Having for show items in the house...

[Unreasonablebetty]

I might be being a bit... Or a lot U,
But I like to buy certain things for show,
Like I've got certain tea towels, for show.
Certain knives to show
Towels to show,
Cushions also to show.

We have slightly less pretty versions of all these things that are for use, but I do like to keep some things looking nice, like the tea towels that hang in the kitchen and bathroom that look nice and crisp,

I just bought new cushions that were only put on the sofa today. My husband came home and flopped down in his paint covered work clothes, took his boots and socks off, and tried to use one of my new cushions as a footrest.
Not five foot away is a perfectly good foot rest. But he wants to use my cushions.
This set me off, squealing like a banshee that his sweaty smelly feet do not belong on my new cushions, in fact they were moved away so DD didn't cost them in felt tip. And why is he laying on one of them?

He thinks it's U to have cushions that he can't lay on, or rub his feet all over,
I think it's perfectly fine, there are other cushions too, another 6 or 7 in total in the living room, but he surely shouldn't expect to rub his feet on my cushions?? No one wants foot smelling cushions surrounding them??
I might be being quite pedantic, and it might just be that other stuff he does is getting to me, but this is really annoying me as when it gets cold I love to make the house homely and buy nice new cushions and generally nicer for us, and he seems to lack respect for our home.
It's not like he didn't know that I have for show items, I've always been the same the five years I've known him.

Is it that mad to say, them few cushions are for you to pick up sit with on your lap or on the floor, but they're love hearts, I don't want you distorting the shape??

[Oysterbabe]

I'm the dirty, stinky one in my relationship if that helps.

[AgentProvocateur]

Wouldn't cross my mind to have things for "show" or keep them for "best". Life is for living! Spend your money having fun - not on buying things you can't use!

[HamaTime]

I don't have anything for show. I buy the things I want and use them. I wouldn't have the room to store everything otherwise.

A friend of mine got married and stored her wedding presents in her parents loft as they were 'too good' for her (perfectly nice) house and she wanted to save them for her 'forever home'. Seven years later she duly lugged them all into the showroom her new house. Seven years of eating off ikea plates when you have wedgwood in the loft. Bonkers.

[Bunbaker]

"I think having show things that you don't use is very strange, I don't do that with anything, in fact I hate overly dressed sofas, beds etc, makes the place look sterile and hotel like. However I do expect "in use" items to be treated with respect"

I agree with this ^^

OH bought me some top quality knives for my birthday, and I use them every day. There is no way I am just going to leave them on the work surface just for "show". They live in the drawer anyway as I don't have enough work surface space to display them and I loathe clutter.

As for "dressing" beds. Why? Whenever I stay in a hotel I end up sticking runners and excess cushions in the wardrobe.

Basically I just don't have enough room in my house to have duplicate items for show and for every day use.

[GruntledOne]

Surely the issue is not that he puts his sweaty feet on particular cushions but that he comes into the house sweaty and dirty and doesn't bother to wash.

But I equally have no patience with the concept of "show" items. A house is a house, it's for people to live in, if you're constantly on edge because you can't use certain objects it's just not comfortable. And who on earth gets impressed by show knives or show tea towels anyway?

[TheDowagerCuntess]

You need to take a step back on the tea-towel front at the very least, admit it.

[Bunbaker]

"And who on earth gets impressed by show knives or show tea towels anyway?"

I meant to add that in my post as well. I don't notice these things at all.

[BadlyBehavedShoppingTrolley]

I'm with you on the cushions, but having tea towels and hand towels that and knives that are only for show is bonkers.

[Oliversmumsarmy]

I think I am the only female in the entire western world who doesn't own a cushion, I have never found a good reason to have any in the house.

Also I don't own a t.towel, I never have. What do people use these things for?

[HaydeeofMonteCristo]

I don't have things for show (maybe the odd espresso cup that's rarely used, but not much) and I'm bit slovenly.

However even I would balk at the idea of feet being rubbed all over the cushions, new or not. That's just gross.

[sparechange]

This just makes me think of those 'big fat gypsey wedding' programmes, where they have plastic covers on their sofas to keep them looking new, and all their tat Nick nacks are artfully displayed with all the price tags still on so everyone can see how much they've spent.

The only 'for best' stuff we have are wine glasses that won't fit in the dishwasher, so they only come out for very special occasions when I can be bothered to hand wash them afterwards. They are still shoved in the same cupboard as everything else.

[TheDowagerCuntess]

I mean, I'm as susceptible as the next person to a showy tea-towel, but I'd use it to dry dishes as well. It's insanity not to.

[Bambambini]

no not really but I'm not a housey fussy person. Only thing that gets put away for special occasions is a beautiful but very heavy and ornate cutlery set. Husband bought it though and I had no say in it.

Years ago I was going to buy a nice dinner set "for best". My friend just used all her lovely "best" stuff day in and day out and she made me think - why not? So I do.

[BadlyBehavedShoppingTrolley]

Olivers what on earth do you use if you need to wash and quickly dry an item in the kitchen? That's what tea towels are for. Even if you have a dishwasher or prefer to leave your washing up to air dry you surely occasionally need to wash and dry it immediately, so you can use it, don't you? I get through about two tea towels a day, I dry my hands on them and use them to wipe my hand when I'm cooking as well as for drying washed up items.

[MistyMeena]

What on earth does a show tea towel look like? Are tea towels not all much of a muchness?

[Bunbaker]

"I think I am the only female in the entire western world who doesn't own a cushion"

We don't have any on our settees. MIL has loads and we end up sticking them in the corner of the room when we visit because we all have long legs and can't sit back into the settee with the cushions in the way. MIL is little and needs the cushions though.

[SchnooSchnoo]

I actually don't think YABU about the cushions, but the rest of it is s bit weird! Who has space for extra sets of unused knives and tea towels?o

[Holstein]

Dish towels get better and softer if you use them! The idea of keeping them for best
Life's short. We should use beautiful things as they're a pleasure.

[HeteronormativeHaybales]

YANBU about the not changing/showering after work. I make my boys change their clothes when they've been out playing and come back very muddy/sandy - don't want that on my sofas.

YAB rather bonkers about the rest. Everything we have gets used - some stuff more than others, but it all gets used. I like signs of use on my things. I like indications that a busy, lively, happy family lives in our home.

[IJustLostTheGame]

Yabu.
I hate this stuff.
My in laws live it. Everytime I go round I get yelled at for using the 'for show' towel, mug, glass. They also do the bed thing. If we stay there I get Mil bustling in when I'm half way into my PJ's to change the bed from 'show' to 'use'.
She doesn't like people using the downstairs loo either as it's just been done.

Madness.

She's tried to implement it to my house with little success.
I use my beautiful things!

[GenevaMaybe]

I think this is a class thing.
Most of the really wealthy people I know have good stuff that is totally battered from use. Like heavy wool/cashmere throws being used as dog blankets and finest quality towels being used to mop muddy boot rooms.
Whereas the middle class people have naice things for show

[GreenPotato]

Nope there is nothing in our house that's just for show. We do like nice design and will choose things we like the look of, but there's no special things you can't put or feet on or whatever. I'd just find it exhausting trying to police that! I'd actually love to have a separate grown up living area / hobby room that the kids couldn't mess up though. But while we all share the same rooms, I can't possibly have "for best" cushions, I've got enough to think about!

I suppose if people are coming round I will chuck the grottiest teatowels in the wash and hang up nice ones. That's as far as it goes!

[GreenPotato]

(I'm a mix of middle/working class background not uber posh - but I do know what you mean Geneva)

[Bunbaker]

We did buy some impractical coloured settees a couple of years ago, but get round that by using throws because teenage DD is a bit like Pigpen from Charlie Brown

[Bambambini]

I was going to say it's possibly a class thing but didn't want to go there. I'm working class and people were very particular about curtains and things looking nice in a way some of the more middle or upper middle class folk I know don't seem to give a hoot. You can see it also in the way they dress their children. Middle and upper middle class kids are often dressed and have their hair etc in a way the WC folk I grew up with would have been appalled at.