I would have to say our home has become much less cluttered and more lovely just by subscribing to first of all to Leo Babauta's ZenHabits and Mnmlst daily emails as well as Decor8 and Design*Sponge.

I think images such as those above, taken from UK Country Living magazine, seep into our subconscious and pique our beauty aesthetic as we perceive the world around us.

Not that everything ought to be prettiness. We need a foil. I heard an interesting radio documentary yesterday about how the industrial and manufacturing city of Detroit is being perceived differently with many art groups springing up and using the city as a canvas.