apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

All of the above.

Other: Cords everywhere. The other things bother me too, but cords crisscrossing the living room floor and cluttering the space under end tables and desks drives me CRAZY.

Overstuffed couches and chairs that are waaaay to big for the space. Especially if they burgundy chenille or black leather.

Other: Fake flowers/greenery, especially their placement over kitchen cabinets.

Loose messy slip covers that make a sofa look like a wrinkly elephant butt.

I was looking online at some houses for sale and one of them had a photo of the dining area and there was one of those fly strips hanging from the ceiling right above the table. Gross as it is, I guess it serves a function, but you'd think the realtor would at least try to Photoshop it out of there before putting it on the website for prospective buyers to see!

Toilet seats really bother people more than bright lighting and art hung too high? Really? I can ignore a toilet seat because (a) I don't hang out in people's bathrooms for more than a few minutes at a time, and (b) I can put it down.

But bright lighting makes me physically uncomfortable to the point where I can't stay in an overlit room. And art that's hung too high, particularly in a room meant for sitting in, makes me feel spatially disoriented, as if the art is pulling me upright and won't let me sit down.

Funny, I never really thought of myself as the hothouse-flower sort until I just typed that...

loud patterned wallpaper boarders, or even worse.... stenciling! I think rockbottom from my perspective is stenciled kitchen cabinets.

I'm also not thrilled by artificially 'distressed' furniture... Want distressed furniture? Go to an antique shop and buy something old! It even costs less in many cases....

I hate chords and they always seem to creep out whenever I'm around too!

Recently my husband and I were looking to move, to my disgust the master bedroom had a large roll of paper towel on it and it made me shudder. Needless to say, we stayed put.

Art too high or too small.

ugly, passionless art bought simply because 'it matches the decor'

grrr.

Hmmm, I don't know if this is a decorating peeve... but I guess neither is a toliet seat really. Dishes (multiple ones, not just a dish and a glass or two) in a sink... when there's a dishwasher in the kitchen. That annoys the crap out of me.
You have a dishwasher, if your dishes are dirty, you put them in the dishwasher. THE END!

I don't understand why people insist on letting their dishes pile up in the sink BEFORE putting them in the dishwasher.

objects placed on top of tall furniture, like a bookcase.

My biggest peeve is the clutter of non functional "decorator" crap scattered on every surface. Somebody has been watching way too much "decorator cents", remember always in threes! Yeah, three vases you are never going to use. If you have a beautiful mantel why does it need a bunch or crap strewn across the top? A significant family photo? Great, your kids lastest art project? Fabulous, but stop going to Pier one and buying chachkes (yiddish). Get rid of all that clutter and just have a good, clean room design and maybe a little carefully chosen art.

Ooooh.

I'm guilty of so much.

But not vertical blinds. I'd never do vertical blinds.

I hate vertical blinds so much that I took them down from their clips in my apartment and attached curtain rings w/ clips the mechanism so I could hang fabric curtains.

Anything to get rid of those horrible vertical blinds (in a rental)....

Art and or frames that are purchased because they "match" the space. Especially annoying when it's obvious...you know, lavender in the painting, to match the cushions, which go with the drapes. AAAARRRRGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!!

As a 5'11" person, why would *I* ever have to look UP to see art? Art is NOT meant to be hung that high. It's uncomfortable and... rude. (OK, maybe not rude, per se.)

not only toilet seats, but toilet COVERS as well, especially if toothbrushes and/or frequently used towels are in the vicinity. look at a magnified photo of a toilet flushing and see just how much and how far water splashes out in the process.

other pet peeves include hanging art at a vantage point perfect for many members of the NBA, potpourri, scented candles, faux asian decor, embroidered pillows with "cute" quotes on them, and winnie the pooh in a childless home. coincidentally, these happen to be the preferred decorative motifs of my boyfriend's ex. luckily, he allowed me to do a thorough purge a few months back.

I don't like inspirational quotes stenciled onto a plank of painted wood and hung on the wall. Also ruffles - on anything - tablecloths, seat cushions, throw pillows, etc. And I never really understood why so many minimalist spaces with clean lines have a loud oriental rug - maybe I'm just not getting it.

Asian decor if you are not Asian (complete with swords on the wall)... I always think that weird. And indoor smokers. YUCK!

The toilet lid up really REALLY bugs, but my #1 peeve is unquestionably a place with *gag* NO dimmer switches. C'mon, people...that's Lighting 101!! (Well, at least for those of us who abhor bright lighting-- overhead or otherwise.)

P.S. to Laura re: Vert Blinds:
Great idea! Seems so obvious, tho I'd never thought of it. Thanks for the suggestion. (My verts, the poor suckers, are soooo screwed. Woohoo!)

flat panel televisions hung above the fireplace.

too much stuff hung on the walls, (like granny's house). Not every inch of wall needs to have something on it.

Rooms arranged around a television.

wallpaper and wallpaper borders - blech

i think fluorescent lighting, in any capacity, is my biggest pet peeve. bright lighting is bad, yes, but bright fluorescent lighting is worse. especially over a bathroom vanity.

to laura: i just figured out the same fantastic trick for my hideous vertical blinds (also a renter). vertical blinds are another downer. so 90s.

crap on top of really bad "country looking" kitchen cabinets
too much stuff in general.

Overstuffed leather furniture (particularly black leather), cheap lacquered furniture, doilies, anything too matchy-matchy. Rooms that look like a personality-free catalog shoot. Tables covered in photos - hang them in your hallways, people - I need somewhere to put my drink down.

Sets -- matching sofa, loveseat, chair with matching side tables and coffee table. Decorating for the insecure.

fake flowers and clutter

Insufficient lighting. Fake flowers. Excessively clean lines and excessive whiteness. (Looks sterile.)

Ceiling fans! On low ceilings!

The too-high too-small art, again.

Vertical blinds, yes. Our house had MAUVE ones. They're in a box in the attic in the unlikely case a future owner wants to put them back up for some reason.

And puffy sofas with puffyness. Puffy headrests, etc. Puffy recliners. Puffy sofas with CUP holders. I STILL see these advertised in circulars. In the name of all that is holy, why?

Too-high art drives me crazy!

Now, do you mean "lotion" on the nightstand or, um, "LOTION"?

i'm guilty of too much to really give an opinion - but if i had to it would be people's drapes that match their furniture and rug and table cloth - in the south you get a lot of that - big huge valances that are dark green with big flowers printed on them - and they have the entire dining room and adjacent sitting room decorated with the same fabric - everywhere. it's terrible.

but i have 3 ceiling fans in our apartment, and they are such a help in the summer - you wouldn't believe. do i wish they were more attractive? yes. did i put them up there? no. am i going to waste my money on a place that i rent and that i probably won't be in forever? no. i'd rather spend it on tuition.

There are a couple of different things going on here - Firstly, the 'bad taste' choices of people who probably aren't reading this site, stuff like puffy pastel leather. Then there are the things that make you wince when you see them in pictures submitted to AT - the stuff I think this post was asking about.

In the first category for me it's probably the pastel (blue?) leather, especially in matching sets. In the second category it's sad art - art that looks lonely, or too high, or wonky, or just impersonal and not considerately chosen.

But I'm keeping the lotion by my bed. I have dry skin and it's convenient!

oy... i am going to make some people angry... but personal decorating pet peeve is an "accent wall." i dont get it. either get some guts and paint the whole room with it and make it work, or pick something more neutral. that and anything in an "espresso" finish.

on the flip side, i always leave my toilette up (but prob not if i was going to take photos of my house) and i LOVE ceiling fans. Love them.

oh and large photo collages, not so much. blow up one of your favorite ones (whoa now, just an 8x10 or so..) and frame in a really nice gallery mat.

...aaand i climb back down off my soapbox. thank you for your time.

Cat hair. I just cannot take cat hair. It makes me itch and sneeze. Doilies? Really? People still have those? I hate most recliners. My folks had three at one time; they're down to two. Want a recliner really bad? At least get a Todd Oldham one, because those are at least kind of cool.

It drives me crazy when you can tell the decade that the owner of a house last paid a decorators to "update" their decor! Come on... just because something was in style once, that doesn't mean that it's timeless. In fact, it usually isn't.

Carpet in a bathroom or kitchen (oh, the 70s were bad), window "treatments" that involve acres of billowy fabric and draped non-functional lengths of polyester, brass/brassy hardware that isn't on a boat.

i cant stand when house have just 1 genre of decorative pieces. It seem's too calculated and puchased all on one whim. I love seeing a house that has items that the owner has collected over years. If your "suddenly" into mid-century and only have mid-century that's a pet peeve. Ex: seeing only EAMES furniture or DWR.

sorry for the grammatical errors: my cat is sleeping on my laptop as i type.

carpets anywhere

Here's the deal, my cat uses the toilet so my lid stays up, for photos I would close the lid.

I hate it but what can I do? the alternative is a litter box and not being able to brag that my cat uses the toilet.

I hate borders, stencils, fake flowers, pillows on the couch that match the fabric of the chair, pastel leather, decorative pulls on fan chains and most of pier one's entire inventory

all ikea in a space, ceiling fans, black kitchen appliances, vertical blinds, installed carpet, hallow doors, space heaters, low ceilings, bad lighting, oak cabinets, cereal boxes on the fridge, window "treatments", rooms centered around a tv, brass fireplaces, paneling. there, i got it all out.

Ana, please, somehow, make a video of your cat using the toilet, I want to show my cats.

I'm going to respond in depth to this post later today, but no one has mentioned the spray of dried eucalyptus leaves tied with a flowery bow in the middle and hung horizontally above a doorway - or is this a decorating "secret" only my suburban relatives know about?

southof290: checkout citykitty http://www.citikitty.com/ for that :-)

personal pet peeve is overhead lighting. no matter how undecorated a place is, everything looks better with lights throughout the room, rather than overhead. i'll make an exception for a light over a dining table.

Lynnea-I agree with you (especially on the Ikea!) but most people have some of those elements in their homes...

Curio Cabinets

rorarora you totally nailed one of my biggest, carpet in the bathroom is the grossest things ever.

other peeves are matching living room sets - sofa, loveseat, coffee table, side tables and hideous lamps and people who use sheets as window treatments. I don't mean taking a sheet with and interesting pattern and sewing a curtain, I mean people who just take an entire sheet and swag it across the top of their window. Ick. For that matter I don't I very much care for anything that swags.

litter boxes (and the creatures that use them)

Eewww. Ick.

Anything cutesy. Possibly allowable in a child's room but absolutely nowhere else in grown-up living spaces!

OK I've had time to think. How about:

1. Dolls in homes of grown ups (i.e. people without young children). The doll is usually dressed in a "Little House on the Prarie" outfit and sometimes sits in her own doll sized chair in the living room.

2. Vacuum cleaner covers that look like the wolf from Little Red Riding Hood or like an old granny. This usually means the vacuum is on display in the living room or other public space in the house.

3. Cheap wood trim that has not been painted, but varnished, in newly renovated rental apartments.

4. Precious Moments collections. Even Hummel is better.

5. The poster of the cat hanging onto a bar or windowsill with the caption "Hang In There!", the inspirational "Footprints in the Sand" plaque, large crosses or rosary beads that are publicly displayed.

6. Agree wholeheartedly with the carpet in the bathroom gross out; disagree with the lotion on the bedside table issue.

7. Toilet seat up is not always the fault of the homeowner.

olya- thanks for posting that! I am really intrigued now and wonder if my two kitties would go for it.

Pillars in the middle of the living room / family room.

I live in Alabama now and it was so hard to find a house without decorative pillars- ick!

I had a bathroom contractor submit photos of his work recently, and in every single shot with a toilet, the seat was left up! In one shot, it even looked like he forgot to flush.

Needless to say, I didn't hire him... if he doesn't pay attention to detail in his portfolio photos, I imagine he doesn't pay attention to the project overall.

Definitely too-small art.

All the furniture pushed out against the walls.

Brass chandeliers with no shades.

Am I missing something---are issues of tidiness the same as decorating or design questions? Gathering or relocating or getting rid of stuff on top of the refrigerator seems to be a ten second cleaning task, whereas decisions about fabric, color, placement, style, etc., require deliberation. Maybe the poster's question ought to be "what's your biggest peeve in photos of at contributors' spaces."

Owls and most other birds. Every time I see one of these hideous monsters show up one of my eyes starts twitching. At that rate, some of the home tours on this site have the potential of putting me into a full on seizure.

There are a few things I really hate that make me regularly cringe.

Rooms painted in garish, or loud colors (fluorescent green, too bright-yellow, orange, etc); rooms painted in horizontal stripes; giant color-contrasting wall stencils; and other loud applications of paint to walls and furniture drive me crazy. I simply cannot see how anyone can occupy such spaces for significant time periods, unless they are color blind.

Accent walls. Why does my attention need to be focused on a single wall in a room? All portions of the room should attract my attention.

Inspirational and motivational posters and word stencils. Why does someone need to be reminded of how to think or conduct themselves every time they enter a space?

Wallpaper borders. With the possible exception of true Victorian wallpaper in a Victorian home, I have yet to see a space successfully decorated with wallpaper that includes a border that did not look contrived.

What's the problem with lotion on a nightstand? I'll admit that mine is in in a pretty blue bottle, rather than in the St. Ives bottle, but still. What next? No toothpaste in the bathroom?

-fake flowers
- scented and decorative candles (just to get dusty?)
- lacquered furniture
- weight papers (I think it´s one of the most non useful things someone ever created)
- etc.
A cat using the same toilet seat as you do? I don´t know about what others think, but I´m sorry, this is really gross for me...

About the only real peeve I have is designers who come up with stuff that is just, oh, UGLY and everyone says "ooh la la! so different! so chic!" and it's something that looks horrible. Chairs you can't sit on comfortably. Trash held together with duct tape. I feel insulted that they expect me to applaud this.

Wallpaper borders
Toilet seat carpet cozies
80's overstuffed sofas - the poufy ones
French country anything
Really big, ornate furniture - I live in the south, it's all you see in the furniture stores
Matching sofa, loveseat, coffee table & 2 end tables living room sets
Matching bedroom suites.
Crackle finish anything
Too much texture on anything - makes my skin crawl
Childless adults with stuffed animals or toys - especially grown women with stuffed animals/dolls on their beds
Pet stuff everywhere

i agree with just about everything here. let's add stuffed animals for grown women and bad group-photographs of various outings everywhere. Grow up people! You're not in college anymore!

1. Stuffed animals on adult beds
2. Fake plants
3. Frilly curtains or valences
4. Cheap art reproductions

Adults who are older than 21 who have posters tacked to the wall.

Not decorating at all, not even trying bland boring spaces. Get someone to help you and if not watch a few decorating shows get some ideas and go for it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

krister,

You're right, I should have called it something other than "decorating" but still, a day later, I can't think of the appropriate phrase. It's not design. Or home. Or just in photos...

Add karate-chop-styled pillows to my list.

I will probably get creamed for saying this but I really hate the current trend of bowl-shaped sinks sitting on countertops. I just think this look is on the fast-track to appearing very dated.

Also I really hate rat's nests of cords everywhere but since I love my gadgets and wireless power is still a ways into the future, I guess I'll have to live with it for now.

Toilet carpet or whatever you call the seat cover, tank top, and wrap-around rug that some people put on or around their toilets. It just seems like a disgusting breeding ground for germs.

Cats.

I just said that because I know there are lots of cat lovers on this site (personally, I am not a cat person, though, and I don't get how people can allow them to walk all over their counters and tables and...). This post annoyed me in and of itself. I try not to be critical of things other people like in their own homes unless I'm asked...it might not be my taste, but if they're happy with a wallpaper border and a toilet seat cover, so be it. Short of dirty disgusting spaces that have hygenic issues, there's nothing that makes me cringe.

as for ceiling fans.....i can't help it, i love the way they make my house FEEL...they look awful when they're not moving, but that's not often here ....mine are white (no lights) and blend in with the ceiling....i know my poser friends cringe at my fans, but i don't care, they feel right...like it or not, they're inviting...in a guest room, especially!

"let's add stuffed animals for grown women and bad group-photographs of various outings everywhere. Grow up people! You're not in college anymore!"

I think this is a little over the top. You're judging people for putting up memoirs of their families and friends? I think it can be done tastefully, not to mention the human touch it adds. I don't always want to feel like I'm standing in a West Elm catalog and can't touch anything. Not everyone needs to reduce their decor to minimalist art and black and white photos.

Houses that are filthy and uncomfortable to be in...I mean really messy.

Puffy vinyl toilet seats.

Dried flowers in vases catching dust.

Accessories shoved to the back of a surface with no space to breathe.

southof290 the citykitty is what we used to train our cat, it really works.

and Erika, my MIL was grossed out by it to, but you have to understand, the only part of the cat that ever touches the seat is her paws.

In my opinion stepping barefoot on scattered kitty litter is way more disgusting than sharing a seat touched by kitty paws.

Some people let their cats sit on tables, that's gross to me, you could be eating off a cat butt table.

I cannot stand soap dispensers that are NOT decorative. I'd rather buy a stylish soap dispenser for the bath and kitchen and refill it than see a Softsoap or Dial container any day. I know, I am a cold, cold human.

Well, one person's super pet peeve is another person's ceiling fan (I adore ceiling fans obvs not for the look but the air movement (Florida girl living in NYC...was just raised that way!)).

Hate plain black plastic boring picture frames ordered online at ofoto at the same time the print was ordered. Hate plastic trash cans in bathrooms or home offices which are easily replaceable with even something mundane but less...plastic...at Bed Bath & Beyond or elsewhere. Also, tiny tea lights in little candle holders must be tossed.

Can someone educate me about the vertical blinds everyone thinks are awful? do you mean fringe-like hanging blinds?

Linoleum. Especially when it's embossed to look like fake tiles or wood. I'd rather have a non-repeating pattern that looks like real linoleum than linoleum that looks like fake tiles.

Re: "- weight papers (I think it´s one of the most non useful things someone ever created)"

Erika_ees, if you mean paperweights, they go back to the pre-airconditioning era, when people kept their windows open. Breezes would scatter the papers around. (There was no "paperless" office or home then. Not that there is now, either.)

And, when your kitties (and their butts) climb on the table or the desk, a very heavy paperweight can be just the ticket. "Can" be, not "is."

I don't have an accent wall (yet), but it's a way for a renter to get some color and not have to repaint everything. It's easy to change it also.

Flat Panel TV's hung too high, usually over fireplace. Ugh
Wall decals
Poor or nonexistent lighting options

Yeah, wall paper borders and vertical blinds..

to the person who asked... I'm certain everyone is referring to the blinds that were popular in the late 80s -90s... usually over a sliding glass door and still in many cheaper hotels.

I wholeheartedly agree with dishes in the sink... especially if there is a dishwasher in the room. I don't have a dishwasher.. so I got a cutting board to put over the sink so I don't have to look at them.

i'll admit that I'm guilty of 'not decorating' but that's because I agree with the person who mentioned ART THAT IS SOULLESS BUT MATCHES THE DECOR!
I have never made a lot of money... so the art I like is out of reach for me and I refuse to buy something just because it fills the space.

Someone please explain why lotion the nightside is so bothersome. Where else would you put it - short of having a free nightstand drawer to hide it in?

* rooms that are too "matchy matchy" and look like the pages of an ikea, crate and barrel or dwr catalog.
* loud colors
* floral patterns of all kinds
* oak anything
* laminate and vinyl flooring
* brass fixtures/hardware
* can lighting
* anything puffy, poufy or frilly
* anything whimsical

I'm such a hater, I could go on for ages!

Safe.

Boring.

Beige.

Coordinated.

Dull accessories -- the matching, souless, meaningless and ubiquitous vases that can be bought anywhere.

"Tasteful".

A home that takes itself too seriously.

A home that does not reveal wit, intelligence, humour, curiousity.

(all the other things -- fake flowers, stuff on the refrigerator, those are a given... this is just an addition

- pet beds
- decorating with oversized letters and words
- framed posters and art prints (not originals)
- exposed cords
- shabby chic/country corner
- overuse of hanging fabrics
- beaded curtains
- exposed storage
- laundry in the open
- dishsoap and sponge sitting on the sink
- vinyl windows
- faux painting (sponging, rag-rolling, featherdusting)
- french country
- wallpaper borders
- patterned shower curtains
- matching bathroom accessories
- plastic trashcans in the open
- to-small rugs
- LIME GREEN WALLS
- accent walls, painting every wall a different color
- decorating with chinese lettering
- bad office carpet in rentals
- too many appliances out on the kitchen counter
- unmade beds
- venetian blinds and the vertical blinds too, ugh.
- ceiling fans (most of them. i like the simple ones)
- that squiggley track lighting and "arty" lighting in general

ooh, this is FUN.
god, i am anal....

oops, that should have been "too-small rugs"

goodnightdean - i think you continued my list!

toiletries 'on display' in a bathroom
pot pourri
candles (especially floating ones)
'east meets west' (especially oversized Balinese coffee tables)
art for arts sake
groupings of photographs in frames
'twigs' in a vase
groupings of vases
ornate fire surrounds with things on the mantelpiece
CD's/DVDs on display - they are NOT furniture
table runners
cushions on a bed
things hung on the backs of doors
clocks on walls
big screen TVs
useless collections of anything: ceramic figures, glass animals, wooden boxes
posters
chintz and floral prints
tassles/frills
buttonback furniture
borders - stencilled or otherwise
curtains
throws
plug in air fresheners

this is a bit more functional rather than decorative, but it gets me every time:

Bathroom sink faucets that do not extend far enough over the bowl, so you are rinsing your hands right up against the back of the sink. I HATE that. (pretty much every rental I've lived in has that problem...grr!)

Someone said Lime Green walls -- THANK YOU!!!!!

And I have to contend with the one about framed posters/art prints. Not all of us can afford to fill our homes with original works of art; This is our way of being able to surround ourselves with art we love and admire. Sure, if I could, I'd buy the original. But since I can't, I'd rather have prints than bare walls. (And don't worry, I'm NOT talking about Van Gogh sunflowers or anything Monet...I do have to admit I find those quite tacky!)

ooh ooh! Also -- the college-fratboy standard: empty liquor bottles on display. Don't need to prove your conquests!

Just wondering... what is it about lime green walls that everyone hates?

My pet peeves are: The navy/burgandy/hunter green color combo, overly formal window treatments, furniture that is too large for a room, generic art (even though I can be guilty of that) fake Asian accents, southwestern accents

clickchick, regarding art that you like but is too expensive--if you can get access to a color printer that will do larger than 8.5x11 (ideally larger than 11x17 if you can get it) then you can find something you like on the net, print it out, and frame it. I'm not advocating pirating copyrighted art or art that is being sold. But there are a lot of sites like Flickr where you might find something wonderful that the owner doesn't mind someone printing it out for their own use. Even better, take digital photos yourself at a nice high resolution and have them printed out at Kinko's for instance. You will be surprised at what you can do with your very own work.

rebecca326 - framed posters are a gripe of mine because original art is so easily accessible these days! thanks to Etsy and sites like 20X200, anyone can afford to display something thats not mass-produced...i also love finding old paintings at thrift stores...its mostly junk, but sometimes you can find something fabulous!

labchick - i also loathe the maroon/navy/hunter green color scheme. ick!! as far as the lime green walls go...it just looks...tacky (in my opinion). i dont know, theres something about it that screams "im trying to be fun and decorative!!" it just looks like it's trying to hard...plus its eeeeverywhere.

I've never heard of 20x200 before, thanks for the reference, I'll have to check that out. (and who DOESN'T love Etsy!)

I despise vertical blinds and carpeting.

Louis XIV kitchens. Here in Orange County they are de rigueur in all the mcmansions. Elaborate moldings and other fake-y carving rondelles etc etc everywhere. Off-white paint with a little metallic gold here and there. Acres of naaaasty granite counter-top, usually black with, ugh, gold flecks. These are working rooms, people, get a grip.