Sometimes, you just need a new shower curtain

Interior design, in my opinion, is completely subjective.  Webster's definition of subjective:

"Peculiar to a particular individual": personal [~ judgments].

What works for one person will not necessarily work for another.  There are those with a yen for the contemporary and those with more traditional tastes.  Neither is right or wrong.  I like to mix it up a little.  For instance, my dining room is traditional, being furnished mostly in the Queen Anne style with dark cherry finishes.  To offset this traditional style and to bring some interest to the room, I decided to put two upholstered slipper chairs on either side of the fireplace which bring in a little contemporary influence.  I like this look.  It gives interest to the room rather than having everything match or having the room look like I purchased it out of a storefront window.  Wandering the rest of the house you will find rooms more in the contemporary style; clean lines; uncluttered.  No matter what the predominant style of the room, I try to keep surfaces clear of clutter.  But I digress.

On a recent stop at my local Wal-Mart to pick up a new bathtub mat (you know, the kind you put in the bottom of the bathtub to prevent you from falling), I noticed on my walk through the bath deparment a hook that was sort of haphazardly placed with what appeared to be a rather fashionable shower curtain from the Better Homes and Gardens brand.  I was intrigued with the picture on the package and decided to add this to my purchases.  It turned out to be a good choice and what you see here is the end result.

Here is the before picture of the bathroom.

Here is the after picture.

Like I said, sometimes you just need a new shower curtain.  What a difference!  I kept the same shower curtain liner that I was using with the previous shower curtain.  I prefer the fabric liners.  They repel water very well and they can easily be cleaned in the washing machine.  They should not be placed in a dryer however.  Line drying only for the fabric liners.  All of this accomplished, I never did get my bathtub mat.  They were completely sold out.  I guess there was a run on bathtub mats last weekend during the hurricane.  Bread, milk, toilet paper and a new bathtub mat.  Go figure!

Having a fashionable home does not mean racking up huge amounts of debt.  This shower curtain upgrade was a whopping $18.88 and look at the difference it made.  Always keep your eyes open for a good bargain.  Try to find the highest quality for the least amount of money and treat yourself with a trip to Bloomingdale's every now and then when they are having a sale.  Am I saying I never shop high end?  No, I'm not saying that at all.  I have quite a collection of furniture and accessories at Crest Avenue from many different retailers and in many different price ranges.  The art is putting it all together so nobody can tell the difference between what you picked up on a whim at Wal-Mart and what you found at a Macy's sale.