Decorations inspired by Alvin and The Chimpmunks

As I begin to dream about what my next house will look like, I can't help but return again and again to the homes that have inspired me. I get most of my inspiration from my daughter's movie collection: I want to live in one of the homes depicted on the Silver Screen. I love the cottage look in Alvin and The Chipmunks. I feel warm with the arts and crafts look of Garfield's house. I would be the perfect mom if I could only live in the house in Air Bud. I want the curb appeal of the house depicted in Father of the Bride. I would whip up gourmet meals if only my kitchen was the same as the one in Freaky Friday. I want my little girl to grow up in the idyllic setting of a winery like the one in the remake of the Parent Trap. My husband Steve reminds me again and again that set dressers get paid a lot of money to evoke just this kind of reaction. That immediate identification with a room that makes it scream "HOME!" I have this same reaction with each new issue of the Pottery Barn catalog. That sense of longing, of knowing that if I just could layer my bed linens like that, bask in the natural light of 10 foot high windows, read with those gorgeous built-ins behind me as I luxuriate on my chenille couch, that somehow I would be ...more. More beautiful. More healthy. More intelligent. More creative. My social life would be full, my marriage blissful, my parenting beyond I reproach, my friendships deep, lasting, and fulfilling.

I get all this just from watching Alvin and the Chimpmunks.

I know it all sounds shallow but there are much deeper currents running beneath the surface want. People do feel more comfortable in houses and/rooms that have been carefully pulled together with warm colors, deep, comfortable couches and chairs, different layers and textures and interesting things at which to look and discuss. People do tend to entertain more if they have the room and the room is beautifully furnished. The Chinese call this the art of Feng Shui and have practiced it for thousands of years to bring health and prosperity to their homes and businesses. Though I don't suppose it's all about the furnishings.

I tend to remember wonderful events in my life based upon how the room around me felt. One of my favorite places to be at Christmastime is my friend Debbie's house. Debbie has an annual Christmas Cookie Exchange and sitting in her family room, the week or so before Christmas, with all her Christmas finery, the candles, the table laden with holiday cookies, the friends, the way the wine sparkles in the candlelight... I absolutely adore it. My greatest regret about moving to Massachusetts thus far is that I am pretty sure I will miss Debbie's cookie exchange.

My favorite memories growing up all took place at my grandparents' house. Filled with family, sunshine, food, laughter, and holiday decorations (no matter what the holiday) my grandparents' house was magical. I loved the all-blue Christmas tree my grandma put up in the family room. I was captivated as a child by the white, fiber optic table top tree she always put in the living room. I loved the smell of her cloth napkins when I put them to my face. I loved the feeling of being grown up I had when I was asked if I would like wine. Only at Grandma's would there be special little cut glass bowls for pickles, olives, and cheeses. Toothpicks with fancy tassles at the top. A box of gourmet chocolates to end the evening.

We frequently spend Thanksgiving with my friend Chellie. Now Thanksgiving is linked to Chellie's house. The smell of her kitchen, the way the light comes through her two-story windows in her great room. The special cookies she makes that I have tried to make again and again but that never taste quite the same. The feel of the cushy mattress we sleep on. No matter how many other times we visit Chellie, when I think of her house I think of Thanksgiving.

I want people to feel that way about my house. I want to evoke for my child that instant sensation of HOME whenever she smells a certain scent, sees the flicker of a candle, or hears a certain song. I want my husband to always want to come home not just because of me, but because of the way home feels. I want my friends to sink into my couches and chairs, relax with a cool or warm drink and feel completely safe, accepted, loved, even a little pampered.

Do I need a Hollywood set designer? Do I need professional help, a big budget, a complete home remodel? I don't know. For now all I know is that I really like Alvin and the Chimpmunks and I really miss my grandparents, Chellie, and Debbie.

I miss home.