How to Decorate, Entertain and Live Happily in a Smaller Home

chest_and_centerpiece

Have you ever felt your home does not measure up to other houses in the neighborhood? Are you jealous when a good friend moves to a larger house or builds an addition?  Are you reluctant to entertain because you have a smaller home? Maybe you are an empty nester looking to downsize or a homeowner who wants less financial stress and less maintenance. If any of this sounds familiar, you have come to the right place. I invite you to be my guest and learn the Jewel Box® techniques that add beauty, practicality and freedom to small home living. If you have any questions or thoughts you would like to share, I'd love to hear from you. You can reach me at genevieveferraro@thejewelboxhome.com.

What is a Jewel Box® Home?

vase

Let me introduce you to The Jewel Box Home. A living space that is beautiful and practical, filled with light and profoundly calming. The Jewel Box Home is a way of overcoming big-house envy, a status symbol for the smaller home and an answer to global warming for the lifestyle diva. Famed architects Louis H. Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright called several of their favorite projects “jewel boxes”. This term wonderfully captures the richness of small home living. Let’s take a look at the defining characteristics of a Jewel Box … Read more here.

Decorating

apples

Decorating has nothing to do with following design trends. Just because something is trendy or expensive, does not automatically make it a good idea. Your only goal when decorating is to create beauty within a defined area. For homes of any size, but especially a small home, this means creating a … Read more here.

Entertaining

Entertain

In this section you will learn about entertaining in the small home. I'll dispel some myths, compare two parties and give your party basics to make you next get-together a success. Parties and The Smaller Home: Fiction vs. Fact Entertaining is just as easy in a smaller home as in a large house. … Read more here.

Galleries

buddy

  Come and take a photo tour of my Jewel Box® home, as well as some of my favorite photos of other Jewel Box® homes. Simply click here. If you have any questions, you can email me. Enjoy!   … View galleries here.

Into the Homes of Readers

Do you live in a smaller home? Have you downsized or are you considering downsizing? Have you ever grappled with big house envy? Would you rather have a bigger house with fewer conveniences, or a smaller house with more high-end amenities? Are you raising children in a smaller home? What are your reasons for choosing small home living? Here are some stories from readers... … Read more here.

Letting go of Big-House Envy

Conventional wisdom tells us bigger is better.  But when it comes to living space, this is not always true.  Most people believe they will be happier in a bigger house.  But that happiness is either short-lived or never fully realized.  Why is that?  A larger home comes with a bigger mortgage and more upkeep.  A big house does not necessarily satisfy more of our needs, these are probably taken care of already.  Nor does a big house make us a better spouse, parent or human being.

Whether we harbor fantasies of a kitchen island with a granite countertop, a mudroom with extra cubbies, or just want to keep up with the “Joneses”, there will always be reasons to rationalize moving to a bigger house.  Just keep in mind that beauty, harmony and function can exist in any size house and are often easier to cultivate in a small home.