Listen, I understand the hype behind the “new year, new you” mindset, but it’s just not for me — especially when it comes to my home. It feels like you can’t open Instagram or TikTok without seeing a video touting all the ways you should improve your home so you can start the new year on the right foot. Redesign your living room, choose a new living room paint color, buy that side table. For me, though, it just feels like a lot of pressure to put on one month — a month that comes around every single year, might I add — to somehow be a catalyst for overnight change in your life, routines, and decor. 

While there’s nothing wrong with wanting to switch things up, these tips are frequently shared in a way that glorifies change for change’s sake. And simply put: I like my apartment the way it is. I spent time and money filling it with items I love that fit the space perfectly, which is no easy feat. So why would I want to redecorate just because the calendar year has changed? There are plenty of free ways to make your space feel refreshed; I just don’t give into the pressure to run out and try them every single year. 

I can’t imagine swapping out the artwork in the gallery wall I spent years putting together, trading my beloved balcony daybed for a pair of trendier chairs, or restyling my books so they’re no longer arranged by color (I know, I know … many of you will hate me for that one, but I just love the way it looks, and rest assured, I’ve read them all). I like what I like, and that’s why my apartment is decorated the way it is — to showcase my personal style. So why would I change it up just because it’s January?

In fact, I’m so dedicated to my decor that most of my furniture has traveled with me from home to home for years. My current Midwestern apartment houses the same TV console, dining room table and chairs, side table, desk, velvet chair, and artwork I had on display in my last apartment in New York. They instantly made this place feel like home after moving hundreds of miles from an apartment I knew and loved.

Now, my apartment is my happy place — even when it gets messy — and I find so much comfort in its familiarity. When times get tough or life feels chaotic, I know my home will be there to serve as an escape from the world — an escape filled with my favorite things and decor I truly love. 

That’s not to say I never make little changes to my interiors (I write about home for a living, after all). I just bring in new things when I find something that truly brings me joy on a timeline that works for me. And don’t worry — I’m not stubborn enough to keep things I love if they break or need to be replaced. There’s a big difference in needing to switch things up and doing it just because the internet tells you to. 

I don’t begrudge anyone who does refresh their interiors every new year. It’s a refreshing, creative way to reinvigorate your surroundings and feel like there’s a tangible change for a new year. That’s the beautiful thing about home, isn’t it? How you live in and decorate your space is entirely up to you. So if redecorating come January is what makes you happy, all the more power to you. I’ll just be here, on my beloved years-old sofa in a living room I haven’t rearranged since the day I moved in.