Tell Me A Story
Photo from Pexals
We’ve all been watching a lot more television lately, and going to see films once more has been a real joy for me. While most people are interested in the handsome hero or the shocking cliffhanger in the storyline, I am paying greater attention to the character that is present in every scene, yet never speaks. To me, the background interior sets are the loudest storytellers and speak volumes about the characters that reside there.
Yes, I’ve got my dream crushes, many of whom I’ve had for years. I know I share fangirl status with many others whenever I mention the iconic Hampton’s beach house that steals every scene in Something’s Gotta Give. And handsome Michael Douglas and Gwyneth Paltrow fade from my memory in A Perfect Murder, but their apartment I still find dreamy after all these years. And please, don’t get me started on the set of Downton Abbey. Even without a single human character appearing on the screen the interiors, lush upstairs and sparse and utilitarian downstairs start to tell us so much about the lives that were lived there.
To me, the most interesting houses aren’t always the most opulent or professionally designed. One house that sticks with me after almost 30+ years is one I saw in a magazine where everything was covered in bottle caps. It was a labor of love (and maybe some slight obsession) on the part of the owner. I always marveled at how brave he was to disregard norms and boring conventions because he was comfortable telling the story of his unique journey, perspective, and soul.
I find that a space is interesting when it tells me the story of who lives there. It tells me what they find interesting, what they’ve experienced, and what they value as important. In fact, I’ve done away with most of the interior design magazines I’d long subscribed to because I was tired of seeing perfect spaces that gave me no clue about the inhabitant’s life. Who were they and why were they choosing to show us what they did? Was it a function of the designer flexing their skills and ego, or was it a representation of a living, breathing real live person/persons? These precise and impersonal rooms usually left me too bored to continue looking.
What we choose to show the world is a very personal decision. Some people are very comfortable authentically saying “this is the real me”, and display photos that capture meaningful experiences or loved ones naively made kids’ crafts and curiosities that only they find unique and interesting.
Some offer curated vignettes of what they are comfortable sharing in more public spaces and save sentimental items or things they do not wish to be commented on by outsiders, for the more private areas of the home. Others still go to extremes to remain unseen, keeping blinds tightly closed and going in and out through briefly opened garage doors.
This always gets back to the question of why do we choose to surround ourselves with the things we do? THESE things tell our story. They are physical representations of the mirror we hold up to ourselves. They are the reflection we send out to the world saying this is my story.
Photo from Unsplash
In my design experience, I’ve found that those that are comfortable telling the authentic story of who they are, let their interiors do a lot of the talking. Even when a home’s inhabitants are not present, the colors, furnishings, and curiosities could narrate the story of the occupants. I always enjoy working with clients that are comfortable infusing their homes with their own energy and essence. These are the homes that always feel like home and have the happiest inhabitants. Perhaps it is because they’re not exerting the exhausting energy it takes to hold up false facades for others to see.
Like a slick character with a secret, the perfectly curated home, that reveals no inkling of its inhabitant, leaves me wanting to change the channel. It simply does not interest me. We’ve got a whole big impersonal world in which to wear masks or hide our personas - so why do that at home too!
Most everyone has an interesting story to tell about who they are, what they value and what they’ve experienced in this lifetime. And our homes are the sets we can walk into time and time again to remind us of those stories and share them with others. Infusing our home with items that reflect who we really are can be the difference between a memorable world we want to immerse ourselves in or an unconvincing prop.
Have you seen a good house lately?
