows, and lamps. That was it!

So, if a room in your house feels a bit lackluster to you, take heart! A cozy, inviting space that you will love to spend time in is only a few simple changes away!

Do you remember THAT place from your childhood?

I remember the first time I was in their house.  The furnishings so pulled-together and the colors soothing-- I especially remember the swaying, swinging, clackety-clacking of the the beads that hung in the doorway between the entry and the living room (this was the 70's, you know). My 4 year old self could have stood there for hours just running my hand back and forth through them, feeling their smoothness and watching their percussive, fluid dance. 

I was mesmerized. It seemed like a whole new world, but yet it was right next door.

Our neighbor's brick rancher was so different from the straight-forward, use-what-you-have-on-hand, transplanted mid-western simplicity that my parents had created in our split-level, one house down on the left. 

I'm sure you have a place in your past like this one, too--although yours is probably a bit different.  The memory may be a bit fuzzy around the edges, but I am sure you remember how it felt to be standing in that space--a room or house that spoke to you, took over your senses, and made you realize that not everybody's house looked just like yours. 

When we are little, we are joyfully prone to awe and wonderment. With our life experiences being limited, we are more open to being swept away or taken in by a new sensory experience. Environments can make a lasting impression on us and subconsciously still affect how we live in our homes today. I learned all about this on a very personal level a few years ago. 

We are not always aware of it as adults, but environments are still speaking to us, and making us feel certain ways. The most meaningful spaces help us to know more about the people who live in them, and also help the people they shelter each day to express who they are and what they are working towards in their lives.

That space from our childhood was a memorable one, wasn't it?  It made us feel things, it made us see things differently. What about the rooms we live in today? I hope that they, too, fill you with good feelings, help others to know you better, and nurture you--making your dreams feel more possible. 

If so, who knows! Maybe some little person will be filled with awe and wonder the first time they come through YOUR front door, and as a result see the world as a much bigger and more fascinating place. :)

It's A Sure Thing (Or A Shoe Thing, Maybe...)

School has started! Fall is upon us! And it is a sure thing that our closets can use a little TLC at this time of year. 

Bet there are some things tucked away in there that you have completely forgotten about. It is always fun to see what surprises are lurking amid our clothes and shoes--this client's closet surely didn't disappoint. Wait 'til you see what I found on the bottom shelf... :)

Hope this video I filmed a while back will help get you inspired to roll your sleeves up, dive in, and start decluttering!