Painful Reflection

I can't imagine many who does not have this date seared in their memory for life. My heart and prayers goes out to all the families who lost loved ones and those who remain in the aftermath surviving the horrific events of 9/11/01. Yes, its 20 years later but that doesn't mean it's forgotten. Innocent lives were lost. Each day is a gift not to be taken for granted because there are no guarantees as to how the day will transpire and what any of us might have to endure and or suffer in the aftermath of whatever situation we may find ourselves in. I can't imagine and I don't want to but in reality things do happen, things we never imagined.

Love one another, tell one another, show one another, you might not be able to do it tomorrow. Father God in Heaven, help us in this world full of hate, deception and evil. I am not saying kind, compassionate, loving and caring people don't exist but there is a remnant that is the opposite of the four words I just used. Ask God to guard your heart, mind, soul, body and spirit from evil and even your tongue, thoughts, and motives. Pray over your families and try to be a light in the darkness for others. God is able. Before today ends say a prayer of thanks to God because He is the only reason why we are still here with time to make a difference in the lives of others. The difference starts with each of us.

Peace and Blessings, my prayer is that your day will be blessed. It has already begun because you are alive and reading this message only by God's Grace!

September Splendor

I think September has become my favorite month of the year. It's the turning point of the Summer Season when we all get ready to embrace Fall. Labor day is coming to a close and it has always been called the unofficial ending of Summer even though we have sixteen more days before Autumn officially begins. The weather has already started changing. It's cooler in the morning hours and the warm up comes more toward noon hours. I embrace this cooler, colorful season. The Season of Fall decorating, Thanksgiving planning and the anticipation of Christmas to come in the last month of the year. September is the beginning of the BER months, my favorite time of the year.

My home is already bathed in Fall decor and it will stay this way until the end of October. It is usually around this time that I start pulling out my decorations for the last two holidays of the year, Thanksgiving and Christmas. 2021 has been a year of changes in my home. I am not finished yet. Visit my Youtube channel to keep up to date on all the changes. I love the art of transformation. Use what you already have, revamp it. Paint is your best friend when transforming items in your home as well as  slipcovers and pillow covers. If you are a seasonal decorator you learn the tricks of the trade in order to change your home's look in a cost efficient manner. Color is key in seasonal decorating and proper storage so you can preserve your decorations for years of use to come. You may optionally add a few new pieces as styles change but you will at least have the foundation on which to add to. If the backdrop of your rooms are neutral it's easier to mix and match and switch and swap to achieve your color palette from season to season.

If your a beginner don't get frustrated when things don't all come together at once. It takes time and patience  As time passes you will discover your style and it will be easier for you to pull it all together season by season. We all start as beginners when we set out to bring our vision and or plan to life. Take your time, have fun with it, make list after list if you have to until all that you hope to see in your home comes to pass.

Enjoy the Fall Season,

Walk in Creativity,

Live in your vision.

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Creativity and Vision

I use the words Creativity and Vision a lot because you have to have both in order to make your plan come to light. There are many creative people in the world with and without a plaque that deems them Interior Designer, Interior Decorator or Home Decor Expert or a television show to showcase your skill. When in search of your design style you become the interior expert for your personal space because it is being designed totally by you and for you. Your taste, your home, your style. There are so many different design styles and some even have a few in their home as they decorate room by room.

Design Styles:

Country 

Farmhouse 

Scandinavian 

Traditional 

Midcentury Modern 

Art Deco 

Bohemian 

Coastal 

Victorian

Shabby Chic

Figuring out your Design Style:

In figuring out your design style make a list of the things you like seeing in your living space that bring you comfort and tranquility. Document the colors you like and types of furniture pieces. List the types of plants or flowers your fond of for your indoor and or outdoor space if you are also designing an outdoor living space as well. Colors are the backdrop of your design so choosing a neutral color makes it easier to layer other things within your space without sticking to one color pallet. With neutral walls and ceilings you can add pops of color from season to season without having to choose certain colors so you wont clash with your wall color. You cant go wrong with a neutral backdrop.

You can find inspiration or ideas from decorating magazines and videos or Pinterest. It is fun to browse and see design pictures. You are bound to find a design or designs you like and just go from there. Most of the time you just need a starting point. I remember mine came from being an avid watcher of Country at Home on HGTV back in the early 90's. They had some beautiful design shows and Country at Home and Country Style really pulled my heart in and before you knew it Country Decor was my design of choice. I have been thrifting since the late 80's and I still thrift. Another person's giveaway can be your treasure at a deep discount, dust it off, clean it up and or repurpose it. I have found many things in good condition and all I had to do was to give it a good sanitizing just for safety sake. I was doing this before the pandemic for each piece I found especially because others were handling it before it made its way to my home. Once you have the walls and ceilings painted and the placement of your furniture pieces you can move on to what you are going to accent your space with. I love shopping for accent pieces.

Tip #1----If love to display things as I do you will want to choose furniture pieces with layered levels so you can display your antiques or favorite decor accents. Hutches, Cabinets, Curios and Shelving units are good choices because they are multi level and have lots of space to showcase.

Tip #2 ---If you have limited storage within your home it's a good idea to choose furniture pieces that are multi functional such as ottomans, side tables with draws and even coffee tables and sofa table that are multi-leveled. Another good idea is the use storage trunks and stacking decorative boxes to store stuff in. They double duty as decorative displays as well. I use a buffet to house my tv in my living room and it has 9 draws which I store placemats, linens, napkin rings, tablecloths and my batteries that I use to keep my battery operated candles lit. 

When you begin shopping for accent pieces you will want to choose those that fit in the style of design that you have come to realizing you like most and want to wake up and go to sleep with each day. I love shopping for accent pieces because they really give your rooms that personally finished touch. Make a list of which accent pieces you are looking for to complete your room and go shopping. Remember you are not always going to find everything at once. It make takes weeks of searching for the pieces you desire so have patience and wait for it all to come together in the end. You will be happy with your finished look and be glad you didn't just grab anything in a hurry to get it done. You want to be satisfied and you want it over and finished so you can enjoy it and live in your vision. Surroundings are always more comforting when they are visually appealing.

Accent Pieces

Candles

Wreaths

Storage Baskets

Greenery

Rugs

Pillows

Trays

Shelving

Mirrors

Above are a few Home accents but you be the chooser of what to buy that best fits in your vision of pulling the look for your home together.

Aromatherapy

Last but not least don't forget to tickle your senses with smell. You have taken care of the eyes as far as decorating but the smell goes hand and hand with it. It just brings everything full circle. It's just like when you're dining out. The waiter can can bring you a plate of fine looking food and sit it on the table but if it stinks you will refuse it each it and tell him to take it back. When you enter a home and its looks beautiful to the eye but stinks your whole feel will be turned off to a degree. Yes, houses have natural odors, odors that we are use to because we live there but believe me there is nothing wrong with giving your home a boost of lavender, citrus, or eucalyptus. I rarely use burning candles. I have a lot of battery operated ones so to give my home a delightful scent I use oil diffusers. There are many scented oils to choose from. There are other ways to bring other light scents in your home. You can use dried fruit, potpourri, wax warmers and even scented pinecones depending upon the season.

You can do anything you put your mind and spirit into. Don't complicate matters by stressing or rushing to get things done in a hurry. Keep in mind you can do it budget friendly. Shop the clearance aisle within your favorite stores, go to second hand stores, frequent yard sales and church bazaars. You will be surprised what you find. I am not suggesting you can't buy things from stores that aren't second hand. I am just saying why pay more if you don't have to if you feel comfortable doing so. I have never encountered a problem yet shopping thrifty and or on a budget. Yes, I have bought many things new and unused but at some time you have to learn to cut corners and save. It's nice to decorate but we have to stay mindful that bills continue to be due and it's always, always, wise to save for a rainy day or just in case, God forbid, some unexpectant occurrence in life happens and you find yourself depending upon yourself to fall back on for support. Enjoy your decorating experience, shop, create and design to Live in your Vision.

Salutations,

Walk in Creativity c/o

Sherri Catherine

Goodbye July 2021, come on August!

 ANYBODY ELSE IN A FALL KIND OF MOOD? I AM SLOWLY BUT SURELY GETTING THERE.

 NEW SEASON NEW DECORATING CREATIVITY TO BE BORN. 

THOSE WITH A TRUE HEART FOR DECORATING KNOWS WHAT I MEAN. 

THIS GIRL LOVES DECORATING! CHANGING MY TABLESCAPE AND DISPLAYS THROUGHOUT MY HOME THIS WEEK. 

AUGUST FIRST ARRIVES IN LESS THAN 14 HOURS. ENJOY YOUR HOME, MAKE YOU YOUR SHOWPLACE NOT FOR VANITY BUT FOR COMFORT AND ENJOYMENT FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY. 

WHATEVER IS PLEASING TO YOUR EYES, YOUR HOME, YOUR STYLE!

STAY TUNED MORE TO COME....

Live to Love and Love to Live!

Morning dear readers!! I hope and pray that you and your family are well and staying safe in these challenging times we all are living in. The nation is trying to heal and get things more under control in battling Covid 19. Many have been vaccinated and it seems to be a glimmer of hope in getting things as close to being back to normal as it can be. We all are still being careful and remaining conscience of the threat of this disease and continue to take measures to protect ourselves as we slowly but surely venture outside of our homes doing things that we once did before.

I was excited 24 days ago when we entered into the Spring season, the time when most of us deep clean and give our home a Spring refresh. I am really looking forward even more to Summer arriving in 68 more days, beach and boardwalk days is what I call it (Praying to make it there this year with my family). Creating an Designing will always be a joy for me. It has always been a continued mission of mine to create a home of comfort and joy for my family!  Ask them and they will tell you that the woman they know me as has always tried to provide a safe, warm and nurturing environment for them to live in, a place where they were proud to to have their friends come visit. I was raised to appreciate and take care of what I had wherever I was. I never let the size of my dwelling place nor my location deter me from making it into a home where love and heart resided. No matter what is going on outside of your door you can control what goes on in the inside and that was always my aim in every thing I did and continue to do for me and my family.

I never take the blessings of each day for granted. I thank God for them and the memories of the past. Sometimes it takes us slowly down a little and being able to reflect on how good the Lord has been to us and continues to be. The pandemic left many of us with no other choice but to do so and in some way that is a good thing, to get back to family and the root of your beginning. That same need for love and care that we needed as children we continue to need in some form even as adults who long ago left the nest of our parents in the continuance of life in starting a family and making a home of our own. We may be physically apart from them but never mentally. We still need that same constant love and nurturing from them from a far.

I Know I am not alone in how I feel. I have just joined the ranks of the other bloggers who are doing the same thing. I was doing this before social media even became a huge part in the lives of others and myself, even before I was able to afford a computer years ago to document my love for and journey in decorating and design.

Surprisingly to my Mother I have always been a farm girl at heart. I still remember being a young girl traveling in the car with my grandparents to visit relatives who actually lived on working Farms with live stock and fresh fruits and vegetables. I remember the grass, the trees, the sunshine, the rocking chairs on the wooden porches and just feeling a sense of joy and warmth. In looking back their lives were a lot less complicated and simple then the lives we live now with all our modern day technology. Many of us in our hearts and minds wish we could go back to the way it use to be in some form or fashion. There were less distractions that kept a family from being a close family. We spent more days talking. sharing and doing things together minus everyone having their own agenda or separate space to be in. Now the holidays and times of bereavement seem to be the only times families get together in large numbers to catch up on life with one another and with the threat of Covid still existing time together has become even more limited and far and few in between for safety precautions.

No one knows when their last day on earth will be and as for myself I try to live each day surrounded by joy and doing things to make others and myself happy. Creating an environment of warm and contentment helps tremendously. We live and chose partly with our eyes so I choose joy and I choose cleanliness and warmth, things that sooth the spirit and keep my mind stayed on Christ. I pray daily and surround myself with things that remind me of Him and His Word. I try to live and operate how I know God wants me to. The most important thing is Love.  Love motivates you to do things for others and not just yourself. Love motivates you to share and that is one reason I created this blog to share with you, my readers, my journey in design and in the process hope to inspire any one who reads my journey to live, love, appreciate life and be grateful for every blessing of God. Take nothing for granted. Never put off til tomorrow what you can do right now because tomorrow may not present itself to afford you a chance to do so. 

Thank you for stopping by, stay safe, trust the Lord and enjoy the Spring Summer Seasons. Walk in Creativity!

Peace and Blessings,

Sherri C. W. T.

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Fill your home with love not just things...

In case this is your first time visiting my blog let me introduce myself. My name is Sherri, I love the Lord, life and my family. I am blessed to have been a stay at home mom and homemaker. The kids, all grown now, having left the nest leaves me still being a mom who tends to home where all her children remain welcome to visit and make themselves comfortable anytime. We can travel here and there but there is no place like home, where love resides. The place that mom put together with pride for her family to enjoy and make memories in year by year. Memories are made wherever you reside. Sometimes life happens and you are uprooted from a place you spent years pouring your love into and creating special times and memories for your family. No matter where God places you just bloom wherever you are in Grace in the continuance of life. We make the best of what we have where we are. It's nice to have things of enjoyment in our home but what is more important is that love resides there. Let love bloom over everything. Material things are just what they are material things, things with a price tags but Love is free. If your home is filled with Love you are rich blessing wise. Never take life or love for granted. Give it as much as you wish to receive it. 

I love to design and decorate and it is only by the Grace of God that I get to do what I love everyday. Love motivates me to create an environment for my family to relax and feel content in. I thank God for this and take not his blessings lightly because our lives could go either way. We see people in the world who have to deal with some catastrophic things.. Each day is a blessing and we should thank God for what is and what is not. We should be showing love one to another as God intends us to do. Division, hatred, injustice and evil imaginations are all works of the satan. God said love your neighbor. The Bible also says if we say we have fellowship with Him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. So as you shop to fill your home with things make sure you don't forget to fill it with love first  and don't sit back and see your neighbor in need and not think to lend a helping hand. Material things get old, worn and loses it shine and appeal but love is eternal if its real and true. Have a wonderful week. 

God bless you. 

Thanks for reading.

DIY: Sofa Table transformation

When you want to change the look and feel of a room in your home doesn't mean you have to go out and buy new furniture transform what you have. For a year my plan has been to add more white pieces into my home. I found a nice white buffet last year that I now use as a stand to hold my tv in the living room. I put an oak sofa table in place of the buffet that once was in the corner of my dinning room. Now I needed to find a way to replace the white piece that added a level of brightness to my dinning space. It was an easy remedy for me with white chalk paint. I love the transformation and it added a pop of white in the room that was missing once I removed the buffet. I am pleased with the transformation and brightness it brings to my dinning area.

BEFORE

AFTER