Acadian, Contemporary, Mediterranean…there are countless architectural styles to choose from when designing a house. At the moment, Farmhouse is quite popular. You see things labeled “Farmhouse Decor” everywhere you go and antiques are all the rage. Though I am building a Farmhouse, it has absolutely nothing to do with its current trendy status.
Since childhood, whenever I envisioned myself in my dream home, it always had a wrap around porch with a swing, high ceilings, large windows, pitched gables, and of course a beautiful fireplace. I always wanted a large, open kitchen where I could cook to my heart’s content while interacting with my guests and a massive pantry that I could decorate like an old general store. Maybe not every child dreams like this, but for some reason I did.
I loved nothing more than playing “old times” in my paternal grandmother’s Victorian home. I fell in love with every antique in her home. Since she passed away, I have gone to great lengths to get her antiques so I can use them in my home, whether that means flying with her gorgeous antique bowl set tucked safely in my suitcases or driving from Missouri to Florida with her wrought iron bed strapped on top of my car.
On my maternal side, they live the epitome of the American Farmhouse lifestyle. My great-grandparents bought land and built a homestead. They raised cattle, always had a garden into their 70’s and cooked delicious food in their tiny little kitchen. The land around them became home to their three children, one grandson and now a great-grandson. Every time you would drive past their house, Grandad would be sitting out on his porch swing, waving as each car drove by. We spent countless days there, helping Granny hang clothes on the clothesline and exploring their barn. It was a home filled with love and joy.
A farmhouse means so much more than an architectural style. It means a home I can fill with my grandmother’s antiques and feel her love every time I see them. It means a place I can sit on my front porch swing and remember my Grandad as I wave at each person driving by. It is an open kitchen I can use to cook meals for my family and friends, showing them the love that was given to me by generations before. To me, a farmhouse is not an architectural style, it is a way of life, and I cannot wait to pass the love and memories given to me down to the next generation.
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