Moving Across Country and Making a Home

Moving Across Country and Making a Home

Big things were afoot in the Dyner household this summer.  We moved to California!

I think I underestimated what a big undertaking it would all be.  But now I sit here nearly three (!!) months later and we are really, truly settled.  I have lived to tell the tale.

Moving Day

Landing…

Okay yes – I had heard that one of the most stressful things a person can do in his or her lifetime is move.  But I never gave it much thought because I had moved A MILLION times as a single young person and it was fine.  But yeah…with kids?  It’s a WHOLE other ball of wax!

We have actual orange trees in our yard. This New Yorker can’t believe her eyes. 

 

Okay, so now it’s October and I’m finally ready to hit the ground running.  Let’s get decorating, people!

We are renting a house in our new town, and I thought it could be fun to talk all about how I’ve been decorating our temporary rental space.

Our rental house – a charming 1930s Mediterranean (it has parts that are lovely, and parts that are….dark, cramped, worn-out…UGH). 

In the coming months, I’ll show you a few projects that I’ve tackled and decisions I’ve made to try to “pretty up the place.”

And let’s get real on the issue of “decorating a rental” – how the HECK are we supposed to make a beautiful home if we really can’t change the place we’re living in?  Ahhhhh, I have learned so much in the past few months!  And I can’t wait to share.

In the meantime, here’s a little teaser.  Take a peek at what I’ve done so far.

The Family Room BEFORE:

 

The Family Room AFTER:

Here’s another view.  The Family Room BEFORE:

The Family Room AFTER:

I’ll tell you more in future posts about this room and how it came together.

 

Oh and here’s the ENTRY on moving day:

 

And here it is, AFTER:

(loyal readers, do you recognize my old living room and dining room furniture and rug?)

 

It’s been an interesting journey to move to a totally new space and be forced to use what I already have.  But it’s been fun to use a few tricks of the trade to make it pretty and livable.

More to come!