11. Make a plan!

If you got this far and are thinking…

“But Catherine the empty spaces are really bothering me!”…

– totally fine I would still recommend making a plan to take shopping with you (with measurements).

– AND I would recommend you start with consignment or second-hand decor shops

(read my article on why here) –

This process helps you to lean on your own aesthetic when shopping instead of just going to a big box store since the pieces are coming from many different time periods!

It’s a lot easier to just go to rhymes with ~rate and apparel~ and buy what they have already curated to ensnare you and your money (no offense to that store)… but newsflash (and many people don’t get this…) you also run the risk of looking very dated as soon as the mainstream aesthetics change! 

12. Do you still want the new stuff?

Now if you’ve gotten this far and are still thinking…

”But Catherine I really love that vase and picture frame and -insert another object here- from other words for… ~ceramics stable~!”

Go for it! Now that you have used what you had and love first, these real things become the focal point, and your new pieces become supporting characters on your shelves. Also… because you focused on what YOU love instead of what you are supposed to do, your aesthetic is now informing your decisions. When it comes to your home it should always be a priority!

Now that you’ve taken a moment to get clear, your shelves are going to look gorgeous (and much more importantly mean something to you)!

13. Now you have completed your shelves!

Don’t be afraid to take things out and add things as they come into your life!

Now for story time…

I once had a client who really didn’t like art that much. They didn’t see the point, many things didn’t speak to them and modern art was a completely foreign language to them (which is totally common)!

When designing their living room with them they suggested “maybe a gallery wall would look nice”… and I thought at that moment…

– yes perhaps for someone who loves art and/or creates it themselves but not for you guys! –

Now don’t treat your shelving or bookcases like this random gallery wall…

I tell this story because I don’t want you to treat your shelves as a place just to put things that don’t speak to you. I would literally rather you get rid of that bookshelf than fill your shelves with a bunch of stuff just so it “looks pretty”!

You can tell when someone only keeps objects in their home that they really love!

It expresses their authenticity.

Let me know if you guys found any of these tips helpful. I would also love to see how you implemented these tips in your own space or any stories about particular items that you really love and are excited to show off on your shelves!

Thank you so much for reading!

Here are some other articles I referenced above if you are looking for some more advice!:

The difference between a design style and your design aesthetic.

Why you should think about Vintage and Second-Hand items

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I want to assure you that anyone can create a space of holistic wellness in their bathroom. No matter the size, or if you rent! In this post Im going to go over bath decor and bathroom ideas that will help support holistic living!

Bathrooms should be considered sacred and I want you to engage positively with your bath space so that your overall home experience supports you!

I know first hand how challenging certain bathroom spaces can be. Whether you only have a pedestal sink with no storage, or you may not have space for an entire towel rack, you too can have a bathroom that you actually enjoy being in if we can implement some of the following ideas.

Currently I share a tiny bathroom space with my boyfriend so trust me I know your pain. Through my career and this experience is why I implemented a lot of these ideas into my own bath space! I can’t wait to share with you some bathroom interior creative ideas to help you out in this area.

Although it may seem like your bathroom has no hope, there is always space to think creatively and solve some of the problems that you face, no matter what you are dealing with.

By thinking outside of the box, you can create a space that brings you joy and healing instead of frustration. These bathroom organization suggestions will help you to regain some mental space.

With a bath interior that brings you joy with intentional functionality you can begin to start your day in a space that invokes holistic wellness.

If you don’t mind not having a space for your things and not loving your small bathroom interior than this post isn’t for you!

Below I have described some philosophies and functional hacks that combined have helped me to fall in love with my tiny bath space too.

Bath Bliss Tips:

Under Sink Bathroom Storage?..

Along the same lines of intentionality the bath space is an important place for self care and holistic purpose. Ritual, to me, is any activity that you engage with that brings you positive energy. In the bath environment It could be as simple as:

-Lighting candles

– Playing music when you paint your nails

-Scrubbing yourself with a brush in the shower and then putting a good smelling body oil on

-Watering the potted plants on your shelf

There are countless things that you could ritualize for yourself, just make sure it brings you peace and creates a sense of engaging with your deeper self.

One of my personal favorite bath rituals is taking a bath with help from my bath board. My bath board makes my tiny bathroom a sanctuary for me. Throwing in some bath salt, rose absolute, lighting a candle, reading a book in the bath is a beautiful way to connect back to myself.

This goes for everything. Just like you engaging with minimizing the objects that you engage with, when you put any object back into the bath environment it should speak to you. Now I know this sounds woo woo, but I cannot stress enough the importance of you looking at and touching objects that actually make you happy.

This also goes for how you spatially engage with your bath decor in your environment. Think about storing things in places that make it easy and fun for you to go about your activities in here.

An example of this in my own bathroom is I have a hanging brass wall lassi cup that holds our toothbrushes. And the shelf above my toilet has a stone box I keep my re-usable face rounds in with a glass spray bottle of micellar water I use for makeup removal. These things are layered in next to my favorite vintage bottle and a painting of my favorite place hung above it.

Intentionality obviously will look different for every individual, when doing this group things together that support activities, and make it beautiful for you!

Through any of your work in your own personal environment, always remember that,

“Our intention crafts our reality”

— Wayne Dyer

Let me know if you guys found any of these tips helpful. I would also love to hear how you all engage in self care in your bathroom interiors if you are up for sharing!

Thank you so much for reading!

• If you are looking for some gorgeous bath inspiration, follow my Design Aesthetic – Bath Pinterest Board!

• If you would like to read some of my own random journal entries go to •musings•

• If you are interested in more Interior design, deeper self, wellness, or psychology posts…

• If you are looking to see more post like these in general you should join the community by signing up below!

I would love to connect with you deeper!

Love,

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Do you feel stressed when you think about designing your space?

There is no reason that this process cannot be fun and exhilarating for you!

There is one deep secret that I need to share with you dearest reader. 

Identifying your deepest desires is the key to good design.

You too can create a beautiful connection to your environment by focusing on how you want your space to feel. Deep down you need to hold this high above everything else. Use it as your northern star BEFORE beginning a new design project.

I know first hand from my clients, when they first come to me, how stressful thinking about creating your space can be. It’s so easy to be overwhelmed with; how do I even start, what do I focus on, is what I like even “correct”, and how are all of these pieces going to work together? We are all inundated by “perfect” spaces created by “perfect” people, it almost seems unattainable to create a space that looks like some of these rooms.

But this couldn’t be further from the truth.

(and if you struggle with perfectionism you will like this article too!)

I’m currently working with a lovely client who easily gets bogged down in all of the details, easily overwhelmed, like most of my clients! It always takes me getting them to get clear on what they actually want and more importantly how they want to feel until we can get anywhere. We are working together to outline what the big picture deeper desires in his space are to help alleviate some of these stressors. Keeping focused on the general big feelings help to make sense of all of the seemingly disparate parts of a new space in the beginning. Its the golden thread that runs through all of the choices and ties them together! This is exactly what will make all the specifics easier.

All talented designers are always riffing….

They can do this only because they love design so they have already gotten crystal clear on what they deeply love and how they want spaces to feel! Over years and yearss and yearssss of being obsessed with things like fabric and furniture. The big picture (their aesthetic) has been created through deep study of their own desires.

This is why I hate the traditional Designer/ Client relationship because it goes a little something like this…

1. Client sees beautiful picture of a room (which took countless hours of painstaking work and photo filters, born from a mind obsessed with their own vibe, born from a lifetime of deciding what they desire and like!)

2. Client decides I want that. Do that for me. Client pays designer money.

3. Designer recreates THEIR AESTHETIC for their client. As they have for every client they have ever had. Because they think (and the client thinks unfortunately…) that its their desire (aesthetic) that matters… SO WRONGGGGG

It’s YOUR DESIRE, dear client, that matters.

Shouldn’t you find out what your own why is instead of letting your designer regurgitate their own?!

Most design industry leaders focus on the things that you can see instead of the deeper feelings from their clients. I think when people just see these beautiful rooms without any deeper context at all it can seem really overwhelming to begin! It also doesn’t describe how deeply healing and meaningful a space can become when created intentionally. A great disservice to design in my opinion.

Im here to tell you. The best secret to effortless design is getting really clear on WHY you are re-designing your space.

When you focus on your deeper feelings and get clear before you begin, the little design decisions along the way become so much easier to tackle.

Have a plan in place before you dive into the details! From the big picture down decisions become effortless because each detail either fits in to your overall vibe or it really does not! Decisions begin to make themselves for you.

What’s at risk If I don’t figure out my big picture?…

If you start with the details without having the big picture illustrated, feelings felt, and overall vibe outlined, you are at major risk for getting buried in tedious detail decisions. Details that hold no meaning or purpose for you!! Decisions that make you feel like your back is against the wall, because you have no idea where you want to end up!

It’s exactly like the Cheshire Cat says… “If you don’t know where you want to go, it doesn’t matter which path you take.”

If you read that quote and think, Well what the heck, I DO care where I go… I want a beautiful space that I love and supports the life that I want to live…

Then prove it! Settle in and get quiet and figure out your big picture end game BEFORE you begin, and before someone else tells you what to love…

There are so many ways to do this, a lot of fun activities I have already written about on my blog that will get you headed towards and uncovering your WHY like:

But I also want to outline here some good things to think about before you start your design process!

1. Think about who lives in your space and the things that light them up! Are there ways to incorporate these things into this space. What are their favorite colors? What are they drawn to? Have everyone who’s going to be sharing the space bring their own inspiration to the table. A well designed space speaks to the people that live there and good design starts from the inside out. Anyone outside the homes opinion does not matter in the least! You are the maker of your home.

Thanks for stopping by!

Love,

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A. What you actually like:

I want to tell you a story. Design at its core it’s still an art form. On one hand you have creative people pushing the boundaries and trying new things. Some of these things most people will not live with because for the majority of people think that they look crazy. However, on occasion, some designer will create a room that a large enough amount of people would like to live in. Now you have an aesthetic that people like. Now remember, the majority of people like this room… idk about you but I run from things that a majority stamp with their approval, there is nothing authentic about this, or original. But you still haven’t reached normal people level yet… NOW the furniture manufacturers see this space, see that its popular and start crapping out furniture that fits so that every Tara, Danielle, and Hannah can buy it for her home! Now you have a “design style” and millions of people with the same exact house because one designer got famous for one room on instagram. 

Don’t be like Hannah, sorry if you name is Hannah I love Hannahs… but don’t be like my Hannah here!

Figure out what you actually like for yourself, or risk falling into the trap that was the magic of all of the design trends of yester-year. 

B. Get things with history or a story:

Another trick. Along the same lines as figuring out what you like. If you buy things that exist outside the flavor of the moment your home will instantly have a more timeless feel to it. Because you actually have figured out what your aesthetic is you aren’t depending on crate and barrel to tell you what looks good right now. You confidently shop at consignment stores and thrift shops knowing what you like and what looks good to you! And all of that history and vibe gets transferred to your home. Along the same line is having things that have a story for you. Things that are passed down or collected for special reasons for you emanate more beautiful and special energy in your home no matter what it is. Now because you have collected things from a multitude of time frames no one is going to be able to pin you to a passe style!

C. Collect over time: 

This tip is really important! And I really know how hard it is to stick to because… 

I’m the special kind of psycho that likes to move homes and unpack/ set up everything in the same day. But please don’t buy everything at once for a room (unless you hire a professional who knows how to layer). When you decide to do a whole space it’s really tempting to just go to a few stores you like and get it all done. But when you do this you don’t have an open mind to what else is out there your space. It is inevitably going to age much more quickly. 

D.  Have a neutral base:

Now don’t take this personally. You should go wild with color in things you can swap out easily. But only choose wallpaper or bold paint colors, or bold furniture that you are over the moon obsessed with, and understand that when you do choose this path you may regret it sooner, which is ok if you actually choose it with your whole heart! 

E. Only follow trends and details that you like:

Stop following the crap around you blindly. It’s mass produced and the only reason you are seeing it is most likely is because there’s a massive ad campaign made to turn every (w)itch into another version of her neighbor as previously stated. Sorry to break it to you but you didn’t discover mid century modern… Don’t follow styles to a tee or risk phasing out sooner than you would like! Styles are for the birds, they are literally made up. Pick and choose the elements out of all of them that you like only. No need to follow any set of rules fully. Honestly instead of getting a well appointed space your room is going to look like an old catalogue.

You and those that you love can both have a home that reflects who each of you are! Design is a much more intimate process than many people realize. The creation of your environment is something that everyone deserves to have a say in. If you are the “leader” of your project be honest with yourself. Are you allowing the rest of the household and decision makers to make their creative voice heard in their environment? Or because this project is “the most important” to you you are pushing your own design agenda? Trust me, if you are not open to your loved ones when embarking on a new creative project, you are shooting yourself in the foot. Without listening first you WILL miss new and beautiful perspectives that could actually align deeper with your own design goals!

This shouldn’t be a stressful process. With some planning and compromise you can focus on the shared loves, and create a home that’s uniquely yours, together open to all the gorgeous possibilities out there.

I know how this works because even I, someone who does this professionally, must compromise with my own partner.

And my ego has learned to enjoy it haha!

My own clients, pretty much every project, tell me how they know that their style and their partner’s style do not mesh with one another’s right off the bat. Then often one half of the equation bows out of the process entirely because they don’t want to deal with the drama of fighting for their way with their partner. Then the person that removes themselves resigns themselves to living in an environment aligned to someone else and will often take back some of their power passive-aggressively when it comes time to purchase the furniture! I since the beginning of my career have tried to head this off at the beginning of the design process.

I’ve worked with enough couples and roommates to know that there is always common ground when it comes to design. Give all the parties involved the respect to join in on the conversation you will be pleasantly surprised. If someone says from the beginning that they don’t care and this isn’t important to them, try and get them to join in in some capacity. Everyone living in the space that we are re-creating needs to have an energetic stake in it. If someone else creates it for them without asking their opinion, or someone opts out of the process, that person will always be at odds with the new energy that we created for the environment. And everyone deserves to be in alignment in their own space.

By opening yourself up to your person’s opinion you will discover a more custom path to your own unique style together. It’s easy at the beginning of the process to think that you know exactly what you want for you. But no matter how much homework or design knowledge you have on your own… you don’t know everything!

Let’s say that the person that you need to work with is your husband (wife, boyfriend, girlfriend, roommate, friend, human etc.). They tell you that they don’t care too much about this process, that as long as you are happy they are going to be happy.

Ok beautiful sentiment right? But let’s put this back on you. You married (chose to live with, are dating, like as a friend etc.) this person, who you love and respect and look up to in many ways. Now you are trying to create the ideal environment for you and them… Don’t you want their opinion? Don’t you want them to feel as at home in your home that you do? Of course you do! You love their ideas thats why you married (lived with, dated, etc.) them!

Now back to the other person or people, on the outside it’s sweet that they want to “give” you this creative project….”as long as you are happy” in the end. But to me (and you), underneath that it feels as though they don’t want to engage with something important to you, something that you feel should be important to them too, the creating of your home together.

Give them permission and also ask them to engage with this process because it’s important to you (and because you know their expression in their environment is deeply important to their wellbeing too). If you are the other person or people, engage, learn about yourself and your person or people and have a little fun together, take some ownership over your creativity and your collective creativity together.

By seeking to learn and plan with your person you can discover new things that maybe you haven’t ever even looked at before. When two (or more) people are engaged in a creative pursuit magic happens. When playing with new concepts together really fun things happen that you may not expect. By listening to how the person that you love (or like) is orienting themselves to new things that they don’t normally engage with you will learn new ways of looking at things. You too will learn new things about your own aesthetic and yourself more deeply, no matter how well versed in design you are.

Going through the design process together will teach you new things about your process too. When you allow and listen first instead of defending your own ideas and taste, you will see things that you haven’t seen before. You will realize things that become increasingly important to you as you open up and see from the new perspective that you have introduced. And the same always goes for your partner as well. People always learn new things about themselves and their significant others.

If you force your own style on your partner without asking what they like or take their word for it when they tell you that “it doesn’t matter and they don’t really care”, you are at risk for alienating your partner in your own home, or never creating the home you truly want to begin with.

So ok Catherine… we are supposed to work together… but how the heck are we supposed to do it for real?!

No worries! I outlined the steps that people living together can take to co-create a beautiful environment below!

Couples therapy exercise:

(or roommate, friend, family etc.)

1. Without judgment allow everyone involved to think about what they really want. Stay general here. Think about the space and how ideally you want to live and what you wish to experience in here. Think about how to best accomplish these goals in this space. Write out descriptions of how you envision using this space ideally and how you would like to feel in here. Name yourself three adjectives that describe your perfect environment. For example like: Bright, Comfortable, Classic.

2. Now share with one another. Share these adjectives and feelings with your partner and your reasons for choosing them! Have each other read aloud their environment description to one another. When someone else is talking about how they want to feel in their environment, take notes. When someone else says something that resonates with you (even if you didn’t write down the same words) make a note of that. Then share with each other what notes you took responding to each other’s vibes, and see where your feelings for this new environment are in alignment with one another. Use these thoughts of shared feelings to be the deeper inspiration for your design project! You will be using this deeper feeling mission statement as a guide post for these further steps.

3. Now look at the edges. Those things didn’t resonate with the whole group. Are these still things that are interesting and could be incorporated in the new environment? How can we shift the messaging into alignment with everyone? This is where you discover great contrast and individuality in real spaces. But if there are feelings that come up that are concerning for anyone else, have a conversation about it. See if in that you can find some common ground. If not compromise and go back to the common ground you first found and focus on that.

4. All decision-makers should create their own design boards, react to their own design magazines and pick some pieces that they would each love to live with on their own. Everyone needs to get involved in illustrating their own creative vision. When collecting images always go back to the main feelings that you outlined together. If your partner has inspired you in some way so far think about how you can incorporate some of the elements that you know they love too in the images that you are collecting yourself! If there are things that are deeply important to you make sure to share these details with the other people involved.

   • If you need help with this project and you don’t know anything about design styles start here.

   • If you know a little bit about design and are now ready to explore your design aesthetic.

   • I also have youtube videos on both if that’s more your speed!

5. Just like the rest of these tasks, study on your own, then reveal what you discovered about yourself with the other decision-makers! See if there are any colors that overlap for the both of you. If not no worries, there are always neutrals. When looking at your design research determine how much color is used in the spaces and what colors are showing up for each of you. Let’s say you love the warm side of the color wheel and your partner loves the cool side! Is there a color that you both love like bright green, or can you do a mostly neutral space with a rug that incorporates some warm and cool colors? There is always design overlap, you may just have to be more creative! Tip: often you uncover your own color palette unwittingly by collecting your design inspiration. See what colors keep showing up in your images. If you need more help here is my post on discovering your own color palette. Another helpful article I have on color is color psychology if you would like more!

6. Like everything else I recommend listing these in your individual research before sharing with each other. But if your partner forgets that they hate something, don’t chastise them. This is a new process to most people who start on a new design project!

   This is where mutual respect comes in. If someone shares how much they loathe plaid, for example, don’t then insist that the space be wallpapered in a tartan! Life is about compromise. If you love and respect each other, boundaries need to be respected here. However, this doesn’t mean that someone can go down the list of someone’s loves and tell them that they hate them all! This is a blending of two or more aesthetics, everything in the space is not going to be your favorite! (And if it was it would often be much more boring and less inspiring than if it wasn’t!)

   If that’s the life you want you should live alone.

   Sorry for the tough love.

7. Share all of your inspiration with one another! See the complete room images that your partner chose and see if your aesthetic fits in too somewhere. It is this organic blending of inspiration that will help you to create a home that is truly yours together, and not a space that you’d find in a furniture catalog… (can you say YAWNNNN). This process creates the creative and inspiring difference between a DESIGN AESTHETIC, and “Design Styles” (which are just marketing tools and have no soul).

   Thank your partner for helping you to think outside your own box!

• These couple’s therapy questions really help you and your person(s) get on the same design page together!

Storytime…My partner and I love polar opposite color palettes. He is drawn to really warm colors like terra-cotta and orange whereas I am solidly in the midnight blue and dark green territory. However, since my partner also loves lots of wood and warmth through materials we’ve reached a compromise of warm wood furniture mixed with some of my colors and neutral bright backgrounds. This way both of us feel seen and comfortable in the home we made together!

Let me know if you guys found these “couple’s therapy activity” tips helpful. I would also love to hear how you all engage with your partner or roommate on your interiors if you are up for sharing!

Thank you so much for reading.

When engaging with this process remember…

When you are looking to create an environment for yourself you need to understand yourself first. Your home should always respond to who you actually are, not just create a static picture of the trends of the time.

When you lean in to what makes you special, you bring your best self to the world. When you start with your inner self when decorating you create from within.

For example, someone who is introverted and a bookworm needs a different environment, and will be attracted to different objects, than someone who identifies as an extrovert and enjoys hosting large parties at home!

I know for most of my clients they get stuck in the trap of “ I want my home to look like those rooms on Pinterest and instagram” not knowing that the way to have a truly beautiful environment always starts from within, just like everything else in this life.

People don’t realize the unique relationship of home design and your personality and psychology has. Everything stems from within and I believe that “form follows feeling”.

I wanted to share some paths to discovering your inner path for yourself.

When creating a new space and you focus on what makes you special as a human being, you effortlessly create a space that makes you an even better version of yourself. When thinking from a deeper place you begin to follow your innate desires and choose items and furniture that speaks to you effortlessly.

When you know who you are and focus on the beauty within the pressure to create an instagram worthy room evaporates. When you love who you are and engage with that, your ability to create a beautiful room becomes accessible. The only rule that you have to remember is to follow your inner desires.

When thinking about design, if you choose to continue to operate on the surface level you miss out on all the opportunities that your unique perspective offers you. When you are busy trying to emulate an image on the outside the world misses out on the beauty that only you can provide, by tapping into your deeper self.

Now how do we discover what our inner desires are? There are so so many paths and it’s a journey that will never truly end. However we can enjoy the journey and have fun along the way. I’ve included some personality quizzes and subjects for you to explore below. Before embarking on your design journey be sure to check back in with yourself so that you have a blueprint to derive inspiration from!

Here are some links to thoughts that I have found interesting as a creative with a passion for spirituality and psychology. Some of these modes of thinking are more esoteric which I enjoy and tend to lean into, but feel free to discover and engage with the subjects that resonate with you the most!

1. Myers – Briggs Type Indicator

This is a great place to start if you are new to personality types. It follows the teachings of Carl Jung a Psychologist and contemporary of Sigmund Freud. “The MBTI is based on the conceptual theory proposed by Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung, who had speculated that people experience the world using four principal psychological functions – sensation, intuition, feeling, and thinking – and that one of these four functions is dominant for a person most of the time.”

Through this quiz you will be “typed” into one of sixteen personalities designated by four letters. Always a combination of an I for introversion, or an E for extroversion, N for intuitive or an S for sensing, an F for Feeling or a T for thinking, and finally a J for judging or a P for perceiving. When you receive your four letters I wouldn’t stop there! Continue to look at others that may have your same letter combination and also take a look at your functional stack to understand the unique lens through which you view the world.

ex. my letters are: INFJ, which stands for introverted intuitive feeling judgement. Which means my functional stack is: Introverted Intuition, Extroverted Feeling , Introverted Feeling, and last Extroverted Sensing

Find the link to the Test HERE.

2. Enneagram Number

The enneagram is also a great place to start if Myers – Briggs doesn’t resonate with you (or if it does and you want more like me).

The system is illustrated by a wheel of numbers, #1 through #9 that are all connected to two other numbers. When you discover the number that best describes your personality you also see how you may behave when under stress (disintegration) as well as in growth (integration), which is illustrated by the two other numbers you are connected to. Also people tend to have a personality flavor that leans towards a number you sit next to.

ex. my Enneagram number is 4 and my “wing” is 5, I show growth toward type 1, and under stress I show up as a type 2.

The best place to start with the enneagram is HERE, start with reading the nine type descriptions and see what one sounds the most like you. If you get stuck between a couple of numbers, ask people that you are close to they can help clarify your number!

When you find your number look into it further! Try and find others that share it and learn how they engage with the world.

Also you should look into these concepts around the enneagram for further information : Directions of Integration (Growth) and Disintegration (Stress), The Three Instincts, and “wings”

My girlfriends and I have had a lot of fun engaging with this personality system, its a great one to share with those around you!

3. Alignment

The alignment test has a more philosophical bend to it. This test shows you where you land on the moral alignment spectrum.

It establishes where you fall along Good vs. Evil as well as Law vs. Chaos.

You can take the test HERE

It is interesting to see how you align yourself with the world and through what perspective you look at the universe.

Again like always once you get your alignment, you should look into it further seeing what people may share it with you. With this result it is also fun to look up what the alignments are of fictional characters and see where you fall.

4. Astrology

Your horoscope is a wealth of fun exploration. Most people start with their Sun sign based on the date of their birthday which is one of twelve zodiac signs most of us know of illustrated below.

Each sun sign holds their own specific personality traits, but don’t stop at your sun sign…

Aries: March 21 – April 20

Taurus: April 21 – May 20

Gemini: May 21 -June 20

Cancer: June 21 – July 22

Leo: July 23 – August 22

Virgo: August 23 – September 22

Libra: September 23 – October 22

Scorpio: October 23 – November 22

Sagittarius: November 23 – December 21

Capricorn: December 22 – January 19

Aquarius: January 20 – February 19

Pisces: February 20 – March 20

…If you want to go deeper you should do your full Birth Chart . This gives you a whole chart of where each astral body was at the time of your birth. Explaining many different aspects of your personality. The sign the moon was in at the time of your birth describes your emotional personality, and your rising sign describes how you may come across to others when they first meet you.

There is a lot of information in your birth chart, learn more in depth about what you are looking at HERE

6. Archetype

This is a fun one that I recently discovered. Carl Jung is my favorite psychologist (everyone has one of these right?!) and I love his insight. “Jungian archetypes are defined as universal, archaic symbols and images that derive from the collective unconscious, as proposed by Carl Jung. They are the psychic counterpart of instinct. That is to say they are a kind of innate unspecific knowledge, derived from the sum total of human history, which prefigures and directs conscious behavior.” -Jan Jilecek

He describes the concept of the collective unconscious and how us as human beings tend to play out similar patterns over time in our existences throughout his books which I highly recommend.

This quiz shows you what archetype you show up as and what that may mean for you. Take this quiz HERE.

5. Spirit Animal

Animals have a spirit all their own. Because they aren’t saddled by the big rational mind it’s easier for them to operate closer to their true nature. Discover your spirit animal and connect back to your instincts. Your spirit animal is the one that you have a deep seated connection to. Maybe it was your favorite animal as a child, or you had an encounter with a special animal out in nature that you felt connected to in that moment. Your personality has ties back to nature since you are made of nature as well. Discover what animal reflects your inner being through reflection on your own, or by taking a quiz to get your imagination going HERE .

6. Four Temperaments

The four temperaments test has you take a personality quiz that sorts you into one of the four temperaments. Sanguine – outgoing, popular, life of the party, lives for fun, Choleric – leader, confident, goal oriented, forceful, Phlegmatic – easy going, gets along with everybody, balanced, steady, Melancholic – Thoughtful, independent, creative, planner. Understanding your temperament and the temperament of those around you helps you to orient yourself in your world as well as give you insight into others. It is interesting to see how your temperament may view and interact with the others as well!

Here is the test for the four temperaments, when you discover where you fit in read the explanation that fits below:

Sanguine

Choleric

Phlegmatic

Melancholic

Human design is another modality that is very interesting. It uses your birth date time and location (like an astrological birth chart) to map out your individual energetic map. This system is based on the idea that we are all made up of energy and that each of us have a specific and detailed way of engaging with our own energy and the energy of our loved ones and the rest of the world. This system is probably one of the more complex that I have introduced here. There are many great resources online if you are interested in learning more about human design!

The Jovian Archive is a great place to get your chart like the one shown above.

I also wrote an article on how to read your human design chart HERE.

Below are some further paths you can look into!

• Numerology- There is a great article from the Law of Attraction explaining numerology and how to calculate your numbers HERE

• Empathy Quotient:

This test focuses on Empathy and tests for that ability. Take the test HERE

With all of my clients I have them write out their internal insights about themselves before I design anything for them. I ask some pretty personal questions regarding what makes them tick. This information is completely invaluable to my creative design process. It allows me to be inspired by who my clients are when creating an environment for them. My job is not just to make a beautiful room (which is easy), its to create an environment that reflects my clients inner beauty.

The concept of nature and nurture in human development continues throughout our lives. When you create an environment that supports you, you can bring the best to the world.

As an Meyers Briggs: INFJ, enneagram: type 4, Libra, magician archetype, melancholic (Haha!), it is deeply important that my environment reflects my need for depth, individuality, serenity, and beauty, and allows space for my inner exploration.

You should try looking into these thought exercises before diving in to a new design project. When you center yourself and operate from who you are you can not possibly make a mistake, the world needs you to be who you are and show up as that person! 

I would love to know if any of you have any interest in the above topics or tried this inner exploration and learned anything new about yourselves?!

When you embark on this journey remember this quote from one of my heroes and fellow intense inner explorer,

““The privilege of a lifetime is to become who you truly are.” ”

— Carl Jung

Now let’s discover our inner worlds so that we can create spaces that reflect that beauty above all else!

If you are interested in more Interior design or deeper self posts:

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I would love to connect with you deeper!

Love,

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So you know what an environment is, but what is an empath you ask? 

“Dr. Judith Orloff, describes empaths as those who absorb the world’s joys and stresses like “emotional sponges.”

In her book The Empath’s Survival Guide: Life Strategies for Sensitive People, (great book by the way,) she suggests empaths lack the filters most people use to protect themselves from excessive stimulation and can’t help but take in surrounding emotions and energies, whether they’re good, bad, or something in between.”

-Heathline

But above this definition, empath characteristics include, “having the ability to understand the experiences and feelings of others outside of their own perspective,” and having a strong connection to our own intuition. Which are honestly traits that everyone experiences, it’s just that sometimes empaths feel as though they don’t have a choice in the matter!

Ask yourself if this sounds like you.

When this is the way that you feel the world, an empath’s environment becomes an extremely important place. Often we don’t take the effort to best support ourselves in our spaces. I want to share some tips to fix this!

With some intentional, intuitive choices you can create an environment that you love and which loves you back.

By thinking of your home or any environment as a place of rest, transformation, and empath protection, you can give yourself a place that truly serves you.

Being an empath myself I know how challenging the world outside our front door can be for us, especially right now. I treat my home as my sacred space, where I make the rules, and set the scene for the best healing for myself.

From my sacred space to my bath, I incorporate ritual and mindfulness into my routine as much as I can. And Ive set up my space to support this for myself.

I think people don’t realize how much healing they can discover in their environment. When you really think about how you want to feel in your environment you can create that for yourself too.

By utilizing your empath abilities of sensitivity and connection with your intuition, you can create a space that brings you joy and healing instead of frustration and stress.

When you take ownership for your space you can take your power back, create a space that works to serve your deeper self, recharge your strength, and and bring your best self back into the world which needs you.

An empath that has an environment that doesn’t support them risks burnout and overwhelm. Empaths and anxiety do not need to be connected. But an empath that does create an environment that lights them up through serenity and peace, is recharged and can bring their gifts of depth and empathy to the rest of the world which really needs these gifts right now!

Here are some great places to start in creating sanctuary for yourself:

A vision board is a visualization tool that uses impactful images and words that you choose in a collage to create a space for your goals and dreams.

When you create a vision board you align with your desires and put yourself in a position of power to create them for yourself.

Making a vision board is a great way to define and illustrate your deeper desires, even when you don’t think you know where to start! Don’t worry I’m going to share some tips with you on how to create a vision board easily, it’s all about following your inner intuition.

I love doing this exercise anytime I want to connect back to my deeper self, or when I feel as though my life is in transition. It helps to ground and focus my energy.

You should think about taking on this activity for yourself when you need something positive to focus your energy on, are starting something new, or are looking for a fresh start.

Getting into creating your own vision board is a great way to align yourself. It’s a perfect place to start before taking on a new project, moving to a new place, or needing a new direction. This makes it the perfect activity to accompany you designing a new space for yourself!

Someone who is clear on who they are and what they want is in the best position to create an environment that truly supports them. If you want to partner this activity with a start in a new environment you should check out my post on: Your Home Should Tell the Story of Who You Are too!

When you make your own vision board you get in alignment with your highest self, and the best part is you will start seeing these great things and feelings manifest in your life! If you do not choose to contact the infinite within yourself, and get in alignment with your true depths, you stay at risk of manifesting things that are not within your best interests.

Now let’s get started on creating your own vision board, I’ve included some great vision board ideas below for you!

Steps to Your Vision Board, how to make one that resonates with you:

1. Get into a good head space

   • You must connect with your deeper self and your inner values to make this a powerful exercise for you. It should feel like you are creating a ritual for yourself.

• Make sure you have privacy and have primed your space.

– You want to make sure you have a solid surface to cut images and work on.

• Make this space as comfortable as possible for yourself.

– Tips: Light candles, smudge your space, open windows, wear comfy clothing, have your favorite music on, sit on some pillows to name a few things you can do!

*If you are looking for some inspiration regarding sacred spaces check out this post on Sacred Spaces or my pinterest page

2. Write down the things you wish to manifest.

3. Pull any images that resonate with these great feelings!

• Time to collect your images and inspirational words: Cut out images and words from magazines or save images online to your desktop to use!

– Look at your social media saved images. See if there are any photos that resonate with your ideal life that you can include!

– Look through the photos you have took. I’m sure you have photos of your favorite people, places, and things that you want to include in your future to use here.

– Buy some magazines that represent what you would like to see in your life.

*Make sure they are higher vibe publications that will have words and images that are deeply inspiring!

– Be sure to save or cut out some words and quotes based on how you want to feel in your ideal life too.

4. Get some supplies!

• You can do this a couple of different ways! Either:

– Physical: poster board, printer, glue stick or tape, and scissors will be needed if you are going the physical route!

– Or you can make your vision board Online: photoshop or Canva are great programs to cut and collage your images!

5. Now that you have your words, images and pictures saved time to get creative!

• If creating your board online copy, paste and re-size the images so that they fit on the page in any way that looks and feels good for you

• If creating your board physically trim your words and pictures and lay them out on the board in any way that you want (tip: don’t glue or tape anything down until you have the layout that you like)!

6. You did it! you created a vision board made for you!

Now it’s really important that you hang it up or put it somewhere that you will see it and be able to engage with it every day. Allow yourself to feel all the good feelings that the images you selected make you feel. This is the secret to manifesting these vibes in your life!

I keep mine as my desktop!

I’ve included a couple of my many vision board examples below.

I created the first one physically and the other two digitally with photoshop.

Use these as a jumping off point for your vision board ideas inspiration!

Did you know that there is a BIG difference between your personal design style and personal design aesthetic!?

Don’t worry most people don’t even know what these concepts are, and I’m going to go over what they mean below, and how you can use them in your own design journey!

I want to explain what these concepts mean to me as a designer, and how I use them to create what I want in my environment, and use them to create through my clients what they want in their environment! I’m going to show you how you can apply these concepts to re-creation of your own environment too!

Lets start with a scenario…

Let’s say you want to re-design your bedroom. You have never done this before. You look around and your room now and it is an amalgamation of all of the things that you have collected over the years. Some of these things you love, and some of these things you have because you inherited them or picked them up for a need you had at the time. It all feels disjointed and dysfunctional, and you want a new beautiful plan to be excited about and move towards! 

So where do you begin? You remember seeing some really pretty bedrooms on Pinterest and maybe you have saved a couple. Ok cool I like this you say…why, you wonder. Maybe this decor is a specific kind of style? So you reverse image search and find more rooms that you also like! Awesome! You feel like you are on to something. The descriptions keep calling this style of room “minimal” (let’s say). Great you found your design style! 

You are proud of yourself because knowing nothing about design you now have a word to describe the kind of room that you want. You can even tell a designer your design style now and feel confident you will get one of these kinds of rooms that you found! You can really get this project started now and you are excited!

I hate to burst your cute little bubble darling but we have just scratched the surface here! There is a whole wide world of design that the system in place hasn’t allowed you to explore appropriately! 

On one hand it’s not trying to mess with us. The design world is overwhelming, there are so many moving parts, not to mention the whole thing is subjective. The internet helps us narrow down and define these amorphous things for us. And this is a necessary part of the process, but did you notice that this design style thing kind of ignores your input!?

But! Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater here either. Start as we have above, figure out what design styles light you up, it is still a great way to start but we are not done here! If you need an easy way to discover your own design style here is my Free Interior Design Soul Styles Guide!

+ Plus Here is a YouTube Vid of me explaining some popular design styles and what you can expect with each of them. To get you started…

Hi Darlings, it’s Catherine with Catherine Rose Design. This video serves to help you figure out what design styles you are attracted to.

If you are still confused I made a Pinterest Board to illustrate these styles further for you! DESIGN STYLES

Ok awesome you now know your design style but we are worlds away from where we should be before re-designing your environment!

Heres where your design aesthetic comes in. Where a Design Style is narrow a Design Aesthetic is open. Where a design style is rigid, a design aesthetic flows freely. A design aesthetic encompasses a wider variety of things that light you up! Pretty much everything you like actually.

When viewing design through the narrow lens of a design style your home will never really feel like its yours. Design styles force you to follow “rules” and I am here, as a designer, to tell you that there are none!

Now this sounds scary, you are saying, ok Catherine it was hard enough to figure out what design styles I liked now I need to re-widen my horizons and try and navigate my design aesthetic! Yes, and you have this, and only you have this for you! 

Don’t worry ll you really have to do is expose yourself to new rooms through:

• Pinterest

• Instagram

• Magazines

• Books

• Movies

• Your best friend’s house

• That new gorgeous restaurant

• Pretty much anywhere… even places that aren’t pretty to you help inform your aesthetics edges!

Now actually think about these places make it a habit for yourself to take a deeper look and focus on your reactions.

Get really specific! Write down for yourself what about these rooms makes you so happy?

• is it the color of the paint?

• Is it the oversized cozy furniture?

• Is it because it is so well lit naturally?

• Is it because there is such a pretty view?

• Is it because a bunch of people can gather there?

• Is it because you feel a sense of clarity?

• Is it that awesome light fixture?

Now have you come across any spaces that really bug you? Describe why!!

• Is it the busy pattern all over the walls?

• Is it the dark colors?

• Is it the too small rug?

• Is it the awkward space?

• Is it the clutter?

• Is it the plaid pillow?

See no rules here. You make the rules. Complete freedom to react to spaces that you are in contact with! All of this information although it may seem disjointed to you informs your true design aesthetic. It also isn’t scary, you don’t have to have the correct “design words” to describe what you like and don’t like!

Create a YES list and a NO list of all of these things that you have observed. If you can add a picture that’s even better. Next to every item write down how that thing makes you feel!

“The reason you have these opinions on things is that, subconsciously, you understand that the things you love about a room support who you are, the life you want to have, and the person you want to become. And the things that you do not like do not resonate with the deeper parts of who you are!”

– Catherine Rose

Your design aesthetic encompasses your lifestyle, your values, your fashion sense, your art sense, pretty much anything that has to do with your life, or the way you would like your life to be.

A great way to gather inspiration from your deeper self is through platforms like Instagram and Pinterest. Your own feed shares a lot about how you want your life to be, from concrete design things like colors, to activities that make you happy, all of these things can be used as inspiration for the design of your environment!

In this post on color psychology I took a picture of my Pinterest feed and it really revealed a lot about my deeper self, including the colors and textures that make me the happiest:

My Pinterest feed, has similar colors and textures in my design aesthetic board too…

Now that you have your list of things that you like from the outside world, make sure that you incorporate the things in your life that already light you up too! Sometimes when we stay inside the box of design styles lay out for us this doesn’t leave room for the things that we already have and love, which I want to free your from because it isn’t true! If you are wondering if you should keep a specific piece in your environment check out this article here!

Now just like when you discovered you liked the minimal design style, search for those reasons that you loved the spaces you have seen, and go down this rabbit hole that has released you from the “rules”!

Now you have a big collection of different rooms that you like for different reasons. Make yourself a vision board of your space! Here is my post on how to make a deeper self vision board, but the same exact steps apply here (since your environment is an extension of your deeper self anyway!)

You can see that there are similar elements in my deeper self vision board and design aesthetic board shown below…

There’s your design aesthetic! You did it!:

Everything that you love informs your design aesthetic.

Now you have something concrete to compare your new design direction to when you get started.

• If your new design direction makes you feel the feelings your aesthetic board makes you feel you are on the right track!

• If it doesn’t time to lean back into what lights you up about your aesthetic and incorporate more of these elements back in!

See! I told you it was easy!

Start where you are when thinking about design, no-one out in the world can tell you what the perfect space for you is! You are unique and cannot be crammed into a style box of rules, thank God!

Here is my other Youtube video explaining this process if you would like to take a look!

If you get to this point, but If you need help with more practical matters like how to best use your space physically as well as making sure it is designed specifically for who you are, first check out this article here! 

Or as always reach out to me directly here!

Design is a big and beautiful universe, in cannot be fit into a design style box, and neither can you, even though that may be what you have been shown thus far.

By following your gut and your desires you have the power to gather inspiration for your new environment through what you love!

If you lean into your design aesthetic you are opened up to all that your environment can be for you!

Through this process you will create a space through you, that truly supports who you are on the deepest levels.

If we are scared and stop at the land of design styles only we risk losing all of the personality and uniqueness that is you, manifesting in your space!

Let me know if you guys found these distinctions helpful. I would also love to hear how you found your design styles and design aesthetic if you are up for sharing! I love seeing what lights you up!

“Design Styles say I’m looking outside myself for direction, while a Design Aesthetic says I’m designing from my inner intuitive guidance.
”

— Catherine Rose Design

Thank you so much for reading!

• If you would like to read some of my own random journal entries go to •Musings•

• If you are interested in more Interior design, deeper self, wellness, or psychology posts…

• If you are looking to see more post like these in general you should join the community by signing up below!

I would love to connect with you deeper!

Love,

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