I’ve always wanted a sociable home

I have always wanted my home to be a sociable place. A home where the front door (or back door, if you live in Norfolk – everyone goes around the back) is always open, the kettle is always on, and visitors are always welcome. Even in my first starter home, at the start of my career and when I didn’t have two pennies to rub together, I still managed to open the door and welcome in visitors. 

Nothing beats a house full of life

After moving to Norfolk, for the first few Christmases, I would throw open my doors to neighbours and throw a party. I have always loved to absorb the buzz of a house full of life. It felt like a fantastic way to thank my neighbours for all their support and to kick start Christmas. 

Covid-19 has a lot to answer for

I’m blaming Covid-19 lockdowns and hardcore renovation work for the front door closing and guests becoming less welcome. Both lockdowns and renovation work contributed to a change in mindset about how I felt about opening the doors to guests.

I love my husband dearly but….

I love my husband dearly, and I have nothing but praise for him, however he is not a tidy renovator. It’s impossible to keep on top of the mess (what I really mean is his mess). As the renovation years have passed, the mess has mounted. Keeping a couple of rooms tidy has been doable but I’ve found it impossible to keep on top of his working practices. Mark is a doer, not a planner or a tidy-upper. He doesn’t see peripheral jobs, such as tidying up, as the job in hand. I have learnt to work with his ways, but it is not easy.

As my garden transformed into a rubbish tip and rooms filled with tools, dust and building paraphernalia, my willingness to welcome people into my home subsided. In my husband’s defence, he does get a lot done and periodically the mess will become too much for even him to bare, at which point a skip arrives and a big tidy-up happens. 

With the unnerving mental residue of lockdowns and a foreboding feeling about home I closed my doors to physical and virtual visitors. You may have noticed that most of my social media photos are from the archives? Last year I just couldn’t bring myself to take photos. I struggled to see the beauty. 

Time to throw a party

This week I celebrated my fiftieth birthday, and I decided it was time. Time to open the front door and welcome visitors once more. Starre Corner isn’t finished, I still have an outside bathroom accessed by a hole in the wall, my garden looks like a rubbish tip and the garden path still isn’t finished. Most rooms still have stacks of work to do in them, but it is home. 

I have always wanted a sociable home and here it is

It was an amazing party. Starre Corner was once more filled with the loud chatter of friends. It was more than just a birthday party. It was a celebration of how far I’d come and how many friends I have made since moving to Norfolk. This was a major milestone in both my life and my home.  

I lost the love for Starre Corner

Welcoming friends back to Starre Corner has revived my appreciation of how nice Starre Corner already is. There were many oohs and ahs of appreciation which took me by surprise. My friends even loved my half-finished kitchen. I think last year, amid renovating, I’d fallen out of love with Starre Corner. Or, at least, I’d certainly lost my love for it.  

I can do this

So, here we are. It’s February 2023 and I have a renovation to finish and a home to complete. With rekindled passion and a burst of energy, I can do this! 

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