Carving Out Quiet Space at Home

We finally finished one of our own custom projects, which, like most of us, fall to the bottom of the list with other priorities. It seems we’re all busy carving out new outdoor spaces and creating more personal and private areas. It's a challenge we've been focused on; how to add unique pockets of space, bring variety to an existing spot, and spice up a small but charming outside area.

We started with simple things. On weekends, we switched to pulling the stools up to our bar, a quaint spot for happy hour, instead of the usual place at the table or kitchen counter. It sounds minor, but it made a big difference. Same house, different view. We also started a regular rotation of serving options; ceramic cups, glassware, cutting boards, and using a variety of bowls and plates. (If you're feeling stuck, visit our online Marketplace for ideas and options.) Unique textures help mix things up and make it easy to share your favorite pizza or the dips and treats that highlight happy hour in festive ways. Take a fresh look around and see what simple changes you can make to give yourself a new experience. This is how also we became inspired to make a bar cart, to enhance the look and feel of our outdoor area.

For this latest project, our goal was something different, a quiet getaway without leaving home. We built a window seat that spans the wall of our master bedroom. The base was built in a weekend, but finding someone to make custom cushions with our material took much longer. Now, it invites us to relax in the heat, curl up when the rain rolls in, or escape to finish reading books like Erin French's memoir, Finding Freedom and The Gifts of Imperfection, by Brene Brown.

Until the next happy hour, here's to catching up on some reading and sipping morning coffee from your favorite quiet space.