I have been thinking a lot this summer about labels. Labels have been frequently in the news, often surrounding very serious events. Two labels that occasionally (although not often) come up here are “feminine” and “masculine,” used to describe decor. These days I am not liking these labels. I am thinking: Never again will I use these words on this blog, unless used to examine history. Dear readers, what do you think? Above: In 1954, Kohler did not shy from putting a boy in a pink bathroom. Would any company do this today?
Did you see this recent story about Target’s decision to no longer use gender descriptions to differentiate toys, home and entertainment? I’m liking this.
Here are a few of my thoughts on why the time has come to sideline the terms “feminine” and “masculine” to describe decor and decorating styles:
- It seems that these labels are virtually all driven by cultural norms that change over time and are in no way absolute. For example, we’ve written before about Jo Paolettis’s book, Pink and Blue: Telling the Boys from the Girls in America (affiliate link), which studied how the modern associations of pink for girls and blue for boys rose to prominence relatively recently in the history of child rearing. And wood paneling — probably widely viewed as a man-cave material today — well, that was such a common wall covering for so many decades in the 20th Century that I can’t imagine it was viewed as masculine or feminine. Is there any aspect of a decorating preference that is truly hard-wired into our biology based on our sex? Okay, I did track this story in 2008, but now the source link is dead, so I don’t know how to investigate further.
- These decorating labels promote and reinforce hard-to-change cultural norms that run deep and which limit the behaviors and opportunities of people of both genders. As in: If so-called feminine decor is soft and ornamental –> then so must be girls and women. Ergo, hard-edged, no-nonsense “masculine” decor underscores the notion that men must be these things, too.
- They are stereotypes. Nix these labels and instead, work a little harder to find and use more specific descriptive language about the decorating choices made by each unique individual.
Why do you think about using the terms “feminine” and “masculine” to describe decor, dear readers?
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Judy H. says
I thinks it is fine to distinguish between feminine, masculine and gender neutral decor.
There are obvious differences between feminine and masculine design and why not? It has nothing to do with whether one is hurt by or feels singled out by the terms. Not everything comes down to political correctness, there will always be those who take offense to everything.
We have a pink bathroom and a sky blue bathroom in our 1950’s raised ranch and guess what? The blue bathroom is mine and the pink one is my husband’s! He likes it.
My niece had a baby boy two weeks ago. She and her husband elected not to find out the sex of the baby before his birth. They created and decorated a darling nursery with peach, a rich beige and touches of light green. Beautiful and gender-neutral!
We helped my son and daughter-in-law decorate their new house (yes, they asked). For our 5 yr. old granddaughter, we chose the most pastel of pink walls, trimmed out in white. Her comforter is a pale pink, lavender and white, It has a darling lace trim all around the edge. She has matching shams and some ruffly throw pillows echoing those colors. We changed out her ceiling light for a dainty, lovely crystal chandelier. She has a lovely feminine bedroom. Would I have made those choices for my grandson? Of course not. Masculine and feminine words are adjectives, descriptive words. If you are hung up on words, I can give you a long list of other adjectives you can get hung up on as well.
Diana says
Agreed and well said. A few years ago the state of Calif wanted to change the term “manhole” to “personhole.” ….seriously?
Medtech says
Pink bathrooms were not destroyed because they are feminine. Women pick the houses and bathrooms. The majority of young women hate pink bathrooms.
I come here to speak with like-minded people about saving and restoring mid century houses. Keep politics out of it.
Medtech says
I support labeling. I think. rooms can be masculine or feminine or neither. Removing words from our language to conform to political correctness is not a good idea.
Mike says
I skipped reading the comments on this post after noticing that the usual “but there are INNATE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN” crowd had come out. My opinions on this topic are heavily influenced by the fact that I am queer and also transgender. Within the specific subsection of the queer community of which I am a part, “femme” and “masc” are still often used to refer to the styles and aesthetics traditionally associated with the gender roles, without those aesthetics being considered to be tied to your gender identification (much less to whatever’s between your legs). There are “femme” men and “femme” women and “femme” decorating aesthetics, as well as “masc” men and “masc” women and “masc” decorating aesthetics. Both words are considered useful shorthand descriptors for “this fits the aesthetic we’ve been culturally attenuated to associate with these words” and aren’t considered to be any sort of referenda on or endorsement of the baggage attached to the cultural associations. (I.E. saying a woman is femme isn’t saying ALL WOMEN ARE FEMME, you know?) I’m a man, and my personal clothing style is relatively femme, but my decorating aesthetic is kind of “camp masc”. Since I’m used to using those terms in that way, I don’t personally see a problem in continuing to use them? However I appreciate that you decided to think about this, and will support any decision you come to about how to proceed.
Sara says
If pink were not so strongly regarded as feminine, I think thousands (if not tens of thousands) of pink bathrooms would’ve been saved!
Jay says
When I was a kid, early 60s, the original 20s bath was replaced in our house. It was a pink bath that was put in courtesy of my father who did not associate gender with the color. The fact that he got the fixtures free from his plumber brother trumped all. It was my mother who despised the pink bath.
Donna Desmarais says
My husband was all about restoring our pink bathroom when we purchased our 1949 bungalow 2 years ago, especially the pink Beauty Queen Lavanette (we also have the original brochure) .It wasn’t about him, it was about bringing a piece of history back to life. The sea foam green tile is still bright and in good condition, but the pink plastic tile has faded. So our next dilemma is…. vintage wallpaper, paint over the pink tiles, create a design with the remaining good pink tile…..It isn’t always easy being married to a perfectionist, but we have certainly found much pleasure and value in restoring and incorporating items that were original to to our home. P.S. He is also fine with the pink pom pom curtains.
Deborah says
I don’t see anything wrong with keeping the old descriptors.
I dress femininely (dresses all the time except for paintball 🙂 ) but the style of decor I like is decidedly masculine. That’s how I’ve always described it.
Mike S says
What I’d like to know is can we just have a site dedicated to Mid Century Modern style? Why oh why must we have such a conversation. Can we just stick to Mid Mod, please?
Trudi says
Yes, please!
Deborah says
Agreed.
Rickie says
Yes, this discussion has taken a lot of fun out of my daily view of this site.
Bob says
+1. Sadly hovering over “unsubscribe”.
LREKing says
Relax This is one discussion out of hundreds.
In a day or two, no one will even remember that it happened.
Geronimom says
Ditto for me as well, unfortunately…. This has been such a wonderfully informative site with amazing resources and ideas for us vintage lovers – up until this point. Although the information here is all still wonderful, I am now starting to be concerned that every time I might innocently reference something about the past which doesn’t happen to be couched in terms approved by self-designated modern gender-neutral arbiters, I will be looked upon disapprovingly – and I don’t need that. I come to this site to learn about and appreciate the past, not to be forced to participate in modern day sociological indoctrination.
retropink57 says
Same here….
Mike says
If other people are getting hurt by a usage and you care more about not having to think about the issue than about the people who are being hurt, that says an awful lot about you.
Bob says
Who was being “hurt? ” Pam? Yet another case of OOBOO. The Finger Has Landed on the unsubscribe button…, enjoy the site.
Tikimama says
First of all, this site is not and never has been about Mid Century Modern style. That is ONE of the styles from the mid-century discussed here, but probably not even the most often. And if you are so bummed out by this conversation, which is obviously important to Pam, whose site it is, why not just skip it instead of complaining about it?
MbShea says
Thinking about adjectives for this discussion all day; masculine and feminine are rather large categories, that are situated culturally and in social history. How well do large categories communicate when we are talking about style and design. Conversations about style and design — decor, architecture, furniture, fabrics, paint colors and more — need to be specific.
I am thinking that to help create pictures in our heads, for both general conversation, but also for fashion and decor, aiming to be specific is rich and improves communication.
For example, are my clothes to bike in, really masculine? My long gone granny would think so. Now? Nobody bats an eye now at a 55-year old biking in yoga pants or other suitable gear….. Better descriptor words are:
sporty, lycra, flexible fabric, rugged, dark, trim, form fitting, reflective, wash and wear, rain repellent…..
For decor, specific style adjectives like cottage, English country, storybook ranch, rain garden, formal herb borders, Craftsman bungalow, yurt, Shaker plain, Danish modern, rustic pine siding, slate, gingerbread trim, sleek glass surface, atomic hardware, hammered iron hinges….these all help create specific pictures for reader.
Adjectives also help us with gradations of color. For example, pink and blue are huge categories…..how helpful really are we to just name pink and blue, even as stand-ins for feminine and masculine qualities?
Royal blue, french blue, sky blue, robin’s egg blue, aqua, teal……
Flamingo, neon pink, ballet slipper pink, peach, seashell lustre…..
Anyway, another argument for rich description and caution with broad categories……
thanks to PK, for hosting such a good discussion….off to think about 50s Penguin book colors in the binary of saturated turquoise and citrus orange….a classic pair of colors that does not seem to be shoehorned into feminine or masculine….just opposite spaces on the color wheel…..
Amy Dietz says
If I designed a room with floral wallpaper and lace curtains and someone else referred to it as a ‘feminine’ design, I am by no means offended. It’s a meaningful description that has no inherent negative quality judgement. Gender bias is better illustrated in the popular “you hit like a girl,” primary school insult.
That being said, if I’m trying to sell a home-related product or service, I would not use masculine/feminine labels at all. I would let my customer decide whether it fits their personal style rather than apply a label of my own. Why discourage a customer by marketing to one gender?
Furthermore, most of us live in modest spaces where every room is utilized. It only makes sense to use a flexible interior design comfortable for most ages and genders.