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TRENDS TRACKING

It's Getting Personal...
Scents make sense.

I read a headline today, February 1, in the Minneapolis Star Tribune, that just cracked me up: “Room scents personalize the air.”
Personalize the air.

Now we all know that, especially since September 11, the emphasis on personal identity and individual imprint on the home environment has never been more prevalent. While by nature, most people are cattle—following trends directly to slaughter—the trend emphasis on “me!” so fervently embraced, is becoming hopelessly overplayed by those manufacturers hoping to grab market share. This was an article about fancy room deodorizers.

As quoted by Frances Ingraham Heins in her personalization-of-the-air-you-breathe article*, Terry Molnar, the executive director of the Sense and Smell Institute in New York says, “ . . . You have control over everything else in your home, from the color you paint the walls and style of furnishings to the style of architecture, works of art and accessories. Why not [control] how it smells?”

What? Wet dog and freshly baked blueberry muffins one day and sneakers, pot roast and a vanilla candle the next aren’t personal enough for you? Get out of town! Honestly . . . it just all seems a little silly.

FROWNING WOMAN: “I need something to mask the smell of my teenage son. I don’t want it to smell like boy. I want a more flowery home signature.”

SMILING PRODUCT DEMONSTRATOR: “Why not try Stink-Ease—it smells like perfume from France!”

NOW SMILING WOMAN: “Great idea! And that way, my home will now have the personalized, pretty smell I can call, Le Garçon Français Puer [Stinky French Son]!”

ANOTHER TWO OF THE FIVE SENSES
And yet . . . personalization of the air we breathe isn’t so off base (I say, reluctantly) when you consider that design should encompass more of our senses: not just what clients want to see in their homes but also what they want to feel and even what they want to hear.

Feel: When your client sits on his new sofa, does he want to be able to sink in and take an afternoon nap or does he want a more formal, tailored sofa to sit upon in a more businesslike, proper manner?

Hear: When your clients open their draperies, do they want to hear the rustle of silk taffeta or the smooth almost silent glide of cotton?

Feel: When they lean against their headboard to read a book or watch television at night, do they want to feel soft upholstered goods? Metal? Wood? Do they want many pillows to pile behind them or a few stiff, frilly accent pillows that are best off the bed when night falls?

Hear: When they walk across their floors, do they want the silent pad of carpeting, or do they revel in the tap of heels on hardwood or tile?

Feel: When they open their window treatments in the morning, do they want the ceremony of pulling the draperies back or would they prefer to touch a control pad and let electricity do the work?

Hear: Do they like the sound metal blinds make? Or would a soft fabric/vane combination be more appropriate?

Feel: Would they like sitting frequently in a leather chair or is soft fabric a better choice?

GOOD MEASURE
So often, we focus on what our clients want to see when we personalize a space that we forget about how they will feel in a space, or even what they want to hear every day. I have to say, while I like the look of the colorful metal blinds in my daughter’s bedroom, the clanking sound they make against the window frame when the breeze is blowing makes me regret my choice. And yes, some clients will be concerned about what they smell—don’t forget that off-gassing from carpeting and other adhesives can be a big problem for some people.
The personalization of our interiors is not a new trend, but the pervasive attitude about having something that no one else has is nowhere near peaking. Set yourself apart . . . don’t just consider one of the five senses, add in a few more for good measure.

* “Room scents personalize the air” was first run in the Albany Times Union, reprinted in the Minneapolis Star Tribune.