Internal Conflict

I'm having huge conflicts in myself about what to invest in (with my hypothetical money, of course). My interest in furniture is really blossoming, and particularly for locally-made or ecologically-friendly pieces which tend to be on the pricey side.

There's part of me that believes investing in furniture, clothing, or even art, is vain and materialistic. Then there's the other part of me that just wants to be surrounded by carefully crafted, beautiful things -- everything from furniture to cutlery.

Something outside of me says that investing in experiences, such as trips, is more reasonable, or have a longer positive impact. But then again I think "hey, sitting in a fabulous chair every night can also have an awesome impact!" Particularly when it looks like this Olivier Desroches chair:



With a nice throw blanket and a good book; what's not to love!?

There is this other idea floating around in my head about patience, carefully assembling collections... but, it takes so much time to 'fall on' a great piece. Thrifting takes devotion!

Anybody out there have thoughts on this?