Turning a House into a Home: Your Ultimate Guide to Feeling Truly at Home after moving

You just moved into this incredible place not needing many updates but somehow you find it hard to feel at home. You would be surprised how many times I hear this. People often feel even guilty admitting that they love their new place but somehow they can’t feel at home. Something is missing. When you buy a new place, there can be a moment of panic when having this feeling as it might sound like you made a mistake purchasing it. Something is just off. Well, don’t worry. It is perfectly normal. 

Reflecting on my own experience moving into my house a few years ago, it was impeccably designed as the previous owner hired an interior designer to transform her space. While aesthetically pleasing, it didn't resonate with my personality or accommodate my life as a mom of two energetic boys and two Frenchies. The color choices, window treatment fabrics, and some traditional cabinetry didn't align with my style, and the light rug certainly did not align with the craziness of boys and dogs. Despite everything being in pristine condition, I knew I had to transform the space to make it truly mine and suitable for my family.

So, how can you make your new space feel like home? Here are some ideas:

Start by doing a functional evaluation of your new environment:

• do you have enough storage space? If not, list what is missing.

• does your furniture have the right proportions for your room? Can you easily get around furniture pieces, do you have enough space to circulate from one space to another?

Continue with aesthetic considerations: 

• List spaces you like and want to accentuate.

• Note elements you dislike and want to improve.

Once you set that base, here are a few design tips to get working on your interior:

Design Tips to Transform Your Space

1)Answer your needs:

• Add storage (boxes, shelves, carts, built-ins, closets) in the spaces where solutions are missing. 

• Find new locations for oversized furniture that don’t fit and yes plan on investing in new pieces that have the right proportions for your room. 

2) Tackle those aesthetic considerations:

Focus on Your Walls: 

Remember that the atmosphere of a room can completely change thanks to the color of the walls! Play with it. 

• Change wall colors to reflect your personality and the feeling you want to inject into a room.

• Embrace wallpapers with various patterns and materials for a modern touch. Wallpaper is a great choice in a room where you don’t like certain elements. By adding a pattern, the eye will focus on the wallpaper and distract the viewer from looking at less preferred details. 

Revamp Window Treatments:

• window treatments are the little cherry on top, the finishing glaze of your interior. It infuses so much personality and pulls a space together. This is where you can instill your style and add that little something that reflects who you are. Don’t underestimate their impact! 

Make Accents Stand Out:

• Highlight favorite rooms or accents with contrasting colors, fabrics, or lighting changes.

Invest Wisely:

When moving into a new space, you often come with rugs that were bought for a different room size, lights that worked in a different environment, and color schemes that were beautiful in a different light. This is a new space, with a different orientation, different size and reusing things will not always work out. Start fresh: choose a new color scheme that will work in your new space, invest in new pillows, throws, rugs,... Rethink your lighting choices: maybe you need to add sconces or more table lamps to create the atmosphere you wish. 

Small Changes, Big Impact:

• Change cabinet hardware to preferred finishes and styles.

• Select bathroom accessories that fit your style.

• Replace light fixtures with ones you like.

Finally, remember that feeling at home takes time. Celebrate milestones, host gatherings, and create memories to fill your space with laughter and joy. As you do, you'll gradually wake up each day happy to be home, surrounded by a space that truly reflects you and your family.