Ode to the Nester

Two years ago my decorating life changed forever. My husband and I were getting ready to move after living with my in-laws for the past three years (I thought we would be there one year max). I was so excited to start decorating my own place again; once we found our perfect home (albeit as renters), I started to mentally decorate before we moved in. I had a general idea of my style tastes (french, shabby chic, romantic, vintage) but no real plan as to how my vision could flourish on our tight budget.

Enter the Nester.

We needed curtains in our new bedroom, so one night I began to search Google to see what came up. That's when I came across a rather strange listing that mentioned the word "mistreatments." Intrigued, I clicked on the link and was introduced to the Nester's world. Having never read or followed a blog before (wasn't that for political junkies?), I was enthralled by this woman who wrote with a warm, slightly sassy tone that bestowed decorating power to her readers.

This was it! What I needed, what I wanted, what I didn't know existed! Her conviction that "it doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful" seemed to reach through the computer and take hold of me. I felt freed, released from the bonds of design perfection. I too could make a beautiful home without obsessing over minor imperfections.

I read and read and read her blog posts. I was up until 3:00 in the morning that first night and way past midnight the following 3 nights. I may have been mildly obsessed excited.

She convinced me that thrifting is cool, there is magical power in a can of white spray paint, and you really don't need curtain rods or even a sewing machine to make fabulous window "mistreatments."

I learned so much from reading Nesting Place that first week. And from the Nester, I was introduced to many other amazing bloggers that helped shape my design sensibilities. More to come on those gals in another post.

Here are a few of the many lessons learned from the Nester:

Hang a door on your wall (the banner's leftover from a party)

Decorate with pretty white plates

Go ahead and mistreat those windows (don't worry, your windows will thank you for it)

Paint a piece of furniture

So this, my first blog post, serves as a heartfelt thank you to the Nester ~ Queen of home bloggers!!

I'd love to hear from you... who/what is your decorating inspiration?

Thanks for visiting and I hope you'll come back often!

Cheers,