Upset at derision for my decor

[DameDoom]

A colleague came round for coffee yesterday and openly laughed at my house and shockingly bad taste. She spent about 2 hours ridiculing my 'delusional grandeur' and picked out item after item for scorn.

I bloody love my home and spend most of my money and time on it because I really love interiors to the point of obsession. I openly admit that and I know my taste isn't to everyone's but I was offended.

Has anyone else had this happen to them? If I don't like something I just keep my trap shut.

[DameDoom]

To be fair mad she may have slightly choked on the complementary cat hairs I accidently garnished with. What can you do with all the darkness?
Pete you are officially my mate so when I am kicking off ( not often... or ever) on AIBU, you must rescue me... your reward will be a lifetime of handy hints on how never to dust or clean but have everything looking pristine until you look closely.

[MadBusLady]

It's true about dark surfaces, I cleaned the slate bathroom floor today after weeks of thinking "Meh, I haven't cleaned the floor for ages but it looks fine". Oh my lord it wasn't

[Mumbledore]

OP I imagine your house looks like a magazine house and I am rather envious!! I love the Abigail Ahern style but would never be brave enough to attempt it, so I think it's great that you've gone for the style you love. I think 'friend' is jealous - forget it as you look around you thinking how lovely your home is

[Ilanthe]

I googled Abigail Aherne as well and I love it. She was rude.

I have very strong views on design, and I am lucky enough to be able to express them in my job and privately to my family. I would never criticise someone's house unless I was specifically asked and then it would be 'this would look nice' rather than 'what you have is crap'.

Unfortunately, I have to share a house with my DH who has rather, erm, pedestrian pensioner design taste, so every room in our house is a compromise and therefore a bit anodyne. I have feature walls, though I am plotting their demise.

[MadBusLady]

While I have fellow delusions of grandeur style whores here, can you tell me what you think about velvet sofas? It's this one I'm thinking of but in a shimmery mid-grey velvet which they don't show online. Not keen on the pink cushions.

I'm a little worried that I like mid-grey shimmery velvet now, but it might date too quickly and am I better off going for linen or herringbone or tweed for something that will be for minimum 10 years?

[DameDoom]

I will post DameFanny but my husband will have to get the proper camera from work. It is not a palace and my house is small and quirky with odd angles... that's why we bought it - no one else wanted the 1930's monstrosity at the end of a v posh Victorian road. I do feel sometimes that we paid way over the odds for it but there was something about the mad layout that shouted gallery walls and quirk. My DH had a dicky blue when I told the decorator to paint out our ceilings and woodwork dark. He was amazed how much taller it made our quite low ceilings ( we'd been in Victorian tce before)

[Viviennemary]

She is a cheeky ignorant rude person. Whatever her thoughts were she should have kept them to herself as she was a guest in your house. I agree she sounds jealous. If you like your decor that's all that matters.

[WannabeFayeMouse]

I wish I had a style for people to ridicule tbh. In my house it would be more like "did you just move in?" "no I've been here 7 years" "oh....."

So well done for having a style and doing your thing. Walk your own walk, beat your own path. Why do you need this woman's opinion when you know you like your house already?

[LRDPomogiMnyeSRabotoi]

I wanna see tethers house!

She was very rude. Why is it people think it's ok to be rude if they tell you you're aspirational/rich/posh with it?

I bet if you'd spent all your cash on making a minimalist palace full of exposed splintery wood she'd have been fine with it.

What you're describing isn't my taste to live with, but who cares?

[wonkylegs]

She was rude full stop.
I don't always like someones decor (life would be boring if we all liked the same stuff) but I'd keep it to myself and maybe if it was truly noteworthy/awful mention it to DH later. But I'd never be rude enough to say it to somebody.

[DameDoom]

Mad herringbone would be amazing. That is a lovely sofa. Mine are B&S too. I wouldn't personally have velvet because am a bit grotty and it would show pet hair. Herringbone is very classy and you could chuck over sheepskins, reindeer skins ( the buggers shed so don't) or various tartans/ cashmere throws.

[TerribleTantrums]

Mad, if you have DC or are a bit clumsy then steer clear of velvet. I have two velvet chairs that are only three years old and they are horrible now, they've needed to be recovered for the last 18 months. Any spill at all ruins velvet, and it wears very quickly so if you slide your bum onto the sofa in the same place every evening you will have a bum-shaped bald patch.

Tweed would be lovely I think.

[MadBusLady]

No DC but oh dear, we are a bit grotty too! Maybe the hunt goes on. That sofa comes in other fabrics but not particularly exciting ones. The herringbone and tweed samples I have are from sofa.com and are really gorgeous, but we can't find a sofa we both like in there (because DP likes sitting as if in a dentist's waiting room and I actually like to be comfortable.)

[DameDoom]

I have two Asquith sofas - yes leather is the scourge of MN but they are distressed Chesterfield design so look good with throws etc. They get better ( obv) quite quickly over time and stand the test of hampers of various pets.

[GrendelsMum]

So she came to visit your beautifully decorated house and sat there eating hand-made stuffed vine leaves, and laughed at you for two hours?

Touch of the green-eyed monster, I suspect. Either that or she was disappointed not to be offered Pombears.

[GrendelsMum]

Oh yes, we have a brown leather sofa with rugs and cushions on it, and I think it's really good. As DameDoom says, as it gets older you can pretend it's distressed, rather than simply having been attacked by cats.

[DameDoom]

Mad you've unwittingly solved your own problem. Get DH his chair thingy and you buy a sofa. do not get seduced by sofa.com unless you can afford to replace your sofa every 5 years. Tis work of the devil.

[nilbyname]

I love your taste and think your house sounds great!

Sofas you say....tell me more!

[DameDoom]

Grendels do you too have hampers of pets falling out of cupboards?
We have a wide selection of waifs and strays.

[MadBusLady]

Oh no, sofa.com's fabrics are lovely! I don't suppose you have any experience of Loaf? (Sorry for continuing hijack.)

Yes, DP is after a wingback leather chair. Might just banish him to that with his takeaway curry.

[MummytoMog]

Can I come round? I will leave my kids at home, but I love the sound of your house. I would love to be able to decorate like that, but I struggle getting the odd bit of exciting wallpaper past DH (I apologise now that I have a feature chimney breast in Sanderson Summer Tree). We have a 1930s semi which is quite bland. I would love to have interesting angles to play with!

[GrendelsMum]

I have never had a pet fall out of a hamper in a cupboard. How does this happen?

Is it along the lines of 'cat wants to go in cupboard. cat finds hamper. cat sleeps in hamper. door is shut on cat. some hours later, it occurs to humans that the cat is rather quiet'? If so, we've had the scenario without the hamper involved.

[MummytoMog]

I said love a lot there. I'm not a total stalker. I have just spent two hours on Houzz though....

[GrendelsMum]

Oh yes, we also have the horribly shedding reindeer skin.

I'll second the advice to avoid them.

[DameDoom]

Grendels in your honour I shall rename my hamper a small selection- Like ye olde Body Shoppe colleczione. Instead of a dewberry soap and body lotion, you'll receive a labradoodle pup, two kittens ( one will have to be a baldy alien type - we have a surplus) a long haired Peruvian guinea pig ( like Blue Peter's Liz), a giant African land snail and three hairgrips - or insects if they survive transit.