Great Back-Stories Makes Buying Fun

 Great Back-Stories make buying fun.  What's a Back-Story?  It's the story behind an object or product.  In your home it's the objects that family and friends are drawn to.  The objects that stimulate questions as to their origin.  And, you immediately begin relaying the story behind the item . . . its history, who gave it to you, where you purchased it.  Did you find it on vacation?  These Back-Stories then become the Front-Story.

Mother Nature . . . First Place in Design Creation!

 Have you noticed the resurgence of Geometric shapes trending in?  It is the influence of Nature fanned by our awareness and concern for the environment.  Many of the designs appear to be plucked directly from historic, architectural elements seen in cathedrals and castles.  But guess who inspired the Gothic and Renaissance artists, artisans and architects?  That's right . . . Mother Nature.  This puts the consumer in touch with nature. 

 Throughout history man has been fascinated by Nature which has always held great mysteries.  The philosophers saw our lives as paralleling Nature's cycle of life.  Stonehenge is homage to Nature's wisdom of the seasons.  The moon's cycles guided early man's sowing and harvesting of crops. There's been continual intrigue as to how a bee hive is created, how a spider spins its web or what pigments color a butterfly's wings.   

Colors and Textures of Farmhouse Chic

The farm evokes strong feelings of honesty, purity, and function.  A feeling of continuity and self-sufficiency.  Of being one with nature.  It's Nature and Nurture.  Caring for the environment and caring for each other.  And, it feels very American.  Like Victory Gardens of the WW II era, vegetable gardens are poised for a strong come-back, thanks to a world trending toward earth-friendliness, a movement to self-sufficiency and Michelle Obama. Thinking of Farmhouse one conjures thoughts of no-frills, no-nonsense thrift . . . farmers were practicing Frugal Chic before it was Chic!

 Colors of Farmhouse, trending in for 2011 and beyond, are fertile and ever so evocative of times past.  Close your eyes.  Envision a gorgeous blue sky, bright sunshine, rich dark brown soil, gardens laden with succulent veggies and a dazzling array of flowers, fields of green and rolls of hay.  And, don't forget to include black and white Holsteins grazing on pesticide-free grass.

Vintage is the new luxury and consumers are searching out beautiful imperfections.  Simple, natural, authentic. Is it the times? Is it a modern backlash? The aged looked is definitely making a comeback. 

We've realized that material wealth is not the answer to happiness.  2009 has been a year of reflection as to what is really important.  2009 has been a year of redefining luxury as we consumers have changed our buying and spending habits. 

Vintage furniture (be it a reproduction or from an antique store, resale shop, or a tag sale) infuses character and history to a room.  It is casually elegant, blending with most any décor . . . for it coexists with both antique and contemporary decor.   It's a new definition of beauty with a lot more character allowing for individualized looks.  A vintage piece can anchor a room, looking like it has always been there.  Painted, it can act as a bridge connecting other colors and elements in a room. 

Vintage pieces become conversation pieces for they possess legitimate flaws (pre-dinged, pre-scratched or pre-dented) making a room comfortable and cozy.  Everyone feels more relaxed for they won't be the first to blight the finish!  

Euro Country and Farmhouse Chic . . . a retreat to reality!

Street Beat . . . there's always a surprise on city streets

Marketing 101 - Honey for Sale, We Sell Honey, Honey is Us

 How can you be innovative selling a commodity?  Honey can be any product that without proper marketing and merchandising just falls flat!  Every grocery store sells honey, as do most farmers markets.  But that's all they do . . . sell honey.  Using Honey as the Case Study in Marketing 101, how can you be innovative selling a commodity?  KIS, as in Keep It Simple.  Be informative.  Be obvious in your packaging/labeling.

Is it your House or your Home?  One is an empty canvas.  The other is a soul-revealing portrait.  Home is a sanctuary, a place for quiet moments of reflection.  Home is a living memory book of tears and laughter.  Home is a shelter for our souls. 

With everyone feeling their wallets pinched, we are spending more time at home, entertaining with both family and friends.  Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "The ornament of a house is the friends who frequent it." 

Frugal-Chic is definitely the new black!  To quote a cartoon in The New Yorker, "Finally!  Cheap is the new black."  Everyone is looking for creative ways to save money without hurting their present standard of living; that is, without hurting it too much.  Tighter budgets offer the opportunity to focus on how you want to live your life; assess what's most important and determine those things that you can live without.  Challenging economic times often result in extraordinary creativity.  Our current situation certainly allows us the opportunity to let our imaginations run wild!   As Gandhi said, "You must be the change you wish to see in the world."

Whether you call it Metro-country or Country-politan, it's pure City-Chic with a European flavor and a bit of ethnic spice thrown in.  It's a compilation of classical elements, sensual textures and unquestionably it is timeless tradition being presented in a fresh new way. 

 "Is it the times?  Is it the modern backlash?  The 'aged' look makes a comeback, and we don't mean a little chipped white paint . . .," says House Beautiful, March 2009.