Visualizing Home Makeovers—the all-new cure for insomnia
To dream, or not to dream: that is the question. Dreaming of home makeovers? That is the answer.
One night last week, I’d promised myself I would sleep in the next morning. It’s summer, after all. I work from home. I get to say when I work. So what did I do? Woke up at 4:43, of course.
There was a time when I would have thought “Woohoo! An extra forty-five minutes until the alarm goes off!” I would have been so excited to wake early and get a head start on my day—snatching some much-appreciated solitude before everyone else woke up, and we were rushing to school and work.
Now, when I awake that early, I usually roll over and go back to sleep.
Sometimes, though, I go through a mental checklist of what I could do with that extra gift of time.
Read—I’d have to find my glasses and turn on the light, which would wake my husband. So no.
Yoga—Are you kidding me? At 4:45?
Jump start my day—Look. If I don’t want to do yoga at this hour, I’m sure as heck not going to be doing any jumping of any kind.
Writing—Okay, maybe I could visualize characters or scenes, or compose opening paragraphs—Wait. Did I not just say that I get to choose when I work? I choose NOT to do that at 4:45 in the morning!
Gratitude list—That’s a good one. I’ll start with being grateful for the ability to roll over and go back to sleep. (Somehow, I never get much farther.)
To be honest, I’ve actually tried all of those at one time or another. And they work well enough, but last week, I tried something new (one of my New Year’s resolutions! Yay, Me!)
Visualize remodeling/redecorating a house—How fun! It’s like a home-makeover app in my own head! No cell service needed, no Internet, no HGTV. Nothing!
Please do not tell my husband. We are about to finish the bathroom remodel, (two words which should always be followed by a warning that says “Adult assembly required. Includes plumbing, and electrical, even if all a person wants to do is remove a tub and install a walk-in shower.)
If he thought I was visualizing home makeovers, I might be lying awake in a doghouse instead of in my cozy bed with my summer-weight down-alternative comfort.
Real-life remodeling can be hazardous to your health, your sleep patterns, and your peace of mind. Your marriage, even.
Maybe you did not know this about me, but I’m a home-makeover show addict. I have watched shows about redoing houses, hotels, yards, and castles. I love getting all those great ideas!
My husband does not really support this new hobby of mine. I’ve tried inviting him to watch them with me, so we could be on the same page. “Wow look at that! Isn’t that amazing?”
That backfired. Instead, he tends to make remarks like: “You know how long that would take? They’re compacting six months of work into an hour of TV time. It looks fast and easy, but they’re not doing that themselves, honey. They’re subcontracting all that out.” Or, “What’s wrong with that kitchen? It’s perfectly functional! They could save thousands of dollars if they left it alone!”
(I often argue with the makeover gurus on the shows, too, but just because I think they should be recycling a lot of the materials they’re smashing. Do you know how much those materials would help out Habitat for Humanity’s Restore? Better to help build a house than bigger landfills.)
My husband used to say. “You design it, I’ll build it.” But nowadays, he doesn’t say that as much. I think he may have seen my Pinterest board. Now he usually says, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” With my husband’s current lack of enthusiasm—I hope it’s a temporary condition—it’s not in my best interest to dream of makeovers to my own home.
Visualizing a home makeover is a creative, energizing pastime.
Although it can be addictive, it is relatively harmless, unless you get carried away and decide actually to follow through with your ideas, which is why you should not visualize makeovers of your own home. The temptation to get a home equity loan or max out your credit card balances to see your dreams come to fruition is just too hard to resist.
I love walking into a house and mentally redesigning it. I’ve done it ever since my family gutted and remodeled a house when I was a kid. Fun!
(I don’t imagine redoing my friends’ houses because there has to be some kind of honor code, here.)
For this creative, imaginary makeover, pick a house you know well
That’s how I found myself undertaking a mental makeover of my grandmother’s house that morning last week before 5 a.m. It was like taking a quick trip to Grandma’s, with all the comfort of her oatmeal raisin cookies—mixed with all kinds of great ideas. Enough to fill a Pinterest board.
I have it in my head that Grandma’s house was built in 1910. I have no idea if that’s just another product of my imagination, or if it’s fact. But it could be true. Her house is one of those beautiful old craftsman-style homes with unbelievably thick walls. It’s warm in the winter, cool in the summer.
I’ve wanted to redesign her kitchen since I washed the dishes there in a harvest gold dishpan inside the big single-basin farm sink. (Who on earth thought those should come back in style? No one who actually used the old ones, that’s for sure.)
As the sky started to lighten, I visualized walking up to the front of the house. I have some ideas for the landscaping, but I saved those for later. Instead I started with the cute little room at the end of the front porch. Perfect for my home office. The screened-in porch where the boxes of toys used to be—my summertime office space, or maybe I’d fill it with patio furniture for picnics out of reach of the mosquitos.
Front porch—new decking, a porch swing and a couple of rocking chairs. Maybe some string lights.
Livingroom, how about new paint, update the light fixtures, keep the crown molding and the arched opening into the diningroom. (Who does that sound like? I’m really getting good at this stuff!)
In the master bedroom, I exchanged a window for a new French door to access a refurbished patio outside the kitchen. In fact, maybe when I do the kitchen, I should move the cabinets, install an island and have a door to that patio from the kitchen as well.
Your home makeover project can be as long or as short as your time-frame allows—not true for the real thing.
By the time six o’clock came around, I had redone the bathrooms, the laundry room, and the back entry. I’d repainted the built-ins, and installed and un-installed a fireplace in the kitchen, and moved it to the dining room. And then the living room.
After I got that done, I completely landscaped the yard.
All before the alarm went off. By that time, I was so tired from all that work, I turned the alarm off and went back to sleep.
Have something in your life you’d like to completely change? How are you going to go about it? Do you have a plan? Or is it going to be the same when you wake up tomorrow as it was today?
