I’m excited to announce one of my new sponsors!
The Jewel Box Home was created by Genevieve, a wife and mother of two teenage boys living in an 1,800 square foot home. A few years ago, she was obsessed with moving to a bigger house. Her struggle with big-house envy is now in the past and she realizes the most important feature of a home is not its size, but how it makes people feel.
Be sure to visit The Jewel Box Home for great tips on decorating, entertaining and living happily in a smaller home!
A Fun Giveaway!!
Through out the month of April, you’re invited to contribute personal anecdotes about small home living to the Jewel Box Home. Stories about downsizing, big-house envy, beloved smaller houses, or small beautiful rooms in a larger house are all welcome. Click here to see example small home stories.
3 winning entries will be announced in May. Winners will each receive the ‘Jenny’ or ‘Genevieve’ handcrafted apron from Practically Necessary, a $65 value that is perfect for upcoming Spring parties and entertaining. You will also get your story published on The Jewel Box website!
Important: Be sure write Living Locurto at the bottom of your entry to be included in this apron giveaway.
Click Here to enter your story.
Good luck! I look forward to reading your stories!
6 Tips for Creating the Jewel Box Look
Put Rooms on a Diet
Get rid of pieces that aren’t needed to satisfy the main purpose of a room. This opens up natural walkways and creates space so that a room can harmoniously function as intended.
Downsize Furniture
Although super sized furniture might be trendy and look terrific in a magazine photo, large pieces overwhelm small spaces. Smaller scaled furniture not only creates the right balance for modest sized rooms, it is also less expensive. For seating, use a love seat instead of a sofa, and for an entertainment cabinet, use a buffet instead of an armoire.
Flower Power
Flowers are an important often overlooked accessory. These are living works of art that automatically add color and beauty to any room. Find at least one place in your home for fresh flowers and plan to change these often.
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall
A well placed mirror adds depth to a room and reflects light; making the space brighter and appear larger. Just make sure the mirror reflects something other than a blank wall. Try a large rectangular mirror over the dining room buffet, or a floor mirror in the living room beside a favorite chair.
Show a Little Leg
Let the legs show on all your upholstered pieces. This creates a feeling of space and light by allowing your eye to travel across the room and see ‘through’ furniture.
Don’t Overdress Windows
Keep window treatments simple and clean so that natural light can fill the space. Use sheer fabrics rather than heavy draperies. To visually enlarge a room, hang curtain rods above the window frame. For an elegant clean look, choose a beautiful curtain rod and drape fabric only over the rod.
I used to live in a 480 sq. ft. apartment! What’s the smallest home you’ve live in?
Originally published on April 2, 2009. Last Updated on May 15, 2021 by Amy Locurto
Reading about your 480 sq ft apartment makes me very thankful for our smallish home…ha! Our home is so much small as it was just designed wrong and most of the rooms are too small. We have plans to fix it…sometime. 🙂
theArthurClan’s last blog post..A Super-Fun Fix!
Love these tips. Our house is a little over 1000 sq ft – and it’s a little cramped at the moment.
Mozi Esme’s Mommy’s last blog post..Party’s Going On!