How to Refresh Your Home for the Seasons

Summer is in full swing, and while many West Michigan homeowners put away their spring decorations and pull out their summer decor, others are left asking, “What’s the best way to refresh my home for the seasons?” Redecorating is no small task, and it can be a challenge to craft a home aesthetic that’s both cohesive and reflective of the season.

Molly Fazakerley is an Eastbrook homeowner and a knowledgeable home decor guru with years of experience working to update her home’s look in a way that’s fashionable, but simple. She recently sat down with MLIVE Director of Brand Strategy Eric Hultgreen to offer a few tips for keeping your home looking inviting through summer, autumn, winter, and spring.

Getting Started

The hardest part of any home project is getting started, and refreshing your home for the seasons is no different. Thankfully, Molly has some advice to help take the first step in changing your domestic look.

Start small. Trying to tackle a total home makeover is an overwhelming task. Not only is it mentally draining, but transforming the whole house is so time-consuming that by the time you finish, it may already be time to redecorate again! Make it easy on yourself by starting with small accents that are easy to implement and replace. A dining table centerpiece, for example, is a simple way to liven up a room in a way that reflects the season. You can also add seasonal accents to countertops and mantels to provide a decorative pop without redoing your entire home aesthetic.

Work from a basic color scheme. Contrast is king when it comes to adding seasonal decorations that catch the eye and draw attention. You can get a lot of mileage from small additions to your home decor if you make them stand out. One of the best ways to accomplish this is by making the rest of your home into a canvas that you can paint on top of to refresh your home for the seasons. Use neutral colors for walls and furniture, and then change the accents throughout the year for a pop of color that ties the whole look together in a seasonally appropriate way.

Utilize an open floor plan. It can take a monumental effort to keep each and every room of your home looking dressed up and decorated for each new season. Even more challenging is the work it takes to create a cohesive look that doesn’t feel disjointed as you move from room to room. An open floor plan makes this a more manageable task by allowing you to treat multiple rooms as one unified space. A few small accents on the kitchen counter and living room mantle, for example, can tie the whole ground floor together with minimal effort spent on exhaustive decorations.

Make the most of your outdoor space. Most people won’t ever set foot inside your home, but everyone who walks by will get a look at your outside space, so prioritize giving your home curb appeal. This can be as simple as putting ceramic pots with seasonal flowers on your porch in spring and summer and leaving a pumpkin or two outside during the autumn months. It makes your home stand out from the crowd and gives it an inviting, cozy, and festive look no matter the time of year.

Creating a Personal Look

When you refresh your home for the seasons, it should always reflect your personal tastes and achieve the look you want for your home. As Molly says, a home should feel intentionally organized, but also lived in.

If you don’t know how to leave your mark on a seasonal aesthetic, it can help to look for inspiration on sites such as Pinterest. You don’t have to exactly copy the looks you find, but it may help you better define the look you want to achieve by seeing ideas that get you excited about redecorating!

It can also be a challenge for families with young children to create an organized, decorative home, but, as Molly says, that’s also a part of what makes your home unique! In Molly’s Eastbrook home, she utilizes a multipurpose keeping room that serves as a playroom for her kids while still contributing to her seasonal decorations. A wide open space leaves plenty of room for her kids to play but also makes it easy for small accents and decorations to leave their seasonal mark on the room. This multipurpose approach lets you refresh your home for the seasons while still making it feel uniquely lived in by you and your family.

Ready to get started creating the perfect home? Looking for a space more conducive to your seasonal decor? Check out our feature gallery for design inspiration, or visit one of our model homes. Whether you’re looking for a move-in ready home or to build your dream home from the ground up, there’s an Eastbrook community ready to welcome you and your family. Connect with us to start the building process today!