Words of Wisdom Archives

What Decorating and Life Have In Common

August 10, 2018

Happy Friday! I’m popping in today to share a post I originally shared over 5 years ago. I remember at the time I was contemplating with whether to make some big changes in my decor. And looking back, I was also feeling a little uneasy in my life as well. The idea of change wasn’t sitting well with me so I wrote this post.

Here I am some 5 years later thinking about change again. So what better way to refocus my thoughts and energy than to take my own piece of advice. This post has as much to do about design and decorating as it does about living life to the fullest. Sometimes you need to step back and look at things in a different way before moving forward.

DESIGN LESSONS FOR YOUR HOME and LIFE

1. Styles Change and So Should You—I know that not everyone is like me and has their décor in a constant state of change, but I do believe that as people change the décor they surround themselves with should change as well. This doesn’t mean changing every piece you own, just change the things that no longer fit your lifestyle or taste. Surround yourself with only those things that bring you joy. Life Lesson: This also goes for the people you surround yourself with! Life is too short to have people in your life that don’t lift you up.

2. If you Love it, Buy it–If I had a penny for every time I’ve said those words to a client, I’d own a private island. If you buy things you love, you’ll always find a place for them in your home. Be fiscally responsible but don’t walk about from things that spark your happiness. And remember, bringing something new into your home may shine a light on something you should let go of. Life Lesson: You never regret anything you do out of love!

3. Trust your Gut–Design is as much about looking good and it is about feeling good. If something doesn’t feel right about your décor, take the time to study it and figure out what it is that bothers you. Your home should make you feel comfortable and at ease! Life Lesson: Pay attention to the feeling in your gut when you are around people and situations that don’t make you feel good. Instinct and intuition are all-powerful. Learn to trust them.

4. Design Should be a Marathon, not a Sprint–I do it and I know many of you do it as well….rush the design process. We want immediate gratification instead of holding out for the right thing. Decorating your home should be a process, with time given to understanding the look you want, the way you live in the space and the way you want your home to feel. Taking time to create the living space you dream of will result in a home that you’ll love for years to come. Life Lesson: Whenever you want to make a change in your life, work at it each day and make it a habit and not expect it to all happen over night.

5. Design for the Space you Live in, Not the Space you Dream Of–I’ve worked with clients who buy things with the idea of it working in the home they “hope” to live in one day and not the home they actually live in now. While it’s always good to buy pieces that can function in different ways, don’t get caught up in buying furniture or decor that is not suited for your current living environment. Make the most of what you have, with where you are! Life Lesson: Find and appreciate every moment and every thing that exist in your life today. Tomorrow is not guaranteed to anyone and neither is that water front mansion that may be your dream home.

6. Too Much of a Good Thing can be Bad–Good design is about lots of little things coming together to create a beautiful space. Too much of the same thing whether it be color, a pattern or an item can turn tasteful décor into décor gone bad. Life Lesson: All things in moderation.

7. Sometimes You Have to Challenge Yourself–Getting in a rut with your design style is easy to do. We all become comfortable with what we have and the idea of implementing a change can feel overwhelming. As with life, you need to challenge your design style from time to time. Try incorporating a new color into your décor or rearrange your furniture to create a different look for a room. Change your thought pattern from “I’ve always done it like this” to “What if I did it like this?”. Life Lesson: To grow and be the best that you can be in life you have to challenge yourself to do things that move you forward and expose you to new ways of thinking and doing.

8. You Have to Look Up as Well as Ahead–Ceiling are an important part of décor and often times they get neglected which can cast a negative view on a space. Consider your ceiling as the 5th wall and paint it or treat it in a way that enhances your décor. If paint is not your thing think about a ceiling medallion for the chandelier or enhance your crown molding. Life Lesson: Creating a vision for your life and your career is one of the surest ways to make it happen. Whether you believe it or not, your thoughts do become things and what you think you become!

9. Interior Design is Not About the Stuff, It’s About What you Do with That Stuff–Taking the time to create a living environment that allows you to live your best life and to nourish your spirit are the things that matter most in design. Create furniture arrangements that allow you family to connect, hang photos that tell your family story and decorate with items that give you a sense of comfort and joy . Life Lessons: Who you are defines what you do & What you do defines who you are! Life is 10% of what happens to you, and 90% of how you react to it.

10. The More you Love Your Decisions, the Less You Need Others to Love Them. Social media can definitely spin you into the comparison trap and leave you feeling less than. Remember that you were put on this earth for a purpose and to create your own path. Don’t let anyone dull your sparkle or dim your light. Life Lesson: You are the captain of your ship and your happiness is in your hands.

When You Believe | Words To Inspire

January 25, 2018

source

I’ve always been a believer in the power of positive thoughts. My mom and dad would always tell me and my brother that if you believe you can do something then you can achieve it. That was a powerful message as a kid and one that still resonates with me to this day.

Believing in yourself is essential to your happiness in life and business so today, wherever you are in life just BELIEVE!

source

Words of Wisdom

February 25, 2016

Hi friends, today’s post is not about design, entertaining or gifting but about sharing a few Words Of Wisdom & Inspiration!

If you follow my Pinterest boards you know that one of my favorite things to pin are inspirational quotes. The quotes that I pin are words that resonate with me and provide a source of inspiration, strength, wisdom or a gentle reminder of what’s important in life. I went on a pinning binge that other night and found several new quotes that hit home. I’m sharing them with you today in case you need a virtual hug, a gentle reminder or a spark of inspiration. Be inspired!

It has taken me many years to realize just how true this statement is. Early in my life and career, I recognized moments of uncomfort but brushed it off thinking that I just needed to work harder or go about life a little differently. What I didn’t acknowledge was how my felt inside, my spirit and my soul. Once I learned to settle my mind and listen to my inner being, I was able to recognize what my soul was telling me. To grow and be the best that I could be, I needed to let go of the negative forces and people around me and most importantly I needed to find the true value in myself, my talents and my abilities. When you feel uncomfortable in life, take the time to be still, listen and move in the direction that God is pushing you. And remember this, “Sometimes God doesn’t give you what you think you want, not because you don’t deserve it, but because you deserve much more.”

This has to be one of my all-time favorite quotes and I believe whole heartedly in these words. If you were to ask any of my family or friends, they would tell you that I am a glass half full kinda of person. Yes I have bad days and moments of struggle but I know that my mindset and attitude in dealing with those moments makes all the difference in moving past that and reaching my goals. Don’t let your struggles weigh you down, instead tap into your strengths and abilities and develop and attitude of success instead of an attitude of defeat.

Here’s something you may not know about me, I’m a pretty impulsive person and I’m up for most adventures (with the exception of jumping out of a plane). It’s not uncommon for me to wake up on a Saturday morning and tell my husband to get dressed because we’re hitting the road. He just gives me that look and ask where we’re going. Sometimes I tell him and other times I leave him wondering until we get to our destination. I love exploring new place, learning about new things and creating new experiences in my life. As a child, I spent every summer exploring the US via car. We traveled to see places like the Grand Canyon, Yellow Stone Park and Reptile Gardens in South Dakota. Traveling at a young age and then as an adult has opened my mind up to all that life has to offer. Allow yourself to be adventurous and your life will be richly enhanced.

♥♥♥

You can follow my Words To Inspire Pinterest board here.

Inspirational Books Worth Reading

February 12, 2015

As I gotten older and life has become busier and more involved, I’ve found that reading inspirational books helps to keep me balanced, focused and optimistic. Don’t get me wrong, I’m in no way a pessimistic person. I choose to see the glass half full, I always think there’s a way even if it doesn’t look like it and I truly believe that good things come when you match your talent with your effort.

A source of inspiration that I tap into daily is books. Not books with chapters full of self-help info but books that offer up a short and sweet piece of wisdom, advice, inspiration or self-love.

Because my blog is all about inspiration, I thought it would be fun to share a few of my favorite daily inspiration books with you here on the blog. Click on the cover images to buy the book.

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I think I’ve read every one of the books Oprah has published but this is the book that I’ve loved the most. What I Know For Sure is filled with life lessons that will set you on the path to living a life of fulfillment and joy.

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I know many of you have read books by Norman Vincent Peale and have been inspired. His book, Positive Thinking Every Day is a daily dose of advice on living a fuller, happier, more satisfying life.

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Some of the best daily inspiration books were written years ago but the wisdom they offer is still as valuable today as it was then. One of my old-school inspiration books is Don’t Sweat The Small Stuff. Sometimes the book title and tagline says it all.

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This last book holds a special place in my heart. My friend Leesa had a dream of writing this book and finally made that dream come true last year. In Live Well, Leesa offers up an enormous amount of sound advice on living a healthy life. In Leesa’s words…“What you eat, what you actually absorb from your food and supplements, what products you use ~ on your body, in your home and office, how you talk to yourself ~ it all matters! I believe that excellent health ~ not just physical, but spiritual, emotional, relational, and mental health ~ is found along your journey, not just at your destination.”

If you take the time to read any of these books, I know you’ll continue to live your best life possible.

Be inspired!

10 Design Rules (that also apply to life)!

November 4, 2013

Hello there! I hope the first weekend of November was a good one for you. I spent the weekend doing some shopping, working on projects and getting lots of housework done. There’s nothing like sitting down on a Sunday evening with house cleaning checked off the to-do list.

Over the last few weeks as I’ve been working on different design projects and thinking about different pieces of my life, I realized that many of the design principles I use in my work are also very pertinent to life. I’ve never really thought about it before but designing a room is much like designing a life….

1. Styles Change and So Should You—I know that not everyone is like me and has their décor in a constant state of change, but I do believe that as people change the décor they surround themselves with should change as well. This doesn’t mean changing out every piece you own, only changing the things that no longer fit your lifestyle or your taste. Surround yourself with only those things that bring you joy. Life Lesson: This goes for the people you surround yourself with too!

2. If you Love it, Buy it–If I had a penny for every time I’ve said those words to a client. One of the things that I’ve learned over the years is that even if you don’t see it in the moment, you will find a place in your home for something you truly love. Often times bringing in something new shines a light on something you should let go of. Life Lesson: You never regret anything you do out of love!

3. Trust your Gut–Design is as much about looking good and it is about feeling good. If something doesn’t feel right about your décor, take the time to study it and figure out what it is that bothers you. Your home should make you feel comfortable and at ease! Life Lesson: Pay attention to the feeling in your gut when you are around people and situations that don’t make you feel good. Instinct and intuition are all-powerful. Learn to trust them.

4. Design Should be a Marathon, not a Sprint–I do it and I know many of you do it as well….rush the design process. We want immediate gratification instead of holding out for the right thing. Decorating your home should be a process, with time given to understanding the look you want, the way you live in the space and the way you want your home to feel. Taking time to create the living space you dream of will result in a home that you’ll love for years to come. Life Lesson: Whenever you want to make a change in your life, you should work at it each day and make it a habit and not expect it to all happen over night.

5. Design for the Space you Live in, Not the Space you Dream Of–I’ve worked with several clients who buy things with the idea of it working in the home they “hope” to live in one day and not the home they actually live in now. While it is always a good idea to buy pieces that can function in many of different ways, don’t get caught up in buying furniture that is not ideally suited for your current living environment. Make the most of what you have, with where you are! Life Lesson: Find and appreciate every moment and every thing that exist in your life today. Tomorrow is not guaranteed to anyone and neither is that water front mansion that may be your dream home.

6. Too Much of a Good Thing can be Bad–Good design is about lots of little things coming together to create a beautiful space. Too much of the same thing whether it be color, a pattern or an item can turn tasteful décor into décor gone bad. Life Lesson: All things in moderation.

7. Sometimes You Have to Challenge Yourself–Getting in a rut with your design style is easy to do. We all become comfortable with what we have and the idea of implementing a change can sometimes be overwhelming. I’m here to tell you that as with life you also need to challenge your design style from time to time. Try incorporating a new color into your décor or rearranging your furniture to create a different point of view for a room. Change your thought pattern from “I’ve always done it like this” to “What if I did it like this?”. Life Lesson: To grow and be the best that you can be in life you have to challenge yourself to do things that move you forward and expose you to new ways of thinking and doing.

8. You Have to Look Up as Well as Ahead–Ceiling are an important part of décor and often times they get neglected which can cast a negative view on a space. Consider your ceiling as the 5th wall of a room and paint it or treat it in a way to enhances your décor. If paint is not your thing think about a ceiling medallion for the chandelier or enhance your crown molding. Life Lesson: Creating a vision for your life and your career is one of the surest ways to make it happen. Whether you believe it or not, your thoughts do become things and what you think you become!

9. Interior Design is Not About the Stuff, It’s About What you Do with That Stuff–Taking the time to create a living environment that allows you to live your best life and to nourish your spirit are the things that matter most in design. Create furniture arrangements that allow you family to connect, hang photos that tell the story of your family and decorate with items that give you a sense of comfort and joy . Life Lessons: Who you are defines what you do, What you do defines who you are! Life is 10% of what happens to you, and 90% of how you react to it.

DESIGN LESSONS FOR YOUR HOME and LIFE

Hi friends, today’s post is not about design, entertaining or gifting but about sharing a few Words Of Wisdom & Inspiration!

Hello there! I hope the first weekend of November was a good one for you. I spent the weekend doing some shopping, working on projects and getting lots of housework done. There’s nothing like sitting down on a Sunday evening with house cleaning checked off the to-do list.

6. Too Much of a Good Thing can be Bad–Good design is about lots of little things coming together to create a beautiful space. Too much of the same thing whether it be color, a pattern or an item can turn tasteful décor into décor gone bad. Life Lesson: All things in moderation.

10 The More you Love Your Decisions, the Less You Need Others to Love Them. Life Lesson: This is something we should all strive for!

What design or life lessons do you live by? I’d love to know.