When haven't we humans been lemmings? Movies, magazines, photos, catalogues, TV shows, etc. have influenced our decorating style for eons.

My grandmother lived in a basic little apartment furnished with fussy Victorian lamps and uncomfortable furniture because it was once on trend. Remember the groovy 60's and 70's with macrame, beads, and enormous waterbeds with Indian bedspreads? How about the 80's mauve and blue with barnyard animals everywhere? The English cottage era with pink and red cabbage roses plastered on every available surface? Shiny Euro furniture? Shabby chic?

I enjoy going to estate sales. Ninety percent of the time I know immediately when the client decorated the home because everything is from a particular era. Only in very high end homes, or artist's residences, do I occasionally find a truly individual, eclectic vibe. Most of us are not losing our individuality, because we never had it to lose. Certainly I never had it! Back in the day I clipped inspiration photos from magazines and stored them in file folders. Now I browse Houzz. It's all the same, just more to look at.

Everyone follows trends, it's the attitude that you must do this,this and this or your guests will laugh and point. 5 year old cherry cabinets, omg rip them out, they're out of date. Or at least slap some chalk paint on them until you afford to replace. And you do see lots of threads were people with very nice kitchens are asking if they should rip everything out and paint it gray.

Well I agree that movies, magazines TV and print have influenced decorating styles, sure. But now there is a media and marketing Immersion. I grew up in the 1960s, 70s and 80s and I did not know a single family who had a full on expression of any of the looks you mention and if they had some of those elements it's because they actively bought furniture or decorated during that particular period and that's what was available. And it was a very rare family I knew where people actually "redecorated" at all, particularly to follow trends. And I knew a fairly wide cross section of families because of my circumstances. Everybody who bought furniture in the 60s 70s or 80s, you could pretty much tell--there would be similarities, but nobody's house looked very much like anybody else's. I can think of three families who had very similar decor and that's because the mothers were sisters. And these houses were all full of heavy Jacobean Revival furniture and oriental rugs piled on top of each other and nothing that was trendy during the period at all. It's a mystery where they actually got all of that stuff, really. And the house I grew up in didn't look like anybody else's I knew either.

We weren't bombarded with design media like we are now. People bought it either because they liked it or they bought it because it was what was available. Of course people were interested in what was fashionable to some extent, but in my experience there was not this slavish adherence to a few looks and the rapid turnover of what was "in" or "out". But I grew up in a non-suburban/non-urban kind of area and at least at that time there was no competition or keeping up, or at least very little of it as compared to now.

"Slavish adherence" to a trend (thanks pal!) is a great way of putting it.

Folks who love the Gaines style seem to want the whole entire thing...they don't want any of their individual personalities to shine through.

How many times can folks answer with Revere Pewter to the question of "what gray should I paint"? It's not only the same old same old, but it's the specific sameness that seems to be wanted that bothers me.

There's such freedom in originality and I wish these lovely posters would trust themselves a little more. There are no decor police...

I always want to ask if they really like gray or do they believe they must like it? I sit in a gray office 8+ hours a day. It's depressing, especially on gloomy winter days.

I only had one close friend who's family actively decorated while growing up in the 60's and 70's. I did have acquaintances in my late teens with beautiful homes but they were not in my neighborhood. Most in my hood had dining room sets that were passed down. A few didn't. I remember a lot of brown with maybe a bit of green or rust. Lots of cushion and a sort of early American look. People only bought replacements if it was needed and those items were bought to go with the other stuff that was still serviceable. Not a fashion forward area but everyone's homes were clean and maintained. People took pride in what they had. My moms taste was really different comparatively as we had a muted teal modern sofa and chair. The whole look just barely stopped short of a sort of minimalist boho. I don't think that was intentional but more along the lines of limited funds and her hate of clutter.

Women did pay a lot of attention to the home decor on soap operas then. I think my mom did anyway. The majority in my town were housewives when the children were very young. Soap operas were a big thing. They certainly influenced hair, makeup and clothing. Everything stopped, there was no phones ringing or people allowed to talk once "As the World Turns" came on. That show I think got the bulk of the big money advertisement commercials. So, we have for a long time been bombarded with temptation of all that glitters.

My parents did decorate as they grew into their homes and income, not all at once. It not only evolved slowly with them adding to their inherited pieces but once something was added it stayed. The persian rugs they acquired, case furniture, and wallpaper in the hall still reside today in the house my parents purchased in '74 but it does somehow still looks current and not age specific since paint and fabrics have been refreshed through the years.

They were forced to redo the kitchen when the drop in stove failed for the cabinets were built in place and stoves of their size were no longer made. But the new kitchen looks remarkably similar to what was originally there and yet will still sell well in their area. Yes my mom had subscriptions to shelter rags of the day and made some choices that were on trend but once she chose things it was one and done. That is my idea of timeless...unique, eclectically collected, classic style.

pal, I grew up on the Upper West Side in NYC and went to school on the UWS and Upper East Side in the 60s, 70s, and 80s and my experience was very similar. The one constant is that a lot of the apartments had lots of bookcases with (lots of) books. Once I was in high school I learned that some of my UES friends' apartments had been "done" by a decorator. But none on the UWS.

And there were so many places to buy things for the house, neighborhood hardware/houseware stores, "antique" (my grandmother called them junk) stores, small local furniture stores like J&D Brauner for butcher block tables and countertops (I still have the kitchen table I bought there in late eighties) and Workbench, Azuma for inexpensive Japanese imports (I still have some 1970s brightly colored thick melamine plates). Oh -- and several great rug stores. Edited to add: The Laura Ashley store on the corner of Columbus and 79th, where I spent what then seemed far too much for a cotton floral shower curtain (which I also still have and love).

Almost every department store had a well-stocked furniture department in addition to other speciality areas (dishes, kitchenalia, prints and frames -- Altman's even sold famous autographs and offered bookbinding). The dept stores also had interior design departments you could hire; Altman's did the White House under Truman, and I remember that they had everything from antiques to very good quality reproductions (Williamsburg) to modern furniture from Directional. Plus their own workshops for upholstery and drapery, which makes me weep. Gimbels used to carry Henkel Harris, Macy's carried old Imari ware from Japan into the seventies.

I guess I live in a different world. No one I know talks about resale value or cares what is on HGTV. People are happy just to be able to buy a house. I can't think of a single person I know who bought a "starter" home. We buy houses to live in and then stay in them, mostly, forever. One exception is a general contractor friend who bought older houses, restored them, and then moved on. Even he has been in his current house for about twenty years.

My nieces and nephews (gen x and millennials) are no different. They've bought what they could afford. I hear no talk from them about granite, finishes, high-end appliances, etc. They are happy to have a roof over their heads. As am I.

"Remember the groovy 60's and 70's with macrame, beads, and enormous waterbeds with Indian bedspreads? How about the 80's mauve and blue with barnyard animals everywhere? The English cottage era with pink and red cabbage roses plastered on every available surface? Shiny Euro furniture? Shabby chic?"

-no, actually I don't:) I read about it all here..very interesting. I, personally, missed on all of that.

see, I agree with you, on every generalization one can say "no, actually, not true for everybody and for everywhere"-and will be, in 99%, right. Yet we still generalize, to some degree.

"People these days"..right, also agree. I'd redo it just into "people". These days, those days...people ruin people. With what tools-oh they invent tools. We're good at inventing tools. Even good tools, one needs to know how to handle. A knife can be used to save somebody's life in a surgery, or to make elaborate carving, or simply to cut something, or to kill someone. A knife is a knife, it's hard to blame a knife itself.

But if I had a tool as powerful as TV program I'd want for it to be a sort of a tool that chooses say elaborate carving. Maybe I'm naive or something.

I don't think HGTV is most amazing con of all times-there were many amazing cons going on. And are. TV programs too. HGTV can only dream, in terms of influencing minds. Can give you some examples, but I won't. Just take my word for it.

yet it could be so much better, so, it's, like, a pity.

I also don't think Joanna Gaines is bad or something-she's beautiful, and I like when her face turns thoughtful, and I'd say she's talented, and obviously their town is doing very well now.

I just don't think it's all enough for a cult. And I think it's a cult going on, and I dislike cults, very deeply. Any of them. Read reviews on their book-won't mention much decor, will be about hard work, values, all that. And what one can achieve with hard work and values. with a lot of exclamation points. I can almost hear people crying while writing reviews.

Well, many people work very hard,and have values, and they achieve..I don't know..a sense of personal happiness? If they're lucky, and no relevant disaster ongoing. (quote courtesy of Fori)

Spoiled-I don't find it that offensive maybe..I'm realistic about it.. you know I am spoiled too. Very easy to become spoiled. Like, in a wink (a wink can take several years, but whatever). And of course I have a priveleged life. With all my modest circumstances I was born into and various life experiences, some not so great but each eye-opening-even more so I understand it's priveleged as hell.

So I think it's great, to a degree, that I missed on all that stuff. First, it's very interesting to learn a lot from you guys, and I'm learning here like crazy, and it's fascinating. Second, I can be freer. I can choose from all this inspiration whatever the hell appeals to me, and I don't care. Or learn more about something I don't particulary like, and its context. I won't use it maybe, but I'll understand it better. Will lead me to know something else, to read something else, have some enlightment, I don't know. Third, I can pinch myself each time I sound to myself spoiled beyond reasonable.. doubt))

"Most of us are not losing our individuality, because we never had it to lose."-that's a statement that I find very interesting and thought provoking..so it'll stay with me for some time for sure, I'll think about it.

(and you all might suffer through another long post. lol. Really, I don't know why I don't shut up already. I should try that. I'm not sure about today though, today seems to be a day-of-me-not-succeeding-to-shut-up. )

suedonim I really like gray:) the difference-I don't ask. I love all the colors, really. Just some of them I can take a lot of it in interiors, and some, I'd use less, and some, just a bit. Within every color that'd be a shade I like and a shade I like less. (I'm not a fan of cold gray for example, like warm gray. If cold gray-then I'll use it like in a glass vase maybe. Won't paint a wall)

And yes, a certain house in a certain location will inspire me to use more colors X, less colors Y for example. location itself will dictate certain colors. It will have its own unique light..

I believe even neutrals will be a bit different everywhere to some extent. The landscape around will inform what's perceived as neutral. I think.

What do you think of this possibility:

if media stimuli is exploding like never before, maybe new generations recognize it at an unconscious level and their way of coping is to ‘not think’. Give me a box of clothes, give me a box of groceries, give me the Joanna package and let me be. Maybe the rebellion is yet to come.

HST, if they’re not thinking about the above matters, what ARE they thinking about?

@aprilneverends- I actually liked gray until they painted all of our offices. I had a gray room in my house, but after sitting in my office for a couple months, the color became somewhat depressing. I like bright colors. I'll paint any color, and if I don't like it, I'll re-paint. My house isn't huge, so re-painting rooms isn't a big deal. Drives my husband crazy, lol. As soon as he sees a 40% off sale at Sherwin Williams, he knows something is going to get painted.

@april, I did feel conned in that I was enamored of remodeling in a blink. I think people opened up to remodeling whether it was needed or not, b/c hgtv made it look so easy. Dealing with shady contractors, busy contractors, material delays, etc. is never part of the shows.

I just read the discussion linked by The Cooks Kitchen...wow! The OP actually said this to justify why she thinks she can completely remodel her kitchen (including structural changes) for 50K. Perfect example of the HGTV influence!

I’m having to reread posts. I’m missing out on lots of interesting comments.

Sueb20, that is why HGTV is so "dangerous" to homeowners and buyers that have no idea of actual costs. They don't understand that the figures shown are not accurate. The figures don't include labor costs and the material costs are more than likely not accurate. Certainly if they are accurate somewhere, they aren't accurate everywhere.

That OP quote you provide is the mindset of many of the buyers I work with when selling homes. I have to show the the difference between TV and real life to bring the buyer back to reality. Many of the buyers have no idea of actual remodeling costs and HGTV and other similar shows propagate that faulty (a/k/a magical) thinking. It is a shame that the OP on that thread linked by The Cooks Kitchen would rather believe a TV show over real facts and figures. *smh*

Just a vent here. I’m watching House Hunters right now and the buyer and the agent keep referring to “antique” homes. Is that a regional thing? I’ve never heard a house referred to as an antique and it’s driving me nuts. Around here the term used would be period I’d think.

Also, they walked into one house and the buyer asked “Are these real hardwood?”. To which the agent replied, “Yes, they’re walnut.”. The buyer girl squealed with delight. Of course the floors were oak with a walnut stain, but the buyer doesn’t know the difference, so to me she deserves what she gets.

ok, so the realtor gives her the wrong info and she's the idiot? I don't know that being able to identify the species of wood is a talent that most people have.

Annette, I can one up you on the flooring. I have seen sellers and agents list their laminate floors as hardwood floors. How in the world can people confuse laminate, and I mean the poor quality obviously plastic type, with hardwood? I think they do it because they think others don't know any better....

suedonim75, some of these agents answer questions that they have no business answering. I agree with you, if they don't know their woods, then they need to find out from the source what the wood actually is before answering. But then again, its TV and not real life anyway. It may have been in her script. I'm not defending the agent because it is a problem in our industry - people giving out erroneous info.

How ‘bout GENUINE pvc leather, I love this one

A family member of mine bought a house and she was saying it had hardwood all through the downstairs. Yeah...it was laminate. She was furious when my husband said it was laminate and tried to argue with him about it.

lol bossyvossy, that's a good one!

Genuine Bonded Leather is another one I've seen.

I've seen posts where people are asking why their leather is peeling? Well, maybe because it's vinyl. You can't buy a genuine leather sectional for $999.

The term “antique” when referring to an old home is common where I live.

I used to be a member of the HGTV boards (from 2001-until they disappeared), and there was a very active HGTV shows forum. Even over a decade ago, posters were complaining about the redundancy, fakeness, unrealistic remodeling, etc, shown ... along with "Where did the 'G' go", "We're sick of real estate shows!", and so on. The forum mod would post asking what people wanted to see, get a barrage of replies, then give the 'ole, "Thanks, we'll take this into consideration!". It was funny.

suedonim75, actually I think they’re both idiots lol.

I guess I’m old fashioned in that I do as much research as possible before making what would be considered a large purchase. I would absolutely want to know for myself what is real and what isn’t.

I do research before I buy a toaster, lol.

^Not old fashioned Annette, smart. Research is so much easier today and yet there are those that just don't want to know the facts.

I was just reading another thread where someone was trying to arrange their living room. They have a sectional. Of course all the sectional haters come out in full force telling the OP to sell the couch and buy something different. Really? I mean it's just so easy to take a couple thousand dollar hit on re-selling a couch, then turn around and spend a few thousand more to buy new.

Well, there is a whole other part of exposure that hasn't really been discussed yet. It used to be that only one's close friends and a few random others saw the inside of your house.

My parents did a fair amount of entertaining, and even then maybe a total of 250 people saw the inside over the years, because a good 100 of those people were the same ones over and over.

Within that group only a portion had more than a passing interest in design and also once that core group of 100 had seen it, they had seen it. And in my parents' case, if you saw it in 1987, you saw it in 2007--it changed minimally.

Now someone posts pictures of their house online, and hundreds if not thousands of people see it, and the people who are seeing it are all interested in design and since none of them really know you very well or at all, they are going to give you an opinion...and a lot of your friends won't one, because many don't care, and two because if they don't like it they will be polite. Real life isn't a design forum.

oh bossyvossy, I do agree with you it's a con..I agree it's amazing con..my point was: it's not the most amazing con..my disagreement was about not giving some other TV channels that titulus that they deserve more LOL

and the rebellion is always yet to come. If you ask me. You have a very strong movement-at some point, there will be a strong movement anti. Something happens along each movement that pushes you out of the frame.

so there's a rebellion, and sense of freedom maybe..and then somehow one looks around and behold! it's still a frame, just a different one:)

Got ya. Can you name a show?

all I can think of is ciggy commercials. All men were manly and all women shophisticated b/c they smoked.

And it was a very rare family I knew where people actually "redecorated" at all, particularly to follow trends.

Yeah. My parents were actually in the renovation biz, in a way. They managed hotels and their specialty was seeing one through a major renovation and hiring the new staff, then next season off to do another one someplace else.

But their main house, the one I grew up in, was built in 1960 and furnished with what they had, which was mostly outdated pickings from furnishings the hotel owner was going to trash to make room for new stuff. Once they had everything they needed, that was that. And if that round-the-corner two-piece art deco sofa was completely unfashionable in 1970, they didn't worry about it.

They never bought or redid anything except when it wore out, and then if it could be reupholstered, they did. Actually, I take that back. They did buy two lamps for the living room in 1964 or thereabouts. I have those now. And during the first small tile mania in the mid-60s my dad removed the wallpaper in their bathroom and tiled it, then by 1978 we were having serious discussions about what to do about that when they eventually wanted to sell the house.

But none of our friends ever really paid attention to stuff like that. Most people didn't then, and it didn't validate or invalidate your life if you had a dowdy house.

Many of the buyers have no idea of actual remodeling costs and HGTV and other similar shows propagate that faulty (a/k/a magical) thinking.

I was looking at a listing just this morning for a foreclosure in a very trendy area for a 1926 cottage. I was a little surprised because there aren't very many foreclosures in an area where RE prices have tripled in the past three years, but when I saw the inside….

The current owner had decided to disembowel the house à la Fixer Upper, got as far as ripping out every single thing inside, including the attic (Open Floor Plan!! Cathedral Ceiling!!), and then discovered how much it was really going to cost to build a whole new house inside the shell and gave up.

Pity, because it was a nice old house when he attacked it and trashed all the wonderful old fixtures and features.

bossyvossy I can but I'd rather not. it's too much of OT. anyway it's a whole channel not a single show, and it's not in English anyway, so we won't be able to discuss it or something

but as somebody who grew up in USSR-even USSR's TV is humbly smoking in the distance LOL

writersblock, that is such a shame that the interior of that 1926 home was destroyed in pursuit of something that wouldn't have worked anyway!

Interesting thread. Thanks for linking to that article, Bumblebeez. I didn't know it was called the Diderot effect. I've been calling it the ricochet effect in our home. (If we're going to change the flooring, might as well paint first, and then we'll need new curtains, etc.).

Palimpset, you bring up a great point about exposure. "Real life isn't a design forum" and when we consume HGTV and the like, it's too easy to get swept up in the fantasy of it - the newer, better, cooler NOW they showcase. We often don't realize how much of it is fake.

It's as if we've forgotten how to be content. I've noticed the quest for newer, better in other fields as well. Skincare and makeup, for example. You can't read a beauty forum without seeing talk of endless holy grail product searches. Fitness, the same thing. I recall a column from a fitness coach years ago saying that people were making themselves sick in their quest for perfection. He had said something along the lines of "You're already an 8. Be happy." Readers were upset. "How dare he criticize my wish for chiseled abs!"

I'm guilty of thinking new decor will make me happy and I can't help tingling whenever I walk into HomeSense and spot their newest stock.

I just retired my cheap 15-year-old toaster from Home Depot ($15) and bought another cheap one ($21) which will probably last another 15 years. I was amazed to see toasters that cost $100 or more, most of which had truly ugly and weird shapes. Mine is classic and simple and blends in with the other kitchen appliances (like the cheap microwave I bought at the same time and place as the toaster which is still going strong). On the other hand I've spent big bucks on antique Chinese porcelain that I see and enjoy every day of my life, something that has lasting beauty and is imbued with historical meaning, and which may already have increased in value, although I can't bear to let any of it go. In spite of the cost, I've never carried a credit card debt and am prepared for emergencies. On the other hand we drive a 1990 Miata and a 2000 Camry and really enjoy both of them. As many of us have said, you don't need to have it all, and I don't think it's good for anyone to be able to. We need to stay grounded in the realities of life, and for me it's terribly important to donate money every month to worthwhile animal and environmental causes. It shouldn't just be me, me, me - that is not an honorable or thoughtful life.

I'm not on the quest to have the perfect home, and HGTV has barely influenced what I like (MCM, modern, minimal and monochromatic have, and will always be my thing), but I have always been on a quest to find the perfect hair products and Sephora has had the biggest influence on what I've used over the years.

Currently, I'm all about Argan oil because it actually works for my hair. So I'm going through every Argan oil shampoo and conditioner they have to see which company's the "best." Ridiculous because I'm not even sure I can get better results anymore but it doesn't seem to keep me from trying.

My this is a long thread. I wish I had seen it earlier, before it reached novel length, lol. I actually read the entire thing. Took me a few hours with the side threads that were linked!

Very interesting topic, bossyvossy. Something I’ve thought about lately, especially with the popularity of Fixer Upper and the influence that particular show has had. I loved watching HGTV and DIY Network back in the day before the programming became what it is these days. I got great ideas from them. Only a few were implemented, tho. It was mostly entertainment. I didn't even have cable until 2004 or so. Instead, I was influenced by the old Gardenweb some 18 years ago when living in a mid-century ranch (my "starter" home). I cut the cable cord a couple of years ago and do not miss it one bit.

I love looking at local real estate listings. I'm aghast at the prices of flip houses in my neighborhood. And they sell! They're all the same with engineered "hand-scraped" wood floors, white and gray kitchens with stainless appliances (with the cheapest models, too) greige walls. Most of it bought at surplus stores and Lowe's no doubt. The flippers must be making a killing.

Many homeowners remodel for resale, when they should be remodeling for their own enjoyment of their home. Even some of the seasoned GW veterans in the kitchen forum have in the past cautionioned against choices might not be good for resale. That mindset is HGTV's influence. And let's face it, humans are easily influenced. :)

Now I'm older and living in my second house. I’ll be here for at least 10 more years, god willing. I gutted the master bathroom and did a contemporary remodel with a Houzz-influenced floating vanity. That's somewhat regretful, only because I chose a low-quality vanity. But I do love my bathroom. I would love a new kitchen, but it probably won't happen. It’s not a big priority for me as the one I have will do (original 1968 cabinets with some mods over the years). I've personal built custom cabinets for the dining room and sitting room. I love it, but it's not "on-trend". I thought that I would seek advice on this forum, but wound up not feeling like I needed it. And I honestly couldn't care one micron what anyone else thinks about it, much less some anonymous future buyer 10 years from now, lol. Needless to say, I'm no longer HGTV's target demographic.

I would love a new kitchen, but it probably won't happen. It’s not a big priority for me as the one I have will do (original 1968 cabinets with some mods over the years). I've personal built custom cabinets for the dining room and sitting room. I love it, but it's not "on-trend". I thought that I would seek advice on this forum, but wound up not feeling like I needed it. And I honestly couldn't care one micron what anyone else thinks about it, much less some anonymous future buyer 10 years from now, lol. Needless to say, I'm no longer HGTV's target demographic.

^Well said!

In general terms I don't want to begrudge anyone who spends $25 for some super trendy non-essential at home goods or $250,000 taking out a perfectly good, almost new kitchen and replacing it with another one.

If you look at ReStores and Green Renovations and places like that you will often see brand new expensive kitchens removed from houses essentially for taste and trend issues. That's okay as long as it ends up being donated or sold and recycled as far as I am concerned...as long as it doesn't end up in a landfill. It's giving people work and such.

And, just because someone spends a ton of money on something we wouldn't, or a lot of money...I dunno, it does not mean they are doing this at the expense of being charitable or having "experiences" like vacations and things like that. They may be doing all that too. I doubt people have a matrix of "should I spend this money on a ktichen or should I give money to charity?" I think charitable people will always be charitable and uncharitable people will not, regardless of whether they spend money on accessories or a kitchen.

Amen jpp221! You’ve hit the nail on the head. When viewership realizes that true remodel involves more than paint fabric and finishes, the days of the hgtv phenomenon will be over. We can probably say that those who no longer watch HGTV have come to that realization.

@aprilneverends - I love reading your posts. April is my birth month BTW.

Thank you for your kind words seagrass..it's my birth month too..))

WOW I just read through this whole thread. And it took some time y'all. This is one of those threads that makes me wish the gardenweb forums had the "quote" functionality. But my post would have been miles long.

What I kept searching for, and what some of these posts finally touched on, is the big "C" word: Consumerism. It runs a very wide & deep river through the middle of our daily lives. It's tough to ignore. Taking a step back, and considering just how much of what we read & look at everyday is, essentially, an advertisement.

Can't blame HGTV, can't blame "kids today," can't blame any one thing other than being a part of the industrialized world and living in a rich country/economy driven by consumerism.

Along the lines of what someone here said: I do wish people would trust themselves more with design decisions. Your house should look like your home. It shouldn't look like a corporate office or a hotel suite. Personalize it, please. It will give you more enjoyment in the end.

OTOH, hey, if you like the that look, go for it. Some people are more comfortable with that. No judgments.

bossyvossy said: I can’t think of any other program/network that has brainwashed audiences in that manner. Not even the cooking shows. Not even religious shows.

I have to respectfully disagree with this. Being a part of the food community for 30+ years I know many people who RAIL against the Food Network and what it has done. We started with Julia Child teaching us how to make french food, and now we have Sandra Lee and recipes of "a can of this and a can of that" ~ so cooking has been 'dumbed down' as well. Our lives are soooo busy "nobody has time to cook" and it's seen as an onerous and boring task. Also see: Fast Food Nation.

As far as religion's influence on people, that's a big can o' worms and one I won't comment on here!

Pretty much everything today has been "dumbed down", whether it is interior design or cooking. Unfortunately, the dumbing down has permeated our schools as well, in particular many of our public schools.

What I hear constantly from people is that they just don't have the time to do about anything, be it parenting their children, cooking, decorating - you name it. I'm not really quite sure what is filling all their time. I know - most women work - and many people no longer work 8:30-5:30. I get that. But almost everyone has SOME spare time? How are they using it? Is it to spend time on the computer, or watching TV? I think back to my own mother who did not work outside the home, but my gawd, the woman sure did inside the house and in the garden. I think of all that hauling laundry up the basement steps to the big umbrella hanging rack outside. All that ironing - no permanent press. All that cleaning! And the cooking - everything from scratch and it always included a hot breakfast for my father, and I came home for lunch through elementary school (soup and a sandwich, usually). She worked until she could barely lift her head! But she used her spare time to be a good parent, make a lovely home for us, and a lovely garden. Of course, at the time, I was oblivious to how much she worked!

Today, people make a whole lot of choices that they are unaware they are even making. But "me" factors heavily in many, many of these choices today.