Homestyle: 3 Home Decor Inspirations From My Childhood.

They say that adulthood is just an attempt to fulfill childhood dreams; I agree.  Among the children I was closest to growing up, boys and girls alike, at some point all of them said something along the lines of "When I grow up, I'm going to have a house like that," or, "In my house, I'm going to have____."  We all had our tastes in style and decoration, even back then.  Personally, I wanted a Victorian home filled to the brim with knick-knacks, oddities, and wonder.  I wanted a home that was a feast for the eyes.  Perhaps that is why I was always drawn to books that featured homes like that.  

I spent hours pouring over all the details in beautifully illustrated books and imagining what it would be like to live there while also determining that I would live in a home like that one day.  I've recently been to the home of a childhood friend, one who had some very grand tastes, in fact was determined to live in a mansion complete with horse stables and in-ground pool when we were little.  Life happened, and her priorities shifted from material gain to financial freedom, but she has managed to perfectly blend her excellent style with a little cabin that she and her husband built themselves.  It's idyllic and I'm so happy for her that she is living out that dream.

As for myself, I too began to realize in my late 30s-early 40s that I would never be able to afford that Victorian mansion, and so purposed to make the home that I am in look as close to that dream as I possibly could without drowning in debt.  There were so many decisions to make about which direction to take our home as we were building and now decorating.  I based my kitchen on the kitchens of my grandmothers and those happy childhood memories as well as a certain cottage coziness that I couldn't put a name to.  As we are building our library, I'm going through old books and realizing how great an influence my childhood picture books had on my current style.  So, today I thought I'd share three of my favorite books that influenced my home's design.

1.  Martha's House. (1982).  By Edith Kunhardt.  Illustrated by Carolyn Bracken.

Not a single inch of of greige sadness or an open floor plan in sight.  Martha's house is really just a pretty picture book that explores each room.  Minimal wording, maximal style.  Each room is filled with colors and character.  There is a richness here that is lacking in every single modern home I've entered.  I truly believe that it's because back then, no one lived their lives in blandness out of the fear of lowering the dreaded resale value.  Homes are meant to be an intimate reflection of life and personal taste.

2. Hilary Knight's The Twelve Days of Christmas. (1981).

I received this books in elementary school as part of the Weekly Reader Book Club and it was an instant favorite that I kept and spent many hours pouring over in my childhood.  Eventually I began reading it to my own children every year at Christmastime.  Every page is filled with colors, prints, and oh so much activity.  Again, no sad beige minimalism or open floor plans here.  Each day of Christmas depicts a different room in the house and each room is its own little world.  My favorites were the bedroom with its floral quilt and rosy wallpaper, and the sewing room with an antique treadle machine and quilt on the wall.  This book always made me feel warm and cozy in the December chill, just as a home should.

3.  The Brambly Hedge.  (1980s).  Jill Barklem.

I hate to be that person, but children's books today are so basic and boring.  The 1980s truly brought us some illustrated works of art.  The Brambly Hedge is a series of books by Jill Barklem about a town of mice living in the countryside.  Every inch of these sweet little homes are covered in meaningful, purposeful items and Ms. Barklem illustrates them in such a way that they feel cozy and inviting rather than cluttered.  I particularly love the decorative use of dishes in so many unexpected rooms including the bathroom and the nursery (shown below).  This is maximalism at its finest.