Welcome to Our Sanctuaries • Interior Styling: Amanda Neighbors • Photography: Amanda Neighbors
Sanctuary. That’s usually the word I use to describe a place where you can just BE. You’re surrounded by things that bring you some form of happiness…calm, peace, joy, intrigue….whatever headspace is most comfortable for you. I’ve often heard a phrase thrown around about getting rid of things that don’t “spark joy.” I think it’s from some sort of hoarding, organizing type show with some lady? I keep hearing it pop up but have never had the desire to look into it further. Maybe not everyone is looking for “joy.” Some people just want calm.
My favorite example of this is my relationship. Robert and I share a bedroom. That statement is pretty much where it stops. We each have a different sanctuary. Mine is the bedroom, his is the “Man Cave.” To be forthright, things have morphed quite a bit since we moved into a 4-bedroom house in 2017 (and more recently bought our own home in 2019, which is still in the midst of being home-ified, so you'll definitely see the progress we've made in upcoming posts!). BUT, for the sake of the analogy, I’m going to journey back to when we had a 2-bedroom apartment for the greater portion of our relationship. We’d always had 2 bedrooms and well, 2 people. The first time we moved in together after I graduated from college, the melding of the things definitely sprouted some arguments and frustration. Long story short, we decided to each decorate one room entirely to our liking. For some couples, this might spell trouble, but we were and remain quite happy with it 10 years later! The living room and the rest of our home has stayed relatively neutral.
My sanctuary is VERY different than my husband’s; maybe even the opposite. I love light. He loves the dark. I love being warm, he enjoys the cold. I find peace outside, whereas he finds allergies (or rather the allergies find him). To best describe our decorating styles, I always proclaim my style to be “Sophisticated Child.” Robert’s is…"Nerd Haven." Those are his words, not mine. He said it’s a “collection of likes over time.” I’m discovering that delving back into writing is going to bring up some fun discussions in our marriage! We just now discussed that while “Nerd” is well-coined for his love of Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, video games, computers, Star Wars memorabilia, etc, it wasn't at all accurate for his love of Metallica & Tool albums, Sports memorabilia, etc., which I summarized as “Man things.” He quickly replied, “Not exclusively man things.” I expressed my appreciation of his dedication to remain unsexist, haha.
I won’t delve too much more into the specifics of our styles because that’s not the point and photos will do the trick. The point is to surround yourself with what makes you feel how YOU want to feel. Don’t know? Honestly, Pinterest helped me figure it out. I pinned things that evoked the emotions that I enjoyed. I quickly learned I liked Pottery Barn Teen more than Pottery Barn. I find myself getting compliments mostly from young girls about my sparkly shoes or kitschy purses (my 5-year-old self would be so pleased that I never sacrificed my love of these things for the sake of "growing up"). You just have to be ok with letting yourself like what you like. Anyone who knows me, knows I LOVE the color pink, probably to excess (in their opinion). One of my heroes in this matter is a lovely woman I interned with a little over 10 years ago in NYC, Betsey Johnson. She is unapologetically herself. Pink EVERYWHERE. She infuses her love of things into her work and she created, a word my husband used to describe his sanctuary, a haven. I’m only realizing now that the title of this blog is pretty derivative of one of her brands, Betseyville.
On that note, welcome to Amanda Land. It’s rose-colored reality with pretty pictures (click on each one below to see the caption!! They're pretty puntastic!). I’ve been told I’m quite talented at seeing the good in people and situations, and I have to agree. I’ve discovered something so empowering in being me, in being JUST ONE PERSON. How many times has someone said to you “I never thought about it like that,” or "That's a good point!" They NEVER thought about something until YOU came along with YOUR unique thinking. That’s so mind-blowing to me, and I hope it is to you to! Additionally, I’ve had people thank me for sharing an experience. Sharing an experience can be offered in so many ways: to give support, advice, or even some laughter. Your experiences are uniquely your own and only YOU can share them. In the spirit of that philosophy, I’m here to share with you the things that make my world a happy one, and to hopefully inspire you to do the same. Even if you is “just” one person.
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