Into Space 003: The Thing About Curation
hint - it's not about the stuff.
Like most things in life, curating your home turns out better when you take your time. We’ve all heard the advice of just buying items you like and your home will make sense. I agree with this on a surface level, however there is a much deeper layer and art to curation that I have begun to explore. Having your home feel complete and a true representation of your and your life requires fundamental styling techniques and active curation. Much like in a museum, there is a specific, thoughtful, and intentional method that goes into which works are presented, beside which other works of art, and why. Art curators don’t just put up a bunch of paintings and assume it they will compliment each other. This piece is meant to open your mind to how you can curate your home to become your own personal museum.
Slowing Down
There is a beautiful practice in the collecting of objects over the course of your life, for these object will then live in your home with you. When I come across an item I’m drawn to, I’ve gotten in the habit of asking myself questions and analyzing my answers, to uncover the root of my desire for an object.
Why am I drawn to this item?
What do I like about it?
What feeling does this evoke in me?
Some answers could be:
This reminds me of a certain time/place/memory.
I think the material/colour/design is unique/interesting/otherwise pleasing.
This makes me feel comforted/luxurious/sharp/sexy/mature.
Slowing down, taking your time, and definitely not impulse-buying is the often overlooked Step One in the intentional curation of your home. You do not need a single thing from Am*zon, like ever, and you definitely do not need that home item that you didn’t know existed before you opened the Instagram app.
Great news: homes look and feel better when you do less.
Taste
Buy exactly what you want the first time, even if that means saving up for a more expensive purchase. We chase the ‘need it now’ cheap dopamine hit, but 10 times out of 10, the crash after the hit teaches us a lesson in patience, and quality over quantity. When you trust and follow your inherent taste, you allow yourself to get to know, explore, and refine it as you go along. Once you start collecting things that truly align with your taste, everything in your home starts to make sense with each other.
If you used an amazing lemon juicer at your Airbnb in Italy, just buy that one and be done with it. No need to keep trying out different ones, as you’ve just found one that is functional, likely beautiful, and holds a special memory of that time you were in Italy. Similar to the choice paralysis one can feel with the seemingly endless supply of available singles on dating apps, the idea that there could be a better option out there, dilutes your ability to make a confident and committed choice. Trust your taste and start exercising clear, sound decision making (I am referring to home items here but this can also be applied as dating advice.)
Slowly collecting until you come across the perfect piece: A joy that can easily be considered a chore if you lose sight of the big picture or otherwise don’t hold strong in sourcing your dream piece. My Bar Cart1 started as 3 stools lined up in a row for about 4 months until I found the perfect sideboard. I was tempted many times to buy a shitty one in the meantime, instead I turned the impulse to buy into motivation to search, find, and collect the most perfect piece. I will likely have this piece for the rest of my life.
Inspiration
Don’t simply copy + paste your inspiration. Take a step back and search for your why. In that Pin: Why do you want that coffee table, what do you like about it? Do you like that it’s square, heavy, made of wood, made of glass? Engage your brain and uncover something new about yourself and your taste by following your own unique intuition. Copy + pasting something you see on Pinterest will never be what you want it to be, as context is everything, in a psychological sense. Some things work in spaces because they are Parisian flats, which would not look the same in a suburban pre-fab builder home. Not to say you can’t have antique French furniture if you live in a white-walled, grey-floored home in suburbia, but you have to consider your context. Follow the draw you have to things you find inspiring, and that will reveal something deeper. Or maybe it’s telling you to move to Paris.
Your Life Through Objects
Whether you realize it or not, you share a connection with every item you own. These represent what you value. If your home is filled with garbage from a TikTok ad, it communicates to yourself and others that quality is not a priority, you are easily influenced by what you see online, and have no confident sense of personal identity.
Harsh, I know. Fear not: if your home is filled with natural materials, well-built furniture, interesting pieces and patterns, items with a story (i.e things that are old), this communicates and reflects that you value quality, design, and have a vibrant life. Goals!
Everyone owns a bit or bob from H+M, Zara, or Wayfair, but I would implore you to uncover why you want that mass produced, shiny brand new thing, and if you could find it vintage or thrifted. Spoiler: you can! The issue with these new items is —second to from exploiting humans and the environment for their production — is that they lack soul. A vintage, handmade lamp, has a soul. When you own vintage pieces, and interact with them, they interact back to you. They enhance your environment, and therefore wellbeing. I believe this can be best conceptualized as your home giving you a big hug. A home full of all mass-produced items cannot hug you.
To level up your home, you have to go within. That’s why not everyone has an awesomely curated home, because it requires effort and an ongoing conversation with yourself (read: it’s hard, lol) Your home is an expression of you, just as much as your clothing is. Homes that are amazing are the physical representation of what their inhabitants feel like on the inside. To accurately portray your spiritual self into a physical reality, it requires you to know yourself very intimately.
It can really be so simple: to have an amazing home, all you have to do is what you want. Choose objects what you like, don’t be swayed by what you see being sold to you on Instagram. Be intelligent, intentional, curious, and open to listening and learning about yourself deeply.
Where to start
I leave you with some challenges and thought prompts to spark your home curation journey, or to uncover more about your whys and what you are naturally drawn to.
Bring something sentimental that you already own to style your coffee table. See how it feels to see that special item all the time, and enjoy other’s reactions to it when they come over.
Find inspiration for a new decor piece from your usual source (Instagram, Pinterest, H&M home, etc.) and practice describing it’s essence to eBay or Etsy search. Source it from a vintage reseller, thrift store, or handmade. Just read a great article about this for jewellery2.
Add a small lamp somewhere unexpected, and turn it on when the sun goes down. Some placement ideas to get you started: kitchen counter, bathroom vanity, living room side table.
Good luck!
XO, B
