A Brief History of Wall Storage

I thought summer would bring me more chances to blog, but we've been gone off and on pretty much since it started. Everything we've been up to has been fun, but it feels like as soon as we unpack from one trip, we are back to packing for another! In fact, in just about an hour, we are leaving again for a weekend excursion to the Poconos with my immediate family. It should be a great trip and we are really looking forward to it. However, we are leaving again once we return from there (I know, we're crazy but this is the only time we have to travel since my husband is a teacher and can't take time off during the school year). That being said, I'd love to get a quick post up about something I love...decorating.

I wish I was better at decorating - my love for it mostly stems from countless hours looking wistfully at Pottery Barn catalogs and dreaming of what could be...if and when we win the lottery.

My copy of Good Housekeeping's Guide to Successful Homemaking has a whole section devoted to decorating, discussing all different types of furniture for each room of the home, providing pictures galore. Today, I will focus on bookcases, cabinets, and break fronts; I will include pictures as close as possible to the ones in my GH Guide as well as ones I've been eyeing...in my dreams, of course!

The picture at the top of the post is a Sheraton bookcase in cross-grain veneer. English, c. 1800.

Above (right) is a provincial wall cabinet in Louis XV style. Open shelves on top, graceful panels on lower portion. French, c. 1770.

It's interesting to note that each of these pieces as well as those pictured in the Good Housekeeping Guide are more or less what you would find in 1950's homes. Were antiques that popular for that long? Indeed, they are still popular today, but I guess it all depends on where you look. It seems that decor has gotten much simpler - clean lines and practicality abound more in today's furniture. For example, the picture above (left) is obviously reminiscent of the antique style but some would consider the Pottery Barn piece more functional for today's lifestyles. It's all a matter of taste, I suppose.

I guess the important thing is no matter what style you choose, be sure to choose wisely - big pieces like these are expensive. However, with a little extra TLC, these pieces can last a lifetime. I suppose that's a post for another day, though! Happy decorating (or in my case, dreaming)!