There are many schools of thought about the relationships between the mind and body of our behavior as human beings.

One central theme keeps coming through and is constantly shown in the studies and tests results which come across my desk continuously.

What we see and think and do and feel about our lives affects what we experience in our lives.

All aspects of our lives are inter twined and affect each other and the sum total of our being.

All is one.

So, what does all of this information have to do with the interior design of our residences?

In this present time in which we live, our lives are more restricted than previously.

Which means that as most of us are at home more than before, it is more important than ever that our home environment is healthy, functional, beautiful, and congruent with positive living.

Knowing that all aspects of our lives affect what we experience, we are better prepared to make the most of our current limitations and experience a higher and better level of living even in these times “that try men’s souls”.

Think positively. Look for beauty. Live in the moment.

The choices that you make determine the life you experience.

What choices do you make?

Food for thought.

Much of my life I have heard the ism: “The customer is always right.“.

About what is the customer right and what is right?

According to Webster, right’s definition is “agreeable to a standard”.

What is this standard and who determines it?

In this vein of thinking, when it comes to residential interior design, there are two options.

You can be a customer, or you can be a client.

If you choose to be a customer, you only want some one to sell you home furnishings for your resident.

If you choose to be a client, you want some one who will apply the principles of aesthetics and the laws of physics to make your residential spaces the most beautiful and functional for your life style.

Do you want a beautiful residential environment that is a manifestation of your personality, or do you want to be ” right ” ?

The choice is yours.

Your choice should be based on what you want for the final results of the project.

Food for thought.

“What’s in your world around you affects what goes on in your life.” Abigail Bassett

What is in your residential world these days with the virus that is affecting the entire globe in varying degrees?

With the wearing of masks, social distancing, staying at home requirements, zoom work and education, and severe limitations of contacts with other persons, the environment in which we live becomes ever more important for all aspects of our personal health and well being.

Take a good hard intelligent look at your home surroundings.

What do you see?

How does what you see affect what you do and how you feel?

Look at what is there and try to see it in a different light and from a different perspective.

Is there an element of aesthetics that you have not noticed before?

Is there something that can be changed and improved to be more comfortable, functional, and beautiful?

Some times even a small change can make a big difference.

And it is always advantageous to have a positive and optimistic way of thinking and looking.

It appears that the virus is going to affect the entire world for many more months.

Any thing that you can do to make your residential environment better in any way is going to affect what you experience until this virus situation is over.

Food for thought.

In reading of the current status of residential interior design and housing in this country, an interesting article caught my eye.

It was about one of the most expensive houses in one of the most expensive municipalities in this country.

This house was intimately described with rare materials and other expensive details.

There was a lot of description of the rare stones and jewels literally in the floors and other places.

The recreational and entertainment facilities were enormous and manifest in the same rare and expensive manners.

It would be inappropriate, and probably illegal in some situations, to state my reaction to this residential “rare and expensive gem“.

Repugnance, repulsive, lack of intelligence, immature, gaudy, inappropriate use of materials, hodge-podge, and a total incomprehension of the principles of aesthetics will give you some hint of my reaction to this house.

Wow!

This residence is a sterling example of the ism that expending resources with out intelligence do not manifest quality.

Why would some one with that much financial resources make such an idiot of themselves?

Some times, there is no logic behind human behavior. Here, emotions completely ran the show. And the results are disastrous.

That which is expensive and rare is not in and of itself good design.

Food for thought.

“My experience is what I attend to” William James

How do you experience the residential environment in which you live?

Is it a space you enjoy and in which you look forward to being?

Or, is it much like a service station, which is true for many people, where you eat, sleep, dress, and take care of the basic necessary requirements of a place to exist?

An aesthetically pleasing and functional residential environment which reflects your personality and life style can be a strong positive force which flows into the experiences you have in other of your life’s activities.

Research in the area of human behavior has shown this approach to be real.

Mother nature takes care of what it does and the results manifest.

In our personal environments, what we, as individuals, choose to do in taking actions, making efforts, and extending resources determines the experiences we manifest in our lives.

Simply put, it is left up to you.

What you experience in your residential environment is very simply what you choose to attend to.

Food for thought.

Most of what we, as human beings, experience physically as life is visual.

What we see affects how we react to what we see.

Human behavior research continues to show that our environment affects how we behave and our physical and intangible quality of the life we live.

Thusly, it is obvious that for a more fulfilling life, we need to pay proper attention to the environments with which we surround ourselves.

Thinking of where we live as our home base and where we are most free and nurtured, is it not logical that we should make our residential interiors the best they can be so that our quality of life experiences are the best they can be?

What role do you choose for your residential interior designs to play in the quality of your living?

Food for thought.

Every day, information comes across my desk about the housing industry in this country and how it is affected by the different conditions in this country: the market, mortgage rates, labor, materials, the virus, new products and services, different movements, trends, et cetera.

Since the beginning of civilizations, color has played an important role in what people wear, all of the arts, and what is done with their residences.

Chemistry has played a large part in what colors were available in civilizations.

In today’s world we have reached enormous levels of what can be done with chemistry for colors. Thusly, paint manufactures and those in design industries have pushed to come out periodically with new colors and trends et cetera.

Colors chosen for any well designed residential interior should be used because they are the best colors for the desired aesthetic results.

Colors should be selected to be beautiful for years and not for the present trends and new colors.

After all, we don’t change our residential colors as often as some people change the colors of their lipstick and nail polish.

It is good that chemistry today gives us almost unlimited choices for residential colors.

Is not good that residential colors are chosen because they are new or represent current fashions.

Think when you paint!

Food for thought.

One of the major challenges facing many peoples around the world today who are under stay at home restrictions because of the virus situation is how to do every thing at home within the spaces we have without going bananas. The situation is especially challenging for those people with small spaces and children.

The importance of intelligent and quality aesthetics designs for one’s residential environment becomes more apparent.

Excellent residential interior design is not going to solve all of the challenges caused by stay at home restrictions, but such can make the experience less difficult.

When spaces and furnishings are designed to well fulfill their functions in practical and pleasant ways, such can make doing and being in them a more positive experience.

Any space that is designed and manifest with a high level of quality aesthetics is always a more pleasant and beautiful experience.

All of which can affect our intellectual, psychological, emotional, and practical behavior in various good ways.

In addition to these benefits and advantages, there is another pleasant and intelligent byproduct of well designed interior spaces.

Excellently designed residential interiors are not static. There have different levels of how they can be seen and experienced.

Things will look different during different times of day and with different degrees and sources of light.

The design elements of line, form, mass, color, and texture can be viewed, analyzed, and appreciated in many different ways.

Experiencing the beauty of our living spaces in and of itself can be a refuge and level of being which is nurturing, refreshing, and relaxing.

And don’t we need everything we can do to make a stay at home requirement less stressful?

Think about the interior design quality, function, and beauty of where you live.

Food for thought.

Webster: ” position or rank in relation to others”

Even in the evolution of the animal kingdom there is a manifestation of behaviors where by there is a movement to a hierarchy in groups.

Much of this animal behavior was and is based on potential mating and reproduction of the species.

As the human race evolved, this hierarchy took on a life of it’s own and today still plays an important role in the choices and lifestyles of many people.

For example: How many purchases of cars are based exclusively on the mechanics, efficiency, and transportation long term values of a car?

And how many car purchases are based on manufacturer, model, year, style, features, luxury, costs, prestige, extras, et cetera, and what the purchase and driving status of such a car, especially a new car, says about the life style of these purchasers and how other people react to it.

In many societies, old money is considered the highest status regard less of the other factors involved.

Any thing, any place, any behavior, any traits and characteristics, et cetera can be given status in any hierarchy.

The laws of physics and principles of design are not affected by any status.

The level of quality, the successful fulfillment of function, the financial investment, and the aesthetic level determine what is good in residential and other design manifestations.

Status is not a determining factor in the quality of design.

High status does not necessarily mean high quality.

What role does status play in your choices, life style, and the people, situations, and environments you encounter in your existence?

Think about and analyze these factors and elements when encountering the status situations in your life.

Food for thought.

Due to unforeseen circumstances there will not be a new blog this week. We plan to return to regularly scheduled new weekly blogs next week.

Thank you.