“If you wait until you have enough money to decorate and make your house your own, it will never happen. If you wait until you can afford to buy everything new, you are missing the point. It is the old, the new, the made, the hand-me-down, the collected, the worn but loved things in your home that make it your own.”

When I was a teenager, my mom and I started a fun tradition. We would drive around town and look at houses that were for sale. I think this is when my love for homes and decor started. We would often pull up to a vacant house and just peek in the windows or we would look in the newspaper for any open houses that were being offered and would visit those homes. We loved doing this together and I would begin to dream about a house that I might have one of these days. (A funny story – one Sunday afternoon, mom and I were peeking in the windows of a home that we thought was vacant. Little did we know, someone was still living there and they peeked right back out at us through the window! We were so embarrassed!!!)

Our first home

When Darren and I first married, we lived in a trailer house. I continued to dream of our “forever home” and would peruse through many home magazines and drool over the beautiful decor. Back in the early 80s when we married, the popular decor included mauve and blue decorations, ducks in the kitchen, and wallpaper in every room. Even in our early married life, I enjoyed making our little trailer house into a home. We didn’t have much money to spend on decorative supplies, but I was able to cross-stitch a few things to make it our home. I went to garage sales a lot in those days and somehow, through lots of hand-me-downs and second hand purchases, I was able to make our house a home.

Our next home

Since those early years, we have lived in three different homes. Our family lived in the house pictured above for about 23 years. We purchased this home from an older couple who had built a house in town. Darren and I raised our boys on the farm and have many, many great memories of those years in that house.

Throughout those 23 years, we had several renovations including changing out the orange, flowery linoleum floor and counter top, painting each room, adding on a den, master bathroom/closet, and painting again. When we first moved into the house, we had a “formal living room” that we used for the boys’ wrestling arena for several years.

When I was finally able to decorate it, I painted the walls a bubblegum pink color and I bought furniture that included a Queen Anne sofa that was pink and blue floral, two wing backed baby blue chairs and the most hideous end tables that you could’ve ever seen. Over the years, I became a little better about putting things together and continued to make our house a home.

Our move off the farm

We moved into the garden home pictured above in 2013, the first “in town” house that we ever bought. It was the perfect house for us as we had recently become “empty nesters.” This home had recently been updated by the previous owners so we didn’t have to do much to this house at all, except for remodeling the bath/shower. I loved moving into town and it was so nice not to live on dirt roads anymore. No longer did I worry about getting to work when it rained. I was actually 2 minutes from my school so it was a great commute! This house worked so well for us until we started having grand babies. When the kids would come home, it became obvious very quickly that we needed some extra space.

Our current home

In 2017, we purchased our current home. We were thrilled to be able to buy this house. The couple who originally built this home was the same couple that we bought our farm house from 27 years ago! This is probably our last home before moving to the nursing home! Haha! I’ve enjoyed decorating this house so much. It’s been fun to follow lots of people on Instagram who have the same passion for decor as me. You can follow me on Instagram by clicking here . I still don’t spend lots of money on decor. Nor do I shop at garage sales as much as I used to. Also, I never get hand-me-downs, but I try to bargain shop. I still look in magazines and catalogs for inspiration, along with following my friends on Instagram. When I find something I like in catalogs, I go in search of a good bargain. On my shopping excursions, you could typically find me at Home Goods, Kirkland’s, Pier 1, Hobby Lobby and Target. Just last weekend, I purchased these items from Home Goods for less than $100.

(I saw a lamp just like that in the Pottery Barn catalog for $400.)

Our house, our home

Darren has always said that “without you here, the house just doesn’t feel like home.”  He said he would be a workaholic if he didn’t have a wife to come home to.

Our house is definitely our home. It might not be decorated with the finest pieces and I’ll never be known for my amazing taste in home decor. However, it’s our home and I love it! I hope that when people come to visit, they will always feel a warmth when walking through the front door. It’s not about the decor, it’s about the love! Drop by sometime….you are always welcome!

Be blessed,

https://www.instagram.com/glammyyoung/