Over the course of civilization history there have been many different manifestations of proper indoor foot wear.

Some cultures went bare foot and some still do even today.

There has been much residential news recently about many of today’s resident’s who request, or require, any one coming into their interior space to remove their foot wear.

Some offer some type of foot covering for indoor use and some don’t.

The reasoning behind this behavior is to prevent germs found on foot wear from coming into their residence.

While I am not a scientist, it is my understanding that germs are every where present and it is of merit to avoid germs as much as possible for our health. But, as is possible in many aspects of life, things can be taken to an undeserving extreme.

While it is true that foot wear picks up germs basically every where we walk, how much does eliminating foot wear indoors really, seriously, and of merit promote indoor health?

If some one requires you to remove your foot wear indoors, does that mean that their floors and their feet are germ free?

If required to walk bare foot on their floors are you not exposed to their germs?

Of course, there may be exceptions to this rule and some people cannot walk comfortably or safely with out some type of foot support.

What are your thoughts and positions of this increasing movement?

Send me an e-mail. let’s know what you think.

Food for thought.

CBS: “unshakable commitment to creativity, beauty, and authenticity”

From recent broadcast featuring author.

“Know thyself.” Plato

“To thy own self be true.” Shakespeare

What do the above quotes have to do with the design of one’s own interior living spaces?

Think about it.

In the marketing and media one encounters in today’s society we are constantly exposed to colors of the year, trends, what’s new, popularity, what “they” are doing, sellable, et cetera.

The economics in today’s world of business for housing, the furnishing there of, and related aspects are geared to a mass market consumption which most of the population follows.

Where are you in this situation?

What if you don’t like or want these ways? What are the options for other choices?

What is your ultimate goal in housing? Is it all to be based purely on economics?

Here is where Plato and Shakespeare come in.

Know who you are, where you are, where you want to go, and proceed in that direction.

Choose to select those options that express you and not mass consumption.

In fulfilling the one life you have to exist on this planet are you going to be your “true” self or just a number in mass consumption?

Of maybe you just don’t care.

The choice is yours.

Food for thought.

Lighting is the single most important gate through which we experience our lives.

What we see, how we see it, and how the design elements are experienced are determined by the light in which we see them.

One can profoundly be aware of the difference light makes when we view in day light as opposed to moon light.

This fact is the single most determining factor in the quality of aesthetics manifest for our residential interior spaces and yet is usually not the top priority when these spaces are designed and/or constructed.

Repeat: If the aesthetics of your residential living spaces are to be taken seriously, lighting layout has to be a priority.

Natural and man made are the two sources of light.

Always make the best, most efficient, and practical use of natural light for residential interior designs which includes the direction from it comes, seasonal changes, and weather effects.

Man made light is any thing used for lighting that does not come from the sun.

In today’s world there are almost unlimited choices for lighting fixtures, types of bulbs, and kinds of light so that lighting is an independent profession and industry in and of itself.

In designing with man made light the dual goals are function and aesthetics.

Function includes specific, task and purpose, and general illumination.

As a very general rule, it is best to have different types of light, different sources of light, and different heights of light in each space.

All hanging fixtures should be evaluated for their over all part in the functional lighting layout as well as aesthetics.

Functional lighting is usually best when it’s source is not seen.

Look at your home inside spaces and evaluate what you see.

Then look at your lighting.

Food for thought.

Many people ask that question when encountering a building or work of art which is not within their current knowledge experience.

Current civilizations, those that go forward instead of backwards, express themselves in the life of their times. They learn from the past but do not copy it.

All art, and other expressions of life, are not to be photographic reproductions of what we see but looking at life and reality from various points and interpretations.

“Established artists are always looking for freshness and a beginners mind.”

Life has many depths and interpretations and view points.

Don’t limit your experience to that which you already know.

Look at things in ways that are different from how you did previously.

Look at something for what it is and not what it “is suppose to be” because it does not represent reality as you have previously viewed it.

Expand and grow and try new ways of looking at objects.

It can be a wonderful new experience for you.

Food for thought.

In today’s world a lot of people shout who they are.

They wear clothes with a designer’s name boldly printed on the front.

They use a lot of marble and gold to show the world how rich they are.

Other people use the quality of materials and workmanship with an intelligent design.

Which is more important: quantity or quality?

The former shouts. The latter whispers.

What do the choices you make about your living spaces say about you?

“Actions speak louder than words.”

What purposes do you want to achieve in the choices you make?

How do your choices affect who you are and how the world conceives you?

Which choices are better and longer lasting?

It’s your life and your decision.

Food for thought.

It is a universal law of physics that water in it’s liquid state always finds it’s own level.

There is no variation on this truth.

This principle can also be applied to the choices made by people in the manifestation of their living spaces.

A combination of DNA, environment, intelligence, education, emotions, family, religion, politics, geography, et cetera determines the personality of individuals and what one likes and prefers which in turn determines how people live and express themselves.

These life style expressions are profoundly recognized in the manner is which an individual chooses to dress, express themselves, and the interior environment in which they live.

There are times in which societal and economics may affect a change.

Ambition, flaunting, one-up-manship, and other such behaviors may manifest other expressions.

However, some basic core of their personality will come out and need to be expressed in one way or another.

“Unto thine own self be true.” is not just a platitude.

How well do you know yourself and the core of your personality and being and how well do express it?

What do all of these exponents say about you and your living spaces?

Your mental interior design is a mirror of your residential interior design.

Food for thought.

Some people just don’t get it when the subject of interior design comes up.

Many people behave as if they have to state and validate their position.

Responses given after learning of my profession are some thing of a measure of what some people think and where they are in their knowledge of the subject.

The manager of a mall department store informed me that he was my competition.

The wife of an ivy league graduate lawyer said we get our furniture from North Carolina.

A prominent social-economic widow stated that you always put the couch on the longest wall.

The wife of a proficient medical doctor asked if it was my position that laundry facilities should be in the bedroom area.

Our responses show the world who, what, and where we are.

What do these responses say about the about the people who made them?

What do your responses say about you and how you want to be conceived by the world?

What are your responses and those who make them about the interior design of the spaces in which your live?

Food for thought.

According to the current information that comes across my desk, the current trends for residential interior design are boucle fabrics, natural materials, and texture.

Texture is one of the five characteristic elements of aesthetics and is always present and it’s use has always been a factor in results achieved. How is such a current trend?

What means the use of natural fabrics? Does such mean the elimination of colors and applied decoration?

Why is boucle a desirable trend? Is it comfortable or practical?

Trends come and go and are affected by the social, psychological, emotional, political, financial, et cetera conditions of the times.

Some trends are good and some are bad. Some make a positive influence and last and some are shallow and fade away.

Trends have been a part of the river of civilization since it’s beginning.

What if such current design trend are not to your liking and life style?

Are said current interior design trends of merit or mere current fashion and how does such affect you and your personal space?

A higher level of permanent quality, intelligence, and beauty is achieved when interior design projects are manifested by the principles of aesthetics and the laws of physics combined with the best quality of workmanship and materials available at the time to achieve the desired goals and not subjective to current design trends.

In your time of existence on the planet do you prefer to be your best self or to follow the current crowd?

Food for thought.

What does the internet have to say about your residential interior spaces affecting your behavior?

“Every thing in your home triggers an emotional response.”

How many of us are aware of such when we are home and to what degree?

Aesthetics can “improve your mood, increase your focus, and reduce anxiety”.

Also, “beauty enhances functionality”.

How many of us lead such perfect lives that we would not welcome more of such benefits?

So, how are you reacting to your home interior environment when there?

Are there aspects which can be improved or expanded?

You are the one living there.

The choices we make determine the results we experience.

What are your choices?

It’s your life.

Food for thought.

With all that is going on in our lives these days and how much our lives are involved and affected by cell phones and computers it is easy to get so involved that we get lost and miss the flavor of the moment of what we are experiencing so that life may seem to pass us by.

Those people who are familiar , qualified, and aware of such constantly advise us to be aware and in the moment of the present time as a healthy and affirming and joyous way of living.

Living in the moment helps to keep our lives in balance.

And any life, or any thing else, that is not in balance is not going to function properly.

When you look around where you live, what do you see that is beautiful and joyful and make you feel “at home”.

The experience you have at such times is determined and manifest by your choices of time, intelligence, and finances expended to your residential internal living environment.

“What you experience is what you give attention to.” William James

You are responsible for the choices you make.

Food for thought.