The biggest challenges are storage, privacy and bathrooms. These will always be drawbacks to small home living. Forget about stocking up at Costco and Sam's Club. And if you buy a new outfit, be prepared to donate last year's fashions to good will. Expect everyone who is home to hear any conversation or argument that takes place and say goodbye to bathrooms with whirlpool tubs and double sinks.
But would I trade my smaller house for a larger version? Absolutely not. The advantages of living smaller outweigh the negatives. Chief among these is the lower financial cost, especially in this struggling economy.
Still, making a small house into a Jewel Box® is as much about creating a beautiful space, as the life that goes on within its walls.
So going forward, I plan to pull back the curtain and show the realities of small home living - starting with the biggest reason for my lifelong struggle with big house envy. Also, my boys have agreed to talk candidly about sharing a room and we will hear more from Charlie. Of course, the decorating and entertaining tips will always be a part of Jewel Box®!
Sometime before Thanksgiving, there will be a new look for the Jewel Box® blog to go along with its evolving content. Until then, I'll be taking a break from blogging and doing my laundry. Which as you can see from the photos below, has piled up! (Over the last few weeks I made my new job a priority.) I'm debating whether to take it all to the dry cleaners and pay to have it done, or save money and do it myself. When Jewel Box® returns, I'll let you know what I did.
My mountain of laundry. I always find it interesting that piles of dirty laundry never seem to bother my sons. Is this just a boy thing?I look forward to seeing you all in mid-November!
Warmly,
Genevieve
