Taking Your Time

Around here we take our time with a project. Some of our spaces have taken years to evolve and likely will never be quite finished. There is always something to improve or tweak, new ways to use an old space and taste that evolves as our lives do. I heartily believe the best spaces take time. They are collected and thought out, gathered and personal. I know on the rare occasions when I have tried to force a project, I always live to regret it. I mean in the grand scheme of things, these regrets are not earth shattering but I'd still rather forgo them. 

Sometimes the process is so slow because I get absolutely mired in the minutiae of finding the right piece of furniture, fabric, light fixture or choosing the right paint color. And make no mistake...I must see EVERY option before deciding. Also, though overall our house is a nice for us size, the spaces within this warren of rooms are mostly quite small themselves, and therefore require very specific sized pieces. I am the queen of overthinking but also I have learned to be okay with living in the in-between. 

Which happens to be where I have been sitting with the finishing of our snug formerly known as the downstairs guest room/Emma's vacation cottage/Maddie's bedroom. This room, just off the living room has taken on a starring role as our family has grown and increased in number. It's a sitting room, a playroom and soon, a place to do a bit of yoga. I've been collecting the pieces for this room for a year and a half, mostly secondhand and from other rooms in my house. I think the only new things I've bought have been the curtains and ottoman.

I have learned in my life that I would rather wait for what I really want than to settle and this philosophy  has served me well and has ushered in an era of slow design. Upon occasion it requires a monumental amount of patience which can be especially challenging when I can picture the end result so clearly in my mind. Often my vision requires my handy husband to drag out his saw and take numerous trips to the lumber yard. With his work schedule that process is often the slowest part of any project, but his skills and are always worth the wait and the cost fits nicely into our budget. I am not just sucking up because I want him to start the trim work in our bedroom. But also, I'm not, NOT sucking up for that reason. It is safe to say that being married to me also requires a monumental amount of patience.

In February 2025 we took a  trip to England and I returned with an almost frantically inspired spirit, whilst also feeling a deep need to cocoon myself in a home that felt like the coziest, calming escape from the frantic chaos of the world. That perfect storm kicked off some of my favorite projects we've done in this house aside from our very large renovations of 2021. As is typical I still have a few things to finish up in these spaces but I don't let that stop me from enjoying the spaces and also from moving on to the next thing. No, I have never been diagnosed with ADHD. Why do you ask? 

So here is a peek of some of the lingering projects- though that artwork finally got hung and that snug finally got painted last week after such a long time of fretting about the color. I couldn't be more delighted with the result. I'll share more of it very soon. 

Scenes From a Sacred Day

 

I find myself completely astonished to discover that it has been 10 years this month since I began my Sacred Day practice. Someday soon I want to say a lot more on the topic. But for now let me just say rather dramatically... the practice has saved me and that it is on the list of top 5 things I am grateful for. And though today is my Sacred Day, it has not been a typical one as my guy is traveling and due home this evening leaving me to do all of the things he usually does- including making my morning chai latte, walking the dog and making dinner. And yes I do realize how spoiled I am but you can't even imagine how spoiled he is!

Clover and I did our walk early to beat the heat on what feels like it should be an autumn day. You know if not for the heatwaves that refuse to leave us be. My heart has moved on from summer, though to be clear my heart was never in summer and now I wait for my reality to catch up to my heart. 

Autumn always feels like a fresh start, more so than in January when I am wholly unconcerned with goals and any priority that doesn't involve sitting by the fire. Though to be clear my goals in general right now are not especially ambitious and on some days look something like survive the dumpster fire that is our reality. But on Sacred Day the goal is no news reading. Instead there is journaling, stitching, knitting, dreaming and any number of creative rabbit holes I throw myself down.

Though I have had a more creative summer than probably any that came before it, it has been a funny 'ol time as I struggled to recover from having my gallbladder out and getting back to doing all the things I wanted to do. Now that I am on the other side, I'm ready to say goodbye to A/C, sweaty thighs, wearing the least amount of clothes possible and keeping shades drawn at half mast. The heat zaps my creativity and energy. I am now ready to settle in for my favorite seasons and spend as much time as possible with my head in the clouds and my hands in my projects. Until then I will be sat here dreaming of what's to come.

Thank you all for welcoming me back so generously to this space. Your comments were so kind and appreciated. Also, if you leave an anonymous comment, I would love for you to leave your name so I can reply to you in a more personal way!

Next month is the 20th anniversary of the beginning of this blog! That is absolutely crazy. Crazy to think of how much life has been lived since I sat down to write this post in a fit of my last baby is in school now what do I do. And by the way, I am every bit as excited to cook in my enamel cast iron cookware as I was 20 years ago!