The Shade That Blinds

First a little back-story: I love to invite my friends and family over for dinner. To me, this is one of life’s joys. It is not just the food but the camaraderie, conversation and intimacy of this kind of social gathering. It combines some of my most favorite activities: eating, talking and personal connection.

So, it has long been my dream to create a beautiful dining room for my most favorite social time. And it wasn’t until recently that I had the wherewithal to make this dream a reality. Though this isn’t about trying to impress my friends and family - the truth is we would still enjoy our gatherings even if we were eating pizza on a folding card table - but, I do believe in creating beauty and spending money on things that mean the most to me.

The first upgrade came in the form of a new dining room set. My wife and I were so happy to upgrade from the old hand-me-down set that we have been using for many years. The new table (which now seats twelve) and chairs looked good but still there was something missing. So, we went on the internet to look at pictures of finished dining rooms and found some that included the most beautiful window treatments I’ve seen. I came to learn later these shades were called roman shades, which in the picture were combined with some lovely drapes. I just loved the elegant rich folds and fabric and the drapes made an excellent color contrast that really completed the look. I knew instantly that these were right for our new dining room.

My wife and I purchased our own set, along with some nice custom drapes, and installed them ourselves, a first for me. And neither of us could be happier. For days afterwards, I kept walking back into the dining room just to look. You could say that I had been blinded by the beauty of my new dining room and it was the shades and drapery combination that made the difference. Specifically what we ended up purchasing were Levolor sheer roman shades in a very light olive green and custom drapery panels in a burgundy-red. I am not an interior decorator so I just used the same color combination as I saw in the online photo. No need to complicate things, I saw what I liked and copied it.

At our next dinner party, my wife and I were so excited to bring our guests into our new dining room. And the reaction on all of their faces did not disappoint. Later, I made a toast and told my guests that, “this room was dedicated to us, to this gathering and all of those to come.” Sentimental stuff, I know but I can’t think of a better use of money than to spend it on those things that bring you fulfillment. Some people spend their money on cars, some people spend their money on electronics, I decided to spend mine on creating a beautiful sanctuary, a shrine to good food, great wine and great company.