How to Keep Your ‘Home Away from Home’ Stylish

 Guest Blog #178, Entry #658, September 14, 2011

When it comes to our primary home we tend to keep up with its decorative appeal because we live in it daily. What about your vacation home? Whether you have a cabin in the mountains, a beach condo, or your grandmother’s home that you use for holiday get-together’s… when is the last time you have updated its style?

Don’t forget to keep your ‘home away from home’ stylish too!

Image courtesy of Flickr

My Guest Blogger, Holly, gives tips for keeping your ‘Home away from home” looking current and stylish at the same time.

_______________

Every year, my relatives and I have the chance to get away for a week long vacation. Our favorite activities are going camping, choosing a new city for sightseeing, and frequenting the Panama City Beach condos that have long been in our family. My mom – who calls me her style guru – gives me carte blanche when it comes to reimagining the layout and appearance of the condos. During our last visit, I noticed the design was looking outdated and took some steps to update it.

Comfort first

The first step was to reimagine seating in public areas. My family likes to gather around the table and talk after a meal, a habit which wasn’t being well served by hard-backed chairs that proved uncomfortable after extended use. We were able to switch tables between rooms, opting for a rectangular table in the dining area that easily accommodates plusher chairs. Now we can sit together after breakfast and chat, knowing we will be comfortable no longer how long our conversation lasts.

A quick coat of paint

Our condos had long been painted the same soothing blue, which was great for relaxation but offered little in the way of excitement. I suggested we redo the condo in white with a few pops of lime green, both in paint color and in accessories. It proved easy to get it done – a family painting party didn’t take much time away from our vacation and, as you might guess, ended in a bit of a friendly paint fight. Limiting the bold color to a section of the living room and picking it up in accents throughout the room gave things a fresh look that made our surroundings seem new, especially with a light rearrangement of furniture.

Bring new color into your space

Image courtesy of Martha Stewart

Unique touches

I have long been a fan of arranging books on a shelf by color, rather than subject. Doing so is visually appealing and added a fun touch to my family’s living space. It also helped us see our library in a new and different way. Going through our book collection helped minimize clutter – we were able to give away books we no longer wanted, including duplicate copies we didn’t realize we owned – and bring smaller bookshelves into the den. Going through our books was a good chance to tackle the rest of the clutter in the room, even though it was contained, such as a selection of old magazines in baskets. Freeing the room from all that we thought we wanted but could really live without made a world of difference.

Arrange your bookshelves in colorful order

Image courtesy of Colour Lovers

Reimagining the possibilities of my family’s vacation home was a great lesson in interior design. It was also a wonderful example of what can be accomplished without buying rooms full of brand-new furniture or getting involved in a drawn-out remodeling project. My family and I were able to make small changes and still enjoy our annual vacation – and more so given our stylish new surroundings.

Holly Watson is a graduate student working towards her doctorate in literature. She is a social media and art junkie. You can follow her on Twitter at @hollyemily7

For more ideas for vacationing and your interiors on Stagetecture, click here.