The introduction to Christopher Lowell's You Can Do It! Small Spaces has quite a lot to say about eliminating clutter. Some samples:
I'm all for decorative storage, but by making containers attractive, it gives us an excuse to hold onto everything we have ever owned, whether we need it or not.
Look at every inch of your home and ask yourself, "Is that space there, where the file cabinet is, the one I haven't opened in two years, better used for something else?"
If certain objects in your home have ceased to have meaning for you, then they are just clutter, room dandruff that you accommodate rather than icons that inspire you.
Our homes are not there to preserve what we were; instead, they should become incubators for who we want to be.
2 comments:
I must admit I'm surprised to read your quotes from Christopher Lowell.
I haven't read his book, but I certainly agree with these comments about eliminating clutter.
But whenever I've seen his television show, I'm always taken aback by the sheer quantity of stuff he packs into the rooms he decorates, in addition to his frequent use of a plethora of colors and patterns.
How many "icons that inspire you" and how much visual stimulation does a person need?
I wonder if he's changing his decorating style to something simpler.
Cynthia, looking at the rest of his book, beyond the introduction, I'd say he still packs a LOT of stuff into the rooms he decorates. They look lovely in their own way, but they are certainly not to my own personal taste.
By the way, I've already freecycled the book; it got picked up this morning!
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