I usually dont hang on to things that start to look shabby, I was never into the shabby chic style of decorating. I can appreciate it in someone else's home but not mine. I usually think awhile before replacing large items, always looking to find something I love. Things I love I would never replace even if they went they out of style. It is the things I buy on impulse that I usually end up replacing but those are usually accessories not the big stuff.

I have been tempted to buy from craig's list lately seeing all the great stuff people buy but now that I saw the dr oz show about bedbugs and such, I dont think I would buy used. My husband is a saver, I am a spender, so we make a good team. I keep us from living in a shack with all the money in the bank, he keeps us from living in a manson with no money in the bank. ;>)

1. Well so far I replaced my first set of LR curtains a couple months after buying them. I didn't realize there was more to it than matching colors. Fabric, weight, texture etc all play a role! That was an expensive boo boo. I'm ready to replace my bedroom curtains after 1 1/2 years. Also not real cheap. Why I just didn't pay the little bit of extra money for the 96" panels so I could raise the rod is beyond me. At that time I thought I could beat the raised curtain rod thing that was being implanted in my head from hanging out here. :) Well, they look horribly squatty now but I decided to wait until I got to that room for decorating. (Thought by picking a "neutral curtain I wouldn't need to change them when that time came - *eye roll*) I'm itching to repaint my foyer/hall to a lighter rich cream color that was originally suggested but I thought I wanted "color". Don't get me wrong, it's a nice shade but looks way too much like my connected LR. The paint will stay for many years because it was such a pain to do with the stairs and that was only about 5 months ago!

2. Yes and yes. I also find myself frozen by waiting on other people depending on what it is. Patience isn't something that comes easy/natural to me.

3. So far I like what I've accumulated. I don't look at decorating magazines because my mind is already on decorating overload from hanging out here! I do find myself drooling over someone's space with a completely different color scheme than me but then once I try and picture it in my own home, that paint or couch on my walls, I realize it just doesn't fit. I've also really realized how much I love architecture in home and mine has none. :(

4. I mentioned to DH about "someday, many years from now when we remodel the kitchen..." He was shocked and apparently thinks people don't change things, ever. Ha. Whooooo boy. So I'm going to say paint. I started with a pretty blank slate. I'd say after you start accumulating stuff and your walls are no longer white it's very hard (financially) to create a whole new style. Then there's that attachment to things. I think I got side tracked with this question . . .

5. I honestly don't look too often anymore. Or JUST look for items I could use (Where are you tufted leather ottoman?). I don't need another end table or chair and I don't want to see one at a great price that's tempting.

6. n/a

7. When I was a young teen if I didn't buy the name brand whatever from the store it was a crime. I even thought it was important to have the "pretty hair dryer". Now, I happen to like saving money! My $15 CL wingback chair made me squeal with glee. Actually most of my CL buy did.

I love the thrill of the hunt! I love to find something sturdy and cheap, that I can repaint or stain and make useful in my home. Once I no longer need it, I part with it by selling it or giving it away. I don't have alot of money in it and I got some very good use out of it. I have, however made some mistakes. I feel guilty about those and try to sell them and not give them away. My biggest mistake was buying our sectional. It is a lovely color, chocolate brown, and is a perfect fit, but it has 2 reclining ends. That would be fine, in fact it is what we wanted but it makes the sectional uncomfortable to lay on. I custom ordered the color so I couldn't return it. it was a $2,000. mistake. Ouch. So we are keeping it and making due with it. I hate to admit it but I let the kids jump all over it. I kind of wish they would break it real bad so we HAVE to get a new one. Isn't that awful!

Although I love looking at decorator magazines, I find that they make me feel unsatisfied with what I have. I actually feel better about our home when I don't look at them. The only time I don't feel badly about throwing out something that is works perfectly fine is if I know it would improve resale value. I hope to replace my laminate counters in a few years for something buyers would swoon over. That's what I keep telling hubby anyway:)

I'm not one of those people that enjoy redorating their rooms every few years. I like to do it and then be done with it. I go with neutral colors and change out accessories when I need a change. I try to spend more time counting my blessings instead of wishing I had something different.

[Questions edited for length.]

1. How long do you hold on to furniture or window treatments or other household items after they no longer please you?

Varies according to how much it costs to replace said item. LOL Seriously, though, I'm not as fickle as a lot of the people here - I do not get into change for change's sake, in fact that whole notion drives me right up the wall (I find a certain level of security in continuity), so I'm more likely to be just fine with something for a lot longer than most of the folks here would be screaming to get rid of it.

2. Do you find yourself frozen in place more by financial contraints, (which has been MY big issue when something is no longer pretty to me, but I really don't have the money to waste on new) or by 'Decision Freeze', where you Want to get a new bed or carpet or dining set, but you just don't want to make a big mistake?

Finances, definitely.

3. Do you find yourself more dissatisfied when you read House Beautiful and see a pretty new dining room, or do you start taking a long hard look at your set when someone on Garden Web makes a great purchase and redoes their dining room? Or are you more settled in your choices and feel that you will change yours when you are good and ready?

I'll do it when I dang well please. I'm very rarely heavily influenced by what other people do (Mari, Mari, quite Contrary...) or by pictures I see in a magazine/book - when I am dissatisfied with my "stuff" it is because of something else entirely, such as it physically not fitting into its allotted space (I don't chuck everything and start over whenever I move, I'd be bankrupt) or it's crap to begin with (like my current kitchen and bathroom).

4. What is your biggest weakness when it comes to not wanting to hold on to something that you feel was a mistake/a tribute to the 1980's/or an impulse buy?

I've phased out the last of the matching furniture sets, thank all gods. When I grew up we were mostly living from hand to mouth, so there wasn't money for matching anything... having matching furniture sets was a sign that you had hit the Big Time. Well, when we could afford to do so DH and I bought matching suites for the bedroom (albeit secondhand on that one), living and dining rooms (el cheapo but still new and matchy-matchy). I soon found that they bored me positively into rigor mortis. Everywhere I looked in a room, every piece looked the same, and I hated it. We resold them or handed them down and I contentedly returned to the "Early Attic/Neo-Yardsale" style of my childhood, discarding the idea that someone else should dictate my decorating style.

5. Are you entranced by the idea of Craigslist or Ebay to find cool new stuff and recycle what now bugs you?

I would be more entranced if I had the physical wherewithal to drive two hours out to East Bumflop which is where the half-decent things always seem to be, as well as having discretionary funds to blow on said "cool new stuff". I can't remember the last time I looked at CL or eBay - if I don't have the scratch, why torture myself with stuff I can't get? Selling things via CL has been such a PITA that I mostly donate or hand-down instead.

6. has the on vent of Garage Sale Chic and Craigslist given you a new lease on life? You now feel empowered to just start scanning the ads because you know you might score a new set for a reasonable amount of money?

(I'm assuming "on vent" is a typo for "advent".) See #5. Garage sales where I live go well beyond "suck" so I don't bother to even schlep around to them. I'm more likely to put a tablecloth on the ugly table and hand down that recliner and nightstands to someone else who needs them, and prioritize my spending.

7. And here's one for mulling over...in my "Old" marriage, my X saw a yard sale purchase or a classified ad buy as something only poor, uneducated people do. Antiques were just old furniture.

See #4. I chose to go back to the comfortable mishmash of "oh, that old thing?" But of course we WERE poor, uneducated people (you might be a redneck when...) when I was growing up. I'm not interested in making payments on a piece of furniture, but at the same time it takes a lot of time to save up the cash.

Does buying used feel like being 'Green' and helping to Recycle?

As we disappear into a cloud of Smug... *snicker*

Or does it feel more like possibly inheriting someone else's problem?

Sometimes it is, sometimes it's not. Depends on the item.

Oh boy do I need to sit down and read this when the kids are in bed!!!!

Heh, heh, Johnmari, I like your style. Made me chuckle and nod my head in agreement. Seems like I hang on to stuff forever, and not just my stuff, other peoples, too. I rarely replace things that are still useful. For example, the curtains in my bedroom are from 3 houses ago. They are too short, but they work and as I still have the same quilt and throw rugs that I bought with them, there they stay.

I recently embarked on some updating around the house and am picking up things here and there as time and budget (mostly budget) allow. I like to repurpose things and also love hand me downs (vintage or antiques) and the history and stories that go with them.

I'm taking the easy way out & recycling johnmari's edited versions of the question...

1. How long do you hold on to furniture or window treatments or other household items after they no longer please you? I would never allow anything I didn't like in my house. Then again, my taste is pretty much consistent & it's totally immune to the whims of current fashion, so if I bought liked something I liked in 1979, chances are I'll still like it today. That's why I still have 95% of what I bought back then. Of course, everything I liked in 1977 was way out of fashion even then, which is why it went for almost nothing at Goodwill, whereas the Herculon-plaid-&-woodgrain-plastic 3-piece sets that then cost a fortune are now clogging the landfills, since even Goodwill doesn't want 'em.

2. Do you find yourself frozen in place more by financial contraints, or by 'Decision Freeze', where you want to get a new ------ but you just don't want to make a big mistake? Well, I've never made a mistake yet, so fear of making one in the future wouldn't stop me from buying something now. That's the best part about REALLY knowing what you like (VS. what's popular this season.) But $$ constraints? Sure. Who doesn't have those? After all, it's not easy to find, say, a room-size wool carpet for under $50--but it happens.

This one happened to be $40 at a used hotel furniture joint, and that softball-sized hole in the border--where there must have been a floor outlet--doesn't bother me a bit. Whether we like it or not, we live in an imperfect world, so we might as well relax & accept it, warts & all.

3. Do you find yourself more dissatisfied when you read House Beautiful...or when someone on Garden Web...redoes their dining room? Or are you more settled in your choices and feel that you will change yours when you are good and ready? What other people have--in print or online--doesn't affect me. Compared to some places, I live in a slum. Compared to other places, my place is a palace. This time of year, I think we're all conscious of--and, hopefully, thankful for--what we have, however much that may be, since, with our economy the way it is, we could lose what we have at any time.

As the Apostle Paul says (after explaining how he's both had an abundance & gone hungry) "Having sustenance & covering, we shall be content with these things." Me, I'm in the middle of moving to a new apartment, but only because I want more light & air than my place gets now. It's really not any bigger. I don't need bigger.

4. What is your biggest weakness when it comes to not wanting to hold on to something that you feel was a mistake/a tribute to the 1980's/or an impulse buy? This question is too hard for me to decipher right now. Like I said, I've been moving, and my brain is tired. I will say this, there was a bad 8Os & a good 8Os. It's just that a lot of people made the wrong choices. I'd be happy to move back into my 1980s apartment tomorrow. Love means never having to say your're sorry.

5. Are you entranced by the idea of Craigslist or Ebay to find cool new stuff and recycle what now bugs you?I don't have a car, and whatever looks cool on Craigslist is always on the other side of town, and I'm not going to go rent a car just to go look at it. And when I want to get rid of something, I just haul it down to my building's lobby, and in the morning it's gone! Really, who wants to wait around for strangers to show up at his door (or not) to decide they don't want whatever it is I'm trying to get rid of anyway.

6. Has the onset of Garage Sale Chic and Craigslist given you a new lease on life? No, just the opposite, because it's made it lots harder to find good stuff at the Goodwill around the corner from my apartment.

7. And here's one for mulling over...in my "Old" marriage, my X saw a yard sale purchase or a classified ad buy as something only poor, uneducated people do. Antiques were just old furniture. That's the best part of not having any x's. I've always done just what I wanted to do. Which, of course, I would have done anyway.

I am still using the dresser that my parents bought me when I was 12. We use my aunt's dining room furniture which she purchased in the 1950s. My desk, which is now my basement desk, was purchased in 1970. Our living room furniture was all built around 1920 - we bought it on eBay. Our guest room rug is an oriental and it started it's life in my grandfather's office back in the 1920s/30s. I bought our bedroom rug sometime in the late 1980s - another oriental. We bought our living room rug - a used oriental - about 2-3 years ago.

I think my examples sort of answer your questions. I like nicely fitted rooms, we buy something when we need it. We buy things to last and we love inheriting furnishings. We've lived in 3 homes and just keep moving items from room to room in each new home or we swap with relatives. The only "new" thing I have planned is to recover the seats of our dining room chairs...when I find the right fabric...maybe next year I'll get serious about looking.

Love decorating magazines, design shows, etc. I would re-do much more often if finances were not an issue. I mean, I would not waste money, but would not keep worn out stuff. I have waited 6 years to re-do kitchen and family room & now having a blast!

Also using johnmari's edited version (thanks johnmari!)

1. How long do you hold on to furniture or window treatments or other household items after they no longer please you?

I tend to like the things I have even years later, because I inherit/find/buy classic pieces. I've always been a bit of a mismatch decorator, so I just add new stuff as the whim hits and get rid of things when I don't need them anymore.

2. Do you find yourself frozen in place more by financial contraints, (which has been MY big issue when something is no longer pretty to me, but I really don't have the money to waste on new) or by 'Decision Freeze', where you Want to get a new bed or carpet or dining set, but you just don't want to make a big mistake?

I'm definitely bound by finances. I'd like to replace my black appliances with stainless, but they still work, so I can't justify the expense. I did recently buy a new dining set because the one we bought two years ago (not expensive) was counter height, which we hated, and also kind of MCM, which didn't go with the rest of my stuff. I replaced it with an antique French provincial table from CL and also found ten nice skirted parson's chairs on CL. The chairs will keep me satisfied for years because the fabric can be changed to suit anything, and the table is a simple, classic style that I can paint or stain as needed.

3. Do you find yourself more dissatisfied when you read House Beautiful and see a pretty new dining room, or do you start taking a long hard look at your set when someone on Garden Web makes a great purchase and redoes their dining room? Or are you more settled in your choices and feel that you will change yours when you are good and ready?

I tend to be inspired by people on here and friends offline, but I don't feel pressured to make changes. I don't read any magazines at all, so that's not an issue.

4. What is your biggest weakness when it comes to not wanting to hold on to something that you feel was a mistake/a tribute to the 1980's/or an impulse buy?

I am very driven by practicality, so I feel I can't replace things if it's not necessary (i.e., the piece is still in good shape/comfortable/functional). Fortunately I tend to buy stuff I like, piece by piece, so I rarely hate anything I have. Obviously the dining table was an aberration...lol.

5. Are you entranced by the idea of Craigslist or Ebay to find cool new stuff and recycle what now bugs you?

I'm totally addicted to Craigslist--not so much Ebay. I typically look for new things to add to my home--not replace things I have. If something bugs me, it's usually a color/wood finish issue that I can solve with paint or a good sanding and replacement stain. Occasionally I have an issue with the size/function of a piece, and then I'll consider replacing it.

6. has the on vent of Garage Sale Chic and Craigslist given you a new lease on life? You now feel empowered to just start scanning the ads because you know you might score a new set for a reasonable amount of money?

Oh yeah! I love looking at CL, and have gotten tons of cool things on there lately. Garage sales are also fun, but I have to be pretty motivated to get up that early on a Saturday.

7. And here's one for mulling over...in my "Old" marriage, my X saw a yard sale purchase or a classified ad buy as something only poor, uneducated people do. Antiques were just old furniture.

I love to buy used, eclectic things. I always have. I was raised solidly middle-class, my parents had some matchy-matchy furniture, but I always hated it. It felt cheap to me--which would seem to be the opposite of some people's perceptions. When we bought some master bedroom furniture a few years ago, we only got a bed (simple sleigh) and the dresser in a matching finish because I didn't want everything to match. I loved how my grandparents, who grew up during the depression and frequented yard/garage sales, decorated with mismatched things.

My husband is a garage sale junkie and I have grown to appreciate the mismatched pieces (oak with cherry wood). However, while I love some of our antique pieces, there are times when I wish we had some new cool matching upholstered chairs. And I like to change the color of paint every few years. Sure, I look at magazines and even this site and drool over what I see and wish I could achieve some of those looks. But my husband is content with things as is (another way of saying does not want to spend the money) and I would just love an old farm table that fits everyone at Christmas. So for now, the curtains gets recycled, the area rugs stays, but a few new things will work their way into the newly painted house. And I am determined to get rid of the blue stairway treads that go with nothing when we moved in, but the hubby still finds functional.

1. How long do you hold on to furniture or window treatments or other household items after they no longer please you?

I'll start thinking about getting something new if I see something that helps me paint a new picture of a room in my head. If it's not worn out and wasn't too costly and I can either pass it on to someone who needs it or sell it, I'll consider something new. I'm a great bargain shopper and usually end up finding what I want at a discount price if I wait long enough. For instance, I was considering an upholstered bed for $1400, not too bad considering the only other item I was going to be buying for the room that would be costly was a bachelors' chest for $900. However, it was definitely second choice to a Thomasville bed I had seen earlier but at $2800 for the bed and $1600 for the bachelors chest, it was just way too much to spend on one room since I was doing the entire house from top to bottom and had just begun. I also felt guilty because it was my room but I think that's more of a Mom thing. I waited awhile and ended up finding the bed on Ebay and paid $450 for it, actually $300 because they didn't have the matching siderails for the headboard and footboard so I bought them for $150 from the Thomasville outlet along with the bachelors chest for $395. It definitely paid to be patient in this case.

2. Do you find yourself frozen in place more by financial contraints, (which has been MY big issue when something is no longer pretty to me, but I really don't have the money to waste on new) or by 'Decision Freeze', where you Want to get a new bed or carpet or dining set, but you just don't want to make a big mistake?

Once I get past the financial constraints, then I go through the "decision freeze". Yes, it's a big purchase and I don't want to make a mistake. For smaller items such as bedding, I like to change it frequently so I'll shop around until I find them at a price that allows me to switch them out seasonally without feeling guilty about buying more than one or two sets.

3. Do you find yourself more dissatisfied when you read House Beautiful and see a pretty new dining room, or do you start taking a long hard look at your set when someone on Garden Web makes a great purchase and redoes their dining room? Or are you more settled in your choices and feel that you will change yours when you are good and ready?

I might see something that I really like a lot more than my own choice but since I go through the "decision freeze" as above, it stops me from changing things too quickly or too frequently. By the time I've made up my mind to change it, I've probably seen a few things that would work so I often will stick with what I have. While I'm definitely influenced by what I see, I buy what I like and for me alone. If someone else likes it, that's great. If not, they don't have to live with it, I do.

4. What is your biggest weakness when it comes to not wanting to hold on to something that you feel was a mistake/a tribute to the 1980's/or an impulse buy? Is it fabric?

My biggest weakness is fabric! I see so many beautiful fabrics and then I start pulling in others that would work with them and want to reupholster furniture or buy new. However, budget limitations leads me to dream about this a lot more than making it reality.

5. Are you entranced by the idea of Craigslist or Ebay to find cool new stuff and recycle what now bugs you? Or does the whole idea of venturing out there and spending the time and effort to maybe get a real treasure just scare/bore/irritate you?

I've seen some great things on CL due to the economy where people are selling the entire contents of their home. I'm talking about nice, quality high end furniture that is worth getting if you have a place for it. I found some great things for my son and DIL although I stick to casegoods, not upholstered items. I'm sure there are many out there that would be fine but unless I'm going to reupholster them, I just can't imagine using them in my home not knowing what might have spilled on them, etc.

6. And on a related note: If you 'Used to be' a holder...

Nope, not me. I only hold onto things I really like and want to use.

7. And here's one for mulling over...in my "Old" marriage, my X saw a yard sale purchase or a classified ad buy as something only poor, uneducated people do. Antiques were just old furniture. If you didn't go into a beautiful, well-lit store and sign a credit agreement, that piece didn't belong in your home.

I wouldn't have shopped CL 20 years ago but I think it was more of a lack of imagination than being a bit of a snob. Now I think the hunt is almost as much fun as when you find what you're looking for. I enjoy the thrill of the chase ;)

Great topic, lots of things I never thought of until you asked. Thank You!

We're DINKS. Double income, no kids. Money is abundant, BUT....I only replaced the leather sofa when I saw DH sitting next to a 4" rip. :0) We used little vanity benches to sit on in the MB until I saw 2 wingbacks FREE on CL, then I saw an opportunity to try out a new item without the risk of having to return it if we didn't like it. I put floor pillows next to the fireplace instead of matching club chairs!? How uncomfortable was that! Maybe I'm "inspiration" impaired?
I'm hoping to be inspired by hanging out here....:0) I need lots of visuals....keep posting everyone!!!!

The economy has been such a big factor in my decisions, lately, that I would have to give two sets of answers, one for normal situations and another for the present.

My original plan, for our new build, was to buy a few nice things and then work on upgrading the bones of the space. Windows, crown, fireplace, etc. were all going to be addressed. Well, that was then.

Given that background, I'm holding on to most of everything. The thing I'd most like to replace was an ill conceived purchase of a bedroom dresser from a store that was going out of business. It was damaged and DH said he could repair it. Nope. It's also a cheap Deco wannabe. What was I thinking? If it were a better quality, it wouldn't look so ghastly with my vintage Henredon burled mahogany. Live and learn.

CL is so appealing to me but the fuss of looking and figuring out delivery doesn't rock DH's boat. As for buying new or used, I can see pros for both. Everything was new at one time and how can I bemoan the lack of American jobs and quality artisans but then say I would never buy new? For those who can afford it, there is still fine furniture made in the States.

Yes, I read mags, and, at times, a bit wistfully. My weakness is fabrics more than paint. When I see a killer pattern, I really, really want it. :)

BTW, we'll miss you when you go back to work, Red.

I get 'decision freeze' thinking about the finances. I want new curtain in the bedroom, a new sofa in the family room. But - right now, we just can't spend the money.

I never ever look at CL or garage sales. We have mostly heirloom furniture, and our house is full. The only reason I want to replace the family room sofa is because it's a sectional that I have always hated. Now the kids are grown, I would like something else and it's not looking too good, either.

And yes, when I see people post things or look at magazines, I want to redo some rooms. But reality sets in and usually I just try to quench that fire by re-arranging accessories.

I did re-do the DR this past year, and to save money, I bought a rug from Overstock (love it) and made my own drapery (lined and interlined). It looks nice. The old stuff was dirty, faded, and starting to fall apart. That's when I re-do (and why I want new BR curtains now).

Sine I almost never buy anything new, I'm not panicked by the thought of spending tons of money. My taste has changed slightly over the years (not so into chintz and lusterware--now I like Machine Age and leather/chrome/steel), but most of my large pieces have adapted.

I'd rather have nothing than something I don't like.

I inherited a lot of my stuff. I'm lucky I like most of it. Four poster beds, sleigh bed, desks, wing back chair, coffee table, barrister bookshelves, and even DR table and chairs that I honestly would not have picked out myself but have come to love. So I guess I come from a long line of "holders on" and I am continuing it.

My approach has been to augment the things I have inherited with as good as quality as I can afford. I would rather have nothing than to fill space with stuff that is not well made and/or that I don't love. And I hope that someday my kids will like to receive some of my things and pass them along to their kids in turn.

As for finances, absolutely it affects decisions. I waited 18 years to be able to afford the sideboard of my dreams. And I lived with some yucky upholstered chairs for many years (those were the bad kind of inherited stuff) before replacing them.

I am fairly confident in what I like and in my choices. I look at mags and pics here to get ideas, but I don't lust after other people's rooms. Probably because I am pretty happy with my space. And I don't change out much- I know the colors I feel good living with and I have never woken up and said I must change them. I can look at a blue and white room, or a white kitchen and totally appreciate the beauty of them, but I know they aren't for me.

As for CL or EBay, if I didn't have a house full of old stuff, I would definitely look at these places. I am amazed at what people have picked up for incredible prices. I think the trick is to know how to tell quality and go for the deal. Finding a good home for old furniture that is well crafted is a wonderful thing.

Johnmari, thanks for editing me. If you would walk around beside me when I'm talking to friends/family, and do a little more editing, they would all be happy too.

Love the old photo. Yes, we have all come a long way (baby!) and don't even appreciate it most of the time. And I can also identify with a love/hate relationship with CL. Love that it makes it easier for Me. Hate that now the deals that used to lie just around the corner since I was a little girl and my mom bought all our stuff at the Veteran's Thrift, are becoming few and far between.

Red

1. How long do you hold on to furniture or window treatments or other household items after they no longer please you?

The question made me laugh. The portieres here are 120 years old heh heh I would imagine well keep them until were long gone from this home, at least another 20 plus years so I suppose you could say I hold onto draperies for 140 years plus :oP As to other window treatments or furniture, it depends. If I dont like a piece but it will work until I find the right replacement, I hang on to it. If I really dont like it I let it go right away but I dont like to use temporary fillers because theyre always cheap and never quite work (hence the temporary). As to window treatments, I have pretty classic style so mine tend to last until I make new ones. I rarely tire of them and only change when I change a room color or find a fabric that inspires me to make new ones.

2. Do you find yourself frozen in place more by financial contraints, (which has been MY big issue when something is no longer pretty to me, but I really don't have the money to waste on new) or by 'Decision Freeze', where you Want to get a new bed or carpet or dining set, but you just don't want to make a big mistake?

Finances the decision part is normally pretty easy. Im not afraid of mistakes... Im a pro at them!

3. Do you find yourself more dissatisfied when you read House Beautiful and see a pretty new dining room, or do you start taking a long hard look at your set when someone on Garden Web makes a great purchase and redoes their dining room? Or are you more settled in your choices and feel that you will change yours when you are good and ready?

I find them inspirational and enjoyable to read, but not dissatisfied at all. I enjoy my space, even if its not magazine ready (looking around dining room and the 4 thomas the train sets that seem to have invaded it this morning).

4. What is your biggest weakness when it comes to not wanting to hold on to something that you feel was a mistake/a tribute to the 1980's/or an impulse buy?

I love to throw stuff away/on the curb, whatever. It gives me great satisfaction to get rid of stuff for some reason. DH was a bit worried when he saw me packing and labeling stuff "free" yesterday heh heh

5. Are you entranced by the idea of Craigslist or Ebay to find cool new stuff and recycle what now bugs you?

I prefer (furniture wise) to touch stuff in person and dont like to go to peoples homes I dont know normally. I love ebay, but not for larger pieces. Im more the antique store type or the thrift store type than the craigslist type.

6. has the on vent of Garage Sale Chic and Craigslist given you a new lease on life? You now feel empowered to just start scanning the ads because you know you might score a new set for a reasonable amount of money?

I have not been able to get onto the garage sale chic craze. I dont like junk and find it depressing to have surrounding me. I might trip over one with something worthwhile, but would never go out of my way to go to one.

7. And here's one for mulling over...in my "Old" marriage, my X saw a yard sale purchase or a classified ad buy as something only poor, uneducated people do. Antiques were just old furniture.

I remember a guy walking into my home filled with antiques and he asked "Why do you have all this old junk when you can afford new". Mind you, he had the ugliest freaking home full of "new" that Id ever seen. I love furniture with history.

Does buying used feel like being 'Green' and helping to Recycle?

As we disappear into a cloud of Smug... *snicker* (Im leaving jonmaris answer here because its so good)

Or does it feel more like possibly inheriting someone else's problem?

If its a problem I dont buy it. If its an antique worth purchasing, Id always prefer it to new, always.

Johnmari, love your outlook. I think you might have helped me with my bathroom re-do and the clawfoot tub. It looked great and then we decided to move - the people who purchased the house are tearing out the clawfoot and who knows what else and putting in a jetted tub!!! They are painting my red kitchen blue - hope the color goes with the granite and slate I put in this past summer. Some people don't hesitate to change things - I think having unlimited funds helps too.

Now,in a smaller house, forced to grapple with these very issues. Things I like with no place for and things I payed too much for over the years - don't want to thow away but don't want to keep them either. We are going to look for someone who can use the furniture and make them a really good deal and maybe throw in some free things too.

I wish I had made better choices but... can't go home again, eh? From here on out, I'm going to make better decisions and only acquire things I love that will work in any future home if there is one. It has taken me 50 years to learn this lesson. Sleek magazine spreads don't really impress me anymore. I like to walk into a home or see a photo (like on this website) that look well lived in and comfortable, filled with character. Timeless, classic and not trendy.

Love this thread - thanks!!!

My only issue about wanting new stuff concerns fabric. I LOVE fabric and want to keep buying it. But I am frugal and buy only what I use and love, and even though I might not use it right now, eventually it gets used.

I don't care about trends and I don't buy new furniture as a rule. I'd rather have something with a history. And while I love giving an old piece an extended life, it isn't the reason I get it. I get great pleasure out of rehabbing an old piece to make it mine. New furniture just reflects someone else's style.

So of course I love CL, the Habitat Restore and the flea markets. Such quirky stuff that I would never find at Ethan Allen, Pottery Barn, etc. And I spend happy hours looking at a new acquisition, trying to figure out what I am going to do with it.
Diane

forever