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Is your decorating style different from how your parents decorated (what you grew up with, basically)? Why or why not?
My brother and I were talking about this earlier this week. Of the 5 kids, 3 of them decorate very very similarly to how our parents decorated. One is a bit similar but a much more modern/fresh take on it, and the last (me) is pretty radically different.
My parents always had a fairly traditional house. Chippendale dining room, Queen Anne chairs in the living room, kind of Colonial/Williamsburg. Darker, warmer colors.
For those who've seen pics of my house/decorating, my style is best described as a blend of MCM and Hollywood Regency. (I'd do all Hollywood Regency but it's not practical with my lifestyle).
I think I always knew I preferred a different looking environment. I can even remember when my mom let me get new bedding and paint my room when I got to high school, and we wound up in a fight over what I wanted vs. what she thought was appropriate. :roll eyes: She won that fight.
One of the more liberating moments in my life and was when I'd been out of college and in a good job long enough that I was financially ready to actually go pick out new furniture and get exactly what I wanted. (I had some nice quality hand-me-down stuff from relatives that was well made and in good shape, but just wasn't me.)
It was really exciting to get rid of the not-my-style furniture bit by bit, and bring in stuff that was more true to my own aesthetic. And it was pretty hilarious the first time my parents came to visit, after this.
I think my mom likes most of my choices but she seems to like traditional/country more than I do. I don't care for either. I don't know how I would describe my style other than simple and contemporary but not really modern.
My parents also have a style which involves having a lot of crap everywhere. Not messy, but shelves lined with tchotchkes everywhere, whereas I am very fixated on having a lot of space, minimal stuff and everything organized/hidden away as much as possible. I always hated that living in their house growing up and insisted that I would never have tons of stuff everywhere.
What a great topic! Oh - my parents - man, they were really 'happening' in the 70s. Every bit of their house was 100% trendy for the era. We had the floating copper firepit in the huge two story living room, blue shag carpeting, macrame curtains, and harvest gold appliances in the kitchen. My mom even had custom beds made for us kids out of that great new product Formica! Plus, they built a custom house which was three stories tucked in the middle of the woods and was made with so much glass, people used to call it the glass house. Genuinely cutting edge 1970's contemporary. Was even in an issue of Better Homes and Gardens!
Now that they're older, they've got the big historic house, full of antiques, lot of rugs, and cozy furniture, etc, etc. Funny how much their style has changed. I think my style is derivative of my Southern upbringing but not my parents. I adore a cottage/Southern living style. If I could, I would have all white everywhere with great fabrics. I just want that farmhouse in the country (a la Sara Richardson farmhouse) with a big porch. Since I currently live in a very traditional house, I have to curb my love of cottage and be a little more transitional - until I finally get my farmhouse in the country! So, I guess I really don't have my parent's style.
My parents started out with fine antiques from my Dad's mother. As time progressed into the late 50's and 60's.....in came the trendy crap........and my mother with a paint brush. Killed me to see those mahogany bookcases and coffee table painted orange enamel. She further placed floor tile on top of the coffee table!!!!!!!!
Over the decades things did moderate to transitional with some remaining antique pieces.
I'm definitely NOT like my mother.
Dining room is all antique Queen Anne burled walnut. Master bedroom is antique Chippendale mahogany. Living room is dark cherry transitional. Secondary bedrooms are transitional.
I think the only style we had when I was a child and currently is what we could afford.
I am sure nothing we had or used was ever hoity toity enough to be labeled anything but affordable and not broken.
There are some similarities but many differences as well.
My mother grew up very poor, and HER parents had absolutely no sense of style - everything was functional and, well, cheap. So though my mother inherently has pretty good taste, she is insecure about her decorating, so she goes "matchy matchy" with everything. The result is that she and my dad have furnished their home with very traditional, very high quality stuff - all in dark wood, Queen Anne style or Ethan Allen federal style items. Everything is symmetrical. There are no vibrant colors. It's a very formal look.
I like antiques but I go more for an Old World, eclectic look. I mix some funky, transitional items into my decor. And I LOVE rich, vibrant colors! I also really love texture and a sort of "layered plush" so that means hardwood floors, thick pile area rugs, cushy pillows, down filled duvets, interspersed with sparkly carnival glass pieces, wrought iron, leather, wicker, live plants...I love texture and color and light and even scent, and I pay close attention to how those elements weave together in a home.
No, definitely not like my parents. They moved alot because of the military so they didn't keep extras. When they did they were more or less traditional - style but with basic furnishings (no designer stuff) and later on, lots of clutter cropped up.
I love antiques, vintage, original art, and books mixed with a modern look. I prefer to concentrate on quality, style, texture and surfaces, materials, and colors. Plus how things work (or do not work) with the architecture of the house. And I prefer Made in the USA.
I have not purchased anything that "matches" and coordinate things on my own.
One sister has a country look but is trying to bring in a modern look, which is hard to do with her husband's hunting trophies hanging on the walls.
One sister was shabby chic decades before it became trendy.
I don't know what to call my style. I'm all for function and no clutter. I like clean lines but not modern. I don't do matchy matchy but I don't have a bunch pieces making it look busy. I guess it's an eclectic fresh minimalist look. Monotone background with pops of texture, color, art, and interesting pieces. Some antiques but as highlights. It leans towards modern but most of my big furniture pieces are transitional with clean lines.
I love antiques, vintage, original art, and books mixed with a modern look. I prefer to concentrate on quality, style, texture and surfaces, materials, and colors. Plus how things work (or do not work) with the architecture of the house. And I prefer Made in the USA.
I have not purchased anything that "matches" and coordinate things on my own.
And always keeping an eye out for the clutter.
Our styles sound similar. I have no idea what to call it.
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