photo: Laurey W. Glenn for Southern Living magazine

Remodeling a home with charm and personality

I was recently sent a copy of the newly redesigned Southern Living magazine and I LOVED it. You should really check it out if you haven’t seen it yet. I think at heart I must be a Southern girl! Even my best blogging friends all seem to live in the South.

Anyways, one of my favorite articles in Southern Living was on a home that was designed around gothic elements. I am all over the map when it comes to my favorite home styles. Sometimes I am all about coastal style, sometimes I am all cottage, and sometimes I imagine myself living in an English castle. Or maybe a French country house. The truth of the matter is, I appreciate a home with a unique personality that is fitting and appropriate to the family who lives there.

The personality and story behind the home (as well as the design) is what I loved about this house. The current owners designed it as a tribute to the Bishop who had lived in the home previously, a dear friend of their family. The home is filled with unique and charming details that have special meaning to the family that lives there.

Laurey W. Glenn for Southern Living magazine

A home should be more than just something pretty to look at.

I think our homes should inspire us every day to live the life we dream of and aspire to.

My basic guidelines for designing a home is this: design your life first. Then design a home to reflect that life. I’ve often shared my quote which is a motto I truly believe in:

“When life inspires your home, your home will inspire your life.”

Laurey W. Glenn for Southern Living magazine

So often I see people going about home design all backwards. They design a home yet forget to incorporate who lives there, what the personality or history of the home is, and what will take a house that looks very much like everyone else’s house into a home that is undeniably their own. Home design isn’t just about copying what your friend does or has or what you saw in a magazine. It is about getting to the heart of what inspires YOU.

Laurey W. Glenn for Southern Living magazine

If your home’s personality is inspired by things YOU are passionate about or that have great meaning to you, your home will in turn inspire you to live more fully and graciously every day.

Reflecting your heart and life in the design of your home isn’t always easy to pull off. It is a fine line between having “themes” in your home that end up looking tacky and having a home that is truly “inspired.”

Laurey W. Glenn for Southern Living magazine

I wrote an article for The Inspired Room awhile back on a family that used a circus theme in their home. You can read it here. Not many people could pull off a circus themed house without it looking a little goofy. Yet, those homeowners succeeded because IT MADE SENSE for their life. Their home overflows with a youthful exuberance that reflects both the history of the home and the family that lives there. Their home is inspired by their life AND it inspires the life they want to live. That is a winning combination.

Does your home inspire you?

I’ll share more images from this gothic styled home in another post! Meanwhile, go get a copy of the all new Southern Living magazine for more inspiring articles and ideas!