• Sunday, January 7, 2007

    Kitsch & Tchotchkes Taste Patrol: If we don't do it, who will?

    You know it when you see it: Kitsch or tchotchkes. Kitsch consists of objects lacking in so much taste that your first reaction is to laugh (or suppress your humor if your hostess is proud of that shaggy pink chair with elephant feet.) In this land of plenty where we can shop ‘till we drop, our eyes are constantly assailed by objects of dubious taste and quality. Chia Pets, tire planters, shaggy dice dangling from rear view mirrors, and starving artists paintings are the most obvious examples.

    We can overload on too much of a good thing as well. Question: How many Lalique or Baccarat crystal objects can one cram into a room before crossing the line of good taste? Answer: Not as many as you think.

    Often our possessions own us and we wind up filling our interior spaces with STUFF. Tchotchkes are often those tiny useless hostess gifts we receive with monotonous regularity, or collectibles that seem to breed exponentially in front of our eyes like a warren of rabbits. Think Victorian Era, and you have a pretty good idea of what I mean. Sometimes the worst tchotchkes offenders are professional designers who can’t leave well enough alone, adding plants, vase groupings, candles, candy dishes, overstuffed pillows, and a series of framed prints where none are needed.

    By and large our Top Designer won’t be guilty of these failings. Their innate taste, training, and good sense will dismiss such bad notions before they take root. However, during the heat of competition, some might be tempted to use unnecessary fillers to hide an unfinished space or add fussy details at crunch time. We are ready for them and ever vigilant in spotting these lapses should they arise.

    As the season wears on, we will use our special Hula Man Bobble Rating System designed just for this blog:















    For example, should one of our designers get the bright idea to use this toilet bowl seat, I would most definitely give it The Bobble Won’t Wobble rating. That seat should be returned. Not even a debate.

    Posted: Ms. Place

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    5 Comments:

    Blogger Linda Merrill said...

    First, I'd like to thank you for including my link on your page. I've placed your link on mine. Second, I take exception to the overstuffed pillows comment! Personal fave or personal failing of mine, I'm not sure now! Third - totally agree on the toilet seat cover. The husband of a client of mine brought one just like it home one day - it even had fish hooks embedded in the lucite! Yikes. He, and his seat, were banned to a lav at the far end of the house!

    January 7, 2007 at 2:42 PM  
    Blogger BigAssBelle said...

    oh geeze, that reminds me of a some platforms i had in 1978 ~ goldfish space in the heel, though i couldn't do it to the fish and just added marbles.

    i am a girl of excess. too much is never enough. but even with my obsession for lush comfort in home decor, i find myself about once a year feeling irritable and cranky and at loose ends. it's because too much has actually become too much and i must clear it out.

    i am in no way a minimalist. and doubt that i ever could be. it appeals, but not for my own living space. i love romance and a lived in look and a pull-up-a-chair-and-a-pillow by the fire and let's have a cup of coffee rooms.

    so it will be interesting and i can't wait!! what fun!!

    January 7, 2007 at 2:56 PM  
    Blogger The Team of TDB said...

    Hi gals! Nice to see your comments.
    Linda, I meant stuffed pillows in excess-to the point of ridiculousness and such a number that one can no longer find a place to sit. (I slid on the floor off one satin couch last summer because there was no seating space left!)

    OBTW, I received a similar toilet seat for Christmas. My giftor said it was just a joke, but goodness, what am I gonna do with the thing?

    January 7, 2007 at 3:27 PM  
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    I believe you need a fourth category, reserved for particularly heinous pieces of drek like your example.

    No bobble heads: BURN IT! BURN IT NOW! KILL IT WITH FIRE!

    January 8, 2007 at 8:24 AM  
    Blogger Vic said...

    Funny, doodles, will keep it in mind!

    January 8, 2007 at 10:31 AM  

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