It has been a long road

Taking apart my parents home has been overwhelming to say the least. All the issues with sharing items  between the three of us has been huge. After the sharing part was done then there is the selling of the items that had value or no one wanted.

The decision making process is fraught with “This was my mothers when she was a baby” or”This was mine I remember that” or “Oh this is so beautiful I love it”. If I could do the Kon Mari method of purging I would have only what I love. but alas, I am not Japanese and my ability to be disciplined is limited.

The memories are important to me. One of the last things my father said to me, as he looked over my shoulder at family pictures, “We were a happy family once”. I said “Yes dad we were very happy”. Those items and photos that let us know that we have a heritage that we had happier times are important to keep. They have meaning and relevance to who we have been , and who we are as a member of this group, called a family.

If I have words of advise, it is to stay at the sorting for as long as you can, 3-4 hours a day seemed to be about right. Then once you have done this multiple days , take a break.Come back to it with fresh eyes. You are dismantling your families life piece by piece. There is no easy way, just be gentle. My final, this helped me tip, my mantra has been “You get what you get and don’t throw a fit” This was taught to me and my son by his kindergarten teacher. Wise words to live by!

With love and peace,

All of us on Beech Hill

 

 

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Exercise #3 What Colors resonate with you?

Color, some people are afraid of color on the wall in their home and others are all for color, color,  color!

I have written about Life Style, how to get clear about the lifestyle you would like. Color is one of the elements that helps to denote a lifestyle. If I say ” I want a home that makes me feel like I am in the Bahamas every day”, then my home will be filled with the happy colors of the Bahamas. If I say ” I love the sophisticated life style of  New York City” then my home will be filled with neutrals, simple bold patterns and large expanses of similar materials.

The central core of a lifestyle is you. Color is part of your “Kit of Parts” to create your lifestyle. Here are some questions to ask yourself to assist you in making these decisions. What colors do you look great wearing? What color is going to be a wonderful back drop for you? Look at your wardrobe, pick out the items you wear most. Look in the mirror do you look great in the color? Most likely the answer is “Yes”. We do gravitate to colors that compliment our coloring.

Side note: If you are a striking grey haired vibrant woman with sparkly blue eyes, you probably do not want to be in a home that is golds, yellows, and browns.

Color is a huge element of the canvas we are calling “Life Style”. Look at the magazine cut outs that you did in Exercise #1. What are the colors? You may have a few preferences, then go to your wardrobe and match up your clothes to the colors. The predominate colors are what will work well for you, use that to develop your color scheme.

There are other elements to consider, some of them are: amount of light coming into the space, what you want the space to feel like, what is the use of the space? These are a few of the questions a good designer will be asking.

Another approach is to look at nature. Enjoy the inspiration photo’s I have included by Jim Ewing.

Is your Life Style becoming clearer?

I have blogged a lot about lifestyle. There are so many ways to slice the topic. I am going to assume that you have got an idea as to what lifestyle you are leading and if you want to make some adjustments.

Now we get to do more of the research. This is when the practical side of programming comes into play. We have just gotten through the “Blue Sky” portion. This part of programming is finding out how you actually use your space now and how you plan to use it in the future.

You might find out in this process that your home is too big, or too small or just right. No matter what you find out there is always a solution. Start your programming process with observing how you are using your kitchen.  Look at how you use the space, how often you are in the kitchen and when you are in the kitchen what are you doing? How do you cook? heat and serve or cook from scratch or something in between?

We will stay with the kitchen for right now since it is the biggest issue in every home. Now take a look at how you move around in your kitchen, are you bending down to get bowls out of an awkward lower cabinet? Work on a time and motion study to see how you actually use this space. Is it for homework? bill paying, cooking, bathing the dog or baby, doing laundry, family gathering? There is a lot to take in and really understand how it works and how you want it to work. Ask yourself lots fo questions and observe yourself and others in the space.

I will give you some time to gather up the research to get this accomplished. Take your time, get this the way you want.

Out door kitchen in France

I will check in , in a couple of days..

Ciao

 

What is your definition of a Life Style?

I have a question, what does Life Style mean to you?  Wikipedia say’s, “A lifestyle typically reflects an individual’s attitudes, way of life, values, or world view. Therefore, a lifestyle is a means of forging a sense of self and to create cultural symbols that resonate with personal identity. ”

There are so many aspects that define life styles. It could be eating organic food, taking a yoga class, riding your bike to work and traveling to places that you can be of service. Maybe you are drawn to a lifestyle that is in the fast lane with technology and traveling from one business meeting to the next? What ever lifestyle resonates with you, or maybe better said “what ever your habits and desires are, that creates your lifestyle”, will help you define what design solutions are best.

Design is really all about solving problems. Yes ,there is a huge aesthetic component to Design, but at the heart of the aesthetic is a function. Example, Lighting, we can light a space with all 2′ x 4′ fluorescent fixtures, or we can use recessed down lights on dimmers, or maybe we want a mix of both? All of these solutions are appropriate for an exact function and lifestyle.

Then there is you, maybe you are like my husband, he has baby blue eyes and fluorescent light is very hard on his eyes. Or maybe you have a huge art collection you want to highlight in your home and you want recessed lighting angled correctly for your art work to really shine. This is a small example of the thought process designer’s and architect’s go through on a daily basis to meet client lifestyle and design needs.

The open shower above is in a clients mud room area. The shower is designed to make it easy to shower off your feet, your dog and eventually you. With an active lifestyle this is a great solution to being able to clean up effortlessly. It is also a universal design which always is a great addition to any home.

What is your lifestyle? What design solutions might help you to function even better in your home and support you in your lifestyle?