(Before heading to Target) Shop your house first

I know I have talked about it before, but for those of you that missed it, our house is constantly changing.  We moved to our 150-year-old farmhouse six years ago and have been working on it ever since. We have replaced some flooring, painted some rooms, and gotten rid of a whole lot of stuff.  All that work has barely scratched the surface. Our home projects will be never-ending.

A few months ago, I was planning a trip to Ikea.  I had new nightstands picked out and was considering if now was the time to get a love seat for our den-like area we call the porch.  Or maybe I should find a new chair for the living room? But that meant I needed to find a home for my dad’s recliner. Which was in good shape and super comfy, but it looked out of place with the straight lines of the couch we got a couple of years back.  

Then I remembered how it might be nice to have a house with all-new, trendy furniture. But I will not enjoy the credit card debt that comes with that.  So I (wo)man-handled the recliner into the porch. After I added a cozy blanket and a throw pillow, that chair looked pretty inviting. Then I dug out a console table that had been collecting dust in an unused room, things came together.  

Then I moved an old Ikea chair we had in our bedroom downstairs to the living room.  As much as I feel like I need a comfy reading chair in my bedroom, I hardly ever use it.  I picked up a new cover for it at Ikea and saving myself a load of money and end up with a new-to-me chair.  

Why am I telling you all this?  To remind you to shop your house first. 

Let me say that one more time:

Shop your house first.

Maybe that chair that is just so-so in the living room will make a great reading chair in the corner of your bedroom.  Or perhaps that old footstool would look much better in the corner holding your newest houseplant.  

The same goes for accessories.  I find much more joy grabbing my pens out of a Wonder Woman mug on my desk at work than I do the ‘pencil cup’ that I bought from Target.  

Before heading to the Ikea, your local thrift store, or settling down for some hard-core internet shopping, take a hard look around your house.  Shuffle furniture around and dig stuff out of storage.  

Your wallet will thank you.