There’s no point denying it: I have become my Mother.
From my deep love of coffee, to my ceaseless sarcastic input, to my love of all things baking and (I recently realized), the way I decorated my home. It started off small: my Mom was a huge fan of quotes and fun little sayings throughout the house. So when I got my first apartment, what did I have around? Quotes. As time went on I realized it wasn’t the only thing about my house and how I decorated that I got from my Mom.
I share her love of upcycling, and her need to be constantly changing and rearranging, and (if I’m honest) probably so much more! After all, my mom taught me so much about what it means to make a house a home, it only makes sense that the home I built is full of the things she taught me, for example:
Anything Can Be Upcycled
What happens when my Mom finds crates on the side of the road? She makes a bookshelf!
My Mom sees beauty in everything. That’s one of the most special things about her in my opinion. I’ve watched her use napkins, egg cartons, magazine prints, carpet squares, wallpaper books, christmas lights, glass bottles, and pretty much anything you can ever imagine to upcycle beautiful home decor that’s completely unrecognizable in its new form.
One of her favorite things to do together was garage sale hunting. We’d wake up at the crack of dawn and find furniture for her to refinish and repurpose, or glass bottles to turn into lighting or really anything. Through this, she taught me that just because something’s outdated or unwanted, doesn’t mean it can’t be given new purpose and new life!
Don’t Be Afraid of Color
Salmon. My living room and dining room in my teenage years was an awful shade of pink that inevitably gave headaches. My Mom affectionately called it “salmon”. Now mind you, at 13 years old my bedroom was hot pink and covered in High School Musical posters, so I was not in any way a person of design authority, but it didn’t make my complaining any quieter. But she taught me that at the end of the day the only one who has to love your house is you, so if you love a color, use it!
If You Can DIY, DIY
A DIY project my Mom did when she decided our TV stand was not fun enough for her taste!
Last year my best friend was getting married and my bridesmaid dress came in knee length instead of floor length just a week before the wedding. There was a mad scramble to find a replacement that led us nowhere, our only option was to find a dressmaker willing to make a new skirt in just a few days, which was going to be nearly impossible. But my Mom, being my Mom simply said, “we can do this”.
With basic sewing skills and many pots of coffee, we were able to create a brand new skirt for a dress from curtains and upholstery fabric which was completely indistinguishable from the the other bridesmaids dresses. She was always like this. Need a something fixed? She will fix it. She taught me from a young age that a lot of times, DIY is not only good for the wallet, but good for the soul.
Let Your Home Be Your Oasis
This is maybe the most important thing my Mom taught me about not only the decorating of a home, but what the energy of a home is. From the decor, to the paint color, to the furniture and pretty much everything else, it should bring you joy and peace. If the lighting wasn’t right anymore or she didn’t like a table anymore, it was simply time to find something new.
But this was always something that was about more than decor, it was about creating an environment in which you felt you could actually feel at home. She wanted our home to be a place we could DIY, paint, write, draw, sew or really do anything that allowed for expression. A philosophy I’ve always held close to my heart.
My Mom has taught me so much in my life. To walk and talk, to read a book and make a joke, to bake cupcakes and use my crockpot. But what she taught me that stayed with me more than anything were the things she taught me through her actions: First, that home should be a place you can feel loved, accepted and inspired. And secondly, that family, biological or chosen, stands together and loves together.
From homeyou, and myself personally, thank you to my Mom and all the moms out there. Your love is what makes the world go around.
