• painting our bed: risk
  • buying a rug online: risk
  • hanging sheets on our windows: risk
  • buying a chair from the thrift store without knowing where it will go: risk
  • hanging a salvaged oversized lantern: risk
  • painting the walls in a rental: risk
  • Having a room we love to be in: priceless

Risk.  It’s an art.

Every thing important to me was a risk.

And also, every thing in my home that I love was a risk. So many of us are afraid of making a mistake.  Afraid we’ll do it wrong.  Just Afraid.  It’s normal to be afraid, it’s natural to want to avoid risk.

And then there is our home.  To me, home is supposed to be the safest place on earth.  As mothers and wives we like to create that safe place for our family.  But, I’ve noticed that we don’t see our home as a safe place for us.

Yesterday at (in)courage we talked about making a gallery wall, and I noticed a little trend of comments about not having the courage to do a gallery wall.  So I asked what the issue was. Tina was kind enough to respond:

I love Tina’s honesty, don’t you just adore her? Part of me wants to scream, “It’s a ding a ling nail hole in the wall, is there anything in life LESS risky than creating a 1 millimeter hole in a wall that can be filled with your finger and some putty in 2 seconds?!”  If putting a hole in the wall equates a risk, then I cannot imagine how hard is to get in the car and drive around town, that’s much riskier.  But part of me also understands the hesitancy to take a first step into anything that we are unsure about.  I’m big stuff when it comes to making nail holes, but get me in the makeup department and I feel like a seven year old.  A seven year old boy. I have no idea what I’m doing when it comes to cosmetics.  To me, cosmetics are risky so I avoid them, yet somehow I still find the courage to ride around in a car.


I was a nervous wreck the day I bought my sailfish but it was SO worth the risk:

The Secret: start with small risks and move on to larger ones

Why don’t we see decorating our home {or buying new makeup} as risk taking practice?  If we can’t take a risk in something as minuscule as choosing a fabric or paint or lipstick or a piece of art, what will happen when the opportunities for bigger risks with real rewards come along?

Riskless is hardly worth your effort.

Seth Godin

I loved what Lauren from Pure Style Home has to say about risk. I can’t say it any better so I’m going to quote her a little, but it’s worth it to read her entire article called Get Excited.

Don’t think of being nervous about a decision as a sign of making a wrong choice, instead consider it an opportunity to grow and learn.  We learn from mistakes as much as we learn from right choices.  Annie tells a great story about deciding to risk, here’s just a tiny part::

It can start with a nail hole and a tube of lipstick.