To not understand why people want a nice house?

[tittletattlelolo]

My two friends are into buying plants/cushions/ornaments/flowers etc etc for their house but i don't get it.
What's the point? Only the people living in it see it.
As long as you have the basics fridge /bed etc
Why do you need all the rest?
A bloody tray with scented candles /those smelly things with the sticks etc
I've tried to get into homey things but I just can't
Am I the only woman who doesn't get it?

My bedroom is pretty plain
Nothing on the walls
I have a make up mirror on my chest of drawers and a jewellery box.
I have a lamp on the side table.
My living room I've got a couple of canvas and I have a few pics on the mantle piece.
My bathroom is bare just the usual towels,soap dispenser etc
Same for the kitchen ,bread bin ,tea coffee jars etc

WHO IS MRS HINCH??

Oh @Hullygully you'll either be hooked on her or want to stick pins in your eyes.

@HullyGully WHO IS MRS HINCH??

She's on Instagram, I'm addicted to- like watching her stories lol.

Bit of cleaning, (sorry, hinching) her nice house, and her cute dog

Sorry, totally non topic related but didn't you used to be around ages ago, I haven't seen your name on here for aaaaages if so and thought I'd stepped back to about 2015 and had to check it wasn't a zombie thread

I currently have 11 vases of flowers dotted round the house.
And 128 pictures

I think the aim should be that we don't need shiny things or twiggy things to cheer us up!

So what are the other aims? That we shouldn't need literature? Music? A television? (I could cope for far longer without a telly than without my plants) Without travelling (which is actually seriously bad for the environment)?

I am a bit of a hermit, I spend a lot of time at home so I like to have place looking homely and cosy. The cat likes it too

@NunoGoncalves It was just to point out that people have always loved beautiful things and wanted to acquire them. The only difference now is that things are produced much more quickly and cheaply so people are spoilt for choice. As PP pointed out, there was no point to cave paintings, decorating pots or making jewelry but people still spent time and effort making them.

The thing with decorating is buy what you love. Don't buy something because it "fits a space" or "matches your sofa" unless you live it independently. If you surround yourself with things you love your home will reflect you and make you happy

This is my view. When I was younger it was more about what I could afford, and filling a space. Now I wait till I find the perfect thing, then I buy it, and I need to love it before I do. So I never buy anything just because it fills a space, now it needs to be something fairly unique or unusual, something beautiful, that I love. Because I've learned that if I love it when I buy it, I will always love it.

Op, if you come home, and look around, and love being in your home as it is, then that's really all that matters. It doesn't matter how anyone else dresses their homes, it only matters that you dress yours to make you happy, and if that's no more than functional, that's fine.

I don't care, either, OP. I have a few odds and ends of souvenirs that matter to me, and loads of books, but twiggy shit and cut flowers and actually going out and buying new furniture? Nope.

WHO IS MRS HINCH??

is google broken?

I don't really care either. I think my visual sense is weak, and I just don;t really notice that much about decor. As long as it's clean and not a mess. I do really really hate bright lighting though.

I'm an introvert & a homebody. My home looking cosy & nice makes me feel relaxed & happy, it's not for visitors. A bare minimalist box would depress me. I like flowers, not candles, snuggly throws (so does the cat) & inexpensive wall art. 'Functional' is just grim to me. Prisoners usually personalise & decorate their cells, that says it all really, its comforting.

I spend a lot of time in my home and don't drape blankets over tables or put flowers on my cooker but I have lot of cushions, rugs, fresh flowers every week albeit from Aldi and like a stylish home. I value that more than an exotic holiday where I've spent thousands but I'm back after a week or 2. Each to their own.

Do the peoole who don't care, Never see things they love and want? Not to search for it, but just sometimes see something and love it?

I shall give an example. When i was 25, I was walking down a town high st, I didn't have much money as per most folks that age and I walked past an art shop.

And I saw a framed charcoal drawing of a naked woman, it's nearly life size (and done in a way no rude bits are showing) and I stood and looked at it and though, I love that.

So I bought it, ir wasn't hugely expensive, but it was expensive for me. But her mood, the way the artist had drawn her, captured my attention, And for 25 years that charcoal drawing has hung in five different successive homes now, and I still love it. And I can still picture the moment I caught sight of it in that little art shop.

Does that never happen? You never see something you love and want?

So if you were sitting down to a christmas lunch you would be happy to sit down to old newspapers on the table to protect it?

I wouldn’t put anything down to protect it. Same with coasters etc. Don’t use them. I buy furniture I don’t need to be precious about. Years of living in a house where you were scared stiff of scratching or leaving drinks rings. Friend of the family apparently has a gorgeous rosewood dining table. I have known them 20 years and have never seen it. It’s always under layers of heat protective material and tablecloths. What’s the point?

really I agree with you. I kinda like some of the wear and tear on our table. It's the battle scars of family dinners, stupid craft homeworks that we ended up laughing over (eventually) , the candle that spilt when we were too drunk and chatting too much to notice... It's like a map of our past!

bluntness I have a couple of similarly acquired bits. But I'm not great at "stuff" for its sake. I've no eye for it, for one.

Personally, I enjoy decorating my rooms to feel bright, colourful or relaxing, it makes me feel better when I walk into the house

However, Mrs Hinch and her bloody grey house drives me insane. I just don't understand it, I think it looks awful. Each to their own I guess

Do the peoole who don't care, Never see things they love and want? Not to search for it, but just sometimes see something and love it?

Yes, of course. And i have a painting bought in exactly the same circumstance.

That was 25 years ago though and I think it might have happened in a smaller way a couple of times since. I have been looking for another piece of art or painting since but haven’t found one that struck me in the same way.

Like pp says, i have learned not to buy stuff just to fill a space, or because it’s fashionable. I buy stuff i love, but in these days of cheap mass production, that’s a pretty rare occurrence.

So those who don't care for decoration- a couple of questions;

Do you never decorate?
If wallpaper gets dirty or starts peeling off the wall after decades do you just live with it?
Are you happy to hang up odd blankets as window drapes?
Do you clean the outside of windows- not strictly necessary for hygiene.
Do you have lightshades or happy with bare bulbs?

Does you aesthetic extend to other areas?
Do you wear jewellery?
Are you happy tying up your coat with an old piece of rope?
You OK wearing odd shoes into town as long as they keep out the rain?
Do you wear make up?
Do you ever garden?
Would you put pretty hair clips in your DDs hair?

Genuine questions. How far does your aesthetic disregard go?

usually the attractiveness of battle scars depends a bit on underlying quality.

Bumps and bruises on a solid oak kitchen table looks homely, on a vinyl coated Ikea table they look cheap.

I don't see why you wouldn't want to live in a nice home.

Everyone's idea of "nice" varies, of course, but it's your home, you spend a lot of time there and so you should decorate it the way you like.

If a spartan house is what you like then this is still "nice" to you.

It sounds like the actual issue here from the follow up comments is that OP wants help/guidance on how to accessorise their home

birdie very good point!