Making a house a home

shortln

I know alot of us did DIY projects for the wedding. What have you done in your houses/ apartments to make them more homey besides putting up pictures.

I ask this becasue I still feel like our house just looks like a house not a home, and i am looking for little projects that would make it more personal. We are about to start painting. We are still trying to figure out outr "style"

Huskerfanz

We haven't done too much yet as we are waiting until we buy a house to start really decorating.

But, one thing is we put up shelves in the dining area and put my my vase collection.  Do you or your DH have any collections to showcase?

We also put color on the walls (in an apt now and didn't want to have to repaint) by making wooden square frames and covering them with fabric.  (But since you are painting that doesn't help much).

Our study is full of Husker things (pictures, art, rug, bobbleheads, etc) which is very us!

I'm considering buying canvas and doing my own paintings but I'm a huge perfectionist and am not sure if I trust myself. 

shortln

I have alot of Duke things. I have signed things from Coaches and players but DH hates duke so I think that is out... Our office is so bare I think we are going to put alot of his gator things up there and wedding pictures. We bought a house that is "big for us but we did it so that we can stay in it untill we are able to move on the water. i think that is one of the problems is I feel like the house looks so bare. Shelves are a good idea thought. thanks!

Huskerfanz

In one of your rooms, you could paint it half Duke colors and half Gator colors and put all of your stuff up on the Duke side and DH's stuff on the Gator side.  Maybe even a neutral strip down the middle with wedding pictures.  A little risky but it could turn out really fun.

 

We will be doing the same thing with buying a house that is too big for us now but will be perfect a few years down the road when kids hopefully come.  I could have 2 guest rooms to decorate but I have some ideas going.  In one room, I want to paint the room gray and have all black, white, and gray accents (frames, art, etc) and then one piece of colored (red, purple, etc) furniture...a futon or klik klack or something. 

MrsWhitneyAmanda

Pictures. LOTS and LOTS of pictures. But instead of just hanging them on the walls I bought shelving units and put together a DIY entertainment unit of sorts where I've put all of the pictures in varying sizes and styles of frames along with other nicknacks like my bouquet along with a bridesmaid's bouquet, the bouquet I carried in my friends' wedding last year, books, boardgames, some sorority mementos, all of my Eeyore figurines, and all of the crystal we got for our wedding (that is displayable - I don't have random wine goblets on my shelves ). I also put our ring pillow and one of our candle centerpieces from the wedding up. To make some other parts of the house our own I hung several pieces of DH's black and white photography through the spare bedroom and I have lots of sorority stuff (scrap book, new member book, collegiate Barbie) on shelves in the office. But for the most part our pictures are what makes the house our home. We met through photography and we both love it so it's only fitting

LauraBeth1401

DH and I bought a house that is currently too big for us but we plan on starting a family within the next two years or so.  I know what you mean by having a house not feel like a home.  Our house is currently pretty bare in spots just because I don't have enough stuff to fill it!  I've come to realize though that it's not something that can happen overnight.  Ask anyone whose house you just feel so comfortable in and they will tell you that many of the pieces they picked up over the years are what makes it feel homey.  Just pick up pieces that reflect your personalities and check out magazines and design catalogs and see what you like.  I've actually started a folder with pictures of things that I like.  Helps when you need a little inspiration.

Good luck!

acp927

Our living room is mostly filled with things that other people gave us, including most of the furniture, but pictures and a couple of other personal touches (and the wall color once we get around to painting over the gold it is now!) make it more like us. I also plan to hang up some artwork sometime. The most homey rooms in the house are definitely are the "his" and "her" rooms we have. We got a 3 bedroom house and we have VERY quickly filled up each of the rooms with our things. My office/room looks pretty girly, with a fun green color on the walls, pictures of me and my friends, knick knacks I have accumulated over the years, my favorite books, etc. His room has his instruments and a lot of Star Wars/Star Trek memorabilia. I need to work on making the bedroom a little bit more homey, though the nice wall color and pictures help. GL!

jeffnstef

I'm still working on this one! We've put up pictures of us, I made a collage of pictures from our honeymoon.... one brainstorm I had one afternoon was a display in our loft. I took my bridal tiara, some stones from the centerpieces, a program, a framed photo of us on our wedding day, a Save the date card, and some other misc wedding stuff and arranged it on an end table at the head of the stairs. It's going to be awhile before the house is fully decorated, but it's ok. I'm not going anywhere.

emmypants

We have a bookshelf with my shot glasses lining the top and second shelf and our DVD/book shelves.  We also have our sourround sound speakers in the corners and Brett fashioned a holder for my boquet, so it's in the corner and below that is a framed copy of our marriage license and our certificate from the chuch.  Then photos and our round mirrors in the kitchen.

Steven&Jamie

Our house seems big and bare sometimes so I'll be very happy when it's more homey. So far I've put up some wall decor, pictures, and shelves (it was DH's house so it was REALLY bare!)...added a bookshelf in the kitchen for cookbooks, displayed our unity candle and my bouquet, and have gotten one of the extra bedrooms to where it's a guest room now. 
We're in the process of getting flooring for the living and dining rooms (we're putting down hardwoods) and we'll do some painting then too.  That's what I'm really looking forward to!!

shortln

Thanks girls! all of your ideas have helped! We are going to start on the dinning room this weekend with paint... GL to all with there home projects

Jenniferk08

 we took out one wall completey in our living room.  redid the sheet rock and upgraded the wiring.  we've added two ceiling fans in the living room.  the wall with the fireplace we're doing in a mauve color and then leaving the rest cream.  we're also changing the carpeting in the living room, front room and bed room.  i'm also getting those vinyl letter to put above our living room but not sure what to put.  we've also taken down a few trees and bushes, we'll also be working on the garden... and then in a few years we are tearing down the entire house and rebuilding...

MuseumMaven

Since DH and I are a little older, we already had some furniture that we brought to the marriage.  It's fun to see the things that he had and the things that I had working together in rooms like the living room.  We also bought some furniture together, which makes it feel really "ours."

We've been painting, too, which really personalizes a place.  Our family room is a great shade of sage green, and our bedroom is a beautiful slate blue.  Anything that isn't off white adds character!

 Pictures are also a great way to accessorize, as are objects that have special meaning to you and your DH.  A serving bowl from your china pattern full of fruit makes an instant centerpiece on a table.  Your cake topper can make a great addition to your bookshelf or china cabinet.  And piles of books that you and DH love add tons of personality to a room.

 Good luck!  It takes time, but it will become home for you soon.