Presenting Your Home

Our Welcome Wreath

It is spring. The change of any season  inspires me. (Do you feel that way?) All throughout
the year, I try to create an interesting, inviting entrance to our home. Greeting friends and
family at the door with something that speaks of the season is special, fun and fulfilling.


Make it personal. We all have different tastes and that is ok; Your family is unique, so let it
show! One of the wonderful things about visiting another's home is that it is fresh and
inspiring. Be creative in reflecting the heart of your family. I love seeing the talents and gifts;
If someone offers me a tour inside or out, I eagerly accept.

                                                 ***************

If this is something new to you, here are some suggestions to help you get started.


1) Ask your family if they'd like to get involved. (This is a great opportunity for training
young homemakers and training young men to have an eye for details.)


2) Decide on  the theme of your (we'll call it) presentation.


3) Establish a budget (cash and time) if needed. (This does NOT need to be costly or
 elaborate. You may not want to invest a lot of cash or time.)


4) Work on your plan. (If you get stuck, your local library most likely has
 books/magazines that can help get your creativity flowing. You will be amazed
at how many ideas you have once you get started.)


5) Consider the tools you will need from start to finish.


6) Make a few lists:
             A. Materials needed
             B. What you may already have on hand
             C. Possible resources for making your purchases


7) Plan an outing to gather your materials.


8) Before you begin, you will want to clean the area thoroughly.(see list below)


9) Agree on a time to begin and have fun! (Remember, a project ususally takes
 more time to complete than one anticipates.)


10) Clean-up. (It took me awhile to learn to allow time for  this.)


11) Stand back and ENJOY your handiwork!



If you already have the presentation of your home established, you may want to take
a close look at it. As I get involved with other projects, I tend to overlook
things that need attention.


Here are a few details to consider when assessing your clean-up needs.

1) Sweep up (or rake) all that the wind has blown in.


2) Have there been neighborhood animals visiting? (The neighborhood tomcat
visits our house on a regular basis...and he marks HIS territory.{ SORRY}
If you have greasy looking dirt marks running up your siding, that's what it's from. 
{I know.. disgusting!}
It wipes away with any household cleaner or soapy water. We also have DOGS that
stop by. We keep kitty litter scoopers in various places around the flower beds to
SCOOP when necessary. {SORRY again...}


3) Clean up anything else that you can with cleaners. (Wiping muddy pawprints
off of doors or washing storm window doors, spider webs etc..(Jeff and I have always felt that a home with a neat, clean appearance was a good testimony to the Lord.)


4) Put away any items left over from the previous season. (We still have sleds
under our mudroom porch that need to be stored away.)


5) Touch up any paint that's showing wear.


6)Replace broken items.


7) Consider freshening the presentation with one new item.




         A simple going over about once a week will help keep this area ready to receive
 guests (in season and out of season) and welcome your family back home after an outing.
  

I am sure that you all have many of your own ideas of what and how to clean up
and add charm to the presentation of your home. Comments are welcome or even
drop us an e-mail. If you are so inclined, we would be pleased to see pictures of your
presentation. Thank you for stopping by. We hope this has been helpful~