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What a fun collab! Obviously I’m a huge fan of TFD so I got on a plane as soon as I was asked!! 🛫 Also thanks for all the lovely comments on this video! I appreciate every one! 🤗
I was in that live when people were like "oh! Nick Lewis!" I then binged a bunch of your videos. This took a split second for me to click. Chelsea is a freaking godess. So awesome to see you both chat!!
You should read/interview one of the authors of Cradle to Cradle. This book was revolutionary in its time to how we look at designing and managing material cycles. They also have a consulting firm out of the US called GreenBlue. Through their design viewpoint, in many ways MDF can be more sustainable then solid wood, as it is a waste product thst in theory can be put back into a circular economy and used for several lifecycles. (That is if the chemicals used to make it aren't totally toxic, and if there is a system in place for the repurposing of the material.) People move a lot more now, they cant always afford to move furniture, and buying and selling second hand can be very time consuming (not always). So in some ways MDF or other waste products or recycled materials can totally be more sustainable then virgin wood. The forestry industry is not very eco, although it can be very greenwashed. Modern agricultural forestry relies on replanting mono culture crops of mostly pine, which is bad for the soil, bad for water run off, bad for biodiversity, and these managed pine forests are incredibly dry, and are linked to be a reason for more forest fires. Or they come from old growth forest like BC's Fairy Creek, so solid new wood doesn't really mean good either. Its about looking at user usage, lifecycles, and larger systems then just wood= good, MDF= bad. Encouraging and supporting circular economies, and putting pressure on governments to facilitate this industry and consumer shift is critical. The problem is many people don't think about product lifecycles from the very start to the very end... or to its new beginning.
90% of my furniture is ikea and it's lasted me close to 10 years. If you take care of your stuff it will last. And I have taken apart and moved some of it as well and it doesn't fall apart. I think a lot of people just beat the crap out of their stuff and expect it to last forever.
Same, the few bits I have from Ikea I've had for a decade and moved homes 3x, it's definitely about how you look after your stuff. Another thing is I grew up poor, we always had second hand stuff, things were always fixed and up-cycled out of necessity. So now I'm an adult with better stability, for me there something really satisfying about choosing a new piece of furniture, saving for it, building it. It's nice to now have the option have a new item even if it's 'cheap' by most people standards it feels like a splurge for me, simply because it's NEW, it's special, even if it's Ikea.
You can see the results of poor furniture (and appliance) care at any local thrift store. While some things really don't age well (avoid pleather furniture like the plague) nost things will last longer if you just care for them.
I was just thinking this yesterday -- almost everything I've bought from IKEA in the past 15 years (hangers, dishes, bed frame & headboard, desk, vases, even those little sheepskins) I still have and is going strong. It was all I could really afford as a new college grad but chosen well and cared for, IKEA can be great. (And going there is always an experience.)
My parents have a bookshelf in my old bedroom that's apparently from IKEA. It's lasted about 30 years, survived being a toy shelf/bookshelf/makeshift barbie apartment building and is still perfectly functional.
Love Nick, and especially how he can be humorous and respectful at the same time. He doesn't thrown nasty shade, even if it's not his thing. Have always appreciated that, while still helping us learn more about the right questions to ask before making a big interior decision. (P.S. I know i have issues...my screened porch has lobsters in it...and I"m in Iowa. Unauthentically provides me joy. There's that.)
Something to remember is so long as the core construction of the furniture is high quality the aesthetic condition is not that important. Real wood can be reconditioned, refinished and repaired. Real leather is much the same. If you find a piece while thrifting that you love the "bones" of but the finish is trashed flip it over, pull out drawers and examine how it's put together. If it's rock solid and only a little worn look into restoration and repair.
101:08 - Oh my gosh, I've never heard anybody else talk about a Household Atrocity! (Chelsea didn't call it that, but my family does.) For us, the advice comes from an old Miss Manners column where she says, to paraphrase "Not everything in a house should be in perfect taste, because a house in perfect taste is tasteless." Thus, my mom started the tradition of giving newlyweds in the family a Household Atrocity - think a loon-shaped cookie jar with unsettling red eyes or a gaudy pitcher covered in climbing ceramic monkeys. It simply appears in the gift pile with no indication of which relative bought it. The thing usually meets an untimely demise during a move a few years down the line. (Rest in pieces, maroon circus monkey pitcher.) You don't have to take it as far as we do, but it's a good reminder that your space is for you, and that nothing is supposed to be perfect. You deserve to have things that you love, even if some of them don't match anything else.
But there is a difference between something funky kinda ugly you found and loved, and something downright ugly someone else got you just to give something ugly. I do have some things people might find ugly, but I love them because they sparked something in me or because it was handed down/heired from family.
I love this topic so much! Especially because when decorating your home, it should feel like your home (not someone else's)! One of my favorite ways to do that is take time and find those unique pieces at flea markets and yard sales and slowly integrate them into your home. I've always found those pieces are usually built to last and they have an extra sense of something special to them. 😄
Talking about exposing your home, I work in engineering and most people I work with are more well off than me because of my age. The place I live/grew up housing has gone up by 100% in three years. We started working from home at the beginning of the pandemic and my desk was in my bedroom. I would get so annoyed when all these rich white men in their fancy home offices would call me out like “Come one turn your camera on”. I don’t want people I work with and/or clients seeing inside of my bedroom, leave me alone or pay me enough to have a fancy home office. I want the privacy of my bedroom.
Honestly I'd invest in a cheap roll up green screen and then use the background blocking features programs like zoom come with. Let them see you in front of a beach front background or on the moon lol
This is something that I really hate about working from home - it really exposes inequities in the workplace. I also always keep my cam off and stay on mute most of the time because I live in a one bedroom apartment with horrible soundproofing. It’s always embarrassing to see coworkers who have beautifully curated offices in expensive homes and have to show mine by comparison. As a minority, I also feel like the state of my home opens me up to negative stereotyping.
I totally understand. My initial issue with working from my bedroom were the anime wallscrolls, lol. Mine aren't explicit and are pretty tame, but their presence in general made me very self-conscious when doing job interviews. Places always wanted a 360 view of your bedroom to ensure it was enclosed and had a door that could be locked to avoid being disturbed, but that also meant they saw everything I had hung up, even if it initially wasn't viewable on camera. Quite embarrassing. But my current job doesn't care about stuff like that, I can work from anywhere, and they embrace quirkiness. One guy on our team always takes his calls with a filter that makes him look like he's on a spaceship, lol. Others show off their video game posters (have a few of those myself, too). I work from my second bedroom which I've now decided will at least be half of an office or an office/library combo and will probably put all the anime stuff in here. The posters will probably still be put of the way of the camera, but I have some other, more subtle ideas for showing my interests. For years and at multiple locations, a Kingdom Hearts blanket adorned the wall where I would have a headboard. A tapestry in general can be a great way to add something to a wall behind you without spending a lot.
Green is my favorite color! I plan to do green cabinets for our kitchen renovation. When I purchased my house 3 years ago I went out of my way not to use green, because family and friends said everything I own is green. Now our house is mostly blue and I wish I just let myself have the colors I love regardless of comments and trends!
I live outside the US and use social media sparingly. The more videos of TFD I see, the more grateful I am to be completely out of the loop when it comes to trends (until I hear them referenced here)!
Thanks so much for inviting Nick on the channel! He’s truly the only interior design RUclipsr I follow for all the reasons mentioned in this episode (focusing on classic, lasting style choices). Great job to both Chelsea and Nick!
As someone who was recently homeless and is now getting back of their feet, the amount of things you can just find people giving away on the side of the road is staggering. Someone down the road from me had a coffee table with a free sign in their drive, and the only thing wrong with it was that a wheel had come off. It wasn't even missing, they gave it to me when I took the table. And as soon as I got home I took the other 3 wheels off because they weren't necessary for the functionality of the table either, and not I have a lovely glass topped coffee table.
What a wonderful interview. I think something that the whole "on trend" and "luxe" focus of designers on RUclips is the root of the problem. I've really appreciated that Nick always aims for timelessness, quality, and expressing who you are. In designing my home, I've listened to, and put I to practice, a lot of Nick's advice and I finally feel like I've created MY home and nobody else's. Thanks for the interview!
I have been buying "scratch and dent" and floor models, along with used, for decades, with the effect of some of my rooms looking like those in Downton Abbey. My friends used to make fun of me, but now everyone wants my stuff. I am just grateful that I am done shopping for furniture, until I move and may need things for a differently sized space. There is so much crap out there, at RH prices, that won't last through several holiday dinners or kids jumping on the sofa, or even an overnight guest. Vintage, antique, and used are almost always better than new, except for mattresses.
The effect that one's home has on their stress level is super important to consider. I had to sell my three bedroom house and downsize to a one-bedroom rental and so I have my entire house filled with boxes. I'm working and going to school full-time, so it's been hard for me to carve out the time to fully unpack and renovate. I'm so exhausted and I feel like whatever free time I have needs to go to homework and resting. It's left my house as a somewhat cluttered mess. It's a whole bunch of added stress.
@@biancat7761 It is, I'm sure! Asking for help has always been a big challenge for me. I live on the other side of the country from my family and I feel somewhat isolated from friends, who are all also very busy. I've just been trying to remind myself that school is a priority right now and that the time to organize will come. I'm at least working on making lists of everything I need to do so that I can pick away at them with what little time I have.
Oooooh that is so hard Sparky Malarkey (such a cute, funny name!). If my space is discombobulated, so am I, but being a full-time student is all-consuming. I decided to go to grad school 6months after buying my first house, and I had no idea what I was doing with a house 😅 What a time. YEARS later I took a whole week off to "settle" the house. It's a journey.
@@haleymist09 YES! You totally get it. It definitely is a journey. I'm just doing my best to make small steps when I can, but I'm really looking forward to the day when I can take care of everything in one fell swoop.
I feel this!! Not nearly as busy as you, but I feel like I've been focusing less on decor in my home lately in favor of taking time to relax after a long day/week and actually enjoy being in my place. I used to feel like if I had any extra $ or time, I should be putting more effort into updating this or changing that or whatever, when in reality I just want a nice space to lounge around in. 😋 it's not aesthetically pleasing nor do things match, but it's less stress on me and that's good enough.
Something I haven't seen discussed in regards to limited budget is that even if someone finds a great used piece of furniture for a low price, the cost of transporting it might be too much. Not everyone has a big vehicle, or any vehicle, or even drives. IKEA, Target, and Walmart usually have free delivery.
True. Another issue with finding great secondhand pieces is time. I have two jobs, which means I don’t have entire Saturdays to check out yard sales and secondhand shops for the perfect couch, and even if I find it, it’s not going to fit in my Chevy Impala. I can order from IKEA or Target on my lunch hour and they deliver.
Agree, I would like FB Marketplace and other sites where you can buy secondhand furniture more if I had a SUV and could easily transport items. I also don’t like that, at least in my area, many sellers on sites like FB Marketplace or Craigslist are not receptive to folks checking out the furniture before they purchase it, they just want folks who can pick things up right away.
Totally! I'm a single mom living on the 4th floor and I'm not going to buy a high quality shelf bc it's too heavy to get in and for me to move around if I want to rearrange. On top of that, my kids art projects take their toll on my coffee table and the cat scratches my couch. So I put a cover on the sofa and wood grain contact paper on my MDF coffee table. Also, the lightweight coffee table is easy to move if you want to do yoga or my kid wants to dance with her friends and doesn't kill my shins if I bump into it.
It could also depend (if they're renting) on what their landlord allows. My landlord doesn't let me bring in secondhand furniture because of the risk of woodworms. Also depending on what floor you live on or which room the piece is going in, they may have the ability to get the flat Ikea box up the stairs, but not a fully assemble dresser, especially if they don't have any friends/family members that can help.
What a surprise I am a subscriber of both your channels!!! For me I apply the same principles in interior design and decor as fashion. Ie: invest in your basics, think about comfort, buy quality 2nd hand over cheap new material, when you buy something new, make sure it works with what you have already, know your measurements (for the space as know your body shape for clothing), etc..,etc...
So happy to see this collaboration! Two great RUclipsrs together! I’m a new homeowner as well, so I’m consuming a lot of design content as I put these new spaces together. But I’m definitely choosing things that make ME happy in MY home - not trends. I would, however, take note of home trends if I was prepping my house to sell.
I watched the office hour where Chelsea discovered Nick's channel and he joked that he'd head over to New York asap to chat with her, so seeing this now just makes my heart so happy!
Not me sitting in my in my in laws house with the Tuscan dining room AND a bowl of seashells in the bathroom😭 I love that you’re putting words to this because I’ve always felt like this kind of decor lacks personality. But they enjoy it so I’m not gonna bash it, it is just not for me!
I loved the point about buying second-hand. I bought a real-solid wood 7 piece dining set for $75 from a family that was moving. The set definitely needs to be refurbished one day but brand new it would easily be a several thousand dollar purchase. But it's functional and still looks nice enough.
Genuinely so excited to see Nick! I could just listen to him chatter about design all day. The style defined series was amazing for narrowing down what I like. Ironically I low key hate MCM but still love the channel.
It’s always tough to find sustainable and sturdy furniture but at a midrange price. Seems like there’s nothing between a $300 bed and a $1500 one nowadays. Price isn’t even a guarantee of quality cause you got west elm using particle board MDF for even some of their 1k+ pieces.
I know, right?! Why does it feel like we all need to learn how to make our own furniture if we ever want something at a decent price that's made out of real wood?
Vintage furniture is the answer! My 1950s dining room table was $400 for instance and is solid wood. Another option is Amish furniture. I have dining room chairs that are handmade and didn't cost anymore than chairs from West Elm or CB2 or one of those chain stores.
@@sparkymularkey6970 we definitely do. No doubt. Currently doing a course on domestika by a guy who does maderistica furniture and he talks about a designer who put out a book of furniture that regular people can build because it is super sturdy but easy to make
I love the parallel conversation about fashion and decor! I was taught at a young age, start with a strong "timeless" foundation that reflects my style. That doesn't mean those items will not be less or more popular at times. It means they are personal and reflect me out where trends reflect the outside influences in. It's still ok to have a few low cost trendy accents that can be repurposed or donated when I feel "over them". It is even ok to transition or modernize that base from one style to another as I have grown, but if the items are well made and personal, I want to keep them longer and replace items gradually.
Two of the best unproblematic faves in the same room! Was so excited back in the day when Nick popped up in the live stream, stoked that the meeting came to fruition
Yes to your point about getting quality secondhand pieces on an 'Ikea budget'! My husband and I just recently returned from a stint overseas back to Australia. We had zero furniture and have managed to completely furnish our apartment with secondhand pieces. We found an auction website (for estates etc) and have scored some amazing pieces for an absolute steal! All solid wood and will probably be strong enough to hand down to our kids.
One thing though, H&M, Zara, etc, weren't there to fit the need of people to change outfit and wardrobe more often. They shaped the media and they CREATED that need. Fast fashion wouldn't exist if not for them. They are not a necessary evil that filled a gap, they created the gap and filled it. And considering what their practices are doing to the earth, I guess you could frankly say they're evil :)
I am not every viewer, and haven't seen too many of Nick's things, but I personally like that he isn't dragging everything all the time. We all have are biases, but I like the more logical side to the planning. My whole childhood was chaotic and mismatched, so it is a different approach to try and curate things by myself for the first time.
Another tip, after getting samples for anything such as tiles or stone or fabric remember you are getting a sample that has been relegated as such. When you make your choice you should ask them to send you a "cutting" if fabric or "break" if tile or stone from their "current dye lot". Many times, especially with fabrics, the dye lot changes slightly to greatly, tomato red in a sample arrives as a more berry red in a fully upholstered item that you cannot return as you "chose" the color and did not make the request for a cutting sample. Good design takes a lot of time and patience for due diligence and careful research. Number one mistake clients make is being in a hurry and impatience with time. It's called a CFA (Cutting for Approval)
Loved this and love Nick. He’s like Garrett Lechic….they give an honest opinion about without saying we should do things they exact way they do. And I love that Nick doesn’t constantly change his decor. 🥰
I was in that original stream and was one of the commenters who requested Nick!!! I screamed when I saw this posted and literally saved it for a special brunch I made at home, so I could really enjoy the watch! I'm 35 minutes in and you two have already touched on SO many points I wanted to hear about, yay! Also, I just want to say that I find the episodes especially enjoyable when the guest is sitting there with Chelsea as opposed to over Zoom, though I realize that isn't always feasible. I do find it makes a world of difference, though. LOVE YOU , Nick and TFD!!!
Thank you for addressing this. I’ve been decorating my home and it brings me down to think that I’ll feel like the designs that I have put my heart and money in will feel stale and old fashioned fairly soon. I hate that I’ve been brainwashed by this culture and I’m not sure how to protect myself from it
My worlds are colliding over here! Two very sassy RUclipsrs sitting down to talk about interior design is making me the happiest woman in my town right now 🥳
This video was made for me. I’m a stay at home mom currently and take in way too much social media. I like interior design and like to change things up but I’m also on a budget since I’m part of a single income household. It’s so important to hear about how interior design is as destructive as fast fast for our planet, our bank account and our psyche. Thank you for the amazing content and collabs!
Loved this! I've noticed many home décor influencers move every 12 to 18 months just to for new content (my opinion). It's like they can't live in one space for too long in fear the "audience" will get bored and lose interest.
I think a gallery wall is a beautiful way to express your unique taste and style because, ideally, you're curating a collection of art that you LOVE over time. For example, I had a piece of art commissioned by a local artist in Chicago. I LOVED her work. I met her because we were both bridesmaids at a mutual friend's wedding. I gave her sort of the feel and some elements I wanted to be incorporated, but she ran with how that would manifest onto the canvas and it's my FAVORITE piece I own. It'll be a forever piece for me. In addition, my best friend's husband is a photographer and he mainly shoots more gritty street art and architecture I've received a few of his pieces signed and framed as gifts. The styles are completely different, yet are completely a piece of who I am because they're from people I truly love.
My two current favorite RUclipsrs! 😍 Yay! I love that you both are very aware of your own social positioning and encourage us to look at ourselves as well. It feels somewhat rare to have this level of (at least, perceived) authenticity in your channels AND also your content leads viewers to question our own assumptions, societal trends, and ethics around consumerism. I love the transparency you both give the audience in your videos. The content is classy yet practical, financially-savvy, eco-conscious while not being too negative nancy about everything. Love you both Chelsea and Nick, please do more collab videos! 💕
These two channels collaborating are a dream come true! For the record, I recently managed to buy and apartment, had custom - made furniture (I have been saving for it for the past 5 years, and paying all of that at once was extremely painfull to me). I did emphasize to the person making the furniture that I wanted all simple neutral colors, and the reason for that was because I knew I would want to change things around every couple of months or so. I am still working from home and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future, so changing things is important to me in order to not get depressed. And, for me at least, changing the drapes, some pillows or even the rugs is much more manageable than a couch or armchairs.
You two are my dream team! So spot on. When I renovated my bathroom I did a 3D diarama of the room so my contractor knew exactly what was in my head. I also layed out all the floor tile on my living floor so they could duplicate it exactly. I’m sure they thought I was crazy but I ended up with a space that was perfectly executed. My contractor was an angel and thats not something you hear every day.
Thank you for this collab. I appreciate Nick and his sensitivity to budget and personal style, as opposed to those influencers, who throw shade for the drama, as if they are the alpha in a clique of mean girls. Thank you, Nick!
Omgosh this episode is music to my ears. I love interiors but that's been my biggest pet peeve- the fast fashion-izing of home decor. Our homes are supposed to be rich in character a reflection of the resident, not a sale display for brands or an echo chamber of the algorithm. I'm glad to see Nick's input too. Thank you TFD for addressing another important issue within an industry.
So on the nose! I always feel a little bad for not changing my environment around, after all I have a degree in interior design.. But you vocalized it so well. I think the fact that I don't change it around is a testament to the fact that I did it right the first time. If you're changing it around a lot it kind of indicates that something about that space isn't working for you and you're trying to fix it. I will no longer feel bad. I love my home, and my husband is always saying that he loves our home and that's all that matters.
Loved this! I really like Nick's channel, but I didn't realize how much I needed this collab! I just moved and I'm trying to take things slow in terms of decorating the new place. I always try to balance quality and cost and taking care of things, but my real struggle is trying to combine my personal style with my roommates 🥴
Would you consider sharing about your style evolution and what that process looks like financially? Been loving the pieces you've been wearing in much of your recent content, and as an early viewer who remembers the mostly-neutral wardrobe beginnings, I'd be curious to see more about that growth and process from a financial perspective.
Trends come and go; style is infinite. Find/learn your style and stick with it (also valid for fashion). Sticking with your style doesn't mean you are stuck with some particular pieces forever. Vice versa. It gives you endless options for finding your own unique cohesion. Thank you, Chelsea and Nick; it was fun.
Here where I live in France I can't afford nice solid wood stuff at all, it's exorbitantly over priced here, that usually only the mdf stuff is available. Yes, there are a lot of antique furniture available here that's decently priced, but I don't have a car, usually those places don't ship, the furniture almost always ends up needing to be refinished which costs more money than I have, and here in France it tends to be this delicate looking stuff that looks like it'll break just from blowing on it, and my husband, who's French, has been known to break a few chairs just because he's just animated not because he's a big guy, lol, I've turned down so much older furniture from my mother-in-law just for this reason. Plus I'm an older millenial that like mid-century modern stuff, lol, and used furniture like that here in France is extremely out of my budget. We also moved to this country with no furniture, we have to buy everything within a 3 week period right before going into an extremely strict covid lockdown and I just went on the French websites and measured our place and just went with what we could afford that kinda fit with a style I like. We did splurge and spend what I think is a lot (1,100€) on our Sofa because we wanted something that would last, and within a year a Z spring holder broke! Even trying to spend a lot of money thinking we're getting something well made and it still breaks within a year. Our one nice piece is our dining table, heavy ass hard wood that is mid-century looking but is probably from the 80s, was given to us. But it doesn't fit our space and it only sits 8 people barely. And if you know anything about French entertaining, you almost never do a dinner where people sit at other tables, they all like to sit together whether it's dinner or apero, no one separates to small groups, especially among a group of people where everyone knows each other, and French dinners can be hella long, like 2 hours or more sometimes sitting at the table without even getting up (that's the other reason I didn't want antique chairs, they're hella uncomfortable I hate sitting in them for more than 30 minutes), but yeah, so we need a different table now that will fit our space but can fit 12 people or more, and I doubt we'll be able to afford a table as nice as the one we were given.
What a lovely surprise to see Nick on the show! I’m a fan not just for the gentle snark, but for the focus on sustainability and intentionality. I’m a little floored that he was criticized for his living room not changing from video to video. Like him, I got my home how I want it and that’s how it will stay. I don’t approve of the fast fashion/fast interior design direction we’ve headed it. It’s a plant-killer.
As always me encantó el episodio!!! Gracias Chelsea!!! 🤩💖 i didn’t know about your guest and now i think i have to follow him in social media. It’s really refreshing to see his perspective to interior design.
Just saying, I had a used ikea bed frame that I took apart and put back together COUNTLESS times and she never squeaked once~ the only reason I got rid of it is because we got a bigger mattress lol
Yeah, I enjoyed the conversation but I don't appreciate the blanket disdain for cheaper products. There are good and bad products at all price ranges, and tbh my $100 metal folding bed frame has been serving me well for the past 5 years.
Lolll, I negotiated a discount on my sofa when the box arrived damaged and the sofa itself had some minor damage. Not only is it more sustainable to keep the sofa but I also live in NYC and there was NO WAY I was going to go through sending it back. That would have been a nightmare!
I feel like big cities like New York/London/Toronto are great for secondhand because they have lots of rich wasteful people living there who just want to get rid of their stuff... One great tip for facebook market is to adjust your search to look into rich neighborhoods. Love you both.
Honestly, I think a lot of the "Gen Z" DIY Crafts also come out of most of us are in high school or in college housing, where buying furniture isn't an option but we want to personalize our spaces!
My partner and I have taken apart our Ikea furniture and rebuilt it. It's doable. I've had this one Ikea table that I've used as a desk and it's going on it's tenth year. Absolutely agree that measuring is the way to go. I live in a small 1-br and we couldn't fit a couch but we could fit a loveseat so that's what we got.
I’m so happy you partnered up with Nick, his channel is by far the best home decor one out there and the collab between you two certainly did not disappoint. thank you for this I loved it !
Facebook market places charges almost NEW prices here, and for junk. Like 2nd hand ikea furniture for almost new ikea prices. Facebook marketplace for furniture (or most anything honestly except like bulk baby clothes) is trash here. (central IL)
This was a fantastic episode. So many great tips on how to not get caught up in fast-fashion trends and investing in good, quality pieces (as well as mixing in affordable ones!) 😌
If furniture don't match, use fabric like pillows, curtains and such to mend the style together, you can even put curtains as "doors" instead of glass or wood. And if you want to move furniture to the wall make sure you add some sort of room dividers to "cut" the room into halves. Some rooms are just too difficult to fix because of dodgy measurements or a wardrobe in the wrong corner (my rented apartment has a room where a wardrobe is placed in the wrong corner and with the door facing the wrong way making it almost impossible to set furniture up in a good way and my spatial intelligence is very high) and such problems.
i love, love, loveeeee this episode. especially because i’m renovating my home right now and i can’t seem to stick to any solid design or plan. so many great ideas and thought patterns. and overall a genuinely fun episode!
I just want to say that I used an Upstart loan to get out of credit card debt and to have a consistent, lower interest rate on my monthly payments. It was a great experience and I recommend them!
I looked into it to see if I could consolidate my debt into a lower interest rate, and sadly it wasn't any lower, but I love the peace of mind knowing that. Always worth looking into!
I feel like as a society we are so superficial. We are interested in the appearance of something rather than the substance beneath it, choosing the cheap faux version and constantly upgrading to stay on trend rather than figuring out what we value and investing in that for the longer term. Our consumerist culture makes us believe we need to keep changing things up and presenting these changes to the world. On some level we recognise that the fake version is undesirable but if we can disguise it well enough we value that appearance (like genuine youth vs a well executed vs botched plastic surgery job). Would love to see people embracing and projecting their own individual styles and that being valued by society... where we can't easily label a design style (midcentury modern vs. farmhouse vs. scandi) because it is unique to the individual and is not simply emulating the tastes and possessions of others. You get an authentic look by being authentic! Chelsea mentioned something about the purchasing power of her grandparents generation vs ours now (and I didn't fully pick up on her point but felt she was implying that we have less purchasing power now though that doesn't make sense when we see how people keep throwing money away on trends) - in the past people were intentional and invested once in quality. Now we have more disposable income but we spread it more thinly by buying frequent poor quality items. I enjoyed your conversation Chelsea and Nick - thanks for sharing.
I just found this video, and so thrilled to these two together. I really like Nick Lewis and have become a recent fan of TDF, this a good pairing and the video is very informative.
I legit gasped, which is hilarious because I'm not really someone who does that. Two of my favourite YTers in one collab! Be still my money-conscious, design-aspirational heart.
What?! I LOVED that you-get-what-you-pay-for video!!! It made me realise I never need to stress about getting the best carpets because I'm always going to have a dog, and that for me it's better to invest in a really good textile sofa than a mediocre leather one. So thanks for bombing, Nick!
Oh! My most favourite intelligent and sassy RUclipsrs in one video. As an added bonus, one of them is Canadian 🇨🇦. The only thing wrong with this vid is that it’s too short.
Chelsea, are you going through my subscriptions and interviewing all my faves!? First Imani and Kimberly. Last week was Hannah, now Nick! Cant wait to see who is next
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If you're looking to turn your passion into a business on RUclips, make sure to join us on Thursday, July 21 for The Entrepreneur Bootcamp hosted by TFD co founders, Chelsea & Lauren! Here's an exclusive discount: www.eventbrite.com/e/371206828617/?discount=RUclipsVIP
What a fun collab! Obviously I’m a huge fan of TFD so I got on a plane as soon as I was asked!! 🛫 Also thanks for all the lovely comments on this video! I appreciate every one! 🤗
It was definitely a very entertaining and enlightening video!
I was in that live when people were like "oh! Nick Lewis!" I then binged a bunch of your videos. This took a split second for me to click. Chelsea is a freaking godess. So awesome to see you both chat!!
This is my favourite TFC episode of this season ❤️❤️ it was so entertaining and just made me so happy
You should read/interview one of the authors of Cradle to Cradle. This book was revolutionary in its time to how we look at designing and managing material cycles. They also have a consulting firm out of the US called GreenBlue.
Through their design viewpoint, in many ways MDF can be more sustainable then solid wood, as it is a waste product thst in theory can be put back into a circular economy and used for several lifecycles. (That is if the chemicals used to make it aren't totally toxic, and if there is a system in place for the repurposing of the material.)
People move a lot more now, they cant always afford to move furniture, and buying and selling second hand can be very time consuming (not always). So in some ways MDF or other waste products or recycled materials can totally be more sustainable then virgin wood.
The forestry industry is not very eco, although it can be very greenwashed.
Modern agricultural forestry relies on replanting mono culture crops of mostly pine, which is bad for the soil, bad for water run off, bad for biodiversity, and these managed pine forests are incredibly dry, and are linked to be a reason for more forest fires. Or they come from old growth forest like BC's Fairy Creek, so solid new wood doesn't really mean good either.
Its about looking at user usage, lifecycles, and larger systems then just wood= good, MDF= bad.
Encouraging and supporting circular economies, and putting pressure on governments to facilitate this industry and consumer shift is critical. The problem is many people don't think about product lifecycles from the very start to the very end... or to its new beginning.
OH MY GOD IT HAPPENED!
90% of my furniture is ikea and it's lasted me close to 10 years. If you take care of your stuff it will last. And I have taken apart and moved some of it as well and it doesn't fall apart. I think a lot of people just beat the crap out of their stuff and expect it to last forever.
Same, the few bits I have from Ikea I've had for a decade and moved homes 3x, it's definitely about how you look after your stuff. Another thing is I grew up poor, we always had second hand stuff, things were always fixed and up-cycled out of necessity. So now I'm an adult with better stability, for me there something really satisfying about choosing a new piece of furniture, saving for it, building it. It's nice to now have the option have a new item even if it's 'cheap' by most people standards it feels like a splurge for me, simply because it's NEW, it's special, even if it's Ikea.
You can see the results of poor furniture (and appliance) care at any local thrift store. While some things really don't age well (avoid pleather furniture like the plague) nost things will last longer if you just care for them.
I was just thinking this yesterday -- almost everything I've bought from IKEA in the past 15 years (hangers, dishes, bed frame & headboard, desk, vases, even those little sheepskins) I still have and is going strong. It was all I could really afford as a new college grad but chosen well and cared for, IKEA can be great. (And going there is always an experience.)
My parents have a bookshelf in my old bedroom that's apparently from IKEA. It's lasted about 30 years, survived being a toy shelf/bookshelf/makeshift barbie apartment building and is still perfectly functional.
Same, we’ve had IKEA furniture that’s over 20 years old and that’s survived disassembly and reassembly for 5 moves and still looks good.
Love Nick, and especially how he can be humorous and respectful at the same time. He doesn't thrown nasty shade, even if it's not his thing. Have always appreciated that, while still helping us learn more about the right questions to ask before making a big interior decision. (P.S. I know i have issues...my screened porch has lobsters in it...and I"m in Iowa. Unauthentically provides me joy. There's that.)
Something to remember is so long as the core construction of the furniture is high quality the aesthetic condition is not that important. Real wood can be reconditioned, refinished and repaired. Real leather is much the same.
If you find a piece while thrifting that you love the "bones" of but the finish is trashed flip it over, pull out drawers and examine how it's put together. If it's rock solid and only a little worn look into restoration and repair.
Great advice!
101:08 - Oh my gosh, I've never heard anybody else talk about a Household Atrocity! (Chelsea didn't call it that, but my family does.) For us, the advice comes from an old Miss Manners column where she says, to paraphrase "Not everything in a house should be in perfect taste, because a house in perfect taste is tasteless."
Thus, my mom started the tradition of giving newlyweds in the family a Household Atrocity - think a loon-shaped cookie jar with unsettling red eyes or a gaudy pitcher covered in climbing ceramic monkeys. It simply appears in the gift pile with no indication of which relative bought it. The thing usually meets an untimely demise during a move a few years down the line. (Rest in pieces, maroon circus monkey pitcher.)
You don't have to take it as far as we do, but it's a good reminder that your space is for you, and that nothing is supposed to be perfect. You deserve to have things that you love, even if some of them don't match anything else.
This is an A+ tradition and I intend to adopt it once I start attending weddings
But there is a difference between something funky kinda ugly you found and loved, and something downright ugly someone else got you just to give something ugly.
I do have some things people might find ugly, but I love them because they sparked something in me or because it was handed down/heired from family.
Love this
I love this topic so much! Especially because when decorating your home, it should feel like your home (not someone else's)! One of my favorite ways to do that is take time and find those unique pieces at flea markets and yard sales and slowly integrate them into your home. I've always found those pieces are usually built to last and they have an extra sense of something special to them. 😄
Talking about exposing your home, I work in engineering and most people I work with are more well off than me because of my age. The place I live/grew up housing has gone up by 100% in three years. We started working from home at the beginning of the pandemic and my desk was in my bedroom. I would get so annoyed when all these rich white men in their fancy home offices would call me out like “Come one turn your camera on”. I don’t want people I work with and/or clients seeing inside of my bedroom, leave me alone or pay me enough to have a fancy home office. I want the privacy of my bedroom.
Honestly I'd invest in a cheap roll up green screen and then use the background blocking features programs like zoom come with. Let them see you in front of a beach front background or on the moon lol
Fake or blurred out background is the way to go for zoom! No one will notice if you are traveling that way as well
This is something that I really hate about working from home - it really exposes inequities in the workplace. I also always keep my cam off and stay on mute most of the time because I live in a one bedroom apartment with horrible soundproofing. It’s always embarrassing to see coworkers who have beautifully curated offices in expensive homes and have to show mine by comparison.
As a minority, I also feel like the state of my home opens me up to negative stereotyping.
My sister got a room divider which serves as a decent background for video calls
I totally understand. My initial issue with working from my bedroom were the anime wallscrolls, lol. Mine aren't explicit and are pretty tame, but their presence in general made me very self-conscious when doing job interviews. Places always wanted a 360 view of your bedroom to ensure it was enclosed and had a door that could be locked to avoid being disturbed, but that also meant they saw everything I had hung up, even if it initially wasn't viewable on camera. Quite embarrassing.
But my current job doesn't care about stuff like that, I can work from anywhere, and they embrace quirkiness. One guy on our team always takes his calls with a filter that makes him look like he's on a spaceship, lol. Others show off their video game posters (have a few of those myself, too). I work from my second bedroom which I've now decided will at least be half of an office or an office/library combo and will probably put all the anime stuff in here. The posters will probably still be put of the way of the camera, but I have some other, more subtle ideas for showing my interests. For years and at multiple locations, a Kingdom Hearts blanket adorned the wall where I would have a headboard. A tapestry in general can be a great way to add something to a wall behind you without spending a lot.
Green is my favorite color! I plan to do green cabinets for our kitchen renovation. When I purchased my house 3 years ago I went out of my way not to use green, because family and friends said everything I own is green. Now our house is mostly blue and I wish I just let myself have the colors I love regardless of comments and trends!
I live outside the US and use social media sparingly. The more videos of TFD I see, the more grateful I am to be completely out of the loop when it comes to trends (until I hear them referenced here)!
Thanks so much for inviting Nick on the channel! He’s truly the only interior design RUclipsr I follow for all the reasons mentioned in this episode (focusing on classic, lasting style choices). Great job to both Chelsea and Nick!
As someone who was recently homeless and is now getting back of their feet, the amount of things you can just find people giving away on the side of the road is staggering. Someone down the road from me had a coffee table with a free sign in their drive, and the only thing wrong with it was that a wheel had come off. It wasn't even missing, they gave it to me when I took the table. And as soon as I got home I took the other 3 wheels off because they weren't necessary for the functionality of the table either, and not I have a lovely glass topped coffee table.
Proud of you for getting through homelessness. I hope you are doing well now. ❤
What a wonderful interview. I think something that the whole "on trend" and "luxe" focus of designers on RUclips is the root of the problem. I've really appreciated that Nick always aims for timelessness, quality, and expressing who you are. In designing my home, I've listened to, and put I to practice, a lot of Nick's advice and I finally feel like I've created MY home and nobody else's. Thanks for the interview!
I have been buying "scratch and dent" and floor models, along with used, for decades, with the effect of some of my rooms looking like those in Downton Abbey. My friends used to make fun of me, but now everyone wants my stuff. I am just grateful that I am done shopping for furniture, until I move and may need things for a differently sized space. There is so much crap out there, at RH prices, that won't last through several holiday dinners or kids jumping on the sofa, or even an overnight guest. Vintage, antique, and used are almost always better than new, except for mattresses.
A Downton Abbey home, wow, goals!
The effect that one's home has on their stress level is super important to consider. I had to sell my three bedroom house and downsize to a one-bedroom rental and so I have my entire house filled with boxes. I'm working and going to school full-time, so it's been hard for me to carve out the time to fully unpack and renovate. I'm so exhausted and I feel like whatever free time I have needs to go to homework and resting. It's left my house as a somewhat cluttered mess. It's a whole bunch of added stress.
Maybe it's time to ask for help from friends and family???
@@biancat7761 It is, I'm sure! Asking for help has always been a big challenge for me. I live on the other side of the country from my family and I feel somewhat isolated from friends, who are all also very busy. I've just been trying to remind myself that school is a priority right now and that the time to organize will come. I'm at least working on making lists of everything I need to do so that I can pick away at them with what little time I have.
Oooooh that is so hard Sparky Malarkey (such a cute, funny name!). If my space is discombobulated, so am I, but being a full-time student is all-consuming. I decided to go to grad school 6months after buying my first house, and I had no idea what I was doing with a house 😅 What a time. YEARS later I took a whole week off to "settle" the house. It's a journey.
@@haleymist09 YES! You totally get it. It definitely is a journey. I'm just doing my best to make small steps when I can, but I'm really looking forward to the day when I can take care of everything in one fell swoop.
I feel this!! Not nearly as busy as you, but I feel like I've been focusing less on decor in my home lately in favor of taking time to relax after a long day/week and actually enjoy being in my place. I used to feel like if I had any extra $ or time, I should be putting more effort into updating this or changing that or whatever, when in reality I just want a nice space to lounge around in. 😋 it's not aesthetically pleasing nor do things match, but it's less stress on me and that's good enough.
Something I haven't seen discussed in regards to limited budget is that even if someone finds a great used piece of furniture for a low price, the cost of transporting it might be too much. Not everyone has a big vehicle, or any vehicle, or even drives. IKEA, Target, and Walmart usually have free delivery.
True. Another issue with finding great secondhand pieces is time. I have two jobs, which means I don’t have entire Saturdays to check out yard sales and secondhand shops for the perfect couch, and even if I find it, it’s not going to fit in my Chevy Impala. I can order from IKEA or Target on my lunch hour and they deliver.
Agree, I would like FB Marketplace and other sites where you can buy secondhand furniture more if I had a SUV and could easily transport items. I also don’t like that, at least in my area, many sellers on sites like FB Marketplace or Craigslist are not receptive to folks checking out the furniture before they purchase it, they just want folks who can pick things up right away.
Totally! I'm a single mom living on the 4th floor and I'm not going to buy a high quality shelf bc it's too heavy to get in and for me to move around if I want to rearrange. On top of that, my kids art projects take their toll on my coffee table and the cat scratches my couch. So I put a cover on the sofa and wood grain contact paper on my MDF coffee table. Also, the lightweight coffee table is easy to move if you want to do yoga or my kid wants to dance with her friends and doesn't kill my shins if I bump into it.
It could also depend (if they're renting) on what their landlord allows. My landlord doesn't let me bring in secondhand furniture because of the risk of woodworms. Also depending on what floor you live on or which room the piece is going in, they may have the ability to get the flat Ikea box up the stairs, but not a fully assemble dresser, especially if they don't have any friends/family members that can help.
Yeah, I got reamed for bringing that up on another interior designers RUclips video, they don’t like to hear it.
What a surprise I am a subscriber of both your channels!!! For me I apply the same principles in interior design and decor as fashion. Ie: invest in your basics, think about comfort, buy quality 2nd hand over cheap new material, when you buy something new, make sure it works with what you have already, know your measurements (for the space as know your body shape for clothing), etc..,etc...
So happy to see this collaboration! Two great RUclipsrs together! I’m a new homeowner as well, so I’m consuming a lot of design content as I put these new spaces together. But I’m definitely choosing things that make ME happy in MY home - not trends. I would, however, take note of home trends if I was prepping my house to sell.
I watched the office hour where Chelsea discovered Nick's channel and he joked that he'd head over to New York asap to chat with her, so seeing this now just makes my heart so happy!
Love Nick Lewis, so happy to see him on this video!
I really love the Konmarie method of decluttering and appreciating your stuff. Having a decluttered lifestyle is like 95% of your space aesthetic.
Not me sitting in my in my in laws house with the Tuscan dining room AND a bowl of seashells in the bathroom😭 I love that you’re putting words to this because I’ve always felt like this kind of decor lacks personality. But they enjoy it so I’m not gonna bash it, it is just not for me!
I loved the point about buying second-hand. I bought a real-solid wood 7 piece dining set for $75 from a family that was moving. The set definitely needs to be refurbished one day but brand new it would easily be a several thousand dollar purchase. But it's functional and still looks nice enough.
Genuinely so excited to see Nick! I could just listen to him chatter about design all day. The style defined series was amazing for narrowing down what I like. Ironically I low key hate MCM but still love the channel.
It’s always tough to find sustainable and sturdy furniture but at a midrange price. Seems like there’s nothing between a $300 bed and a $1500 one nowadays. Price isn’t even a guarantee of quality cause you got west elm using particle board MDF for even some of their 1k+ pieces.
I know, right?! Why does it feel like we all need to learn how to make our own furniture if we ever want something at a decent price that's made out of real wood?
I found a headboard I loved and attached it to a foldable frame that doesn't take a box spring.
Vintage furniture is the answer! My 1950s dining room table was $400 for instance and is solid wood. Another option is Amish furniture. I have dining room chairs that are handmade and didn't cost anymore than chairs from West Elm or CB2 or one of those chain stores.
@@sparkymularkey6970 we definitely do. No doubt. Currently doing a course on domestika by a guy who does maderistica furniture and he talks about a designer who put out a book of furniture that regular people can build because it is super sturdy but easy to make
@@tracymeserve5627 I have a small table from the 50s that I got for $35
I plan all my homes using a spreadsheet. Invisible grid, 1x1 cells representing 6 inches.
Y'all have been getting the BEST guests this season!!!!
I love the parallel conversation about fashion and decor! I was taught at a young age, start with a strong "timeless" foundation that reflects my style. That doesn't mean those items will not be less or more popular at times. It means they are personal and reflect me out where trends reflect the outside influences in. It's still ok to have a few low cost trendy accents that can be repurposed or donated when I feel "over them". It is even ok to transition or modernize that base from one style to another as I have grown, but if the items are well made and personal, I want to keep them longer and replace items gradually.
Two of the best unproblematic faves in the same room! Was so excited back in the day when Nick popped up in the live stream, stoked that the meeting came to fruition
Yes to your point about getting quality secondhand pieces on an 'Ikea budget'! My husband and I just recently returned from a stint overseas back to Australia. We had zero furniture and have managed to completely furnish our apartment with secondhand pieces. We found an auction website (for estates etc) and have scored some amazing pieces for an absolute steal! All solid wood and will probably be strong enough to hand down to our kids.
One thing though, H&M, Zara, etc, weren't there to fit the need of people to change outfit and wardrobe more often. They shaped the media and they CREATED that need. Fast fashion wouldn't exist if not for them. They are not a necessary evil that filled a gap, they created the gap and filled it. And considering what their practices are doing to the earth, I guess you could frankly say they're evil :)
So true!
I am not every viewer, and haven't seen too many of Nick's things, but I personally like that he isn't dragging everything all the time. We all have are biases, but I like the more logical side to the planning. My whole childhood was chaotic and mismatched, so it is a different approach to try and curate things by myself for the first time.
Another tip, after getting samples for anything such as tiles or stone or fabric remember you are getting a sample that has been relegated as such. When you make your choice you should ask them to send you a "cutting" if fabric or "break" if tile or stone from their "current dye lot". Many times, especially with fabrics, the dye lot changes slightly to greatly, tomato red in a sample arrives as a more berry red in a fully upholstered item that you cannot return as you "chose" the color and did not make the request for a cutting sample. Good design takes a lot of time and patience for due diligence and careful research. Number one mistake clients make is being in a hurry and impatience with time. It's called a CFA (Cutting for Approval)
Loved this and love Nick. He’s like Garrett Lechic….they give an honest opinion about without saying we should do things they exact way they do. And I love that Nick doesn’t constantly change his decor. 🥰
I was in that original stream and was one of the commenters who requested Nick!!! I screamed when I saw this posted and literally saved it for a special brunch I made at home, so I could really enjoy the watch! I'm 35 minutes in and you two have already touched on SO many points I wanted to hear about, yay!
Also, I just want to say that I find the episodes especially enjoyable when the guest is sitting there with Chelsea as opposed to over Zoom, though I realize that isn't always feasible. I do find it makes a world of difference, though.
LOVE YOU , Nick and TFD!!!
Thank you for addressing this. I’ve been decorating my home and it brings me down to think that I’ll feel like the designs that I have put my heart and money in will feel stale and old fashioned fairly soon. I hate that I’ve been brainwashed by this culture and I’m not sure how to protect myself from it
My worlds are colliding over here! Two very sassy RUclipsrs sitting down to talk about interior design is making me the happiest woman in my town right now 🥳
This video was made for me. I’m a stay at home mom currently and take in way too much social media. I like interior design and like to change things up but I’m also on a budget since I’m part of a single income household. It’s so important to hear about how interior design is as destructive as fast fast for our planet, our bank account and our psyche. Thank you for the amazing content and collabs!
Loved this! I've noticed many home décor influencers move every 12 to 18 months just to for new content (my opinion). It's like they can't live in one space for too long in fear the "audience" will get bored and lose interest.
I think a gallery wall is a beautiful way to express your unique taste and style because, ideally, you're curating a collection of art that you LOVE over time. For example, I had a piece of art commissioned by a local artist in Chicago. I LOVED her work. I met her because we were both bridesmaids at a mutual friend's wedding. I gave her sort of the feel and some elements I wanted to be incorporated, but she ran with how that would manifest onto the canvas and it's my FAVORITE piece I own. It'll be a forever piece for me. In addition, my best friend's husband is a photographer and he mainly shoots more gritty street art and architecture I've received a few of his pieces signed and framed as gifts. The styles are completely different, yet are completely a piece of who I am because they're from people I truly love.
My two current favorite RUclipsrs! 😍 Yay! I love that you both are very aware of your own social positioning and encourage us to look at ourselves as well. It feels somewhat rare to have this level of (at least, perceived) authenticity in your channels AND also your content leads viewers to question our own assumptions, societal trends, and ethics around consumerism.
I love the transparency you both give the audience in your videos. The content is classy yet practical, financially-savvy, eco-conscious while not being too negative nancy about everything. Love you both Chelsea and Nick, please do more collab videos! 💕
These two channels collaborating are a dream come true! For the record, I recently managed to buy and apartment, had custom - made furniture (I have been saving for it for the past 5 years, and paying all of that at once was extremely painfull to me). I did emphasize to the person making the furniture that I wanted all simple neutral colors, and the reason for that was because I knew I would want to change things around every couple of months or so. I am still working from home and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future, so changing things is important to me in order to not get depressed. And, for me at least, changing the drapes, some pillows or even the rugs is much more manageable than a couch or armchairs.
You two are my dream team! So spot on.
When I renovated my bathroom I did a 3D diarama of the room so my contractor knew exactly what was in my head. I also layed out all the floor tile on my living floor so they could duplicate it exactly. I’m sure they thought I was crazy but I ended up with a space that was perfectly executed. My contractor was an angel and thats not something you hear every day.
Nick, I loved that video ‘You Get What You Pay For’. It helped me determine what to invest in while furnishing our first home. Wanted to share 😊
Thank you for this collab. I appreciate Nick and his sensitivity to budget and personal style, as opposed to those influencers, who throw shade for the drama, as if they are the alpha in a clique of mean girls. Thank you, Nick!
Omgosh this episode is music to my ears. I love interiors but that's been my biggest pet peeve- the fast fashion-izing of home decor. Our homes are supposed to be rich in character a reflection of the resident, not a sale display for brands or an echo chamber of the algorithm. I'm glad to see Nick's input too. Thank you TFD for addressing another important issue within an industry.
Nick AND Chelsea!? This is the crossover episode of my dreams!
So on the nose! I always feel a little bad for not changing my environment around, after all I have a degree in interior design.. But you vocalized it so well. I think the fact that I don't change it around is a testament to the fact that I did it right the first time. If you're changing it around a lot it kind of indicates that something about that space isn't working for you and you're trying to fix it. I will no longer feel bad. I love my home, and my husband is always saying that he loves our home and that's all that matters.
Loved this! I really like Nick's channel, but I didn't realize how much I needed this collab! I just moved and I'm trying to take things slow in terms of decorating the new place. I always try to balance quality and cost and taking care of things, but my real struggle is trying to combine my personal style with my roommates 🥴
Seeing two youtubers that I love come together for such a good video definitely made my day!
Would you consider sharing about your style evolution and what that process looks like financially? Been loving the pieces you've been wearing in much of your recent content, and as an early viewer who remembers the mostly-neutral wardrobe beginnings, I'd be curious to see more about that growth and process from a financial perspective.
Trends come and go; style is infinite.
Find/learn your style and stick with it (also valid for fashion). Sticking with your style doesn't mean you are stuck with some particular pieces forever. Vice versa. It gives you endless options for finding your own unique cohesion.
Thank you, Chelsea and Nick; it was fun.
Here where I live in France I can't afford nice solid wood stuff at all, it's exorbitantly over priced here, that usually only the mdf stuff is available. Yes, there are a lot of antique furniture available here that's decently priced, but I don't have a car, usually those places don't ship, the furniture almost always ends up needing to be refinished which costs more money than I have, and here in France it tends to be this delicate looking stuff that looks like it'll break just from blowing on it, and my husband, who's French, has been known to break a few chairs just because he's just animated not because he's a big guy, lol, I've turned down so much older furniture from my mother-in-law just for this reason. Plus I'm an older millenial that like mid-century modern stuff, lol, and used furniture like that here in France is extremely out of my budget. We also moved to this country with no furniture, we have to buy everything within a 3 week period right before going into an extremely strict covid lockdown and I just went on the French websites and measured our place and just went with what we could afford that kinda fit with a style I like. We did splurge and spend what I think is a lot (1,100€) on our Sofa because we wanted something that would last, and within a year a Z spring holder broke! Even trying to spend a lot of money thinking we're getting something well made and it still breaks within a year. Our one nice piece is our dining table, heavy ass hard wood that is mid-century looking but is probably from the 80s, was given to us. But it doesn't fit our space and it only sits 8 people barely. And if you know anything about French entertaining, you almost never do a dinner where people sit at other tables, they all like to sit together whether it's dinner or apero, no one separates to small groups, especially among a group of people where everyone knows each other, and French dinners can be hella long, like 2 hours or more sometimes sitting at the table without even getting up (that's the other reason I didn't want antique chairs, they're hella uncomfortable I hate sitting in them for more than 30 minutes), but yeah, so we need a different table now that will fit our space but can fit 12 people or more, and I doubt we'll be able to afford a table as nice as the one we were given.
OMG! This is the crossover I didn’t know I needed!!!!!😰❤️🔥🔥
Totally and entirely, me too!
Perfect timing! Just closed on my home (yes, with the help from TFD that started back in 2019) so I will be taking notes!
What a lovely surprise to see Nick on the show! I’m a fan not just for the gentle snark, but for the focus on sustainability and intentionality. I’m a little floored that he was criticized for his living room not changing from video to video. Like him, I got my home how I want it and that’s how it will stay. I don’t approve of the fast fashion/fast interior design direction we’ve headed it. It’s a plant-killer.
Great chat! I follow Nick but had not heard of the Financial Diet before. I learned a lot today!
As always me encantó el episodio!!! Gracias Chelsea!!! 🤩💖 i didn’t know about your guest and now i think i have to follow him in social media. It’s really refreshing to see his perspective to interior design.
Just saying, I had a used ikea bed frame that I took apart and put back together COUNTLESS times and she never squeaked once~ the only reason I got rid of it is because we got a bigger mattress lol
Yeah, I enjoyed the conversation but I don't appreciate the blanket disdain for cheaper products. There are good and bad products at all price ranges, and tbh my $100 metal folding bed frame has been serving me well for the past 5 years.
Rewatching as I discovered Nick Lewis through this video! I love that Nick and Chelsey do not apologize for their decor!
You are one of my favorite RUclipsrs, so are Nick Lewis and HLP; there really is a lot of overlap and I am here for it!
YES! Plants are timeliness and not a trend! thank you!
I'm just finding this a year later. Yea Nick! We love him. Thank you for doing this interview with him.
Excellent choice for an interior design guest!
I saw the thumbnail and clicked thinking it was a Nick video. I’m not disappointed in what I got though!
Lolll, I negotiated a discount on my sofa when the box arrived damaged and the sofa itself had some minor damage. Not only is it more sustainable to keep the sofa but I also live in NYC and there was NO WAY I was going to go through sending it back. That would have been a nightmare!
Really great watch. I’ve felt very similar regarding the “fast fashionification” of home decor with influencers due to the pandemic.
I feel like big cities like New York/London/Toronto are great for secondhand because they have lots of rich wasteful people living there who just want to get rid of their stuff... One great tip for facebook market is to adjust your search to look into rich neighborhoods.
Love you both.
Honestly, I think a lot of the "Gen Z" DIY Crafts also come out of most of us are in high school or in college housing, where buying furniture isn't an option but we want to personalize our spaces!
My partner and I have taken apart our Ikea furniture and rebuilt it. It's doable. I've had this one Ikea table that I've used as a desk and it's going on it's tenth year. Absolutely agree that measuring is the way to go. I live in a small 1-br and we couldn't fit a couch but we could fit a loveseat so that's what we got.
Thank you for this collaboration! Love Nick
Nick and Chelsea!!!! Yayyy two of the people I spend a lot of time watching and listening to. Good to see a collaboration of you two. Love!
AAAHHHHH!!! This is the best crossover!
I’m so happy you partnered up with Nick, his channel is by far the best home decor one out there and the collab between you two certainly did not disappoint.
thank you for this I loved it !
Nick is one of my fav person! He is so lovely and I love seeing him in this channel
Facebook market places charges almost NEW prices here, and for junk. Like 2nd hand ikea furniture for almost new ikea prices. Facebook marketplace for furniture (or most anything honestly except like bulk baby clothes) is trash here.
(central IL)
Oof that's tough. I live in the DC area and Facebook marketplace is an absolute goldmine. Maybe estate sales would be a better option?
This was a fantastic episode. So many great tips on how to not get caught up in fast-fashion trends and investing in good, quality pieces (as well as mixing in affordable ones!) 😌
If furniture don't match, use fabric like pillows, curtains and such to mend the style together, you can even put curtains as "doors" instead of glass or wood. And if you want to move furniture to the wall make sure you add some sort of room dividers to "cut" the room into halves. Some rooms are just too difficult to fix because of dodgy measurements or a wardrobe in the wrong corner (my rented apartment has a room where a wardrobe is placed in the wrong corner and with the door facing the wrong way making it almost impossible to set furniture up in a good way and my spatial intelligence is very high) and such problems.
i love, love, loveeeee this episode. especially because i’m renovating my home right now and i can’t seem to stick to any solid design or plan. so many great ideas and thought patterns. and overall a genuinely fun episode!
This is the crossover I didn’t know I needed 🙌🙌
So excited for this crossover
I just want to say that I used an Upstart loan to get out of credit card debt and to have a consistent, lower interest rate on my monthly payments. It was a great experience and I recommend them!
I looked into it to see if I could consolidate my debt into a lower interest rate, and sadly it wasn't any lower, but I love the peace of mind knowing that. Always worth looking into!
I feel like as a society we are so superficial. We are interested in the appearance of something rather than the substance beneath it, choosing the cheap faux version and constantly upgrading to stay on trend rather than figuring out what we value and investing in that for the longer term. Our consumerist culture makes us believe we need to keep changing things up and presenting these changes to the world. On some level we recognise that the fake version is undesirable but if we can disguise it well enough we value that appearance (like genuine youth vs a well executed vs botched plastic surgery job). Would love to see people embracing and projecting their own individual styles and that being valued by society... where we can't easily label a design style (midcentury modern vs. farmhouse vs. scandi) because it is unique to the individual and is not simply emulating the tastes and possessions of others. You get an authentic look by being authentic! Chelsea mentioned something about the purchasing power of her grandparents generation vs ours now (and I didn't fully pick up on her point but felt she was implying that we have less purchasing power now though that doesn't make sense when we see how people keep throwing money away on trends) - in the past people were intentional and invested once in quality. Now we have more disposable income but we spread it more thinly by buying frequent poor quality items. I enjoyed your conversation Chelsea and Nick - thanks for sharing.
oooh a" sense of storytelling in a space"....I adore this!
I just found this video, and so thrilled to these two together. I really like Nick Lewis and have become a recent fan of TDF, this a good pairing and the video is very informative.
What an awesome pairing!
I'm glad Nick's living room doesn't change
yess!! i dm'd TFD about this exact topic a few weeks ago as I'm looking to furnish my first home
Oh yay!
STOP I had to double take when clicking, because I wasn't prepared for this crossover. Can't wait to listen!
This was everything I didn’t know I wanted and needed.
I just adore the vibe betweet Nick and Chelsea. This was FUN.
I legit gasped, which is hilarious because I'm not really someone who does that. Two of my favourite YTers in one collab! Be still my money-conscious, design-aspirational heart.
As someone who follows both of your channels, this is absolutely amazing and took me completely by surprise!
I. Love. Nick. I don't even care much about home decor but I binge watch his videos, he has such a polite way of roasting people
Thank you for taking the time to add subtitles
What?! I LOVED that you-get-what-you-pay-for video!!! It made me realise I never need to stress about getting the best carpets because I'm always going to have a dog, and that for me it's better to invest in a really good textile sofa than a mediocre leather one. So thanks for bombing, Nick!
I love this collab, Nick is such a fun youtuber to watch. I loved the discussion about sustainable . Fast Furniture is such a huge problem!
Oh! My most favourite intelligent and sassy RUclipsrs in one video. As an added bonus, one of them is Canadian 🇨🇦. The only thing wrong with this vid is that it’s too short.
Chelsea, are you going through my subscriptions and interviewing all my faves!?
First Imani and Kimberly. Last week was Hannah, now Nick! Cant wait to see who is next
Yessss! Good to see you on TFC Nick!
My most amazing pieces have all been either thrifted or bought second hand on places like craigslist, ebay, goodwill etc...