Room to dance!

Room To Dance!

In the words of the great Lee Ann Womack

“ I hope you dance!”

Dancing alone in the privacy of one’s living room, kitchen, wherever, is one of life’s great joys, but only if you have space! Hand’s up how many of us have bruises, scrapes, stubbed toes thanks to our cluttered homes? I will put my hand up to being a one time pack rat, a gatherer of things that might be useful one day, gifts that, although not to my taste, I had to have on display, seasonal decor that just gathered dust!

            That all changed for me the last time we moved houses. After watching several of those home shows, you know, the ones where a professional comes into a sellers home and basically takes everything out in order to sell it, I decided to take the bull by the horns and stage my own home. Trust me, you don’t realize how much “stuff” you have until you start to seriously clean out ! I became a woman possessed!

            I used the “ if it’s not valuable , a family heirloom,or I haven’t used it in 2 years, it’s outa here!” mantra, and suddenly realized this was going to be a huge task!

            Long story short – two garages of charity donations, a medium sized dumpster, and more than a few items left at the end of the driveway “ free please take” I finally had a house , barn and yard that was clutter free and looking fabulous! Our realtor was impressed, and my hard work paid off, as we got our asking price!

            Bonus – packing to move was so much easier!!

Strangely, even though I thought I had culled all useless objects, I still had a massive pile of unwanted/un-needed items once we unpacked at the new place! Go figure!

Now I have a uncluttered, dance-able home, one which feels calm, peaceful and spacious!  Although most of us aren’t up to the level of TV’s” Hoarders”,  digging in and un-cluttering can be a rewarding and mentally healthy activity! Go ahead, give it a go! Having issues parting with your “crap”? Ask a friend to cast an unemotional eye over your stuff…or call me!!

I hope you never lose your sense of wonder

You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger

May you never take one single breath for granted

God forbid love ever leave you empty handed

I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean

Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens

Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance

I hope you dance

I hope you dance

Lee Ann Womack / Mark D. Sanders and Tia Sillers

The British are coming...again!

The British are coming…again!!

Yup, the new British Invasion is under way, and this time it’s not 4 dudes from Liverpool with odd haircuts! This time , the Brits are back in our living rooms, bedrooms and anywhere you can stick a Union Jack ( that’s the national flag in case you were wondering)

I first started to notice this phenomenon in my local Home Goods – two linen covered parson’s chairs sporting the old red white and blue

Then it was a rug on a website store

www.rugs.com

Then pictures

Then Vivian Westwood chimed in

www.rugsusa.com

Then a lamp came to my attention

And this ottoman

Then these small foot “stools”

And trunks

Of course there would be pillows

And bulldogs, so many bulldogs

And of course, Mr David Beckham…this has nothing to do with interior design, but what the heck!!

Next post…Just what does all that French script actually say on this chair?….

The smallest room.....

The powder room, loo, restroom, throne room, smallest room in the house…whatever you call it, that little room is often the most overlooked when it comes to interior design! Many see it as a purely functional space, one that has no need for that special touch! Oh contraire, I say! The half bath is one of the most fun places to “ do over”. Think about it…it’s small, has no other function, is used by one person at a time (usually!!) for short periods of time (hopefully!) and is separetd from the rest of the house by a door (well, it should be!). Let your imagination run wild – you can have so much fun with this room! Hang an ornate crystal chandelier, paint the walls a rich, dark hue, hit the ultra modern switch and create something out of star trek…like animal prints? Hit the wallpaper store for a funky zebra print! Go for it! If you hate it, well, it’s not a giant job to re-do!!

Here are some pics of some fun and fabulous lavatories….

Spring is Sprung!

Spring is sprung! Well, it’s started to!

After the winter that wasn’t, Mother nature has decided to start spring a little earlier this year, and not a week too soon!

            Snowdrops are in bloom, daffodil, hyacinth and tulip foliage is bursting through the unfrozen soil, and bluebirds have been spotted! And the spring catalogues have arrived, chock full of fresh, new bed linens in leafy greens and sky blue, breezy cotton curtains  and all the springtime accessories you can swing a golf club at! What’s a girl to do faced with all these bright new things arriving in her mailbox daily?

            Well, although the temptation is to repaint the walls, buy new rugs, bedding, furniture and fill the house with daffodils, I will stick to switching my faux fur toss pillows and throw ( thank you for a cozy winter, Restoration Hardware!) and bring out the cool linen covers and sage green throws. The winter table centerpiece has morphed into a springtime feast of white flowers and green moss with a few decorative eggs thrown in as homage to the season, and yes, daffodils are adorning the coffee table!

            It doesn’t take a lot to freshen up a room, or the whole house, and it sure does give you a feeling of immense satisfaction, so go on, it’s time for a change!

Inspiration...