i once heard a designer's tip to eliminate visual noise from a home by removing busy and colorful labels from bottles and jars that are left out in kitchens and bathrooms.
(now i wouldn't do this with products for cleaning or cooking which require you to read labels for safety, but for bath products and soaps which are regularly left out on display, it makes sense). i tried it, first in my kitchen around the sink, and then in the bathrooms in my house, and i can not overstate what a difference it has made in my daily routines.
for me, there is an actual sense of calm and appreciation that comes from looking at a bottle in a simple shape with a pretty liquid showing through, especially when compared to that same bottle plastered in a collage of colors and words and labels shouting "NEW AND IMPROVED" or "SAME GREAT FORMULA" or "COMPARE TO YOUR FAVORITE BRAND NAME"...i mean, that truly is visual noise. i can say for sure though, its a difference you can only feel once you've done it - i certainly didn't feel before that i had "too much visual noise" in my house - but having made the change, the difference is, for me, quite palpable.
even the companies that have nicer, more sedate packaging like mrs. meyers or method...i still find it infinitely more pleasant to see no words or images. in our daily lives, out in the world, there is an endless amount of visual information we are constantly taking in, so its nice to eliminate some of that when you're at home. its a small and simple way to make daily routines more enjoyable, and i welcome that any day of the week.
i once heard a designer's tip to eliminate visual noise from a home by removing busy and colorful labels from bottles and jars that are left out in kitchens and bathrooms. (now i wouldn't do this with products for cleaning or cooking which require you to read labels for safety, but for bath products and soaps which are regularly left out on display, it makes sense). i tried it, first in my kitchen around the sink, and then in the bathrooms in my house, and i can not overstate what a difference it has made in my daily routines.
for me, there is an actual sense of calm and appreciation that comes from looking at a bottle in a simple shape with a pretty liquid showing through, especially when compared to that same bottle plastered in a collage of colors and words and labels shouting "NEW AND IMPROVED" or "SAME GREAT FORMULA" or "COMPARE TO YOUR FAVORITE BRAND NAME"...i mean, that truly is visual noise. i can say for sure though, its a difference you can only feel once you've done it - i certainly didn't feel before that i had "too much visual noise" in my house - but having made the change, the difference is, for me, quite palpable.
even the companies that have nicer, more sedate packaging like mrs. meyers or method...i still find it infinitely more pleasant to see no words or images. in our daily lives, out in the world, there is an endless amount of visual information we are constantly taking in, so its nice to eliminate some of that when you're at home. its a small and simple way to make daily routines more enjoyable, and i welcome that any day of the week.
LOVE IT!!!!
ReplyDeleteFantastic idea. I'm going to have to remember to try this in the fall. Knowing me, though, I'll confuse my soap with my lotion on a daily basis.
ReplyDeletelol - you could put little initials on the bottom of the bottle with a sharpie to combat this problem.
ReplyDelete