WALLS: I just simply love soft white tones on my walls, I realize not everyone feels the same about white. But you do not have to, you know yourself and what makes you feel all fuzzy inside and what appeals to your eye. So, you can never go wrong with the things and looks that you love. For me, it’s all about calm, clean, soft, warm dreamy cottage farmhouse vibes. For my walls and ceiling I went with a low odor Behr Premium Plus paint and primer in one. You can go check out the exact color code under the Highlights section on my IG account @Farmhouse2020. And the best part is you can take the code to any Home Depot and they will do an exact color match for you which eliminates the guess work all together. Do you have a favorite paint color?
Floors: I know, call me crazy! But during our build I already knew in my mind that I wanted some dreamy white floors. Now that was the easy part, but convincing my husband to do this, well now that was quite a different feat! 4 grandkids, 2 grand pups and Kentucky clay mud not to mention the muddy creek behind our home. In my husband’s mind this was a total no go, until I showed him a picture of what my dream looked like. Then he hopped on board my dream boat and we set sail to find that dreamy white floor paint. We found a paint for porch and floors and with much anticipation and wondering if this was the right thing to do. I can say now after over a year, it was the right choice and I adore my dreamy white floors. It too is a Behr product that is on our Instagram account @Farmhouse2020 with the exact code for color matching. You can just take the code to any Home Depot and they will do an exact color match. Paint looks different in different lighting, so may I suggest getting a sample to try out first on the area you are wanting painted, natural lighting and artificial lighting play a huge roll in your paint choices. And you won’t buy 5 gallon of expensive paint that you may not use if it doesn’t have the look you were dreaming of. What is your favorite flooring?
Woods: Not sure how you feel about the look of woods and whites, but it has always been my favorite. There is just something about the look of an old, weathered ladder leaning against a soft white wall. It just draws the eye without hesitation as to say look at me! I add a touch of wood to each room in my home but being careful not to use to much or to many different tones of wood. The many different tones can throw your room off balance. I like to incorporate old vintage pieces on my walls. For an example, some old wooden masonry trowels for spreading concrete. I like to imagine the people who used them, and they make for a good story. And another great look would be old corbels or columns the front porch of an old house from years gone by. These architectural pieces add interest and texture to your walls. It could be as simple as adding a wooden bowl to your table filled with greenery and a scented candle. Whatever your love is, your home should reflect who you are. Do you have a favorite wood piece in your home?
Greenery: Every home should incorporate some greenery in it. It makes the home feel alive and brings some of the outdoors inside. I use lots of fresh rosemary and dill in my cooking and try to have some on my counter by my stove all year long. It is my absolute favorite blend for soups and steaks these days.
Snake plant is another favorite of mine. There are several species and varieties to choose from, its tall spires adds height if placed on a table in your home or in a spot that just seems dull and empty. A bit of green color may just be the thing to add to that void area in your room. I tend to go for plants that are not fussy. If you are lacking plants in your home, I am sure there are some sweet friend who would gladly gift you a cutting from their plant. And well before you know it, your home will be filled with luscious green foliage everywhere. Plants can also motivate you during those long winter months when you feel stuck inside, dreaming of warm sunny days. What might your favorite Plant be?
Texture: What would we do without texture? Every home has texture. It could be on a wall using tiles or on a bed with the mixture of velvet and lace. Texture adds interest to your space. Try adding a jute rug to your floor or some pillows on your sofa some may be soft silky feeling of velvet material and beside it maybe a knitted pillow that has a totally different feel of a soft but slightly rougher feel to the touch and look to the eye. You might be amazed at what you can do when you are willing to take a chance and try something that might be more different than anything you have ever done in your entire life. When you step back to look at it and realize oh wow! I really like that, and it is something you possibly would have never tried before. What are some of the craziest things you have ever done that actually turned out really great?
Focal Piece:
Do you collect old vintage pieces? Well, I sure do! Every home should have at least one focal piece in each room. Maybe it is an old armoire filled with interesting books you have read, maybe it’s a vintage trunk full of old linens and quilts you collected throughout your lifetime, rare pieces handed down through generations. I have an old vintage refrigerator given to me by a sweet friend, that is a safe keeping place for my Jadite dish collection. Although they are not visible when the doors are closed. I can open it when I have visitors to display my pieces which makes for a wonderful dinner conversation. Especially when you are serving your sweet friends from your precious collection. I am a believer that you should not just collect things. I understand that they may be expensive and all but what is the point in letting them just sit idle and never be seen. The joy in life is sharing special things with those around you and the people you love. The Joy is in the hunt. Is there something special you hunt for?
Lighting: In my experience, I believe lighting is huge when it comes to your home. Lighting that is natural coming through a window is always best. But not all of us have large, beautiful windows in our homes. Personally, our windows are big but didn’t bring in the light we needed in our tiny cottage farmhouse, so we chose can lights all throughout our home. We chose 4000k daylight bulbs that make all the difference when it comes to brightening up your home. You can get creative these days with all kinds of lighting ideas. Places like, under counters, in a dark hallway closet, in a dark cabinet or linen closet, but for a dreamy space give me a place in the sun where there are lots of fluffy soft pillows. Another trick for lighting is mirrors. Mirrors on a wall also reflect light making a small space brighter and appear larger as well. What is your favorite lighted space?
