WOW, this is day 166 since we we launched Simple Life on Hacienda Hill and our resolve to live a more relaxed life, less cluttered with consumerism and moving toward a 'greener' lifestyle. We have made many changes and have many more to go. There are still old thinking and habits we need to eliminate and/or replace with greener, more efficient ways of doing things.
I am still in love with hanging the clothes on the line rather than using the electric dryer. Only one day, so far, have I not enjoyed the ritual. It was freezing, literally, and I had a load of my Honey's work clothes that needed to be hung out. Cold air dries clothes, too. It also makes your hands turn into red stumps of agony. We don't have many bitter cold days in this part of the world, so I do not perceive that to be an ongoing issue. We did have a recent stretch of foggy, misty days that threw a kink in my laundry schedule but we lived to tell about it without any major life altering issues. I just considered how the families of days gone by would have dealt with the same issue, and persevered in my determination to stick to my guns and commitment. I can honestly say it has only required planning ahead and more careful attention to the weather forecasts. All in all, it was a positive change to my routines and our lower energy bill. I have no plans plans to abandon this life change.
I have a few areas of less than productive results. My raised garden bed has all but been forgotten. It has gone to pot...no, not the brain cell killing, cash crop of pot (LOL) but as in neglected and weed infested. It will be but a few blinks of an eye before it is time to get the spring garden planted. I am not prepared! Nor is my sad, pitiful garden bed.
There is still a ton of 'stuff' of which to rid our lives and home. I'm sad to admit that a cabinet I previously cleared out and de-junked is full again! That's NOT the way to go about things. On a positive note, we've done some reassigning of space allocation. My Honey's studio has become my new office and is smack in the middle of redecorating, as in painting & wallpaper. Working on the book has occupied the bulk of my time and attention, as did the mission trip to Costa Rica. There are only so many hours in a day and I need to re-assess the way I am using them. We all have the same 24 hours a day, many people utilize them efficiently, many more don't. Some days I do, some days I don't. I need to find a consistent rhyme and rhythm that works every day for me. I'm not THERE yet.
I am currently trying to find a good balance and division of time to better meet all the needs I have IF I am to get the book ready for submission, my office cleared out of everything but the necessities of my writing profession and make it esthetically pleasing to my sensibilities and juggle the demands of life in general: meals to prepare, bills to pay, laundry to be done, dust bunnies to chase, clutter to clear, etc. It's difficult to remember that living a simple life is about ridding ourselves of excess so we can manage that which requires managing to maintain a peaceful, less stressful life when you're tripping over paint cans, boxes to sort through and stacks of papers you'd rather just chunk in the trash. There is practical work that must be accomplished if we are to attain that peaceful place. This is where I struggle...finding that balance.
All in all, I'd say Day 166 finds us in fairly good place toward our goal. I am thankful for the positive changes made and am eagerly awaiting the changes to come. Twitching my nose won't get us there, so I must push on.
Let me know about the progress you've made, areas of struggle and ideas to share. I could use some good tips!
Showing posts with label Decorating. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Decorating. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Layers of Life
I'm happy to say I am writing this from my new office! No longer am I situated a few steps from the fridge..a very good thing! I can resist anything but temptation! Also, I am farther away from the scuffles of the hounds, the road noises, the phone, the washing machine...etc. I am revamping what has been (in chronological order from the time we bought the house)...the office, a little girl's garden decor bedroom, a teen boys beach shack bedroom, my Honey's studio and now...TA DA...my office!
As I take down shelves I can see layers of paint of decors past...ah, a moment to reflect...ok, I'm over it! I've uncovered the original color the room was when we moved in and the lovely fantasy garden treatment I painted. Painting over the beach shack wood plank (looking ) walls was a tad bit sad and the sign I painted (Studio B) for my Honey's studio is still in here, I'm taking it to him when I leave the room. All bits and pieces of life we have lived and family traveling through our home over the years. A bittersweet transition, indeed.
Now, I am claiming this room as my own since my Honey graciously sacrificed his studio for me to have a better place to write. Life is a lot like the layers of paint I've uncovered. It's colorful, diverse, and changes over the course of time. What works for you at one point in time might not be so satisfying or suitable at another. Life is just that LIFE, it should not be stagnant. You've seen the creepy crawlies and gunk that grows in stagnant water...that has no place in our lives! We want, need and should pursue all that is vital, healthy and life-giving. This often requires changes to be made in our environments, our relationships, our habits and ways of thinking.
I have a friend that hates change...a lot. Here's one example. Her home looks very much like it did six years ago. Everything sits in the same place, moved only for dusting. The decor has not changed at all except for a wall color change in one room and that only happened by accident. They were planning on refreshing the paint and bought the wrong shade. The new shade was not so very different but it was certainly a change. This threw my friend into a tizzy. It was inconvenient to take the paint back, so they used it anyway. To this day she isn't happy with it. Two more gallons of paint could have taken it back to the shade she had in the first place, but the effort required was not something they were willing to do, so she lives all these years later with a color that doesn't make her happy. Why? I do not understand that logic. Even when I lived in apartments, I painted them and then painted them back when I moved out. Life is in living color...it's too short and precious to spend being unhappy over something as easily fixed as a wall color! Not all things in life can be corrected that easily.
There is nothing that says, "Simple Life" about being unhappy with that around us. Now, do not misunderstand my position, I'm not saying we should all run out and redecorate our homes in the name of Simple Life. I'm saying the things around us that make life less simple, like the clutter and stuff we hold on to just because we've always held on to it, those things can change to free us from the emotional and mental stagnation around us.
With the guidelines of keeping only that which makes you smile, you love or use regularly, we can eliminate a lot of stuff! No one LOVES everything they have in their home. No one uses everything they have in cabinets, closets and boxes in the attic either. Other than seasonal clothing and holiday decor, why are we storing stuff anyway? If we have to store it, we obviously aren't using it. To add insult to injury, some people are paying to store stuff on a regular basis. Life evolves and so should our possessions. We can't take any of them with us when we leave this earth anyway. Do we really think God cannot provide for our needs while we're still here?
The layers of life I've uncovered in the transition of this room alone are a colorful reminder that life changes and we must change with it. As we come to the end of another year, we are different than we were this time last year. My mirror certainly tells me I am! Our lives in our homes are a constant source of change. I am blessed to have a husband that rolls with the punches. We are no where near where I hope to be this time next year in our process of moving toward a more simple, peaceful, uncluttered life but we are much farther down the road than we were this time last year. It's a process to progress.
FYI - my Honey is totally in love with the 'man space' he created for himself. It's edited down to all his necessities (bass guitar, computer, amp, keyboard, books, TV) and customized by him to fit him. He still needs book shelves and a cozy reading chair, which will come, but he's loving his space. It's much more efficient and he's a happy camper. I think if he had a fridge and microwave, he might not ever come out!
My prayer for us all in the coming year is that we keep the good parts, rid ourselves of excess and focus on living in the here and now.
Loving life at Hacienda Hill...........
As I take down shelves I can see layers of paint of decors past...ah, a moment to reflect...ok, I'm over it! I've uncovered the original color the room was when we moved in and the lovely fantasy garden treatment I painted. Painting over the beach shack wood plank (looking ) walls was a tad bit sad and the sign I painted (Studio B) for my Honey's studio is still in here, I'm taking it to him when I leave the room. All bits and pieces of life we have lived and family traveling through our home over the years. A bittersweet transition, indeed.
Now, I am claiming this room as my own since my Honey graciously sacrificed his studio for me to have a better place to write. Life is a lot like the layers of paint I've uncovered. It's colorful, diverse, and changes over the course of time. What works for you at one point in time might not be so satisfying or suitable at another. Life is just that LIFE, it should not be stagnant. You've seen the creepy crawlies and gunk that grows in stagnant water...that has no place in our lives! We want, need and should pursue all that is vital, healthy and life-giving. This often requires changes to be made in our environments, our relationships, our habits and ways of thinking.
I have a friend that hates change...a lot. Here's one example. Her home looks very much like it did six years ago. Everything sits in the same place, moved only for dusting. The decor has not changed at all except for a wall color change in one room and that only happened by accident. They were planning on refreshing the paint and bought the wrong shade. The new shade was not so very different but it was certainly a change. This threw my friend into a tizzy. It was inconvenient to take the paint back, so they used it anyway. To this day she isn't happy with it. Two more gallons of paint could have taken it back to the shade she had in the first place, but the effort required was not something they were willing to do, so she lives all these years later with a color that doesn't make her happy. Why? I do not understand that logic. Even when I lived in apartments, I painted them and then painted them back when I moved out. Life is in living color...it's too short and precious to spend being unhappy over something as easily fixed as a wall color! Not all things in life can be corrected that easily.
There is nothing that says, "Simple Life" about being unhappy with that around us. Now, do not misunderstand my position, I'm not saying we should all run out and redecorate our homes in the name of Simple Life. I'm saying the things around us that make life less simple, like the clutter and stuff we hold on to just because we've always held on to it, those things can change to free us from the emotional and mental stagnation around us.
With the guidelines of keeping only that which makes you smile, you love or use regularly, we can eliminate a lot of stuff! No one LOVES everything they have in their home. No one uses everything they have in cabinets, closets and boxes in the attic either. Other than seasonal clothing and holiday decor, why are we storing stuff anyway? If we have to store it, we obviously aren't using it. To add insult to injury, some people are paying to store stuff on a regular basis. Life evolves and so should our possessions. We can't take any of them with us when we leave this earth anyway. Do we really think God cannot provide for our needs while we're still here?
The layers of life I've uncovered in the transition of this room alone are a colorful reminder that life changes and we must change with it. As we come to the end of another year, we are different than we were this time last year. My mirror certainly tells me I am! Our lives in our homes are a constant source of change. I am blessed to have a husband that rolls with the punches. We are no where near where I hope to be this time next year in our process of moving toward a more simple, peaceful, uncluttered life but we are much farther down the road than we were this time last year. It's a process to progress.
FYI - my Honey is totally in love with the 'man space' he created for himself. It's edited down to all his necessities (bass guitar, computer, amp, keyboard, books, TV) and customized by him to fit him. He still needs book shelves and a cozy reading chair, which will come, but he's loving his space. It's much more efficient and he's a happy camper. I think if he had a fridge and microwave, he might not ever come out!
My prayer for us all in the coming year is that we keep the good parts, rid ourselves of excess and focus on living in the here and now.
Loving life at Hacienda Hill...........
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Woman, Know Thy Self!
Our kids came for a family gathering this past weekend. I thoroughly enjoyed myself. It had been some time since most of them had been in our home and we were discussing some of the changes we have made in our never-ending remodel/redecorating quest. One of the daughters-in-love commented that she didn't have the 'decorator gene' and wouldn't know where to start. I told her she just needed to know herself, everything she needed to know was inside her. Asking a couple of probing questions, we discovered she liked the decor from the 60's & 70's. Ah ha! Now we know she likes Retro! That's a great first step. Her face literally lit up when she said that. Sitting across the room, my son, her husband, looked skeptical. I informed my beloved son that the sooner he acknowledges the inside of the home is his wife's domain, the happier all would be. My Honey knows this and has come to trust my taste and judgment. My son would be well served to support and nurture this in his wife.
My Honey brought up that I liked to watch decorating shows and read design magazines. This is true, a wealth of technical information and inspiration can be gleaned from both, but the bottom line is in knowing what it is that brings out the inner you. Our homes need to reflect our personalities, our tastes and be a safe haven we can retreat within for comfort and peace. I learned I cannot be 'settled' in a room that does not feel right to me. In spite of my eclectic, Bohemian-esque style and love affair with intense color, when broken down, my decor is steeped in traditional style. That's not the first impression you get when you look around the room but traditional elements are everywhere when you dissect the room. I have never been one to follow fads and current trends. In fact, I avoid them on purpose, always have. I think a guest in our home should be able to see more of who I am, not what someone in a magazine or TV show tells us we need to have to be "in style" this season. I do not want my rooms filled with things that everyone up and down the block can run to the local big box store to make their rooms look just like mine, either. We are individuals, our homes should be, too.
This does not mean we cannot appreciate a style or design choices others make. I love mid-century design and decor, though it is not a part of my home. Over the years light wood tones have come and gone, I admire them in other people's homes, I've considered incorporating them in mine...I never do. I am emotionally drawn to warm wood tones, red oak, mahogany, etc. Bottom-line, I go with those, they touch a place in my soul that says "home". I'm not into matchy-matchy furniture either. If you love something, really love a piece, it will fit in some where if your home is reflecting you.
Our entire kitchen remodel was inspired by an antique oak breakfront I bought shortly after we were married. The piece sits in our family room, which is open to the kitchen, with a flat screen TV on it. Not, perhaps, how one might first think to use that antique, but it is the inspiration for the whole area. My kitchen has many brushed nickel elements juxtaposition against the red oak cabinets. There is a cool toned blue-gray along with the warm red-orange of the cabinets, antique piece and the wall color below the chair rail and on the accent wall. Our floors are a terracotta color, and it might surprise you to know it is considered the neutral in the room. Sound odd to you? Perhaps, but thinking about it, analyzing the room, we find blue and orange are opposites on the color wheel. They are complementary colors, and will always look good together. The various (analogous colors, side by side, on the color wheel) shades of red-orange found in the aged oak blend the warm colors of the lower walls, accent wall and floor. It is the balance of the cool and warm in the room that keep either from being overbearing. Balance plays a large part whether or not a room feels right. Balance is vital in my traditional look, though my color choices are not traditional at first glance. This may sound complicated but it is not. A look at a color wheel can help make daunting choices simple. Knowing the colors that 'feel' right to you is the first step.
When my sons were infants, I loved Oriental decor, not the stereotypical red and black combo of Chinese restaurants, but the blue and whites. Today, 30 years later, our master bedroom has an Oriental bent. The blue and whites have been replaced with shades of sage green, gold, silver, and accented with small touches of red. It feels elegant, even though the room is not complete. Why is it the bedroom is the last to be decorated? Or is it just me? The point I am trying to make is that the things you love, when they are a part of you, do not go in & out of style. My words to my daughter-in-love about knowing who you are inside are the best decorating tips anyone can give you. How can your home not feel like a retreat from chaos when it reflects you? Your inner sanctuary determines your outer sanctuary when you are true to yourself. Woman, know thy self! Welcome home.
My Honey brought up that I liked to watch decorating shows and read design magazines. This is true, a wealth of technical information and inspiration can be gleaned from both, but the bottom line is in knowing what it is that brings out the inner you. Our homes need to reflect our personalities, our tastes and be a safe haven we can retreat within for comfort and peace. I learned I cannot be 'settled' in a room that does not feel right to me. In spite of my eclectic, Bohemian-esque style and love affair with intense color, when broken down, my decor is steeped in traditional style. That's not the first impression you get when you look around the room but traditional elements are everywhere when you dissect the room. I have never been one to follow fads and current trends. In fact, I avoid them on purpose, always have. I think a guest in our home should be able to see more of who I am, not what someone in a magazine or TV show tells us we need to have to be "in style" this season. I do not want my rooms filled with things that everyone up and down the block can run to the local big box store to make their rooms look just like mine, either. We are individuals, our homes should be, too.
This does not mean we cannot appreciate a style or design choices others make. I love mid-century design and decor, though it is not a part of my home. Over the years light wood tones have come and gone, I admire them in other people's homes, I've considered incorporating them in mine...I never do. I am emotionally drawn to warm wood tones, red oak, mahogany, etc. Bottom-line, I go with those, they touch a place in my soul that says "home". I'm not into matchy-matchy furniture either. If you love something, really love a piece, it will fit in some where if your home is reflecting you.
Our entire kitchen remodel was inspired by an antique oak breakfront I bought shortly after we were married. The piece sits in our family room, which is open to the kitchen, with a flat screen TV on it. Not, perhaps, how one might first think to use that antique, but it is the inspiration for the whole area. My kitchen has many brushed nickel elements juxtaposition against the red oak cabinets. There is a cool toned blue-gray along with the warm red-orange of the cabinets, antique piece and the wall color below the chair rail and on the accent wall. Our floors are a terracotta color, and it might surprise you to know it is considered the neutral in the room. Sound odd to you? Perhaps, but thinking about it, analyzing the room, we find blue and orange are opposites on the color wheel. They are complementary colors, and will always look good together. The various (analogous colors, side by side, on the color wheel) shades of red-orange found in the aged oak blend the warm colors of the lower walls, accent wall and floor. It is the balance of the cool and warm in the room that keep either from being overbearing. Balance plays a large part whether or not a room feels right. Balance is vital in my traditional look, though my color choices are not traditional at first glance. This may sound complicated but it is not. A look at a color wheel can help make daunting choices simple. Knowing the colors that 'feel' right to you is the first step.
When my sons were infants, I loved Oriental decor, not the stereotypical red and black combo of Chinese restaurants, but the blue and whites. Today, 30 years later, our master bedroom has an Oriental bent. The blue and whites have been replaced with shades of sage green, gold, silver, and accented with small touches of red. It feels elegant, even though the room is not complete. Why is it the bedroom is the last to be decorated? Or is it just me? The point I am trying to make is that the things you love, when they are a part of you, do not go in & out of style. My words to my daughter-in-love about knowing who you are inside are the best decorating tips anyone can give you. How can your home not feel like a retreat from chaos when it reflects you? Your inner sanctuary determines your outer sanctuary when you are true to yourself. Woman, know thy self! Welcome home.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)