CHARM
Have you ever walked into someone’s home and thought, "wow, this home is so cool!” Or “I love the vibe in this house" and maybe not even know why? It’s like you feel it, but you can’t put your finger on it.
Fun fact: I helped people buy and sell homes for over a decade, so I've seen a lot of homes. And I absolutely loved it. Why? Well, it took me years to figure it out, but like most things, it goes back to childhood. To say my parents moved us often when I was a kid is an understatement. Sometimes from one country to another!
Having to start over in a new town, new school, new people, new language over and over and over, does something to a kid. Many things came out of that, but I had this longing to help people find a place to live and call home, especially if they had little ones. It was very gratifying to know they would have a great home to establish roots.
Something that I started to notice as a pattern in people's homes is what I came to call "Charm". This is so key! There are homes that have it and some that don't.
Whether you like it or not, your home is a reflection of yourself and your life. There is no hiding it.
It doesn't matter if you put the most expensive granite-top in the planet or a five-dollar flea market find in the kitchen. What matters is if it is done right. Is there a sense of cohesiveness and a positive flow in the house? Is there a sense of coziness or a clutter mess?
The homes that reached that level of charm were those that owners put love into. They picked out items that made them happy that all worked well together. There were no half-finished projects all over the place, there was a clear pathway, no clutter, the furniture was arranged properly, and even the outside was cute. The thing that I think gave many people a hard time, was being able to create cohesive color schemes throughout their house, and the walls! So many people neglect their walls, which is really bad because they are such a huge focal point. You know when you walk into a house and you just don’t know why, but the house feels cold and bare. Even though, it might have beautiful expensive furniture, if the walls are bare, it feels undone. If you want to work on something in your home that will make a dramatic impact and improve it immediately, please focus on your walls! Good paint colors, wallpaper and nice artwork are your friends.
Now, this is the one question I want to ask you; do you feel happy walking into your home? This can be a loaded question for some. Maybe it feels outdated and tired. Or cold and unwelcoming. My goal with this newsletter is to give simple tips to make your home feel awesome and like a place of rest when you walk in. I hope to see you back to explore the different aspects that make a “Happy Home”.