TV is also promoting the idea that there is something shameful about kitchens that lack granite slab countertops, stainless steel appliances and “updated” tile backsplashes.
I’m not sure that the normalization of high-end finishes and general slavery to fashion isn’t more of a near occasion of sin.
What I think is rather sad is that at one time, all those “dated” homes were the height of modernity. I was a young bride/mom during the era of the “ceiling fan” and the “country look” and wooden “potato bins” and stenciling walls, and colors like Williamsburg Blue and Celery Green. I still have a soft spot in my heart for those beautiful stencils!
And what’s even sadder is that one day, probably within ten years, all the designers will be turning up their noses at Joanna and Hillary and Jillian and the Property Brothers and Christina and all their “dated” designs!
Years ago, Doris Janzen Longacre (R.I.P.) wrote a couple of really good books on the “Simple Lifestyle,” which was a trend in the early 1980s. One thing I have always kept close to my heart from her books is her disdain for the concept of “decorating” a home–she believed that our homes should contain objects that have personal meaning and significance for the family members and items that we use in our everyday lives, not just the latest doo-dads from the trendiest designer catalogs.
My home is a “Simple Lifestyle” home–filled with books, musical instruments and music, artwork that we buy from local artists, and ice skating paraphernalia, and games and collections and souvenirs–when people come over, they always say, “This is such a fun house!”
Here’s a link to some info about Ms. Longacre’s wonderful book “Living More With Less,” for anyone who is interested. It’s really good!
https://www.amazon.com/Living-More-Less-LONGACRE-DORIS/dp/0836195213
