Practicing What You Preach

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Over the last two years I have been preaching to you about the importance of following my three simple rules when decorating your home. Let's revisit these rules:

Start with a floor plan. This will tell you what furniture you need to buy. It will also show you the size and shape of furniture you will need. And take your floor plan with you when you shop for your furniture. This will help keep you focused on those items that you truly need.
Purchase your items in the correct order. Purchase your large items first, followed by medium sized pieces, and finally your small pieces (like accessories) last. Every decision should be based on the previous decision. Purchasing your items in the correct order will help you avoid costly mistakes.
Never buy what you like, buy only those items that you truly love. Buying items that you love is both smart and practical, because you will be surrounding yourself with things that you will keep forever and cherish them for a lifetime.

Take a look at the pictures. My master suite was designed by using the same simple rules. First, I started with my floor plan. This let me know what items I needed, and the size and shape those items needed to be. Second, I purchased my items in the correct order starting with the bed. Let me give you a little history lesson on my bed. This particular bed was imported from overseas by a drug dealer by the name of Diamond Betsy. Back in the early 70's she would hide drugs in shipping containers that contained antique furniture and then import them to Nashville. Unfortunately for Betsy she got caught and was sent to prison. The authorities auctioned off all of her processions here in Nashville. At the time I was in my late teens when I first saw this bed at the auction. I remember thinking that I loved that particular bed and wished that I had the money to purchase it. Several years later, I met the gentleman who actually purchased that bed. He couldn't use it because it was eight and half feet tall and his ceiling height at his home was only eight feet high. So he stored it in his garage for several years until he decided to sell it, and that's when I purchased it from him. He obviously did not have a floor plan (Rule #1), and ended up having to sell a piece he had bought on a whim (Rule #3). Alas, his costly mistake allowed me to purchase an item that I truly love. I'm a collector of beautiful things and I've been collecting beautiful things for most of my life. My first antique purchase took place when I was sixteen years old. It was a Copeland Bisque piece that I loved and still cherish today. Keep in mind that I have been collecting these items over time. I didn't go out and purchase it all at once. I like to stress to my clients that when you purchase items that you love you will always love them and you will never get tired of them. Over the years I have redecorated my master suite several times by changing my wall treatment, bed coverings, draperies, and lamp shades. I don't believe in starting completely over if you love your furnishings. Simple updates can keep your rooms looking fresh and current without breaking the bank. Which brings me to another theme I touched on over the past few years, when decorating your home, its not about the amount of money that you spend, its about making smart choices with the money you have to spend. I truly believe this, and I try and follow my own advice in my personal decorating. As you can see, I practice what I preach.