Gearing up for a Fabulous Summer Retreat

 

Have you ever walked into a fabulous room with a "summer personality," or seen one in a great

magazine, that makes you go WOW! Do you ask yourself, how do they achieve such a look? Would your first thought be re-sale shops, estate sales, antique stores, flea markets -- even a next door neighbor's yard sale? Hidden treasures are everywhere; you just have to discover them.

It's not hard.

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When preparing your summer retreat, nostalgic touches bring interesting appeal to your decor.

They can be less than perfect. It absolutely does NOT matter. Let's take a minute to "Re-Think" as

we gear up for summer.

Lately I have run into a lot of homes that are so perfectly decorated but lack any real WOW. The

rooms are perfectly balanced with furnishings. The scale of the furnishings is perfect for each room.

These homes are not lacking for accessories, as they are layered with perfect pre-made floral arrangements, topped with three perfectly placed feathers shooting out of the top of such arrangement. All of those nice faux-iron urns, of course, fit perfectly in any room. Of course pre-framed, pre-matted and mass-produced artwork is perfect for any blank wall in your home. If all of these statements make perfectly good sense to you, you may have a perfectly lovely home -- but trust me, "You Got No WOW." This does not mean that your home decor is not put together well. Well, of course it is! All of the home decor mass producers have designed it all for you -- and thousands of OTHER customers -- for an instantly and perfectly decorated room. I know it is easy. It is safe. It has been made pretty affordable too. This is why so many home decor lovers have fallen head-over-heels for it.

Re-think common or vintage items.

NOW let's talk about some fun and easy solutions for those who "Got No WOW." Re-think common or vintage items. Do not be afraid to find them in consignment stores, re-sale shops, yard sales, etc. Even if you are not an antiques buff you will be amazed by how much fun browsing an antique mall can be! Let's say that you are thinking about replacing one of your two perfectly matched end tables or night stands with a unique table that you find interesting. Don't worry about the piece looking worn and chippy. Maybe it is something that you've come across (and fell in love with) but thought that you just had no place for it. Re-THINK it! This does not mean that you have disregarded the origanal pair; you have just allowed yourself to make your displays more fun and meaningful. Try it. Just switch things around a little. FUN! (to be continued...)