As many of you may or may not know I enrolled in some interior design courses recently. I regret that I did not pursue this when I was in college, I have always been a creative person who visually comprehended things. Finally in my mid-30s I want to learn and apply my learnings in interior design and apply to my own home and help others possibly.
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Some of the key things to start off my learnings has really made me think twice of my placement of furniture and items in a room from the start. Here is what I have learned so much:
Function
I have literally looked at every big piece of furniture and lighting in every room of my home now when it comes to function. Function is everything, I now look at the following:
Where are the entrances to the room - this helps to understand where to place furniture and much more
Where are the outlets and how many are there - this tells me what light fixtures we can have or how many we need.
What does the flooring look like - Is it practical basically? Does it work for your lifestyle?
What kind of furniture looks good and is functional in the space - if you like to read then you will probably want seating that is comfortable, by a light fixture/outlet and looks good.
Style/Mood
This is the area that people like to spend the most time in! The decorating and the styling part. When it comes to this area this is what I think about or look for:
All the pieces reflect a minimalist feel and a clean look. This is a great example of style/mood
What style home do you like?
What basic features in a space do you love?
What elements of furniture speaks to you?
This part will define the type of space you are looking for whether it is a traditional feel, cozy feel, minimal furniture feel, brightness, small furniture etc.
Harmony
I feel like since I have been in school this part has gained a lot of my attention. A good example that I can think of is buying a one of a kind pair of shoes and you have no outfits to go with it. No matter what you put with those shoes there is no harmony in your outfit. Ensure your interiors and space have some kind of harmony (color, style furniture, sameness). Some of the easiest ways to harmonize in interior design is the following:
Love how the pink and black feel just harmonize with this space.
Color
Texture
Shape
Form
I am excited to continue my studies and become an effective interior designer. Hope I can continue to share my journey with you all! Anything you want to see more of?
So how to decorate using unused kitchenware in your kitchen? It's so hard to just stare at unused glassware and coffee mugs in your kitchen pantry. When we moved in last year into our first home I made a promise to myself that I will have function for everything in this house (I know massive commitment).
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I had a blank wall next to one of my pantries in my kitchen and I needed to fill it with something appealing to the eye. In order to make it still functional I decided to display old glassware and underutilized coffee mugs in a eclectic style.
Here is what I used to make this happen:
Archway decal - I discovered a really simple and stylish decal sticker in the shape of an arch. It came in a light beige color so it was perfect for my white wall. It was 36" inches wide and it gave you the illusion that there was a actual archway within the space.
Purchased a set of wooden floating shelves - I made sure the shelves were 36" inches wide so they were the same length as the decal to bring the illusion of the arch to life.
Use unused glassware - I have lots of old glassware that I do not use anymore so this is a great way to utilize them! I made sure to have different heights in glass to show dimension and excitement. Also I purchased some inexpensive glass bottle to add a bit more.
Coffee mugs & bowls - On the second shelf I styled the many bowls & mugs I had in my kitchen. There is no big secret on how I positioned them, just have fun and make sure to have them set up in all different directions. That is the key to a somewhat unkept display.
Accent table - To finish my set up and to fill in the bottom portion of the arch I bought a really cool accent table from Target to finish the set up. I continued to display a mug, candles and a faux plant to create more texture.
I am beyond happy with the result and it just finishes the kitchen area for us. We are loving it! Do you have any key tips on how to fill up a blank wall? Share in the comments.
Shop some of the items from my set up below! Follow me on Liketoknow.it for more of my fav looks & items.
I wanted to sit back and reflect on the last 9 months and how we went from renting an extremely small townhouse to living in a 2400 square foot home with a screened in pool.
Our updated entrance with a ramp for my dad to go in and out easily. Family first!
As we all know 2020 was a tough year for many people and that included us. At the time in April 2020 my husband and I both worked for Macys in different roles. By April 2020 we were both furloughed without knowing what our next step would be.
Thankfully my husband was called back in 2 weeks so at least we had one income coming in. I went on unemployment, focused on my parents, dove into my social media, started my LLC and my blog.
In July 2020 I was called back to work and kept my salary which was a massive blessing. After that we realized that with the Cares Act and the low interest rates we could afford to buy a home. It was extremely stressful. Here's what we dealt with:
Competitive Market - As the rest of the country, South Florida's real estate was hot in 2020 and still in 2021. Every house we looked at had a line backed out the door to view the home. It was extremely intense and disappointing process. Every time we went to look at a place it had a line of people going in to view it. So competitive! One time as we were looking at a space, an offer was put in and accepted. We never even made it to tour the backyard!!
Ran our credit too soon - I regret going with the first mortgage broker/company so quickly and we ran our credit too soon so we really could not leave and move on to anyone else. I just did not want to go with someone else and run my credit again while trying to buy a home. LESSON - try not to run your credit so many times when you are buying...it will hurt you financially when you are trying to get a loan and it may lower my loan amount.
Out of state Mortgage company - We worked with Rocket Mortgage for buying a home and I regret it. They were ok but they did not work hard to get us the best deal and did not advise us on anything. I literally had to ask and find out on my own.
401K woes - With the Cares Act we were able to withdrew funds to put towards the downpayment. This was by far the most stressful thing for me because usually you are penalized if you take 401K money out before you are like 65 years old. The good thing is, it didn't penalize us. I just worry with everything when it comes to retirement funds.
Our loan for the house was very low compared to our income - I was extremely shocked and we had decent credit. This just shows that working with a major company virtually with no emotional attachment or real engagement it did not work in our favor. The person we worked with just really did not care honestly and it showed. I knew some friends who made less than us and had decent credit almost received the same loan amount.
Well let that all sink in a bit lol. Any moments when you purchased a home that just blew your mind?
More details to share for another blog session! Share your buying home experience?
This is by far the biggest transformation we have done with our home since we purchased it in 2020. Our original backyard had great bones but we needed to update severely. I am so excited to share with you the renovation of our pool area.
When we bought the house the backyard originally had the following:
Screened in patio
Chattahoochee flooring
Massive amount of potted plants
Much needed resurfaced pool
When we took on this backyard, we had a vision from the beginning. We wanted a mini oasis that we as a family could relax and enjoy at all times. My husband especially loves being outside and he was so excited to take on this project! I wanted more than anything to make this happened.
First, we chiseled away the chattahoochee surface. Chattahoochee is a pebble like rock that was used for deck surfaces in the 1980s & 1990s. It was extremely popular back then, the key was you had to get it resealed about every 5 years or so to keep it looking neat and safe to walk on. When we bought the home, the previous owner failed to reseal it and the pebbles/rocks were loose and you could not walk to the pool without shoes.
Next, we realized that that in order to install turf around the pool we needed to have a border surrounding the pool. The original design had the chattahoochee all the way to the tip of the pool. If you do not have a border or copping around the pool, the surface you have will mildew. See below the difference between having copping around a pool vs not having it.
Next, we decided to redo the entire pool. We replaced the tiles and resurfaced the inside of the pool. We hired an amazing company called Ivero Pools and they literally worked non-stop and completed the pool in less than 3 weeks. The pool transformed the space entirely.
After, the pool was completed we then hired a company to lay down turf grass. Turf will last close to 20 years or more and we wanted a green grass feel to surround the pool. Since turf is expensive and based on square footage if we laid turf in the entire backyard it would have cost over $5500 and counting. Our backyard was 850 sq feet and vs us covering the entire backyard we left about 280 open to lower the cost.
Here is the breakdown of what we did:
Having 850 square foot backyard equaled to the turf costing over $5500. To remain on budget we decided not to turf the entire area.
We took 280 sq ft and decided to make it our dining space.
To give the backyard some contrast we decided to lay deck wood tiles in the space that we did not lay the turf. We absolutely loved it.
We are using the same patio furniture that we had before.
I feel so blessed that we could do such an amazing transformation. We cannot wait to host people in our beautiful backyard. Just this past weekend we sat outside and enjoyed the start of the NBA playoffs.
This renovation of the backyard made me realize that I can do anything if I believe and plan. Because of this backyard I am working on returning to school to study interior design. What project have you worked on that inspired you to do bigger and better things?
Welcome to part 2 of decor and inspiration from our family beach vacation! I recently went to Gulf Shores, AL for a family retreat and we stayed in this amazing 4 story beach house that could sleep 30+ people. Read up on my first blog post about this amazing place.
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Mommy & Me
Check out some of the other amazing interiors & decor from this place:
The Kitchen
This was by far one of the most grandest kitchens I have ever been in. It also was such a centerpiece of the home and a great gathering place for any major family renting this space. Here are some of key of features of the kitchen:
White & Blue color collaboration - I have always loved a blue & white combo but this one at the beach house was either a white & light blue or a white & teal blue. Regardless it felt like an island paradise within the kitchen.
Textured backsplash - The backsplash in the kitchen was not only beautiful but it was unique due to the uneven texture of the teal blue tiles. Since there was so much white in the kitchen you needed to wake it up with a tile like this.
Multiple kitchen appliances - While my family was there we took turns each day cooking and cleaning up. We literally could have 5 people cooking at once in this kitchen. The benefit of having multiple appliances was amazing for us.
Outrageous kitchen island - I do love kitchen islands because it brings everyone together within the kitchen. This kitchen island could sit 6 chairs with still a lot of room to spare. The bar stool at the island was made of glass with a dip within each chair. The stools were extremely comfortable and so sturdy. I wished I could have found out where the stools were from...they were that stunning.
I am beyond grateful we could cook in a coastal style kitchen like this for our trip. I love good food and good memories! Tell me what memories do you have cooking in your kitchen? Also see more exclusive photos below too:
Also shop my favorite coastal life home essentials here below...
