These Decor Mistakes Should Be Avoided At All Costs

Interior design trends are constantly changing, and while you might think that you’ve updated your home to reflect modern design, you might find that not too long after, you’ll be looking at your choices and asking yourself what you could have been possibly thinking. The best way to avoid having to constantly keep updating your home’s interior is by either sticking with design choices that you absolutely love regardless of what’s in fashion, or to simply go with a classic style that will never become outdated. These design choices might have been the height of fashion at the time, but they have clearly become a fragment of the past. If you have any of these in your home, perhaps it is time for some updating.

Overly Beach Themed

Beach inspired decor can add a lovely touch to a room, especially if you live close by to the water. What takes it to a gaudy place is having the entire room be overly beachy, which just makes the room feel like it’s part of a themed hotel. We’re sure that nobody really wants their house to feel tacky, so it’s better to stick with just a few accents as opposed to a whole room full of starfish and seashells.

Patterned Sofas

Choosing a couch with a loud pattern is always a bold choice. While it can work, often the print itself will become outdated and you could find yourself regretting the choice. Of course, you don’t have to go for a neutral colored couch if you don’t want, but instead of a busy print, you can opt for a bold color choice. That way, you won’t have to settle for a boring beige couch, but the chances are lower for the sofa to become quickly outdated.

Too Many Framed Photos

Including photos in your home that document your family and happy times is a wonderful way to decorate a room, and is a great way to remind you of warm memories. However, adding in stacks and stacks of framed photos can make a room feel overcrowded. Remember, you’re not living in a museum. You should include enough photos to make the room feel lived in, but not to the point where it becomes completely overwhelming.

Floral Prints Everywhere

Floral prints can be done in an elegant way, you should always be careful about the amount of floral prints you include in your space, especially if multiple items with floral design are in the same room. These patterns can quickly make a room feel old fashioned, and you don’t want to end up with a room that feels like an antique shop. Make sure to balance out any antique patterns with other modern pieces to help balance things out.

An Unorganized Mess

Okay, let’s face it — most people are not purposefully creating a huge mess in their home as a decor choice. However, the reality a messy home will make your house be completely uninviting and sometimes even unlivable. Clutter can lead to a huge mess, and the root cause of it all is usually having too many things that you do not need. The best way to deal with this issue is to declutter every once in a while and donate, sell, or get rid of things you no longer have any use for.

Outdated Gadgets

One thing that can contribute to a serious amount of clutter is holding on to things you no longer use, and a major offender in this category is that collection of outdated gadgets that you do not know what to do with. Honestly, if they’re not even working then there really is no reason to keep them, as they are simply taking up space for no reason.

Rug Covers

Alright, when it comes to insane design trends, this has got to be at the top of the list. We really don’t know why toilet seat rug covers were ever in style, since they seem like the perfect place for bacteria to accumulate. Worst of all, they also look absolutely horrible. If you somehow still have one of these in your home, absolutely get rid of it at once.

Honey Oak Cabinets

If you take a look at these honey oak cabinets, you’ll know that they were once commonly found in homes all around the US. They were the pinnacle of style, but they really do look quite outdated at this point. What’s nice about cabinets is that they don’t really require being replaced completely, you can actually just do a facelift redo and instantly make your kitchen look a lot more up to date.

Hanging Teacups

This one isn’t necessarily a bad decor choice per se, since hanging teacups can be visually appealing. However, hanging delicate mugs and cups is a rather impractical way to store them. It just makes it so much easier to accidentally drop one and have it smash into pieces. It would be a better idea to add a hanging shelf so that the mugs can sit on a solid surface as opposed to hanging on a pin.

Doilies On The Table

When it comes to decor, nothing says outdated quite like having a whole bunch of doilies around the house. These were popular with our grandmothers, and there’s really no way not to associate them with old fashioned styles. Instead, you can use a runner to decorate your table. There are even lacy runners that have a similar style of doilies but are still a lot more modern.

Overly Ornate Living Room

Of course, we all wish that we could live like royalty, which is why some people like to incorporate overly ornate decor in their homes. However, unless you’re living in the Palace of Versailles, it’s really not necessary and can quickly end up look gaudy. Of course, you can incorporate certain ornate focal pieces, but they should be balanced with more toned down pieces in order to avoid having a tacky overall feel.

Vertical Blinds

It can be quite useful and sometimes downright necessary to have blinds in your home in order to be able to control the amount of light that’s let in. However, these vertical blinds that end up looking like wind chimes are really not a great choice. Not only are they very bulky, they really almost never look good. There are so many better options for blinds available, so it won’t be difficult to find an option that not only looks better but also takes up a whole lot less space.

La-Z-Boy Chairs

La-Z-Boy chairs were once the absolute epitome of home furnishing, these days, we’re more aware of how unsightly they really are. We do admit they they are comfortably, but the fact remains that there are a lot of better options out there that are not just comfortably, but look way better and are much less bulky. These do offer comfort, but they don’t have anything to offer decor-wise.

Overly Antique

We’re sure that nobody wants for guests to walk into their home only to feel like they’ve entered an antique shop. That can happen when there are too many antique pieces grouped together in one room. Antique items can be used as lovely accent pieces, but too many will render your room old fashioned in an instant.

Plastic Covers

We can understand that people want to keep their furniture in good condition, but to use plastic covers on top of them simply boggles our minds. Why cover up a piece of furniture that’s supposed to be comfortable with the most uncomfortable material in the world? Additionally, these plastic covers make a horrible noise whenever you move around on them, and if you’re wearing shorts, then prepare for a painful dismount. If you still have this, it’s seriously time to get rid of the plastic cover.

Pickle Jars On Display

We think it’s absolutely great when people do their own pickling, especially when the world is in desperate need of reduction of the excessive food waste going on. However, in terms of interior design, keeping countless jars out in the kitchen is usually never very visually appealing. You can have a few out on display, but having countless jars out not only looks like you’re running a factory, but can quickly get in the way.

Old Fashioned Fixtures

Having old fashioned fixtures is a dead giveaway that items in your home are outdated. However, luckily with this one there is a really easy fix: simply replace the fixtures with never ones, and you’ll transform the look of the entire room in no time.

Farmhouse Decor

Farmhouse decor can look very cute in the home, however it is critical to keep them at a minimum. Otherwise, you risk having your home looking like a museum exhibit. If you need some guidance, try to keep the roosters at one or two and don’t add on many more farmhouse related items on top of that.

Fake Plants

Incorporating plants into your home is always a great idea, but we can understand if it can be difficult for some to keep them alive. Fake plants that look like they’re fake should be avoided like the plague, since they immediately make the room feel very cheap. However, these days there are some pretty convincing fake plants out there, so we are willing to make an exception for those.

Matchy Matchy Everything

If you are not sure what to do when it comes to interior design, you might think that getting everything in the same color and pattern is a good idea. While we understand that line of thinking, it actually is counterintuitive, since it makes the room look very strange and tacky. You can avoid this by going for a monochromatic color scheme and a variety of patterns to mix things up while keeping a unified theme.

Heavy Tassel Curtains

While heavy tassel curtains were once considered to be the height of style, the fact is that at this point, they are very outdated. What was once considered upscale now just seems overbearing and can remind people of being at a play instead of a living room. There are plenty of lighter and less dramatic curtains to choose from these days.

Tassels Or Fringes On The Sofa

Speaking of tassels, while we’re at it, we need to address tassels and fringes on couches. These seriously scream outdated, and it has been a while since these overly decorated couches have been considered in style. It’s always a better design choice to go for understated furniture, that way it does not go out of style and require replacing every few years.

Popcorn Ceilings

While there are many design trends that we can understand used to be considered in style, we will really never understand how popcorn ceilings were ever thought to be a good idea in the first place. While this might seem like harsh criticism, popcorn ceilings are truly that offensive. If you still somehow have these, do your best to get rid of them as soon as possible.

Wood Paneling

Back in the 1970’s, wood paneling was a huge hit, and for some reason, everyone was lining their walls with these wooden planks. These days, they serve as the poster child of bad 70’s style that has aged very poorly. These are not only not nice to look at, but maintaining them is a huge hassle, so it’s a lose-lose situation.

Ruffled Shower Curtains

Shower curtains that feature elaborate ruffles and frills will always look like they belong to a different time period. There’s really no great way to make these look more up to date. The most talented interior designers will struggle with that task. It’s best to just get yourself a modern shower curtain, which is really very readily available.

Sleigh Bed

Back in the early 2000’s, sleigh beds became all the rage, and we really don’y know why. Let’s face it, why would you want to have a bed that looks like Santa’s sleigh? Whatever the appeal was back then, it has not translated to now, and if you still have one of these beds, it’s probably best to try to find yourself a more up to date frame.

Shag Carpets

Another staple that dates back to the 1960’s and 70’s, the shag carpet is almost an emblem of its time. However, we feel that these carpets really should have stayed in the past, and there’s really no reason to have them in your home so many decades later. If you do still have these, you should really look into replacing them with newer carpets.

China Cabinets

Many of us don’t collect fine china like our parents and grandparents did, so it makes sense that china cabinets have also been on the decline for quite some time now. The fact is that they simply look very outdated and old fashioned, and it’s pretty tough to make them look elegant. These days, floating shelves are used in order to display nice dish sets instead.

Wall To Wall Carpets

We may never understand the thinking behind wall to wall carpets, but the fact remains that they were not a good idea when they first became a thing and they are still not a good idea now. Anyone who still has this feature in their house should do everything in their power to get it removed, stat.

Gold Framed Mirrors

Gold framed mirrors can be done well, but it’s important to balance them out with more modern decor in order to avoid making your home look like an art museum exhibit. If you’re not sure how to do it, you can surround the gold framed mirror with modern art pieces, which will create a lovely contrast.

Outdated Wallpaper

While adding some wallpaper to your house is a great way to add color, patterns, and interest, you should definitely avoid adding wallpaper to all 4 walls of any room, as was the popular thing to do back in the day. This creates a very loud and overwhelming space, which is never good to have. Try to keep it at just one accent wall, and try to avoid choosing wallpaper that will become outdated and will need to be replaced.

Baby Pink And Blue

Let’s keep cotton candy colors in the baby’s room and not outside of it, especially if you’re going for baby blue and baby pink together. If done really well, these colors can work elsewhere in the house, but it’s very difficult to pull off and frankly, it’ll end up looking dated sooner rather than later.

Too Many Patterns And Colors

Adding in fun patterns and bold colors is a great way to add some personality to a room, but you need to make sure you’re not going overboard and adding way too many all at once, which can lead to clashing themes and a room that is not very fun to be inside of.

Tile Countertops

We are really not sure why tile countertops were ever a thing, since they are a big pain to maintain and simply put, these hardly ever look any good. There’s a reason why this trend did not last very long.

Frames Hung Too Low

If you want to add framed photos and artwork to your home, that’s absolutely great. Just make sure to hang these at the proper height, otherwise they will end up looking awkward and out of place, which brings attention to these framed works for the absolute wrong reason.

Too Many Pillows

Throw pillows are an excellent way to spruce up a room or a bland sofa. However, you should be careful not to overdo it and go crazy with too many pillows, since it will be quite a hassle to arrange and rearrange, not to mention that it will be visually overwhelming as well.

Cat Clocks

Cat clocks were once considered a cute quirky novelty item, but at this point, these are just played out. Of course, if you really absolutely love it, we suppose you can let it be as long as the rest of the room is more up to date. However, there are plenty of more sophisticated clocks available these days.

Linoleum Floors

While linoleum floors are a cheap alternative to other flooring materials, in this case you truly get what you pay for because they almost always end up looking really bad. The fact is, they are not only cheap to buy, but they also look cheap. On top of that, they instantly date your home.

Floor To Ceiling Mirrors

Floor to ceiling mirrors are truly an odd choice, and we’re surprised that they got so popular for a while. However, now they are not in vogue and we can’t say we’re too upset about that, since these look very tacky.

Textured Walls

Textured walls have always been a bad interior design choice and they continue to be so now. Why would you ever want this kind of texture on your home’s walls? Luckily, there’s an easy fix for this one: simply smooth over it and then paint to instantly make your home look much more elegant and up to date.