What you love in a home



I hate to confess, but I have been watching "House Rules" on Channel 7 TV (Monday nights only once the homes have been renovated).  I rarely watch reality TV but this one has been interesting and I have become slightly sucked in, sadly!! The rules are simple:

  • There are 6 couples in total, all own homes in need of urgent renovations.
  • Each week 5 couples renovated one of these homes whilst the 6th couple enjoys a relaxing holiday whilst their home is being renovated.  Each couple is given one, two or three room to complete in one week.
  • By Monday night all rooms have been renovated and ready for inspection and then scored.
  • The homeowners give 5 "house rules" that they want followed when their home is being renovated such as "glamour", "mirrors", "wall paper", "resort-feel" etc..
Simple - haven't lost you with these rules!!

Anyway, to the point of this story - it got me thinking, what would my 5 house rules be if my home was about to be renovated by strangers? What is important to us in our home? Before I start, I will admit I have not achieved all of these in my own home - partly due to the design of our house (which we can't change), but also cost (we aren't millionaires!!). Our home is a work in progress, but it is our home, its cosy and peaceful and we like it.

PS, the photos below are from Pinerest and not from my home - these are examples of what I really like.

1. Cosy and warm

I like rooms to feel warm, cosy and inviting, such as the example below. I just love that couch and how you could sink into it in the evening. I am also a big fan of wall to wall bookcases.  I am also big on thick rugs on the floor as they can make a room feel warm and inviting.


2. Light

I love rooms flooded with lots of nature light, especially in the mornings.  I love kitchens and eating spaces to be light and airy as in the example below.  My kitchen is in a poor position in the house and does not get the morning sunshine so we have painted it sunny yellow and all the cupboards are cream to help with this problem. The sunniest spot in our house in the morning is the main bedroom and as a result you will often find a cat lying on the bed lapping up the warmth from the sunshine in winter. 


3. Feminine

I love rooms to be feminine and this is a work in progress in my home - some way to go yet. Often simple things such as throws, curtains, cushions,  flowers, pot plants, wall hangings, ornaments ... can make all the differences. Whilst I love feminine, I am not fan of pale pinks, my style of feminine is much bolder and brighter - strong colours.


4. Practical

Whilst I love feminine, I am also a very practical girl at heart and kitchens for me need to be practical.  I love lots of storage space, good lighting and lots of bench space. Whilst I do have plenty of bench space it would be nice to have more storage which is something I am working on. I do like the white light in this room, but as I mentioned above, that isn't something I will get in my current kitchen. Practical is also important in bathrooms and laundries - sadly my laundry is the size of a shoe box so must make the best of a poor situation!


5. Colourful

I LOVE colour which is why some of my rooms are bright yellow (I think the paint is called "sunshine")! You won't find any pastels in my home, I love bright cheery colours that create a sense of welcome and joy! I just love the yellow walls in the picture below. When we first moved into our home all the walls were pastel pink and it was just horrible - it made the house look drab. It didn't take us long to remove all the pink for something far bright and more cheerful. 


Did I mention that I love colour - here is a photo of our new rug in the living room!! Now that is colour :)) and I love it (so does DH). Can you see Ruby, she also seems to like it.



What would your house rules be? Have you managed to achieve them or is your house (like ours) a work in progress?

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Comments

  1. Hmm... This got me thinking!
    (1) Cosy - houses have to be comfy and homey without being TOO cluttered and closed in...
    (2) Feminine but also pleasing for the masculine eye - achieved with curtains, florals, colours, decorations...
    (3) Brightness - big open windows, lots of lights, open spaces (without detracting from cosiness - a balancing act to get both!)...
    (4) HEAPS of storage space - hence our current house's pantry, storage room, walk in robe, wardrobe, and other storage spaces...
    (5) Colour - don't like houses that are white or cream or dark colours from front to back - like colourful paints - blues, red, bright pink (like Miss H's room), chocolate (closest I'll come to a dark colour, but it has to be contrasted with a bright colour like our cream colour), yellows. The reason I like the brown & cream combination is because it allows for a huge range of bright coloured decorations without being overwhelming...

    Our house is still a work in progress because it's not finished, but yes, I think we have mostly achieved those 5 things in our home - at least in my opinion! (My 5 things are not in order of importance - all of them are important to me!)

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    1. Yours and mine are quite similar!!! I re-arranged some furniture on the weekend which is always fun and as good as buying new furniture!! And it also meant that DH could clean some walls for me and touch up some paint work. I don't have as much storage space as I would like - but that does keep me under control with how much I can own!!!

      As I was writing "feminine" I was thinking that DH would hate it if I went really frilly (which I wouldn't) so there needs to be a balance of feminine suitable for males. My hubby wouldn't like a house full of girly things :))

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  2. Such a lovely post! I am thinking ahead to when the rest of my 10 children are all grown and moved along (another decade-ish). My five words would be cottage, bookshelves, nature, art, inspiration. Oh, and I love baskets. Look here for what I've been working on - though yesterday I replaced the white cabinet with a larger wood hutch that matches the desk. A neighbor had put it out to the curb for someone to take for free, and it was in perfect condition! http://www.comewearymoms.blogspot.com/2014/05/organizing-little-at-time-my-desk-and.html (I am visiting from Raising Homemakers.)

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    1. Thanks for stopping by:)

      I love storage boxes too but don't have as many places to put them anymore!!! I am also a fan of cottage but it just doesn't suit our house, but I would love to live in a house that a real cottage feel.

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  3. I like the rules you have here :-) I think I would tend to agree. Warm is a must - our home is quite a cold home and it's hard to work at home when its so so cold here!!!!!

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    1. Warm is very important to us and we have managed to achieve a cosy house in winter . However we need to watch the gas bill otherwise it can be rather high in winter . Would love an open fire but they are expensive to run and not environmentally good.

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