In watching 1989's dark anti-romance comedy, The War Of the Roses, where a seemingly perfect couple embarks on the emotional destruction of their union and the physical destruction of their enviable home, I'm often left wondering: Does amazing real-estate and meticulous decor reveal nothing about the people who live with it? Forget years of marriage and kids. Is there nothing sacrosanct about good interior design?
But on further thought after this Valentine's Day viewing, I starting seeing more clues of the couple's troubled marriage reflected in their home— the oppressive, wooden bed-frame, the overly-referenced, fragile Baccarat. So now I'm wondering, do our homes act as barometers, reflecting the emotional state of the people who live in it? Does your home reveal the inner truth of how you're doing at any given time? Can you tell what's going on in someone's life by stepping into her home? Let us know your thoughts.
(Image: Twentieth Century Fox, The War Of The Roses, 1989)
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There is a book about this called "Snoop -What does your stuff say about you".
Velourcat, I got to check out that book! Now I'm curious as heck and betting it's more interesting (and maybe more accurate) than any dream interpretation books or personality quizzes.
You do know right, that The War of the Roses was supposedly based on Martha Stewart's divorce?
So "the oppressive, wooden bed-frame, the overly-referenced, fragile Baccarat" all comes into focus.
I would say "no". I don't judge the quality of my friends by their decor, even though I'm interested in decor and decorating myself.
For myself, I can easily get sucked into the whole "my home is a reflection of me" thing to a degree where every imperfection in the apartment reflects an imperfection in ME. And that is just a crock of crap, to be honest.
My parents have a solid, strong marriage of over 25 years, and their house is the ugliest exercise in "country chic" I have ever seen. I mean, wallpaper will Bible verses on it and rooster decor and abundant fake plants...etc etc. That has NOTHING to do with them, or their personalities, or the success of their relationship. Nothing at all.
Maybe AT readers more than most are the ones willing to make that assumption - I know I often find myself wanting to judging people based on how good their decorating skill is. How incredibly stupid. It's probably a phenomenon pretty much exclusive to people interested and design and decor - "normal" people can tolerate outdated furniture and ugly furnishings, so long us AT readers don't attack them for it.
To each their own!
@asmallcontempt: couldn't agree more. i know plenty of supercool, brilliant, all-around-fantastic people who don't have perfectly styled homes. for example, my current home is a complete eyesore, but i am an absolute gem. :)
Snoop is a great book. One experiment I remember had volunteers entering students' dorm rooms and trying to evaluate the occupant on different aspects of their personality, background, and looks. Then the study organizer figured out what aspects of a room were important in helping to figure out what the owner was like, and what aspects of their personality they reflected (i.e., a wide variety of books indicated curiousity and an open mind, but the quantity of books didn't).
I think the concept might work in cases where people make their home decor a priority. Probably my collections and color choices, etc. DO say something about me. But since I do most of the choosing, they don't say much about my partner apart from the fact that he's mostly comfortable with MY choices. As for our relationship, I doubt much could be gleaned from the stuff we have. (The fact that we have twin master bedroom suites IS probably a clue to ONE aspect, though!! ;^) )
However, if people are NOT particularly invested in their home environment (like, say, my brother who would rather be hiking) about all you might learn about him is that he's NOT interested in his environment.
I just pulled "Snoop" from the shelf in the Library where I work, and will check it out! (Nice to have resources at my fingertips!)