shipperx | Dec. 15th, 2005

Dec. 15th, 2005

I heart Tim Gunn. Love when he took Andre aside and gave him a talking to for breaking down in overly theatrical tears in last week's episode. However, I missed what he said to Daniel Franco. Anyone know?

Agree with last night's challenge winner. (Design a dress for Barbie! Hee!) I thought that dress was the clear winner (you can see -- and rate-- the outfits here) And Santino has quite the ego on him, doesn't he? Talented, yes, but does he think he's going to win every challenge? He should remember last year, where Kara Saun won the most challenges while Jay won none of them (though I still maintain that he had the best Banana Republic dress. Only dress in the lot that I would have bought. And Jay did come in consistently near the top of the list every week). Jay, won last year for being consistently good, but for also turning in a very good final show. Kara was better at the challenges, but Jay took his freedom on the final show and ran with it. Anyway, while I'm interested in Santino's work, I think at the moment I'm rooting for Nick. He seems to be talented and have a sense of humor.

Which annoying fan are you?
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So, now that Mom has finally settled on a house, (it's supposed to close at the end of the month) she is now looking for furnishings.

I think I mentioned that Mom sold her house to someone from New Orleans whose home had been destroyed in Katrina. Mom sold both house and furnishings, so basically Mom has one antique piece and new breakfast table (that's relatively modern). Now she's looking for furnishings. We have pretty much gone through every good furniture store in town. Mom is basically obsessed with home decor. She always has been. The woman has more copies of Architectural Digest than anyone I've ever known and when I was growing up she ran her own interior decorating business. The problem has been that she's one of these people who loves so many different styles that she can never settle on one style for herself. And in the last few years, she's found it increasingly difficult to settle down and make a decision on these things. She can waffle and be ambivalent forever. She's also constantly haunted by regret (to the point that, admittedly, my sister, myself and my dad dismiss her regretting decisions because she regrets EVERY decision. She constantly plays "what if..." and has analysis paralysis. My sister and I tend to have to push her into decisions. (I know that's dangerous, but otherwise no decision is ever made).

The problem is that with home decor, my sister and I are very, very different, so we aren't exactly pushing in the same direction. Mom decided tonight that if I really, really thought it was right, that I could go this weekend and order the sofa and chairs we had looked at last week. I've been pushing for this decision. In fact when I woke up last Saturday, my intention was to tell Mom "This is what you should do. Let's go order it today." Except, when I woke up, my sister was visiting and -- for once -- she decided to give in to my Mom's furniture obsession and visit all of two stores with us. The sofa my sister chose for Mom to buy is not the one that I had thought we would go with that morning. The sofa my sister chose was very nice... but more Edwardian in style. On the other hand, without her saying so directly, I'm quite sure that my sister feels that the sofa I was leaning toward is entirely too modern. Mom, in paralysis analysis mode, resorted to returning to the shop of an interior designer whose work we all love. She had intended to ask David (the designer) what he thought. Unfortunately, David was out on a job when we dropped in. One of the shop's workers suggested that we speak with am interior designer in the shop (I'm not sure whether this designer is someone that has recently been hired, or someone using the shop). . . and here's where it gets a tad sticky. The sales clerk had said "Oh, so-and-so has an iterior design degree, ask her." When mom and I left the store, I had snarked to her that the sales clerk didn't know. "How could someone with an interior design degree convince you when I have an architecture degree and was only one course short of graduating with an interior design double major, and I can't convince you."

So now, Mom gives me carte blanche to order the two pieces that I had selected... and now I am the one with analysis paralysis. I don't want to steer her wrong. Is this too modern for her (modern as in contemporary because it's not exactly Modern with capital 'M'... but I don't think she'd want it to be Modern with capital 'M'). She likes my home, but my home veres far more Tuscan in style. But both Mom and myself tend to be somewhat influenced by trends. I don't want to nudge her into a style that's too me or too trendy and not enough her. (I know it's not my sister, who tends to vere far more French in taste than either my mother or myself. )