Blending The New With The Old For Your Interior Design
In Interior Design Old + New = Fabulous
We’ll say there’s nothing wrong with the temptation of that curbside end table or lamp left out for the trash (that may or may not work). There’s a fable in the interior design media that all of your shopping should be from catalogs or stores; the more expensive, the better. If you’re like most people, your passion extends beyond the latest in-store offerings, and older, used items frequently provide more interest and pique our curiosity.
Talk About The Interior Design Passion
That’s why there is passion at the core of every interior designer. This passion should define your style and may include the occasional “dumpster diving.” Even if you don’t keep every piece you pick out, you are still more than just a junk collector. You may have an eye for beauty that others simply miss or spy an opportunity to transform the mundane or forgotten into something new and beautiful with a quick coat of paint or repurposing.
This doesn’t mean that scavenging will always be the right path to interior design success. Certainly, upholstered items will almost always need to be new (or near new), as they offer far more (and sometimes unpleasant) mysteries. But that’s the only limit to finding success with your forays at flea markets, garage sales, or even curbside pickup. This could be something as simple as a quirky picture frame or a significant piece of furniture for your home.
How do you know if you’re that dumpster-diving person?
Has a friend ever called to tell you about a neighbor holding a moving sale, or do you find yourself scouring Craigslist for the latest curbside alerts? There’s a certain thrill unique to a finder’s mentality. This is partly the desire to have something that’s one of a kind. And, in most cases, picking up an old lamp or table is reaching back into the past, making use of a style or design no longer in vogue or available.
It's A Personal Approach
But it’s also something more. It comes back to the passion you have for interior design. When you find something independently and tweak it to make it suitable for your home, you enjoy an added sense of ownership over your interior design efforts. After all, the piece simply wouldn’t exist without your work; it would, instead, be rotting away in a nearby landfill.
That’s why we urge you to give in to your passion, even if that takes you down a few side streets from time to time. Many top designers share this passion—and indulge it—which is undoubtedly part of what feeds their creativity and puts them on the leading edge of the interior design industry. Your chance to have a great moment of innovation may be just down the street, making its way out to the curb.
About Debbe Daley
Debbe Daley is one of New England’s leading interior design experts in the design, decorating, and styling of interior spaces. She is a professional speaker, educator, influencer, and business coach in interior design. Debbe is currently an installed Design Services member for the Boston Design Center.
Contact Debbe at ddaley@daleydesigns.com or (978) 697-0288.
