“Happiness is not something you postpone for the future; it is something you design for the future.”
–Jim Rohn
As you may know, I recently purchased and moved to a new home in a new town. The home I purchased was not what I was truly hunting for but it was in the right location. The night before closing I walked through the home, the “final walkthrough” they call it. I told my realtor I changed my mind and I didn’t want the house any more. The house was beat up. The trim was chipped, the overall paint job could have been done better by my grandchildren, it seemed darker than I remembered, drywall patch jobs were elementary at best, and the place was just dingy and dirty. Despite the condition, I closed on the home the next morning and got to work. I was determined to choose happiness.
Little by little, I am working to design this shell of a house into a happy home, a home with some class. One of the many things I learned from my past moves is not to wait until you sell a home to spruce it up. The sooner you make it yours the better. One major aesthetic change I made was the main floor lighting.
The 1978 home had mismatched lighting that was outdated and some that did not work. The loosely attached, off white track lighting adorning the entry way proceeded to track into the living room. An inoperable white fan with a light kit starkly hung from the vaulted ceiling in the dining room. I don’t know about you, but I don’t like having a fan over a table because dirt and dust can fall from it while you are eating. The lights in the kitchen flickered because the switch wasn’t compatible with the lights. Not bad if you like disco while you were cooking. Lastly, the two ceiling hall lights did not match. One was a faux rusty farmhouse light and the other was a frosted glass with leaves around it.
So, rather than stew about these lights, I got to shopping online like many others have done during the pandemic. “As the length of time Americans have been confined to their homes has grown during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the appetite for home improvements has increased.” Earlier this year I even painted the exterior of my home.
Committed to design happiness into my home, I still had to consider my limited lighting budget. I not only had to purchase the fixtures, but I also had to pay someone to take down the old fixtures and install the new lighting. I have always loved the French country style and this house could certainly become French country if I started with changing out the lighting.
Here are my picks:
I am in love with the design and look of my new French country lighting. The whole style of the main floor has changed for the better. The disco kitchen is gone. The electrician changed out the dimmer switch and now I can dance in the kitchen but without the flickering lights.
Some people say it’s the little things that make us happy and I think that’s right if it includes lighting. So choose happiness and new lighting.
Could your home use a little updating? Have you made any upgrades to your home during the pandemic? Share your story in the comment space below.