Homemaking 101

Guess what! After all the blood, sweat and tears, we're closing on a house in two weeks!!!! Only two more weeks in our little apartment and then we'll be moving to a place that's much bigger. Moving has gotten me thinking about homemaking. When I first married, I wasn't exactly sure how to make our apartment feel like home, but over time, it just has become... well, homey! Now that we're moving our roots to a bigger pot, I find myself wondering if I can do it again. Can I make that big house feel like home? And that got me thinking, what makes our apartment home that I can replicate when we move? I've narrowed it down to a few tips that I'd like to share with you! So here is your Homemaking 101!

1: Keep it clean - I know that I enjoy being home much more when the house is tidy. I'm not talking about heavy spring cleaning... or even vacuuming. I'm talking about making the bed every day, keeping up with the dishes and getting the pile of papers off the kitchen table. If it looks clean, I feel better.

2: Keep it warm or cool - There is nothing better in the winter than walking into a warm house from the freezing outside... or that cool whoosh of air that brings relief from the hot sun in the summer. Living in an apartment, it's been harder to to manage this since we run on manual baseboards and A/C, but when we have the advantage of a thermostat, a comfortably kept temperature definitely helps the homey factor!

3: Light a candle - This is something I think my mom taught me and her mom taught her. There's just something about having a lit candle on the kitchen table that makes it feel homey. And not to mention that most smell great! Maybe I'll need to make a trip to Yankee Candle when we move?

4: Invest in some pillows - One thing that makes a house (or apartment) a home is the comfy-ness factor. The more pillows we have on our couch, the more I want to snuggle up with a good book! I've discovered that pillows can be a whopping expense, but it doesn't have to be if you know where to look! Society 6 and Etsy are two great places to find affordable pillows! Currently, I'm thinking about which ones I should add to the bed.

5: Get some green - I really struggle with this one because I have a brown thumb. I tried keeping herbs last summer and killed them all. Currently however, I have a thriving spider plant in our living room and I've noticed that it's nice to have something green and alive! I'm looking forward to getting some succulents and a fiddle leaf fig tree to add to my collection! 

Those things don't sound so hard! I'll be sure to post pictures when we're all set up. :)

You are loved so stay happy!