a period home, any period.....period.

I love modern minimalist, but could never live in it. It would turn my OCD tendencies into full blown OCD.

Futuristic. No way!

I love all that swanky 70's style, but I could never dedicate my life to it.

I absolutely LOVE Victorian ANYTHING... but I couldn't live in a Victorian home. A Victorian house, yes, but no Victorian furnishings & decor.

What is fururistic??

Could not live in a victorian home. Nope.

MCM reminds me of my grandma's house, which is why I both like it and could never, ever live with it.

Like alisonK, I love the minimalist look, but I have way too much stuff to ever be able to go through with it.

Typo...it says fururistic..not futuristic! LOL!

Victorian anything - Big, frilly and drafty.

McMansions and Tract Houses - especially the kind that have a Disneyland brick/stone/stucco facade and the other 3 sides are wrapped in vinyl siding and have randomly placed (or no) windows.

Crackerbox Condo/Apartment Complexes - You know, the ones where all the buildings look exactly the same, and you can only tell the difference between your building and the others by the big number painted on the side?

"Loft" Apartments/Condos in buildings that never existed 10-15 years ago. I hate that faux hipster vibe.

suzy8track - Thanks for the catch! It's been changed!

I wish there were examples provided for each style/era. It would be fun going through them all before posting! I couldn't live in anything too messy or too spare.

I love mission and minimalist modern, but I don't think I can ever pare down my "stuff" enough for that...

bepsf, the question "Wasn't what do you hate?" It was "What do you love but couldn't live in?" Does this mean you love tract McMansions? :-)

I'm another definitely-not-minimalist.

I also vote for minimalism.

P.S. bepsf, the assignment was for you to list things that you *love* but couldn't live in.

This is a fun post. In my opinion, I love the clean look of the minimalist home, but in reality I could not live with it.

I LOVE the look of modern minimalist, but I just couldn't do it. I like my stuff. And I like having it where everyone can see and enjoy it.

I love Art Nouveau, and I really wish I could live with all that beautiful art and stuff around me, but there just doesn't seem to be any way to do it without invoking the worst, clutteriest kind of granny house. Oh well, when I'm old maybe it'll be all the rage.

bepsf - the point of the post is to envy other living styles through design & decor...not rip on various home types by pointing out their cheap aesthetics... I highly doubt you would "love" a vinyl siding McMansion.

I love minimal modern, but as others have said, how could you live such a minimal life? we all have stuff that looks hideous when found about in the beauty of the minimalist home. take out, put away, take out, put away...not many people can live like that.

I love the feminine- boho - carnival - old world - think Anthropology store - look but if I tried to recreate it it would look like a garage sale for sure.

Damn - I'm so bad at directions...
...I guess that's the free-thinker in me.

Probably Minimalism - I like the way it looks, but couldn't deal with the rigor of....

...no, wait - I really don't like it - Far too cold and sterile.

I know - Barns!
I really like the way Barns look, but I couldn't live in one.
(Unless it was redone in a clean modern way - but not 80's modern: You know, Glass Brick and painted steel railings -I really hate...)

Damn - I'm just not making this work...
:-(

I'd love to live in an over-the-top baroque apartment, but as my husband points out, I'd have to live there alone.

bookgirl - The links above have been updated (sorry for the delay) with ideas from each style! Happy hunting!

-Sarahrae

American Colonial-there's something about the simple practicality and earnestness of it that appeals to my modernist sensibility. But it would look as silly in my home as I would look in an a colonial home!

Art Deco
Hollywood Regency

Art Nouveau, not because I couldn't take it--I love it!--but because I couldn't possibly afford it. The good stuff, the stuff I'd want to live with, costs a mint.

minimalist modern - love the look, but i have too many things to make it a reality

i love to look at interiors like at Versailles, but i couldn't live in them.

Mod (the kind of fully over the top everything mod, not MCM)-- love the look of full-on mod, but couldn't live in it.

On the other hand, MCM I could do. Would do, if I could afford to completely redesign.

Like a few others, I love the minimal look, but I could never live in it. I love my 'clutter' too much!

I have a chicken/egg thing going on, I think. my workplace (of 3.5 years) has a very sleek, modern thing going on -- glossy white/stainless surfaces, boxy bright upholstered furniture -- which I think is gorgeous, but the apartment I moved into last year wound up being this weird feminine/MCM/vintage conglomeration in part because I get a fix of shiny modern design 5 days a week.

I try to do minimalist modern, but there's just not enough storage space for everything! I do keep telling myself, though, that not everything needs to be out at once. And seriously, one day I may have a sale for all these design magazines I've amassed over the last few years....They seem to be like beauty mags, in that they make you feel bad about what you DO have.

Bepsf gets a big Friday hug.

I love California Mission style. I could never live in it, though.

Hollywood Regency... I wish I had of know that I love to look at it but live in it before I wasted my $ decorating my bedroom in that style :(

Rococo! Too much to break...

I appreciate for eye candy purposes futuristic and what comes to mind is barrbararella, The 10th Victim which is crazy fun Italian Sci fi cult classic, Blade Runner, etc. Love the interiors but no way could I live in that kind of environment. I have a friend that did this very well, fun to visit but you feel isolated in this style its more fantasy vs real.

I have lived in a Victorian but my style and interiors were not, I hated it because my furniture needs to float and not be pushed up against a wall.

When Art Deco is done right with really nice pieces, monochromatic with hints of plums, blues rich mohair fabrics is really beautiful but way too formal for my life style and having a dog. This style tends to be too stuffy for me.

1. Shabby Chic - I think it's pretty, but it reminds me to much of my mother's style and I wish so badly not to be my mother.
2. Minimalist - They always look like beautiful pieces of untouchable art. I like to touch my things.

I can appreciate the arts and crafts movement, the mission and stickley but would not be for me.

I grew up in a largely English traditional style home but have moved into the modern realm, beginning in Junior High years ago, namely MCM, 60's-70's mod, some Pop modern, the Danish modern stuff and the asian so my actual style is modern eclectic, how's that?

However, if I could, I could probably well be able to live in a full on MCM home very easily, however would not be able to pull off the minimalist look although I do like elements of it (namely to keep clutter to a minimum).

Another vote for Hollywood Regency. Also Indian/SE Asian, or sleek modern, or minimalism.

Love to look, but it's not where I'm most comfortable.

I'm sorry there's just no way I could live with a Mission Style home. It's beautiful, just not for me!

Unfortunately, as pristine and rustic as Mission-Styles are, with all their handmade, gorgeous furniture and simplistic styling....

I need some color. No. In fact, I need LOTS of color. TONS of color. I get depressed easily, so as it turns out, colors have a huge impact on my mood. I feel energized when I see pink tulips outside or when someone gifts me with a gorgeous teal-and-coral pillow.

Sadly, this sticks me more in a contemporary category.

I could never live in a suburban home...no matter how attractive. The urban planner in me would never allow it!

I love the way ultra modern decor looks, but I couldn't live without my oversized squishy couch, with an abundance of throw pillows. I also have a tendency to rent depression era apartments, so ultra-modern would look really out of place with the plaster walls and cheap moulding.

I like MCM but am afraid it will look dated soon. Isn't it funny how lots of posters say they love the MCM look but couldn't live in it?

I can appreciate the thinking behind a minimalist room, but don't think I'd feel comfortable without any "stuff".

This one is HARD for me.

I guess it boils down to the idea that I can really appreciate ANY really well-done version of ANY style, but the only thing I am comfortable living with is my own version of "global contemporary". Pure styles are too rigid to me, and many are too fussy (like Victorian and Shabby Chic). (Obviously minimalism is not!) I could live short term with nearly anything if I had a reason to (vacation, temporary lodgings, etc.) But I'd get increasingly unhappy...

McMansion. Or any bland, too-big suburban house.

I love all the little details of art deco, but not so much the 'big picture' look of it.

I also love well-done Victorian, but would be completely uncomfortable living in it.

I'm not a fan of victorian or futuristic style home decor. I'm definitely a vintage eclectic girl.

http://girlwhimsy.blogspot.com

Hmm... hard question for a historic preservationist...

I'd have to say shabby chic. Especially the all white rooms. I think they look lovely and all... but all-white does not work with 4 little boys and 3 giant dogs.

And I am also annoyed by people who live by the formula of white paint sandpaper = every piece of furniture in their house.

I should teach classes on distressing furniture without ruining it by rounding the corners.

Speaking of "temporary" or "vacation" lodgings, Sherry..... the time I spent in Hawaii gave me an overdose of Tommy Bahama style (in a watered-down Costco kind of way).... Fun, but living amongst it got old, fast. Living in the tropics is alluring to me, but Tommy Bahama style 24/7, Paradise would become Gulag very fast.

P.S.

"Victorian" is an era... not an architecture style. There are actually many styles in the Victorian period which are NOT frumpy at all. I know people think of velvet uncomfortable couches, giant poofy curtains, spindley tables... all that... but Stick-Eastlake, Folk Victorian, etc are nothing like that.

Since I'm still in my mid- to late- 20's, I'd say Victorian, just b/c you can't seduce a dude in a home like that. Although, I could live in them, it's mostly b/c I'm still pretty young, same goes for Shabby Chic, and then MCM, since I love quality AND intricate details.

Also, I'm completely in love with the homes of the Indian families the brothers visit in "The Darjeeling Limited," I don't think I could live in India (mostly for the heat, 76 degrees is too hot for me).

eclectic just isn't for me. it seems contrived and messy!

I love touring Victorian homes (complete with decor), but could never live in one myself. Well, maybe without the decor.

Also, I like to look at lofts, but I like separate rooms to much to live in one.

Arts and crafts. Stickley and all that. I grew up in a beautiful arts and house, but the colors of wood and paint those places lend themselves to (oak, muted yellows, greens, etc.) are not what I tend to gravitate toward.

That being said, I would take anything that has a little patina over anything brand new every time.

when we had more cash we often rented apartments when on vacation, and I tried to find ones that were decorated in a style that I could never live with, but would love to visit. oh, late afternoon in that peach colored Victorian parlor!

Now we have a camping trailer------which is fun of a different sort.

Futuristic, hands down. I'd wind up doing it all in white/neutrals (because I love Wilhelmina's office on Ugly Betty) and then trying to keep it pristine would drive me insane.

""Victorian" is an era... not an architecture style."

Tell that to the Hysterical Home Society here in San Francisco...

...but yes, there are a great many varieties of Victorian architecture - but here in San Francisco they're pretty much variations of the same thing, and I can't stand 'em.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Painted_ladies

I love modern minimalist so very much in pictures....but I never seem to gravitate towards it when it comes to purchasing furniture time. I need more fluff and stuff.

Victorian style is just too fussy & messy for my taste.

I could never maintain anything too themed -- that is, keeping strictly to one style or another, whether it be MCM, Victorian, whatever. I like the flexibility of being able to incorporate something I found that I love, without worrying whether it will fit into my 3-color theme or chosen design era. That, and as a college student, I could never afford to be too strict about what furniture I have -- I'm not going to go buy a $600 couch if a friend will give me one for free. I admire people who have the restraint and resources to maintain a strict theme, but it would just never be realistic for me.

I think Victorian is so beautiful, with incredible wood working, and so many details, but it requires tidiness to not look cluttered and busy-especially with the amount of prints, and I like functionality and easy to wash.
I also could never live in a true Zen minimalist home, or in fact, any traditional Asian style home. While Asian details are where much of my inspiration comes from, I fit into the eclectic/organic category, and add the fact that I am a student artist living to that and both the minimalist style, and the degree of whites, would be a disaster in my hands (If I can walk across a room and end up with dark blue paint on me the only time I wear white pants near a wet painting, I can't imagine white everything!)

art nouveau

I'm going to jump on the minimalism train here. It's beautiful, but I like things! and stuff! and things! I'm by no means a fan of overcluttered houses full of tchotchkes, but I do like my beautiful things.
I also find it very hard to live in a completely traditional Japanese-style home. I've done it while I was living there, and it was absolutely gorgeous, but I enjoy having furniture that's not floor-based. Although I do adore the kotatsu (low table under-table heater) and sometimes plot a little as to how I could organise something similar at home...

Here in the MidWest we have 1920s neo-gothic / neo-tudor houses that were built for junior execs. They have soaring roofs, limestone exteriors, massive hearths, coat of arms stained glass windows, and thick plaster walls. I drool over them and drive out of my way to pass them each season.

Friends purchased one. They said common complaints were that bedrooms had less than 60 square feet with no closets, kitchens were smaller than closets, electricity was wire and ball through lathe and casement windows were metal with bizarre DIY storm windows attached.

These were the McMansions of the 1920s. I love them, but I can't live with them.

Like many people before me, I love the look of minimalism. However, I also like to collect Video Games/CDs/figures/vinyl toys/Japanese trinkets and other things and am I very into electronics (wires galore!). I'd never be able to live in a minimal design and be fully sane, I'd be way obsessive with keeping things in their place and I'd get the feeling being restricted as to what I can display in my house.

Having said that, I am still open to utilizing some forms of minimalism in places where it doesn't require that much upkeep.

I also love the look of full-on traditional Japanese decor, but that is also very minimal and I imagine I'd feel even more restricted in that kind of environment.

Yet another person who loves the minimalist look but could never pull it off/live like that.

I also love shabby chic, Victorian and retro looks...but could never pull them off/afford/live in.

I know it's not a style, but my answer would be "big."

I complain and sigh over my tiny flat, and envy my friends who have large, airy places. But the truth is I like my cozy little cave.

While I think I could never *physically* get along with a modern minimalist or futuristic (I'm thinking Bucky Fuller meets 1950s Cadillac) the one style that I love but just could not bring myself to invest in would have to be Arts & Craft a la Charles Mackintosh and the Glasgow scene.

I'll stick with my love for all things Scandinavian (with just a hint of French colonial--it's in the prints).

I'm sorry there's just no way I could live with a _wabi-sabi_ home. It's beautiful, just not for me!

I love the monotone, "empty", simplistic, natural style. Lovelovelove. In magazines. I just couldn't live without color. And stuff.

Also shabby-chic/romantic. It's pretty, and my friends place is awesome, with gold wallpaper (I kid you not!), and all-white and some dark wood accents. It gorg, and I love it. But it's just not ME.

Minimalist!

This isn't original, as others have said this before me, but MCM isn't for me. I look at the photos and can appreciate the pieces and decor, and think it's quite beautiful....but I wouldn't want to live with it. I've taken Victorian home tours and 'ooh'd and ahh'd' it, but it's too fussy and heavy. Basically, I can look at anything and like it, even though it's not my taste. There are exceptions. I dislike empty, cold ,barren homes that have almost no furniture. Also, all white interiors leave me cold. My style is sort of farmhouse, electic, vintage comfortable. I like stuff and color too much!

I so could not like in a shaker house. I mean i have respect for the style a little but there is no way!

I am totally Futuristic/organic modern...

bepsf...

if they are listing it as a "style" of architecture and not as an "era" then they are wrong. i didn't click the link to see.

I can tell you, 100%, without a doubt, it is not a style. There are many styles in the area (queen anne, folk, shingle, stick-eastlake, etc) that are styles, but Victorian itself it not one.

The book "The Queen Anne House, America's Victorian Vernacular" gives excellent information breaking it down.

"A Field Guide to American Houses," considered a bible by many preservationists, also includes a tidbit on "Victorian Era" and the styles in the era.

Note that wiki also does not include "Victorian" as a style, but has it as an era and has a laundry list of a few styles after that:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_architecture

Ooh minimalist - love the thought of it but I'm too much of a hoarder

Moroccan...I LOVE the look and incorporate elements (mostly via mosaic tiles), but am drawn to as much window as possible, and walls painted in lighter, oceanic colors.

I adore Asian, minimal spaces, like ones I've seen in Japan, but tatami in a Western home isn't manageable.

I also love mid-century modern, but I couldn't live in it- it doesn't suit my personality, I think.

I live in a 1920s building in Chicago, and have my house decorated in an art deco style with a plush deco-style velvet sofa, wood/herringbone 1930s club chair, a beautifully restored 1930s tube console radio, among other antiques, and reproduction lighting from Schoolhouse Electric and Rejuvenation. I've mixed a few 'new' pieces in that fit the style, and it looks great- not too stuffy, dark and cosy. I love it and it's very 'me'. It fits the architecture of my home perfectly, and I think that's what counts.

Is Tiki a style? I Love it because I find it quite fun, but could never ever live in it. Maybe I'll designate one room in my basement to host Tiki decorations if I have a party. Coconut bras, anyone?

McMansions and Tract Houses - especially the kind that have a Disneyland brick/stone/stucco facade and the other 3 sides are wrapped in vinyl siding and have randomly placed (or no) windows.

Oh totally. This really has become an architectural style (if you can actually call it architecture), and unfortunately, the majority of America seems to live in these fake homes. I cannot imagine living in a house (or apartment) covered in vinyl.

As for me, I pretty much hate modernism. Oh sure, like most people here I loved it. The minimalism. The freedom and idea that there is no "wrong" way to design something. I wanted to live in one of the many loft condos that were starting to pop up all over downtown. I don't know what happened, but a year or two ago my style completely switched to traditional. Not necessarily Victorian, but my dream neighborhood has a lot of Victorian homes, so that'd be wonderful.

I think a big part had to do with my increasing collection of antiques, including a beautiful grandfather clock I recently inherited. Modernism has no room for that. I just love traditional architecture and design in general. The old solid brick buildings with double-hung windows. The attention to detail inside and out: the adornment and embellishment. The cluttered look of the insides. Most of all, I dislike modernism because of its disregard for the past.

I'd struggle, albeit less, with Art Deco and Craftsman. While I appreciate the styles, they're far too streamlined for the interiors I like.