31 Days to a More Fabulous You: Redecorate With Items You Already Have (Day 8)

*31 Days to a More Fabulous You is a series in January covering ways to help make you a healthier, more joy-filled, happier, relaxed, fun version of YOU. Read what you can expect from the series on Day 1.

In June of 2013, we moved into a brand new house. I was so excited and instantly got busy with decorating the place. We had some money budgeted for new furnishings and home accents and since I was planning to go a completely different direction style wise than ever before, I had a lot of work to do.

As I mentioned, we bought a new black leather sectional. (And no, I still don’t regret the decision. I LOVE this couch.) I also purchased new lamps. and pillows, a chair, dining room table, desk for the living room and other home accents. I was on a roll…until the money ran out. That was a year and a half ago and I haven’t done much decorating. Which has left me discourage and completely discontented. (Thank you Pinterest.)

Since I’m working on contentment for 2015, I decided it’s time to put on my Big Girl Pants and turn this place into a home I really love. A home with character, A home that reflects my personality. But here’s the catch – I still don’t have extra funds to go out and buy a ton of items. So, what’s a girl to do? Get creative and start decorating with items I already have…or can make, find, beg for super cheap. (Not steal. I have to draw the line somewhere.)

Really what lit this fire inside of me was reading the book The Nesting Place. I’m about to read it again because I just love it. She encourages us to decorate how you like. To surround yourself with things that make you happy and to realize…it does not in any way shape or form, have to be PERFECT. Through her practical tips and advice, she woke me up to the realization that this is my home and it should be a place I absolutely love. But I can decorate it imperfectly.

Here’s a quote I love from the description of the book:

There is beauty in the lived-in and loved-on and just-about-used-up, Myquillyn says, and welcoming that imperfection wholeheartedly just might be the most freeing thing you’ll ever do.

It IS freeing. So here’s what I’m doing/did so far:

1. I went through every single room of my home (even the closets) and wrote down a few things:

• What is this space’s main purpose
• What’s not working/bothering me in this space
• What is working in this space
• What items do I need to get rid of
• What items do I need to purchase (my ‘wish list’ so to speak) to make it more functional
• What items do I already have that could work in this space

Doing this helped me tremendously. I now have a list I can work from as I turn our home into somewhere that’s relaxing, fun, creative and clutter free.

2. Pin (I know, I know…ugh you Pinterest!) creative DIY ideas that are super cheap and fun.

This might seem to be counter productive, since it’s Pinterest that can make one feel like their home is the ugliest one on the block, but it’s also chock full of some incredibly smart, cheap, easy and creative DIY decorating ideas. 

3. Use my kids’ artwork.

Your kids’ artwork is THE best art you could bring into your home and decorate with. They love it because it makes them feel special. Your guests love it because it makes them say “Awwwwwwww” and you love it because you get to look at it and also say “Awwwww”. You can do this in a way where it looks really nice. All you need is a frame and a mat. Place their drawing or painting in there and voila!, instant art work.

I had a blank wall in one downstairs half bath that was driving me crazy, so instead of spending our grocery money (just kidding honey…I never do that) on art, I asked my daughter to paint something on canvas. She already had the canvas and paints. She loves to paint and I couldn’t be more proud to display her art. Here it is.

4. Make a note of extra items I have or items that could be used in another room of the house.

I have this gorgeous yellow urn that I keep moving around. (Don’t worry, there’s not a family pet in there or anything.) First it was on the floor in the living room, but considering our living room can turn into a basketball court or soccer field within a matter of minutes, it wasn’t practical. Yes, it was hit. No, it didn’t get broken. Then I moved it to the landing on our stairs. No one sees it and it was sitting there like it was in time out. Currently, it’s sitting on the bar area between our kitchen and living room. Yes, it will probably get moved again.

My point with this yellow urn story? Keep trying and moving things around until you find a spot that seems to be made for it. And then move it again later…

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My goal is to work on one room at a time and “finish” decorating by this summer. That’ll be our 2 year mark. Of course, I’ll never be finished decorating, because I know myself too well. But I want to have a space by this summer that feels finished and a home that is uniquely…US.

Do you feel the same about your home? Maybe you’re surrounded by unfinished projects and a home that doesn’t reflect you? Or maybe you were here at one point and you decided one day to just get busy and  now you live in a space you’re proud of. Let me know!

Stay tuned for Day 9….