Economic Design

Economic Design

Hi Everyone! I know it’s been awhile, but I am making a commitment to post more. So whether you care or not, it doesn’t matter because you’re getting a lot more of moi. I recently read that I should be posting something everyday. I have concerns about that. I want my posts to be well thought out and somewhat cohesive. It’s easy to get carried away and ramble, but mainly I am afraid of some posts sucking. So bear with me as I find my groove, please.

But let’s talk shop. I might be in the minority here, but sometimes I run across a post about a weekend makeover for a room and when all the pricing is computed at the end I think, “How nice that you can drop $1500.00 in any given weekend.” Sure, everything seems relatively inexpensive on its own, but added up it’s more than my left arm. We do ok. We can pay our bills, mortgage, and still have some money to do some fun things on the weekend, but I don’t have money coming out of the wazoo for home renovations. We need to save for each room and really plan what we are going to do with each space.

I also realize that Daniel loves the finished projects, but is always a little hesitant when I first propose an idea. He knows interior design is ultimately what I want to do and invests in me every time I ask him to believe in my ideas. Our kitchen, for instance, was a big leap of faith that I think was one of the best decisions we could have ever made (pics coming soon) and that he loves by the way, but I asked him to spend a shit ton of money on a small room.

One of our biggest points of contention is replacing furniture. We have lived together now for about four years and along the way we have replaced some of the cheaper pieces with a little bit more sophisticated furniture, but it’s a struggle every time. He feels like it’s a waste of money when I know that tastes change, trends change, and I change as a designer. Pinterest does not help.

I worship designers like Emily Henderson who is sponsored by Target, or Amber Interiors who has her own furniture line (that I will probably never be able to afford), and Rebecca Atwood has these beautiful pillows, but at this point in our life spending $200.00 on a pillow to put on the couch is pretty decadent. I have to remember that I am not the same caliber (YET!) as these designers and therefore don’t have the sponsorships, resources, etc. but mainly I just don’t have the money folks. Who is with me? And I hate hate HATE having to buy something cheap for the time being because I know getting rid of that cheap thing will be a potential struggle with the hubs when I really didn’t even love it the first place. Where do we find ourselves when we have a high taste level and a non budget? We have hopes and dreams and tears and we have a lot of planning and saving. So I am going to be real with you guys on this here blog. I am going to try and shoot everything myself. I am not always going to have the perfect light, or the most photogenic photos of our little family or food that we cook, or the most well written posts because I’d like to represent myself as well, myself. I’d like to think I’m not the only one out here and maybe I can make someone feel better for not having it all together or feel bad because they really want that $1,700.00 bathroom vanity, but the budget is looking more like $50. I feel you, girl or guy.

Ok, now this is going to sound completely ridiculous and somewhat counterintuitive because of what I just finished saying!, but I also don’t want this blog to be “fill-in-the-blank on a budget” because like I said I hate buying a “cheap” version of something, unless the real thing is thousands and thousands of dollars and that ain’t happening anytime soon, but I do want to represent a real household in southern California that isn’t one of millionaires. I also will share some DIY stuff, but that is not what this is about either. I’m not churning my own butter or making my own chandeliers, I am just keeping within my budget and trusting pros to do their thing.

 

So there you have it. Hope you enjoy my imperfect little blog as much as I do.