From Ordinary to Extraordinary: Enhancing Your Home (and Windows) in 2025

By Christina Quek-Slipacoff

“Your home—exactly as it is—can be transformed into a beautiful, functional, and joyful place. A place that feels like you. A space you and those within it truly want to live in, enjoy, and simply be.”-Christina Quek

Not all of us live in sprawling new builds with shiny finishes and endless square footage—in fact, most of us are in everyday homes that reflect real life. These are the spaces where we cook meals, host friends, unwind after long days, and make lasting memories. In 2025, the trend is shifting toward embracing and celebrating these cozy, lived-in homes—the ones that are far from perfect but full of character and comfort—the kind of spaces where most of us truly live.

Embracing the Beauty of Everyday Homes

Scrolling through social media, it’s easy to be mesmerized by picture-perfect, magazine-worthy spaces. But the reality? Most of us have homes that are far from “brand new,” and those spaces deserve just as much love, attention, and appreciation. Your home—exactly as it is—can be transformed into a beautiful, functional, and joyful place. A place that feels like you. A space you and those within it truly want to live in, enjoy, and simply be.

Rediscover Your Home’s Potential: A Year of Transformation

The good news? You don’t need to start from scratch or embark on a costly renovation to create a space you enjoy and want to be in.In 2025, I’m refreshing my home with a focused, room-by-room approach—taking on intentional, simple projects that will transform my home into a beautifully designed space. 

After living in my home for almost four years, I realized I was starting to overlook its potential. If you have a busy family, you’ll know that life gets busy, to-do lists grow longer, piles start growing, and dream projects get pushed aside. But for me, 2025 is the year of rediscovering the beauty in the spaces I already have and transforming them create the home I’ve always dreamed of, bit by bit.

Join me this year and let’s embrace the homes we already have—making them beautiful, livable, and uniquely ours. Your dream home isn’t about perfection; it’s about creating a space that feels like home.

Simple Principles for Updating Your Space

You likely already have a beautiful foundation—you just need to approach it with fresh eyes. As an interior decorator, I like to focus on a few simple principles when updating a space:

1. Edit and Declutter – Clear out items you no longer use or need, and reorganize the essentials for better function.

2. Curate Thoughtfully – Introduce items that combine purpose, functionality, and beauty.

3. Cultivate Cohesion – Create a flow from space to space, so your home feels harmonious and intentional.

Window Treatments: The Game-Changer

As I plan each room, one element is quickly rising to the top of my priority list: window coverings.

When we first moved in, I chose simple white canvas curtains—affordable, practical, and sufficient for privacy. But in hindsight, they were far from ideal. The fabric was flat and lacked texture or warmth, they didn’t fit the windows properly, and some rooms had no window treatments at all, leaving them feeling bare and cold.

As an interior decorator, I know window coverings can do so much more than just cover a window. It’s a small change that can have big results—hitting all three key principles in one go. First, they edit and declutter by providing properly fitted treatments that create a clean, polished look, eliminating the need for mismatched or ill-fitting curtains that can make a room feel cluttered. Second, they curate thoughtfully, combining both beauty and functionality by adding warmth, texture, and sophistication while also offering essential benefits like light control, privacy, and insulation. And third, they cultivate cohesion, seamlessly tying the room together and creating a harmonious flow throughout the home. The right window treatments aren’t just a finishing touch—they bring privacy, enhance style, and boost functionality with a single upgrade, transforming your space from merely furnished to fully designed.

By focusing on small, intentional updates like these, you’ll start to see your space evolve into something truly special.

Ready to transform your space? 

Join me, as I embrace the charm of regular cozy homes in 2025 and turning them into the beautiful, functional spaces, we want to live in. Start small, stay intentional, and watch your home come to life—one room, and one window, at a time.

Room Spotlight: The Kitchen

Kitchens can be tricky to upgrade, especially when a full renovation or replacing cabinetry isn’t on the table. Without those major changes, it may feel like your options are limited. Hard surfaces like countertops, appliances, and cabinets can make the space feel cold, and decorative opportunities often seem confined to lighting fixtures or island seating. However, there are plenty of ways to refresh your kitchen and inject warmth and personality without tearing everything out.

For me, the white kitchen dream had been ingrained for years—likely because I grew up in an older Victorian home with cabinets that were far from white. But now, with so much open white space in my current home, I was craving texture, softness, and warmth.

The most simple and impactful change I made? Introducing a Roman shade over our kitchen sink window.

I chose the Ian Linen Day-Night Roman Shade from TWOPAGES, and here’s why it completely transformed my kitchen:

1. Beautiful Color Options – The shade comes in six stunning colors, from airy whites and neutrals to deeper tones. I chose Steel, a rich greenish-gray, to add drama and warmth to the space.

2. Dual Functionality – The top layer gives the window a lightweight, organic feel, while the privacy liner filters light beautifully and adds a sense of security—essential when you live on a busy street like I do.

3. Soft, Layered Look – When both layers are visible, the shade creates a soft, textured effect that balances the harder surfaces in the kitchen.

4. Easy Installation – The shades were so simple to install that I tackled it myself—no handyman or husband required!

The difference was immediate. The Ian Linen Day-Night Roman Shade brought warmth and character to my kitchen without requiring a major investment or overhaul. It’s proof that small, intentional changes can make a huge impact.

 *All Photographs Credit: Christina Quek

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