House to Home is possible in any space that you are living in, at least I believe that 100%. What do I mean by this? I mean making any space that you are currently living in, regardless of size or layout, a place that you can call home and enjoy in your own special way. We’ve moved around quite a lot over the last 10 years, and we love to make our new houses into homes. However with moving around a lot, it can be difficult to make a space feel your own and it takes a lot of energy to get your head around decorating a space every few years. When moving around there’s always a lot of reshuffling of items, from donating old ones or buying new ones that are immediately needed to fill a space. Whatever approach you have to making your living accommodations your own remember that it is for you and your own enjoyment, so be you and don’t be afraid to embed your own style and personality into the space you create. So I’ve come up with some ideas to help you if you’re moving a space or are in the mood to change up some of your decor at home currently. These ideas are some that I’ve picked up along my many years of moving and that I use now and will continue to use when we eventually have to move once more.
Decorate the Floor
Area Rugs are probably my favorite thing to decorate a space with. Although they can be expensive, we have several that are now in their third home, so it can definitely be worth the investment. I have found great deals for area rugs in places like Amazon, Costco, or other local bargain stores. Area rugs are an easy fix to dress up a space. They can be used to hide a hideous floor pattern, carpet, or to protect a high traffic area. They also help define a space, which can be really good if you have awkward sized rooms. I’ve recently liked the idea of layering rugs, like I’ve done here a small rug over a more neutral colored rug (pictured above are linked here). It’s definitely helped in our current home to use some area rugs to spruce up rooms with flooring that aren’t our favorite.
Indoor Nature
Another favorite is having plants in our home. There’s something about greenery making an area feel homey and fresh. Potted plants are great because you can buy plants when you first arrive to a new home and watch them grow over the time period that you’re there. They’re also good parting gifts when you leave (sad I know), but if you can’t transport them with you on a move, you can leave them with a new loving home. Another good thing about potted plants is the pots and planters, I have several that I’ve had over the years that were a bit more expensive, especially heavy ceramic ones that I’ve continued to use. Pots and planters are one of those great things that can be re-used infinitely and never go out of style.
Window Dress Up
Curtains can be the best addition to any space. Over the years we moved to a house that had no blinds, another that had blinds that felt as if we were in an office, and another that had curtains that looked to have been made in the 50s. Invest in ones that are neutral colors that can be used in different areas with different painted walls or wall paper. Sheer curtains are also a good idea if you want to hide not-so-pretty blinds but you still want natural light to come through. What to look for: curtains that are beige, white, light grey, simple design, sheer.
Organize and Present
I’m a bit obsessed with organizing and storing everything in its proper space. A lot of landlords don’t permit holes in the walls or perhaps you don’t want to deal with patching holes once you have to move. Free standing shelving or storage of various sizes will definitely be a good investment. If you’re moving, you can take these with you and they can be used the same or differently in your new home. Bookshelves that are free standing are a great way to organize, store, and display home decor. A bar cart is another great piece of furniture that can be used as that, or can also be used as a bedside table or office organizer. Baskets, boxes, ottoman storage, and trunks are other great pieces of furniture that don’t require any permanent installation and can be used in any space or home.
DIY in Your Home
DIY is something that works really great in rental spaces. Obviously in most places that are rentals, you won’t be able to do huge renovations in the home itself, but you can create stuff that you can display in your home and that you can take with you as well if you ever leave. We actually have a few pieces that hubby has made that have moved around with us as well, and they’re great because we know they’re unique but also because they have a story to tell as well. A few ideas for DIY can be seating areas, like a bench or chair, wall decor from things you’ve gathered throughout the years, or simple things like plant hangers or stands. In the picture above, hubby made the wall mounts from scrap wood and I made the plant hangers from scrap wood and twine that I’ve had in a cupboard for over a year without ever being used. So you see, simple as that, it’s just a matter of getting creative, and best of all it can be something that you can take along with you if you’re planning on moving again.
More Tips
Over the years these are the things we’ve embedded in our homes. A few other tips we’ve learned:
*If you don’t have restrictions with how much you are able to move, I would recommend taking all your items with you to your new home. We do this because we never know what we’ll need in a new space, often we tend to run into “We wish we would not have gotten rid of that”. The only things we don’t move with us are those that are damaged.
**Take your time in your new home. Once you’re in your new home it’s good to take your time and really decide how you want to decorate or arrange different spaces and rooms. Rushing to buy items as soon as you arrive, may not work later on once you’ve really had time to settle in.
***Don’t be afraid to make bold changes. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve rearranged decor or furniture items in our home, even very drastic ones. It’s nice to explore spaces in different ways and decide how you like each depending on your mood. I have friends who change their homes around every season! So definitely do it and see what changes you prefer.
There you have it, a few inspirational pictures and some tips of how we manage to make a home of every place we move to. Enjoy!
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