So don’t go running for the hills! As a designer, I always hesitate to put a label on personal style. Is it French Country, Cottage, Farmhouse Style, Industrial or just plain Country. Is it Contemporary or Mid-Century Mod, Old World European or Boho Chic. A person can go crazy just trying to put a label on their style. For now let’s just talk about Country.
Country Style scares most people if they grew up in the 80’s and 90’s. All they see are those horrible borders that marched around their mother’s kitchen and the over all state of too much stuff!
This is not the state of Country in 2017. Country is cleaner, edgier, more selective, and more organic. Country has become a lifestyle. It means come in, be welcome. Be at home. It means you see beauty in things that are simple, unusual, or maybe something that just makes you smile. Treasures gathered on your travels, whether to Europe and beyond, or maybe a yard sale just down the street.
Your home should not only reflect your personality, it should surround you with things that delight your eye, inspire you and make you laugh. Your safe haven.
Personal style is an evolution. We are constantly bombarded with images, and we quickly become overwhelmed because we like so much stuff. After all, it always looks perfect in the magazine! How do you narrow that down to your own personal style?
I recently experienced this in my own home on a new room I was creating. I had some antiques that I will never part with because, they just do it for me. But other then that, I had an opportunity to start fresh. I decided it was time to evaluate where my personal style is now. Many design books, magazines, and Pinterest hits later I discovered “Yep I’m still Country”.
I like the surprise that comes with the opportunity to be country. My home is never stagnant. It is forever evolving as I find an antique or a contemporary piece of art that speaks to me. What’s different? I’m more selective.
In today’s world, we want to live in every inch of our homes and there should not be spaces that are off limits to the child who races his car down the dining room table, or your dog who digs his claws into your leather furniture (nothing a little wax can’t fix).
To my clients, I say, buy what speaks to you. If it’s a truly great piece, what ever it is, it will find it’s way in your home. Look at things in a different way. An antique door as a piece of art. A painted spool bed with a contemporary painting hanging over it. A pair of fancy porcelain lamps on a very rustic table, your grandmother’s sterling silver tea tray resting on an ottoman, with books and a scruffy pot stacked on top of it. From industrial gears and dials to a piece of modern art, they can all be encompassed in the country vernacular. All of these layers give your home a sense of history, your history.
Shelley
