A dilettante misguided. Or just a man decorating his flat

One of the most difficult things for men to get right in terms of style is not what they wear, or what car they drive, or even who they have hanging on their arm around town. Instead it’s the very basic, but at the same time complicated concept of the bachelor pad.

Once a man leaves his teenage bedroom behind, the walls of which typically featured either a Testarossa and Samantha Fox, or a Veiron and Megan Fox, depending on the era, then he is on his own.
I have to confess that although I grew up in a very stylish home full of designer furniture, I never really noticed it at all, and like a typical man I was completely lost once I was on my own at university. Now, decorating a room at uni probably doesn’t matter too much because by the time you persuade a girl to come to your room neither of you really care what is on the walls. That gives you a false sense of security though, because once you manage to secure that all important first flat in London, you need to learn fast.
It’s not so much about attracting the opposite sex, it’s really about finding a way to portray your own personal style, and create a place where you can feel confident and secure in your aestheticism.
And I have two friends who I can use to highlight the difference. One of them ordered all of his furniture from Ligne Roset, got the Missioni carpets and probably felt that anything from Armani Casa was a bit too plebian. He also made sure he always had a vase of fresh flowers in the house, and the place was always immaculate.  The other friend got a flat in a great location, a stone’s throw from Eclipse ( is that place still around?) but he had a completely random set of furniture and hadn’t put any pictures on the walls last time I was there, about five years after moving in. No prizes for guessing which one of the two now forms half of a very glamorous couple, and which one still thinks it’s not creepy when he and his friends go to Mykonos together to try to pick up 18 year olds.
So what is it that makes a bachelor pad a winner? Obviously this changes with the times, but personally I like the eclectic style. That means a mixture of something old, something new, not too much of a theme. If you really like that Selva armchair, why not pair it with a table of reclaimed wood? Or maybe with a gilded coffee table bought at auction? We can’t all have Monets and Manets on our walls, but the Affordable Art Fair is coming up again soon, and why not buy a striking original? Or just go for the old standby, a hand drawn vintage movie poster, maybe from a 60’s spaghetti western. I would avoid the hyper-masculine look, all dark wood and Chesterfield furniture: too depressing. But if you have a creative side to you, then take a look at maybe re-upholstering a sofa in a more interesting textile. There is even a company which will do this for any IKEA furniture you choose!
Whatever you choose, make sure you refresh it now and again, and entertain at home as often as you can. Otherwise you might end up like a man I read about today, who died at home and whose body want found for three years…
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