Random thoughts, Violet.West, My personal take is that the primary reason people did not care for the home posted is that is it not currently on trend. I link below to the current issue of AD, which I have only perused briefly, for comparison. I think of the layered look as very Mario Buatta, and befitting Park Avenue matrons. Most people would rather not be a matron, and not be on Park Ave anymore. (most) I think the term "display of wealth" is an interesting one for decor, since relatively fewer people see your home (especially your entire home) than say, your car, or your watch. Especially, say, your MBA. So I am not always so sure you are looking at spaces created with the intent for "display", per se. Homes appear in AD primarily because the businesses involved in creating them want advertising; typically they pitch a home to the mag. Also, even for rooms or situations where people do wish to "display" something, it may not be wealth they wish to convey. Are they conveying wealth or class or lineage or worldliness or good taste or hipness or sophistication or success or cleverness? Those are all good possibilities. Or, are they just "keeping up with the neighbors". OR, hey, maybe they are not conveying anything much at all, just making places they feel comfortable in and enjoy looking at. I think we all agree that there is no good reason to mention the cost of anything, unless asked, and then one can always demur. Some people will ask the darndest things. The same people will ask to tour your home, which I used to find flattering but now I feel it is odd, other than close friends, and avoid it. OTOH, I do think that on an anonymous forum, any thing that might be useful is fine. Cost is very germane to decor of course. It is part of the educational process. More than once I posted specifically to ask if the cost of something seemed reasonable. In a business so rife with high markups and unscrupulous behavior, it is nice to have an unbiased source on your side. It's also nice to see what other people spend, to help establish your own guidelines. I am not sure there is any particular use to blanket statements about new wealth vs old, or about charitability by income bracket. I observe what I perceive as tackiness in all walks and lineage. I think a responsibility to give (and do) for others is a basic human obligation for all of us. One thing I greatly applaud is the integration of service learning into public school curricula, which I think is relatively new. It needs to be inculcated in everyone that service is just something that all citizens do. As for reveals, the only reveals I find offputting are people who have never posted before. I really like reveals of rooms that people have posted on over time. I find it interesting and satisfying, as well as inspirational. I appreciate any information, including costs, that people share. As for money and happiness. Money creates opportunities and helps to remove or lessen many of life's stresses. It is silly IMHO to claim otherwise. Does it mean the well to do never have a drinking problem or a broken family? Of course not. But what makes people happy? Certainly not money per se. I think I have mentioned this before, but I will again because I think it is such a useful concept. Most people spend a good deal of their energy and time on big goals. Say, for exampel, they want a newer, nicer, bigger, house. They will spend a lot of effort and time and money toward that big prize. However, research shows, that big changes, good OR bad, bring a spike of emotion, but then are rather quickly assimilated into your level of happiness, and become the new status quo. We've all probably BTDT. Whereas, small things, experienced frequently, raise your overall level of happiness throughout time. So,experts say, if you want to be happier, don't plan a 4 week vacation. Instead, go see a movie once a week. Don't buy a new house. Buy yourself a bouquet of flowers every Friday. FWIW Here is a link that might be useful: May 2014 AD

Kitchen towels are only in white and therefore you don't have to worry about anything matching or needing to bleach anything or using the "wrong" towel for anything. They're all the same. I buy cheap 100% cotton terry Doctor Joe automobile polishing towels and use them in the kitchen and garage. Once they get a bit stained from kitchen use, they become garage towels. If you buy in bulk cheaply and have plenty on hand, you won't be searching for one when you need it. Group some by the sink, and others by the prep area and yet others in the laundry area. Yes, I use them for cleaning up cat puke. The yuck goes down the toilet and the towel goes in the laundry with bleach. About 2 dozen is a good starting number for the average household. If you have a large household, then maybe double that. I use an old bucket that cat litter came in as the "hamper" in the pantry. If I'm doing a project that requires a lot of them and they're too many to just drape over the side and air out behind closed doors, I usually put them on a baking sheet and place them in the oven as it's cooling down. Use that "lost heat" for something! Do you want to talk about bottled water? We switched to a filter pitcher several years ago and bought a case of bottled water annually and just refilled the bottles as we drank the original water. But they were difficult to sanitize properly and after a recent bout with a nasty GI bug that the other half blamed on a water bottle, I received a dozen plain stainless steel water bottles as a holiday present. So far, they've been a lot easier to clean and fill and I'm really glad we switched.

True_blue and Hoovb, I think I get what you both seem to be communicating and agree with you both. I started a thread over a year ago regarding the most beautiful garden I had seen; it was actually the place where my husband and I married. Hastings House was created by the owner of the beachfront property and she tends to and created her landscaped garden full of collectibles with love. Many people chimed in and wrote Mottisfont Abbey, the Huntington, and other large scale gardens. While many of these places are well-done ( by the staff paid to design, create, and maintain them) and beautiful, to me, many just do not have a soul. They are carefully planned and designed to create an aesthetic or whatever the goal is, but are absent the love and connection that goes into creating it that gives it the "soul". Maybe I am missing something... Given the opportunity to tour Mendocino Rose's, or Daisy in Crete's garden, versus the Huntington ( of which I am a member nonetheless) or some other large scale garden, my choice would be Mendocino's or Daisy's garden. Don't get me wrong, I would ultimately tour all of them, but Mendocino and Daisy's gardens I believe are filled with wonder and delight, and have the ability to excite me. Their gardens have "soul". Lynn

HU, I noted that the brown color in the doors and door frames tends to soften or tone down the pink. You may want to paint all the cabinets and wood trim that color. Put the same color of wood on the tub facing. Paint the walls a complimentary soft creamy white and frost the shower door. Tada!