How I Found My Style Sundays- StoneGable

Hi, I'm Yvonne from StoneGable and I am so happy to be here at From My Front Porch To Yours for... 

HOW I FOUND MY STYLE SUNDAYS.

Pamela, thank you so much for asking me over... I am thrilled to be a part of this wonderful series!!

StoneGable is the name of our home and it is also the name of my blog. StoneGable, the house, is a farmhouse inspired home in the beautiful bucolic farmland of Lancaster Pa.  I always say that StoneGable is a place that wraps itself around your heart. It is often more like a hotel than a house, as we fill it with family, friends and guest!


StoneGable

Outside our back door

After living large in our home for 18 years my husband Bobby and I find ourselves in the process of refurbishing, remodeling, repainting, redecorating and redoing StoneGable. We are real DYI'ers... or at least I am. Bobby is one mostly under duress!

Kitchen makeover 2011

Breakfast Room Makeover 2011

Spring in the kitchen

As we slowly craft new life into StoneGable I have a chance to decorate our home as my style has evolved. Gone are all traces of  the reds and gold Tuscan style I just adored when we first moved in. They have been replaced with classic comfortable pieces with a modern farmhouse edge. The colors I prefer now are neutrals and whites with a splash of color (usually blue) thrown in.

J&J Guest Room Makeover 2012

DYI Chalkboard between breakfast room and family room 2013

Gable Guest Bedroom Makeover 2011

I say that my style is "CLASSIC FARMHOUSE CASUALLY ELEGANT". I don't think that is really a style, but it perfectly describes me.  I like to think of my style as refined country living... I like the sound of that! But let's be honest, the only way to live refined in the country is to have staff! Tragically, I have no staff!

I love classic home dressings because they are timeless and will look fresh for years and years! I am  very leery of trends. I don't like to sink $$ into decor that will be tired and on it's way out in a couple of years. I prefer accenting with trends... sparingly.

New Living Room Chairs... classic styling ~ Current Makeover

Dining Room Makeover And Painted & Reupholstered Chairs~ Current Project

My style is ever evolving. As a "mature" woman I've had many years to make decorating mistakes and learn from them. I now have pretty definite opinions about what I can and can't live with. Although I appreciate most decor styles... I only want to live with what I love. It's sorta like growing up and being comfortable in your own skin... it takes time to have decorating confidence.  I say embrace your current style... make mistakes... try new things! It's all a part of growing into your style!

One of my passions~ Tablescaping

Jars on the kitchen counter

Because I have been homekeeping for almost four decades, I have collected many precious-to-me finds.

I really am the luckiest treasure hunter! Beautiful things just seem to befall me... honestly! And I can sniff out a bargain like no other!

Finds: potting bench, oil can watering can, BIG blue an white bowl, ironstone

While StoneGable was being built... many years ago... I found a beautiful life-size swan soup tureen in a little shop in Alexandria Va.  At that time I thought it was way too expensive to buy. Have you ever found that one wonderful piece that was begging you to take it home? After much consultation with my Mom and sister (very practical and wise women) I decided to buy it. And to my great joy it was on sale for half price!

That swan has graced my dining room table all these years. He is classic and stunning and makes such a statement!  To see a post on my swan soup tureen click HERE

Recently a blogging friend saw an identical swan on ebay... the asking price $3,775.00! I almost fell off of my chair! I paid less than 1/10 of that for my swan... and I still have the ladle!  Here is the e-bay link: http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-Large-Life-Size-Vintage-Ceramic-SWAN-Serving-Tureen-Gorgeous-/251259451693?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a803af92d

I think our homes are our havens... real and tangible blessing from God! Whether humble or palatial they need to be loved and nurtured and seen for the treasure they are! Making a beautiful home is more about intentional attitude than  decorating it with things!

If your home is filled with love, encouragement, laughter and joy, it will be beautiful.  If it's doors are shut to strife and the baseness of life, it will be full!

favorite dinner spot~ back porch

I know I may sound like a  Pollyanna, but I am speaking from experience. When we sold our first of three homes... a very small old townhouse in the city... my husband and I stood outside on the uneven brick sidewalk hugging each other crying and sobbing our eyes out!!! We loved that home! It was so beautiful to us... 

 In reality it was small and old and drafty and not very well furnished. 

 But, it was so full of newlywed love and it was the home we brought our newborn babies to. It was full of toys and strollers and mismatched furniture and a little old red painted hand-me-down table. It had no air conditioning in the hot and humid summer and the heat swirled around the high ceilings in the winter! It was a real fixer-upper starter home... It was the most beautiful home we have ever owned!

Feathering my nest

Here is my best style advice... love your home and be thankful for it. And above all don't fall into the trap of comparing it to any others! Your home is one-of-a-kind!

It's YOUR home!

I would like to invite you to visit StoneGable...

my door is always open to friends old and new!

I hope that y'all have enjoyed visiting with Yvonne as much as I do! Her home is so warm and inviting. Thank you Yvonne for sharing your home with us today and all your wonderful tips!