second thoughts...

tamar had asked us to each take photos of our favorite room for the home decor style studio so i, of course, chose my kitchen.  i love my kitchen.

so i cleaned out the dishes & wiped off the fingerprints, got it all spic & span for the camera.  then i started editing out the not so chic stuff.  making it all pretty.  striving to imitate those photos you see in country living magazine or something.

and it looked great.  

but a little too great.

i noticed it as i was putting it all back together.  the way we really live.  

where the heck would i toast up tater tots?  i removed the crappy toaster oven for the photo.  & if the kids needed a pencil, where would they get it?  what about that prescription i need to get where is it?  i removed the cups & clips from the side of the fridge (our fridge isn't magnetic on the front unfortunately).  ryan needs his water bottle for football practice, where did it go?  i removed the dish drainer where it sits to dry out between washings.  the cutting board is gone where i prepare all of the snacks & meals...the bananas got moved...the tea kettle mike bought me for mother's day was gone...kate's little paper plate daisy wasn't there...

what i had done & taken photos of, it wasn't real.  all that editing & it wasn't "my" kitchen anymore & it wasn't any place our family would love so much.  i had created a catalog type photo...but i don't live in a catalog.

& i started to think about what the heck i was doing.  what am i ashamed of?  who am i trying to impress?  what kind of message am i trying to send?  that i'm all that & a bag of chips?  that the regular everyday stuff & fingerprints & messes don't occur in my house?  

i know when i peek around the web & see those pristine living spaces that are just *perfect*, i immediately turn on myself a bit.  "geez, they seem to have it all together.  she gets all the cleaning done.  her house isn't overwhelmed in kid clutter.  what am i doing wrong?  why isn't my house as color coordinated & neat & fabulous?"  wha...wha...whaaaaaaaa.....

hello inner phycho critic that expects supermom & will accept nothing less...

the truth is we are doing the best we can with what we've got.  we live in a tiny house with crap spilling out all over the place.  not everything coordinates.  i'm too indecisive & overwhelmed to get to it.  i am pretty obsessive about keeping the countertops clean & clear (ask mike...lol), they were our big splurge when we got the kitchen redone almost 2 years ago so i'm a bit wacko about them.  but still...life (& lots of spills & fingerprints) happens here.

& if you stopped by today for a cup of coffee, this is what you would find:

 

and one of the things that makes me smile every single day....

kate & kelly painted these rocks a couple years ago at our school's art expo night.  i use them to keep the napkins from blowing all over the place when the windows are open & we've got one of those nice breezes blowing through.  they do a great job & are pretty darn awesome if you ask me.  :)

 

so there ya go :) 

oh & by the way...anyone have a great tip for removing those fingerprints from the stainless?  we get a lot of them :)

happy monday :)

xoxo

gi

Comments

[Dellie]

I can see why you love your kitchen. I think a house with life showing in it is beautiful, you can always have the perfect before shots, but I think its the imprints of each personality that lives in each space that counts

[kl]

yea, the second kitchen. much better :)
and we've had so many convos about that crap
so i won't repeat what you already know ;)
love ya
xoxo

[Sian]

Beautiful kitchen. I use a microfibre cloth for getting out fingerprints -it just uses water, no detergent.

[Chris Dodaj]

Your kitchen is gorgeous!!

[erin]

Love you!

[Kara]

i think i'd like to stop by for a cup of coffee. ;)

and i think this is brave and wonderful of you. <3

[Helen]

Yay you! I HATE those blogs that try to paint life as 'magazine perfect': life simply isn't like that! There WILL be mess in a house with children. And YAY for the mess - in all too few years, when they're all grown up, there won't be any mess any more and it sure will be missed then. Enjoy it while its there, I say :) They grow up all too soon, unfortunately :(

[tracy rivas]

Love the lived in kitchen! It's still cleaner than mine! :)

[Patty S]

what a great post. you hit the nail on the head.
such pressure we put on ourselves thanks to magazines, be it home or fashion or beauty.
i think they should put a huge disclaimer across the front of every pretty pretty magazine: "enjoy the eye candy within, but realize that it is all set up by a professional stylist, air brushed, phtotshopped and in no way reflects true life. do not get down on yourself because you can not live up to these images, nor should you."
my house looks just like yours, gigi. in fact, i just came in from the kitchen to take a break from cleaning the ever present clutter. crumbs, dog hair, paper scraps, odd and ends toys, books, legos... they are all tumbling around out there!
enjoy your weekend!
xoxoxoxo :-)

[Janet]

So true Gigi. Do we want a house or a home....give me a home any days. I want my kids to visit with the grandkids and be able to relax. The only room that gets the door locked....and it is not out of bounds when Nan is with them...is the craft room...just tooooo much temptation.

[jill]

i like your 'second' lot of pictures best because it looks like a mum lives there.

[Suzitee]

Good on you, Gigi, for keeping it real :)
I know all about the expectations, and the striving for perfectionism. I like your second shots much better...they say "a family lives here".
I use Windex and a piece of paper towel to clean my stainless steel...works a treat :)

[DaniH]

Everything you wrote was so true.... Thank you for keeping it real.

[Lyndal]

Gorgeous kitchen Gigi :) Looks more inviting when it's lived in :)
I use a great product called "Daily Shower" for keeping those fingerprints at bay. It's a non-toxic & biodegradable glass cleaner - even the bottle is 100% recycled and 100% recyclable - and it works LOL!!!!

[Thea]

I agree that the second set of photos looks like real life. Still really neat and tidy though and certainly nothing to be ashamed of. Super neat kitchens look like no one lives there. As you say in your post, they look like like a catalogue advertisement. Even worse are the ones where every decorative knick knack is out on display, creating 'vignettes'. What do these people feed their families? Frozen food reheated in the microwave?

[caro]

... a thin paste of lemon juice & bicarbonate of soda, with a light touch of rubbing ...

[Alison]

I love your kitchen! Love it :) It's beautiful.