Create soul in your home

Home is where I'm with my family. That's for sure. But there are also things that make a house my home.

When you move from house to house - what we have been doing for almost 13 years - you get attached to certain items you have. New or old, you want to take them with you. No matter what country you are in, they make you feel at home and instantly give your (new) house a warm feeling.

Special items create soul in your home, in their own small but special way.

Because feeling at home is just that. A feeling. You can't pinpoint what 'it' actually is, you just know when you feel at home.

Everyone has their own way of creating a feeling of home. Some feel at home by cooking or baking their first home cooked meal in a new place. For me it starts with decorating. Some women like to begin decorating right away while others prefer to take it slow. I am the taking-it-slow-kind of girl. But when it comes to settling into a new house, there is no easier and quicker way to make me feel at home then when I unpack some of our special items.

With my favourite photographs, some scented candles - or flowers if available - and a couple of my favourite quotes in a new house, the feeling starts to kick in. If possible I put the candles already in the house before we move in, to give it that familiar smell.

I love photographs in the house and they will always come with me and find a place.

By using photographs to decorate, you are bringing in your own personal style. It's a super easy way to decorate, specially when you are in a temporary house or when you have to stay (temporarily) in a hotel room or a furnished apartment.

Quotes are also great affirmations and personalize a space right away. You even can write one or more on a piece of paper and tape it on the wall with washi tape. That way you can safely remove it when it's time to pack. 

And don't worry when your handy dandy hammer is still in boxes. There is no need to make a hole right away in the wall, to hang your photographs or quotes. You might change your mind or you are not allowed to make holes in the walls, if the house is a rented one. Just give them a temporary place and perhaps you even will leave them as is. 

Anywhere in the house will do. Place bigger ones against the windows. This is also a great way, and budget friendly, to block people from looking into your home if you live on the ground floor and you have no window treatments yet. Or place them loosely above a fire place, use smaller ones on the kitchen counter, or let really big ones stand loose on the floor against the wall.

As long as you can see them it's fine. After all, it's your home to enjoy.

So, create some soul in your house to make you feel at home. 

No matter how long you are staying there.

Maureen x

{photo 1} Our bedroom view with:

*the quote on wood was a gift from my husband, made by Heidi from Heidesign

*photo of my girls, 7 years ago, is printed on aluminium, so it can stand or hang

*the white leather pouf was handmade for me in Tunesia

*white supermarket flowers in a copper mug, from Old Dubai

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Starting year 2

[creativity]  

noun\ˌkrē-(ˌ)ā-ˈti-və-tē, ˌkrē-ə-\ ~ the ability to make new things or think of new ideas.

Hello 2015!

It's a fresh new year and my head is filled with ideas for The Moksi Homes. Since I'm not the kind of girl who starts ticking off boxes on her to-do list, just because it's January, I have no New Year resolutions. No, let me fly by the seat of my pants and all will be fine.

I do however am brainstorming behind the scenes where to take this blog and the concept of TMH. Almost a full year has past since we went online, and for year two there are some changes in the pipeline. Creating my own content is something that I love to do and I'm a firm believer that we should do our own thing, share what we love, make collaborations and cheer each other on. So I'm toasting to a fresh new year, filled with more creativity, positive energy and new adventures!

2015, let's do this!

Maureen x

{Oh, in case you were wondering, yes, that's Little Zebra holding its leg up because he's a bit wonky. Or he's dancing, not sure...}

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Going in the right direction

Hello lovely readers!

I can't really get my head around the fact, that 2014 is already coming to an end!

It was a year filled with many mixed emotions -highs & lows- in my personal life and for The Moksi Homes.

I started oh so happy with the launch of this new website on January 7th, but then five days later my dad passed away and everything inside me went quiet... Times like these make living away from family & friends back in Amsterdam surreal and difficult.  I was even more grateful to have my husband and our two girls, our little foursome. We navigate life in yet another country but that's ok, Home is where we are together.

So yes, 2014 started really crappy and it was really hard for me to stay focused and to continue with TMH -I'm not going to make it prettier than it was- but I still had my Hopes & Dreams. I am a dreamer at heart, always will be.

Lucky for me, with the help of sweet Brandi and my lovely Guest blogger friends Melissa, Tammy,Stacey and Laura, the site continued further. And after a couple months, slowly but surely, I could feel the old Maureen coming back.

Also, after some hard thinking, I decided to stop writing on my personal blog of 4 years, Daydream Living. Honestly, this was not an easy choice but I needed more balance. And as most of you know, I use Instagram. I simply Love the easiness, creativity and sense of community there, so @the.moksi.homes is where you can find me on a daily basis. If you don't use a smarty pants phone, no worries, read along on your computer or Ipad, simply go to: instagram.com/moksicollective

The wonderful thing of living in Dubai, besides the sunshine, is that chances are pretty big that you will meet like minded and creative people. Just before the Summer, I've met the editor of Good Housekeeping Middle East, Lena. And that's when one of my Dreams turned into Reality. Lena is really lovely and she gave me the opportunity to write two articles for The Moksi Homes, 6 pages people!  I danced a Happy dance that day! To see two Moksi women and their stories featured in print was so great! There was also a piece in the Summer issue about my home here and how I like to decorate it.

My magazine dance even extended when another magazine, the Dutch Jan Magazine, printed the story of our wedding, from Amsterdam to Dubai. Seeing our little foursome in print and sharing a bit of our personal life was a first, but we enjoyed it and I Love the photo Brenda took of us in Amsterdam.

And so it happened that 2014 was a Moksi (which means 'mixed') kind of year.

So, what are my plans for TMH in 2015?

Well, there are ideas being put together to take TMH to the next level. I really look forward to see more Dreams turning into reality!

For the very near future, I joined the creative tribe of Jaclyn from Blog Society. For 5 weeks I'm going to be a student in her Digital Bravery e-course, starting January 25th. This is going to be interesting because it's out of my comfort zone! Read along on Instagram to see how I'm learning to tackle social media and how The Moksi Homes can grow bigger and better. Keep Dreaming Big, right?

For now, I hope you will have an enjoyable New Year's Eve & a Happy & Healthy New Year!

Maureen xx

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Start small, Dream Big

"Doubt kills more dreams than Failure ever will"

This is for my fellow dreamers. For those of you who dream, do, try & inspire. Start small & Dream Big, right?

I just posted this photo on Instagram with these words:

"These photo's I took with a tripod and remote clicker, in a very hectic & sad period and I had no photos. The website would be opening the following day, so I focused and thought how silly this would look, but I didn't care. I doubted myself, the ideas I had, the timing, name it and I used it as a reason to stop. But I didn't Because there is a little voice inside me that is whispering, 'don't give up'…  Now, already 10 months have passed since that day & changes were and are still being made for TMH. Holding on to your dreams is important. So, I hope you have a Great Dream to pursue, keep Believing & don't give up. * Happy Thursday everyone & if you celebrate, Happy Thanksgiving!"

This was one of these moments... The moment where you are supposed to do something totally different - like sporting or getting the groceries - but instead you are sitting behind your computer and typing words you already wanted to share, but never did...  It was a spur of the moment decision to publish it but I'm glad I did. Because I have more ideas, hopes and dreams what I want to do with TMH. It will be baby steps and that is ok.

As long as I stay focused and trust my gut more. You know that gut-feeling, the one that is whispering 'yeah' or 'nah' with each decision you make? Yep, it's there for a reason.

Enjoy your day everyone & Thanks for reading along!

Maureen x

* for daily updates and photo's join me on Instagram, @moksicollective

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Good Housekeeping magazine - Elisabetta's home

Hello everyone!

The second article from The Moksi Homes, is featured in this November issue of Good Housekeeping magazine Middle East, yeah!

If you have joined me on social media (see icons) you probably already know this, but if you didn't, have a look!

This time we visit the modern apartment of Italian/American Elisabetta, who lives in the Dubai Marina area with her husband and two children.

The moment you step inside it feels like Home. She has mixed and matched their international lifestyles into one apartment and you can tell she did it with love. I love the part of the article (see photo below) where she describes how it feels to have all your belongings with you.

Elisabetta works full time and being a working mother who has moved many times, has made her organised in the home. I can learn a thing or two from her, starting with organizing my own bling-bling-and-knick-knacks. Like Elisabetta has done in her bedroom with her make-up, her candles in the living area or simply putting her Japanese tea pots together on the kitchen counter.

Tip: Placing small items together into groups makes it easy on the eye and gives them a place of their own. 

Behind the scene with Elisabetta (sitting on the right) and Lena ter Laare (editor of Good Housekeeping magazine Middle East).

If you don't live in the Middle East area and you can't get a printed issue, you can also read the whole article in the online edition of the magazine, simply download it (for Free!) from the Appstore.  (It will be on TMH website soon under the 'Press' tab).

Maureen x

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