There are a lot of times in life when ‘winging it’ is essential. For example, taking my 3 month old son on a plane for the first time and realizing I had only brought one pacifier (rookie mom mistake!) and watching as if in slow motion as it dropped out of his mouth and onto the floor and realizing that either he was going to be crying the whole time or I was going to have to ‘sanitize’ it by putting it in my mouth first. You gotta do what you gotta do folks.
But when it comes to home design, ‘winging it’ isn’t always the best approach. Which is why I’m SOOOOOO happy that my amazingly, talented friend Karianne from Thistlewood Farm has a brand new book, The DIY Home Planner, to help make the process of creating our homes not only as easy and seamless as possible while also reflecting our personalities and personal style.
And friends, this is so much more than just an ordinary home planner. Woven throughout are gentle reminders that point us back to the truth about the purpose behind the making of a home.
The DIY Home Planner covers every single area of your home.
From fabric choices…
To selecting the perfect lighting for each room…
To rules of thumb for accessorizing.
It’s all here in one lovely resource that is accessible, practical and filled with the absolute best ideas and inspiration for creating a home that you will love.
And to celebrate the release of The DIY Home Planner I’m so excited to be offering a fantastic giveaway! Not only will one of you win your own copy of the DIY Home Planner but I’m also throwing in a $25 Hobby Lobby Gift card!
You can visit Karianne every day at Thistlewood Farm for more great decorating and diy ideas and while you’re there I highly encourage you to pick up copies of her beautiful books.
Thank you for meeting me at the fence today,
I have a hard time deciding how pictures will go good when I’m trying to hang ones of my 5 grandkids. That 5th one gets me uneven lol.
I also can’t seem to find a way to be able to rearrange my furniture like I used to when I was feeling down. We moved and downsized big time
I had a friend ask me what my decorating style would be. My reply was, I decorate to please myself and I don’t worry about what other people think. I love looking at how other people decorate and can appreciate their creativity.
I always have trouble picking out paint colors so I tend to stick with neutrals.
My challenge right now is figuring out what to do with a long rectangular living room!
Break it up into 2 different areas. One could be seating and the other could also be chairs and a settee or a table and 2 chairs. I found the only way to decorate a long room is to break it up.
I find the most challenging part of home design to be the slow acquiring of pieces…trying to keep a cohesiveness while avoiding looking like you picked out everything from a single store display!
The most challenging room in my home is the kitchen. I need help with finding the right white paint for the cabinets and island.
I find the most challenging part of decorating is just getting started on big projects such as painting a room. I’ve lived in my current house for 18 months and still haven’t gotten around to painting two bathrooms that have hideous colored walls!
I would love to have this book. We are doing some remodeling/updating to our home. This looks like it could be very helpful.
This is awesome! I am having issues trying to figure out how to arrange my awkward family room that has a fireplace and too many doors. I swear it’s impossible to get the furniture to accommodate the flow
I find it hard to know what to hang on the walls and where things should go.
My most challenging aspect is just stepping out there and going for it. I do however find a lot of great inspiration here 🙂
I need ideas for my mantel! Maybe this book could help!
The most challenging thing for me is getting my husband on board to what I like🤣. I LOVE Karianne and follow her blog and have her book “SO CLOSE TO AMAZING” so would devour her new book also! and…who doesn’t love hobby lobby!
My challenge is finding colors that compliment each other. Thanks for the chance to win the book! Looks great!
The biggest challenge for me is finding all the pieces I need to complete my vision without spending months shopping.
All decorating is a challenge for me!
We built a house a few years ago and I’ve had such a hard time decorating it. The living room and kitchen are open and the living room has a cathedral ceiling. It’s never really felt like a reflection of my family. I need this home planner to inspire some ideas!
That book looks fun! Would love to win.
The challenge in my house is the constant clutter in the family room. I need to find a way to get more storage space.
I am so ready for Spring–this book and gift certificate would get me on the right track!
The hardest thing for me is picking colors for rooms and then not having every thing that color.
My challenge has and always will be my family room mantle!
My challenge seems to be finding the right pictures and selecting a new rug for our living room.
Choosing wall color in a remodeled bathroom and accessories
Wow, a great giveaway…..a way to buy more yarn!!!
I would love having everything put together in one book. I, also, have a long skinny family room and have trouble with furniture placement.
what a great giveaway! would love to win this!
My challenge is what colors to mix and match in all my different rooms, should I go with the same colors basically in all the rooms, or completely different colors!
My biggest challenge is organizing and making a functional studio for both quilting and metalsmithing. Both activities require so many tools and supplies, and of course my space is limited. IT is still a work in progress .
This book looks uniquely special-thanks for the chance to win!
We are planning on remodeling some rooms in our home. This book would be a wonderful guide!
Great book to have for planning decorating projects.
I think the most challenging is time and money, lol. When I have money I don’t have time and now that I am retired it’s hard to find the money for what I want.
I love the idea of a whole house planner. I have new flooring, windows and the removal of a fireplace. Now it’s time to decorate!
I’m ready for a whole house decorating.!
My challenge is trying to come up with a better way to arrange my living room furniture for a more updated look.
Most challenging is to get everybody to agree on decorations, everyone has their own taste.
The book looks lovely! I sure need help in some areas of my home. This looks like the next best thing to a personal decorator.
I am always looking for new ideas, inspiration.
I think the most challenging aspect of home design is trying to determine the proper size of furniture for a room . It is too easy to buy furniture or pieces that fit into the room but than makes the room appear crowded or much smaller to the eye.
I think the most challenging thing about design, is making sure each room is cohesive with the next room.
I have a hard time arranging wall decor.
Too much brown in my living room, floor, chairs, tables and curtains. Having trouble deciding what colours to add and where to put them.
I have a hard time making everything flow.
I don’t have a sense for decorating at all. I know what I like when I see but can’t put it together for myself.
With decorating, I think I have the hardest time knowing when to stop— when enough is enough in a space. I just love my things and instead of rotating them out tend to clutter things atop each other. 😂 This book looks so fun and I LOVE some Hobby Lobby!
Picking the right colors is a challenge!!
My biggest challenge is the corner fireplace in our very large living room. I’ve had trouble arranging the furniture around it.
The most challenging for me is changing my taste as many times as there are seasons (or more). I’m learning in my old age, that just because I love a style, doesn’t mean I have to use it,
The thing I find most challenging is to keep my vision for my house in mind when decorating is a slow process. I don’t want to spend money on things that may be beautiful but don’t fit in with the end result I’m aiming for.
I like modern and my husband likes country. I have a hard time mixing the styles and making it work.
Right now it has been finding the right accessories and special touches to make my husband’s at-home work office have some character.
How fun & perfect timing. We’re about to close on a new construction home and the gift card and home planner would be PERFECT!
I have trouble decorating around the TV. Thank you for the chance to win.
I love hobby !!!!!!!!! Can’t wait to see what to see what diy home planner has to offer!
My struggle would be lighting, like in the master bath,above the sink…up or down lights and how many, side lights.
The transition from one room to another, making the design flow.
Love KariAnne and the DIY Home Planner. The little planning pages and pockets are my favorite part!!
I never know how to put things together so i call my look potpourri eclectic! LOL
Styling bookcases is the hardest thing for me. woulld love this book
I have the hardest time knowing what to put on a bookshelf.
The hardest thing for me is committing to a wall color. Everyone says “it’s only paint, you can redo it”. Well, that’s a LOT of work. I want to get it right the first time!
My biggest challenge is trying to hang things on old plaster walls!
Redoing some paint in kitchen and figuring out how to coordinate with the dining, hall and living room. This book looks like it would answer alot of questions.
For me the most challenging aspect would be how small my house is and working within a one income budget! Thanks for a chance at your giveaway!!
Love Karianne’s blog and her story. And always enjoy reading your blog too!
I find it hard to find things in my budget that I have a vision of in my head!!
I need help organizing my craft area. I have decided that creative souls have a hard time being neat when they get started on a project. I also would love to mix patterns I my home.
Fun give away! Thanks, Vanessa! Wonderful book!
Were we supposed to day what was challenging to us? I missed that part! 🙂 My most challenging aspect are vignettes. They take me styling over and over again. 🙂
I find home designing the best when we change accessories and other things i accordance with the seasons.
Marilyn
I have a problem choosing patterns that work well together…
I think the most challenging aspect to me would have to be choosing paint colors. I am a neutral fan but then I see other pretty colors that I like but know would hate them in my home.
One of the hardest things for me to do is find the pieces that I want to use in the room.
Oh what a wonderful giveaway and thank you for the chance My problem is paint for furniture
It would be really great to win this!
Making sure that everyone is a part of the design process in the main rooms of our home. There is so much I want to do and little space for creativity as well 🙂
I recently repainted the hallway and front room. Although the paint is a perfect color choice for me I didn’t realize how much it would clash with the drapes I love and the area rug under the couch. So now I’m scrambling to get things to “HARMONIZE” with each other. Simple project that I’ve turned into a major project.”
My biggest decorating problem is deciding how to add accessories and not clutter. We’ve moved to a patio home and space is truly a premium. Thanks for the chance to win this planner.
I love this. My style is very eclectic. I want to just pick one!
Committing. I know that sounds crazy, but as a gal who second guesses every decision I make, committing to a color or theme or whatever can be challenging. There’s always something out there that’s pretty that can throw me off course. 😉
KariAnne Wood’s new book is so amazing and incredible useful resource that will become a staple in our home! Thank you so much for sharing this on the blog, what a lovely posting!
I find it challenging to balance the right mix of different shapes in a room. For example if I have too many rectangular things on the walls it looks BORING! If there’s a formula, I’d sure like someone to share it!
I’m challenged by colors and choosing ones that will flow through my house.
Love your blog and love Karianne’s blog!
Challenge is just having the house “flow”. Small 12×16 family/ living room with fireplace and doorway to kitchen on one wall, solid wall (no windows or breaks) where we have the tv wall unit, third wall has large windows and door to backyard, and forth wall is the side or staircase and door way to dining room. Impossible to pull together! I only see one option for my 82″ sofa- in front of the windows but hate furniture “wallflowers” all around the room. I need help!
What fun! This is perfect timing – I am beginning to make big changes in the look and feel of our home.
We are in the midst of a major remodel and I am finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. This book looks like a good planning tool.
The biggest obstacle in home design is finding something that we all agree on. No matter how much a husband and wife have in common, when it comes to decorating the home, there seems to be little common ground!!
My bedroom is always a challenge. I can never seem to come up with a look that we can agree on that’s also a bit minimalist. We don’t need much in the way of bedroom furniture but I would still like it to look “grown-up.”
I have a hard time knowing which pieces should be “seasonal” and how to incorporate seasonal pieces that are easy to switch out/rotate.
I have a hard time decorating w color. I have a very beige neutral home and every time I try to incorporate color and make my home more eclectic it just looks like nothing matches 👎🏼
We moved, I painted our living room navy blue. I have never used a bold color before and not sure how to decorate.
My biggest challenge is melding pieces I love into a coordinated whole.
I find that I have too much sentimental value on things and I don’t have effective storage. This makes decorating a real challenge!
Thank you for the wonderful giveaway!
Trying to get the colors of the living room to smoothly transition to the colors and style of the kitchen.
My challenge is arranging a room that looks beautiful but functional
Finding a good balance between style and function is tricky for me.
I love Thistlewood farm and this planner looks amazing! Thanks for the chance to win one!!!!
For me, finding stylish options that fit within my budget is the most challenging part.
The hardest thing for me is knowing what looks good together & how much without looking “cluttered”.
I’m a perfectionist so I’m always afraid to just try something- I obsess over it and shortly I’ve abandoned that idea and am on to another.
I need more storage and seating in my living room. I would so love to win this planner. I love KariAnne. Her first book did not disappoint at all. I’m sure this one will be even better.
I can look at a photo and know immediately why I like it, yet when I get ready to put a room together I suddenly have a swimming head and fast paced heartbeat. It’s aweful. Others say I’m creative but I’m more overwhelmed than anything. Also I have trouble getting paint shades right as well as pulling all the colors together where they look cohesive.
I don’t have much of a sense of what colors look well in certain places, so I find that challenging
matching items or having cohesiveness with color, prints, patterns, etc.
My biggest challenge is working with small spaces and keeping the rooms kid friendly.
My biggest challenge is thinning out. We have way to much stuff and I am wanting a cleaner fresher look.