Our home is our refuge, our playroom, our place to go for rejuvenation. It’s more than just four walls, a roof, and the foundation; our home is a place to make memories and an opportunity to encourage others to linger a bit longer and enjoy its ambiance. Turn your fantasy into a reality with these quick steps~
Go crazy & then filter your inspiration. Take a few weeks (if you haven’t already) and use your spare time to PIN everything that catches your eye. Don’t worry about money or viability, just let your imagination run wild and see what sparks your interest. Take a digital break for a few days and then circle back to your boards and take a fresh look. What colors do you notice? Are there layouts that keep popping up? What style and design elements do you still find desirable? Filter your boards and delete anything that is sub-par or that fails to make your heart happy. This will give you a streamlined vision to discuss with your building and decorating team. Avoid the pitfalls of lusting over design elements that you simply can’t recreate in your physical space or that won’t actually translate into the comfortable setting you are striving for.
Consider your lifestyle. There are a million beautiful images of white carpets and palm-filled wallpaper that might not fit your toddler laden, multimedia, art-loving life. If you have an oil painting obsession, then you may want to forego the wall to ceiling windows that will force your collection into storage. Ponder, can I actually see myself living here? If you have a larger family unit to consider, throw your design ideas on your apple tv and make some popcorn. The entire family can brainstorm on a Friday night and feel like a real part of the overall project.
What patterns do you see? After clearing out the unnecessary images that don’t actually fit your lifestyle and talking it over with your family, it’s time to notice what’s left. What materials and layout ideas present themselves time and again? Did you notice that everything is in chrome, brass with a mid-century feel? If so, you are one step closer to manifesting your dream home!
It’s now time to take that inspiration off your phone and into the real world! Start by googling terms that you have identified as ideal, eg. “textured walls,” “open floor plan” et al. Take your vision board to your favorite designer and homebuilder and use your vision in order to price out your options. Design professionals can help you turn your inspiration into action. If you would prefer to “see” the space before granting approval to your construction and decorating teams, then an application like Modsy may help. Their site offers you the opportunity to take your two-dimensional ideas and transform them into a 3-D model for review.
Your goal is to put your feet up at the end of the day and marvel at what you have designed. There is no time like the present to make your home design dreams come true!