As John Howard Payne once wrote in his poem, “Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home”.

This
expression indicates that home has always been regarded as something more than just a physical
location. Both texts provide us with some very interesting insights into our place of living. While the first
writer outlines the importance of maintaining clutter-free house, the second author makes the point
that home should be a place of our own ideas as its decor is a part of our self-definition.

The first text supports the idea of getting rid of an excess of physical objects from our homes. However,
the writer also outlines the fact that the vast majority of people have a tendency to collect unnecessary
possessions and clutter their personal space. This is particularly true with regards to souvenirs and
unsolicited gifts.

I cannot disagree with the viewpoint that less is better. Our home should be a place where we can take
time to relax, but if it is filled with too many items, this can overall negatively impact our well-being and
lead to not only physical but mental clutter as well. In addition to that, we may encounter difficulty using
our space to do enjoyable activities such as yoga or dancing.

The author of the second text, on the other hand, argues against taking any advices while designing the
interior of our house. He suggests putting our own personal spin on the decor to make it special. As our
home is where we spend most of our time, it is crucial that the space reflects ourselves.

In my opinion, most of the second writer’s arguments are plausible although he ignores the fact that in
most cases, we share our space with a partner or a family. This means that some decisions concerning
the interior design need to be taken by mutual agreement between all the involved. While I agree with
the point that we have the potential to design our own home to a certain extent, there are other factors
to consider, in particular having enough time for such undertaking. So consulting interior designers for
an advice is not always a bad practice.

All things considered, it is true that how we style our homes does matter because we want to feel
comfortable and relieved in our place of living. Moreover, the interior of our home reflects our
personality and affects our mood, hence, as far as it is possible, we should make our own choices
regarding decoration. Last but not least, we should store our belongings wisely and surround ourselves
with things we really enjoy.