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Style Tips: Inspired By Life

by | Mar 29, 2008 | Authentic Living, Decorating Inspiration, Details, Style Tips

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Style Tips: Inspired By Life

Not too long ago, I was honored to be interviewed by The Home Office Organizer blog . In the interview I shared how the name “The Inspired Room” came about (Newsflash, The Inspired Room is now a registered trademark and LLC!) tips for personalizing a home office, who inspires me, along with a few other tidbits. I thought I’d share a few of the tips on finding your authentic style! For the rest of the interview, click here. Here is an excerpt from my interview:

You are a “Style Coach.” What are your top 5 tips for someone who wants to create rooms inspired by their life?

In no particular order, here are some tips for getting started on finding your own personal style:

1) Spend time living the life you want and gathering mementos along the way. Your home will come together as you experience life. It shouldn’t be an overnight process!

2) Create rooms and spaces to inspire and accommodate your life. Evaluate what kind of life you really want to live and set things up to make that life possible and enjoyable. Do you love to read? Have friends over for movies? Cook? Write? Have the neighborhood kids over to play with your children? Do you have hobbies? Do you host large parties? Make sure your house is set up to accommodate you—homes should never keep us from fully experiencing what we love to do. Nor should they be staged for someone else’s idea of a good life. Your home should make sense for you.

3) Eliminate things that are unattractive or don’t stir your senses in some way. Avoid random decorations. Most everything should have a story that makes you happy or reminds you of a special time or person. Or at least things should be attractive and facilitate your life in some way. If it is useless or ugly, get rid of it.

4) Make ordinary things beautiful. Most of our life is spent doing ordinary things. Those ordinary activities should inspire our homes even more than the few highlights of our life. Everyday we spend time eating, cleaning, bathing, sleeping, working. Take the time to make these every day experiences more organized and pleasing to your eye.

5) Don’t be afraid to ask for help in creating a beautiful home, but be careful who you ask. Friends mean well but can confuse their personal taste with what is appropriate for you. Friends don’t have to love your home. Designers can be a wealth of information and ideas but can also lead you to spend money you don’t need to spend and end up creating a home that reflects their style rather than yours. Find someone who understands what you are trying to achieve and can use what you already have and love to create something authentic to you.

Not everyone is naturally inclined to be able to arrange things in attractive ways — we all have our strengths. Don’t feel badly if you need some help in organizing or pulling your belongings together so that you can truly love your home.

For more of my interview on The Home Office Organizer blog, click here!

photo: House Beautiful online

10 Comments

  1. Melissa

    Sorry ladies, I had the comments off earlier, I have put them back on for you. Here are your comments…

    —————–

    URL : http://ramblingsfromanenglishgarden.blogspot.com
    Whois : http://ws.arin.net/cgi-bin/whois.pl?queryinput=82.7.49.5
    Comment:
    This was a fun tour. I tried to leave a comment on your next post to say that I enjoyed your inteview but it said “comments off”

    ————————

    Mari-Nanci | [email protected] | smilnsigh.blogspot.com | IP: 68.172.92.94

    You turned off comments, on your next entry. -heh- Now you don’t think you can stop an ol’ gal like me from commenting on it, do you? >,-)

    I wanted to say that YOU, I’d ask to help me with decorating. You and Candice Olson {’Divine Design’ on tv} and that’s all. I have this “thing” about not wanting someone to come in and advise me. Although I know perfectly well that I could use it! My husband wants to. But I always balk.

    But you and Candice ~ you two could come in and advise away and I’d not have a “thing” about it. :-))))

    Mari-Nanci

    Reply
  2. Vee~A Haven for Vee

    I’ve got to bookmark this one because it is one excellent guideline. One could go right through a home and tick down through the list so easily.

    Reply
  3. Anne

    Hi Melissa….what really good advice….I am decorating my home room by room, starting upstairs….I am going to print this little post off, if thats ok..and look at it each time I get stuck. xox

    Reply
  4. mary

    Buona settimana Melissa
    Mary

    Reply
  5. Things that inspire

    What a nice post to read while visiting your blog this evening! Great timing too. On Friday, I was watching TV and looking at the hideous VHS/CD/DVD rack to the right of my entertainment center/armoire. It has never matched anything, looks very ‘post college’, and never stays tidy. I have decided that having clutter and spaces that do not stay tidy is not the way I want to live my life. So, I cleared out a drawer in a French chest in the same room, and put all of the DVDs in there, and a few of the VHS tapes that the kids still watch. I threw out a bunch of VHS tapes they no longer watch. I packed away the CDs (which are now all on the i-pods), and put away the DVD/CD rack (I will throw it out when my husband is not watching).

    I put a lovely Asian chest in the spot, with some art and design books, topped with a lamp. It is so near and tidy and attractive now! I am making progress in many little ways, which are really adding up.

    Lovely post!

    Reply
  6. Penny

    Hi Melissa,
    Great post…and great advice! I clicked and read the whole interview. It was great! Very informative and interesting.
    Hugs,
    Penny

    Reply
  7. Beverly

    You are such an inspiration. A home should be our haven of bliss.

    Reply
  8. anindiansummer

    Your interview was such a good read Melissa! It feels so good to know more about our e-friends, and specially when I kept nodding my head in affirmative as I read through the interview :)

    Hugs
    Bhavna

    Reply
  9. M&Co

    Great guidlines!

    Reply
  10. Lynda

    Great advice, Melissa! I popped over to Brandie’s blog to read the rest of your interview and loved it! You need to have your own show on HGTV …. seriously!! We need more people out there like *you*!
    xo,
    Lynda

    Reply

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