Why Your Style is Like a Home Reno

Your style IS your brand and you can look at it just like you might look at renovating your dream house! But wait a second. What does that mean and why does it even matter? Let’s dive in!

Imagine this:

You are chosen for an exciting opportunity – you are the lucky winner and Chip and Joanna (or Drew and Jonathan or the Studio McGee peeps – whoever lol) is coming to renovate your home! You begin to think of all the ideas you have and what you want each room to look like.

You get to work with a designer to create your dream space. What’s the fist thing you do?

You gather inspo from Pinterest, right? When we were on Property Brothers, that was the most fun part of the design process. Dreaming big and putting together boards of our favorite spaces to recreate for our own space. Here are some of the boards I created at the beginning of the process!

What would your inspo board look like? Gathering inspiration and ideas is arguably one of the most fun parts of a renovation! And what pictures do you pull for your design board? The things you love! The colors, textures, prints. The ones that speak to you – that feel like you.

So while the inspo part and the ending part are fun – of course – during the process – it can be overwhelming. It can be messy – quite literally. It takes time. And we are impatient beings! We want to snap our fingers and want it to be all done, am I right?

When you’re in the mess of the “middle” of the process – you can start to question if it’s worth all the time and energy to put it all together.

But when you see the end result – I can tell you – it was, and it is – worth it.

I remember the tears when we had our Property Brothers “reveal”. The months of searching leading up, the stress of decision making with a one year old and a newborn – it became clear in that moment that it was all worth it.

And when you see the before and the after – it becomes even more clear!

And here’s the thing about renovating your dream home…

It can be trial and error. You may get a ton of samples and have to piece it all together and it might not all come together at first and so you edit and switch things out until it’s just right. It’s a process.

You also might be influenced by other people’s opinions and worry what they might think of the space. But most importantly – does it feel like home? Does it feel like you? That is what actually matters.

Here’s an example! When we renovated our first home right out of college – I was heavily influenced by my mother in law’s style because she was helping us with the renovation. I hadn’t fully developed my own yet and so I sort of went along with what she liked. And back then – I loved it! But ever since – my taste has changed. And our home now is a drastically different style than our first home because time has passed. See what I mean below!

I’ve grown and evolved – and so has my taste in home decor! We went from a very mid-century modern style home to more of a traditional glam style!

So what does this have to do with your closets and your style?

Think about your style as you would about that dream house renovation.

Is your style the same as it was 10 years ago? What new styles speak to you? 

Just like with our old house to our new – you once loved how something looked so much – you loved a particular aesthetic, but now that’s changed and that is perfectly okay! (Our first house had green and orange everywhere – two colors you won’t find anywhere in our current house! Quite a difference!)

You also might not take the time to think about it! But when you start to conceptualize what your style is – it can start to change your mindset and how you carry yourself.

The clothes you purchase and put on your body each and every day are supposed to be you! The YOU right now – not the one from five years ago.

So let’s take it further and think creatively for a minute here! Think about your favorite brand; clothing, food, travel, influencer – it can truly be anything!

I bet you – if you saw a logo, colors, music, or a smell that reminds you of that brand you would recognize it in a second! Why? Because it is recognizable to you! 

Now… think about yourself as a personal brand. Pretend you are a store, and ask yourself “how do I want my customers to feel when they walk in?” 

What do you want to be recognizable and unique? It might be the same feeling you want to evoke if someone were to walk into your dream home! Inviting? Chic? Glam? Classic? Bold? Boho? Edgy?

Here’s an example below!

Based on my picture you can see that I LOVE me some purple, a pop of print, some glam added with black and white, a little classic pump. Pretty much parallels my house, huh?

I get it, I get it – you are not a clothing store and it might be weird to think of yourself as that “brand” – especially if you’re not in the business space, but THAT is how you can start to conceptualize your style – like you would a brand or your dream house reno!

Think about those feelings you want to have when you step into your outfit for the day and that special sauce that makes it exceptionally you!

Just as you think about creating your dream house – you have the ability to create your dream style!

Think about what you want that to be and OWN IT, BABY! Start creating it!

And if you’re like – hmm I want to do that, just not sure where to start and I need some help! That’s where I come in! I want to guide you through the process of figuring out your “brand”, your “style” – and I have an announcement coming very soon that’s going to help you do just that! Make sure your name is on this list and you’ll be the first to know. Any questions? Leave them below or DM me on Instagram (@juliekrausxo) Would love to hear from you. XO