Creating a Meaningful Home: Ten June Blog
Today’s guest post for Creating a Meaningful Home blog series: Year 3 is Michelle of Ten June Blog. Welcome Michelle…
Creating a meaningful home is a really important topic to me. No matter how many design magazines we browse through or DIY blogs we read, nothing matters more in your home than meaningful moments. It’s your home, right? So it needs to look like you and your family. What inspires you? What makes you smile? What reminds you of those special moments in your life? In my opinion, decorating with those types of things is what makes your home meaningful.
For years, my husband and I lived in our “dream home” that we renovated and put a lot of love, blood, sweat and tears into. We moved from that dream home a couple of years ago due to my husband’s job relocation and we’re actually in a rental house right now. It’s pretty crazy to go from a home that we painted every square inch of (like our son’s baby nursery room makeover, still my favorite room I’ve ever designed!), renovated portions of to the studs (like our amazing master bathroom renovation!) and really felt like we made “ours” to a home that we can’t even paint the walls or do anything permanent to without permission! Needless to say, making this rental home a “meaningful home” in small ways has become very important to us. Here are a few small things we’ve done around our little rental house to make this temporary space feel more like our special home.
Pull out your sentimental pieces to display.
The vintage fire truck and blue station wagon that sit on top of my son’s storage shelf in his bedroom were passed down to my husband from his grandfather. It’s such a fun reminder to have a piece of Pop in our little guy’s room and truly makes for a special reminder of our family every time we see the little cars. More on my son’s nursery/bedroom space here
Choose art that is special to your family.
Matt Redman’s “10,000 Reasons” song is really special to our family- in fact, it’s become our family anthem! I had this sign custom made to hang in our dining room. It’s so great that it sits as a backdrop to our family dinners, parties and other events. This sign truly makes this space more meaningful. For more on our dining room, head here.
If you want bold, go bold.
Don’t be afraid to stand out or make a bold design choice just because it’s not necessarily in style or a big trend. If it’s something that you and your family like, then go for it! That choice will make your space more personal, for sure. Take this patio makeover I did. While my neighbors might not have chosen a wild patterned red outdoor rug and bright turquoise chairs, they were the perfect fun additions to make our outdoor space more homey. More on this outdoor space here.
Add decor pieces that are important and functional to you.
While it’s a lot of fun to have pretty things on your nightstand, the typical magazine nightstand with it’s flowers and frilly decor pieces just won’t cut it for me. I’ve got to have my Bible and whatever book I’m reading within arm’s reach. So you make it work and take functional items like that, whether they’re pretty or not, and integrate them into your decor as I’ve done here with my nightstand. That trick might not work quite as well with your baby monitor, ha. Let’s be honest, mine is being hidden in that top drawer.
The ideas I shared are certainly not mind-blowing new ideas for decorating your home, but they are really great small touches that have truly made my home meaningful for me. I’m sure the concept of a “meaningful home” means something different to everyone- what do you bring into your home to truly personalize your space?
What a great story, thanks Michelle for sharing! I can’t imagine getting uprooted from a dream home to a rental, but if it’s what has to happen, then you make the most of it – and Michelle has. No matter the style or size of your home (whether you own it or rent it), there is always a way to introduce meaning & purpose. Little ways make a big impact.
One favorite project that Michelle created is this bamboo stick mirror. Sunburst mirrors have been all-the-rage for a while and this do it yourself creation is so beautiful + bold AND looks great on the black wall of her dining room (in her previous house)…
Head on over to Ten June Blog, and give Michelle a BIG HELLO!
Check out all the Bloggers that have contributed to this series on
Creating a Meaningful HomePlus don’t miss out on all the previous Bloggers who contributed to this series in 2013 and 2014!