Decorating

Another 8 hours. This is the amount of time I spent at Kim’s tonight, re-decorating her bedroom. And I was OH so happy to do it. Considering I have been begging her for the last 5 years to allow me to create a haven for her.

We cleaned off dressers, drilled holes, hung curtains and turned that hodge podge catch all into a “Lounge of Luxury”. It is amazing the way watching a room come together can make you feel. I have re-decorated her living room and dining room. Held her hand as I urged her to let go of the overwhelming amount of Tupperware and Rubbermaid containers in her kitchen. Completely rearranged her office three or four times….I’ve lost count. We’ve re-done the upstairs hall and cleaned out numerous closets. All the while I would gently push (and sometimes shove) her to PURGE PURGE PURGE!!!

You see, Kim is a bit of a “pack-rat”. She just can’t part with anything. I do believe at one point she had seven salt and pepper shakers and three knife blocks in her kitchen. She has Girl Scout paperwork from 10 years ago and candlesticks that she has never used. There are school papers from years back, earrings the size of hubcaps, phonebooks from when we lived stateside, and more key chains than I could ever count. Enter...her best friend. I am a firm believer that memories are in your heart not the item. Honestly people, if it isn’t something you use regularly or that you have a place for, just dump it.

I have to give Kim credit, she has come so far. I now will walk into the house to find yet another box filled for the thrift store. I am so proud! I think she might even toss all the shoes that don’t fit comfortably on her shoe rack.

I must admit, I often find myself wondering why I put so much time, effort and imagination into cleaning & re-decorating Kim’s place when I could be focusing on my own. I suppose it is just more fun to decorate someone elses home.

I do tend to be a bit stingy when it comes to decorating. I don’t really let Kim help much….even if it is her house. She is usually in charge of handing me tools, keeping a full drink in my hand, and standing back to make sure everything is straight (which usually means her saying “I dunno, let me hold it & you look!”)

When I am decorating, I disappear into my own little world. Everything and everyone else seems to mute in my mind and I focus only on the room. Decorating is an art, like painting or composing. I walk into a room and feel the way it should be arranged. I can see the ideas in my mind before I pull them together. It is very comforting to watch someone enjoy living in a room you helped create.

Kim is learning to trust my taste in style. Decorating for her comes easily because we are such great friends. Amazingly, I have found that although I have decorated both her home & mine, they look almost nothing alike. The personalities of the houses are so different. Kim’s has sort of an “island cabana” feel and mine, I’ve been told, is like walking into a “Thai sanctuary”, whatever the hell that means! (Thanks Boon).

The best thing is that once my creative juices get flowing they tend to spill over into my own life. Tomorrow I will likely spend a great deal of time cleaning, purging and working in my bedroom (my latest project). Then I’ll head back over to Kim’s for her finishing touches. Another gratifying day!