Planning Home: A Living Space

January 17, 2018

 Old Brand New

One of the big changes this year holds for us is that we’re planning a move. I can’t share details yet, but I’ve started daydreaming and planning a little in my head for our next space.

For the past 2-and-a-half years, we’ve been living in a little 700 square foot apartment (photos here, from when Maya was very little!). It has served us SO well. But good grief, I can’t wait for a little more space for all of us to wiggle. We started as a couple, then grew to a family of three and then a family of four. With two bedrooms, three closets and a living room/dining/kitchen space that’s reasonably spacious, it’s been a great spot for us. It’s on the ground floor, has a little patio out the back for Michael to grill, and keeps cool in the summer and warms up quickly in the winter. The polished concrete floors have hidden a whole lot of baby and toddler messes and somehow Maya didn’t injure herself when she was learning how to walk.

The other thing our sweet little apartment has been, in addition to the place we brought our babies home to, is temporary. We knew we wouldn’t stay forever when we moved in with our two suitcases of clothes. We started with a completely unfurnished apartment and have made it a home over the last two years. But honestly, we’ve done it as cheaply as possible. Two adoptions in two years is expensive! Obviously, our resources have gone into making it comfortable and cozy for our family, but literally everything is second hand and there are no frills. We knew we wouldn’t be shipping big things back to Dublin when we went home, so everything has felt temporary from the start.

We are also looking forward to having two floors for the first time in our almost ten years of marriage! And while the details are still being worked out, we have started to dream about what that space is going to look like. I cannot wait to intentionally design our next home, starting with our living space.

I thought I’d share a few inspiration photos and a few products I’m eyeing, in collaboration with Arnott’s department store in Dublin.

Arnott’s is on Henry Street in Dublin’s north side and it’s the largest and oldest department store in the city. I’ve borrowed products from their homeware range for shoots before and it was hard not to leave with one of everything.

First, a few photos that are driving the inspiration for our living space in our new home.

Sugar and Cloth

Design Mom

Homes to Love

Sfgirlbybay

Sofa Homes

Oh Happy Day

Sugar and Cloth

So that’s our starting point. It clearly leaves a little to be ironed out, but I know I’m leaning toward a statement couch like the Isla from Content by Conran or the Soul Set-Up sofa. I like the idea of warm wood for a coffee table, and we’ll have to find something relatively safe for rambunctious little ones, but the Soho coffee table by Baker and this Chelsea console table by Conran would be nice options. A selection of cushions (like this Haden cushion from Sheridan) will always warm up a room, and soften Maya’s acrobatic landings!

This post was written in partnership with Arnott’s. Thanks for supporting the posts that make this blog possible! 

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