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What about design trends that have nothing to do with wildlife?

the only one i wish would die is the taxedermy/antlers one.

I disagree with many of these -

Owls were in vogue back in the 70's - but certainly not in the 80's or 90's. This is just a retro throwback, as are Hexagons/Honeycombs and Mushrooms (Remember when Mushrooms were almost everywhere in the 70's too - like Yellow Smiley Faces, Daisies and Macrame?)

Chalkboard paint is a fad that's simply missed it's cue to die.

Antlers will always be timeless in the genre of "Log Cabin" decorating - but in urban environments, they won't last much longer.

I see chalkboard paint on AT all the time, but I have yet to see anyone I know use it at all.

I like them all, so I'm a-OK with them!

So many of the "new" and "fresh" trends are what my grandparents had in the 70s. The 80s decor everyone hates now was a reaction to too much avacado green, too much Danish modern, too many orange walls and zebra rugs, too many conversation pits and walls with woodsy wallpaper. We must have thrown out a dozen owl figurines from my grandma's house. I would never have guessed that anyone under 65 would ever want such a thing.

So pretty much everything comes around again.

Poor Frank Lloyd Wright must be spinning in his grave.

I'm old, so I've seen a lot of trends come and go. I remember way back in the 70s Life magazine did a feature on the 40s and my mother who was a young woman then laughed about the nostalgia. That's what I do when I see those owls! Those are from 30 years ago (in spirit, if not in actuality). I guess when you've seen it once, seeing it again is either good for: a) a laugh or b) making you feel old!

To the young they are a fun curiosity, to me they are just ugly junk from my teenage years. I saw that kind of thing adorning many a shag-rugged rec room in suburban brick split-levels so I will never be able to think of them as a design trend.

That's it exactly, Charlotte. So many now-trendy things are styles I associate with hideous suburban rec-room taste. Not so long ago, the 70s were the 80s, if you know what I mean.

Um. But what if you just like owls? Is it okay to utilize items that make you happy in your home, even if they are greeted by the masses as trendy or a hideous 70's throwback? What's the point? And why exactly is FLW spinning in his grave?

I think I must be ages with Charlotte. When I was a teenager I wore Edwardian and Twenties clothes and loved Art Nouveau my mother filled our house with what we now call mid century modern and my mother called 'contemporary' furniture. Now I like contemporary and not mcm.

Has shoesbase flipped?

Actually, post-green revolution and post-credit crunch, I was rather hoping that slavish adherance to trends was going out of style, and that personal taste and decor that suits your needs, apartment, and lighting was coming back for good... ;o)

I just have stuff I like, some of it probably would give trend snobs the heaves, but it's MY home!

Oh, and please, comment spammers - enough already, go find a blog where reader IQs are in single digits!

shoesbase needs to be banned from this site...they are basically trying to get free advertising...but seriously? commenting on a blog? How lame!

I'm sure that back in the 70s the design mavens thought all of these trends were "here to stay" as well - lol.

Also, isn't "design trends here to stay" an oxymoron?

"Also, isn't "design trends here to stay" an oxymoron?"

Yes, it is.

"And why exactly is FLW spinning in his grave?"

Honeycomb/Hexagons were used by him in several of his floorplans as a solution to the design dilemma of how to get "out of the box"

"But what if you just like owls?"

So get some - there are plenty around...
...but there're not a "trend that's here to stay"

"'But what if you just like owls?'

So get some - there are plenty around..."

Exactly! If they remind you of your Gramma or evoke something in you, then have them!

Or, best of all, one or two of the exact sort that reminds.

Bepsf, why must you be so snotty and condescending in your posts? It has gotten to the point when I can identify your words before the first sentence has been read in its entirety. By all means, post your likes and dislikes and even your opinions but there is no reason for you to talk down to others and to bash their choices. Snarky, like cookies, is an occasional food.

"But what if you just like owls?"

Then you have a personal style that you'll keep, regardless of trends. I know a woman who had orange rooms in the 70s, when it was all the rage. But the thing is, she LOVES orange, and kept everything orange even when the trend changed. Then orange came back and is going out again. But she'll still have orange until she goes to the shag-carpet heaven in the sky.

Me, I love textiles. I've had ikat and suzanis for 20 years, but for a while I looked like a trend slave, and now I look like I just don't know any better. But I love them, and so be it.

Be aware of the trends for personal reasons. The seasons, the sales, what's new, what's coming, what's going.

Lisa's example of the Orange Lady is perfect. When orange came into vogue this time around, Orange Lady has a HUGE selection of items to choose from.

That's when she can finally find and indulge in orange things for her home. Because it's AVAILABLE! It's available because it's a trend, but she's not buying it to be part of a trend, she's buying it because she LOVES it.

The same goes for any other trend. When it's YOUR time, when the things YOU love become a trend, JUMP ON IT!

Some years the ONLY time you can find a RED red or a GREEN green is at Christmas. Pastels you can count on in Spring.

The shortest retail season seems to be Autumn. I think it lasts a couple of weeks. And is mixed in with the clearance end of Halloween, and might make it to Thanksgiving. That might be the only time to find olive greens, browns, golds, if they aren't part of a trend.

If you love owls, now is the time to rejoice and select owl-related items. Because they are available!

http://www.cardstore.com/cardstyle-blog/2009/05/retro-owl-greeting-cards/

http://awesomelyindie.typepad.com/awesomely_indie/2009/03/owl-love.html

http://printpattern.blogspot.com/2007_11_01_archive.html

This is why you pay attention to the trends...eventually between the seasons and the trends, the things YOU love will become widely available. Don't buy into any trend you don't love.

AT authorities — definitely time to kick shoesbase to the curb!

Also vote for booting "shoesbase" and other comment spammers - why else ask us to register, just allow anon comments if you're not that fussed...

As someone who has had a difficult time finding her personal design staples --simple, rustic European furniture and bold-patterned fabrics in vibrant blues, greens, and yellows--I welcome their recent run at trendy. I'm stocking up the on stuff I like before all of the store return to the eternal tyranny of suburban red/sage/gold and small prints.

I have several travel purchases like Turkish peshtemals, Mexican embroidery, ikat, etc. that have weathered "trendiness" just fine. It's a little sad when something I love, chose, and carried home in luggage ends up a few years later at Anthropologie or Pottery Barn, but most of my disappointment with that centers around not getting to be one of the people paid to scour the globe for cool stuff. ;)

If you love it, you love it. Keep it and let it make you happy.

favorite "design trend": assymetrical bookshelf units like this one: http://www.3luxe.com/best_ofs/Bookcases/Tall_Red_Asymmetrical_Book_Shelf

This trend is my favorite because it embraces the fact that every accessory you own isn't the same size or shape. it allows you to display your items in a more effective and attractive manner. It is a friendly piece for people who know nothing about design. It makes a small book collection look cute and not barren. You can use it as a room divider. Its great painted in bright colors for kids rooms, to store toys and treasures.

I also like some of the lightweight resin outdoor furniture in clean, boxy lines, and hope that stays around for some time too.

And, while these aren't trends, I do hope stackable chairs, as well as the Murphy Bed, are with us for a long time, as these are both wonderfully functional items that small-space residents benefit from owning.

I do like owls. I just don't like those owls. But they did make me laugh and feel nostalgic for a minute.

JaxByDefault is right: "if you love it, you love it. Keep it and let it make you happy."