Does your house have a name? We have our own name for our home (that involves our address) but when we were trying to decide on a hashtag (#cljhouse represents our last home) we turned to all different sources. This article was a great starting point. “Once reserved for grand estates and castles, house naming is a much more casual affair these days thanks to social media. House names can be like Twitter names or vanity license plates: Another place to define your identity and communicate your personality and humor.” You can (and should!) name your house whether you live in an apartment, townhouse, manor–whatever! The article even goes on to say, “one in 14 said they would be prepared to pay more for a home just because it had a name. Even those that were not prepared to pay more said their opinion of the property would improve, with 40 per cent saying they would be more interested in viewing a property with a name.”Â
If you’re not sure where to start, this house name generator was a fun activity! We also studied different architectures and interiors as well and settled on how we wanted our home to feel. In the end, we’re going to be leaning into the tudor/cottage style on the interior with a modern twist, of course, (see all of our fun ideas here!) and we settled on the hashtag #cljcottage since it fit the charm of the property so well. Cottages generally feature asymmetrical architecture, steeply-pitched roof, natural materials like stone or brick for texture. A prominent roofline and dormers, shutters, arched doorways, stone paths and are usually on acreage. (Our home sits on 3.5 acres).
Hashtag and architecture aside, in the end, you get to name your house anything you want! Would love to hear if your family has a history with any homes with a name! (we don’t but we’re gonna start it!)
Other fun things this week:
• We got the girls this blow up pool (it even comes with a filtration pump!) and they have been having the best time in it all day every day. We’d love to put in an actual small in ground pool in the future, but for now we’re just gathering inspiration. I LOVE the look of these more natural looking pools (via here and here).
• Our new office desks came yesterday and they were a cinch to put together and so beautiful and functional! We didn’t put our home office on our projects we’re going to tackle in the next 6 months, but we definitely are!
• Willow has been struggling since we moved. We thought that she would love the wide open spaces but she’s timid to even come outside on her own. The previous owners did have a dog of their own and I’m wondering if that is the underlying cause to her hesitation. She seems to be warming up to everything else slowly, but we’re all ears if you have any other suggestions!
• I got this big round woven bag (I got khaki!) from Amazon for a steal and I can’t wait to use it for our upcoming trip to the beach. They sell tassels to embellish it with, but I always love the look of a tying on a fun silk scarf.
• This paint combination from I Spy DIY is so refreshing and inspiring our upcoming interior paint job! (After all of you encouraged us to hire painters for the interior of our home here, we are waiting on a bid now!)
Weekend Sales
American Eagle: Buy one get one 50% off all tops
Abercrombie: Up to 50% off plus $20 off every $100 with code 14967
Anthropologie: 20% off all home
Madewell: 20% off for insiders (it’s free to join!)
West Elm: 20% off sofas + up to 70% off clearance
Rejuvenation: 20% off lighting & fans
Pottery Barn: 20% off furniture & 25% off everything else with code FRIENDS
Wayfair: Deck Refresh Sale – up to 60% off
Allmodern: Up to 65% off outdoor clearance & dining
I love house names! They definitely make home feel more special. We stretched to buy a fixer-upper with a our dream of a nice big yard and (seasonal) Potomac River views, about a mile from George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate. When the Mount Vernon Memorial Highway was initially built, the road signs that lined the “highway” were a very specific decorative style with George Washington’s silhouette on it. A lot of the individually built houses along the highway posted similar signs in their yards, naming their house. The previous owners of our house had a lot of pride in in, and posted a sign at the base of our yard to name the house “Rivervue”. It feels slightly pretentious but we love that the house came with its own name proudly on display. Although I might have to reconsider after playing with the house name generator…”Humid House” really has a ring to it… :)
Oh my I love the idea of house names!!!! I can’t wait to see what you do with your home! I love following you guys. Your home and style is so different than mine and I find it fun to watch what you do. I have an old farmhouse with wonky floors and light painted everything. I love my home but I think how you decorate is so beautiful as well and it’s fun to see something more dramatic than what I live with. What you do is so beautiful and I can’t believe the difference all the photoshop makeovers make! Our dogs struggled with the carpet free stairs for a while in the new home but eventually got used to their clicking nails. They had each other so I think they adjusted a bit easier than normal.
We have an Airbnb and we named our home Blue Azalea for the dark blue paint color and the nearly 20 azalea bushes the previous owners planted!
I saved that same picture, love the paint colors too!
Dear Julia!
I read some of the comments, and they make me sad. I really can’t understand envy, really. I feel just happy for you and your new home, I love to read your blog and I am looking forward to your wonderful projects and renovations.
My house is small compared to yours, but every time I read your articles I feel inspired and uplifted and ready to tackle projects in my own little house and make it my little home. Thank you for that!
Love
Jennifer