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This Cottage In Arkansas Is The Epitome Of Slow, Intentional Living

Author:

Emma Loewe

February 08, 2024

By Emma Loewe

mbg Contributor

Emma Loewe is the former Sustainability and Health Director at mindbodygreen. She is the author of "Return to Nature: The New Science of How Natural Landscapes Restore Us" and the co-author of "The Spirit Almanac: A Modern Guide To Ancient Self Care." Emma received her B.A. in Environmental Science & Policy with a specialty in environmental communications from Duke University. In addition to penning over 1,500 mbg articles on topics from the water crisis in California to the rise of urban beekeeping, her work has appeared on Grist, Bloomberg News, Bustle, and Forbes.

Image by Addy Murphree

February 08, 2024

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"I've never wanted to live in a home that felt staged. I've always wanted it to feel like someone could walk through mine and learn things about me, my family, and our stories," says Addy Murphree (@addymurphree). Take one peek around Murphree's cottage in southern Arkansas and you'll pick up on these stories in every cozy nook and curated cranny.

We asked Murphree about how she's designed her space to be brimming with love and personality and curated to support a "slow living" mentality. Here are her top takeaways:

floral dining table and cozy living area

Image by Addy Murphree

What are three words that describe your design philosophy at home?

Heirloom, comfortable, and meaningful.

How have you set up your home to help you embrace "slow living"?

My entire life, I have always, always, always been the most devoted homebody. My absolute most treasured moments in life come from day-to-day routines at home: Saturday morning breakfast on TV trays with my husband, reading before bed, writing on the back patio while our ruby cavalier Annie plays in the yard.

That's the heart of slow living to me: enjoying the tiny, monotonous moments in life.

When we moved into this home last winter, we were careful to design each room to best serve us on a daily basis. For example, my beloved library was originally the dining room. And while I am a lover of tablescapes and hosting our loved ones, I knew that room would be such a sweeter home for my morning routine, for my books, for one day soon, a baby girl playing on the carpet. So we put in a built-in bookcase, moved the dining table into the front living room, and now we have a library where we spend most of our time.

Image by Addy Murphree

What noises can be heard in your home? What smells are there?

For noises, because it's a very old home, the walls seem very thin. So throughout the day, I can hear the sounds of the neighborhood: chirping birds, dogs in the backyard, Annie barking back from her perch at the window. At night, it's Norah Jones while I fix dinner, a podcast while I get ready for bed, and the sound of my husband hitting golf balls into the net he has set up in our backyard shed!

As for smells, my dad owns a flower and gift shop just a few blocks from our home. My mom and I are notorious for taking a few candles every time we visit! My house smells of those and fancy laundry detergent.

What's the most sentimental thing in your home, and what's the story behind it?

I would say my favorite sentimental thing in my home is the collection of art from our honeymoon to Newport, Rhode Island. We brought back quite a few pieces, prints, and we even framed the breakfast menu from where we stayed to keep in our kitchen. I always laugh that people on social media probably think we live in a coastal town with all the New England–inspired art we have in our home... Nope, just a landlocked state and a love for the East Coast!

Image by Addy Murphree

Your tablescapes are divine. What are your favorite ways to jazz them up? What else do you like to do at home to prep it for company?

I inherited an obsession with old dishes from my mother and my grandmother… When I first got engaged, one of the things I was most excited for was registering for China and serving dishes! So I love my tablescapes to show those off as best I can.

I also love to play with patterns on a table (with both place settings and with napkins) and add little details like ribbons around wine stems, tiny scattered candles, and flower arrangements in something other than a vase.

Some of my favorite ways to prepare to host at my house are to design little e-vites and send them out, curate a playlist to have on low when everyone arrives, and set up a sweet little drink station—another excuse to use my collection of pitchers!

What's the oldest thing in your home? Newest?

From what we can tell, our tiny craftsman-style cottage was built in or around 1905. And while we updated the important things—heating and air, electricity, cabinetry—we wanted the house itself to stay the same. I will choose to buy an old home over anything else over and over again!

The newest item in our home is rapidly changing, as we're in the last few weeks of preparing a nursery before we bring a baby girl home. As of right now, our latest addition is a wicker lamp from Target we found for our bedroom dresser.

Image by Addy Murphree

Does your home change at all from one season to another? If so, what changes do you make around winter?

It changes mostly design-wise. There are a few things I tweak for each season: porch décor, pillow covers, silk flower arrangements from my dad's shop, things like that.

For the winter, I lean toward incorporating more blues and greens and natural décor into our home. On the porch, we kept our artificial trees from Christmas in the baskets, adding a velvet brown bow to the top. On my bed, I switched out my all-white pillows for an icy blue pair of gingham euro shams. And I've found myself collecting more plants to scatter throughout the house too!

How does your home promote your health and well-being?

We always say that this little house feels like an escape into everything we've loved in our lives: each other, our family, our favorite books, a comforting kitchen, reminders of time spent in Rhode Island, a cozy bedroom.

This little house feels like an escape into everything we’ve loved in our lives

Home has always been an escape for us— somewhere to feel unequivocally comfortable in who we are. So in that way, our home is where my soul feels most healthy.

What does the word "home" mean to you?

Home means being where I most love to be, with the people I most love to be with. And thankfully, my little cottage in my hometown, with my husband and my dog and a baby girl on the way, is just that!