Have we lost the ability to make our homes comfortable and cosy?

You must be looking in the wrong place. There is a modern trend for making things by hand and many modern homes are filled with comfy cushions, quilts and wall-hangings. We are going back to the days of having tapestries hanging on the walls.

We live in a Victorian townhouse, it’s very traditional, open fires, original windows etc.
We love it in the Summer and Spring but not so much in the Autumn and Winter.

We are lucky enough to have 2 bed duplex apartment in North Yorkshire, we let it as a holiday let through Spring and Summer but have access from November to March.
It’s thoroughly modern despite it being in an old chapel, I love the ease, warmth and modernity.
No grey though lots of vibrant colours.

So I can see both sides of the coin, we are thinking of selling our main home and I trawl Rightmove but it’s all new builds, wrecks or eye watering prices.

I look at houses online, and the ones that appeal to me are bright, with big windows, views and a good sized garden. Younger people are more minimalist than our generation, they certainly don’t favour chintz, carpets and dark furniture, but as I don’t either that’s fine with me. The thing that puts me off a house more than anything is small dark rooms.

I think the reason many homes on EA type websites look so cold and chilly is because sellers are advised to declutter and make them look "neutral" so that buyers can imagine their own belongings there. Personally I hate minimalism to the very nadir of my being. However thats because I like (and sell) antiques which are quirky and characterful.

I agree with you to a point. All the home magazines I used to enjoy browsing, are page after page of greys and whites, and the house selling websites are the same.
That could of course be, that on the estate agents advise, the vendors have painted over their lovely vibrant colours.
Our home is full of colours, and I could never live with grey.

I call them 'live, laugh, love' houses - identical white boxes, everything inside is white and grey (don't even get me started on the grey crushed velvet thing which seems to be everywhere just now!). All a bit soulless for my liking, but each to their own...

I spent 40 years living in a 500 year old house with plenty of period features including beams, inglenook fireplaces, damp and draughts. I now live in a minimalist modern bungalow and it's bliss (and yes we do have a grey kitchen)

The monochrome white/grey/black has definitely been a trend for the last 10 years. While it is very clean looking, and punches of colour can be added with furnishings, it can also be cold and dull.

I'm glad to see that this trend is slowly going out. and warmer whites are coming back in.

My SIL bought a very fancy house overlooking a city in central BC, and while I admit it is very impressive, I don't find it homey and warm. All cool flat surfaces and sharp edges.

I think most people dress their homes to sell and it can all look pretty bland

I agree with you .

I'm regularly watching charming kitchens , bathrooms , fireplaces and leaded light windows being jettisoned into skips and the finished product is a hideous uniformly grey and trendy open house that I wouldn't call a home .

There was a letter in the Radio Times magazine recently bemoaning the impact the writer perceived BBC's "Homes Under The Hammer" was having on the housing market. He claimed that the emphasis had moved from homemaking to profit making by encouraging the neutral white and grey decor for a quick profit or rental while at the same time pricing first time buyers right out of the market. We used to enjoy watching the programme during the 3 years 2012-2015 (when we were looking after our DD's first baby) and seeing how each home was personalised. We still catch the tail end when we switch on Bargain Hunt - yes our life is enviably exciting isn't it? - and the overall impression is very depressing- from our point of view....both being clutter merchants who love colour...

When selling we were advised to remove everything so buyers could see themselves in there more clearly

Surely though, those who live in minimalist (to GN eyes) houses, find them to their taste and comfortable?
It’s usually easy to keep clean with hard floors downstairs and often shutters instead of curtains.
DD1’s house is like that, but with rugs, more cushions than you could shake a stick at and a variety of throws, it’s easily transformed to warm and comfortable.
Tastes change - traditional is still available out there, but a lot of people simply don’t want it.

I think it is the way they are marketed and what is currently appealing

I like a country cottage vibe

We live in a house forty years old we have had our kitchen and bathrooms designed and built by our son. So very modern but designed to suit our needs.
Our living and dining rooms are traditional with some antique pieces of furniture and furnishings. My DH was in antique businesses years ago so he chose particular pieces to keep.
Both rooms are cosy and lived in not like magazine pictures and completely different. It could be said our house is an eclectic mix of tastes. We did consider downsizing but decided to stay here.
I think some houses on the market are looking clinical and not homely.

Our house is modern, a lot of glass, wood floors with rugs, cream paint on most walls - but lots of colour with soft furnishings and pictures. Books but very few ornaments. In the living room we have a modern flame- effect electric fire on one wall; we rarely need its heating facility but at the press of a button we have a warm effect on a miserable day. Yes, the kitchen cupboards are grey! But it is a very warm and cosy house thanks to the underfloor heating and choice of furnishings. Very easy to clean too - little stuff to dust.

I detest all that horrible grey paint everywhere and as someone else said grey crushed velvet 🤮🤮 it is so 10 years ago.

Last time I looked it is coffee colours, mocha, stone, etc now. I don’t care what’s considered on trend. We recently did our bedroom in a very restful shade and it seems to change with the light. When the sunshine is pouring in it’s almost a dusky pink but at night almost a mushroom colour. I chose linen curtains in a similar shade as I have so many bright duvet sets and throws that even more colour would have been too much.

I don’t think we’ve lost the ability MOnica just that taste changes, one person’s happiness in their living surroundings isn’t another’s.
I’ve lived in an old ‘comfy’ cottage, it was a nightmare to clean, draughty and difficult to heat.
We like clean lines and minimal clutter; no dusting of photos or ornaments and yes, grey walls in the modern kitchen.

I must admit I do like grey but, grey goes well with so many colours

I agree, this trend for 'greige' is about a bit too much, Homes under the Hammer 'tart ups' are always grey. If you have a house with plenty of sunlight it is ok, but in many houses it is very cold and uncosy. Having said that, we all have our own ideas of what is comfortable.

I was involved,in my voluntary capacity, about 6 years ago, in buying a house.
I was rather surprised, having been in several that were on sale, how similar they were, down to the "ornaments".

They looked fine. But I was rather surprised.

People have different tastes because your taste is not theirs it does not mean that yours is better.

My living room is grey, blue and magnolia with lots of warm lighting and lots of pillows

Theexwife

People have different tastes because your taste is not theirs it does not mean that yours is better.

Of course not. It would be a boring old world if we all liked the same things. However, if you flick through any estate agent's website, there do seem to be so many identikit white and grey boxes...