Oh my, it has been so long since I have popped on here to do any sort of update! This year has been full of a lot of self-growth, and new things in several areas of my life, and it’s an understatement to say that this blog and the PLC instagram has taken a back seat (like, the back of the bus, back seat). So, if you are still hanging around here to see my posts, I want to truly thank you for your patience, and your continued interest in what I am doing over here in our home.
I am still attempting to figure out balance when it comes to this, as I want this blog to remain a place of joy and inspiration. I thought I would spend some time chatting and sharing my thoughts while you scroll through some photos of how our kitchen looks right now. This way, if you’re just here for the photos and sources, this isn’t too boring for you, but if you do want to read along as well, feel free!
As much as I truly love home design and decor, and creating a place that feels like a sanctuary, I have mentioned before that because my style has changed a lot and is much more simple now, the reality is that once I set things up in a way that I like I rarely change anything for a whole season, or sometimes longer! I might toy with a bit of a new set up on a table here or there, but not a lot that’s new really happens over here decor-wise anymore, and I’m good with that! It just means that if I want to share a photo of a space, it likely looks the same as the last time you may have seen it, and that doesn’t feel all that exciting to show you, haha.
Additionally, staging photos, taking them in perfect lighting, editing them (sometimes forever) to get them to look how I would like, etc. all takes me a lot of time. I think for many other bloggers it isn’t as big of a deal, but for me it really is, at least at this point in my life, haha. So in my focus on other areas I am passionate about this year, I honestly just haven’t been getting around to any of it!
An area I have been really pressing into this year, that has taken more of my focus than it had previously, has been my homemaking, my role in our household through that, and in cultivating my femininity. I have been studying it, actually taking the time to define it for myself, setting goals surrounding that, and then doing my best to begin walking those things out in my life.
A lot of my emphasis with this has been in cultivating both myself and my environment to be a place that nurtures. This involves both creativity and fun, of course, but also needs to include a healthy measure of discipline and responsibility. When applied to home decor and design, this means I have been much stronger in sticking to a budget for those things, and in actually trying to learn to do with less.
The reality is that because I am a homemaker, we live on one income. I know many other housewives and stay-at-home mom’s can relate to this. While maturing into this role, I have realized that a big part of that is being a good steward of the resources provided to me by my husband.
I used to shop around online all the time, and would usually be at HomeSense (HomeGoods in the US) at least once a week, to make sure if anything new came in that was cute, that I would be the one to get it! This has left me over the years with much more decor than I need, or honestly than I even want. I still get new things here or there, for example we just built a back patio so we needed some patio furniture, etc. so we could use that space, however I feel sometimes in the home decor community there can be a large emphasis on always getting the newest, prettiest stuff, and in always updating your home with new, sometimes expensive, pieces.
I want to be on guard with how much I allow that consumerism to come into my life. So though it’s difficult at times, I am trying to remain aware of that and filter my purchasing decisions through that lens from here on out.
This means I am shopping my own home much more often for decor styling, and am trying to move towards a curated home environment, where I seek pieces that I truly love and will keep around for much longer.
I believe this is beginning to show in my decorating a bit as well. I had done a complete 180 from rustic farmhouse over to quite modern for awhile there, but now I am finding pieces that I really enjoy, and that create the feel of a collected home, that I think looks a bit more classic and timeless.
For our kitchen, I love bright whites to keep things feeling clean, wood tones to bring in a very natural feel, and ceramics & pottery for that classic, curated look.
These are similar vibes to the rest of our home right now as well. I still always like to keep things cohesive, so that it feels seamless from room to room as I’m walking through my home, doing my daily homemaking duties.
This cohesion, as well as keeping things clean and picked-up, are huge ways that I believe I can make our home feel peaceful, and this is part of creating an environment that nurtures both my soul, and hopefully others whom we welcome into it.
I am interested to know, did you like hearing some further thoughts beyond just decor talk in today’s post? If I included some posts about improving homemaking, cultivating femininity, or other things I am learning in the future, would you be interested in that? I would truly love to know! As I have grown over the last five or so years of having this blog, my areas of interest and passions have expanded, and though I feel moving in that direction could work well here, because I have built this platform strictly on home design and decor I want to make sure you feel the same way. So feel free to share your thoughts!
I sincerely appreciate you reading along today, friends. If you feel inclined to share, let me know in what ways you have learned about, or grown in, your homemaking.
As always, thanks for stopping by!
[show_shopthepost_widget id=”3630652″]
[show_shopthepost_widget id=”3630654″]
[show_shopthepost_widget id=”3630655″]
[show_shopthepost_widget id=”3630658″]
[show_shopthepost_widget id=”3630664″]
[show_shopthepost_widget id=”3630660″]
Such a bright and pretty kitchen, Rachel! And I am right there with you, learning to balance my creativity in our home and peace with what we have (which is so much!). I think it is something we need to work out for ourselves and continue to evaluate in different seasons. I love being a homemaker and think about these things often. Thank you for sharing your heart! Happy weekend 🙂
LikeLike
You have a beautiful Kitchen! I completely understand where you are coming from. I am new the blogging world and trying to focus on practical ways to cultivate a home. I am also a working mama so I finding time to stage the house and edit photos can be difficult. Do what your hearts lead you to do and the audience will follow 😊
LikeLike