Home makeover update, we are getting there, almost done!

Maeve updates us on her mini home makeover - see her results below!

Last fall I embarked on a min home makeover and I want to share an update! The exciting news is that I got my new furniture and made my new DIY divider wall. This was a big step, as my sofa was 17 years old and my divider wall was a meant to be a temporary fix, eight years ago. #makeover

My journey began with some careful planning. I’m usually a little more impulsive when it comes to decor for my home, but I needed to save up for new furniture. I was a bit stumped on what solution I wanted for a new room divider, so I put some time into exploring options.

One day I was in Michaels and I stumbled upon an enormous display of wood crates. I had the idea to face some forward, some backwards, and before I knew it I was building a sample wall in the isle. Next I knew I was home ordering 20 crates–20 crates! I poked around online a bit and found tons of inspiring crate walls photos and Pinterest galleries. It was an ideal solution.

Next up was my furniture. I was pretty sure I knew what I wanted, but I decided to mood board ideas to test things out. I spent a long time exploring a white and cream home, a move away from the bright colors that have defined my space. I was set on a cream rug, but then a blue rug I’d had my eye on went on clearance at Room & Board and I scooped it up.

Furniture arrival day came, and I was pretty excited! The Room & Board delivery team was great, and after months of anticipation, everything look exactly as I expected.

I’d been eager to introduce mid-century modern plants into my home, and today was the day. I had a Snake Plant and a ZZ Plant all cued up, and the moment the delivery team left I put them in place.

Before my furniture arrived, I took time to declutter. My plan was to extract my beautiful antique pie cupboard from my bedroom and bring it into the kitchen, and to do so, I had to go through a ton of stuff. I also had to find homes for a host of living room items, as my new furniture had no storage. I began the task of going through things carefully, touching everything once. This is what I do with my Maeve’s Method clients, so it was a blast to do it for myself.

As I worked I let things go. But more exciting, I created brand new space to showcase and store things that I love, including my jazz and classical music library. For years I’ve wanted to store my library next to my piano, to inspire me to perform and play. My new crate wall gave me the chance.

While all this was happening, another big change was taking place: I was creating a smart home. Over the holidays I bought a Google Home Mini and partnered it with a few Geeni smart plugs and a Google Chromecast. Overnight, I had a ton of new routines in my life. I can cast my browser to my TV screen–I can say, “Hey Google, I’m home” and my lights turn on and WBGO.org broadcasts on my speakers.

A friend of mine said, “I like to turn on my own lights”, and you know what, before this change I would have agreed. But now, I love it. I’ve always been a tech geek, so this upgrade was a long time coming.

I’d covered a lot of ground, but I didn’t know what I was missing until my exquisitely talented friend, Interior Designer, YunChi Jong came over and put her magical hands all over my home. YunChi set about rearranging everything I own, carefully clustering and moving furniture, plants and home decor until everything was just so.

In design theory there is something called The Rule of Three. It’s a guideline for how to compose aesthetically pleasing and balanced visuals. As an organizer, I like to think I know how to style a home, but let me tell you, there’s an entirely other level of polish that a skilled interior designer can bring into a space, and I was beyond lucky to have YunChi grace my home with her amazing skills.

At the end of the day, nothing makes a new home shine like the company of friends. So when all was said and done I hosted a holiday party and guests–and cats!–made my new home come alive. Everyone knows I’m a country girl at heart, so my friends got a kick out of my raw wood crate shelves mixed with modern mid-century furniture. They declared it country-chic!

What I love most about my new home is it’s simplicity. It has clean lines, simple colors and even more places to display decor and for my plants to grow. Moving and home makeovers can be stressful. It’s a time to review what we own and make changes for our future. But the process can also be clarifying, and can bring into focus what’s important in life, and what we are ready to let go.

I’m excited by what I accomplished. I feel lighter and happier at home. And when I’m ready I’ll take on a few final projects, like new lighting and maybe, yes maybe, finally changing the color of my accent wall.

If you have questions about any of the changes I made, or how I built my divider wall (or geeked out my home) reach out or drop a note in the comments below. As always, I’m here to help.

Best,