I’ll admit it that I fully hadn’t accepted this space as our own until right before we had Blake. I think in my mind it was always going to be a transitional space for us that would be a pit stop as we lead our way onto our more permanent home. But guess what? We moved in right before Brande’s fourth birthday and he will be nine this month, so it’s time to really embrace it. If you’ve followed along our adventures in the Cooper home, you know that I went a little nutty during my pregnancy and completely re-did our apartment decor (you can see the before here and our big after reveal here) and I’ve been loving our space since.
But I realized throughout this whole process that it really doesn’t take a lot of work or money to create a space that you love, just a few new addition or spruce up an old space to make your home or a corner within your home truly become your happy place.
Easy Ways to Create a Space You Love
So whenever I shared earlier this week that I wanted a major focus to be on self-care, I wanted to put an emphasis on all that encompasses self care. Translation: it’s not all about getting manis and pedis on the reg – it’s about so much more than that. We spend more time in our homes than we do anywhere else and I think it’s important to start there. Here’s my foolproof ways to creating a space that I love so that I can spend more time thinking about what matters most.
1. Fill it with pictures that make you happy.
You’ve probably seen that I’ve featured Canvas Factory in the past and here they are again because their print are absolutely gorgeous and budget-friendly! They’ve helped me in the past when I first started looking at our apartment as a home, instead of just a space to hang my purses and I’m loving what they offer still. I love reorganizing the prints to either hang or lean up again a piece of furniture. They just brighten the place and fill it with memories that I love – which keeps me happy while I’m working, cooking or just living in all the nook’s and cranny’s our apartment has to offer.
2. Fill it with fragrances that make your heart full.
I’ve recently became a huge fan of essential oils and have been trying out different fragrances and defusing them almost every single day and most definitely while we sleep (to help keep Blake calm and sleep through the night). Having a great smelling space makes me happy to be there. I was recommended by a friend and certified Aromatherapist that I need to have an Aromis diffuser, because they’re the best – so that’s what I got. Unlike other diffusers, they use vibrations instead of water, so the fragrance is really powerful and lovely. I have also been diffusing Twig + Petal’s Happy Home quite frequently (and the holiday lover in me has their holiday oil also ready to diffuse asap!).
3. Keep it clean.
I’m not a good house keeper, I’m just not. Every once in a blue moon I will have a cleaning lady come, but that’s very rare. At the same time, I like my space to be clean because I know that I quickly get overwhelmed whenever I notice crumbs, messes and clutter – we live in a tiny NYC apartment after all. So I live my life by a rule that my mom taught me growing up: clean one thing everyday. This has helped me tremendously to keep my space clean without getting overwhelmed.
For real: it’s just as simple as that. If you’re like me, you’ve spent time scrolling through Instagram and viewing people’s “perfect” home’s where everything looks photographable at all times. To me, that’s just not my reality. My home is messy, but filled with love. And sometimes, life is messy, too. so focusing on the simple things will ensure that you have a space you truly love filled with the people you care about the most. What more could you want? OH, maybe a giveaway….?
The Giveaway
I’ve partnered with my friends over at Canvas Factory to give you all a chance to win a print, just like mine (a 16 X 20 gorgeous print!). The giveaway will start today and one winner will be chosen on Monday September 18th – good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Disclosure: You must be 18 years of age to enter and reside in the United States. Prizes will be shipped to the contest winner from each participating company. By entering this giveaway, you are automatically subscribed to the Project Motherhood newsletter.
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