July 4th, The All Star Break and Mid Year Beginnings

Happy sunshine y'all! The summer season is in high gear and at the precipice. It always seems to ramp up quickly after July 4 break. Doesn't it? I'm bracing myself to walk into Target any day and see all the back to school supplies. So, whats the tea with you and yours? Lots of change and planning 'round here. 

I've spent the last few months restructuring my career path and goals as well as some overall major changes for our little family. Everything poised and  pointed to our top priority of serving God in our home. Christopher and I have grown in our church fellowship and reflected on the next chapter in our marriage journey. As a result of that I have decided to move my work flow in a direction that gives us flexibility and for me fulfillment. After a few years of neglecting my creative side, I've found a new spark and have some fun and new launches coming very very soon. I mentioned earlier that I would be restructuring the Happy Home Maker too and that is rolling out with a few new focused features that are in line with our current doings.

Loving, Wearing and Caring for Vintage - Most of you know about my Vintage shop, Pack & Alley's on Etsy. If you haven't stopped by, please check us out we love visitors! Curating vintage has been part of my life since before I can remember and with that I have learned, sometimes the hard way, about all the tricks, tips and quirks of vintage items. Lots of folks have asked me great questions and I thought it would be helpful to share my hints here.

Big Ideas for Little Ones - Who doesn't like a little insight or help when it comes to all things kid related? There are blogs upon blogs dedicated to just this subject but it still doesn't cover everything. We'll just be offering our thoughts from our perspective and what we discover along the way. 

The Clearance Rack - You never know what you'll find, but when we find it we'll share it with you.

Knowledge Acquired - Guess what? I don't know everything. I do know a lot of really cool and interesting people and they know a lot of groovy stuff. We'll be having some guest posts, shared posts and stories that I have gained from and hope that you will too. 

Too Cool Not to Share - We just can't stop searching for beautifully designed, practical and just plain cool stuff. My designer spirit is always looking for inspiration and ideas and sometimes we complete a project or two. You'll catch it all right here...so find a cool spot and join us for our mid summer launch of the new Happy Home Maker on Monday, July 14, 2014!

Growth, Change and Discovery

Hello Friends!

I hope this find all of you happy and well. It has been a few months since I have been on the blog. The break was both necessary and enlightening. When I began The Happy Home Maker in 2010, I was a single gal running my decorating business, traveling and serving my community. The blog reflected my interests and knowledge of design and trends. I set out to write about the definition of a happy home and the different way that looks to each of us and how we can all get there. My happy home now, in the first quarter of 2014, looks a lot different than back then and in some ways there are constants. 

I am a married lady to a wonderful husband that has opened my eyes to the culinary world and made food so much more meaningful to me. I have grown significantly in my faith and my walk with God. Religion has always been a part of my life, but now my relationship with Him is a daily discovery. My family has gone through changes after loosing my mother and at the same time we have deep hopes and dreams to expand our own little family. I have moved from interior decorating to add party and wedding styling as well as curating and selling vintage. This time away has given me new perception and re-energized my writing. Since I have grown and changed, I think the blog should shake things up a bit too.

The blog has slowly been morphing into a new identity over the last year. Some of the elements will grow and I hope you enjoy a more targeted format. I'll explain more about each one as I roll them out. Over the coming weeks you will see new sections that reflect the priorities and interests in my life for 2014. So please stay tuned!

I am so thankful for all of you that have supported and taken an interest in The Happy Home Maker we remain all things happy and all things home. You my friends, are welcome in my home anytime.

The HomeMaker Playlist: Home

Its Saturday! What better time to kickoff the HomeMaker Playlist. I chose this song for a couple reasons. Seems fitting and a bit of an anthem for the blog. Home can be anywhere and anything. It also brought to mind a moment I had during our recent move. My now husband and I were making our way to our new home state of KY. I was following behind in my car and chuckling at the back of his head along side the back of our dogs head.  Quite a pair. This song came on and it struck me. Prior to the move I was a little nervous anticipating how I would like it and missing my life back in NC. Hearing this I suddenly thought of my hubs and knew that he would make anywhere we were together, home and I, for him.  It was all good. So, that's why I blog about home its our power source, encompassing all that is important to us, tangible and intangible. Thank you for taking your precious time to read my little blog and I hope that you find your happy home.

She's Back.....!

Wow, so much has changed since my last post. Life is funny that way. It can go from 0-60 and back again in a flash. I have a new husband and have relocated to a new state and a completely new career path. So, what comes with that is a lot of new perspective and new ideas, passions and information. Thats alot of "new." I look forward to reconnecting and renewing my relationship with my readers. Thank you for checking back on the HomeMaker and I look forward to navigating home life with you. Here we go!

Welcome to The Happy Home Maker!

What is Home? The answer is as individual as a fingerprint. For some, it is brick and mortar, for others it is abstract and free form. In my experience as a decorator, organizer and home stager, I can say for certain, that to everyone, home is the heart and soul of life. Whatever your personal style, life view or social standing, everyone can have a home uniquely their own. The Happy Homemaker provides, advice, tips and resources to begin building your foundation. Welcome, and please make yourself at home!