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Happy Friday, friends! It’s been a very cold, wintery week here, but we’ve had some good bursts of sunshine, which I’m so thankful for. I hope you’re safe, cozy, and warm this weekend, with a few plans for relaxing, and a few plans for some good old-fashioned mid-January productivity.
I’ve been under the weather lately and going through all the appointments and tests that come along with that. The whole process of trying to figure out what’s going on and what will help is exhausting in itself, as so many others know, and then when you factor in that you’re not feeling well at all, it can really slow you down. I’ve had a pretty unproductive few weeks around the house, and I let the holiday mess kind of take over while I mostly rested in between baking cookies and going to bed early every night. I think my family actually enjoyed it, though, because they always get a little annoyed at me running around and cleaning up after every activity, so maybe that was a bit of a win out of the whole situation. 🙂 Anyway, hoping to start feeling much better soon, and I’m sure all the rest and uncharacteristic laziness has done me a bit of good.
Do you do New Year’s resolutions or one of the newer versions like “word of the year” or “more of this and less of that?” I feel like I’m the kind of person who kind of reassesses the situation constantly and makes little resolutions on a regular basis, but it is nice to look back over the year as a whole and think about what brought value to your life and what really didn’t. For me, I definitely got a lot of joy from visiting antique markets and hunting for beautiful pieces for my home there instead of big box stores selling fast furniture, so I’m definitely going to dive into that more this year. I’ve also loved filling my TBR (to be read) pile with classic literature rather than newer, popular novels, so I’ll be continuing with that for sure. Other than that, I’m not really sure what new goals and intentions I have for the new year, and that’s OK. If you’re not feeling as high-energy as usual about making New Year’s resolutions this year, it’s perfectly fine to just continue on as you are. When inspiration strikes, you’ll be ready. It’s funny how nature takes so many months of quiet time to renew, but we give ourselves about a week between Christmas and the New Year and expect ourselves to be completely ready to reinvent every part of our lives. So happy New Year to you, friends, whatever that looks like for you this year.
I’m still plugging away at my little bathroom refresh from the fall. Kennedy and I went for another visit to our favorite local antique market, and I found the perfect little plant stand for next to the tub. Isn’t a vintage piece always the answer to every decorating dilemma? I love all the classic stone and tile finishes we have in the ensuite, but I have always thought the space needed lots of wood elements to warm it up since the vanity is a painted finish, and my little plant stand does the trick, along the wood-framed art pieces I’m bringing in. I hit a bit of a snag with the rug I ordered. I love this rug, but I also feel like it’s a bit too warm color-wise for the space. I’ve tried a few options from local stores and nothing seems to look quite right, so I’m back to no rug in this space. I’m keeping the rug I ordered, though, because it’s perfect everywhere else in our home, and it will find a place somewhere. I just can’t part with it. In other news about taking back decorating decisions, I’ve decided to do something a bit bold with the exposed brick wall in our room that we finished in the summer. I thought it needed something a bit more striking, so I’m going for it. Stay tuned!
One thing I would like to talk more about here on the blog and over on Instagram in the next few months is shelf styling. It’s a skill that I have that I can easily share with others and I think right now, with all of our open shelving trends, it’s something that people would love to learn. Almost every home that we visit has some kind of open shelving in the design plan for me to style and I can probably count on one hand the number of times that I’ve visited a home where I could tell the homeowner was comfortable with how they wanted to style their shelves. More often or not, homeowners almost immediately confess to me that they love the idea of open shelves, but they have no idea what to do with them. They then often just say that they’re going to copy exactly what I did to style the shelves for photos because it finally looks “right” to them. Since I style and photograph so many homes, I have to put together my styling plans quickly and be able to change them on the spot when something is different than I expected in person, so I’ve come up with a little system that just works so well. I’m hoping to share quite a few of my little tips so that I can hopefully help a few people to really love their new kitchens, living rooms, and other shelf-filled spaces.
We definitely had a very merry little Christmas this year. A little bit of visiting, some nice meals, lots of movie nights and games and marathon LEGO builds, some baking, and some cozy days of doing not much of anything but watching soccer. Just a simple, not-too-busy holiday where it felt like we managed to check most of the boxes for what we wanted to get done. Christmas Eve was almost a bit of a blunder because I forgot that the sushi restaurant we planned to go to was closed on Tuesdays, but luckily, we found another place with space for us that we were all happy with. We realized that we hasn’t driven around looking at Christmas lights at all this year, so Chris took us on a little last-minute tour before we went back home for our Christmas Eve Box tradition with pajamas, Christmas sundaes, and games. I hope your holiday was just as restful and joyful as you needed it to be and you found some time to soak in a few little moments of appreciation for the magic of the season.
NEWS AND FINDS
-Tis the season to start taking baby steps towards an easier and less stressful Christmas next year. Every year I try to be a little more organized than the last, and sometimes I’m quite successful at it, and sometimes not as much. Here are some of my favorite ideas from past years for setting myself up for a calm Christmas next year, starting right away.
–12 Month Christmas Plan to Prepare for Next Year
–5 Semi-Sneaky Secrets of People Who Are Really Good at Christmas
–What to Stock up on During the After-Christmas Sales
-Currently reading: Just finished up Little Women and loved every second of it. (The link is to the copy I have, which is really pretty) There’s something so special about rediscovering books from childhood as an adult, especially a timeless classic like this. Currently working my way through Great Expectations, which I actually started reading a few years ago, but then abandoned. Recently, I’ve found myself wondering what would become of the characters in the story, so I picked it back up. There are no rules to reading! 🙂
-This is the most clever design for a little stool/side table. If you know me, you know how I’m always looking for more perfect little tiny tables. I love how it’s smartly designed to tuck in perfectly next to a chair/sofa/bathtub, but also somehow looks like the best little antique store find from a charming old house somewhere.
-Oh my gosh. This light! Another vintage-inspired find that looks like you had the luckiest day ever at some amazing Paris antique market. Such a special piece to go into an older character home, but I also think it would work to add depth to a more modern space full of rich color and pattern.
–This is another beautiful blue and white vase, and quite affordable as well. At this point, I have a pretty large blue and white collection, but I really only have a handful of favorites. They have to have just the right off-white color for the ceramic and just the right deep blue and this ginger jar is exactly right. I love the authentic-looking crackle finish as well.
–These were my new “be brave shoes” that I bought myself to wear to tests and appointments that made me a bit nervous. There’s something about a fresh white pair of sneakers that just puts a little pep in your step and makes you think you can do anything.
-Comment of the week: “These came out pretty good. I did add extra cinnamon. Even my fiancé who claims to not like oatmeal had to restrain himself from eating too many.” – Rachel on Pinterest. Get the recipe here: Brown Sugar Oatmeal Muffins
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Courtenay Hartford is the author of creeklinehouse.com, a blog based on her adventures renovating a 120-year-old farmhouse in rural Ontario, Canada. On her blog, Courtenay shares interior design tips based on her own farmhouse and her work as founder and stylist of the interior photography firm Art & Spaces. She also writes about her farmhouse garden, plant-based recipes, family travel, and homekeeping best practices. Courtenay is the author of the book The Cleaning Ninja and has been featured in numerous magazines including Country Sampler Farmhouse Style, Better Homes and Gardens, Parents Magazine, Real Simple, and Our Homes.