Style Points: Forget Design Perfection, go for Design Reality!

So I'm talking with a friend the other day, who tells me that she wants to live in a home that looks like it came from the pages of "Pick any upscale Design" magazine. Which immediately sparks the question in my mind... "Do you really?" Because, though the homes in those magazines are really beautiful, most aren't a realistic depiction of how people live. There are no cookie crumbs, or dust bunnies, or sneakers left at the door. Homes in magazines are styled professionally - often to the point of sterility. So why bother to live up to that standard unless you want to hire your very own professional stylist?

Anyway - I say save the styling for special events and parties. But allow your design and lifestyle to be centered around a few artistic lifestyling design basics..

• Good bones - When selecting furniture, choose neutral colors, classic lines, then accessorize by season.
• Add color.
• Make it interesting - Some of the most beautiful and comfortable environments have interesting people living there. So don't hide your personality - live with what you love! Hang and display art, artifacts, photos, plates, mosaics, quilts and other eye catching details that make you smile, and other people inquire.
• Make clean up easy - When friends call to say they're in the area, do you have a place to put the every day clutter away? Quickly?? If not, storage bins, mail trays, and other totes are lifesavers. If you want clutter to really disappear, opt for storage with covers that do double duty (think ottomans, side tables and trunks).

Good home design is not about perfection, it's about reality. There is really no reason to go overboard trying to create a picture perfect, idyllic environment. Maybe this is the goal of all magazine stylists and editors. Similar to the way fashion magazines feature beautiful, airbrushed photos. They want you to see yourself in the picture - but maybe they want to keep their advertisers happy too...

Be creative,


Lise
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