INTERIOR DESIGN TRENDS YOU MAY WANT TO AVOID FOLLOWING

Open plan layouts – A lot of people like open plan homes. Except they don’t always work for all types of spaces. If you’ve got a tunnel shaped layout and a garden at the rear of your house, then it would totally work as it would provide you with that seemingly endless vista. But for a square shaped home where the main floor floats above the garden, then it doesn’t work as well. What an open plan simply does is make the house's interior look smaller. And take note that knocking down a wall means that you will lose precious cabinet space so you may want to take that into consideration. Open plan layouts also fell out of favour during the pandemic when more people started working from home. The need for privacy and dedicated workspaces led many to seek more defined and compartmentalized spaces. Ask your designer if an open plan layout is right for you before tearing out any walls.

Open shelves in the kitchen – Having open shelving in kitchens is a really trendy look right now, but it does present several disadvantages. Although they look really cool in magazines (like in the picture below), they’re really not that easy to live with on a day to day basis. Whether it's flatware or wine glasses, you have to clean whatever is stored there on a regular basis due to dust and grease accumulation. Personally, I put a lot of groceries in my own cupboards in addition to plates and glasses. I couldn’t imagine having to clean them all every few days as I’m already super busy as it is. And if you’re not the type of person who is naturally organized or likes to regularly clean things, I promise you that having open shelving means that you will have cluttered shelves all the time. And for a number of people, seeing clutter just adds to their level of stress and feeling of not being in full control of their lives. You’ll also end up having reduced storage compared to when you have fully enclosed cabinets. In addition, fragile items will be more susceptible to damage, as whatever is stored there will be completely exposed to active children who may reach for objects displayed there or pets (especially frisky cats who like to jump around a lot) who may accidentally knock over things.

Freestanding tub in the bathroom – Freestanding bathtubs, while aesthetically pleasing, do have a number of potential drawbacks compared to alcove tubs, I find. They’re more expensive to buy and install and they’re a lot heavier, which means that you may have to reinforce your floor just to accommodate them. Alcove tubs also tend to be more space efficient and easier to clean. I’ve got a 103-year-old clawfoot tub in my home that is very attractive-looking (people ooh and ah about it all the time). But the reality of the situation is that you really don’t want to take a shower using a handheld contraption. You’ll probably prefer to have water coming out of a normal showerhead. And cleaning a freestanding tub can be a huge pain as you need to wipe the floor around it and the walls too (especially if they’re not tiled) every time you use it. That doesn’t happen when you have an alcove tub. Another thing that annoys me about my clawfoot tub is that there’s nowhere for me to put my toiletries: no recessed shampoo or soap shelf at the side or end of the tub which makes it less than ideal. Freestanding tubs might be pretty to look at but they’re not as practical to use daily.

Skylights – Having a skylight might be nice for some people as they’re a useful alternative to having a regular window, which may not always be possible, like in my own house. I only have a window on one side of my bedroom, and I can’t install one on the opposite wall as I have a crawl space running alongside it and I don’t want to put one above my headboard as it just feels odd to have a window there. A good alternative in this type of situation is to use a skylight. Except skylights also let in heat as well a light, which means that really hot summers can be very uncomfortable so that’s something to consider if you work from home from your bedroom. Installation can be tricky, and if these are not put in correctly it can lead to potential leaks and heat loss in winter. Cleaning and maintenance can also be difficult due to their location. So think long and hard before you put one in. If you don’t have enough windows, you might need to install one. But if you have more than enough windows in your house (like in the home pictured below), skylights are just a nice-to-have feature that comes with their own unique challenges.

Wall-to-wall carpeting – Wall-to-wall carpeting throughout a house can offer comfort and sound absorption, but it also presents several disadvantages, including increased maintenance demands, potential for allergic reactions and odours, and higher installation & replacement costs compared to other flooring options. If you don’t like to vacuum having solid wood, laminate, or vinyl floors will be easier to keep clean. And they won’t stain if someone drops food or spills wine on them as you can just wipe them down pretty easily instead of calling a carpet cleaner to remove them.