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Mindful, conscious, soulful and authentic are buzzwords you often hear in the personal growth industry. Even the food industry has embraced them. Slowly, they have made their way into Interior Decorating or Conscious Decorating as it's called. So, what exactly is Conscious Decorating? It is a hybrid of intentionally creating beautiful spaces in your home that support and nourish you and personal growth. Since our homes are a reflection of us and our story, it’s really about taking control and writing our next chapter.
Using your resources to consciously decorate your home is not frivolous spending. It should be considered a “Self-Care Investment”. It’s an investment in yourself, in your family and in your dreams for the future. Conscious Decorating has always come natural to me. I made the connection over a decade ago by just listening to my clients and to the triggering events that led up to them hiring me to redesign a space for them. I have one client that I started working with after a traumatic divorce. We have worked on reclaiming her home for her and her family one room at a time - we have completed 7 room projects together and have one in the pipeline. It’s been such a transformational experience (for both of us), that she includes my design fees in her “Self-Care Budget” - right up there with Yoga, Massages and Mani/Pedi’s!
If the concept of Conscious Decorating is new to you, I'm sharing 5 steps you can take to Consciously Decorate your home:
Step One to Consciously Decorating Your Home
Assess and Let It Go:
Do you have items that you can’t live without? Keep them!
Conversely, do you have items that you CAN live without – let them go, release them.
Do you still own stuff from a previous marriage, a partnership gone wrong, a friendship that’s not so friendly anymore? I’m not saying that you have to get rid of everything. I just want you to really look at these items to see if they still align with your current life today and moving forward. Items can sometimes be placeholders for an unpleasant time. Holding onto the stuff can mean you’re holding onto the unfinished business too and that’s just bad juju.
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Step Two to Consciously Decorating Your Home
Repair, Refresh, Reimagine:
If you are going to keep it, then commit to fixing it. A vintage chair that holds fond memories but has seen better days? Time to reupholster it with that fabric sitting in your “craft closet”. Speaking of the “craft closet”... listen closely now…that fabric that you’ve had for over 10 years for that quilt project you’re never going to finish…please donate it. Even if you decide to go forward with the quilt project within the next 5 years, crusty calicos aren’t cute anymore. Someone had to say it. What about that headboard taking up space in the garage? Time to finally paint it and use it in the guest room. What? No guest room? Repurpose it into a bench. You kept it because you couldn’t live without it, please use it in your home.
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Step Three to Consciously Decorating Your Home
Channel Your Inner-Huntress:
Once you’ve released a few things, you may have some holes that need to be filled. A trip to the Flea Market or Estate Sales should fix that for you. Vintage is the ultimate in custom décor. If it’s out there and meant for you to put in your home – you’ll find it. Trust me, it’s my mantra.
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Step Four to Consciously Decorating Your Home
Cue the Fairy Dust and Magic:
Anyone that’s ever worked with me, KNOWS that this is my favorite part of the process. This is where you sprinkle fairy dust and magic over your space. Are you a nature lover? Bring the outdoors in. Create a mini succulent wall. Bring in some live plants, fresh flowers and fill your fruit bowls with oranges. Are you a mermaid in disguise? Bring in a small water feature or aquarium so your mermaid tail doesn’t dry up. And scented candles - do I even have to mention them?! Vanilla scented candles for me, always.
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Step Five to Consciously Decorating Your Home
Celebrate like Kool & the Gang:
Change is not easy and you need to connect with your new space. I compare it to when you do a little Retail Therapy, then you come home with your bags full of new clothes, empty them out on the bed and start creating “outfits” with the shoes and jewelry you already own. You put it all on, look at it from different angles, do some poses in the mirror and when you know you look cute, you make a duck face and take a selfie. After that you go out and celebrate how cute you look with the girls. It’s exactly like that. Try on your new digs for size. Sit in it, enjoy it, connect with it then invite some friends over for drinkie-poos to celebrate with you.
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A Couple of Don’ts for good measure.
Don’t try to mimic anyone. Conscious Decorating is about reflecting you and your story in your home.
Don’t be afraid to use color – take cues from nature or better yet, take cues from your closet!
Don’t be afraid to hire a designer (shameless plug), but make sure that it’s one that gets you and keeps you connected to your space. Trust yourself to find the right designer for you.
Your home is a reflection of you and your life and a playground for self-expression. If you can’t make yourself visible in the safety of your own home, then my guess is that you probably aren’t making yourself visible outside of your home.
You can redesign your life by redesigning your home if you do it consciously.
Just remember, if you get stuck, I'm here.
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