I'm redoing my space: bedroom and office combo. In Feng Shui, these two spaces should be separate, but I've got them joint together and the stress from this is a little ridiculous. I realized that with this redesign, many of us have a fear as human beings of looking lived. We want things to be pristine, which works great for a model home, but not so much for life.

This society-driven fear doesn't just apply to homes, but also to our bodies, our face, our hair. The reason anti-age anything exists is because we don't want to look like we've spent time in this most harsh and beautiful world. 

What I learned from my artist friends is that it's ok for your space to look lived in: paint and polaroids everywhere, pencils and books, scarves and shoes. Whatever your thing is, if it's yours, I suppose it's not a terrible thing to see it sprawled across (or neatly organized about) your space.

When it comes down to it, "it's so you" is the most flattering thing to be told. Perhaps because we spend a lot of time making our selves invisible, the moment a hint of life appears and a piece of us shines through, it's glee. 

Lesson of the day: don't be so critical.

People (including myself) are allowed to look like Life Happened.