Some call it this…Some call it that…I call it home!

Tomorrow is my 34th wedding anniversary, and the event caused me to look back on our homes since we began our journey together.  In the beginning, we lived in a 1200 square foot home built by my husband’s grandfather and in an older area of the city.  It was precious, and we are still amazed at its value today over what we sold it for 16 years ago.  At that time of life in the 1980s, I called my design aesthetic… Shabby chic.

I have always loved a cozier, relaxed style of décor and it is funny to me how the names of it have changed over the years.  About ten years after shabby chic, I began to call it French Country.  I have to give Chip and Joanna Gaines credit for now changing this design to Farmhouse Style.  And I was intrigued to learn there is a modern farmhouse, and a traditional farmhouse style.  I do not see a lot of difference between the two, but it does seem that modern farmhouse is more minimal, and neutral based.

With that in mind, I would put me solidly in the traditional farmhouse style.  I prefer to decorate with mismatched furniture, antiques, thrift store treasures, and with cozy in mind to the point of feeling like a bed and breakfast house!  I love it when people come over and say it feels like home to them and they feel warm and cozy there.

I live in an older, custom built home so there is a living room area and a family room.  Today, I am sharing Christmas décor from the family room which includes the breakfast area and kitchen.  It is by far more traditional farmhouse.  We recently added farmhouse sliding doors which has just taken my theme forward.

There are many trinkets from the past.  My husband’s grandmother’s homemade stockings hang on the china cabinet, and her homemade ornaments are on the real tree in this room.  I have antique Santas from my side of the family which sit on various shelves in the kitchen.  Then, my collection of snowmen are all over this room.  The snowman collection began with the first one purchased 33 years ago in Fredericksburg, TX where we celebrated our first anniversary.

Since we were married at Christmastime, we have wedding gifts related to the season…and I make sure they are a part of the decorating.  Next week, I will share with you the living room.  Each room is a combination of history between our two families and I make sure our children and grandchildren know the stories.  It blesses me so to see them doing the same in their homes.

Whether I call it shabby chic…French country…or farmhouse…it is home and I love each and every decoration.  They just are not out for display long enough.   They are not perfectly matched or designed…but I think that is why I like it!

Can you describe your home décor in one phrase or description?  If so, what would it be?  Please share and enjoy my “farmhouse” slide show below….then, remember IT’S FRIDAY, so

KEEP SMILING!!

 

20 Comments

  1. Beautiful!!! I love the stocking/s made by your husband’s grandmother! What works of art those are! I’d be putting those front and center too! I have a white tree in my dining room that holds all of the antique ornaments I collect, as well as the family ornaments that are pre-WWII and up to the 1950’s. All the other, newer family ornaments go on the tree I’ll cut down next weekend at the local tree farm. I also collect antique Santa’s. You have quite the collection of snowmen Pam! I especially like the one in the first picture, third from the left. It reminds me of the snowmen we made as kids when we just pushed snow together without rolling it! My style can definitely be summed up easily – cottage style. I actually live in an old (1906) farmhouse, so isn’t it odd I didn’t go in that direction? I guess they are sort of similar, in that I use antiques and mismatched things also. I like the eclectic feeling that makes homes “homey!” Your home is beautiful!

  2. Congrats, Pam, on your Anniversary. We celebrated our 51st Anniversary in September !! We are now in our 7th home, having finally downsized two years ago. My husband having been transferred several times across Canada. Our home is traditional, a few antiques, some inherited. Quite a number of smaller accessories also inherited from family, some over a 100 years old from different countries. Lately we have added some very modern pieces and are quite delighted with the result. Your photographs are just so warm and delightful. You have a beautiful home. We start our decorating December 1st ….

  3. 51 years!! You go girl…congratulations to you! Your mix of traditional and modern sounds lovely!

  4. Your home looks so cozy! Our furniture is an eclectic mix of things we’ve had for 40+ years with family antiques and some french antiques tossed in. The home we are renting is not our style but renters can’t change much. I’m looking forward to owning a home again.

  5. I know it would be difficult not to decorate the way you want. Hope you find the new special place soon!

  6. Lovely decorations Pam. My style is traditionally eclectic. I collect Santas of all sizes that adorn my family room. When my mother passed, we distributed her huge collection of nutcrackers, so many that each of us had enough for our own collection and to share with our daughters. I display them on my sofa table. I’ve been married 46 years and our 1st tree decoration is a fold up metallic cardboard ornament from inside a frito bag. We’d just moved into our 1st house 6 days before Christmas. It’s our favorite ornament of all!

  7. Love your décor, Pam! You have a gift for putting things together beautifully. I’m not sure what I would call our style. Our home is an eclectic mix of mostly older furniture, native Canadian art (Inuit and West Coast), and pieces picked up on our travels in Asia.

  8. Love the Frito story Connie… I hope my family shares all my snowmen someday! Wonderful that you shared the memories and traditions.

  9. Thanks Elaine! Sounds like your home is called Elaine-Style! And that is perfect for your home…each decoration probably has a great story to tell!

  10. Congratulations on your anniversary! My house is decorated with all sorts of family heirlooms and looks rather like yours. My grandmothers were knitters and embroiderers and seamstresses and crocheted beautifully. I try to keep many of their pieces out all year. At Christmas, I always hang the tiny stocking my grandmother made for me when I was a child, and “Santa” complains it’s too little to put anything into it. I think I would feel right at home in your house!

  11. P.S. Pam, I love to watch the Chip and Joanna Gaines show, although they are a year or two behind. So disappointed they will not be continuing with the show. I did treat myself to Joanna’s lovely book.

  12. Happy Anniversary! My style is what a friend calls “cozy minimalist”. I prefer clean lined furniture, although I still have some older pieces that don’t fit that description. I don’t like a lot of brick-a-brack, just photographs & some cherished items to keep it interesting. I use a lot of baskets to collect my husband’s man lint & the necessary flotsam of life. I have chosen this style in the last few years. This has been a gradual change from 80s look of having every surface covered with something.

  13. Congratulations on your anniversary to you and your husband! I have been an antique-r since I was in my late teens and have furnished my house with my finds over the years, too. We also have handed down Christmas ornaments I treasure and use every year, some go back a 100 years. I call our main tree with all the generations of ornaments, ‘our history tree’ because it sort of all those generations of ornaments.

  14. Thanks Becky! I guess my Christmas decor would be 80s then…because I have Christmas everywhere. You taught me something new. Thanks!

  15. Isn’t it fun to own decor where every piece has a story to tell? That is what I love about this type of decorating. Sounds like you have alot of stories to tell, Diana. Thanks so much.

  16. First of all, Happy 34th Anniversary to you and your husband! How wonderful!

    Secondly, Pam your style is so warm and cozy! Love all the sweet details.

    I struggle naming my style because it contains so many elements — it’s shabby chic, cottage chic, victorian and traditional. I guess it’s eclectic! But I do favor soft pastels and lots of texture.

  17. Lovely, Pam! Thanks for sharing this with us and Happy Anniversay. It looks very warm and cosy. My home decor? Hmmm. Peaceful. Beachy in summer and more plantation in fall and winter.

Comments are closed.