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At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

Where Ideas for your Home Meet Inspiration for your Heart

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October 25, 2017

Never Going Back

This is my rally cry friends!

I’m never.going.back to stressful, time-consuming seasonal decorating. When I think back on the years where I would feel all of the pressure to come up with something fresh and creative and more likely to get pinned a bajillion times, I’m seriously embarrassed. Truly. Because it was such a waste.

A waste of my time, my energy, my resources.

I would actually stress out about it. Really stress. How ridiculous is that?

But, something clicked with me a couple of years ago.

I was just done. I needed to simplify. I needed to not spend an obscene amount of time looking at fireplace mantels on Pinterest and trying to figure out how to make mine look amazing.

I needed to put it all in the proper place in my heart and my mind. Which meant, it had to go waaaaayyyy down on the priority list. So far down it almost wasn’t on it.

Yes, I want to have a home that I enjoy. Yes, I love pretty things. Yes, I realize I’m a blogger who shares a lot of decorating so I kinda sorta have to care about it a little bit. 😉

But, I don’t have to care about it so much that I feel almost paralyzed each year when the holidays roll around and I’m standing in the attic wondering if I need to just donate everything and start over.

And, you guys, something really amazing happened when I finally released it all. When I determined to not give into the pressure and panic I would feel when I would scroll through my Instagram feed.

When I just laid it all down and said…enough.

There was this incredible irony in it.

Because, the less time I took to decorate my home for each season, the more I found myself loving the results.

In fact, it started looking like how I had really always wanted it to look way deep down in my heart.

I think that all along I had just been getting in my own way.

It’s funny how much my approach to decorating my home tends to reflect what is happening in my heart.

In those early years of blogging, I felt almost schizophrenic when it came to decorating. I was easily influenced by what I saw in other homes and what I thought mine was ‘supposed’ to look like. I didn’t feel confident.

And this same lack of confidence overflowed into other areas of my life as well.

It’s really taken a lot of time and prayer for me to finally be at a place where even though I still struggle with insecurities and I still have doubts from time to time, I’m becoming increasingly more confident in who God created me to be.

And, just like my home, I’m finding that as I relax into myself, letting go of the comparisons and the pressure, the more I’m actually doing what I really wanted to do all along.

To write books that encourage.

To get real about what it’s like to raise teenagers.

To share with you the things I’m wrestling with.

To provide ideas for your home and inspiration for your heart.

And, you guys, I’m never going back!

24 Comments Filed Under: Autumn, Decorating, Good Ideas Tagged With: fall, fall decor, fall Decorating

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Comments

  1. Judy Fisher says

    October 25, 2017 at 3:24 AM

    Good for you! You should be proud of yourself. Your blog is very enjoyable just the way it is. It’s actually nice to find a blog where the blogger isn’t constantly changing the decor every time they blog. That certainly isn’t very real for the majority of us.

    Reply
  2. Joan says

    October 25, 2017 at 4:41 AM

    This is exactly what I’m going through! I need to rid myself of ALL the seasonal decor and start fresh AND simple. I feel so overwhelmed with the holidays coming up and all the bins of decor. Enough! I’m going simple and will enjoy the journey. Great blog and perfect timing for this article! Thank you!

    Reply
  3. Diane says

    October 25, 2017 at 5:07 AM

    Good for you! I’ve been struggling with the same thing and I haven’t even started yet. Because what I envision, I don’t see out there in “”decor world””! Not yet anyway. Or what I envision is so old fashioned, it just slithered away somewhere. Anyway, my daughter and I have discussing making our house a home. We’ll get there with our own vision using the beautiful pics we see in design blogs as inspiration.

    Reply
  4. Calypso in the Country says

    October 25, 2017 at 5:18 AM

    Great post – I think we all feel that way from time to time. It can be hard because we are all doing this because we love to decorate and we love to look at other people’s decor. Yet, getting all caught up in the stress of it all is probably not what we planned. We have to remember that we inspire others by being ourselves! I always love stopping by to see what you are up to. Have a great day!
    Shelley

    Reply
    • Pat says

      October 28, 2017 at 5:45 PM

      One thing is that when you put it all out, you have to eventually take it all down. Then you wonder” Is this too much? Is it over-kill?” This year I did very little because of home remodeling and a new grand child and the world did not stop turning and I do not have that much to put back up before Christmas

      Reply
  5. ANDREA BENSON says

    October 25, 2017 at 5:56 AM

    Beautifully said!

    Reply
  6. Norma Rolader says

    October 25, 2017 at 6:12 AM

    Oh I can not imagine keeping things in there place or even putting them back … LOL!!!! I put everything up and away and within a day everything is piled here and there .. With taking care of my husband who is ill and bedridden and my 81 yr old mother lives with us … but God bless all will be alright

    Reply
  7. Deborah says

    October 25, 2017 at 7:27 AM

    Refreshing!
    Thanks for sharing from your heart…as always.
    It looks gorgeous and inviting where you are!
    xo

    All my heart,
    Deborah

    Reply
  8. valarie sanford says

    October 25, 2017 at 8:11 AM

    And this is why I join you at the fence every morning, God bless you!

    Reply
    • At The Picket Fence says

      October 25, 2017 at 8:30 AM

      And I love having you here Valerie!! I’m so grateful for the wonderful people in this community! 🙂
      Blessings to you,
      Vanessa

      Reply
  9. Betsy says

    October 25, 2017 at 9:24 AM

    The simpler life is the best in my opinion. We are going through the process of downsizing and it hasn’t hurt one bit. The more we get rid of the more I want to get rid of. We want the remainder of our years on this earth to be spent honoring God and loving our families. We want our home neat and clean and the decorating that makes my husband and I happy. We don’t have to please anyone else ! Anyway, what we enjoy can’t be bought at a store. We prefer decorating with special treasured pieces — things that our grandparents had — items from nature –things that our grandchildren make for us and of course — family photos from the past and the present. Our hearts and well being can’t be purchased at a store.
    Blessings to you and your family..

    Reply
  10. Julie Briones says

    October 25, 2017 at 10:14 AM

    Vanessa, your home looks lovely! Great post, and very encouraging…

    Now, I have to ask. I see The Harvester book in your one pic! Are you a Gene Stratton-Porter fan, or did you just purchase for the decor? 🙂

    Reply
    • At The Picket Fence says

      October 25, 2017 at 11:28 AM

      I love that you noticed that Julie!! I have many Gene Stratton-Porter books that have been handed down to me and she is one of my favorite authors of all time. 🙂

      Reply
      • Julie Briones says

        November 1, 2017 at 2:10 PM

        *squeals with delight* I LOVE her… she’s my all-time fave author! I have MOST of her books.. some doubles to give to my adult children. Always love to hear that someone ‘loves’ her as much as I do!

        On another note… I’m not getting notification of replies to my email… even though I ‘m checking it. Just thought you would like to know.

        Reply
  11. Beth at Unskinny Boppy says

    October 25, 2017 at 11:31 AM

    PREACH IT SISTER!! Last year was the first year I didn’t do a Christmas Home tour. I opted out of every single one of them, and it was THE most liberating thing I’ve done in a looooong time. We had such an awful year last year with family illnesses and I just didn’t have it in me to join the blogger frenzy. I stepped away and it felt really nice to sit back and do nothing all Christmas season long.

    The biggest issue I had was Garrett complaining that our house didn’t feel “Christmas-y” enough! LOL He’s never known his mother to not go ALL out for Christmas, so he felt pretty cheated. But, Caroline was still in the non-verbal, crawling/ snatching phase and I couldn’t decorate a tree without her pulling all the ornaments off.

    I’m 99.9% sure I will not be joining in any Christmas home tours again this year, (even though I could use the pageviews!) but I will definitely be decorating our home for the kids sake. Their memories matter more than Pinterest pins. 🙂 Thanks for sharing your heart on this! As usual, I agree! 🙂

    Reply
  12. Marti says

    October 25, 2017 at 1:51 PM

    Thank you so much Vanessa…when I first started reading blogs I felt compelled to do things in my home to look like others. Honestly I couldn’t keep up I was overwhelmed. I found my nitch finally and can enjoy what others do and get ideas from time to time. I am thankful for your new freedom and enjoy your lovely home and ideas.

    Reply
  13. Sherry M says

    October 25, 2017 at 2:23 PM

    Beautiful!

    Reply
  14. Mary-Ann (from Canada!) says

    October 25, 2017 at 7:41 PM

    Vanessa, your home is beautiful! Thanks for the lovely post today! It seems like there are a lot of people who feel the same way about all the decorating “stuff” that we have gathered over the years. It is a little stressful changing your home for the seasons and, after last Christmas, I decided that it is time to scale down and gave a lot of my decor to friends. It felt so good to do this and see how much they will enjoy the items in their home. I think that I will even get rid of more things as I unpack the Christmas decor this year. I really do love Christmas and love to decorate but realized that I just had too much and that it was becoming a burden to get our home decorated. And, it always seemed to take so long to get everything in place. This Fall, I purged again as I just did not want to have so much. I gave friends things for their home — and, again, it just felt so good to let someone else enjoy the decor.

    I agree with you, I just want to be surrounded with things in our home that really matter. Plus, I have realized that I must spend more time in helping others. This is so important.

    I have just received my copy of your lovely book and I am really enjoying it! May God continue to bless you and your sister. You have been such a blessing in the lives of those who read your posts. I always look forward to reading them!

    Bless you! You are so special!

    Reply
    • At The Picket Fence says

      October 26, 2017 at 11:33 AM

      Oh Mary-Ann thank you so much for this incredibly kind and encouraging comment! I agree with you that the ‘stuff’ can easily become a burden and actually take away from our enjoyment of the seasons. It’s nice to know I’m not the only one who is feeling this way. Thank you too for your sweet words about our book! It blesses me so much to know that you are enjoying it. If you have time, would you consider leaving a review of it on Amazon? Thank you again for being apart of our At the Picket Fence community! xoxo

      Reply
  15. Shirley @Housepitality Design s says

    October 30, 2017 at 6:37 AM

    I love that you always speak from the heart!!

    Reply
  16. Dorothy Ensz says

    October 30, 2017 at 1:36 PM

    I was looking for personal inspiration, and wondered which blog I thought might have what I was looking for. At The Picket Fence came to mind, and I’m so glad I got to read this post. It’s what I needed today. There is so much pressure to produce, to manage one’s time, to master social media, to plan for the most impact. I was so. tired. of the feeling of FOMO. Then the Still Small Voice said, relax, and start doing. One small thing at a time. Your post is so encouraging. It’s a very real assurance that doing and being are the most important, after all. Thank you again.

    Reply
    • At The Picket Fence says

      October 31, 2017 at 10:12 AM

      Dorothy I can’t tell you how much it means to me that, first of all, our blog came to your mind when you were looking for personal inspiration, and that this post resonated with you so much. Thank you for your kind words and for being apart of our community!

      Reply
  17. Penny Meade says

    November 4, 2017 at 5:54 AM

    Keeping it simple, clean is joy.

    Reply
  18. Amber Ferguson says

    August 17, 2019 at 7:38 PM

    This is so wonderful, visually and the sentiment as well. I have already decided to end the chaos and get back to decorating from the heart. This week I am detoxing loads of commercial fall decor that I bought over the last few years trying to change my style to be “on trend” when I my passion is vintage decor and that is what I excel at. It is so liberating to not have that stress. This year’s fall tour will be much simpler with elements of nature and vintage treasures with a fall vibe. I am totally over the madness!

    Thanks for sharing!

    Reply

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Yesterday on the way home from school I had the ra Yesterday on the way home from school I had the radio tuned to my daughter's favorite station and a song that was playing had a line in it that really stood out to me. It made reference to a 'season of the sticks' which I think its safe to say must mean winter. I thought that was such an accurate, albeiet kind of depressing, picture of this time of the year.

While we definitely have more than our fair share of evergreen trees here in Oregon, we also have plenty of trees and bushes that are reduced to sticks during the cold months. But, this morning as I looked out my kitchen window, greedily sipping from my mug of coffee, I marveled at the beauty of the winter sunrise. The sky was all pinks and oranges with frost on the rooftops and a little bit of fog. And, I realized that part of why it was so amazing is because I could see it more clearly through the sticks. The bare branches allowed me a view that I wouldn't be able to see if those same branches were covered in leaves. Being stripped down to almost nothing revealed something magnificent.

We have seasons of the sticks in our lives too, don't we? Times when we feel as though we've been stripped bare and left exposed. It's easy to think that this is a place where all is ugly and dark. And yet, just like the winter sunrise was more visible because of the bare branches, the vulnerability we feel in the winter season of our souls allows us to get a glimpse of beauty that we wouldn't see otherwise. In the lush, warm seasons it's so easy to become comfortable. But in the bare, cold seasons we recognize just how much we need to rely on the One who placed the stars in the heavens and is sovereign over all.

If you feel like your soul has been stripped bare and you've been left exposed and vulnerable, may I encourage you today to ask the Lord to help you to see the beauty in this 'season of the sticks'.

“Answer me quickly, O Lord! My spirit fails! Hide not your face from me, lest I be like those who go down to the pit. Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul." Psalm 143:7
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And I’m choosing gratefulness. 

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Here’s to beginnings. Happy new year friends! May you experience the majesty and sovereignty of the Lord in 2023 like never before! ✨
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