(5) Reasons It Can Be Better To Rent Than Buy A Home

June 14, 2017June 14, 2017 ~ laurelbledsoe ~ Leave a comment

WHEN DOWNSIZING MIGHT NOT BE NECESSARY

A day does not go by where the term “downsizing” is not heard in our industry. Even if someone is not looking to move from a larger abode to a smaller one in the near future, many are tossing around the idea. What is refreshing to us is that it’s not just us “older baby boomers” pondering living larger in smaller homes but also some pretty savvy younger groups.

Here’s a novel idea…what if we never “upsized” and therefore didn’t need to “downsize”? We know just a group who has this figured out. We are always excited to be asked to help them develop a plan to make their homes the perfect LBD for them!

Continue reading “(5) Reasons It Can Be Better To Rent Than Buy A Home” →

Living Large in Under 1000′

April 27, 2017June 12, 2017 ~ kristenmbritt ~ 2 Comments

ANOTHER LOOK AT WHAT MINIMALISM DECOR LOOKS LIKE

Converted warehouses and commercial buildings are another type of building where a minimal decor works very well. These structures are loaded with architectural details and have an abundance of light from oversize windows. The developers of these conversions do all they can to preserve as many of the original finishes as possible. What is appealing to so many, however, can be daunting when thinking about creating a comfortable lifestyle….even for the most seasoned minimalist. Designers, like me, love the possibilities!

Continue reading “Living Large in Under 1000′” →

Living Large in Under 2000′

April 26, 2017June 22, 2017 ~ laurelbledsoe ~ 2 Comments

ANOTHER LOOK AT WHAT A MINIMALISM DECOR LOOKS LIKE

Continuing with another example of how minimalism in decor looks and functions, is a 1751′ condo that started out as a basic builder grade, new build. Not unlike other areas in the country, communities are emerging everywhere that offer limited floorpans and selections. If you view the concept of having “less” as minimalism, these homes qualify because they really have “nothing” in terms of architectural features. Wasn’t that one of our must haves for making minimalism work? Yes it was.

Continue reading “Living Large in Under 2000′” →

Are We Ready To Be Minimalists?

April 25, 2017June 12, 2017 ~ laurelbledsoe ~ 4 Comments

THE BEST 5 WAYS TO APPROACH LESS IS MORE DECOR

We’ve all had several years of being heavily introduced to the concept of minimalism. It’s hard to surf the internet, read a magazine, or even watch some of the HGTV shows without hearing the word tossed around. As always, when a new idea comes up, there are people who have written “how to” books on the subject. Nearly everyone thinks they “need this” in their lives now. But what exactly is it…and can we really do it?

Continue reading “Are We Ready To Be Minimalists?” →

The White Elephant in the Room

April 23, 2017June 12, 2017 ~ laurelbledsoe

HOW TO SIMPLIFY IN WAYS THAT WORK FOR “YOU”!

WHEN ENOUGH IS THE GOAL.

Spark joy, Spread Joy, Live in a Refrigerator?

There…we’ve said it!

Perhaps these are extreme examples but probably not too far off from what comes to mind as the word minimalism is being overused in the design world today. Lately, it seems the theory is an all or nothing approach. To be fair to the authors of all the “less is more” approaches available…we agree with many of the points you make and do implement these into our designs. Clients hire us to help them achieve a more simple, yet impactful decor that reflects what is important to them. We love seeing the changes in their life when some of the “keeper of the stuff” burden is lifted. However, too many times, the dictate to get rid of everything that does not follow a certain rule is in itself causing strife

THE WHITE ELEPHANT DEFINITION BY WIKIPEDIA

A possession that is useless or troublesome, especially one that is expensive to maintain or difficult to dispose of.

So instead of minimalism we’d like to introduce the word enough. We like it so much more. It is not defined by a number. It is flexible, open to interpretation and can change with each situation. It’s a one size fits all kind of word. “Enough” will work with all the tidy little rules of living with less, downsizing, de-cluttering, capsule wardrobes and reigning in our carbon footprint. Following this theory of management might just spark a little joy as you get to add something back in….self compassion.

This week we will look at how both of us interpret minimalism in our own homes. You might just be surprised. Until then….

Have a Motivational Monday!

Ready for a little help with motivation to decide what is enough for you?

Tiny House – Terrible or Terrific?

April 5, 2017June 12, 2017 ~ laurelbledsoe ~ 4 Comments

WOULD YOU LIVE IN A TINY HOUSE?

“In 1931, Airstream began with Wally Byam’s dream: to build a travel trailer that would move like a stream of air, be light enough to be towed by a car, and create first-class accommodations anywhere.

Every inch of an Airstream has a function. Airstream is the most thoroughly tested brand in trailer history. Its engineering is the culmination of over 80 years of experience plus millions of miles on roads throughout the world.

With Airstream, there is no planned obsolescence. Airstreams of the Thirties are still on the road today, sturdy and modern as ever. They are intended as a lifetime investment in happiness.”-Airsteam Website

To many of you in the under 50 group, you probably don’t even know what an Airstream is. To those of us over 50, we remember this was the dream of most of our Dad’s. If he could have pulled his Airstream with a beautiful Buick all the better. Reality was more like a Starcraft pulled by a pick up but that would not make a good post so we will stay with the silver bullet above.

Continue reading “Tiny House – Terrible or Terrific?” →

Living in a Big Old Box

April 4, 2017June 12, 2017 ~ kristenmbritt ~ 5 Comments

5 THINGS TO CONSIDER IN WAREHOUSE LOFT LIVING

Before we start …. want a way to follow LBD with an App on your phone and be able to catch up on past posts all in one spot?

Download the App here then come back to Follow Us

At the link below!

BLOGLOVIN

Living in a converted warehouse loft apartment is a dream for a lot of us. For many it becomes a reality. There is an excitement about living in a historic space that has been “saved” and repurposed. Exposed brick, still with markings of where old machinery might have been placed; concrete floors with cracks, chips and holes from years of feet working on them; huge windows and shiny new exposed HVAC; all these elements are so appealing they suck us right into a lease or a purchase at “Hello”.

Continue reading “Living in a Big Old Box” →

Comfortable Luxury

March 27, 2017June 12, 2017 ~ laurelbledsoe

“What’s one thing I can do quickly, and not spend too much money, to my home this spring?”- EF

THE WHITE OUT

Continue reading “Comfortable Luxury” →

Tiny Treasures

March 18, 2017June 12, 2017 ~ laurelbledsoe ~ 1 Comment

Do you sometimes wonder, or dare to dream, what it might be like to live in a smaller home? We are not talking about one of the tiny homes that HGTV all of sudden is convincing people they need to pull around from one friends yard to another. Not a teeny, tiny home that requires you to crunch down to the size of a flattened mouse to get to the loft bed. Or one that means a trip to the laundromat each week.

No, we are talking about homes so efficient and design oriented that we forget they are only 700-900 sq feet. Homes enticing enough that we are itching to give them a chance to make a difference in our lives.

Homes with….

Architectural Interest
Creative Decor
Efficient Uses of Space
Specific Storage
Fewer Finer Furnishings
Space for Art and Collections
Wardrobes that Work
Easy Maintenance
In Diverse Engaging Neighborhoods

Continue reading “Tiny Treasures” →

How Many is Too Many

February 21, 2017June 12, 2017 ~ laurelbledsoe ~ 2 Comments

taberanddrew .jpg

taberanddrew

No, this is not a landfill. If you are honest with yourself, you may have a similar stash of plastic grocery bags lurking in your home. This is what happens when we save to reuse… but don’t. We subscribe to various trade publications that often have long articles about recycling and how to house the items being recycled. At times it is overwhelming and leaves me with a big sense of guilt that I should be doing more.

So true to my approach of how I justify everything…I threw out all my hoard of these reminders that I was not reusing them at the rate I was acquiring them. Yep…I tossed them in the regular trash collection on a Wednesday. (gasps) Thursday I started a system that has worked for me for several years. I do have a few reusable type bags I use, when I remember to put them in the car, on a big shopping day. However, I like shopping in smaller batches, stopping at a store as part of another errand on my way home. So I do bring in 5-7 of these bags every week or so. There is no set number. AND I reuse them to the point of sometimes running out before the new ones come in! Let’s take a look at what works for me.

Cool Idea

First, is this not a great way to store these babies? Plus you get points for saving the life of one Kleenex box. A box this size can be kept almost anywhere.

eat this not that .jpeg

Next, the way I use our bags most is for kitchen trash that I don’t put down the disposal. We cook most nights, and have marathons on Sunday, so we have a lot of bits and bobs of “stuff” and wet food packaging. Using a $2.99 Ikea stainless bowl, I place a bag as a liner and toss anything in it that is too messy, or too smelly for the daily trash. It’s so easy for me to toss as I go and clean up once. These bags get placed in the freezer until trash day. Since we live in Florida, we have trash pick up 2x a week. We now have trained ourselves to automatically get “the freezer” trash on garbage day. We also place our cans/glass in these bags and then put the bag into the recycle bin. Saves trips to the bin and keeps the bin cleaner. I feel pretty good when I reuse and also recycle any bags I bring into the house each week.