Using Decor to Reflect Your Identity

This is an IHart podcast. guuaranteed human This is Laura Vander Kam from Be Breakfast. A good summer morning starts at the sink And that's where hello comes in pace that brightens your routine and brings a little yay here every day. Some days you may reach for Hello's anti plaque and whitening toothpaste where Tartter doesn't really stand a chance. Other days, it's the Hello Vitamin C whitening toothpaste See you later, Staines Thoughtfully designed with no SLS, dyes or artificial flavors Th these toothpastes are a no brainer to have on hand this summer Find your everyday Yay withith Hello in store or online at helloroducts. com Welcome to Before Breakfast. Production of IHart Radio Good morning This is Laura Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast Today's tip is to think about the stories your home tells you anyyone who visits by consciously choosing these stories. You can create an atmosphere that feels good And that reinforces the identities that matter to you Today's tip like another later this week comes from Emily Grovenner's book. Find yourself at home A conscious approach to shaping your space End your life Groner starts from the premise that, as she puts it Home is a place of great power and purpose And when you shape it consciously, It shapes you back I haven't studied design or Feng Sui, as Grovenner has. We do know that our homes can have a big impact on how we feel. Now, not everyone spends a ton of time or energy thinking about their living quarters. Perhaps you have seen that photo that occasionally goes viral online of a young man's living room featuring a single recliner S a few feet in front of a television But once you have decided to put some effort into your home Making sure that the effort creates an environment that tells the stories you want it telling This requires a little more thought. For instance, most people put something on the wall near their entranceway What is it It could be something generic. Or perhaps it could be a photograph of waves on the sand The beach you' visited most summers since you were a child meemory sparking photo will tell a more rich story than something that is not connected to your past Plenty of people display family photographs, but what stories do those tell? A stiff formal portrait of your grandmother might tell a less accurate story than one that shows her a little rumpled but laughing in her garden which is where she loved to spent her time Nacks and things like that from your travel can also tell stories Now this doesn't mean that you need to display a miniature leaning tower of piza somewhere. Instead, the story of your travels in Italy could be evoked by a glass dish holding sea glass that you picked up from the beach there You know what stories the Sealass tells And if a guest asks about the Ca glass You can tell her those stories too Even your furniture and room layout, Grovenner says, tells stories A Big round table evokes warm gatherings over meals shhelves of books. S you like to read Groner also explains the Feng hui perspective that a particular part of your home is about influence Fame or reputation. She suggests decorating the area associated with your influenc or work in ways that embody you as you want to be seen. As more of us work in our home offices, this is more important than ever before I have a lot of bookshelves in my office, but I reserved one particular section. O book remind me about that Another showcases my collection of miniatures which is a long standing interest of mine and gives me a thrill every time I see it Anyone coming into my office, comments on the miniatures too I mean we're talking a miniature piano A miniature washer and dryer. a miniature dishwasher and refrigerator and all that We've probably all been to houses that really feel like the people who live there ' probably also been to places like the apartment with a single recliner In addition to wondering where you are supposed to sit, it just gives a one dimensional picture of whoever's there This person likes to watch TV. What interests them Who knows With some attention to the stories your home tells. You can let your home be a window into who you are It can also remind you of the parts of your identity that you love the most If you think about stories your home or your workspace tells, I'd love to hear about it. You can reach me Laura att Laura Vanderkam In the meantime