It all started when I was going back through old posts looking for a link to something when I came across this old forgot-about-it mood board of yore. It was made about a month before we moved into our second house (back in 2010) and featured this board with the words “we have no idea what our future living room will actually look like, but today this is what I’m loving.”
I thought it was pretty funny that 20 months later, after completely forgetting about making it, we have lots of gray and green going on, and even specifically have a big gray sectional, a green rug, and the exact same zebra pillows (scored about a year later on clearance from West Elm after I completely forgot about them from the mood board).
Of course some things are different, like the fact that we have yet to update our old media cabinet (we’re dreaming of finding an old thrift store dresser to tweak these days) and we ended up with a padded ottoman instead of two wicker tables for the coffee table area.
Our curtains also have a subtle white and gray print instead of being green (which is probably a good thing since a big green rug + green curtains might be a smidge too Kermit much green for our liking).
Then someone pointed out what’s possibly the craziest foreshadowing coincidence of all. Here is a post about some homemade art that we shared back in 2008 (four whole years ago!) which featured “blown up color copies from a decorating magazine of two graphic green wool rugs which I then snipped into strips so both patterns could appear in both frames.”
How crazy is it that I ripped out pages from a rug ad in a magazine, blew them up 300% at Kinkos, and framed them back in 2008 – only to buy a rug that was crazy-similar to that forgotten rug-turned-art four years later?! I never would have made the connection, so thanks to the reader who reminded me of that old art project!
Then of course we have the deer head from the mood board, who looks surprisingly like Ramsey (who used to live in our bedroom, until he met an untimely end during the last day of book photoshoots). Rest in pieces dear Ramsey.
And we can’t forget the other faux horned creaturethat I adopted from Hobby Lobby and hung in our kitchen during our little renovation (hence the scratched up paint).
He also makes a great fascinator in a pinch.
And in another planning post, written just four days after we moved into our current house back in 2010, we shared a few inspiration images, which included this page from House Beautiful:
Which featured an oddly similar quatrefoil mirror to the one we found at the home improvement store and hung above our sink in the main bedroom. Once again, we only realized the similarity after a reader said something like “so funny that the inspiration image you shared a while back had a similar mirror on the wall!”
As soon as we were reminded of that image it all came back to us! Haha. It was subliminal mirror messaging. And if you scroll back up to that page from House Beautiful you’ll also see a dark teal tone on that accent wall, which ended up being very close to the color that we chose for the back of our dining room built-ins (Benjamin Moore’s Dragonfly)…
… and our guest room (Martha Stewart’s Plumage).
Another sort of hilarious similarity was when we realized that those two oak trees that were growing in the left front quadrant of our first house…
… actually existed in almost the exact same location of our current house. It wasn’t as easy to see when we moved in since everything was bushy and overgrown…
But once we cleared stuff up it became a lot more apparent (although we do have that big magnolia out there too).
So what do you think? Do you believe that inspirational images that you rip out, art that you frame, and mood boards that you make before you even move somewhere can somehow end up subliminally influencing your decor choices years later? I guess you could argue that “ya just like what you like” (so the same thing that makes you tear something out might make you buy something that looks like that later) but it was just so funny to see that old forgotten mood board, homemade art, and tear sheet and realize that although they weren’t something I revisited regularly, they all seemed to contain some key things that weaseled their way into our house.
Oh and have you noticed any similarities between your first house and your second house that only later became apparent to you? We have a theory that some people buy the same house over and over again (with slight tweaks of course, like more bathrooms or bedrooms as your family grows). A perfect example of this is my best friend and her hubby, who had a three story townhouse (with a big media room in the basement, the kitchen/dining room/living room on the main floor, and all the bedrooms upstairs). They later looked at about a million houses before buying nearly the same three story set-up (right down to the large media room in the basement). Although they have two small kids, they don’t mind living on three floors, so they made that choice again – meanwhile we seem to be crushing on mid-century ranchers, so we’ve found ourselves in another one that even has similar oak tree placement. Haha. Maybe we’re all just creatures of habit? On the other hand, I’m sure there are folks who look for polar opposites when it comes to moving, so we’d love to hear about that too!
Mary says
How funny! I think it also definitely depends on where you live first…not sure I wan to live in a tiny old house that isn’t built great again…lol! We are on our first house still, so we’ll see what the future one holds! I’m sure there will def be some similar styles going on, and a lot of blue :)
Tiffany S. says
Have you seen whitefauxtaxidermy.com? Omg, they’ve taken white animal heads to a whole new level. I can’t see them without thinking of you guys!
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes. Completely obsessed. Haha.
xo,
s
Mindy@FindingSilverLinings says
Funny. I just discovered something similar. We moved into our house two years ago. I made a mood board for every room in the house (so I wouldn’t get overwhelmed trying to decorate an entire house at once). I cut pics from magazines and printed some from the net and collages them altogether to stuff into a binder to reference later. I lost it (like I do with lots of things lol) and found it the other day! So many things on the moodboards turned up around the house. It’s so weird. I guess you subconsciously really like something it’s decor fate!
KarenH. says
For me, it’s a little of both. My current house v my former condo have similarities and differences. The condo was a new build and is considered “colonial” because the common entry hall is in the middle of the units, but I don’t remember too many colonists living in apartments ;). My house, I have learned is called “Minimal Traditional”. Too small to actually be a “ranch” or “rambler” and not much on details.
But the actual condo unit was all on one floor, and so is the house, not counting the un- finished basement. The condo floorplan had one half of the house as a common living space and the other half for bedrooms and baths. Knock off one each bedroom and bath, and the house does the same thing. The front half of the house is kitchen, dining room and living room and the back half has both bedrooms and the bath.
But the condo was vinyl siding and heat pump and no fireplace. The house is red brick, oil heat and fireplace with wood burning insert.
And the house is about half the size of the condo–sitting on its quarter acre lot, my house seems to have its own park! :)
mary says
speaking of deja vu posts, i think you got your dream kitchen… https://www.younghouselove.com/2007/11/i-dream-of-kitchens/
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so funny!!!
xo,
s
Georgia says
Isn’t that the what inspiration is all about? If you collect images of things you like, they filter into your subconscious. Even going to art galleries and stores, i know I’m collecting a visual memory catalogue of things that inspire me. The subconscious is a powerful thing. I’m sure most of the “ideas” that we have are somehow springboarding off something we’ve seen even if we remember it or not. i love going back through the folders of pages from magazines that I keep. Sometimes I look at a page and can’t even think what it was that I liked! Other times I cqn totally see how that inspiration has seeped into my work (either art/craft/home decorating). i like it better when I’m not directly, consciously referencing something becaus then it totally feels like my own.
Marian says
We had lived in my current NOVA hose for about 3-4 months before I realised the main floor was set up exactly the same way as my childhood home in Oregon. Same size rooms set up in the exact same locations. Go figure, right? No wonder I felt so at home there.
Annaliese says
I love the white desk in your living room! I’ve been looking for one that size and am having the hardest time finding the right one. Do you mind sharing where you purchased the desk? Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
That was a wedding gift but it was from West Elm. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
danielle says
i grew up in an 1800’s house– then moved into a 1950’s ranch, but it never felt “right” to me. i loved the house– and i love other people’s ranch houses– but i never felt settled in it. I ended up buying another 1800’s house and felt at home right away.
Leigh says
Oh I love how our designs evolve. I love the new dark couch, where did you get it??? We are looking for a new sectional and need all the help we can get!!
YoungHouseLove says
That’s the Karlstad sectional with the add on chaise from Ikea.
xo,
s
Ana says
What I realized is that I bought homes that remind me of happy and familiar places. My first house was a 1960 ranch that had many similarities to the house where I grew up (and where my parents still live), right down to the color of the vintage tile.
With my second house, a 1950 bungalow, I’m very much reminded of the houses of my grandmother (dad’s mom) and favorite great-aunt (her younger sister), who lived almost back to back (catty corner and across a small alley). Basically they could yell to each other from their back porches — no need for the telephone. :) They were LOUD. Almost Jersey loud, Sherry. Haha.
Jasanna says
That’s hilarious how many similarities there are! I love it. I need to start tearing out fun photos that I love so eventually they’ll be subliminal messages in the back of my mind when I house hunt! :)
http://munchtalk.blogspot.com/
Niki says
This happens to me all the time! I’ve got ‘scrapbooks’ of pictures from 15 years ago and when I go back through them discover all sorts of things now in my home. One was an outdoor fireplace off the master bedroom which I now have and love – yet it wasn’t until after I had brought the home I noticed the similarity to an old picture! It’s something to do with imprinting the mind and is scientifically proven :)
Ali says
I think once it’s in your brain, it’s all rolling around in there somewhere. Pretty cool, though. :)
Not exactly the same, but my husband pointed out how much I keep buying new clothes that are a reincarnation of other pieces I either have or have had before. Guess I like all the same clothes. Haha
Carli says
Caraaazy!! And SO cool! Neat post :)
Nicole says
Love your style! I just starting looking at blogs because I’m trying to redecorate my daughters room. What color paint is on the walls in your family room. It looks amazing!! Great job
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks! It’s Moonshine by Benjamin Moore. We have a button on our sidebar with all of the paint color info in our house if that helps!
xo,
s
Sarah B says
The same thing happened to my Mom. At some point she ripped out a magazine ad for a wedding dress she thought was beautiful. She put it in her dresser drawer and totally forgot about it. Sometime after marrying my father, she was cleaning and found the ad, and it was the exact dress that she had ended up buying.
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so cool!!
xo,
s
Katie says
Exploring some old posts of yours from the first house and came across this one
https://www.younghouselove.com/2010/03/window-shopping-charlotte-or-bust/
The ceramic artichoke reminds me of your current bedside lamp bases.
YoungHouseLove says
So funny! It totally does!
xo,
s
Andrea says
Where did you get your couch? I will be going couch shopping this week for my new apartment! Is your’s comfy? Was it expensive?
YoungHouseLove says
It’s the Karlstad from Ikea. So cheap! I think if you search “Karl” on our site there’s a post all about it (with cost, etc).
xo,
s
Becca says
We just bought Karl! He is being assembled as I type. Thanks for the great and thorough couch research process!
John@RemodelingBIBLE says
It’s called the “law of attraction!” It’s pretty evident here in this post.
Erin C. says
Hi Sherry and John! Not sure if you will get this in the next hour or so, but just wondering if there are any playgrounds in your area that Clara enjoys. We are driving through Richmond and wanted to give our little guy a chance to run off some steam before getting on the road again. Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
There are – however most of the ones we go to are fairly far off the highway so I’m not sure I would suggest the detour to them. But there is a big public park right near the intersection of I-95 and I-64 (not sure which you’re coming down) called Bryan Park. If you’re on I-95 North you can get there from exit 80 (Lakeside Ave). We’ve never been to that playground so I can’t speak for it, but it’s website says there’s one in there!
If not there, you could also get off downtown and go to a place like the Capitol, Brown’s Island or The Canal Walk. No playgrounds, but lots of area to just run around. Traffic isn’t bad around Richmond during the morning so it shouldn’t be too frustrating.
-John
Erin C. says
You’re awesome! Thanks for the info :)
Elissa says
This is slightly off topic but have you seen the recent Lowe’s commercial where the woman paints her front door bright yellow? She is holding up a photo as inspiration and it’s a brick front house with a bright yellow door, I always think of you guys when it comes on. Here it is:
http://youtu.be/2R0sgiuj8Wk
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, we saw that this weekend! We love it! Especially since we’re suckers for a good time lapse home improvement video! Haha.
xo,
s