"You're sooo close to really displaying good taste -- don't give up!"

I stole the title from a recent comment that was left anonymously on my dining room post.  The person criticized my dining room, citing that the wood tones were fundamentally wrong (as if she sensed my dining room table was a compromise), my lamps would look better if they tied into the chandelier (is this a rule? We tried other lamps, but we needed something that sat below the window), and I am pretty sure "Though maybe garage sale chic is still hot in your area?" is a backhanded insult to everyone in Toronto, but I will give them the benefit of the doubt...

Still the comment has me wondering, what is good taste?  What does it mean when someone says "you have good taste"?  I found myself asking this question when I first started blogging...and here we are again.

I love reading blogs for two very different reasons, the first is to be inspired by others, to absorb images of homes that are beyond perfection, above reproach, and to enjoy.  To gather ideas from crafty/handy DIYers who are making small (sometimes big) changes in their homes every weekend.  The second reason I love to read blogs (maybe more fun than the first reason) is viewing rooms that are really really UGLY.  Every once and a while you stumble upon an image taken from the pages of a magazine and you can't help but be repulsed by it. A space that is so over decorated, so contrived, so uncomfortable, and so WRONG.  I am not a harsh critic, still I have my tastes (some might call them bland), preferences and opinions as much as the next person.

So where am I going with this?  I guess I have realized how important it is to decorate a room for YOU.  It is impossible to please everyone out there.  Sometimes, like in the case of my dining room, you make a compromise (you find furniture with the perfect scale, although not the perfect wood tone), so that you can stop shopping and start hosting wonderful family dinners (with a table cloth)...Its not about proving to an anonymous person (or persons) that you "have good taste" its more about creating a home...a home that makes you feel good, and a place you want to share with family, friends, and of course, your blog readers!


- The above image is of Claudia, the large charcoal drawing on the opposite wall of our dining room...she is an 1960's Italian movie star...we share all of our family dinners with this minx!
- We had a designer help us put together the dining room, the living room, foyer, master and guest room.  Her name is Maya Carvalho and she is, in my eyes, AMAZING! We were probably nightmare clients, because we have a fairly set style...still, we couldn't have done it all without her!  Maya also introduced us to the works of many local artists, including Olexander Wlasenko, the artist who created Claudia.
- I call that carpet 'the crumb catcher'...its all nubbly and everything gets into it...not to mention the chairs snag on it ...worst idea ever.... it happens

UPDATE: March 2013: I don't even want to re-read this post!!! I was tempted to delete it, but that's not really cool either!  I leave it up to remember how I was SUPER touchy when I started the blog. Lame