how often should I change my decor?
August 28th, 2017 | by Elizabeth | Posted in designit’s deflating right?
as soon as you jump on one design band wagon, spend lots of time (and even more money) redecorating a space in your home…
there it is.
you’re standing in line at the grocery store, and all the home magazines are shouting out that the latest design craze YOU just patterned your new space after… is over.
outdated.
done.
dare they even use the word dated.
what in the world? how can that be?? you just saw it on HGTV last week???
fad vs. trend
this was a comment to a recent blog post- thank you Freda M. for commenting and asking!
Love your posts and advice! I was wondering just how often you should update to keep current with new colors and styles in furniture, accessories, paint, etc.? It can get very expensive if you are constantly having to purchase new items to stay ahead of the game. Thanks so much!
okay y’all…..this is a topic near and dear to me.
and if you’ve ever worked with me you already know this- but it’s always, ALWAYS best to use classic and timeless elements in your home. first you need to understand the difference between a fad and a trend.
a fad is the lateset craze you see everywhere.
scroll upwards a bit to see a recent fad.
chevron was everywhere not too long ago. I mean EVERYwhere.
but the difference between a fad and a trend is time. a fad lasts a couple of years at best; a trend can last closer to a decade.
I bet I could name a few design trends, and you could call out the specific period of time immediately.
avocado green?
blue and mauve?
tuscan kitchen?
bet you got all those didn’t ya?
avocado green? the seventies.
blue and mauve? the eighties. (oh, and lest we forget the ducks)
tuscan kitchens? the nineties.
each of those design themes spanned the better part of those decades and are defined as a trend.
classic and timeless
as in fashion, in the states we take our design cues and trends from Europe. but by the time we have all begun to embrace lastest trend (gray anyone??) they have already moved on in Europe.
now don’t get me wrong…I’m in no way saying that you can’t use these elements in your home decor- but use them judiciously. if you love the latest and greatest pattern, by all means go for it. use it in areas that are not expensive to replace like pillows or a throw on your couch. but don’t wallpaper an entire space with it- in a year or so you will be SO over it, but the expense of getting it installed, and then replacing it, is just too much to justify.
even with trends, it can be easy to go overboard. all white kitchens are currently trending. and they are beautiful. but not too long from now, they will be as easily identifiable as that avocado green fridge. so use those white cabinets in your kitchen, but add another color in the mix to keep it from reading dated in ten years.
always stay as classic as possible with your fixed elements and major purchases in your home.
wood floors.
white cabinets.
neutral colorways.
simple moldings.
straight lines in furniture.
THEN.
then when you have all these elements, bring in YOUR sense of style in the accessories.
bring in that fresh, fun print or on-trend colorway in small doses and specific areas.
let your decor evolve and become collected so it takes on a curated look and it tells a story.
YOUR story.
not Big-Box-A-Rama Design Store’s story.
buying into the latest fad, purchasing the most expensive and new “gotta-have-it cause it’s the lastest-and-greatest” ___________ (faucet, fixure, couch, chair, or flooring pattern, wallpaper, etc.) just because you CAN afford to doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the best investment.
and by the same token, don’t buy something you don’t LOVE just because you think you have to fill the space. I SO wish I could have my younger design years back…when I think of all the pieces I bought just to fill the space, instead of waiting until I could afford a piece of good quality and function, I cringe.
so if I had to answer the title question in short, it would be this:
“how often should I change my decor?”
you should never completely change it- keep your colors neutral, and EDIT those items that tend to trend out, while continually collecting items that are classic and true to your style.
that’s when your home will truly reflect YOU!
I hope that helps!
follow along with me on Facebook and Insta this week- so excited as I leave out tomorrow with my design bestie Kristie, The Decorologist– and head to Minnesota! my very favorite vendor, Cambria, is flying us there to tour their home office and show us how it’s done!! watch for pics because the schedule they sent today looks amazing!
Well, you know I had some classic pieces…still have them too! And I didn’t change my style when I moved to Florida either! I do want to change my paint color now, but my furniture is still here. It was my great aunt Edith who told me almost 40 years ago: “always buy quality…if you can’t buy quality, save until you can.” God Bless Aunt Edith!
Amen!! God bless aunt Edith!!
she knew exactly what to do- and her pieces ARE timeless and are as beautiful today as they were when she purchased them:)