I See Your Jazz Hands and Raise You Pizazz!

Since blogging is new territory for me I have just recently began to follow other people's blogs to see how they set theirs up and what type of content they write about.  My curiosity has quickly turned into a semi-obsession because there are so many wonderful blogs that it is impossible to keep up with them all!  From home decor and fashion to new parenthood and teaching, there are literally endless blogs and vlogs on any topic imaginable. One of the blogs I follow is House of Rose. 

This particular blog piqued my attention because she writes about interior design, marriage, and motherhood.  The first two I can relate to, and the third I am curious about because it will be on the agenda in the near future once our own home is finally built!  A few days ago this question was presented to her readers, "So, I’m curious, what inspires you to pizazz things up around your home? Do you get the itch as often as me?" This was part of an entry about completing her home office makeover.  She is dangling a $100 Visa gift card as the bait for anyone who blogs their answer, and since every possession J and I moved across country with currently sits in an small 10x20 storage unit and we need to furnish an entire home and small business, I am more than willing to bite!

I'll begin by answering the second part of the question first, and say that I definitely get the itch to pizazz things up around my house as frequently as she does!  Those of you who read my blog know my obsession with HGTV and Pinterest, and now that I've added blogs to the mix I have an endless supply of inspiration.  Just ask J who insisted on hiring a painter at our last home when I decided to change our living room paint color for the 4th time in 2 years.  He was convinced that even if a hurricane did rip through southwest Florida, the paint on our walls would keep our house standing!

The first part of the question is a bit trickier.  I just told you my 3 main sources of inspiration when deciding to make a change, but where do I begin?  This part varies greatly.  In my bathroom my muse was a $20 painting I bought from a street vendor during my high school choir's trip to NYC over a decade ago.  My colors were pulled from the smokey hues, and the frame was the exact same stain for the cabinetry I chose.  Then in the dining room I was adamant about installing a tile rug simply because I have a pug who can hold his bladder for 8 hours, but loses control within 8 minutes of encountering any type of rug big or small.  In this condo that I helped a family friend with, my inspiration came directly from the view outside the window.  This one is self explanatory!

With the hours I have spent pouring over magazines, design books, online home tours, and the holy trinity of HGTV,Pinterest, and Blogs, I should have an honorary degree in design and architecture!  So I can assure you that while a $100 gift card does not go far in designing an entire house, it just may be enough to help me find my next springboard of inspiration so I will be able to post my own before and after photos and hopefully motivate others to create a space that they too will love.