KatharineSchellman.com - buying for beauty

#2: buying for beauty

Many weeks ago now, before leaving for our Europe trip, I posted a picture on Instagram.

I almost didn’t post it for one very simple reason: the scissors.

That seems like such a strange statement to make. But if you’ve spent any time on Instagram in the last couple years, you’ve seen those scissors before. They’re the scissors you see in every carefully staged shot of someone carelessly arranging flowers, or casually crafting, or whatever other #authentic #makerlife #simplebeauty post you can find.

I don’t like the idea of my life appearing fake, or staged, or copied from what is trendy. But the thing is… those are actually my scissors.

I have three pairs of them. The large one lives in my toolbox. The little one lives with my sewing supplies (which is technically also in a toolbox). And the medium one lives in my kitchen, where it gets pulled out for everything from opening boxes to snipping off dead leaves. And, occasionally, appearing in Instagram shots.

Yes, I could have just as easily bought a cheaper pair of plastic-handled scissors from Staples or CVS. But I wanted the beautiful scissors. I wanted the scissors made out of forged steel that were going to last for-freaking-ever. I wanted to scissors that were going to make me smile every time I had to use them and look lovely even if we move and they have to live somewhere other than a kitchen drawer.

Because when you live in a small space and try not to have very many things, beauty and longevity count. And I’ve found, nine times out of ten, that the beautiful option is also the one that’s going to last.