Things at home felt rocky for a lot of my childhood. We struggled financially, and there was usually something going on. I lived in the same house until I was eighteen. And I remember going to friends’ houses as a kid and thinking, “Oh, this is how people live.”
I’d look at pictures in magazines or see a kitchen on TV and imagine what it would feel like to live there. I loved looking at the rooms, but what I really wanted was the feeling I imagined went with them. I wanted a place where I could settle in and feel at ease.
The kind of home I want to make
I’ve always loved making things. I dance, I craft, and I’ve taught myself a lot about design by trying things and seeing how they feel. I love a room that looks beautiful and works well for the people who use it every day.
That’s something I bring to my work as a Southern Vermont Realtor, too. When you walk into a house you’re thinking about buying, how do you feel? Can you picture yourself making coffee there on a regular morning? And when you’re getting ready to sell, what do you want someone to experience when they walk through the door?
When I picture the home I want for my family, I usually end up at the dinner table. Friends come over to eat, somebody pulls out a game, and we all stay up a little later than we meant to. I love thinking about paint colors and kitchen layouts, and that’s the evening I’m imagining while I make those decisions.
Feeling at home in myself
This is the part of talking about home that feels most personal to me. I’ve carried shame about my body since I was a little girl, and I’ve worked hard to feel safe and comfortable in it. I’m still learning what that feels like. I do know that when I feel more at ease in myself, I have more room to dance, make things, and follow a creative idea just because I’m curious about it.
That’s part of why I started At Home with Emily Heyer. I want to share what it’s like to buy and sell real estate in Southern Vermont, what we’re learning as we renovate our 1907 house in North Bennington, and what I’m making out in my "Red Clover Cottage" office shed. I also want to talk about the quieter work of feeling at home in your own life while you’re still figuring out what you want it to look like.
So make yourself at home. And if you feel like sharing, I’d love to know what makes you feel most at home these days.
