Our Summer Home

Happy Monday! To be honest, most of my home tours have been prepped before I’ve photographed, usually when the girls are at school or resting comfortably in their bedrooms, but that’s a less than accurate picture of our home. Pillows aren’t always perfectly placed, flowers aren’t always in full bloom and most importantly, we live here, it’s not a studio. A few weeks ago, photographer Alea Lovely came to capture our family and graciously offered to take some shots of our home as well {which I didn’t anticipate}, so today you’re going to see our honest summer home and how we utilize it! I hope you enjoy it and consider sticking around to peruse for a while, after all, you have a little time before you visit Brooke’s tour on Nesting with Grace tomorrow morning.

As you drive down our tree lined street and approach our home you’ll see a wood swing hanging from the tree. I spent countless hours on my Great Grandmother’s tree swing and as soon as we purchased this home, I knew we had to have one. Chris was going to make it, but so many other projects have taken precedent, so I took to Etsy to have a swing for 3 made. You’ll often find the girls enjoying it, but I’m not the slightest bit ashamed to say that I spend nearly as much time swinging on it. There’s something so freeing about a swing that helps me decompress and feel like a child again.

Our porch and landscaping are coming to fruition. I’ve added a couple soft blue outdoor pillows to compliment our pebble porch along with a dried wreath and copper lanterns. Unfortunately, I’ve been unsuccessful keeping anything alive in the pot you see, which is why it sits empty.

Our decor in the powder room and mudroom is minimal, making them among the easiest to decorate. I’ve added a striped linen pillow on the bench, a few dried thistles and removed winter coats, which makes the space feel so much lighter.

We’re hoping our lemons are ready by summer’s end – we have some large ones, but they’re all green. It can take up to 6-9 months for them to be ready to enjoy. If you haven’t noticed yet, I use a lot of plants and flowers to transition our home through the seasons and summer is no exception.

This little table felt really lonely, so I added extra roses unarranged in one of my standard vases I store in our hutch.

I almost always have fresh flowers in our home – they bring me so much joy. I’m hoping to add topiaries to my mother/grandmother’s buffet, but sadly I killed my myrtles and locating replacements isn’t necessarily easy in the midwest.

I reframed Grandma’s original oil painting to make our dining room feel light and fresh. Art is just third to flowers and linens when it comes to decorating for the season. It’s so easy to update your pieces. Had I known you were coming, I might have dusted and made a pretty arrangement for you, but never fret unexpected guests, a little pillow fluffing and kindness is all you need.

It was fun to see what Alea captured…I have a similar moment from a few months ago and it’s one of my favorites as well. This pretty fiddle fig has been alive for a year and a half. Did you hear that? A year and a half! And nothing says summer like a sailboat {reproduction found at a local boutique…had to have it after I saw it on Patina Farms/Velvet and Linen!}

Swing by my office, which is also in progress for a peek of fresh flowers.

In our half bathroom, I’ve added dried lavender, lavender botanical art and lavender mint hand soap for summer.

Little has changed in our living room with the exception of pillow covers and bookcase decor. I swap just a few seasonal pieces to make it simple to transition the shelves with the seasons like dried peonies, pretty “pink” copper, and corals paired with relaxed baskets…have you seen what lies beneath? I’ve also replaced the candles in our fireplace with a fern for a fresh summer take.

Our living room is tiny, but perfectly functional for our family of five. For early summer, I have fresh cut peonies from our backyard, my favorite scented candle and a light throw.

Upstairs you’ll find the girls playing in Ani’s room, presumably in her teepee, if Dusty isn’t taking a nap there.

They’re also frequently playing in Adalyn’s room, which is also decorated with botanicals.

Isla’s room is filled with subtle colors and white ruffled curtains that lend themselves to summer. Lately, they’ve been doing a lot of bird watching from her window as the baby birds learn to fly in the tree just outside of it.

Still, our outdoor dining room is one of my favorite summer spaces, with soft sheers blowing in the wind and a view of the lake across the way.   

It was so nice to “meet” you. I hope to see you again soon!