Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Blogging Lies and Crazy Patchwork

I have a deep suspicion about bloggerdom: I believe that many of the photos that we see of artfully-arranged living rooms with distressed furniture and shabby chic assessoires are total bunkum. Clearly, a blog's function is to provide not a mirror to the world you inhabit, but a mirror to the world you would like your readers to think you inhabit. Behold my living room:


Oh, Gingerbread Lady (you say), you are clearly a lover of the minimalist look. Those stark walls. The simple window dressing. That bed-sofa - making a bold statement to the world: "Cushions? Who needs 'em?"

Sadly, this is not my life at all. This is all a lie - a lie, I tell you! I took this photo stemming a tidal wave of clutter, which I had stacked on the armchair behind me for aesthetic purposes. The bed is actually a sofa, but at some point we realised that we very much valued its abilities to support afternoon naps, so it hasn't been folded back up into its sofa-position since then.  We don't have anything hanging on the walls because, after two and a half years, we still haven't decided upon the final, Happily-Ever-After position of our living room furniture and don't want to hang our paintings and photos yet - just in case. We're not ready for the commitment. If you think that's bad, then take a gander at our wedding photo ->
Oops, yes. Well, we have the frame. That's a start.

In the midst of all of this, we live quite happily. But as I'm sure you have plenty of clutter of your own (please say you have), I'm sure you don't need to see photos of mine - so I'll give you the Nice Version of my living room instead. And, being the honest soul that I am, I'm telling you about it, too.

By the way, you might have noticed that I finished my Crazy Patchwork blanket - yes, yes, that's it draped casually over my ... um, divan - juxtaposed against my stark, Shaker-inspired interior décor, with a nuance of shabby chic in its vintage retro-ness. (Believe it. You know you want to.)

"Why, Gingerbread Lady - you're so fancy!"  "Yes. Yes, I am. Fancy is my middle name."

18 comments:

Voie de Vie said...

If you're happily living in your two-years-of-indecision space, that's all that counts. :)

Nice blanket!

lissa said...

doesn't every blogger clean their spaces before taking a photo? I know I would do that. who wants to see a mess? I wouldn't. not eve my own.

lovely patchwork blanket. have a lovely autumn.

Kelly said...

Love, Love, Love your writing!! So true yet funny and so well written. Thanks for sharing your life/crocheting adventures with us.

Rachel said...

Oh yes, we have clutter. I just emptied a room so I could take the floor up. All the stuff from that room had to be spread around the rest of the house. My house is so cluttered that it didn't make a noticeable difference. That stuff included a spinning wheel, treadle sewing machine and a piano!

Oh, and Gingerbread Lady? You're so fancy! ;-)

patrysia said...

Exactly why there are no panoramic photos of or in my house, just close ups. But I can live with a remarkable level of dirt and dust and clutter, so it's fine by me. As my mom always says: people come to visit you in your house, not your things. If they've come to visit your things, do you really want them to visit you?

Patty, living in the dust capital of the world

JUDICA said...

HOLA ,PAEANDO POR BLOG ,ENCONTRE EL TUYO,YA SOY TU SEGUIDORA,SOY DE MONTEVIDEO,URUGUAY. ME APASIONO TU MANTA BABETTE ,LA ESTOY TEJIENDO, ME ENCANTARIA PODER PONER EL NOMBRE EN DONDE LA VI O SEA EL DE TU BLOG,DARTE LOS CREDITOS NECESARIOS . SIN MAS TE SALUDO ATENTAMENTE JUDITH
PUEDES ESRIBIRME A MI CORREO,judith.pedetti@gmail.com

JUDICA said...

OHHHH,QUE ALEGRIA!! MUCHISIMA GRACIAS !! ESTOY EN LA MITAD MANTA,EN UNOS DIA LA POSTEO! UN ABRAZO DESDE MONTEVIDEO,URUGUAY.
PD: MI INGLES ES PESIMO!!
GRACIAS ,GRACIAS!! JUDITH

Tanya said...

I suffer badly from blog picture envy when I see pictures of homes which are sickeningly beautifully arranged.

Nice to know I'm not the only one! I rarely remove the clutter from behind my photos, such is life!

Katie K said...

Be brave, hang up a picture or two or three. Or some knitting! You can always change your mind.

Tempewytch said...

I'm another blogger that shoves as much as possible out of shot, but I am sorry to say that a lot of shots have "stuff" in them!

The blanket is wonderful by the way.

Chain Stitch Crochet said...

Clutter you say? Sadly yes...my crochet clutter. But hey..I know where everything is! :o)

SARITHA@RAINBOWBUNTING said...

I do the same thing, Push all clutter to the side before taking pics!!:)I lovvvve your patchwork blanket!!

Sue said...

We all tidy up our lives before we snap a shot don't we!
My lounge has two very different colour schemes on each sofa. I know shocking isn't it!
Love your gorgeous blanket though such pretty colours.

Annie Cholewa said...

As long as my friends can get through the front door and find somewhere to sit (often only after they've fought off a few whippets) I don't consider the place cluttered, just lived in ;D

KinnicChick said...

Oh bless you. Have not yet hung a SINGLE photo in our place (been there since 2007!) and it is a serious clutter zone. Notice all of my photos are extreme close ups. Until DH insisted on the photos of my working the last few blocks in the other night. GAH! The clutter! The mess! The dust! LOL

Thank you for this post. Seriously. Thank you. :) LOVE your patchwork.

Anne said...

I absolutely love your Patcchwork blanket. It is motivating me to finish one I started last month. The colours you used are so pretty. And about clutter, well, lets just say I craft therefore I clutter!! :) Happy Day !

Red Hen (dette) said...

I love your honesty. I often laugh to myself as I push the clutter to one side but I have also felt compelled to share my clutter in a bout of honesty. I made myself a klimt rug a few years back when I picked up a crochet hook after a 30 year hiatus, it has been so well loved in my loungeroom and I fear that my joins may not have been as secure as they should and it has developed some holes, Your tutorial has inspired me to make a new one.

Paula said...

What a beautiful, beautiful blanket, I really like how colourful it is and the crazy patchwork effect.