Hey, refuge. I agree, a lot of people feel like they have to have whatever is the latest 'in' thing and there is no originality to it. It's just a lot of being the first on your block to get the latest new trend and it doesn't express anything about you.I really think some people buy stuff they don't even like just because it's the in thing to have. Then something else comes along and you're supposed to get rid of the old and bring in the new. Some people spend their whole lives pursuing what society tells them they should have. It's really the biggest scam.
My relatives think it's funny that I hate the L'Oreal commercial that says, “It costs a little more, but I'm worth it” I say, what a con job! It's so obvious they are playing on people's insecurities. Advertising companies are paid a lot of money to come up with these slogans to get people to buy products. We all know that, but still people get taken in. It's really a statement about our society when people base their self worth on how much they spend for hair color and get conned into spending more. Besides, I don't care for L'Oreal anyway. The funny thing is that even though I've explained my reasons to my relatives, they still don't believe me. Their interpretation is that I don't think I'm 'worth it” and that's why I don't like that commercial (and why I'm so cheap LOL!.) Haha Sometimes you just can't win with other people who have a certain mindset, so you might as well please yourself. I think they are the ones who deep down feel worthless and that is why they strive to gain status through material things. ( Sorry if that sounds judgmental, but I do think it's true- I will, however, keep that feeling to myself and the 17,000 readers here who don't know them anyway- heh!).
. It's actually a lot more fun to be creative and express your personality by your surroundings. And it's fun to find bargains! I enjoy creating my little 'fantasy' decors that make me feel happy. I have been having lots of out of town guests lately and the main thing I want is for people to feel welcome and at home. I try to have everything immaculate when they show up but I don't care how things look by the time they leave. I never want people to feel uncomfortable or afraid to drop or spill something. It can be cleaned up or replaced- no big deal. My ideal would be to have people think things are pretty but feel like they can kick their shoes off, put their feet up and help themselves to the refrigerator – and just have a good time.
Lots of people have beautiful homes with nice things, but the houses I like best are ones where you get a warm and comfortable feeling. There are a couple of friend's houses like that and although they have nice things, you still get a relaxed feeling that their stuff isn't the most important thing to them. You can also feel their personalities expressed by their houses.
What I want to add about redecorating and updating your house to people looking for ways to be frugal-
You can really update the look of your older house with small changes like new faucets, new hardware on cabinets and new light fixtures and light switch plates, even new air vents, and of course, paint. Here's a tip, though – just don't do it all at once. You have to be patient. I know people who have thought that since they are not spending thousands of dollars to remodel and are 'saving money' with do-it-yourself smaller changes like painting their old cabinets and changing light fixtures that they should just run out and do it all at once.
No, no….then you run up the credit card to where you can't pay it all and let it slide until the next month and have to pay a lot of interest, then another project comes along…if you do that long enough you will find you have a beautiful house to turn over to the bank!
Just do what you can comfortably afford each month. Look for bargain sources too. You'll get it all done eventually.