Colors

Though white, clean spaces are relaxing to the senses, I'm starting to question whether a white/cream theme in my [dream!] home would really be all that "homey" for us. There's something cozy about color.

Maybe it's the relief it brings. Like, who cares if you have a kiddo running through the house with muddy shoes on. Sure you can clean it up afterward, but at least you don't have to worry about missing a spot. Then there's color therapy, right? Certain colors make us feel a certain way.

And flowers. They don't have to match the colors in the rest of the room. Their presence alone brings hope...on rainy days of all kinds. Toys all over the floor? Who cares. There are flowers on the kitchen table, it's gonna be ok. LOVE flowers. I also love how they're used in these rooms. My [dream] home will have flowers in every room :); wild flowers during the summer months, and bouquets during the winter months.

I really like these rooms for different reasons. Found them on Skona Hem (and check out that beautiful cabin when you click the link!).

Playing house

We're snowed in (kind of) again...during these cold dreary days when we can't go outside, and it's a lazy Saturday, we spend time planning or cleaning. We were hoping to clean out our storage unit this weekend, but our car doesn't drive too well on snowy roads. So we did some planning today instead, mostly dreaming, really :).

We are going to rent for awhile when we move back to Austin so that we can save up for a down payment, but we still like to look at homes that are available and think about what we'd like. I really like the homes below, especially the first one. Some things are a bit dated, but I really love the light, the built in shelves, the open spaces, covered patio area (perfect for those summer afternoons when there are mosquitos out). All in all, it's a cute house, I have to admit I kind of like the pink walls too ;). But I also really like the color and outside style/look of the second blue house (second set of snap shots).

This is the second blue house:

I like the kitchen of this third house:

Historic Dream Homes

Mary Engelbreit house

How did I spend my Friday night? Looking at homes (online) -- historic ones (click photos to enlarge). I found all of these on OldHouses.com. Very cool site, you can even search based on style in the archives. I'm not very fond of large houses, so I picked these somewhat 'smaller' houses as my favorites. They look cozy, the second yellow one is actually referred to as a doll house :)!

I would love love LOOOVE to live in a historic house. (Mary Engelbreit was one of my favorite artists growing up, these houses resemble those in her drawings.) I would totally be willing to sacrifice the space -- my only concern would be the plumbing/appliance issues, but those can be fixed, sometimes... Not sure if I'd want a brand new house built to look old, though.

I looove these rooms/kitchens

I especially like that pink craft room! and the blue stove! and the 'fresh eggs' tin sign!

Click here 2 see it all!

This house is so cute!

...though I'm not a fan of the interior, I do like that it looks tiny but is really HUGE inside (as in 7000 sq. ft!). I love the exterior, though, so cute!

You can read about it here.