"New" home, "new" blog

I have a new look. What do you think? The other felt a little busy. The blog didn't feel consistent with my home life so a change was needed!

Just thought I'd include a few pictures from home. They could actually be considered 'before' pics or at least 'in progress' pics. As rooms are finished I'll post before and after pics with comments on how it was done. I will be going for a natural modern country look on a budget. Though I hope the 'on a budget' part won't be noticeable.

We live in an apartment in the city. It's a large space (for which we are very thankful) but it can feel a bit tight at times. All the more reason that it should be restful and well ordered.

For some time after my husband finished his PhD I chose not to pay too much attention to "making a home" because I thought we would buy a house within the near future. The near future is now past and we have not bought a house. But we have come to realize that no matter what sort of structure we may live in, it is our home. So, why should I frustrate myself by suppressing those nesting instincts?

Having also been influenced by A Pattern Language, which speaks strongly against rental situations, I rebelled against our own. Good did come of my reading however. We decided not to treat our apartment like someone else's place but like our home, which it is! My husband and I still plan to buy a house (actually a small farm in the UK with a cob house, cow and sheep...) but in the meantime we'll enjoy making our home together wherever we are. We even have a back deck and a parking space here! For what are we lacking?

Our bathroom cabinet used to have a large retro mirror for a door and it just didn't go so we removed it. Our bedroom closet was dark and the top clothes rail (which used to run across the back) was so high we could hardly reach it! After gutting the closet, we refinished it almost completely with stuff that we already had. I'm planning on hanging a few framed pictures on that back wall. Not what you'd expect, but why not?

My "nesting instinct" grew stronger last spring as I watched a bird building a nest in the rafters of our deck. She flew away and then returned with some find for her new place while decorating my iron chandelier at the same time. It's a year later and officially a new spring. I hope to see her again and be encouraged by her efforts.