Homes aren’t just a place to live and work. We might think of them that way but the truth is that they are worth so much more than that. They can be emotional sanctuaries, fortresses, places to have guests and to meet people. They can be a huge part of you or someone you know chooses to express themselves if they so choose. There are plenty of ways to decorate your home as well, little things you might not have thought of. Let’s take the example of a house somewhere in upstate New York, let’s called the family inside the Ralphs. Now the Ralphs are two parents and three children each with very different design styles and aesthetics. The children are all between 13 and 20 so they are beginning to grow up and need their space. Louis, the older one, is very much into skateboarding and guitar and likes a bit more of a punk aesthetic. His room is decorated with a lot of band posters and the occasional book poster. He’s very kind and polite though and does his best to teach his two younger sisters what he can about life. Mary is only 16 and shes very much into fantasy and science fiction. Her room is decorated with spaceships and swords and she is particularly fond of online video games. Her very fantasy inspired aesthetic mixes well with Louis but it doesn’t quite work for the final one, the youngest of the family. Her name is Terra and she is a big sports fan, especially European football. Her room is filled with posters from her favorite team, memorabilia she bought online and other things related to her favorite sports moments. She favors a green sort of color and aesthetic as opposed to Mary who likes things blue and purple and Louis who likes things black, of course. Now one day the children are called down to talk to their parents. Their parents tell them they will be remodeling the house soon and there are a few things they can help with. They ask what and their parents tell them that they get to help pick out a few new things for their rooms, the kitchen and the patio. So what is it, exactly, that they will be helping with and how best can they do it effectively?
Starting with Lights
The first thing they get to help with is outdoor patio lighting which will dovetail later into holiday lighting. They also get to decide what the path lights look like and what the pond lighting looks like. Louis asks how many path lights they are getting and his father tells him about twenty path lights overall. Mary asks if there are any particular styles they want and their mother tells her that they want something that will let people see and look good with the overall theme of the rest of their house. So the kids get together and talk it out. Terra wants something that will look a little like more miniature stadium lighting but she realizes this will be difficult. Mary wants something that looks like tiny twinkling stars and Louis thinks this will look the best. They take the suggestion back inside and show their parents who agree.
Outdoor Lighting
The next issue the parents want to take care of is the outdoor lighting around the house, specifically the kind away from the path. They give Mary, Louis, and Terra the book of available lights again and they head out to the yard to look through it and decide. These lights are really different from the other path lights and they know they need to decide carefully and make sure that the lights will fit with all of the trees and the small pond on their property. Louis finds some that look like small disco balls but they decide quickly that those wont work at all. Too kitschy and they won’t light the right amount of space. Finally, Terra decides on a few lights that look like soccer balls and they had back inside to show their parents what they’ve picked. The lights will be ready to go shortly!
