Highlighting History in Your Home

One of the biggest trends right now, at least in terms of home decor, is turning something old into something new and appreciating the history behind it. You can thank Joanna Gaines for that. I fully support the trend, so much so that I bought my own historic 1920s home exactly one year ago.

Since purchasing the White House on the Prairie, my husband and I (with the help of an incredible contractor) completely renovated, remodeled and redesigned our dream home. It was a HUGE task that took a lot of time and money, but it is something I will forever be proud of! I love coming home and feel so lucky to live here.

One of my favorite parts of the process was getting to decorate and put my touch on everything. Since it is a historical home in a historical preservation area, I wanted our decor to balance out the new and the old and play a part in telling the story of the home (and of our city and state). One of my favorite decor pieces, which is hanging on the wall next to our kitchen bar top, has the coolest story behind it. The history and background of the piece makes me love it even more.

My mother-in-law collected pieces of her grandmother's house in Western Oklahoma before it was torn down. She found things that held special memories: window frames, door-knobs, neat pieces of wood, etc. and put them in storage for safe keeping. When my husband and I bought our historical home and were talking about adding some vintage farm house decor to it, she let us poke through the piles to see if we could find anything. When I laid eyes on this piece of wood, I instantly knew what I wanted to do with it.

I cleaned up the wood, added brackets on the back to hang it and picked up an 'M' for our last name at a local craft store. I chose a letter with some depth to it to create a 3-D affect. I love that the piece came from my husband's great-grandmother's farm house and that I was able to turn it into something unique and in style today. Since it has family history, it is that much more special.

Pottery Barn Duvet & Shams

I also had to share a photo of our "headboard." I found the giant old window frame at an antique store and immediately knew exactly where it needed to hang - with a wreath and letter M, of course! Just another example of using old, historic pieces to compliment and highlight the history of your home.

I know renovating and decorating an entire house is not for everyone, especially an old house! I'll be the first to admit that it is a BIG project and huge commitment. If you're not fully up to the task, I recommend Havenly for your interior design needs, regardless of your decorating style, budget, or the size of your project. A designer of your choice will work with you (all from your computer) to design a room according to your taste and style. There is even a free trial to see if you like it! Such a cool idea - why didn't anyone tell me about this a year ago?!

I LOVE renovating, designing and decorating homes....always have! Even as a ten-year-old, I remember looking at houses with my parents and immediately drawing the blueprint of the house and figuring out where the furniture would go. Ha!! If I could make home design into a career and eat.sleep.breath house stuff, I totally would. Life goals.

Do you have any decor pieces that inspire you or tell a story? If so, I want to hear!

Thanks for reading and Happy Friday!