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Monday, January 17, 2011

The Trend Train!!!

Throughout this post I will be showing images of trends some current, some from the past, and some that are no longer a trend because they have stood the test of time and have become classics in their own right.

I will let you all be the judge on which ones you feel belong in which category. The dialogue that you are about to read will not always have to do with the image you will be viewing. I will be placing them at random in most cases. 

Are you ready to ride the, “Trend Train?" 
Trends come and go, as we all know only too well.

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Being in the design business for thirty some-odd years I have seen many come and go and then come back again.



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I think we all realize by now that we as consumers need something that feels new and fresh, and inspires us from time to time. I know I do!!



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The retailers do a great job with their advertisements making us feel that if we don’t purchase certain items our life will be incomplete.


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I spent a great deal of time with my clients talking with them to really get a pulse on what they truly loved, not what they thought they loved because of the current trend.



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Case in point! Remember when the red dining room was the newest kid on the block?  Everyone wanted a red room, or so they thought.

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The brave would paint the whole room red, and the more timid would do just one wall.


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Those that were true red lovers kept the rich color up for about 5 years and some still  have it, and it will always work in their lives and in their homes because they truly love it. Those that were jumping on the “Trend Train” lost interest in about a year and a half and finally after two years painted over the rich color.



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As long as we have homes and homeowners to purchase, we will have trends. That is why it is so important to KNOW what you love. I developed a couple of exercises that would show me clues to what the homeowner would love for years to come.



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If you click HERE You can go to the post I wrote called,
 “An Informative Vignette.”

Another post you might be interested in is:


Ashley Goforth designs (510x600) 

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I like to add some trend pieces to my current base, but I try to never change the feel of my home.

I think it is so important how your home “FEELS.”

We have all been in beautifully appointed houses, but they lack a feeling or a personality. That is usually because the homeowner decorated it according to the trends not their own personal taste.



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I use to say, “I have been in many houses, but very few homes.” The reason I said that is because so many never decorate their homes in their own taste, it is based on what someone has told them to do or actually done for them. There is nothing  about the house that represents the homeowner.


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I have known many homeowners that never get in touch with what they truly love. It is a bit sad to me, because I view my home as my family’s respite from all the craziness the world has to offer.


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Sometimes our homes will be on Trend just because of what goes around comes around. For those that stay true to what they love, even after the “Trend Train” moves on, will stay grounded  and keep it for many years to come.



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So, where do you fall? Do you like to ride the “Trend Train” because, let’s face it, it is new and exciting, or do you stick with what you love ?


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I hope you realize I will find a trend or two to add to my own mix, but it is only an addition too the already established foundation of my home.

 I think trends are a good thing. They keep us on our toes and also make us step back and take a look at our interiors more subjectively.

 Sometimes they can be the impetus to moving forward. I just don’t like when a trend is what defines our style or our home.


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After reading  the comments on my post  “The Demise of the Duvet?” I came to realize the majority of my readers were very solid in their love of the duvet and could care less where the “Trend Train” was headed.  I loved that!!


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All this dialogue to open another question to you all. I am noticing more and more a trend that is revisiting us again, wallpaper!!

I will let you know up front, I love wallpaper and always have, when done right. I will not take offense to any of you that do not subscribe to the same feeling. After all design is subjective and always will be. I just really want to know how you all feel.

I will be doing some up-coming post on wallpaper so stay tuned for that.
How do you feel about Wallpaper as a current Trend?

“Enjoy the Process” Of:

Finding some trends that you love, and still keeping your home true to your own personality.

Kathysue

30 comments:

Anonymous said...

Dear Kathysue...you caught me at 6AM on my way to throw something into the crockpot for supper. Painting is taking place in the kitchen today and there is no time or inclination to cook this evening.

What does this have to do with your post? I believe there will be people who will think the new kitchen color is trendy and others will wonder what in the world was I thinking, because it is a decidedly unkitcheny color! However...it is a color I've loved for years and it is a color used in our farm home more than ten years ago. It is similar to a color we used at the lake and one, in a shade darker, that is in our powder room here.

Bottom line, even though it appears to be trendy it is one we love.:-)

Great thought provoking post. Wonderful images, where I see many things, I love.

Susie @ Maddie G Designs said...

I think I like the idea of being up on the latest trends better than actually having them. In truth, I gravitate more towards an updated traditional in my own home.

BTW, having just moved from Virginia I can assure you the red dining rooms are alive! I swear our home was one of the few in the neighborhood w/o a red dining room :)

Kathysue said...

THIS COMMENT WAS BY DEBBIE L. I ACCIDENTALLY DELETED IT, SORRY DEBBIE!!

Kathysue, I have to say this is by far one of the best posts you have done and though you always make me think this one has really opened my eyes.

This statement you made makes so much sense“I have been in many houses, but very few homes.” It thought about it and about the "Trend Train" I have bought many tickets for that train and rode it too many times. I wont take the long trips anymore just a few short ones:) How does my house feel? I am going to give this a great deal of thought today. Wow you are good for provoking thought. Thanks!

quintessence said...

Great post and totally agree with you about it all. It's always so obvious when you walk into someone's home that has no soul - it might look pretty on the surface at first but has nothing to hold your interest or make you feel truly comfortable. I tend to use trends more in fashion - and then only with a subtle nod. Nothing is ever TOTALLY new - trends get recycled and reinterpreted so when you find your niche I think you should stick with it. Of course sometimes interiors need updating but that's not the same as "trending". Great food for thought.

La Vie Quotidienne said...

Hi,

I just read a quote from Billy Balwin that I love and I think relates to this..."Be faithful to your own taste because nothing you really like is never out of style". (-:

La Vie Quotidienne said...

Hi,

I just read a quote by Billy Baldwin that I think relates to this...."Be faithful to your own taste because nothing you really love is ever out of style". I think that this is so true.(-:

Stitchfork said...

Thought-provoking post! Around here we stick with what we like!
Cathy

Barb @ The Everyday Home said...

Ohhhh yes....the ole' trends. I love the posts that say "Look what the new trends for the pcoming year will be!" Really? Like I am gonna trash my whole house and start over just b/c some designer in NYC deemed it so. Not hardly.
While I might add an accessory or two that might be categorized as trendy, its only b/c I personally like it and it FITS IN WITH MY HOME!

Also, I have had a red painted room in my home since...well, birth. LOL It's a Southern thing. :-D

vignette design said...

Great post Kathysue,
I think it's good to have a few trendy pieces to freshen up our decor, if it's what we like, like you do, and I do too. I have my own look, but there are also a few trendy burlap or feed sack pillows here and there. Not a huge investment. I never want to walk into my house and feel that time stood still either. It's a fine line we walk between what we love and what we are told is in style. Most people don't have the money to keep us with current trends. I say live with what you love and your house will be a home, reflecting who you are. ~Delores

Diana H. said...

I think wallpaper's big right now because the young designers specifying it have never had to take it down! If you've fought with it, you'd do anything to avoid it! lol

I do like the life a pattern brings to a room, but I think it can often be done with stencils. Paint's much less of a commitment than wallpaper.

For certain homes, those uber traditional ones, I don't think toile wallpaper or grasscloth ever really went out.

Tote said...

Kathysue, great post today! I usually have the things I like. I like to put my own personality in my home. You can add a trendy piece here and there, but nothing too expensive, because you know it will go out of style.

Susan

Marty@A Stroll Thru Life said...

Kathysue, you always make us think and you always show such wonderful pictures to explain your thoughts and posts. I am just traditional and always get way too caught up in the furniture that I love and has sentimental value to me, but I do love to try and update it with the times, not necessarily the trends. I just want it to make me happy and to make my home feel comfortable to everyone who enters. Great post and gives me good reason to pause and reflect. Hugs, Marty

chisenfam said...

I love your post today, it really makes me think about trends and why I change things. I like to think when I change a room its because I am ready for a change not because I fall for someone elses idea of what should be in my home. When I add something trendy its usually something small that can easily be replaced when I get tired of it. I loved the pictures of the gorgeous rooms as well. I had a hard time thinking any of them could be out of style if I liked how the rooms looked and felt.

9405018--Pat said...

Totally agree! Great post today!!! I still have a red dinning room love it...How about Brass? thanks for sharing Pat H

nancy2 said...

Remember Wallpapers To Go??

They were such a popular store for a few years and then faux painting became the trend and wallpaper was out. My hubby and I have had lots of wallpaper through the years and taken it off too. When my daughter bought her house we took off about 4 layers right down to the Roy Rogers cowboy layer from the 50's and we all vowed NEVER AGAIN! Paint and change artwork anyday but never wallpaper again.

Bring Pretty Back said...

OOOOOOOOHHHHH! Kathysue, Where do you come up with these great posts! You can imagine I love the top photo!
When I started thinking of what I wanted in the new home i knew I wanted lots of pink, lots of cozy happiness, and a home that just welcomes us. To me that is pinks and softness. Trend or not... It is what I want.
Have a pretty day!
Kristin

diane@onlinefabricstore said...

Good post Kathysue. I recently wrote on this topic as well as on wallpaper http://www.onlinefabricstore.net/blog/how-to-dress-a-wall-with-wallpaper-paint-and-fabric/ I personally love wallpaper in small doses and recently papered a clients powder room floor to ceiling and she loved it. I am glad to see it making a sophisticated comeback.

Mona thompson said...

Great post. I'm not on the trend train personally. I decorate my home with what I like. However, at the risk of sounding like a disgruntled politician the Media makes this very difficult with some clients.

lvroftiques said...

I am NOT a very trendy person...But I do get caught up in them in small ways. Grainsack pillows...Love em! But they don't compare to a fine old italian velvet or aubusson carpet fragment. I'm true to my style (French romantic rot) I love it to my soul! Won't ever buy much into trends, but I sure enjoy seeing them in others homes! *winks* Vanna

Sue said...

Thought provoking Kathysue. Is it possible to be a reverse trend follower? After thinking about trends it occured to me that my attempt to avoid trends may actually be a trend???
Just a thought...I really enjoyed this post.
xoxo
Sue

Mary said...

Trends, I like them except when I don't! HA! My taste can sometimes be all over the place, but what that really says is that I appreciate trends and other's taste in decorating. As I have aged I can tell what I really like and which trends are just too trendy for me. I have also aged enough to see things coming back "in" that were considered ugly and out of style. I fully expect to see what I am selecting for my home to be out dated by the time I go to sell my house.

I am in the process of remodeling our master bathroom which is very tiny compared to newer homes and the spa baths featured in blogland. I have gone back and forth in selecting either a console sink or cabinet. Of course, the console sinks are back in. I think they look great but my very first house had a console sink and no storage. My Mom sewed a beautiful "skirt" with Velcro Adhesive in order to give us a place to hide and store things. So why am I even looking at a console sink for my bathroom?? LOL

Like others, I had a red and white floral wallpapered dining room (yes, I'm from Virginia!) for 15 years and loved it, but it was right off of my living room and made decorating very difficult. I recently re-wallpapered in a Thibaut green Damask and I am enjoying the change. Taking down wallpaper is a chore, but if I can do it ANYONE can! Buying a plate steamer, scorer, gel wallpaper remover product and a scraper are the tools for taking down wallpaper. Where I live, everyone has wallpaper somewhere in their home. The walls in the dining rooms, foyers and bathrooms are usually "wallpaper" ready. As for me, I'll continue to like wallpaper. I'm considering it for my master bathroom.

Great post Kathysue!
Mary
From Virginia

Sarah said...

Kathysue, this is a great post! I'm one of those who still have a red on the walls of the dining room. Did it 15 years ago when we moved into this house. It's the wainscoting, and deep wine color. Still happy with it. ;-)
Like you, I like to keep the feel of our home and add in new things now and then. As far as trends, I'm usually way behind in that department. LOL
Thanks for always sharing something interesting and stimulating. Love the images! ~ Sarah

Sally@DivineDistractions said...

Such a smart and timely post! I'm often swayed by the "look of the day", but when push comes to shove, I think my style is based in traditional with a pretty big shot of whimsey! I'll take a risk with color and pattern...things I can change...but the big expensive stuff is pretty classic. Great post!

Hamptontoes said...

Kathysue,
I'm not one who cares about trends, as I believe a home will always look current and "trendy" if it is done well. A truly timeless home is one with great design, timeless pieces and a freshness to it's appeal. And wallpaper, love it lots...again, if done well it is so fabulous!

lisaroy said...

What a great post! I've always subscribed to the "it's my home and it's ok if you don't really like it" theory. Your home should reflect you, your personality and say something about you to everyone who visits. I love to see trends and sometimes will incorporate a little piece of it in a room, but I make it work with what I have. The worst thing you can do is make your home look like a showroom or completely embrace a current trend that next year will look dated.

Thanks for stopping by my blog and commenting on my kitchen makeover! I really appreciate your sweet comment! have a great day!! :)

Unknown said...

What a truly great post! The feel of a home is truly so important!

Anonymous said...

Not to say that I've never been intimidated into following a trend, but for the most part I just do what I like. I think one thing trends are good for is broadening your horizons and making you consider things that you may not have thought of before. Great post, Kathysue!

Linda @ theLENNOXX said...

You always write such interesting posts Kathysue! I've been pondering this trend question a lot lately. Generally I love classic timeless interiors, but I also love adding a few inexpensive trend pieces, like trays, lamps, trendy fabrics and so on, but I'd always keep the traditional base. Don't want to redo my whole home after the trend train has left the station haha!

--> AND I love wallpaper too, so happy it's on trend again (only because then we get to see more =)

xo Linda

Marcus Design said...

I agree with you Kathysue, and you make a great point in saying that you should never change the FEEL of your home, I'm going to have to remember that one!
Nancy xo

La Dolfina said...

What a great post!!
I'm excited about your upcoming wallpaper posts!
I love wallpaper especially in a space that is devoid of any character. I've used burlap and raffia papers in 2 of my rooms and have never been happier. It was worth every penny. They are so neutral and classic and give that texture that makes a space so warm and inviting.
xo