Old Brown Furniture, The Grateful Dead, My Mom Painted Everything but the Baby
My first Interior Design class in college, way back when, the first assignment to us newbie designers was one that we would have an investment in, to design your own bedroom. Almost everyone in the 10 person class used brown furniture. That is how pervasive the brown furniture was. We couldn’t see past it.
Now I am way past it. Our parent’s furniture is what is frequently referred to as brown furniture. Not just for the color, usually wood, but as a description of a way that previous generations looked at home furnishings. They saved for and then bought their furniture once. It was good sturdy stuff, made of wood (hence the brown) and they lived with it all their lives. Notice the Grateful Dead décor on top of the mirror
Old brown furniture with a Grateful Dead twist
My own mom was ahead of the curve. As an artist she painted all the furniture in our house various colors of green, purple, pink and turquois. When my daughter was a baby the joke was we were afraid to leave her with Grandma as Grandma might paint her if she stayed still too long.
It is not just furniture. It’s the silver, the china, the family items that someone considers a treasure and someone considers a pain to take care of. I have vivid memories of polishing silver as a kid. I made a vow that I would never have anything silver that needed all that maintenance.
This change of approach to furniture and accessories has been helped by stores like Ikea. IKEA. At one time most of my house was Ikea furniture. As those pieces slowly lost all their right angles it has been replaced. But it was fun, affordable, nicely designed and not anything like what my parents or their friends had in their homes.
A recent article in the New York Times is bluntly “Aging Parents with Lot’s of Stuff and Children Who Don’t Want it”. The New York Times. There are many other articles dating back several years. So what to do?
In the case of furniture that really is brown I recommend to clients that they have it chalk painted. It is easy, attractive and there is a growing cottage industry of artisans whop do a really nice job with chalk painting. The furniture is then either saleable or maybe a relative will see it with new eyes. Check out chalk painting here: Annie Sloan
In the case of other belongings, you can call a Productivity and Organizing Professional for help. Contact National Association Professional Organizers for an organizer in your area NAPO. In northeast Florida or south east Georgia contact GYST* Solutions
Contact GYST* Solutions for Home Staging, Professional Organizing, Interior Design, Office Design, Home Staging CE courses, Master Sales Strategy, 34 Minute Time Management
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