Can a " space " be depressing?

I could cry sometimes at some of the beautiful curtains I have to rag. 😥 Most of our customers are the younger generation.
They just don’t want curtains that need a fitted rail.
I’ve made some beautiful cushions out of some of them which we sell in the shop. But they take up a lot of room and we don’t sell a lot.
Just yesterday I got my manager to make the decision on a pair of cream damask, fully lined curtains. I couldn’t make the call.
I’ve even offered some customers a free alteration. No go, it’s the rail.

Crossstitchfan

nanna8

Some houses are like this. When you go house hunting you just feel it. Quite inexplicable but it’s there. I would say if you can, move.

At last! Someone who feels like I do! Yes, some houses do have a funny feel about them. Didn’t the OP feel this when she viewed?
I think that once you feel that way about a house, nothing you do decorating-wise will fix it. If possible, it would be best to move. And be a bit more careful next time!

Well, you could ask a priest to perform an exorcism and bless the house. It would be less disruptive than moving!

Also - re someone's commenting on curtains generally. I was actually quite surprised at how cheaply its possible to get some curtains.

I chose to "make do and mend" with curtains I brought with me that I had already in the event on this house. Right now I'm facing a set of curtains in this room that I got in the 1970's - but they are Scandinavian style and were blimmin' expensive - but I still like them and they're in good condition. I've got new ones I eventually bought for my sitting room here and I just hung on in there making do with my old ones (again - I'd just binned the ones the house came with) and I waited till I could get my choice for this house. But if you aren't as "make do and mend determined" as I was until I could afford what I'd decided on (ie good quality/longer length/double thickness/lined) and I "waited and waited" to have the money to get what I'd chosen - then I was astonished at just how cheaply one can get cheaper-quality ones (eg unlined/1.5 width/cheaper material) from somewhere like Am*zon and a room could feel much nicer even at that level and possibly for less than £100.

You never know too who might be giving away curtains for nothing - as I just gave away the brought-over ones mainly and a very expensive nice door curtain I'd bought I'd had made for here and they're sitting in other peoples homes (and a local pub) as free gifts to them now.

nanna8

Some houses are like this. When you go house hunting you just feel it. Quite inexplicable but it’s there. I would say if you can, move.

At last! Someone who feels like I do! Yes, some houses do have a funny feel about them. Didn’t the OP feel this when she viewed?
I think that once you feel that way about a house, nothing you do decorating-wise will fix it. If possible, it would be best to move. And be a bit more careful next time!

glasshalffullagain

It's a weird one, been here many years. Something feels " off " about it.

Anyhow short term, not moving and budget is practically zero!

Hopefully some change is coming.

Something that is totally alien to your taste can get to feel very "off" - even if one knows, objectively speaking, there's little/if anything wrong with it per se.

It's a pity that there's no budget to speak of to replace the kitchen - as it doesn't take that long to do so. The difficult part on my kitchen was finding a suitable firm to do the job in the first place and I had to wait for a new firm to open up here in the first place. But the actual job itself took 5 days (if my memory serves me aright) - to rip out old one and put in new one basically.

But - if there's no budget then there's no budget. Many of us have been in that situation and sometimes even small changes that don't cost much/if owt can help improve things.
Little things that are grotty and not our taste can make us feel very "down" about a house. In my case on buying current house - I loathed the blinds so prevalent in this area and that this house was afflicted with in most rooms - plain off-white vertical type blinds - yuk...yuk...according to my own taste. I can't think of a single house I'd ever been in that had them and very few in the area with them - until I moved and thought "Not just my house then that's got those darn things. They're very handy for peeping out from behind without being visible - but that's the only advantage they've got". I wanted what I'm used to - ie plain modern net or muslim secondary curtains.

One drink too many one evening and I just thought "I am not waiting for the workmen I'm using going through the house room by room and ripping everything out for them to go" and got out my scissors and went through the house chopping the darn things off myself up at the top and binning them. Even though I still had the "top" section there on all of them (and had to ask the workmen to just unscrew that all round next time they turned up - so I could bin the entire blinds) it instantly made the house feel more normal to me having chopped off the bottom 90% or so of them. I had to wait for the money to get "my" secondary curtaining up - but it still helped a lot.

Colours as well do make such a difference. The house had colours like orange and lilac in (a lot of it being very 1970s). The bathroom was still the original 1970s bathroom - and pink (thankfully the bathtub/sink/loo was white at any rate - but pink pink pink....tiny pink 1970s tiles and original 1970s wallfire!). I felt a LOT better about the house as all those not-my-taste-colours came out and in went modern era colours (or lack of). I was used to walls in various shades of white in peoples houses and my own house having soft white walls - and so in went white walls all round room by room.

Yep....decor makes SO much difference.

Thanks Sparkly, Cleaning doubles up as keep fit activity.

CariadAgain Creoso y Ghumru.. I came back several years ago and had all those garden problems…

If you can afford it glasshalffullagain, get a weekly cleaners as well as other suggestions. If affected negatively, a cleaner space is better for your ongoing comfort.

* Taunton*. Nice, I will try!

I do find decorating and updating a room very therapeutic. Been working round our old Cottage (since Covid!) on a tight budget and little enthusiasm from husband but always get a buzz when a room is completed and find some great pieces of furniture and cushions in charity shops! I stick something uplifting to listen to on my phone (iPlayer series or podcasts) whilst painting and it really does make me feel good when I achieve something in a room on a budget. Good luck with the changes you make ! It has certainly helped me when feeling low at times. The hardest bit is getting started!

emilie

Are you happy with your partner?

Mostly.

I would like to change my curtains - I had the walls painted last year but didn’t change the curtains. I might do that this year. OP - why don’t you try re-decorating the room you usually use. New colour for the walls and new furnishings. Hope your mood lifts now that the sun is here. Also, talk to your GP

Are you happy with your partner?

There’s nothing like a depressing kitchen. My husband only sat up and took notice when I was ill ..and then he decided, yes, we could really do with having it replaced. It cheered me up no end.
It’s tricky if funds don’t allow this. Sometimes I find looking at ideas in mags or online, help me to come up with changes. You might want to look into just replacing the cupboard fronts perhaps, or could they be painted. If the whole house is awful to you, it may sound drastic, but I’d think about moving. It’s awful being in a home that pulls you down, whether you were depressed to start with or not. Good luck.

kittylester

I love my home but I think a house feels even more welcoming with fresh flowers and plants. Daffs are so cheap and cheery at the moment too.

I agree with this. Our present home has a lovely entrance hall - our old house only had a small lobby - and l love walking in to this welcoming space. I try to have fresh flowers as often as possible. The corner unit and everything on it is secondhand; mostly from charity shops, which proves that you don't need to spend a lot of money to make somewhere cheerful.

Has something changed/happened to make you feel this or has this home always been 'hard to love'?

Whenever I go into an unfamiliar house I pick up vibes. Sometimes good, sometimes bad.

I was invited round to see an ex colleagues new home. Large old property in large garden. Loads of rooms and she was thrilled with it. I walked in and immediately felt cold even though it was a sunny September afternoon. She took me over the whole house and I felt uncomfortable in all the rooms. I couldn’t wait to get outside actually.

Just a couple of months later I was sad but not surprised to hear her husband had died aged 51. That house really gave me the creeps.

I look at a lot of decorating Facebook pages and what surprises me is how some rooms look bigger if painted in dark colours. You have to know what you’re doing though, and I don’t. I find that, because everything in my house is pretty old ( when someone else eventually moves in they will replace everything) it’s difficult to keep clean. New things seem to stay clean for longer. My kitchen is solid pine and very good quality, very well fitted. It would look so much nicer with light painted units but they would never be as good as what I’ve got. Plus if, heaven forbid, I lost my current dog and took on another, it might chew or scratch everything. I only very rarely leave my dog in the kitchen and go out but I’ve only just noticed that she has scratched at the door; I had thought that she just slept in her crate ( which is open and full of blankets and duvets for her to snuggle into). The door, which was once an outdoor door, was damaged by my first whippet, and is just a bodge up job ( I’ve covered the damage with plywood and painted it with blackboard paint to write on).

It's a weird one, been here many years. Something feels " off " about it.

Anyhow short term, not moving and budget is practically zero!

Hopefully some change is coming.

Absolutely! That’s why my home is my sanctuary and is full of beautiful things and furnished/set-up to make me feel happy.
If you’re not depressed in general then maybe think about how to make your home more of a happy place? It doesn’t have to cost much (if anything.)
When I walk into someone’s home I have an immediate reaction and some immediately bring me down. They tend to have no personality and are devoid of any personal touches. Think pictures, books, plants, treasured objects, colour (neutral walls are fine but lift with cushions, rugs, vases etc.)

glasshalffullagain

fancythat

Perhaps list on here what you find depressing about the house?

Some very kind and thoughtful suggestions here. The layout is typical Victorian terrace. It's light with high ceilings.

The kitchen is grim, brown and sucks the life out of me. I feel like any of the great ideas re decorating are just tinkering about. However there is no budget for new kitchen ( unpleasant back story here)
So it's a case of sprucing up the existing " facilities"

Partner is not unpleasant in any way... well no more than any of us are! Just not a DIY person.

Food for thought folks, Thanks

We'd a holiday home with grim brown kitchen and diner. I very carefully washed, painted bone colour chalk paint, waxed twice.

Bright and lovely. Cheap to accomplish.

I find my DIL is prone to bouts of depression, and it is reflected in her environment. Blinds are drawn down, and the house is filled with clutter, including laundry and dishes not done. When she is well, it is much improved by tidying and letting in light. I don't interfere, but have subtly asked her and my son if there is anything needed during these times.

So yes, your house can reflect your moods, and vice versa. If your environment is cheery and light, surrounded by your favourite things, I do think it can lift your mood. Sometimes even a small change can make a difference; a new lamp or a basket to hold daily clutter.

glasshalffullagain

Progess....a friend's partner may do some decorating.

Oh, missed that.

Decorators are like gold dust!

glasshalffullagain

fancythat

Perhaps list on here what you find depressing about the house?

Some very kind and thoughtful suggestions here. The layout is typical Victorian terrace. It's light with high ceilings.

The kitchen is grim, brown and sucks the life out of me. I feel like any of the great ideas re decorating are just tinkering about. However there is no budget for new kitchen ( unpleasant back story here)
So it's a case of sprucing up the existing " facilities"

Partner is not unpleasant in any way... well no more than any of us are! Just not a DIY person.

Food for thought folks, Thanks

I've just had a brown kitchen replaced, although I did quite like the wood it was past its sell-by date. However, the upheaval is something I wouldn't like to go through again.

I don't know what your budget is but brown doors can be replaced and also worktops.
Doors can be painted, if it's too much to tackle then they can be taken away, dipped and repainted which would probably be longer-lasting. Otherwise I think there are several specialist paints recommended if you DIY.

Walls painted in a light colour
Declutter worktops (it's surprising what we don't really need) and some small pots with herbs or flowering plants in the windowsill will cheer it up.

glasshalffullagain

Progess....a friend's partner may do some decorating.

Yay! That's good news. You can start googling for ideas and inspiration for colour schemes and accessories to bring it all together.

Exciting times.

If you looking at the house as a "whole"? It can seem overwhelming, break it down into individual areas/zones Tackle one thing at a time, even emptying one cupboard can be a sense of achievement. Look at each zone and think how can I tidy/ brighten that up , look at the colour scheme as others have said a new throw and some cushions or rug can brighten a room up no end.