packing

Last week's road trip was really inspiring. At the swimming hole, Lisa talked about how she doesn't have things in her house, (or her life for that matter), that don't feel good. She's pared down her wardrobe to reflect her aesthetic, and she was/is in the process of doing the same for her home. 

Our conversation really struck a chord with me. In a perpetual state of reducing, my closet and bureau are now full of clothes that I like and wear. My shoes and boots have been honed and so have my bags. Friends have been recipients of gently used items that are now where they belong; much better than sitting in a bin waiting for the time when I might want it, (as if that time will ever come).

What do we want going forward? Is a common beginning to our discussions of late. Finally, we're passing along our dining table and chairs. We never meant to have them this long, we wanted to ditch it when we moved two years ago. We were certain we'd use this one until we found another, and you know how that goes. I've taken careful measurements in our new house and I'm heading out on a re-con mission after an appointment tomorrow morning to scope out the table I'm coveting and need to convince the mister is 'the one.'


It feels good to dump our mis-matched sheets and towels. A jumbled combination of our room, miss A's room and the guest room, mashed together into one tiny, cramped space so that everything is worn and used and not in that good, worn way. Silly as it sounds, I'm really looking forward to having each room with its own things, so when guests arrive I'm not scrambling for the duvet cover, or a pair of matching towels.


Here's a medley of 'before' photos of our new home. 

top row: 
front of the house, 2-living room, guest bath with a shower(!)
2nd row: 
wine fridge (!), and a counter dedicated to my cookbooks, be still my heart, the cheesy window box behind the sink that will become an amazing herb garden, the dining area, and finally, the family room 
3rd row: 
family room again, our bedroom our bathroom, (with a soaking tub!!!), and the turret room for my vanity table (!!)
4th row: 
2 of the living room, the terrace, (this is where we'll put the hammock instead of the seating), and finally, the back of the house.


We have all of our existing furniture mentally placed and we've decided on a set for the terrace, which will face away from the sun, and a hammock, (yay!), instead of a chaise.


That blue wall that you see above will become a warm sand color, the swatch already placed in my journal. We're starting in this home with a neutral palette; living in the space, learning its flow before we make any big purchases.