Whether you are a family living in a two story house, or a student living in a rented room or a couple living in an apartment, there is always a place you can call home everyday. I think what makes a home more than just a house or a room or an apartment is not only in the people you are living with but also the things inside that make you feel content and comfortable. Moreover if the things inside are decorated with your favorite style, complemented with your personal touch and organized within regular basis, I believe you can always celebrate a little something about life in the comfort of your home.

These books, “Homemakers” by Brit Morin and “Happy Handmade Home” by Elsie and Emma from A Beautiful Mess, are two books that I have recently read and fell in love with. At a glance, I thought these books will talk only about home decor, but man was I wrong. Of course they did discuss about home decorating. But they also include numerous tips and interesting ideas to help readers liven up their home with creative DIYs and activities.

Both of these books have a similar approach in breaking down the books into each chapter that talks about every part of a house. From kitchen to workspace, from bedroom to outdoor spaces, these books cover all essential aspects of each room in a house. They also pay attention to the small details and ways to show your personality through the decor of your home.

Starting out as bloggers, both “Homemakers” and “Happy Handmade Home” are written with a similar style with their blog. “Homemakers” which is created by Brit Morin, the girl behind Brit+Co invited us to redefine homemaking in the digital generation. Back in the 70s or 80s, the term homemaker is related with housewife or stay-at-home mom who manages the house traditionally. But now, we are living in a world where the technology is growing rapidly. It is just inevitable for our generation to include technology in our everyday life. As a tech savvy herself, Brit introduces us to new technologies, useful application and even foreshadowing of what the future looks like for part of the home.

The things that I love about “Homemakers” is that it covers not only about the home but also the living aspect. Inside the book, Brit also shared a glimpse her fashion and beauty tips. In this book, she is not trying to teach you this or that but share with you her personal experience and how she does it creatively. She even talked about healthy lifestyle and fitness! Reading this book slightly feels like having a girl talk with Brit while geeking out on creative projects and current technology.

While “Homemakers” focus more on the personal progress and lifestyle, “Happy Handmade Home” shared more ideas about celebrating moments with the people near and dear to you. As a long time fan of A Beautiful Mess,  I can see that they created the book with the same upbeat spirit, modern style and vibrant choice. In the beginning of the book, Elsie and Emma do not forget to share their tips on decorating a new space. One of them says: “If you love it, love it.” This tip sounds very simple, but sometimes many of us seem to fail to do it.

Whether an idea seems trendy, obvious, awful, or even overdone, we encourage you to stop caring about what other people think. The point of decorating is to make your home more you. At the end of the day the only thing that matters is how you feel in your home.

And of course the crafty sisters also shared some of their simple-but-superb DIYs. Like how to upcycle some used goods in nine different ways. All in all, if you love home decor and creative lifestyle, I am sure you will love this book. Both of them are packed with inspiring tips, beautiful photographs and well-designed layout. Now I am just itching to decorate my space after reading these books.

If you are interested to purchase these books, please go and check them out in our shop. Happy reading!

Text by Filicia