The general Amercanized market all but dictates that whatever a person buys is "in style" for that moment. A person would be very hard-pressed to find geese-and-bows or Santa Fe right now because the current market is flooded with contemporary/Ikea-modern.
It also ensures that most of us are decorating in the same style as our neighbors, down the street or across the continent.
I'm not sure there is a real "dilemna" in your query, misty. Only that you seem to build your look over time which is what almost everyone does unless they have a ton of money to begin with.
In terms of the transition from one style/color trend to another here is a rule of thumb I read somewhere and adopted: If you can buy it at Target, Walmart, Biglots or any other deep-discount chain store, it's already "out of style". That is NOT to say that purchasing from those locations is in any way a bad choice. They are the only places I can afford to shop myself. But the more available a product becomes, the less "popular" it is. For example- granite c-tops and SS appliances. They are in every home from section 8 housing to over-priced starter castles. Definately not popular any more. Another example: Blue and Brown. EW! Yet, I have it in my masterbedroom because it's what I could afford when the textiles I bought made it to the clearance table at the fabric stores.
Your post expresses what most of middle-America experiences. I don't think there is a clear answer- only theories in practice.

Choose what you like and what makes you happy. I try and do a lot of stuff myself, cause I like my home to reflect my personality and what I like. If you look at all the photos that the members of this forum post, you'll see what I mean. They are all unique, interesting and lovely. I've yet to see rooms that look like everyone else's room.
I like things that are old and things that are new...
I have family heirlooms mixed in with refurbished thrift shop finds...My point, if it makes you happy and comfortable don't worry about what's in style and what is out of style.

Joann

Here's my decorating motto, originally attributed to William Morris: "Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful". And this means that we add to our decor when we see something that fits and that we really like. We don't shop at chain stores for home decor items, we tend to buy one of a kind items, and we don't have clutter for clutter's sake.

Doing it this way (and it took me some age and maturity to figure it out!) has resulted in us having a home that we've now been in for a few years, that we plan to die in, which was painted once and hasn't been repainted, and which isn't fully decorated yet. And maybe we won't be "finished" for years to come. And that's ok with us.

DH and I are not what marketing/advertising agencies/retailers like to see!

Decorate in a classic good taste style. ignore the "trends" like light houses or geese or frogs or chippy white furniture or all black tables and chairs.
Decorate for yourself. Decorate with things you love, not what's 'trendy" because trendy is cheap.
Almost 200 ago Lambert Hitchcock in Conn. made chairs and small tables and painted them black. The furniture factory continued making those same black chairs well into the 1960's and maybe still do.
I have 4 I inherited. I like them as well today as I did when I was a child. "but" you say, "They are out of style"....classic good taste never goes out of style.
I have a huge collection of pink transferware, so my kitchen is pink, slate and mulberry. But you say? Pink transferware is going out of style? not for me! I began my collection 50 years ago and am still adding to it.
Forget what's in style, go with good taste and you will never be wrong....nor out of style.
Linda C

Several years ago I bought a pair of drapery panels already made up from Calico Corners, they had them on the sale table for such a good price I couldn't pass them up. They were in a floral print so I figured that must be why no one had bought them up till the time I saw them. After I hung them up in my bedroom I started looking for fabric & accessories to coordinate with the periwinkle color in these drapes. That's when I realized, uh oh this shade of blue must be out of style now.

The Color Marketing Board determines which colors that will be used by everyone in the industry...from towels, to sheets, to upholstery. Navy blue and powder blue appear to be CMB colors these days. But every time I bring them home they clash with the periwinkle. Navy is a little too dark and baby blue has the wrong undertone to it. So I wait for the CMB to bring purple'ish blue back in style before I can finish my room.

If you've ever wondered why you never see that shade of mauve you started decorating your home with, it's probably because you waited too long to finish and the CMB has determined it's not a color manufacturers should put into production anymore. Once a year they tweak the palette and if your color is not on the list you're SOL because companies will completely stop making products in that shade. So buy all your towels and sheets at the same time you re-decorate your bedroom with new bedding...if matching the same shade is important to you. As a non-professional who isn't talented or skilled at putting colors together I find it's more difficult to coordinate different shades of the same color than to bring in a totally different color. Which is why I've got yellow sheets on my bed right now instead of periwinkle.

I have said that for years, Miles, that once something is available at Home Depot is has been OVER for years. There are very commercial reasons for this, of course, including the continual rise of new buyers in the home furnishings market as young people move into that phase of their lives and want something different from their parents' decor. There is also a very calculated planned obsolescence, a la Thorstein Veblen, which is also meant to fuel the economy.

In general, I think that stone will always be--if not in fashion, at least a decorating staple, both indoors and out, because it is DURABLE. Well-made, heavy, solid wood furniture might be stripped and whitewashed, distressed and painted, or refinished, but it will recycle endlessly because it has inherent value in its sturdiness. The proportions of furniture have increased over the past 20 years, as our own bodies have increased in height and weight. Back in the 60's hardly any married couple had a king-sized bed. Now the California King is quite common. If there is anything more likely to date furniture, it is the size of upholstered pieces, imo.

Sorry, I'm not sure this has been helpful, but I can tell you that I have seen knockout rooms furnished entirely with garage sale items that have been painted and refurbished, cleaned and reupholstered.

Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose..... the more things change, the more they stay the same. :)

Oh, they're called the Color Marketing GROUP. What I know about the members of this group is that they're spread out throughout the country. Each watches what is happening on the runways, what they're seeing on the street, etc. Individually they put together a collage of to present to the group. When they meet they present their findings and look at what each person has brought to the table. Then they decide which colors are most likely to be "in" and that list gets distributed to all the manufacturers who pay for it. That way the manufacturers don't have to take the time to do all this research themselves, they just pay a fee to the CMG and go ahead and make up their products in these colors. It's no coincidence that the same shade of blue shows up in almost everything you see in the stores.

Here is a link that might be useful: CMG

I'll add this to paster's William Morris quote~have nothing in your house that you don't LOVE. And we're not talking LIKE here.

I know I love something if I don't buy it immediately, and can't get it out of my head. Have it held if possible, and go back the next day to purchase it. Another thing i'll do when i'm in a store and see something, but leave it on the shelf. I'll walk around the store, and go back several times to 'have another look'. If I still *feel* it's something that would work in my home, i'll make the purchase. Our eyes are out first connection, be it with a person, a place or a thing, but you DO have to know that eating all the candy in the candy shop will make you sick. ;o)

My house is so empty right now because I have to LOVE something before I buy it. I've learned the hard way not to buy things that "go" with other things I already have. So, I wait, and wait, and wait until I just can't pass that one thing up. It will take forever to finish my house this way, but I don't care. My house is for ME to admire. It's getting there... :-)

Your post is so accurate flyingflower. It frustrates me that cobalt blue has been out for 6 years or so and is not popular at all anymore. I know, OF COURSE, that it's always in and that if I love it, go for it...blah blah blah...but if you can't find things in the colors you want, it is indeed hard to buy them - at least reasonably priced.

When we built our house in 2000, I had my KA mixer and denby dishes and a variety of other cobalt accessories, including some cobalt velvet pillows (Pottery Barn) for my barstools. Which I would like to replace. Have wanted to replace for 3 years or more. I love what I have but they are a teeny bit worn. I have looked for years - I thought I would buy backups- but cobalt pillows went out in 2001 or less and have not reappeared.
And I am a shopper!

It always seem to me that when I am working on something, the colors I need are nowhere to be found....brights in a period of omnipresent earth tones, or whatever. Then, suddenly, I see "my" colors trickling in and I feel this need to grab and hoard! Oh, right....but I don't need any more pillows because I sewed some from fabric I found already. This is followed by the sad realization that "my" colors have hit the mass market. But I don't care because I liked them before they were in style and I will still like them when they're gone.

What I have noticed is that making a big departure from my "color comfort zone" does not work for me. The first home I designed for my family from scratch was forest green, cobalt blue and white. (Don't shudder...it was a boat!) When we moved into a house, I thought it would be fun to do "Tuscan" colors, earthier jewel tones against a base of red and gold. Wrongo. I just couldn't do it. Had to go back to the drawing board (and the upholsterer) and get back to my blues and greens, where I was comfortable. I shifted to gray green and aqua, pale blue and leaf green, but still "my" colors.

Now, I have moved to New England and the color are shifting again. Away from blue and green to green and tan and gold. Blue will still be here, but in a softened role. All this transitioning is subtle and I can use much of what I already own, which is far easier than starting over.

So, I know your purple walls are history, but if they weren't, maybe you could have brought in a new coordinating color to freshen it up while still staying in your comfort zone. Make the transition gentler. Than again, if you are ready for something totally new and feel comfortable about that, then relentless shopping and searching is the only way to accessorize. That and sewing if you can find the fabrics you need.

As for black, it will always be in style. Maybe the overabundance of black counter tops will abate some in the years to come, but then I would prefer to be in your shoes...to have what you love and not have it be everywhere.

I had a friend a long time ago who had an entirely orange kitchen right out of the 70's (I think). She just loved orange. I have thought of her in these last few years, and how her kitchen color scheme has become the trend-du-jour. If one waits around long enough, it becomes cutting edge again!

The way around the bathroom towels is to just go with white or a complimentary color. I had the incredible unmatchable green tile in my last bathroom. Yes, the world is full of green towels...but not my green! I gave up and used pale blue instead. Lately, I am really giving up a and just staying with white.

Ding, ding, ding - we have a winner! Patricia said a mouthful:

"If you stick with good traditional lines in furnishings, integrate brass, silver, porcelain, china and crystal into your decor, the other things such as what lamps or comforters, and pillows drapes that come and go in style, will work with them and those are disposables."

patty cakes was right on too:

"I'll add this to paster's William Morris quote~have nothing in your house that you don't LOVE. And we're not talking LIKE here."

My design plan is: I am slowly but surely changing the things I don't like in my home.

I almost allowed someone to talk me out of the Honed Sahara Gold Marble Slab I want in my kitchen and into black granite, but I realized I don't like black granite, I like that natural looking marble slab, so that is what I will get, today's resale value be damned! I'm not selling today, so there!

once something is available at Home Depot is has been OVER for years

I think the trick is to blend what's available mass market with classic elements.

I love TJMaxx, etc. But I can't get everything there, nor would I want to.

If you can take a mass-market item and pair it with classically inspired items, then suddenly the classically inspired items look more modern, and the trendy item seems classier.

Of course, this is a more difficult way to shop, having to continually blend old and new, but I think it enables you to buy "off the rack" without looking like a newspaper insert for your favorite store.

I agree, reno fan. And the fact that something is OVER hasn't often stopped me from purchasing it---often at Home Depot. :)

The thing is, when something first comes "out" who knows if it will tank quickly or go on to be a phenomenon.
A trend as opposed to a fad. Hopefully a trend that I catch early on (to make it last) and not a fad.
This is naturally presupposing I loved it when I bought it.That's always the golden rule to a a degree. But I often don't love things that are dated and out. Sometimes I do, as we all do, but I am subconsciously driven by trends and styles. I do not like doilys at all these days! Or hunter green.

So while something at WalMart or Target is theoretically "out" because of the filtering down aspect, it really depends on whether it's a fad or a long term trend.

All very interesting comments, but the question is: If you don't decorate according to the colours in style, where do you get the accessories?

Where DO you go to get the accent pillows to match your powder blue geese theme?

eBay, yard sales and craig's list? :-D

Where DO you go to get the accent pillows to match your powder blue geese theme?

I buy fabric and make them.

I like to mix it up. I love a toile bedroom, and when I love toile, I love a lot of it. When it was very fashionable, the higher end things were beyond me, but I could satisfy my urge with drawer paper, shoe bags, etc. Then it trickled down to TJ Maxx and mass merchants, and I could amass more accessories, pillows, etc. My senior in high school daughter likes it, so I gave it all to her, and I went in a different direction. I'm not decorating for the centuries in my stately home, so I'm fine with switching things around after a while.

Actually, gray', there were 5 questions, all of which have been addressed above.
If the real questions is: Where do I buy home decor that is 2-5 seasons out of date? The answer is a simple one: Anywhere that doesn't rely on marketing trends other than price to sell goods: Garage sales, Goodwill, BigLots, Mervyns, E-bay, craigslist, local paper classifieds or- as patser mentioned- make your own accessories.

Patricia43, not to begin a long, drawn out debate, but we are not the culturally sophisticated international travelers our retail marketing companies would have us believe. In a country of just over 303 million, less than 10% will travel internationally in their lives. Of that 10% more than 60% are traveling for business purposes only. That leaves precious few people in the world who have the fiscal means to travel from country to country much less to gather decor items- or even ideas- for their homes. Most (90%+) Americans will get their international exposure from TV or online and then try to recreate what they see from homogenized American retail markets like Target, Pier 1, Cost Plus and the like.
I don't agree that we are a global market- not even close to it. Every other true global market laughs at the American market.
And I do not believe our purchasing choices are anything but the blandest oatmeal-like substitute. Our retail giants and marketing conglomerates don't so much as take inspiration by the superior European and Asian markets as they rape and bastardize it.

Buy what your eye catches. Buy what makes you smile.

For me personally, I go by the motto Patser posted."Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful".

I very often do what Patty Cakes does. Walk away think about it. If it doesn't leave my mind, I get it because I know it's right.

So, with this being said, paint your oak table black and buy your black countertops when you have the $$. If you love it, do it. It's so easy to update with accessories.

Thank you everyone for your imput.

I have really enjoyed reading all of these posts.

In 1995 I purchased an eggplant leather couch. I fell in love with the 2" sample and the salesman asked me "are you sure you want that colour"? I said "Yes definetly" But when it came to finding anything that I loved that would go with that, there wasn't anything to pick from. When we moved here, I painted my walls a darker shade of the couch and just a couple of years later, all the accessories you could want, were in style. I stocked up on everything I could possibly get my hands on. Dishes, glasses, carpets, material for drapes (which I have to still sew) etc. That is not the problem because I have all these items. I also have a cobalt blue gas stove which I bought at the same time as the couch. I had to wait till colbalt came in before I could get my cobalt blue irridescent tiles for the backsplash.
Now I am planning on painting the bathroom. I know you are supposed to choose a fabric or shower curtain or something and then choose the colour. But I don't know what I want untill I start to paint. I don't plan ahead or rather I can't plan ahead. Right now I only know the colour I am going to use and I know it is not in style and I won't find towels or a bathmat that will cooridinate or be the proper shade to complement.( I wish I could do white, but my DH is a mechanic, white would only be white for the first day and never again). I have a vision of gray to go with it but that colour gray isn't out and I have even been to the mill to buy some other material and checked out the dyes, hoping to find the right one to match. It is not out there or it too has come and gone. The shower curtain I will sew if I can find material that I can live with and love

As for the furniture being black, I have wanted black furniture before it was popular as well. It's just that once I paint it black there is no turning back. It doesn't really matter to me whether or not it is trendy, I was just wondering what you thought. Same goes for the black granite. I want that for the kitchen and the bathroom upstairs to go with the black sink, toilet and tub. I also want a black wooden floor for the master bedroom.(I had black carpet in the basement of our other home and really loved it but not for the bedroom) to replace the aqua green which was installed in 1999 before that colour was popular.

If only I could wait till it came in style my life would be so much simpler. lol. Although I have actually tried that when I repainted the house and went from eggplant to the very popular shade of grayish-green. I was starting to tire of the colour purple or because it was becoming popular, it doesn't really matter the reason. Deep down, I truly miss my eggplant and I am going to back to my gut feeling and use it again in a grayer version keeping in mind it now has to go with the blue stove and tiles. The slate floor and the pine and oak and black and eggplant accessories.

So I guess the answer is exactly that I am SOL. because of the way I do things.

Anyway, thanks again everyone

Linda