Out with White, In with Bold
After 19 years of decorating for resale, we’re finally creating a home that feels like us
Our Forever Home aka The Home Alone House! Filled with so many incredible memories.
For over 19 years of marriage, we’ve moved every two to three years, so you can probably imagine that it’s pretty hard to make home feel like home under those circumstances. With every new house, we purchased with the thought of “ease to sell” and we’d move in with the same thought: What can we do to make this home beautiful while keeping resale in mind?
We took the safe approach whenever it was time to “make it our own.” That meant neutral walls, safe design choices, and making sure whatever changes we did make, it would appeal to the next family who would call it home.
Don’t get me wrong, I love me a good neutral palette. In fact, if you looked in my closet right now, you’d see 80% whites, creams, and browns as my clothing of choice. But for my home, I’ve always loved rich colors, beautiful patterns, traditional furniture, and rooms that feel like they’ve been collected over time. I believe in spaces that not only tell a story, but bring to life the memories they hold. Rooms should not just be something to look at but something that gives you a specific feeling.
For years, I admired those homes from a distance. Even though I was a neutral queen in practice, I would still fill my Pinterest boards with rooms inspired by Ralph Lauren, Dark Academia, and other bold yet timeless designs. It felt unnatural to constantly convince myself that neutral was the practical choice, but I did it anyway.
But almost four years into this home and something has changed for me. I think part of it is simply the season of life we’re in. For so many years, Ryan and I were in the thick of raising four young children, building careers, moving from house to house, and trying to keep up with everything life threw our way. And while those years were filled with beautiful memories, there was also a lot of just trying to get through the day.
Now things are different. We’re watching our children graduate high school, learn to drive, get dressed up for school dances, (except Mac- he’s learning to ride bikes still) and experience all of the milestones that once seemed so far away. We’re still busy, and there’s never a dull moment with four kids, but I don’t feel like we’re simply trying to keep our heads above water anymore.
We’re in a season where we can slow down just enough to appreciate the life we’ve spent all these years building. And I think that’s changed how I want us to approach our home, too.
So, dare I say we’re finally in our forever home? The one we dreamed about, worked toward, and hoped to fill with years of family memories. When we began our search for this home, we searched with all of that in mind and happened upon this house that we nicknamed “The Home Alone House.” The previous owners also had four kiddos and raised their family over many years in this house. Walking in, you could just feel the memories oozing from the walls. The rich wooden detail, the grand kitchen that felt incredible for hosting, and the layers of character in the wallpaper all made this big house feel so intimate. And as a bonus, it looked like the kind of house that Kevin could set up loads of booby traps if he were trying to escape the Wet Bandits here!
For the first time in nineteen years, we started looking at things differently. This could really be OUR home. And today, we’ve officially stopped thinking about the next buyer. We’re thinking about what WE want.
So, we’re starting with the dining room, which happens to be one of my favorite rooms in the house. There are still plenty of decisions to make but I have a pretty clear vision of what I want the finished space to look like. I want it to mimic the type of memories we’ve already made in that room through birthdays, holidays, and other celebrations. I want it to feel warm, timeless, collected, layered, and full of character. Lots of character. And I will do that through wood flooring, bold wallpaper, character lighting, and some vintage furniture finds. So far, I am liking what I am putting together so now it’s a matter of that patience we talked about in the first post. Did I mention I am not the most patient person? I’m working on it!
And if this journey means saying goodbye to the white walls that have oddly given me a sense of comfort all these years, and instead embracing a little more color, pattern, and personality? Well, I think it’s about time.
Follow me on Instagram as we take on this exciting transformation, one room at a time. We’re calling this series, Speakes in Progress.
Our warm and cozy dining room mood board