What I Learned from Reading Home Design Magazines
Whenever I look at home decor magazines and all of the glamorous rooms designed by interior designers, I can never help but wonder, and just how much did it cost to do all of that? We expect things like home renovations to cost a large amount of money, and those are the types of things for which people budget over the years. The ancient bathroom or kitchen needs updated, for instance. Or, someone buys a fixer-upper house for a cheap price with the intention to renovate. Interior design projects, however, take on a whole new level (and a whole new clientele). That is an art above and beyond what most people can reasonably afford without sacrificing something massive. The wall materials or coverings, the trim detail, the furniture, the art, the curtains. And all of this being of the highest quality and craftsmanship, so quite expensive.
I sometimes think to myself, who am I to write about making a home when I don’t even know what many decor terms mean? When my own home is never clean anymore (and for good reason – a toddler)? When I don’t own (or even like, honestly) curtains? But then I remember: interior design publications are not the ultimate authority on how a home should look or feel. And there are many things designers swear by and with which I disagree. And it isn’t about perfection that only a seemingly endless budget can buy. It’s about crafting together your own version of delight, piece by piece, through small decor improvements.
Space Improvement vs. Space Perfection
This blog isn’t called Space Perfection, and for good reason. It is called Space Improvement because, in reality, who has time to perfect their home in any reasonable timeframe? Yes, perhaps if I remain in the same home until I am 70 I will have, by then, perfected my home space. But it just isn’t practical to expect to do so any sooner because we spend our time living our lives. And the best we can do is to improve what we can while we are living, not to perfect things instead of living. Not to mention the way we prioritize what money we have. If I had an option to either hire a designer to revamp my entire home or go on an awesome vacation every year for thirty years, I’d choose the latter. Not everyone will have the same priorities (or budget). It helps to clarify these things.
Our Latest Visual Improvements
Just when I begin to lament about how dull or uninspiring or bland a room is in the house, I take action to switch something up. For me, small decor improvements are as simple as buying some small storage bins to set on top of the dresser in my bedroom in order to hide a couple of eyesores.
The small black digital alarm clock and cardboard tissue box are now cleverly disguised in these pleasant peach bins. I wouldn’t have guessed that such a small visual improvement would boost my morale about looking around my bedroom.
In another example, I moved an airplane plant from the sunroom to our living room now that I know my son will not try to topple the whole thing over. When I first baby-proofed the house, I had to move almost all of the plants out of the living room into the sunroom (which we sectioned off with a baby gate). This drastically reduced the visual appeal of our main living area. Now that I added back one of the plants, the space already looks more appealing.
It’s amazing how such small decor improvements improve a space. The newness excites us and piques our interest. The change relives us, as we were probably tired of how the spot looked before. And we can’t help but feel a happy pride at being our own crafty designer (for free!).
Tips from the Pro Designers to Create a Home That Brings You Joy
Just because I disagree with many popular interior design aesthetics doesn’t mean I don’t truly like some of the looks that the industry promotes. And personal taste aside, there are plenty of valuable insights we can gain from professional designers.
In a Veranda tell-all article, designer Timothy Corrigan shares an important fact:
‘No matter how beautifully it might be decorated, if a room isn’t comfortable, it’s not really successful. And comfort is more than just the way a chair feels when you sit down. It’s also a state of mind, the assurance that you can really be yourself in a space and do as you please.’
Timothy Corrigan
Designer Bunny Williams shares a few gems in an interview with Veranda’s Editor-in-Chief Steele Thomas Marcoux:
‘When you create a home, you want to create something where every room brings you joy. … Each room has a function, and I use them at different times. You often move to where the light is. Light is so important to how a room is experienced.’
Bunny Williams
She also explains,
‘Interior design is a way of working with people to help them figure out how to live in their houses.’
Bunny Williams
I cannot agree more.
The Challenge: Spruce Up Your Space
How do you best live in your house? What do you do in each space and how can you improve it, even in micro-steps, to best serve and inspire you? I challenge you, this week, to make one improvement to your home – no matter how small. It could be as simple as sticking a bouquet of fresh flowers somewhere prevalent where you see it all the time. You may switch around some wall art or rearrange a couple of small pieces of furniture. Everyone’s take will look different, and that’s what’s so fun about it. Take this step and then let me know what you did and how your small decor improvements impacted you. You can always change things back at whatever point if you please; the point is to experiment and have fun!
Cheers, and happy decorating!