Intentional Homemaking

For the longest time after I got out of college, my apartment was just a place to crash. My seventy- hour work weeks didn't leave much room for decorating or entertaining and the place sported a serious lack of cohesion in theme and decor (if my conglomeration of mix- matched pieces and random art actually qualified as decor). That attitude of neglect spilled over into the first years of our marriage, as we moved every year without finding somewhere to settle in and create our own space.

In the last year or so, though, we've begun to set down roots. We've talked about what we want our home to be, and started investing in making those ideas a reality. This apartment is slowly transforming into a home, a place in which to celebrate our blessings and to be a blessing to others. It is my heart to have a home in which people can feel welcome and at ease. A place where they are safe to relax, renew and fellowship. Find community and laughter or a shoulder to cry on when they need it.

William Morris's admonishment to have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful lingers in my mind as I work toward this goal, and I am so excited to have found some amazing companies that seem to be on exactly the same wavelength - like Dayspring!

I've loved their cards and ecards for years, but only recently paid any attention to their home decor line. I so appreciate that they have incorporated themes and symbols of faith and encouragement into functional pieces I can use around my home. When you're trying to keep clutter down and make the most of limited space functional and beautiful is the perfect combination.

Look at this!

(Yes, I was so excited when it came that I had to immediately take it out of the box and check it out.)

I am not a good picture taker, obviously, because it is drastically more gorgeous in real life. It's metal (and not the thin, cheap kind either), with an antiqued finish and it fits in perfectly with my stoneware dishes and dark wood furniture. I tend to be rather hard on trays (I've killed several plastic ones in the past), so I'm very happy to have this one which I know I will NOT kill!


Even with my over-sized mugs and the French press, there's plenty of room for tea service and the wide, solid handles make for easy carrying. Pieces like this fit in with the theme we are building in our home and serve as daily reminders to reach out, invite others in and not get so pre-occupied with myself and my thoughts that I miss what's really important in every day.

If you find yourself looking for more intentional decor or meaningful gifts, I highly recommend checking out the Dayspring Shop. They're running some great specials this month and usually feature some great posts (in)Courage ladies and other great bloggers sharing their own ideas, lessons learned and encouragement too!

In accordance with FTC requirements, please note that DaySpring provided me with the above reviewed product for free, but all opinions expressed herein are my own. If you've seen my book reviews, you know that I'm not shy about giving my honest opinion whether something was free or not! :0)