Emma Cassi: the art of everyday styling

As much as I adore my home decorating magazines and books, I do not for a minute believe that most people live in homes that are perfectly styled the way they appear in these books and magazines. Real life is just not so .. staged. Real life, as we all know, is messy. Quite messy, if you have kids.

Today, I came across some images, which I found completely captivating because they provide a glimpse at what a real home looks like. It's a home belonging to an artist who's done styling for companies such as Milk magazine in France.



The studio belongs to Emma Cassi, who creates beautiful jewelry out of vintage materials. The photo was part of a behind-the-scenes peek provided by Anthropologie, which is currently selling some of the designer's jewelry. The photo may very well have been styled since the designer also does styling work, but I do think it captures the messiness of a project in the works. For me, the lovely part was that it seems to create a story.


Photos like these make me wonder about the person who works there and what she's like. If I get really carried away, I even imagine the details down to what she has for lunch.

What do you think a photo of a corner of your home would say about you? Would a photo of your desk or work area reveal the true you?

Photobucket

10 comments:

Razmataz said...

Hi Minnie. I did a photo challenge last week about staged vs reality on blogs. It was interesting. I much prefer to see the real thing. These are lovley pictures. I also wonder about all the details that the picture hints at.

Thrifted Treasure said...

Lovely images! I think a photo of a corner of my home would say I live with 3 very messy boys and a lot of chaos :-)

CACHANILLA73 said...

Definitely I prefer the real deal. I love to search pictures at "Flickr" about homes, houses and places. I get inspired by real people. I like when we drive around the city at night and catch a glimpse of what's behind the doors of homes.
And YES! I love a chaotic home because it says happy, healthy kids. ')

Kristin said...

I love this! And you're right... those photo spreads just aren't real. Where's the clutter? Even the most organized of us has a little clutter. Throw in kids, and it's probably a lot!

Anonymous said...

I have worked as a stylist for a long time and I hate staging in the house. It's fake. I have a bit of decoration and a lot of mess around, it's a real, lived in place! I thought a lot about posting pictures of my house on my blog, completly unstyled and see the reaction. We are way too used to photoshop and other fake situations like that it's time to cut it off.
bobbi

Jenn said...

That is so true! I am constantly reminding myself of that when I flip through magazines and blogs. My house is never that perfect ... and I don't think I would want it to be.

Heather said...

This is a lovely "mess"! Unfortunately, I don't think my mess is quite so lovely, although some days are better than others!

torrie said...

I've thought a lot about this, since I started blogging... and the pictures I decide to post or not post. Right now, an image of a corner of my room would say that I fill my plate too full, and I'm struggling to "eat it all" so to speak. Working on it, but for now that's the reality.

I appreciate your comments last week, and I hope the shopping and Christmas cards are going well! Yes- Christmas cards will be done this weekend for us (a little later than I would like, but oh well, right? :)

Unknown said...

You're absolutely right, Minnie! Magazines and tv shows always have crews that stage homes (i.e. remove all the owner's junk) before shooting. I like to look at sites like The Selby which sometimes do look as if he's just been invited over for drinks to some interesting person's home who's had no time to clean.

I love the photo you chose too. If someone looked at my desk, it would probably reveal a lot about me. It would be a mess (haha), with various sketches and notes strewn about, art supplies, and of course, several projects going on at once. I'm a bit creative and a bit ADD, so I'd say one look at my desk area would tell you that.

Rebecca Newport said...

Hi Minnie! Great blog! Emma's home is amazing isn't it? It was also featured in Elle Deco here in the UK. My experience of stylist's is that they all have beautiful homes. Infact most of them rent them out as photographic locations! Keep up the good work! Rebecca x