Interior design and your personal style

Mac

I have, for the past 10 years, been much more "into" interior design and decorating than clothes and fashion. Partly, I guess, because I bought and re-did my first home, partly because when I turned 30 it suddenly started feeling as tho' fashion was designed for and marketed to women in their 20s, partly because I put on a lot of weight and I no longer really recognized my own body.

I've subscribed to heaps fo decorating magazines, read design blogs and spent hours in furniture stores while my clothing took a back seat (or, maybe just got banished to the car roof rack?!) : )

There's been a lot of talk in the decorating/ design world of the links between the fashion world and decorating world. Eg. A lot of the punchy graphic feel that have been popular in clothes has appeared in throw pillows and other home fabrics. Many colours that appear on the runways of NYC and Paris appear also in furniture and wall paint. Lots of decorators talk about "dressmaking details" on soft furnishings: ruffles on curtains, buttons on pillows, intricate pleating on sofas...

I rarely hear/ read fashion people describing how much they are impacted by decorating/ design. (Architecture? Sometimes. But decorating? Never).

Anyway, sorry I'm just sort of rambling here. But, I'd love to hear from all of you.
- How do your decorating tastes related to your style tastes?
- Would someone look at your outfit and look at your home and know that they were both reflections of the same person?
- Do you feel more confident in one area or another?
- Do you prefer to shop for one or another?
- Would the 3 words you picked as your style goals be similar/ identical to the 3 words for your decorating goals?

Feel free to post any pictures of your own or links to other photos that you think illustrate your thoughts on this subject.

16 years ago

General

11 replies

Latest reply was from Mac

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

I’m really bad at finding threads on my own forum. We’ve covered this topic a few times. Can anyone find them?

16 years ago

Mac

Veteran

Ohhh, sorry!!! I searched but since I didn't find one, I thought I was being so original. Will search again...

16 years ago

Laura

Active Member

Here are a couple threads:

http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....le-persona

http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....e-of-style

16 years ago

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Here is one!

http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....replies=24

No need to apologize, Mac! It's great to rehash topics. It often puts a new spin on things.

16 years ago

Ana

(website)

Veteran

That's okay, Mac. This is a good thread, since we have so many new people here now, we can always start a new thread and they will have the opportunity to comment, too. I think Angie and others just suggest them in case you want any background information, or could learn something useful from the older threads.

I live in an apartment, so I am quite limited on what I can and can't do pertaining to decorating. I find that I like the same types of color combinations and patterns for decorating and for clothing--bold, graphic. But I guess I want to add an element of "comfort" to my home that I don't necessarily apply to my outfits. Having said that though, I would use the same words to describe my decorating sense and my style.

16 years ago

Ele

(website)

Active Member

Great topic, Mac. I wasn't around when the other threads were started, so I definitely don't mind this coming up again!

I also LOVE interior design. Though my background is in fashion, in the past few years I've become more and more interested in decor. Though I still feel more "confident" in making fashion choices, the tide is turning, and I might even say that now I'm slightly more interested in interiors. Perhaps because I'm still learning about it, and I like a challenge? Lately I've been thinking that my next career move might be in that area- in fact I'm anxiously waiting right now to find out whether I'm going to get onto an upholstery course here in London that I'm on the waitlist for. (I've always wanted to learn, so I'm hoping somebody drops out

I would say that my decorating tastes do align, at least somewhat, with my fashion ones. I like simple, clean, modern lines, with vintage/retro details. In clothing this translates into modern clothes with retro accessories, and in my flat it's modern furniture with vintage touches and art. It's the same with colours- I tend to gravitate to neutrals and earth tones, because even though I'm quite "urban", I'm also a bit of a country girl at heart, and like to "bring the outside in". I have a lot of house plants!

There are a few differences, though. I'm probably more comfortable with using bold colours in my home, rather than ON me. For instance, I have a hot pink throw on my couch that "pops" the whole room, but I'd never wear pink! I also don't own any clothing in bright French blue, but have been loving that colour in decor for a while.

The other big difference is that my clothing sense is just for ME, but I share my flat with my boyfriend, so our home reflects both of us. If I lived by myself my flat might be similar, but perhaps slightly more girly/soft around the edges. He prefers very modern, clean and minimalist design, so we have a mixture. It's working well so far!

16 years ago

Mac

Veteran

oooh, Ele! Thanks for the interesting response. Would love to see some photos either of your place or any pics of interiors that reflect your design sensibility. In fact, it would be really fun to have a thread here where people post a decor photo they like with a photo of them an outfit inspired by it.

The upholstery class sounds just wildly cool; I'm jealous.

Since you worked in fashion, do you find that a lot of the lessons you learned re. proportions, fabrics, colours etc. informed your choices in your home? I bet you have a great eye, honed by your professional background, that helped you do a fab job decorating your place (even though you kindly let your man have input... no such luck for poor Mr. Mac!) : )

16 years ago

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

What fab responses!

I’ve found that GENERALLY (even though there are exceptions), people who are extremely interested in fashion and style have strong aesthetic tastes that extend to everything. I take all aesthetics seriously. Not just in our home and garden, but with the food that I make, the presents that I wrap, the cards that I write and the car that I drive. Even the collars and tags that my doggies wear! My taste preference is the same for everything. If you see the inside of our house, you can trace it back to who Greg and I are in an instant.

16 years ago

Chris

Active Member

It's wonderful when you can find a perfectly style-compatible mate to share a house with. My husband and I have similar interior design esthetics (although when it comes to his own personal style we stop at Cons and jeans) but he is a collector and his business has given him an acquisition bug. I would use some of the same peices but focus on one at a time.

We like mid century furniture and industrial elements. The bedroom is much more retro/vintage and feminine. Also, he collects African art and tribal rugs and it is displayed throughout house (I even have a few masks in kitchen).

Personal style does not reflect that obsession - not too boho except in a few accessories here and there. I do like retro though - especially in handbags and jewelry.

Rambling I know but I have not figured all of this out prior to your question.

My favorite design site is designsponge. I am a major DIY fanatic!

16 years ago

Anonymous

Mac, you have good observations! I am in between jobs now, so my DH and I are living bare-bones in an apartment until we know our direction. it is what we have to do, but it bothers me to no end that our home isn't visually welcoming or structured. I hope that one day we can have a home or apartment we can decorate with clean, warm colors and textures. I like warm and neutral colors but I don't wear them often since I think of my coloring as warm or neutral - depending on the day.

Like Angie, I have a strong preferences for how things look across the board - my handwriting, gift wrapping, how my home is set up from dishes to furniture.

16 years ago

Mac

Veteran

That's funny; I am a total freak when it comes to wrapping presents! In my basement, I have wrapping paper that I've bought on trips around the world: lugged home from Japan, Paris, Milan, Los Angeles and beyond. I'm the weirdo you see at the airport checking in one suitcase and one cardboard roll... filled with wrapping paper. And please don't even get me started on the subject of ribbons!

I agree with Angie that people who are aesthetically attuned tend to carry that into many different areas of their lives. I find with me, though, my house and my gifts are much "better dressed" than I.

Do any of the rest of you find that any of the following are true for you?
- buying for my house feels like an investment and buying wrapping paper feels like a gift of love for the people who receive my presents whereas buying clothes still carries in my head a bit of the negative connotation of words like "vain" and "narcissistic". I am getting over this, but it's still a factor.

- if I buy a painting that fits on my wall, it will fit on that wall next month and next year. I might get bored and want to move it, but it will always fit there. With my weight fluctuations, I never know if what I buy now will fit in 6 months

- shopping for my house or for, say, stationery is just fun. Some things are too expensive, some things don't fit my lifestyle, but I never feel discouraged but rather just inspired if something is out of reach. Clothes shopping, however, can be a brutally unpleasant experience. SO many brands and stores don't carry a size 16 and I often return from a day of clothing shopping feeling discouraged and down on myself.

- when I was 20, I loved fashion and style and many clothes looked good on me but had no money. Now that I finally have enough money that I could dress well but no longer the figure that most brands/ designers create for.

My mother-in-law (another subject it's best not to get me started on!) has said to me on a number of occasions things like "your gifts are so prettily wrapped, your garden is so sweet, but you dress like a slob: I don't get it." Um... thanks. But, I am starting to see what she means; I pay a certain level of aesthetic attention to many areas in my life but I've just given up on my personal style. This site is helping me start to revive my interest in/ love of clothes. Thank you.

16 years ago

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