Just the other day I was thinking about design. I was thinking about those people who have said to me they’re “just not creative.” I had a girlfriend last week who told me she just can’t think of ideas for decorating her house. I’ve also watched my own husband struggle with imagining what our new house is going to look like when it’s done being renovated.

So, of course, I started wondering where I get ideas. First of all, my sister is a designer and I’m always checking things out with her. I like to ask her if it’s ok to do this or that, and she’s always really honest about the rules and whether some idea I have is weird or not. I look at decor on several different websites daily, I read design magazines, and I am always watching home shows. I’ve been interested in design since I was a child. I had the freedom as a kid to decorate my room the way I wanted to. My mom always did a nice job of wallpapering and buying matching bedding for us and then we got to accessorize. When I was 10 I was painting my furniture and covering my books with paper so they would match in the bookshelves. I always liked setting up the pillows and stuffed animals on my bed so they would be fancy.

As soon as I started ordering magazines they were always home or decor magazines. So, that’s where I think my love of design comes from. The fact that I was allowed to try things out, along with the input of inspiration. I really think the more you see and the more you try, the better and better you’ll get at coming up with new ideas. I feel like creativity is like so many other things in life. You have to put the information in your brain so you can draw from it later. If you are in putting creative ideas in, you’ll start seeing more possibilities in your imagination.

As a photographer, I love to just sit and look at images. When I want design ideas I just sit and look at design. This is my dream kitchen. It’s an image I’ve been holding on to for a while now.

Clearly, I’m never going to have this kitchen, but let’s look at what I can get from it. I love the color combinations, and I can have that. I’ve had barstools very similar to these before. Maybe the tile is a possibility, even in a tiny space. I love the little cake plate! There are so many ideas here to put away when I’m out shopping for pieces to put in my house.

I also really feel that when I’m trying to come up with ideas for my spaces, it helps to look at similar spaces or layouts so I can imagine actual possibilities. If we’re moving into a tiny apt, looking at a 3,500 square foot kitchen, will only frustrate us. Look at layouts that are similar to yours, it makes it so much easier to imagine the\ space.

Here is our kitchen at the ranch:

Ok, now if you were me, what would do with this space? My first thought was to get rid of the stove hood. It’s huge and there is a tiny fan in it. It blocks the view into and out of the kitchen. Then, I think the cabinets between the kitchen and nook area are outdated in the hanging style and also block the view from room to room.

I looked up kitchens that have a window against the back wall, a double oven in a corner, and an island. I just started looking at a million images for possibilities and ideas.

This image gave me the idea of extending out the bar with big legs. And now I know what these types of lanterns would look like over the bar. I’m replacing the garden window and thought this type of window was darling. What if I kept the cabinets between the kitchen and nook, these would be cute.

This picture gave me the idea of taking a block of cabinets out and going with open shelving. I’m planning on a subway tile so this seemed cute to me.

Hey, how about these windows? How about these lights? What if I extended the bar to the side? Also, how great does that wood look with the white?

What if I have white cabinets and black counters? Well, it’ll look like this. Oh, and there’s that open shelving. This is what three lights would look like over the island. Hello! The ceiling! I was wondering about putting a cabinet on the side of the island and I like this kind.

Great example of what my double ovens may look like.

Look at this! I would have never thought of putting rock around the oven! It looks so cool. I know I’m not going to do this, but now I have an idea stored in my head about just one more possibility. That’s how this works.

So, here’s the biggest problem of idea gathering. I love so many things that every time I see something new, I change my mind. I’ve started limiting my searching and have finally had to decide on things like color, tile, layout and structures. I’ve been able to decide where everything will go and what materials I’ll use, but I have to just stop looking. I still have a couple of variables that I’ll have to decide on as I start making the changes. That’s when I start making calls to my sister and going with how things actually feel in real life. I hope you’ll keep checking back to see all the changes! Feel free to share any ideas you may have for the space!

Where do you find your inspiration?

All of these images came from Pinterest and Houzz. Both two of my favorite places to get inspired!