Recently, my office was looking like this.
And like this.
Clearly, I needed some magazine bins.
So I went looking for magazine holders. Do you know how many choices there are at The Container Store? About 20. Okay, maybe not that many, but there are TWO WHOLE AISLES. There were lots of cute ones, but at something like $10 each, they started to feel like an investment, which started to bring the pressure that they had to work now, and later, and in the elevator. (Extra points to those who know that reference--leave your guesses in the comments). And all of a sudden the walls were closing in on me.
I happened to be at Target later in the day, and found that the selection was less overwhelming in quantity, but everything was so designy. So trendy. So cutesy right NOW. And it made me itch for something classic. Something that wouldn't date itself in a week. I kind of like these clear acrylic ones that I picked up oh, a decade ago to store my collection of Real Simple magazines from my days as a photo editor there, but they are no longer available.
Mostly what I like about them is the absence of style signifiers. Oh, of course lucite is its own look, but a clear acrylic box goes with anything and always will because it practically disappears.
Here's the thing. If you're buying for style over function, and the style isn't going to last, I believe you should spend as little money as possible. In this case, that meant Ikea, though even at Ikea there were too many choices. I made it simple and bought the cheapest ones: the ones made out of finished cardboard, which you assemble yourself, in a green very close to the green already happening in bins in my office bookshelves, and in the living room right through the doorway. The look is actually classic, the color works for now, and if I change the color scheme of everything, I won't mind replacing them. And having the clutter off the floor? So priceless.
Do you want to know the product that really sent me over the edge? The one that made me wonder if we have gone off our collective design rockers? Here you go.
Crate and Barrel Set of 12 Sparrow Clips, $7.95. I think I saw it in Cooking Light, and I tore out the page because it made me mad. I love birds. I love bright colors. So cute! But....really? Do you really need your bag clips in the pantry to be shaped like special little characters? I don't know. It just seems so ....indulgent? Maybe its just that I can't imagine a time when my list of bigger ticket needs for the house will dwindle to nothing, and I will have nowhere to spend my dollars but on cute little clips like these. Or on my kids college fund. You know, whichever.
What do you think: Has design gone too far? Or do you love having so many options for pencil cups and toilet brushes? I'm VERY curious!
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