Tips for finding comfort at home for fall

Wrenda Goodwyn • special to the Fort Myers News-Press/USA Today Network • Oct. 2, 2021

Fall arrived quietly a few days ago and in Southwest Florida and we’re anxiously awaiting a cool morning breeze, an evening that makes us look through our closet for a jacket and any signs that a new season has arrived.

And while our northern neighbors are covering the pool and bringing in the patio furniture, we’re looking forward to heading outdoors after a long, sizzling summer. And it only takes a few news reports of snow storms to realize again, how lucky we are to live in this tropical paradise.

But until then, we dream of fall.

As the sun is sets on summer, there are lots of color palettes and ideas from Kravet to welcome the fall season to your home. Photo: Kravet

Just as the trees shed their beautiful leaves, we’re reminded that it’s important to let go of what no longer serves us or supports us. And that’s what fall is all about. Letting go. Hope. Comfort. Change. In our lives and especially in our homes.

And even though there are only subtle changes, it’s important to acknowledge the season. Especially now as we continue to navigate through challenging times.

As a Fort Myers Interior decorator, I believe adding little things that give us comfort in our homes and making small changes to mark the coming season. Some of my favorites include:

• Start with a good decluttering. Say goodbye to anything that no longer makes you happy or supports your lifestyle.

• Go to your closet, bring the long sleeves and jackets and boots to the front.

• In the pantry, clean out all of the old spices and make room for the new as we get ready for the coming holidays.

• Visit fall art shows and flea markets to invest in a new piece of art or an accent piece.

• With shorter days, now is a good time to take a look at your lighting and perhaps add a new lamp or two.

• The change in seasons is a perfect time to invest in new linens, towels, throws, blankets.

• Freshen up a room or outdoor space by adding a new rug.

• For an outdoor space, add string lights. They are cheerful and add atmosphere to an outdoor dinner.

• Change your fireplace mantel or tablescape with creamy neutrals accented with seasonal tones, gourds, pumpkins, leaves, baskets, accents.

• As you spend more time outdoors, add some new pillows and throws (for chilly nights) to your chairs.

• Start at the front door with mums, a new welcome mat, wreath and faux pumpkins (Tip: spray paint the pumpkins to reflect your color scheme).

• While you’re at the front door, consider giving it a fresh coat of paint. Think about some yummy seasonal colors from Benjamin Moore: Peach Cider, Caramel Apple, Pumpkin Seeds, Autumn Cover and Witching Hour. Check here for tips on painting a front door.

• On the first cool morning: open all of the windows and let the fresh air into your home and breathe it in.

Happy fall!

Wrenda Goodwyn is a Southwest Florida interior decorator, A.S.I.D. associate and gold member of the Interior Redecorators Network. She helps homeowners throughout Southwest Florida with timeless, affordable ways to create beautiful spaces and solves decorating problems. Her articles appear the first Saturday of each month. For more information, visit her website at spectacularspaces.com. Call her at 239-850-5800 or e-mail wrenda@spectacularspaces.com. For more decorating tips, articles and photos, visit spectacularspaces.com/blog

Love your home again

Wrenda Goodwyn • special to the Fort Myers News-Press • September 2019

Fall arrives tomorrow.

Time to pick out a fall wreath for the door or flag for the yard. Even though we really don’t have a fall season it’s nice to mark the change. Then it’s on to Halloween. And Thanksgiving, although it usually gets lost in all the Christmas shopping.

While there is still time, let me wish you a happy 2020!

It’s the time of year when things start to move at warp speed and we wonder where the months went. And if you’re like most of my Southwest Florida home interior clients, you want to get a few things done before we slide into the holidays and then into season again. Yikes.

And because we’re still into what I call our “endless summer” with a couple more months of steamy, hot weather, you may be thinking that your home could use a little something right about now. Something new to make you love it again.

Don’t wait for “someday”

Make a plan now. Be intentional. Strive for curated look. Get motivated. Pick a couple of ideas (see list below) and decide how you want to implement them. Start now and you will have something done before you hang your holiday wreath on the door! Whether you spend a little or a lot, don’t wait. Time is flying by!

And if you need inspiration, call a decorator or designer. We have lots of ideas in any budget and promise that you will love your home again when we are done.

Do these:

• Give your entry a new look with a dramatic color.

• Add a little glam to each room: a tufted sofa or a chaise lounge. Please, no brown! Pick a color that you love. Or a new mirror or a few glass accessories for some sparkle.

In the market for a new sofa? Glam it up with a chesterfield upholstered sofa. This one from Pottery Barn, has comfort and style and is crafted in the U.S. using eco-friendly materials. Photo: Pottery Barn

• Paint your front door. Add a new welcome mat that says something fun.

• Wallpaper a powder room. Something outrageously beautiful.

• Add some sparkle: a chandelier in the living room or bedroom (you really don’t need a ceiling fan in every room in the house). Or hang one in the master closet. It will make you happy every time you walk in.

• Display a collection. Haul out those ginger jars and fill them with fresh flowers.

• Soften the harsh, recessed lighting in the kitchen with a lamp on the counter or island. You won’t believe the change.

Powder rooms are the ideal spot for pattern and color. And no worries about water contact from showers and baths. Thibaut’s Palm Frond wallpaper from its Tropics collection adds a perfect coastal vibe to a home. Photo: Thibaut

• Invest in hotel-style bedding. Don’t be afraid of white linens (always go for a high thread count). White sheets are so popular now and for good reason. Easy to care for and you can change your color scheme whenever you like.

• Hang something colorful in your laundry room.

• Change your drapes or drapery panels over the sliders. Make sure you hang them high: just below the ceiling or molding. And forget solid colors. Try a print or design.

• Delete what is no longer working in your home. I do this seasonally as things do tend to accumulate no matter how hard we try.

• Want color but afraid to commit to an entire room? Fine. Paint the ceiling that color that you have always wanted to try. Yes, the ceiling!

• Create a gallery-style wall with your favorite art.

• Need a new kitchen backsplash? Check out the new textured, handmade subway tiles. Spectacular!

• Add something velvet. Like a few new pillows.

Skip these:

• Oversized anything. Seriously. Not pretty.

• Purchasing a white sofa if you have children, grandchildren, pets, a husband, friends or anyone who will be sitting on it. Trust me on this one.

Wait until you find artwork that means something to you...rather than purchasing just to fill a space. Waves wall art by Pottery Barn.

• Generic, mass-produced artwork. Leave the wall blank until you find some meaningful art or photographs.

• Slip covers for dining chairs. They never fit and always look tired.

• Trendy kitchen updates. White cabinets will always be in style.

• Renovating one part of an open floor plan. Because you can see everything, a renovation of a piece of the open space will make everything else look dated.

• Complicated outdoor spaces. This is where you will be spending some time as soon as the temperatures drop. Keep it simple and comfortable.

Wrenda Goodwyn is a Southwest Florida interior decorator, A.S.I.D. associate and gold member of the Interior Redecorators Network. She helps homeowners throughout Southwest Florida with timeless, affordable ways to create beautiful spaces and solves decorating problems. Her article appears the first Saturday of each month. For more information visit her website at spectacularspaces.com. Call her at 949-1808 or e-mail wrenda@spectacularspaces.com. For more decorating tips, articles and photos, visit spectacularspaces.com/blog

Giving thanks for your home

Keep it pretty and simple this Thanksgiving with handcrafted ceramics from Pottery Barn that let you bring nature into your home with botanicals and colorful fruit. Photo: Pottery Barn.

Wrenda Goodwyn • special to the Fort Myers News-Press • November 3, 2018

Even in our year-round tropical paradise where there is little change in the weather, fall brings a noticeable shift.

Unlike the rest of the country, the slight drop in temperature has most of us heading for the beach, sprucing up our lanais for the season and getting outdoors more. It means football games, antique markets, holiday open houses, the beginning of a series of celebrations and family gatherings. And Thanksgiving.

Sadly, Thanksgiving gets lost in the Halloween/Christmas shuffle. Wedged in between the two, it doesn’t get the recognition that it did when I was growing up in Virginia and it was a major family holiday.

In a time of many challenges, most people are stressed, shuffling too many obligations and trying to do it all, Thanksgiving is a good time to stop and take a breath. And to be thankful for where you live and for your home.

Bombarded by beautiful, professionally-styled homes featured in magazines, Pinterest and HGTV, we live in a constant state of wanting to do more, more, more. And a visit to model homes on a weekend sends most of us into a deep case of home envy. Everyone has a better, more gorgeous home. Or so we think.

Our homes provide comfort, safety, calm and happiness. And yet, we are never really satisfied

As a Southwest Florida interior decorator, I make homes pretty. Solve problems that bother the homeowner. Pull everything together for a calm, cohesive look. The ultimate goal: happiness when you walk in the door.

The right paint color helps to pull everything together for a calm, cohesive look and makes you happy when you walk in the door. Benjamin Moore: Wall in Mascarpone AF-20; trim in Whipple Blue HC-152. Photo: Benjamin Moore.

Sometimes this may only require a new color palette. Color is the big change in any home. And it can be the best investment for your money. But it may also require new furniture or a bath or kitchen redo. The most important thing: start with where you are and work from there. But don’t go crazy.

Take a minute to stop, look around and give thanks for what you have. A fresh perspective. Often it is the simple things.

A few things that you don’t need:

· Oversized coffee tables

· Too many chairs (eat-in kitchen, dining room, bar stools, patio chairs….how many chairs do you really need?) make a home look like a furniture store.

· Bar carts. Cute but unnecessary and take up space.

· Too many throw pillows.

· Media centers that span an entire wall. A lot of fuss for a TV.

· Layered rugs. One is enough.

· Dining room table and chairs that see use once a year (or less).

· To strive for perfection. It will never happen and you will just be exhausted all the time.

Giving thanks with a twist on the traditional napkin ring with these wraps from Frontgate. Photo: Frontgate.

What you need:

· Keep it simple.

· Declutter something. You will feel better.

· A chandelier in your closet. It will make you happy.

· A calm space. A spa bath, a patio, a yoga nook, a chair with a reading lamp.

· Nature. Plants in the house have health benefits and make us feel good.

· Good lighting. Up the wattage.

· Decorate as though you will live there forever.

· A pretty guest room. Company is coming!

· Aim for timeless and affordable.

· Don’t live in a storage garage for someone else’s memories. Your home is about you.

Wherever you are spending the holiday, be thankful for your home sweet home.

Wrenda Goodwyn is a Southwest Florida interior decorator, A.S.I.D. associate and certified gold member of the Interior Redecorators Network. She has helped homeowners throughout Southwest Florida with timeless, affordable ways to create beautiful spaces and to solve decorating problems. Her article appears the first Saturday of each month. For more information visit her website at spectacularspaces.com. Call her at 239-949-1808 or e-mail wrenda@spectacularspaces.com. For more decorating tips, articles and photos, visit spectacularspaces.com/blog

Simple pleasures: A late fall road trip with my best friend

My father always said, "there are no friends like old friends." He didn't mean old as in ancient. But as in friends that have known you for a long time. And he was right.

Source: Curly Girl Design

My friend Connie and I met when we were 18, in college in North Carolina and became best friends right away. We have been through happy times, moves, transitions, sad times, children, divorces, marriages and everything in between. We know each other's deepest secrets (like the time the state police gave us a ride back to our college dorm when we missed our ride in Raleigh), dreams and wishes.

Source: Curly Girl Design.

It seems like we have known each other forever. And that is why, when we get together, we pick up right where we left off. And it's always fun.

When I visited a couple of weeks ago to take a late fall road trip in North Carolina, we were looking for the changing of the leaves, some great shopping, visiting our old college and seeing some sights. And we did all of that. But the best part was enjoying the comfort and good times that can only come from a longtime friend. 

Fall in one of my favorite downtowns, Apex, North Carolina.

Take a book. Return a book at the free library. One of my favorite ideas ever.

Money magazine says its #9 in the U.S.

Shopping for vintage decor.

View fullsize

I can make this!

Hopefully the airline will not weigh my bags!

So, as we head into Thanksgiving next week, I am most thankful for the friends who have been placed in my life and have made me part of their extended families.  And for all of the years we have shared. And priceless memories. Some of which will never be revealed!

Forever friends, Wrenda and Connie. 

Want to know when to splurge and when to save?

Call me. Let's talk about creating Spectacular Spaces in your home!

Time to hire a professional? Read my tips for working with an interior decorator in the Fort Myers News-Press.

Home Inspirations: Simple touches transition home from summer to fall

Wrenda Goodwyn • special to the Fort Myers News-Press• October 4, 2014

Pottery Barn's outdoor, fall pillows.

As I write this column, fall is not in the air. Yet.

While most of the country is hanging on to those last warm days of summer, in southwest Florida we are anxiously awaiting a cool morning breeze, an evening that makes us look through our closet for a jacket and any sign that fall is on its way.

It will appear soon. Amy minute. Perhaps even this weekend, when a cold front is predicted.

And while our northern neighbors are covering the pool and bringing in the patio furniture, we are looking forward to heading outdoors after a long summer of air conditioning! And it only takes a few news reports of snow storms to realize again, how lucky we are to live in a tropical paradise.

But until then, we dream of fall.  

And there is something about the change in seasons that makes us want to make a change. In fashion and in our homes. We want to mark the change in seasons, no matter how subtle.

View fullsize

West Elm's reclaimed pine library storage.

Add a new accent piece from fall flea markets or this West Elm reclaimed pine librarian storage inspired by library card catalogs. Photo: West Elm. So as the days become shorter and we are all counting down fall's arrival,  we look at our homes and make small changes to mark the coming season. As a Fort Myers interior decorator, some of my favorites include:

•    Start with a good decluttering. Then go to your closet, bring the long sleeves and jackets and boots to the front. In the pantry, clean out all of the old spices and make room for the new as we get ready for the coming holidays.

Pottery Barn's flora and fauna trays in neutral tones.

•    Make a slight change of colors in your decorating with yellows, browns and orange tones.  Pillows, throws,  accessories. Mother nature's colors...you can't go wrong.

•   Flora and fauna trays in neutral tones are a great accessory for counters, dressers and they are perfect for holding all of those remotes!

•    Visit fall art shows and invest in a new piece of art or accent piece.

•    Search fall flea markets and find a new treasure for an accent piece.

•    With shorter days, now is a good time to take a look at your lighting and perhaps add a new lamp or two.

•    Change your scents to fall. Some of my favorites are the highly scented candles from Candleberry Candles and include: Copper Leaves ad Mulled Cider. www.candleberry.com.

West Elm's plush cotton bath mat.

•    The change in seasons is a perfect time to invest in new linens, towels, throws, blankets.

•    Give bath a new look with this color block, stripe bath mat of plush yarn-dyed cotton. Photo: West Elm.

•    Freshen up a room or outdoor space by adding a new rug. Some of my favorites are from Dash & Albert.  www.dashandalbert.com.

•     Change your fireplace mantel or tablescape with creamy neutrals accented with seasonal tones, gourds, pumpkins, leaves, baskets, accents.

Tip: I pick these up from Home Goods for my clients.

West Elm's metallic bowl filled with apples.

•    As you spend more time outdoors, add some new pillows and throw (for chilly nights) to your chairs.  

•    Start at the front door with mums, a new welcome mat, wreath and pumpkins (Tip: spray paint the pumpkins to reflect your color scheme). Fun!

•    On the first cool morning: open all of the windows and let the fresh air into your home.

Welcome fall!  It's been a long, hot summer!

Wrenda Goodwyn is a Southwest Florida interior decorator. Home Inspirations appears the first Saturday of each month. Visit her website at spectacularspaces.com. Call her at 949-1808 or e-mail wrenda@spectacularspaces.com. For more decorating tips and photos, visit spectacularspaces.com/blog