By Mi-Ling Stone Poole –

Decorating is a personal choice and my belief has always been that when people are decorating their home they should incorporate items that make them feel comfortable and at ease. I encourage homeowners to use family heirlooms, photographs, and other accessories that make the space a place that they can call home.

Over the years I have become more sensitive and intuitive about why people decorate their homes in a particular style. It’s not uncommon for my friends and colleagues to ask my opinion on a newly decorated space. Sometimes they just want validation that they have designed their space properly.  I also get questions about furniture layout or the selection of colors for walls and drapes.

Recently, I was invited to the home of Dr. Harvey Jenkins, an Orthopedist and the co-owner of BodyTrends Spa.  He wanted me to see the updates he made to his newly purchased home and, of course, he asked my opinion on his choices.

After a tour of his home, I was impressed with his design style. Throughout his home he incorporated a brocade and Italian-inspired décor. But when it came to his living room, I couldn’t help but feel that it reminded me of a funeral parlor. I’m sure it was the beautiful Austrian sheers in his windows that gave me the feeling, because when I was a child, several of our local funeral homes used that style of curtain. However, Austrian curtains, also known as stage curtains, have been used in old theatres for years.

I was reluctant to reveal my thoughts, because after all this is his comfort zone. After I told him my honest opinion he paused, and then it was as if a light went on in his head. He told me that his grandmother owned a funeral home when he was a child and that he was very close to her. And when he and his mother visited the funeral home, those were some of his fondest memories.

It’s interesting to me that when we’re involved in decorating our homes, we usually pull in something from our past that gives us comfort. And quite often we don’t even recognize where this style came from until we dig deeper into our past.

How does your home reflect your childhood or past?

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