A Valentine to Home: A February Letter from the Editor

The other night, an overloaded drawer pulled right off the tracks as I was opening it. I told my husband, John, that we had to finally declutter and clean the whole thing before putting it back into place. It was almost midnight, but I knew that if I put it off I wouldn’t get back around to this particular project for months at least. This is our “electronics” drawer, which means it’s half full of old orphan cords. The other half has a vintage TiVo, a Wii, and John’s ancient black CD case. Why does he need a giant case of CDs in the year 2020? I was complaining about this very mystery, when I reached into the front pocket to see what was inside.

Right there, in the midst of our clutter, was a little bit of romance: a movie ticket stub from our first date in June 2009. I quickly felt bad for berating him about the CD case—turns out, it contained a physical reminder of one of my sweetest memories. And now it was even sweeter to imagine him, more than 10 years ago, tucking this ticket away for safekeeping. (How did he know we were going to stay together?!)

Valentine’s Day is almost here, and the season has me thinking about the relationship I have with my home. I love it like it’s a person—sure, its little quirks can be irritating, but overall it’s something really special and the only thing I want to see at the end of a long day. Oftentimes, even those annoying quirks have their upside: Take, for example, the CD Case Discovery in the middle of a broken, cluttered drawer. The 10-plus year relationship I have with my one-bedroom apartment has been one of the most rewarding in my life. And while sometimes I take it for granted or kvetch about what’s not right, it’s perfectly my own and something really special that we’ve created together. 

This month, we’re taking that spirit across the site: celebrating our everyday love for the homes and spaces that we’re fortunate enough to have right now. Not the one of your dreams, or the one you’ll have after saving enough money for a renovation… but the one you come home to each night. Check back for the first piece tomorrow: we’ve put together a list of little ways to show your home you care. We’ll also have stories of apartment/people meet cutes (rom-com style) and lots of love letters to our favorite homes. And finally, our house tour editor Adrienne Breaux is publishing a tour of her own new-ish home in New Orleans, Louisiana. It’a a bit of a tradition: last Valentine’s Day she published a tour of her previous place.

We’re also about to launch one of the Apartment Therapy franchises I love the most: our annual Pattern of the Year. Visit the site on Wednesday for the big reveal—we’ve had so much fun putting this one together and I can’t wait for you to see it.

February will also bring a super-helpful fake plant review (we touched and photographed dozens of options), a bunch of cold weather-friendly how tos, and an entire week dedicated to renovations.

Wishing you all a sweet Valentine’s Day. What do you love the most about your home right now? Please share your answers in the comments!

Warmly,
Laura