Fancy That!

It was a tiny bit insulting to overhear some aunts whispering during a family gathering at my place, "Why does she make everything so FANCY?" It's not like I've decorated my home Liberace style. In fact, my taste runs more to midcentury minimalism. As it turns out, they were referring to my habit of replacing ordinary household items with finer versions of themselves. It never occurred to me that I was being fancy (or that fancy was BAD); spiffing things up seemed as basic as brushing my teeth. Why not make the items you use and look at every day as beautiful as possible?

For example, who wants to see a jumble of vitamin bottles? It may seem like a bother to transfer vitamins from their original plastic containers to apothecary jars—preferably made of dark glass to best preserve nutrients (as you can see, I'm still looking for the perfect ones)—but, in return, for a moment's effort, you're rewarded with something lovely. And don't cotton balls look great in a big covered jar instead of their original plastic bag?

Since the objects on this kitchen shelf are out in plain view, it makes sense to streamline the look by limiting containers to stainless steel or glass. Imagine the clutter if all the products were left in their original packaging.

A pretty honey jar with dripper is nicer to behold (and much neater to use) than the jar from the supermarket.

A little covered container for salt? Better than the Morton’s box!

If I haven't lost you by now, it's easy to increase your fancy quotient right away. For instance: A silver cake stand for fruit on the table is fancier than an ordinary bowl. Mine was my grandmother's, but similar ones can be bought on eBay or at garage sales.

Buying large size containers of dishwashing liquid and transferring the contents to a sleek dispenser is both economical AND fancy!

Bright cloth-covered storage boxes hold magazines and papers out of sight but keep them accessible.

Striped notebooks organize receipts, stray buttons, any small thing you don't want to lose track of.

A wooden model hand will hold rings, necklaces or scarves. Kind of surreal and definitely fancy.—Art and a Half

Comments

[awed]

can you come to my house and organize everything? :)