Questioning the "Room Refresh"

Ways to update a smaller space without all the waste

Some folks set a room up once and are done with it, while others forever rearrange things. While I only have a few concrete memories from my early childhood bedroom, nearly all of them include standing before the wooden dresser, repositioning the same handful of objects across its surface on a regular basis. A jewelry box. A pewter dish. A ceramic figurine. A flower basket from my babysitter’s wedding. A crochet doily. Five little items constantly puzzled together, then separated and staggered as though I was dragging them along the paths of an invisible dance step diagram. There was something satisfying about the shuffling. It was harmless as a seven year old, but as an adult equipped with a credit card and an infinite number of online shopping resources, it can be a much more problematic trait if not inspected and managed mindfully.

I still enjoy moving things around our house as a way of jogging my creativity when my mind feels sluggish. Yet, as clever marketing thrusts so many curated objects across our paths, I have to remind myself to not confuse a fondness for creating with the need to acquire new things. A “room refresh” can suddenly stretch beyond swapping out a vessel of foraged florals, and snowball into a savings-consuming beast that demands a new version of everything in order to be satiated. And, as millions of folks are busy refreshing their spaces as decor outlets insist they must, Earth Overshoot Day is quietly creeping its way up the calendar every year...

For folks who, like me, enjoy switching up interiors but want to do so responsibly, here are five concepts for updating a space without all the waste.