Creative Chat: Danielle Yancey

We featured Danielle Yancey as one of our Holiday Tastemakers in 2016, and our Q&A with her below reminds us how much we adore this beautiful and stylish southerner! Danielle recently began her own lifestyle blog where she dives into all of her favorites – glam home decor, fashion, entertaining, recipes and her pups (Trooper and Sweet Pea pictured below). We hope you enjoy our Creative Chat with Danielle below where she fills us in on what she has been up to during her days of social distancing.

What is currently inspiring you?
Color serves as an inspiration to me and evokes emotion and ideas. Also looking through magazines and scrolling through Pinterest and social media outlets all inspire me.

What is one positive to being at home for you during this time?
Spending this time at home, I have been able to focus on our home “to-do list” and also projects for my new blog. Being at home without distraction has given me a chance to really focus on details. This time has brought so much more organization, a time to declutter and also time to clean our home!

How are you practicing:

Creativity? Bringing creativity to the table can be difficult sometimes. Sometimes it’s best for me to have quiet moments to get the chatter out with no tv, no music and just think and write out what comes to mind. But, sometimes to break up the quiet, music can get the mind thinking in different directions: sometimes classical, praise, sometimes pop. A creative mind can vary at any hour and moment of the day, right? Also, a break from work can stimulate new ideas. When I am running or walking the dogs, I use my phone voice command to write an email to myself with any ideas that pop in my head to work on later.

Kindness (towards yourself and others)? This has been important during this time at home and also on social media. Many people are struggling with anxiety, loss and more right now and trying to keep that in perspective. Checking in on friends and family and taking moments to connect. Giving a little time to myself each week is important as my husband and two dogs have been home for the past couple of months together. A long bath, watching my favorite show, reading a magazine or book, exercising and giving myself moments to just take a mental break.

Discipline (your work, your health, your routines)? I try to start everyday with reading a daily devotional and also a glass of water with apple cider vinegar and lemon. I feed my two dogs in the morning also and go through the house to tidy up (kitchen and dishes, fold sofa blankets, make-up our bed, start laundry). Also, I like to motivate myself with a list of a few projects a day to tackle and accomplish. We walk our dogs everyday and I also like to run, work out or practice yoga. I have also enjoyed trying new recipes and cooking more during this time.

Name one item in your home that is bringing you joy or that has new meaning in this time?
The internet! How would we get by without it during this time! But more seriously, our home has been a haven for us and thankful for it during this “stay at home” time. One item in our home that has brought joy and new meaning is our kitchen table. Bart and I have sat together for meals more at this table during this time than I think we have ever have in this home the past 3 years! It has brought us together more, and we have learned a new pattern. Before, Bart traveled a good bit during the week, so we didn’t eat as many meals together or if he was in town, we were so busy during the day, we would get takeout and eat on tv trays in our back living room. The past couple of months at home has given us more time together at our kitchen table.

We’re seeing a surge in physical correspondence as there is always something special about receiving a hand-written note and people now have more time. If you were to send a physical note to three of your Instagram friends, who would they be?
I love a hand written note. Writing something down on a beautiful card or stationary is something to be cherished. Finding a card or note in my mailbox is special! Three instagram friends I would send a note to right now…..my mother, who I haven’t seen in a couple of months now and she loves to write (she taught 12th grade AP & Honors English), @decochiselko who has beautiful handwriting and also always writes the most amazing notes, and to @emilytdunlap because of a loss recently in her family.

What are three of your favorite items or patterns currently on Dixie’s website?

Beverly Hills Collection by Holly Hollon