The Heart of The Home: Kitchen

They say the kitchen is the heart of the home because that is where we create meals to nourish our family. We want to nourish them because we love them. 

Though the kitchen is the workhorse of the home, I believe in making it as beautiful as possible because we spend so much time in there. When you have a beautiful space you want to spend time in there and that makes the work seem a bit easier. 

How do we create a beautiful kitchen?

• Keep clutter to a minimum. 
• Everything should be useful as well as beautiful. 
• Paint is an inexpensive way to transform a space. Use the colors you love!
• Keep decor simple. 
• Have nice dish rags and towels. Replace as needed.
• Have nicely scented dish washing liquid.
• Use pretty decanters for oils and hand soap to replace the ugly plastic bottles.
• Streamline the counter top. Only keep what you use daily out. 
• Have pretty cookware, dishware, and glassware.
• Be organized. Put like things together and in places they will most likely be used.
• Add a pretty rug or two.
• Hang a few nice inexpensive art prints. 

If you don't know what your style is I encourage you to browse through Pinterest to glean inspiration that you incorporate into your own home. I have a few decor boards of my own which you are welcome to browse and follow if you so desire. You can check it out here:

My Pinterest

Hope this has been helpful for you. Let me know if you need help! 

Tracy x

A Bedroom Fit For A Queen

Pinterest

Years ago I named myself The Queen in jest, after seeing a Mary Englebreit pillow with the saying 'The Queen of Everything'. Oh, the family laughed in good fun, but it stuck. Now I'm known as the Queen. 

One of my goals for this year is to turn my bedroom into a beautiful sanctuary for my husband and I. A room befitting royalty. I want to work on this room first. 

People tend to work on the rooms that company sees - living room, kitchen, dining room, a main bathroom even. Meanwhile the bedrooms are looking pretty shabby. And I get it. But our bedrooms are meant to be restorative, intimate spaces. How much rest and intimacy can happen in a room that's haphazardly thrown together?

In November, I invested in new sheets, a king-size comforter, and curtains. But there is more work to be done. The room needs a fresh paint job. I need some shelves installed, paint my small antique 3 drawer dresser and replace the knobs, and get my husband to either declutter or organize his stuff. Hmmmm....

Being this is the year of my level up in many areas, I am declaring my bedroom as Home Project #1. This room is my top priority as far as beautifying and redecorating. 

Which room are you going to focus on first?

Have any decorating tips for bedrooms? 

Share below.

Listening, as always... x

Live As If You Are On Vacation

Vacations are such a wonderful thing, aren't they? 

You're able to get away briefly from the daily stress and predictable routine. You get to experience a change of pace as well as a change of scenery. But the best thing about going on vacation is there is no clutter. Non!

Why don't we look at things in a new way, oui? 

• What if you could live like you were on vacation every day?
• What would that look like for you?
• What do you enjoy most about vacation time?
• How can you make every day life feel like a vacation?

Wherever your favorite place to vacation is, you can bring that feeling to your own home. For example, if Paris sets your heart aflutter, bring touches of french decor into your home. Listen to french music. Watch french movies. Learn the language and practice it daily. Learn to cook french dishes.

The possibilities are endless. Be creative! 

Many enjoy the simple aspect of vacationing. Your accommodations are sparse and you are limited as to what you can bring with you. Here is where decluttering comes in (remember, I told you yesterday that we'd be getting to this soon)! 

It's hard to let go of all of the things you have worked so hard to accumulate. I get it. But are all of the things making you happy? 

Do you feel like if only you had a bigger house (and mortgage!) things would be so much better? Non! You would soon fill up the empty spaces with new stuff!

Dear Swan, it's time to release that which holds you back from being happy and having peace in your heart. 

Clutter is not your friend. It steals your money and valuable time. You can always earn more money, but you can't get the time back that was spent moving, cleaning, organizing, and maintaining your clutter. 

You deserve more from life than battling clutter!

Tell me now, what are your thoughts on decluttering? 

What area do you struggle most with?

As always, I'm listening... x