So in my last post I mentioned feeling a little disconnected from my house. I’m not unhappy — I truly love living in Seattle — but I missed the sense of belonging I used to feel at home. Maybe I’m sensitive about my surroundings, but I know many of you understand that subtle need to feel that a space is truly yours. Even though this house has so much potential, it lacked a small element that would make it feel personally mine.
Yesterday I decided to focus on finding that connection. Since moving in I’d shared various vision posts about how I imagined the rooms, and those posts were helpful. Still, I hadn’t spent much time actually testing ideas and seeing how small changes might alter the feel of the space.
I pulled out my new book and reread parts of it, remembering how I worked through similar feelings in our previous house. Reading my own words was oddly revealing and helped me recognize the approach that had worked before.
I realized I needed to follow the same steps I’d used in our old home. It’s easy to try to reinvent the process, but while every house is different, the method that helps you connect with a space often remains the same.
I began with a bit of decluttering in the living room. During the move several stools, baskets and miscellaneous items had landed there and simply didn’t belong. Removing excess from a room does wonders for clarity — what’s present can mask what’s possible.
Clearing the clutter helped, but it didn’t fully bridge the disconnect. I wandered into the dining room and experimented with moving furniture. My daughter Courtney started marking the wall with painter’s tape around the kitchen door so we could visualize an idea that had been in the back of my mind since we moved in.
The idea felt bold because it wasn’t conventional. It might not follow the typical “rules,” but who says you must follow them?
I hadn’t shared the full plan here yet because we weren’t certain it would work in this house. Every home requires a period of discovery, and we weren’t sure if this change would be practical. But after five minutes with the tape on the wall and the furniture arranged differently, everything clicked. We both knew this was the right direction. It felt like the house and I were finally in agreement.
Courtney and I were practically buzzing with excitement.
Once we identified what had made us feel disconnected, it became clear how to reconnect.
With that one fresh idea, and by seeing the room differently, we realized we could:
– Give the dining room a unique, personal look
– Infuse the house with more of our personality
– Use what we already own in new, creative ways
– Make the home feel cozier and more intentional
– Make better sense of a small or awkward layout
– Feel more connected to our dining area
– Create a design statement that refreshes the house
– Refresh the space affordably
– Reimagine how the dining room flows into the kitchen without major renovations
– And once we saw this, the rest of the main floor started to fall into place in our minds
Yes, that’s a long list of gains from a short afternoon, but we were excited. We already love the house more now that we’ve mapped out the idea with tape. In fact, we’re leaving the tape in place for a while because it’s changed how we perceive the space and keeps the vision clear as we move forward.
Next week we’ll share a photo of the dining room with the tape so you can see what we see. The idea might surprise some of you, but that unpredictability is exactly why we love it. Sometimes a small, unexpected change is all a room needs.
A house is just a structure until, layer by layer, you make it a home.
I’m also happy to introduce the new video trailer for my book, The Inspired Room. The book’s themes feel especially relevant as I settle into this new house. Making any house feel like home is an ongoing, rewarding adventure.
If your home isn’t your ideal space, it’s normal to feel unsure about how to achieve a look you love. I don’t have every answer, but I’ve gained clarity on parts of the process. Transforming a house happens slowly and is a lot of fun.
The book contains many photos for casual browsing as well as thoughtful ideas and stories about creating a home on a budget, using what you have, and gathering pieces over time. I share practical tips for working with limitations and how to use what’s already in your home while building toward a look you’ll love.
I want you to find that same sense of connection to your home that I enjoy in mine.
Here’s the trailer!
I can’t wait to show you our taped-up dining room and the furniture arrangements we tried. It’s so fun to reimagine a space, and I’m excited to share the results soon. Thanks for indulging my house ramblings.