Spring Cottage Reset Decorating with Thrifted Finds.

Welcome back to the homestead my friends and welcome to March. There's something about this time of year that feels like a gentle turning. The days are stretching out longer and the light is softer and here in Michigan you can feel spring quietly waiting its turn. Today I am packing up winter. The wreaths, greenery, the last bits of juniper, and giving the cottage a proper reset for the season ahead. If you're new here about 90 percent of our home is thrifted finds and decorating is one of my favorite hobbies. I've collected pieces over the year that I rotate through as the seasons and holidays change. Most of our little treasures live downstairs in a storage room where I can see them lined up on open shelves. I swap things out four or five times a year whenever I'm craving a refresh for the seasons. It's simple, it's practical, and it brings me so much joy. It's like thrift shopping in my basement. For this reset I am mostly using pieces I've already thrifted over the years along with a tiny sneak peek of a few spring finds you'll see more of in an upcoming thrifting vlog later this month. A lot of decorating for me looks like this. Putting something up, taking it back down, moving it around, stepping back, and trying again. There's not really a formula. I just move things around until it feels balanced and welcoming to my eye. Some people might look at our cottage and see clutter, others may see warmth and character. Honestly both are fine. The only thing that really matters is how it feels when you walk into your own home. Decorating isn't about trends or rules in my opinion. It's about creating a space that feels settled, lived in, and welcoming to you and the people inside it. So I just play, I shift things around, I layer the florals, I let the room tell me when it's done, and little by little spring begins to settle in to our cottage. Decorating doesn't always mean buying something new or filling every surface with thrifted finds. Sometimes it's as simple as changing what you use every day. In the winter our peg shelves are lined with wool coats and heavy sweaters, things that we grab often to keep warm. But now that spring is peeking in, those pieces get tucked away and out comes lighter pieces like raincoats, jean jackets, sun hats, waiting for warmer afternoons. It's practical but we reach for them daily and it's beautiful too. You don't have to have everything perfect, just living and let the living become part of your decor. Our tulips and early spring blooms will still be a month or two away. The garden is quiet and not quite ready to give us flowers, so for now grocery store flowers will have to do. I don't buy them often. When you grow your own it's hard to compare. There's just something about cutting them fresh from the garden, they're so much more beautiful. But it is my birthday today and I thought a little treat of sunshine just felt right to welcome spring in. It may not be from our soil but they'll still brighten up the room and sometimes that's enough. And of course it wouldn't be a proper spring reset without a fresh candle burning. Our friends at Antique Candle Co. launched their spring collection just in time and today I'm lighting sweet lemon. Smells exactly like homemade lemon bars cooling on the counter. It's bright clean and just the right amount of sweetness. I'm very particular about candles and these scents fill the room without feeling heavy or giving me a headache. It's small things but lighting a new candle always makes the whole house feel officially shifted into a new season. If you would like to try one I have a coupon code in the description below. Thank you for spending the beginning of spring here with me. I'm welcoming it slowly this year and have a feeling many of you are doing the same. So thank you for choosing to spend your time with us this afternoon. With love from the homestead, Amanda.