Rules and Guidelines

Just after the long weekend, a friend said she had quit wearing white for the year because the fashion rule is no white after Labour day.  When we were talking I was wearing my summer uniform: white capris and a white sleeveless blouse. Ten days later I was on the beach; in my mind, summer was not over.  Guidelines are not rules. Here are some  home decor “rules” that are silly and should be ignored, and some guidelines that you can use insead. 

Rule: End tables must match.   

Guideline: Match the era or style of end tables;  match the visual weight and mood; or match the tables, the choice is yours. 

Rule: Wall, door and window trim must be white or natural.

Guideline: If the trim is a focal point of the room, and you want to draw attention to it, paint it a color that contrasts with the walls and floors. If you want it to blend into the wall or floor, paint it a similar color.

Rule: Windows must be covered, or at least have a valance.

Guideline: Decide what you need and proceed from there.  Just because you have a window does not mean you have to cover it. If you install a valance just for the sake of putting something over the window, it will probably look like you put something up just for the sake of putting something up.

Rule: All wood in a room must match. 

Guideline:  Try to limit the different woods to 3, and use wood no more than 5 times in one room. If the table and floor are the same wood, both loose some definition; varying the woods creates interest.

And the grand-daddy of all:

Rule: Wood must never be painted.

Guideline: Do what you want to do but remember that unless the wood is of exceptional quality, is unusual, or very old, paint may be more interesting and more suited to your lifestyle and decor than natural colored wood. Take a moment and think back to the oak-in-every-corner era of the early ’90’s. Enough, already. 

Now for the silly rule of the week award, thanks to MJ at Shuswap Pie Company:

I overheard her explaining to staff which bakery items are HST-able and which are not. The rules say that a cinnamon roll without icing is not taxable. With icing it IS taxable. Yeesh.