I was a fairly young woman of about 22 maybe 23 years of age (I actually really don't remember) when I was introduced to the gold mine that is Decorating Cents. I happened to be channel surfing and I came upon HGTV and a clever little show about how to redecorate without breaking the bank. I believe the actual budget was $500. (This was around time that those Trading Spaces hacks were emerging and trying to take over every neighbor in suburbia.)
So, as I happened upon what seemed to be a genius show, I couldn't help but be enthralled by the host, Joan. She had a glorious suburban hairdo and knew her stuff when came to decorating for less. As Joan took me through the episode she explained how by just rearranging the furniture in a room and adding little inexpensive touches, you could create a whole new living space full of WHIMSY! And there it was. That simple little word changed my freaking life and made me fall in love with Decorating Cents forever.
The idea of a new "whimsical" room intrigued me because I always thought the purpose of redecorating was for practicality or to make a room or entire house more aesthetically pleasing to the eye. I never thought of its purpose as being one to create or inspire "whimsy". But, honestly what the hell did I know?
As I became a true fan of Decorating Cents I realized that in almost every single episode the word "whimsy" or some form of it was used. WHIMSY. What a beautiful word! It quickly became one of my favorite words, the other one being "serendipity", and so there you have it.
Decorating Cents is sadly no more. HGTV canceled it at some point. I couldn't tell you when because I quickly become bored of the whole thing. However, I did a quick Google search on the host, Joan Steffend, and I have to tell you, her hair still looks great!
If you're curious about past episodes of Decorating Cents (what a clever play on words!) or just want to check out Joan's awesome do, click here.
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