The English Maximalista

Why maximalism? Well, it certainly was not intentional: it just seemed to have… evolved this way, after many years of collecting, traveling, reading, and simply living my life!

According to my American friends, my homes have always been very English-looking, and they say they always feel so comfortable when visiting. The majority of my guests leave positive feedback.

I realise decorating in a maximalistic style is not everyone’s cup of tea. So when I say the “majority” of guests have been complimentary about my home, there’s always an exception to the rule.

Let me regale you with the true story about Mary.

Except “Mary” isn’t her real name. (Or maybe it is! I shall never tell!) 

Backstory: I used to host an annual chocolate party every February, for over ten years. It got to be quite a famous event, locally, to the point that I would occasionally be introduced to strangers as That English Lady Who Hosts The Chocolate Party.

Anyway, one year, “Mary” showed up on the arm of one of my bachelor friends. At one point, as the evening progressed, she had the audacity to sniff to me about how my dining room was “too cluttered”. Quelle horreur!

(Lady, it was a PARTY!?! Of course there was more clutter than my USUAL clutter!)

Needless to say, Mary was never invited back.

Side note: not long after cluttergate, I was invited to Mary’s condo for a party. Let’s just say her home was very… bland. No cushions on the suedette couch. A plastic bowl of Cheetos on the coffee table (“help yourself!”). One piece of generic metal decor hanging on the wall. 

I refrained from telling Mary that I thought her home had no personality. Why? Because my mama raised me to be polite when invited into the homes of others.

Gentle reader, bare walls (I said WALLS) make me sweat. I honestly will toss and turn at night, obsessing over wallpaper, where to hang pictures, until one day I would wake up to find that somehow, inexplicably, those bare walls were filled with lovely things which bring me joy.

And don’t even get me started on bare surfaces!

But before anyone out there jumps on me in beige rage, please, just let me say: live and let live! You don’t have to live in my house.

I have tried minimalism (I swear!!). It’s just not who I am. I even read Marie Kondo’s wonderful book. I gleaned lots of useful tips from it. If you haven’t read it yet, you should, as it’s really good.

One of my faves is Sig Bergamin’s behemoth tome, Maximalism, the sister to his other amazing book, Art Life. [Both published by Assouline, and available on Amazon.] He is a pattern-blending genius.

Another source of great inspiration is the late, great, Mario Buatta. Lots of things written by him, and about him, although my favourite is by Emily Evans Eerdmans, called Mario Buatta: Anatomy of a Decorator. [Rizzoli, also on Amazon.]

You can also see a lot of my inspirations on Pinterest, @MaxiMELista, where you will see that I have spent many, MANY, happy evenings falling down the Pinterest rabbit hole.

Am I trying to convince minimalists to change their nature to become something they are not? Nope. I’m simply sharing my own love for something with the rest of you. That is all. Maybe I can help someone to blossom with the self-confidence to try something different or scary, not just the safe styles that are mainstreaming or fashionable this season.

Whatever your choice, I encourage you to be yourself. And most important, have fun with it.

Happy reading!

Lots of love,

M xo