It's so you!
That's what I heard recently, in spades, as guests entered our home last weekend for my daughter's graduation party. We've steadily transformed our eighties-beige & oak (with a touch of mauve) home into a kaleidescope of color and creativity and modernity. Even those friends who think deep taupe is a radical departure from, say, warm taupe -- not kidding, they are actually Pantone colors -- love the space.
Most interesting are the men. They check out my vibrant-pink ceilinged office, resplendant with bright little boy blue mantel and sea urchin chandelier and they love it. And the den that it flows to that's decprated in complementary shades. Well, aside from the neighbr who asked if my zinc-metallic faux steel wall was an attempt at "early jail."
But more important, I love the house. It functions and is fashionable. And it makes me happy.
That's the lesson here. When crafting your space, put resale aside - unless you're selling within the next year - and just, as the kids would say, "do you."
When asked to describe the our home's style as i recently shopped for a kitchen faucet to replace the one that had chosen to geyser out the evening before the graduation party, I hesitated. The designer at the new upscale shop, Pirch, where I did not purchase a faucet because the average cost offered one too many zero for my taste, took that to mean that I needed suggestions. But I didn't. Our home just doesn't fit into one style bucket. Part transitional, part contemporary, certainly ecclectic, a bit rustic, and a little beachy ... it's just us. And us means pinks and oranges and aquas and unique lighting found on etsy and wacky art and funky finishes and a host of textures.
So have fun. Most of the changes you'll make are easily amended by someone with a different sense of style. Swap out a few fixtures and brush on a different shade of paint and whimsical can easily become traditional with a few hundred dollars and a few days of work.
Be brave. Do you!
