What makes a house a home ?

I love having things around me which remind me of my old homeland England things which make me feel at home after years of living in another Country it never feels like home. I love having my adult children and my Grandchildren come to visit which isnt as often these days they are all growing up to fast. Home is where the heart is

Agreeing with you again Witzend.People often fall asleep in our house.Hope it isn't from boredom .It is also nice to let the children do what they like within reason without worrying about the mess.

Brilliant Witzend, I’m with you on this.

Well, I know what doesn't make it cosy or welcoming, and that the sort of people who are over-houseproud, insist on shoes off at the door, fussing about crumbs, furnishings more important than people, etc.
I love it when guests feel sufficiently comfortable to kick their shoes off and put their feet up on the sofa, or fall asleep on it. As does happen quite often in our house.

Schnackie I think you have hit the nail on the head in describing a home. It is a place that, with some considerable effort, you have made your own. It is a haven and a refuge, a place that provides you with shelter and comfort. Dressed up in many shapes and forms that is the essence of what makes a house a home. I do hope you enjoy your home for many years to come. ?

Inside a building I’m not sure I can say, it takes time and love then one day it’s home. Outside I know it’s creating a garden, once I have planted something I will love to see grow and flourish I’m home.

Interestingly some countries - among them France, Spain and Italy - do not differentiate between 'house' and 'home'. This is sad because, for me, a home is much more than a house. A true home is warm, welcoming, cosy, secure, a haven.

Cleanliness, tidiness, elegance. A refuge from the outside. A place where family feel welcome, loved and safe. A garden, for certain.

People make a home, but mine also has lots of things inherited from family and remind me of their previous owners all the time.

The owner/renter puts something of themselves into the property.

Yes Bluebelle you are right I am lucky to have a family to sit round the table and eat with, however they can only travel up to us a few times a year so these occasions are special.

We do visit them more but it isn’t quite the same in their house as ours.

We have a Green directly in front of our house, which the GSs think is part of our garden ?and when they are chasing around playing footie with the local children I feel blessed. It’s where their dad used to play all those years ago.

Nice post Willow500 and spot on too, a home is somewhere you enjoy returning to.

It is something that is very difficult to put a finger on - a mix of possessions and people. I have been in houses/homes that are just not homey, even though those living in it are happy and content.

I think it may have something to do with how much the interior is a reflection of the family or how much it is a reflection of what someone thinks is the last fashion in decor.

My DM had the knack of making anywhere a home. My DF was in the forces and we were always on the move. Over 20 years about as many furnished hirings and furnished army quarters. Yet within days of moving into each one, my DM had made it clearly our home, no matter how dreadful the decor or ugly the furniture. She was so good at it other people used to comment on it.

The current estate agents/house sellers trend, at least, with more expensive homes, is to depersonalise them, by removing possessions and getting stylists in before the photos.

My neighbour's friendly comfortable homely18th century farmhouse, in the estate agents details, looks most off putting, more like a hotel than a home, the living room has pale carpets and a settee in it - and nothing else. Everything else has been cleared away and the bedroom seems to have nothing but a bed made up with the classic hotel throw across it.

Where my DH is, that is home to me.

Privet hedge!

Not easy, seacliff. There's a big priver hedge at the end of the garden and beyond that there's a stream over which some neighbours have created a little bridge. Badgers have infiltrated so I don't think it would be a challenge to an enterprising cat.

Anno, do you have a garden you could make cat proof? Several people I know have put curved inwards metal pieces around fence or wall, with metal mesh between. A bit of expense, but then peace of mind.

However lovely and swish another place is, it won't have the same feel as home. Being in "my place" with my things all around, including my moggies, means I feel comfortable, and able to relax.

For me, a house is merely a roof and a collection of walls, doors and windows etc. A home is when it is inhabited by good people, (and their pets?) and filled with all the possessions they love!

I've been in this house for 18 years this month and what I really need to make it a home is a cat. But the road outside would be lethal to cats, so I have never risked it.

Definitely a cat or cats. I can't imagine a real home without at least one.
Then there's light, warmth, comfortable chairs and fresh flowers, the aroma of fresh coffee and the sensation of peace and contentment you get when returning from somewhere else, even if it was just a trip to the supermarket.
For me, it's also a welcoming hug from OH and knowing where everything is.

A cat, or three.

It is simply the people in it. Everything else is secondary.

People and memories make a home. Where I live contains neither, so it is just a house.

Schnackie - I'm glad you eventually felt happier in yourself, and started enjoying your home, I'm sure it can take a long time to get to that stage. I hope the same happens for you too in time Annie.