You are here: Home / Archives for making a house a home
17 April 2013 How this gypsy chick makes her house a home

How this gypsy chick makes her house a home

posted by 2 Comments

 

I like to say I’m a gypsy girl or a nomad, moving around from place to place, settling down for 3 years or even less, and never planting long term roots into a community.

Summer time is a very busy time in general for moving, however Memorial Day to Labor Day happens to be the busiest time of the year for the military to move families or PCS (permanent change of Station).  Our rotation is in September, the end of September!  You would know that we get the end of the summer, military houses for rent websites are empty, no military housing on base available, schools have already started, etc.  It has to be the absolute worst time of the year to move.  I normally move ahead with the girls in August, leaving David behind, so we can find a house, move in, and start school on the first day.

Continue reading

Filed Under: Army Life, moving tips Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,
3 October 2012 When the Army gives you lemons, just make lemonade!

When the Army gives you lemons, just make lemonade!

posted by 2 Comments

A few months back, I posted  these pictures on facebook and asked what would you do if this was your furniture.

Some of you said you would cry, some said you would actually burn it, some said buy slip covers immediately, and only a few gave suggestions on what they would actually do to make it work!

While I was visiting England with my husband, we stayed in the Military Lodge in Alconbury.  Not a five star by no means but very comfortable, clean, and very affordable!  This furniture was in the lodge where we stayed.  However, it  was also the furniture issued to us when we were living in Korea.   Being stationed in Korea is not like Europe, we could only ship 4000 lbs of our household goods.  That is NOT a lot at all!  Furniture was issued so you got what the Army gave you!  (Well I didn’t, I took a couch and recliner to be reupholstered (affordable too) because I knew better!)  Anyway many families are issued this sofa and 2 chairs.  This set came in 3 colors, navy blue, burgundy, and hunter green!  Talk about a blast from the past!!  Yep those were the 1990′s color scheme that the dotted print came in, there were other prints issued, but trust me, you got the “pretty” furniture if you were issued this beauty!   Even though it looks like you are living in a cheap hotel, there are ways to make it work.   Maybe not exactly what you had in mind, but for 2 or 3 years, it can work.

So to those of you who think OMGoodness, how in the world can I have a pretty, stylish,warm, and cozy home with this ugly furniture, I am going to give you some ideas on how to use what you got and when used with the right decor ideas, you can take lemons and make lemonade!

 As I searched the internet for  coordinating color scheme, I kept thinking what would I use with that furniture, because regardless of how short or long of time you live somewhere, it is still your home , you still have to live in it, with it, and it still needs to make you happy when you walk in the door!

I started with throw pillows.   I found several pillows that I thought would work with the hunter green color.  The pictures are hunter green, even though they look navy blue.    I immediately thought about the new gold color that is so very popular right now.  However I would not use a lot of it!  You could use navy blue with the gold, but I found some accents with red that I decided to use.  

Target

  I know many of you are thinking, why would you even use such furniture.  Because sometimes in life, it is what it is.   This is one of those times, moving overseas limits you in many ways and having a beautiful home is not on the top of the Army’s priority list.    But you always have options to make it work!  Korea style anyway! HA!

I definitely would use a print that was on a light background to contrast with the darkness of the furniture.  I’m a light and bright kind of person.

Potterybarn

Here are a couple of  rugs (Potterybarn) that could be used to add color, texture, and interest.

 

I think a neutral rug like this one from Target would be fine as well.

Hang a neutral or gold pair of grommet curtains like these linen curtains.

A colorful pattern print would bring out more colors and really add some pizzazz to your room!

  Both pair of curtains can be found at Target too!

Use additional contemporary home decor accessories like these mirrors that I blogged about here.

Kirklands

Everyone owns family pictures.   Gallery walls are trending right now so why not add something current and trendy to the room?  It would give the room a contemporary feel.  I love this whole display from Pottery Barn.

 Potterybarn

A gallery above the sofa would look great!

home happy home

You can check out  gardenberger  for great tutorials on arranging pictures!

Here’s a look at the whole collection that I put together.

 

Here are examples how to put them together.

Add a comfy, cozy throw blanket over the couch.  Light a few candles.  TaDa we just made lemonade out of lemons!

What accessories would you suggest to make the furniture not so “hotelish”?

We all have had and still have furniture that really is not our style, how do you make yours work?

Filed Under: Army Life, decorating Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
15 May 2012 why in the world do I want to BLOG?

why in the world do I want to BLOG?

posted by 4 Comments

 

As time gets closer for David to deploy, I find myself wondering what in the world am I gonna do to help make time pass by quicker!  I also find that I REALLY DON’T sleep at night, and I also realize that he is going to be gone for our 14th anniversary, Gabby’s birthday, first day of school, soccer season, Volleyball club tryouts, Hayley’s birthday, Science Fair projects, excruciating Math homework, essays, vocabulary tests, Hayley’s first semester of Spanish, (which he speaks almost fluently!) splitting up on weekends because our girls have to be at 2 different places at the same time, Thanksgiving, and all those wonderful 4 day Federal holiday weekends that we share during that time!  But most importantly, I am just gonna  miss him.  His presence, his strength, his sense of humor, the confidence that when something goes wrong, he will make it all better, basically his everything!    Sometimes  I think the anxiety that I am feeling will take my breath away!  However, I really do know (once I wrap my head around him being gone) that we will be just fine, after all we are GOD STRONG,  ARMY STRONG and Team HOFFS!  We can make it through ANYTHING!!!

I also remind myself that “I can do all things through Christ who strengths me”!

I found this on pinterest the other day, and have been going back to read it often.   I guess today is the right time to share it with you.  I guess with the lack of sleep and this horrible head cold has left me feeling a little “unsettled” today.

I think this sums it all up, and I guess the idea to blog will be  ”that task” to fill my time while he is away!  It is something that I enjoy, and I think it will be something fun for me to focus on.  That may sound strange to those of you who have never experienced the separation of your spouse, but trust me, what I feel is TOTALLY validated by each and every MILITARY spouse who has endured a deployment, and many have endured several deployments!  Please remember to pray for our TROOPS and the families that are living this life daily. Some days are going to be harder than others, so please pray for continued strength for me and my girls as well.  Also pray for David’s safety.

So what does all of this have to do with making a house a home? Our home is filled with love, happiness, acceptance, comfort, and strength!  Our home is that place we go to when we need peace and comfort.  Even though David will be gone and we will miss him terribly, I promise to continue to make our home that very special place to be!  After all, HOME is where the ARMY sends you and definitely where your HEART is!

Filed Under: Army Life Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,
6 May 2012 Home is where the Army sends you…

Home is where the Army sends you…

posted by 5 Comments

…and definitely where the HEART is!

I have been married to the Army for almost 14 years now and have seen quite a few places in this world!  I met my husband while he was assigned at Fort Stewart, GA (Hinesville, GA ) and we moved to Ft. Knox, KY shortly after we were married.  Our first home was military housing.  I wish I had pictures because I had NO idea how to decorate a home.  I was a brand new bride and knew NOTHING about home making or decorating, but I tried my hardest!  My poor husband is such a trooper and loved me through it all!   Anyway, I had just quit my job so we could move, and my husband was a young Captain at the time.  We were not rolling in much dough so I learned real quick how to be a thrifty shopper.   Also being military, we did not want to spend a lot of money on home decor because you never knew what size home you may move to next, and most importantly you never knew if your household goods (home decor accessories and furniture) would be lost or damaged during a move.  I had my two daughters while we lived at Ft. Knox and fell right into being a stay at home mom and I became domesticated!

We moved from Fort Knox to Kingsport,TN and bought our first home.  I guess this is when I really began to develop an interest in home decor.  We bought a home and did quite a bit of work on it ourselves.  My husband bought his power tools and quickly learned how to lay wood floors and hang crown molding.   Maybe the crown molding was not as quick, seems like that took awhile, but he IS a perfectionist!   The transformation was incredible, and the pride we felt for doing it all ourself was enormous!!  We were very proud of our home and that pride fostered something inside of me.  Having a beautiful home that we created and raising our family in it was the icing on the cake for me.  I was hooked on having a beautiful home!!  I wanted to be a Home Decorator!

Two years later, we moved to the Washington, DC area, we rented a blah house, complained the whole time of “what we would do if it was ours”,  and for some reason I thought I would decorate the house in primitive-Americana decor style.   We were only going to be in the area for one year while my husband was going to graduate school and I thought , why not?  I found out real quick that was not my decorating style!  But I wasn’t sure what my decorating style really was either.  But country home decor was NOT it!  Now I am not knocking Americana style, it fits alot of people and that is what is important! I have to say that I would admire the homes of my friends who decorated their homes that way, it just felt so warm and inviting, but in my home, it just did not represent who we were!  We were a lively bunch that had our eye on the future!  Not only that but we were young, “hip wannabes”, and living in a wonderful metropolitan, urbanized city!  When your home does not reflect who you are, you can feel it!  Everytime you walk in the door, you FEEL it!!  I have to laugh at that design mistake, it was the worse one I ever made!!  But I learned from it!  And WE MOVED ON!!

We moved to Seoul, Korea next.   We were there for 3 years and it was the best place ever to develop a decorating style!  I fell in love with furniture from Thailand that was available to us there.  We bought a few pieces and went from there.    Thailand is one of the best places ever!!  Also the best place to buy furniture, and I mean QUALITY furniture for a bargain.   I would love to sell furniture from a vendor in Thailand!  If you have the chance to go, you HAVE to go to Bangkok and Phuket.  We would move there in a heartbeat!  I could just go on and on, we LOVED it so much!

Korea was a great place for Asian and contemporary design.  I love contemporary, but sometimes for ME, it can feel cold and “young”.  I was about to turn 40 and beginning to see myself in a different way, realizing I needed to become a 40 yr old, but not in an “old” way!  So I decided to merge my traditional decor with some contemporary decor, and I came up with what represents us!!  Not too young, but not grandma-ish either!  Not too cold but very warm and welcoming!

After our three years in Korea, the Army thought we needed a little piece of “paradise” and moved us to Hawaii.  What a great experience!  We actually rented and lived in 2 different houses the two years we were there.  The first was in the  ”burbs” and the  second was in a great small beach town (Kailua).  So with two different types of homes, I was able to explore the tropical and “beachy” home decors.  I have to say that living in Hawaii burnt me out on the red, gold, and sage green color combo!  It was EVERYWHERE!!!  And it was in my house!!  It was our last home in Hawaii that I began to realize that I really could put a house together!  I had the most people comment on our home and the design of it.  I began having people ask me to help them decorate their home.  I began reading more and watching more home decor shows than before.  I was hooked years ago, but I realized I was NOW obsessed with anything that had to do with home and decor!

During all of this, my husband was perfecting his power tool skills.  He had done quite a few projects and was feeling pretty stoked himself.   We found out the Army was going to move us to Florida, and we decided it was time to buy a house!  My husband is able to retire in 2014 after 20 years, and we are planning to stay put so our daughters can live some of their life in a “stable” environment.  We are so excited!  We FINALLY get to paint and decorate our home, and make it what we want!!   Goodbye to complaining of everything wrong with our house, no more daydreaming of the day we own our own home, no more making due with what we have, no more buying home decor accessories for one house that you probably have to get rid of at the next,  and good riddance to paying someone else’s mortgage!!   HALLELUJAH!!!!!  Eventhough my heart was in each home we had, I did the best I could do with each move, I made sure my girls were settled and everything ran smoothly for the homefront, but there was always something inside of me that wanted more.  Don’t get me wrong, I am VERY grateful for the military lifestyle, the friends we have made, the memories that we share, and our adventures around the world.  I would not have it any other way!

I finally can say “Honey, I’m Home” and feel it!!  I have a home that reflects who we are and we can RELAX now .   We are taking one room and one project at a time and pouring our heart and soul in it.  Today, we feel pretty “house proud”!  Today we feel like we can “settle” down and plant some roots in this wonderful community we call HOME!!

Here are some photos that represent the heart of our home- the FAMILY room area.  This is where we spend all of our time when at home, and this is where Hayley and Gabby hang with their friends!   This is what makes me HAPPY!






 

Oh and so you’ll  know, the 2 cute chairs and ottoman pictured in the family room are from La-zy Boy.  Yes that’s right, La-zy Boy.  I thought La-zy Boy only sold recliners for grandpa too!

Filed Under: Army Life, decorating Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,