Consider Yourself Warned: A Few Things You Should Know About Me

I recently asked ChatGPT a question just for fun:

“Describe me to someone that you are warning them about me.”

And, well… I felt a little exposed. 😂

The response was funny, but the more I read it, the more I realized how accurately it described some of the things I love most. So I thought it would be fun to share a slightly different kind of post today.

If you’ve been reading Rooms for Rent for a while, you probably already know that I love decorating, gardening, arranging flowers, and making our home feel cozy. But there are also a few things you might not know about me.

So, if we were meeting in real life and someone wanted to properly warn you about becoming my friend, here’s what I think they should tell you.

I Notice Everything

Consider this your first warning.

I notice things.

Not in a critical way—I promise! My brain just seems to naturally take in a room and start imagining possibilities.

I notice when curtains could be hung a little higher. I notice when a room feels like it needs something old to balance out all the new. I notice the empty wall that could use some architectural detail or the corner that might feel better if we simply moved a chair.

Sometimes I wish there were an “off” switch for this part of my brain, especially my husband, when we go to restaurants or stay at Airbnb’s. The moment we sit down in a restaurant to eat, I’m either commenting on what they could do to make the atmosphere better or complimenting them on a job well done for how well they decorated and made use of the space. This almost always happens before our server even makes it over to our table to greet us.

I can walk into a perfectly lovely room and immediately start thinking, What if we moved that over there?

Which leads me to my next warning…

Don’t Casually Mention a House Project Around Me

If you casually say something like, “I’ve been thinking about changing this room,” just know what you are getting yourself into.

Because I will have ideas.

Probably a lot of them.

Before you know it, I’ll be imagining a new furniture arrangement, suggesting a paint color, wondering whether we could add some molding, and mentally shopping your house to see if there is something from another room we could bring in.

I love seeing the potential in a space.

To me, decorating has never just been about making things look pretty. I love figuring out why a room isn’t quite working and finding those small changes that suddenly make everything fall into place.

I Am Incapable of Leaving Well Enough Alone

This one probably won’t surprise longtime readers.

A perfectly acceptable corner of our home can suddenly become a project.

I might walk past something for months—or even years—and then one day decide, “You know what this space needs…”

And that’s usually how it begins.

One small idea turns into moving furniture, painting something, hunting for an antique piece, adding molding, or convincing my husband that this is actually a very simple project.

Sometimes it even happens outside.

A weedy little strip next to the driveway becomes a landscaped walkway. A few raised garden beds turn into plans for an entire garden area. One hydrangea makes me wonder if perhaps we need twelve.

Apparently, I have a hard time doing things halfway.

Facebook Marketplace Is a Dangerous Place for Me

If you know, you know.

There is just something about finding an old piece of furniture with character that gets me every single time.

I love the thrill of spotting something that has been overlooked and imagining how it could work in our home. An antique pine cupboard, an old table, a vintage hutch—pieces with age and patina instantly add the warmth I am always trying to create.

I would almost always rather have something a little imperfect with a story than something brand new that feels too perfect. I shared all of my tips for how I “shop” Facebook Marketplace HERE. So if you like to shop Marketplace like I do, you will definitely want to read this post.

Which also means if you send me a Marketplace listing and say, “Doesn’t this look like you?” there is a very good chance you have just created a problem for me, or rather my husband 😛

I Will Rearrange a Room Just to See

Sometimes there is absolutely nothing wrong with a room.

And I will rearrange it anyway.

I’ve learned over the years that sometimes the best decorating ideas don’t come from buying something new. They come from looking at what you already have differently.

Moving a chair.

Swapping two tables.

Bringing a piece in from another room.

Taking something away.

I love that moment when you make one little change and suddenly the whole room feels fresh again.

Of course, my family has also learned that seeing furniture in the middle of a room usually means Mom is “just trying something.”

I Think Almost Everything Looks Better With Flowers

This probably deserves its own warning.

If there are flowers blooming in the yard or on the side of the road, much to my kids’ dismay, there is a very good chance I am going to cut some and bring them inside.

I love flowers tucked into pitchers on the kitchen counter, little arrangements on bedside tables, branches in oversized vessels, and simple garden flowers gathered together without too much fuss.

Flower arranging has become one of my favorite creative outlets because it combines so many things I love—color, texture, nature, the changing seasons, and creating beauty from something simple.

Give me a handful of flowers and a quiet afternoon and I am perfectly content.

I Believe Your Home Should Tell Your Story

Underneath all the decorating, rearranging, antiquing, gardening, flower arranging, and project dreaming is something I believe very deeply:

Your home should feel like you.

Not like a showroom.

Not like someone else’s Instagram feed.

Not like whatever happens to be trending at the moment.

You.

I want our home to hold evidence of the life we have lived here. Pieces we’ve collected over time. Things that remind us of places we’ve been. Furniture that has a little wear. Books we’ve actually read. Flowers cut from our own yard. Rooms where our family has gathered and memories have been made.

That’s why I care so much about creating a home that feels collected and lived-in.

The goal has never been perfection.

The goal is meaning.

And Maybe That’s the Biggest Thing to Know About Me

Yes, I will probably notice that empty wall.

I will almost certainly encourage you to move the furniture.

I may convince you that you need an antique cupboard.

And if you ask whether I think you should plant hydrangeas, the answer is probably going to be yes.

But what I really love is helping people see their homes differently.

I want you to look around your home and recognize yourself in it.

I want you to keep the things you truly love, let go of the things you don’t, and give yourself permission to create a home that serves the life you are actually living.

Because I’ve learned that creating a meaningful home isn’t about constantly buying more or chasing the latest decorating trend.

It’s about paying attention.

Paying attention to what you love. How you live. What makes your family comfortable. What brings you joy. What memories you want your home to hold.

So yes, consider yourself warned.

Spend enough time around here and you may suddenly find yourself rearranging your living room, searching Facebook Marketplace for antique pine furniture, clipping flowers from your yard, planting a few too many hydrangeas, or staring at a perfectly acceptable wall wondering…

Would this look better with molding?

And if that happens?

Well, don’t say I didn’t warn you. 😂