The Domino Decorating Effect - How Accessorizing Can Bring You Joy

“So you see, imagination needs moodling - long, inefficient, happy idling, dawdling and puttering.” - Brenda Ueland　
　

  I am one of those people that gets a new item for my home and I temporarily go into my own little world. My husband Rob knows it when he sees it. "There she goes!" he says with a knowing laugh. And so the decorating domino effect begins.



I may get a new vase that fits perfectly with the colour scheme in my living room but the spot I find for it already holds another equally nice item. So then I have to find a new home for it. And then I do and I get an idea for a few other items I already own that would certainly perfect a visually pleasing tablescape. And then more gaps are ready to be filled all over my house. This usually happens at a fairly rapid pace as my decorating-infused adrenaline inevitably kicks in. My heart starts beating faster as I find myself running from room to room moving baskets and picture frames, tchotchkes and candles. Throw pillow are thrown. Twigs and stones and starfish are brought together like a mini beach upon my dining room table just waiting to find a new place to rest. The excitement of it all makes me feel alive.




But Spring is finally in the air my friends and this is typically when larger decor and organizational endeavours rear their pretty heads. I bring this up today because we just got some new shelves...all beautifully white and empty...just waiting to be filled. Rapture! (But I sit here waaaaaay past my bedtime just staring at the blank canvas that my husband just finished setting up trying to stay seated and focused enough to write this post because this little shelf project is gonna be a glorious series of workouts!)


My new, empty dining room shelves!

Perhaps this sounds familiar. Or maybe it resembles your worst nightmare. But for me, freshening up my home is a creative outlet and a joy when I'm in the mood. If I get into refreshing mode I turn into the Energizer Bunny on speed. I have to remind myself to stop for a drink of water. I find myself doing the famous "pee pee" dance until I finally take five minutes to slow down enough to relieve myself. I'm high people and I don't have time for such details!

And don't question me mid-nesting because until I say so, "I'm not finished yet!" Things start to look like my house has been ransacked and robbed before it slowly but surely starts to take a new but aesthetically pleasing and rejuvenating form. Everyone who knows me well understands that I have to try approximately three thousand, two hundred and sixty seven combinations and replacements before I am satisfied.

That is, until I bring home the next perfect little thing.

Smiles,

Lora

Suggested Reading

Goodwill Hunting: The Thrill of the Find!
Paint a Painting to get your Creative Juices Flowing

How to style open shelves
Ten tips to accessorize your home