I woke up this morning at a horrifying 5AM. I had just had a dream that my mother-in-law was telling me that I was so difficult to buy gifts for, that The Captain's previous girlfriend was so much easier. She could just purchase anything, and the previous girlfriend AS, could do wonders with it. "She is eccentric, and can work miracles with books, and odds and ends," my mother-in-law in my dream told me, The Captain in my dream nodding in agreement.Poof!
Suddenly I'm in AS's home. It was an early 1900's home. And it looked something like this:
Feeling defensive, I argued that it was cluttered, and lacked warmth and direction. That it was not a home, etc etc. I woke up feeling...lousy. And I worried about how The Captain felt about my style.In my previous life, I had a great sense of style. I had people asking if I could design a room for them, or complementing my decorating. In my current life, I just make do. It all looks fine. It is not fancy. We don't spend much extra to spruce it up or decorate. I'm not sure if it's kids or money, or just outside stress... but I don't care like I used to. Part of me misses it, part of me just wants to have a day off from laundry.
This morning, after I was awake, and calmed down from my dream, I asked The Captain if he liked my style. (You know, to confirm that I was after all his dream girl with the most captivating look and fashion sense and decorating sense of anyone he's ever met.) And he told me what I know to be true. We are at a time in our lives when we focus on family and kids, and keeping cars running. We don't have time or resources to focus on expressing personal style.
And then he described his dream living room:
Don't forget a flat screen TV.And I described mine:
or something like it.
I realized compromise would be in order, and really, it's fine to have a makeshift living room that we're both "fine" with. There's so much more to life than looks. However, if you're comfortable, it can do good things for your spirit. And we are. There is love in our home. And that's my favorite style, in all the world.
Melissa, I love your blog posts and your style--you are so classical and beautiful! I used to blog all the time and would love to do so again! How do you do this? Does it cost anything?
ReplyDeleteMy style is definitely bright, but earthy. I love natural colors, like cream, moss green, chocolate brown, navy blue--butter yellow is also a favorite. I love sunflowers and pottery, as well as rustic stuff like branches and fish/hunting...it's a good mix w/hubby!
Well, there's SOME common ground between those two rooms--clean lines at least! :) I've longed to decorate for the longest time. I think I'd have a knack for it, if I had the budget for it. But all things in their time.
ReplyDeleteI love what you said at the end and it made me think of a home we visited a few years ago. The couple raised seven children on one school teacher's salary. They built their home on principles of hard work, education, faith and love. Even now that the kids are mostly grown, their home is pretty much devoid of decor, and the furniture is still well-worn hand-me-downs (kids in school and on missions is expensive). But when you walk into their home, you're just enveloped with such a feeling of peace and love. I remind myself of that experience every time I lament my fiscal limitations on decorating.
As for my style, it lies somewhere between contemporary and traditional and involves plenty of natural light. And comfortable but not bulky furniture. And books. :)
I love your last line. Love truly is the best style of all. Thank you for your words of wisdom.
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