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House and home

Taste or follow convention?

(65 Posts)
Silverg Sat 31-Aug-19 21:56:19

If we don’t totally agree with current decor trends (neutral/beige walls & carpets, smooth walls, completely white kitchen & bathrooms), do we follow our own taste or comply to convention? Discuss

notanan2 Sun 01-Sept-19 20:17:10

If we don’t totally agree with current decor trends (neutral/beige walls & carpets, smooth walls, completely white kitchen & bathrooms)

Those arent current trends though
White and neutrals are out, but I love white still

BBbevan Sun 01-Sept-19 20:17:47

Always follow your own taste. We moved into an 'all shades of grey' house. So, so boring. Our very light kitchen is now painted a deep purple ith off white cupboards.

Tangerine Sun 01-Sept-19 22:24:17

I'd never decorate my home in completely up-to-date colours which date e.g. grey and yellow kitchens in the 1980's.

I agree neutral colours to sell a property.

Everyone is different but I do like plain light walls so you can hang pictures on them without clashing.

Sara65 Mon 02-Sept-19 08:07:30

I would never worry about trends, I don’t really know what they are, apart from the fact that everything seems to be grey.

Just shows how easily we are manipulated by marketing, who in their right mind could look at grey, and think, oh! That’s a lovely colour!

Whitewavemark2 Mon 02-Sept-19 08:54:38

I have what I like, and when decorating a room spend many happy hours planning colours, wallpaper, curtains and sometimes furniture and rugs. We only have carpet on the first floor as the ground is parqueted.

Countrylife Mon 02-Sept-19 09:20:24

I have no idea what trendy is other than perhaps people seeing what everyone else is buying and buying the same because they have no idea of what they like.

Decor, I dislike that word for some unknown reason, is a personal choice. If you want bright purple and orange go for it.

You can always get an industrial sized can of cream and paint over if you wish to sell.

The only time I’d think about others when choosing colours would if it is the outside of a property. If you live in it you don’t have to look at the outside of your house much but the neighbours do. Someone in our village has painted their house bubblegum pink it’s horrendous, if I lived near I don’t think I would be best pleased at that sight every morning. So maybe consider your neighbours when it comes to outside.

Otherwise go mad and best of luck.

Paperbackwriter Mon 02-Sept-19 09:46:21

I feel quite queasy at the idea of beige walls! I like white, but not the standard Brilliant White which has a cold, bluish tinge to it. Top tip if you DO want white on the walls though is basic trade white. No blue tinge and it looks great (even for me and I'm a staunch Farrow and Ball gel normally)

EllieB52 Mon 02-Sept-19 09:51:10

It’s always a bone of contention in our house because whatever I like you can bet your bottom dollar my husband won’t! If I have to compromise too much I feel as if it isn’t my home and I lose interest. Maybe that’s selfish but as my husband has now declared he’s not decorating any more I will do it myself and pick my own colours (especially if I’m paying)! I like neutrals in a scheme. You can add accessories to brighten it up.

jaylucy Mon 02-Sept-19 09:59:32

It's your home, have what you like - if it is what is in vogue or not !
This "fashion" for home interiors has been created by the retail business, just in the hope that there will be several sad saps that start to panic and rush out to buy things ( and a lot aren't cheap) because they haven't got the right colour or item in there home !

Barmeyoldbat Mon 02-Sept-19 10:02:04

I love the decor in our house, colour mixed with neutral but not grey. Wood floors and not so much clutter. Just have what you want, you have to live in it.

Next door is a shine to grey, and pink even the blasted garden fence is grey with a shed painted pink and she also has a pink vacuum cleaner.

annifrance Mon 02-Sept-19 10:06:11

Nearly 40 years ago my French friend carpeted her hall, landings and stairs in her large London house in beige although she would have preferred grey. She said that the British preferred beige and so was better for selling. Since then it has been registered twice - in beige!!!

Theoddbird Mon 02-Sept-19 10:14:04

The inside of my narrow boat home is painted white. Soft furnishings etc all rather bohemian. I studied interior design years ago and learnt then that colour could be brought in and changed easily with furnishings, pictures, window dressings etc. Keep walls pale is my advice.

henetha Mon 02-Sept-19 10:17:30

I've no idea what's 'in' or 'out'. My own taste is quite colourful and I have no intention of moving.

grandMattie Mon 02-Sept-19 10:46:03

I have always followed my own taste, in the firm belief that it is much nicer than the dictats of fashion grin.
From choice, my walls would be "not-white" (white with a hint of...), but when we moved to this house our dining room wall was deep blood red. We loved it so much that our bedroom has a French Navy wall behind the bed head!
When we repaint after our sibsidence has been made good, I shall go back to my not-whites" and *white gloss and ceilings, not that horrid creamy stuff.

FarNorth Mon 02-Sept-19 10:51:08

So it seems neutrals can be controversial too.
White, off-white, cream, beige, magnolia, grey......... etc are all neutrals yet are not universally loved.

It's so strange on that TV programme, tho, where people who have rejected a house suddenly want to buy it when it's been tidied up and redecorated!

Rosina Mon 02-Sept-19 11:02:35

I love to see colours and clever decorating schemes; however, when I have tried this for myself at home, the effect is usually far from desirable, and over the years I have found that white paint in eggshell on the walls is the best option for me. So, I don't follow trends - the colour in my home comes from paintings, books, cushions and curtains. So much easier when you redecorate, too!

Madmaggie Mon 02-Sept-19 11:25:29

Squiffy you made me laugh out loud. When I had my last house painted I chose a neutral shade prior to selling i told the decorator the fancy name & he said oh yes magnolia! We decided the name had been changed to protect the innocent ? however after moving I've finally reached the point of decorating main bedroom after 4 years of doing other work first & still want the colour I chose back then - grey! Now everyone thinks I'm just following a trend ? still, there's plenty of choice now.

Mapleleaf Mon 02-Sept-19 11:37:56

We decorate to our taste, and don't care what anyone else might think. We are the ones living in it! ?

EthelJ Mon 02-Sept-19 12:00:55

You have to live in it, so decorate on. A style you feel comfortable with. You can think about how to decorate if you decide to sell when the time comes. I've been in my house 34 years and it's been decorated in several veey different styles in that time.

EllanVannin Mon 02-Sept-19 12:24:48

You can keep your bland boring colours/materials/carpets etc, I still live in the chintz era. Love flowers, inside.

Beautiful roses woven into Axminster/Wilton wool carpets, flowery warm surrounds, that's me. Not your clinical minimalist homes where everything has to match, or else. Nothing modern. I like a home to be a home where there's comfort and a warm atmosphere----it's good for the soul and the mind too.

AllTheLs Mon 02-Sept-19 12:42:50

When we moved into our new house 7 years ago, it was every shade of brown - every single room, every single carpet, blinds, doors - the whole lot - Brown. YUCK.

I was on a mission to bring colour into the house - I've perhaps gone overboard - my daughter says it's like a Disney film - but I love my colourful house. If and when we move, the people moving in can re-decorate to their own tastes. End of!

EmilyHarburn Mon 02-Sept-19 13:39:16

You are living in it. Choose what you want and feel makes a home. I consider dull neutrals are a cop out for some people. I have 3 friends whose houses are dull brown and beiges and they just look muddy and old.

sazz1 Mon 02-Sept-19 13:54:43

When we moved into our last house the lounge had been used as a children's bedroom so walls were deep dusky dark mauve and dark brown. To complete the look there were Dinasaour freezes over a foot deep pasted all around the walls! Like going into a Jurassic cave. My own choice is light walls with flowered cushions rugs etc in red and red curtains.

Musicgirl Mon 02-Sept-19 14:11:59

I don't like grey in any shape or form, my favourite colour is red but too much red can be overwhelming so most of the downstairs is painted in a fairly neutral but warm soft peach with dark red curtains and cushions.

lovebeigecardigans1955 Mon 02-Sept-19 15:32:28

You should decorate the house to your own taste, after all it is you who will be living in it. Only if you put it on the market is it a good idea to see what may be in fashion as it could be more appealing. Buyers should have the imagination to see the house in their own style, shouldn't they?