I started a post entitled 'Reflecting on 50 years of life." I thought I might share all my "pearls" of wisdom. Really? I, of all people, do not need to be giving life lessons...I'm 50 and still learning something new every day! Although I think if others would learn from MY mistakes, their lives would be a lot easier and pleasant. But truth is, everything you need to know to live a fulfilling life is either in the Bible or on Pinterest. Choose wisely (that is ONE of my "pearls"...ALWAYS choose wisely)

Anywho, I decided that I would be better off giving advice on how to make your home a place you will love. I'm not going to give you "decorator tips" because I am not a decorator...I am just a mom who has found a balance by trial and error. Besides, you can find REAL decorators all over the internet who will tell you how to decorate a room!

So here is some of what I know about "home interior decor".....

1) You won't ever wake up and say "THIS is perfect." Your home is ever changing...families grow, kids get older, stuff gets out of date or worn...so embrace the ebb and flow of your changing life and go with it!

2) I give the same advice about major home decor purchases as I do cars...if I show you a stock and tell you that you will pay $40,000 for it today and I can GUARANTEE you it will be worth $20,000 next year, would you buy it? Nope. So why would you buy a brand new car or brand new anything? Personal property (furniture, cars, appliances) WILL depreciate. Keep that in mind when making a home interior purchase. Let someone else take the depreciation "hit" unless it is a piece you are madly in love with and you KNOW it will be in your home until...well, forever! Here is a little trick I use sometimes...take the purchase price, divide it by the REAL number of years you think you will use that item...for example, my living room couch cost me $1500. I knew I loved it and would use it for years...so far, I am going on 10. So basically I paid $150 a year for this couch. Yep, that is reasonable in my book! But the fact I have had it for 10 years is VERY unusual! Most people don't keep couches that long! Do the math...spend your money wisely!

3) With that advice in mind, whenever you can, buy used and make it your own! Learn to paint...learn to refinish...learn to reupholster. And if you just don't want to do that...or feel you can't...learn patience! Because I can promise you, that "vision" you have in your head for a new tv cabinet or bedroom set or chair will be out there at a garage sale or on craigslist or at a flea market....or seriously reduced at some point!

I have wanted a coffee table like this for...well, decades. But I never could find the EXACT coffee table I had in my mind...and when I did finally find it, it needed some attention! But my patience and ability to DIY paid off...big time!

4) And with that in mind, NEVER BUY IT OR BRING IT HOME IF YOU DON'T SERIOUSLY LOVE IT! Or will love it with a little "tweeking," Because if you can look at it and say "Wow, I really love that!" there is a good chance it will be something you will still love years from now...you won't ever regret that purchase! My rule...if I have to think about it for more than 10 seconds, I don't need it!

This tv cabinet was expensive...but I love it...it is 8-9 years old and I have NEVER regretted it or questioned the purchase. Great story. When I first fell in love with it, I really couldn't justify spending what they were asking...HOWEVER, they had one that was a "customer cancellation" and had a few VERY minor dings...at HALF the price of a new one. SOLD! And the great thing was they had one of their experts fix the "dings!"

5) Use "fads" sparingly. Pillows, rugs, inexpensive pictures... basic accessories...can all be easily changed. So use "accessories" as a way to infuse "fads." The big stuff...primarily furniture...should be something you LOVE and something you know you will probably love 10 years from now. The only time I break that rule is if it is a second hand piece of furniture that is free or cheap that I am going to "repurpose" or "refinish"...knowing that next year I will pass it along to someone else, or repurpose or refinish it again!

As you can see in my living room I use pillows, framing and the rug to infuse the "blue and brown" that is currently all the rage. In my den, I bought this little inexpensive side table at Salvation Army and stained and painted it.

All can be changed or given away when I "change my style" without breaking the bank!

6) Keep "collecting" to a minimum. Seriously, if you collect more than 1 or 2 things, choose one. Otherwise, it just becomes "clutter." I collect hard back books. And Lane Acclaim table...but those are part of my "timeless furniture" so I don't count them as a "collection." My point, "collections" can quickly become "clutter."

7) If someone offers you a "family heirloom"...china, photos, knick-knacks, furniture...take it! Find a way to infuse it into your decor! And if you just can't right now, store it away. But take it! My grandfathers' tools and leather case...my grandmothers' china...just a few heirlooms and THINGS I LOVE! and decorate with!

8) Pictures. Photos of you, your family, your ancestors...surround yourself with them. Find frames at garage sales and thrift stores and paint them...glue things to them...display them in groupings! They are the people you love...surround yourself with them!

9) Pay attention to tips from designers. There is a proper height for hanging pictures and a proper size rug...know them and follow those hard fast rules! I have a rug that is too small in my living room...I know it is too small and it bugs the heck out of me...which is why I just ordered a new, larger rug...can't wait to share!!!

10) Make your bedding a part of your "bedroom decor" and make it beautiful. You can buy beautiful, inexpensive bedding on Overstock and at T.J. Maxx and Marshall's. But more than anything keep it simple...and make your bed EVERY DAY! Simple is the key because if you have too much froo-froo and too many pillows you might be tempted to NOT make it because it is a tiresome chore!

IMPORTANT TIP! Make your bedroom a "haven." It should not be the room where you do book work, sew, fold clothes, scrapbook, etc...you should never go to bed or wake up to "work." No matter how small your house is or how cramped you are for space, make it the one room in your house where you can "escape!"

11) Don't be afraid to TRY IT!!! If you see something you like on Pinterest, give it a shot! And if you just aren't the crafty/buildy/DIYER kinda person, find a few awesome flea markets and second hand stores to cruise through every so often...trust me, others are doing the DIY/Pinterest thing and usually you can find what you are looking for...but be PATIENT!

12) Paint...there are so many tips and tricks to painting....again I could type a hundred posts on how to properly paint anything and everything...but they are already on the world wide web! But my best suggestion is to CHOOSE WISELY. And the only way to do that is to buy the samples pots and paint BIG swatches on your walls...then look at it...for days...or weeks...or whatever it takes to KNOW it is the color you want! I think I have shared how I choose my paint for my bedroom fireplace wall. I THOUGHT I loved one color...but I kinda liked another too. So I bought little samples of both, painted one half of the wall with each...and looked at it...for days. Turns out, I liked the one I "kinda" liked better. Had I gone with the one I thought I loved, I would have never been happy!

13) Shop thrift stores, flea markets, second hand stores, garage sales, auctions...be picky...be patient....you WILL find what you really love eventually!!!

14) DECLUTTER!!! Clean out your closets, drawers, cabinets, pantries...GET RID OF STUFF! Don't have "stuff" just for the sake of having "stuff." A few years ago, I opened up the cabinets under my book shelves...seriously, I bet I hadn't looked in there in 10 years. You know what I found? A lot of STUFF...and spiders...lots of spiders! I got rid of the stuff AND the spiders!

And before you bring more stuff home, or order it off QVC or Amazon, ask yourself..."Do I REALLY need this." Learn to distinguish between "need" and "want." And if it really isn't a "utility" item that you need, do you truly LOVE it?

I watch those "hoarder" shows on TV and I don't get the sheer magnitude of it...because I can't understand the "mental illness" aspect of the whole thing. But I do understand that we can get soooo caught up in the "wanties" and "gimees" and "Igottahavees" that we surround ourself with STUFF we really don't need. Or even want at some point.

It is one reason I strongly suggest using "fad" stuff sparingly in your decor....trust me, Chevron and burlap WILL go out of style...and your house will look like someone puked 2013 in your living room! It's cute...it can be fun to accent with...but use it sparingly and don't invest so much money in it that you don't feel like you can't get rid of it when it does go out of style!

EVERY SINGLE ITEM in your house should somehow enhance your life or have purpose...if it does not, get rid of it.

Am I guilty of breaking my own rules? Are you KIDDING? I'm just like everyone else...I make, and hopefully learn from my mistakes. I know that if I buy really expensive bedroom furniture because I just HAVE to have it right this minute, someday I will be stuck with furniture I don't really like but can't bare to part with because I paid a fortune for it!

What do I love? Heirlooms, furniture I was patient and waited for until I found THE perfect piece and the right price, stuff I paid little or nothing for and won't feel guilty kicking to the curb when I don't want it any more. I love my home because I have been very careful about surrounding myself with things that are timeless, things that have meaning (pictures, heirlooms, etc) and things I love. I still have a few "warts" here and there...and honestly, they are things I bought "on a whim" and/or paid too much for. But slowly I am trying to weed those things out!

ALWAYS keep your receipts. And if it is something you can't return (from a garage sale or thrift store) make sure you pay so little you won't think twice about turning right around and donating it!

And the NUMBER ONE RULE OF DECORATING YOUR HOME SO YOU WILL LOVE IT...get it clean and organized. Amazing how much more enjoyable your home will be when it is clean, decluttered and organized!

I told you earlier in the week this time change thing would be the death of me. I. AM. DYING. It makes me work too late in the day. Today I started rebuilding my storage building door and painting the shutters...a project I will share when I am done. Funny thing is, with all the work I do, I threw my back out this morning WASHING MY TRUCK! Immediately went the chiropractor, came home and started taking down shutters and building a new door...and I wonder why I feel like death tonight!!! Geez.

But on to something fun!!! Since I didn't get today's project ready to share, I'll share an oldie but definitely awesome!

When I first bought my 1800 s.f. 4 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath home it was plenty for my family then. After a year I added a den and a year later I added a "master suite." But I have always known that a big master bathroom was something I could easily live without. I basically shower, primp and do "other" business in there...rarely do I have time to lounge around in my whirlpool tub with candles and a good book. As a matter of fact, I think I have tried out the whirlpool maybe twice in 13 years. When my house was under construction I added a glass block window over the tub before I tiled. (I bought the house while it was being built but did a lot of the finish work myself!) The mistake I made was not adding an operable window at the time.

While they were installing the GOLD shower doors, I was thinking "EWWWWW! What was I thinking when I picked THAT!" I disliked it from day one...but I attempted (unsuccessfully) to decorate around them for 12 years! I also tried to add much needed storage by adding a little white cabinet. But try as I might, I could never get the bathroom to "feel" and work the way I needed it to. The ONLY thing I liked about it were the beautiful maple paprika cabinets I have throughout my house...to this day I still love my kitchen cabinets! But in the bathroom...not so much!

So last year I decided to do a "semi" makeover in my bathroom. I had just bought some beautiful granite at an auction...enough for my kitchen and all three bathrooms (again, I promise to tell you about that ubber sweet deal!) This is what I ended up with....

Okay, where do I start. Very tight budget so I had to spend wisely!

Paint, that is a given in any room makeover...light, clean...gallon at the most! I did paint the ceilings but after 13 years, it was time!

All the tile was fine. Thank goodness because that can be costly! But the shower doors HAD to go...gold...seriously, what was I smoking? Removing old shower doors is seriously the EASIEST and one of the biggest changes you can make in a bathroom. Remove the doors. Just lift up and tilt out. Take a hammer and carefully knock the top bar "up." Be careful that it doesn't hit you in the head (yeah, I really do learn these things the hard way). Now, MOST shower doors have just 3 little screws securing the side brackets to the wall/tile/insert. So take the little screws out and "pop" the side rails off the wall. Usually silicone is used as an adhesive, so you may have to do a little prying on the side rails and the bottom rail, but they will come up. After all the rails are removed, take a razor blade and gently scrap the silicone off the walls/tile/tub. The three little holes...just take a little bit of silicone and "fill" them. Haul the entire insert to the curb and say "bye, bye!" Buy a pretty rod and spa curtain and say good bye to soap scum and that nasty black crud that grows in the rails!

Cabinets. I bought new cabinets. Big expense. But in a bit, I am going to share a way to change the entire look of your cabinets and bathroom without spending a lot of money!!! Seriously...you WANT this!

I was going for "modern" so I decided to go with brush nickel fixtures and hardware. I priced the cabinet hardware at a local home decor store....$28 A PIECE...I only needed 7 but really...$28 for a stupid little handle? That is when I discovered myknobs.com Found the hardware for around $8 a piece....SWEET!

Originally I was going to put in two mirrors...but I bought this one on sale at Hobby Lobby for the hall bath and it didn't work in there so I hung it in the master bath and loved it....so I put in the totally awesome pendant light fixture instead! Well, okay, my totally awesome son in law installed it when he put in the recess lights (not pictures)!

There is only me...and it's a small bathroom...so two sinks was a waste in my opinion. I decided to add much needed storage and just have one sink. I got the sink and faucet on Overstock.com! They have great prices on bathroom fixtures. Always check them before you buy any fixtures or lighting!

Again, great deal on the granite top. Glass tile back splash...yum! A small amount of glass block in a bath back splash can add A LOT of style and class for very little! (That will be a great tutorial...it's super easy!)

The biggest change was the new window. That required some pretty serious construction and vinyl and sheetrock repair but it was doable. And having an operable window in a small bathroom is a must have in my opinion!!! I put in one of those nifty "crank out" kinds and I loooove it!!! It is so nice to be able to air out the bathroom on nice days!

And of course when you do a "remodel" there are always those "little surprises." Like the wad of pine needles and leaves I found in the HVAC vent....no air was getting through those vents....but some critter obviously had during construction. I also discovered that when the plumber installed the wall plumbing behind the cabinets (tech term, rough in) he tore out the sheetrock and insulation, and then the cabinet guys just set the cabinets right over the gaping hole in the wall....you could literally see daylight when I removed the vanity. I always wondered why the floor was soooo cold!! And I never could figure out how water pipes I KNEW were in the floor managed to freeze when it was bitter cold.

So I promised an inexpensive cabinet makeover....a process that will change the entire look of your bathroom and is ubber easy!!! Seriously, it is soooo easy that it totally offended my "craftsman" senses. Keep in mind, I just came to terms with painting wood furniture...so "refinishing" cabinets with this process really offended my senses. But I tried it in my kid's bathroom and my guest bath and I LOVE it! My daughter has refinished her bathroom cabinets, I have used it in the kitchen in my manager's house, and one of my friends just refinished her entire master bath! It is amazing!

I found this process on Pinterest....which linked me to "Monica Wants It." Monica gives a GREAT tutorial on refinishing cabinets...follow it to the T...do not deviate. (Monica used this on oak cabinets...I have maple...worked great on both! I also used it on unfinished oak and it worked just fine!) I have used it three times, and it has never failed me! Nor my daughter nor my friend! Totally awesome. (I wish my photography did it justice...but it doesn't!)

If you need to make an inexpensive change in your bathroom, use this tutorial to refinish the cabinets (don't forget the hardware!), get rid of that nasty shower door, give the walls a fresh coat of paint and update your lighting! You would be surprised what a few little changes will make! And YOU CAN DO IT!

Oh, and one personal tip...over the years I have changed all my towels to WHITE! Why? Because I can bleach them and they always smell fresh...no more musty towels. And they look awesome in my new bathroom! Very "spa" like! And TJMaxx or Marshalls always have great prices on shower curtains and bath rugs!!!

Bathrooms are a great place to learn to DIY. You can go big and do big, or you can start small and do a little at a time! Budget, time and desire dictate!

Have questions on how you can "change" your bathroom...email some pictures and I will give you some suggestions! beckcampbell@cox.net