My house isn’t really my house at all. It is our home. Woven together with a little bit of him, a little bit of me. A little masculine, a little feminine. It is US.
Like my dreamy ride on the Orient Express, we have always loved ambience, travel, and imagined a life of adventure. While most of our days are lived within our own four walls, we keep our life feeling adventurous and romantic by holding our dreams and good memories captive all around us.
Our “dream life” is anchored securely right here in our home with a little bit of him, a little bit of me and 25 years of adventure together.
I love Mindy Gledhill!
Our home definitely reflects both of our personalities. I like it that way. Like you said, it make it “ours” :)
The very reason why one should not follow trends. Surround yourself by what matters most to you (and your husband) — memories made, dreams not yet realized, each others interests — rather than what Pottery Barn has staged in this season’s catalog!
Your Friend,
Deborah
So true Deborah! ;-)
I love this, Melissa!!
This how “home” should be.
xo
you know how i love that song…it’s the one i used on my library photo shoot;-)
love the post also.
Yes ma’am it is an amazing song!!
Your style inspires me to keep working on my home…to make it completely ours :)
Thanks Deb, I’m glad it helps!!
Well put! Life should be an adventure together!
Thanks for sharing your home with us!
Beautiful, Melissa. Simply beautiful. Hubby and I are in the proccess of working toward a home that is a little of him and a little of me. Creating a space that reflects our life and dreams is a perfect goal.
Melissa, I love this post! Its easy to forget that the space you decorate should reflect everyone who lives there – I’ve been trying to incorporate elements my husband wants into our house because after all it’s his home too!
So wonderful that you and your hubby have spent 25 years together. How blessed you are!
Melissa,
Loved this post.I sometimes get truly carried away with decorating a home my way, but its not just my home,it’s my husbands too…..beautiful song and video!
“Ours” is much better than “mine.” It does not happen on its own. How happy my darling was when I made a convenient place for his boots and his books and his clothes and his treasures. I use a lot of his old tools in my decorating, which we both enjoy.
Yes! You truly inspire me. Please write a book, make a movie, start your own magazine! I will be president of your fan club.
Meanwhile, I am SMITTEN with the fabric from the pillow on the left. Please, please, do you know its name or source?
Thank you for understanding.
Ha, well thank you. The fabric, hmmm….you know, it is one I fell in love with YEARS ago. Let me think on that and see if I can remember!!
And I a smitten with the silvery table lamp shown today with the birds. Every time it shows up in the photos I search online for something like it…
And I am smitten with the silvery table lamp shown today with the birds. Every time it shows up in the photos I search online for something like it…
I’m sure that was a HomeGoods lamps, from many years ago! I love it too, it is a nice classic lamp.
I figured as much… :o)
Melissa,
You so inspire me! I loved the Mindy Gledhill video…what a lovely song and lyrics.
Happy President’s Day,
Karen
Thanks Karen!
Our home is what I would describe as cottage/mission, as I like the cottage look and my husband likes the mission look. We have a few mission oak pieces of furniture blended with a camelback sofa and floral pillows. We have a simple blend of feminine and masculine in most of our rooms, with the exception of the upstairs bath, which is mostly mine and decorated with my tastes. We’ve been married for 35 years, so yes, it is about US!
:-) I think those of us who have been together with our spouse for awhile completely understand this might be one of the secrets to a long marriage ;-)…
This makes me want to rearrange today . . .
I’d heard of Mindy Gledhill, but never heard her- and I live in Utah! That was a sweet song- loved it. I often feel like I’m a kite and my husband is holding the string! He’s GRounded- I’m free-floating. If he let go I’d go off in a crazy spin, caught by ferocious winds and then crash!
As reassured as I feel with his strength, sometimes I’d like him to have the fun of flying!!
It is nice to have someone to pull you a bit, stretch you a bit and vice versa! I know I’ve grown because of my husband and he has because of me!
Great post! I have always been one to go with what we like and love to live in. While I do admire some trends and use a few pieces. We stick with what we truly love regardless of if it is “in” or not.
I love the globe and books! I agree with FairfieldHouse, one should always be comfortable in their surroundings. And I have never been one to get the latest and greatest as suggested by News Week, US Weekly or whomever. I love giant frames for holding many photos. I love how he has his corner for his “stuff” and I have mine, but we share the rest of the house for adventures we’ve shared together! Only because the stuffed/mounted bluegill is not my idea of a centerpiece.
Our home is definitely a combo of feminine and masculine. In fact I purposely try to decorate in stipes, solids, non-florals so the Hubby doesn’t feel over-femmed!! Still he does appreciate our garden and thus there are live flowers all over the house!
Having a hard time finding this Mindy Gledhill CD near me. Will just have to bite the bullet and order on-line! Thanks for the reminder… love this video!
Hi Melissa,
I wasn’t a follower back when you rode the Orient Express, so I enjoyed that post as well today. We had the blessing of being sent to Europe for my husband’s job way back in 1990. We were there for 4 months, and rode LOTS of trains, but not the Orient Express. I did buy him the book for his birthday while we were there. :-)
Congratulations on your 25 years together. We are coming up on 30 this year, and our home is definitely a blend of us and our children. Thanks for yet another thoughtful post.
Blessings,
Marilyn
That is beautifully written! And your images are gorgeous too. You have perfectly defined the word “home.”
The whimsy comes from me, the structure comes from him and the unity comes from our desire to be in a home not a house. By the way the toys come from the short people in the house.
As 40-something newlyweds we’re blending our homes and choosing the items that most move our hearts.
Whether it’s a day trip or vacation, we get out with our son to camp and do the things that memories are made of. So, our home is quickly turning into a place decorated for all of us. We can rest. And linger. Until, we’re off again.
Thank you for your inspiration.
And, for that video.
my condo is a hodge podge of hand-me-downs that all thankfully find a way of matching. :) but i love looking around and seeing remnants of people i love and feeling like they are with me even when i’m here alone. there is something grounding in that, i think.
Yes, our home refects our travels,our passions, our desire to live a cozy simple life. It took me awhile (I have been married 33 years.) to learn how to also include my husband in the feel of our home.
Fondly,
Glenda
Ours continues to evolve and I love it– we’re a blended family, married almost 5 years with 5 kids (ages 24-12) between us. A crazy life, a mish mash of things in our home, but somehow over the past few years, it’s evolving into US. Fabulous. :)
Your have a beautiful home and it seems to represent such beautiful heart within… Congrats on 25 years! May the blessings continue to flow.
Beautiful post Melissa – I loved the little glimpses of your life together. I almost didn’t listen to the Mindy Gledhill song, so glad I decided to click on the play button. I loved the song after the first few notes and immediately went to iTunes and purchased it. Smiling now as I listen to it…
So glad you did, it is a lovely song isn’t it?
I had some downtime tonight so spent it here…looking at posts I had missed, clicking on ads, breathing in the inspiration and enjoying it thoroughly! Thanks, Melissa.
Thank you, that was so sweet. So happy to see you here!
Wow, I blogged about something exactly like this, down to the song, back in January
http://blissandbumps.blogspot.com/2011/01/anchored.html
it is a fabulous song, big thanks to Breathless Expectation for the intro to it
p.s.- love the globe, I found one just like it last week at TJ MAxx, the kids have had such fun hunting down their favorite got-to-go places
Blessings
Hello Melissa, remember me? I am completely with you on filling your spaces with art that has personal meaning for you. I am lucky that my family claims artists of the past and of the future. This year I even hung some of my own efforts where visitors can actually see it.
I love that you continue to post decor ideas that are both lovely and affordable. I am off to Goodwill to choose more frames to spray paint!
I love that song-
Our home I think is a lot like us….a little old, lots of memories from the past, sometimes it doesn’t make much since how it’s put together but thats ok. and I paint it just about as much as I have to color my hair =) {I love gray but not on my head}
Thanks for another beautiful post.
Happy Day
I have never heard of this song or artist, but I’m completely enchanted with both. :-)
I love Mindy Gledhill! She is beautiful inside and out. Her friend Stephanie was in a tragic plane crash with near-fatal burns and Mindy performed/organized a LOT of benefits for her. Go read Stephanie’s blog, if you haven’t already! Very inspiring :)
nieniedialogues.com
xo!
So sweet – so true. Reading TIR always makes me wana go ‘home’. Thank you.
Thanks for sharing – even though my husband and I have only been in this house for 18 months, we’ve been married for almost 23 years, and almost every room in our house reflects “us”; we each have our own rooms – 2 home offices that are decorated entirely as we have chosen – mine is all pink with white furniture, and his is leather and black furniture. :)