Women Are Horrendous Decorators

Trellis is the new chevron. Anyone with taste would stay away from decorating their entire house according to the latest fads & trends HGTV pushes down our throats.

Because they want what's safe and predictable, conventional and pedestrian. The other thread happening now, the one about the material possessions of fraus, says it all.

Well they're better than straight men.

R3 at least Str8 men don't act they're Frank Lloyd Wright when they buy a mass-produced "painting" from Pier 1 Imports.

Flame stitch is the only historically tasteful pattern.

Pinterest and Instagram have carved out a whole legion of tasteless hags who lurve all their potato-stamp craft explosions of swirls and stripes.

I love you, OP. Every one of my girlfriends has that fucking rug. I hate it!!!!

I'm not sure why anyone would feel like Frank Lloyd Wright, no matter what kind of art they bought.

Shiplap!!!

Yeah....the dingy Man Cave look of a faux wood paneled basement with putting green carpeting is EVER so much better!

R9 yep, that's what we're comparing too, Genius!

Though women may be the buyers and displayers of rugs and wall items like those mentioned, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was men who actually designed them.

Thats a terrible kind of trellis pattern.

inb4 the wailing "oh I used to be such an ally to 'you people'", "why are Gay men such misogynists" "why does DL resent my presence here" blah blah blah... frauen crowd that are always on here.

Elsie de Wolfe popularized the use of trellis patterned interiors in the U.S.

So, you can blame her, if you want.

I am the exception, OP. I absolutely understand the aesthetics of design, and I have made good investments over the years in purchasing art, as well as excellent furnishings.

Straight and gay men LOVE my place.

And I agree, most women cannot pull a room together if their lives depended on it, and it doesn’t end there. Most have no idea how to dress well, how to do their hair, nails, and makeup, etc.

I gravitated toward gay men since forever. Even in high school, my best friends were gay men. Perhaps they influenced me more than I know, but either way, I cringe at what most women do with themselves, and their homes.

R15 's feature in Architectural Digest

Straight men love your place? It MUST be hideous R15

Lol, r16!!!

I’ve actually walked into places that look like that!!!

Several billion Dollar industries rely on women and heir horrendous taste in fads. And it isn't a great way to feel superior when you discover somone being a mindless fad chaser who follows the latest fads no matter how tacky and cheap they look in the end?

R17, of course they do! For many of them, it’s the very first time they’ve seen what is actual, & good design.

Just because a person doesn’t know how to decorate, it doesn’t mean that they don’t know good decor when they see it.

Post pics then and we'll judge

No way, R21. This is an anonymous site, you know better than to expect me or anyone else to post pics of anything personal.

So many tasteful gay interiors HERE

So, so, so true.

Women tend toward the mean, a bell curve. Maybe because you need an average intelligence to raise children effectively, but having too little is disastrous (when it comes to continuing the species) and too much is a waste.

Men have a more bipolar distribution, a lot more total tasteless idiots, a lot more geniuses.

Neither do women, r4. I've worked with about one million fraus and only one acted like she was a genius for decorating her bedroom a la Blanche Devereaux.

Statistics is not your strong suit is it, r25? There are the same number of women as men with genius level IQs.

But your totally scientifically proven claim that women with above-average intelligence are "a waste" because all they're good for is raising babies is duly noted.

Enjoy your weekend at the fundie church of your choice.

[quote]I am the exception, OP.

Mmm.

[quote]Most have no idea how to dress well, how to do their hair, nails, and makeup, etc.

Rubbish. There are so many instructional videos and websites and showa nowadays that it's almost impossible to really fall flat on your face when it comes to fashion. I haven't seen a fashion tragedy in years and years and I live in Kansas.

Of course, I know the difference between women who clearly don't have the money to "do it right" and actual fashion mistakes. After reading your post, I'm not sure YOU know the difference.

* shows

[quote] Well they're better than straight men.

But the difference is straight men aren't trying to decorate, they just buy for utility and comfort.

not all are born with an artistic eye so they have to go with what is trending. They are afraid of change and for some strange reason think that once they do something that isn't the norm (like paint a room a color other than white) they will never be able to go back so they play it safe. Factor in that a lot of women decorate based on emotions and how they currently feel and this is the extent of their skills. If everyone was great at decorating the there would be no decorator jobs.

I've noticed a lot of people just go with what they can find. They have a vision of what they want a room to look like, they go to few stores, then settle on something close enough. To get the exact look you want takes the kind of time and effort most people don't want (or need) to expend.

I work with an extroverted frau who is constantly shopping on Wayfair and showing me her likes for my approving comments. She is the Queen of the Trellis pattern. She also changed out her closet doors for sliding barn doors ala Fixer Upper - and speaking of Fixer Upper, she nearly died when their Magnolia products hit Target. I’ve not met her husband but I imagine she has him doing chores all weekend. Her office is an extension of her home and she even layered a trellis rug over the carpeting. If she ever leaves it’ll take a moving crew to empty her office out.

I like looking at the British Elle Decor. They feature unusual approaches to decorating and color - far more so than the U.S. decorating magazines, all of which are conservative, mainstream, safe.

US design is completely consumer driven. Women are not horrendous decorators. Both male and female decorators have no taste, they merely reflect the taste that is commercially available, like the moon reflects the sun. The various HG shows have made this worse over the years by emphasizing the same design solutions over and over because they are selling the same product over and over. It is interesting that even on The Data Lounge "Tasteful Friends" threads, anything outside of a very narrow box gets ridiculed. I bet anything that those on this thread who sneer at trellis design rugs would also sneer at anything outside of their own very tiny design box.

My style is dumpster chic.

Oh come on - we've all seen hideous gay apartments... really...

It has to do with money as well, in part. And, it has to do with dedication / interest in design. There are some people who can make IKEA look like a well-designed place, but it's rare someone would have the time and dedication (and yes, some talent) for this. When you do find nice furniture, it's often too expensive for a lot of people's budgets.

Chevrons and trellis are gross. They've migrated to "accent walls" in the last 5 years too. Yuck.

I love my chartreuse trellis pattern rug

If one is inclined to believe women are horrendous decorators, your proof is tuning into the Shiplap Fixer Upper Network (previously known as HGTV) to see the horrid shit Joanna Gaines has in store for you.

Freeper cunt Joanna Gaines does good farm house, That's it. And the bitch is NYC trained.

The trellis pattern at R38 is far better than the OP's, and the colours are OK for a heated sun porch, for example. However, I detest rugs except in VERY grand homes where there is plenty of parquet around the carpet.

There are very exciting modern abstract rugs, riffing off traditional designs, and made in traditional ateliers in the Middle East and Central Asia. They start at about 20 grand and they really delight the eye.

What about me?

It's a certain type of woman who does this. They type of woman who loves Pandora bracelets because that's what all the other similar women wear - even though they are hideous. That' my mother in law. They want something because they think it's what everyone else wants.

There are a lot of chic women without pandora bracelets and trellis rugs, but they aren't as noticeable. For example my sister who has a beautiful and original house and would throw a pandora bracelet in the fire along with whomever gave it to her.

R1: How vulgar!

The Pandora bracelet example is pretty damn perfect.

It depends on your personal style. Stevie Nicks would love a good armful of Pandora bracelets.

They'd probably look best alongside lots of flowing velvet that had a burnt-out design.

Yeah, it's not like there are any gays peddling bland crap to the masses. Nate Berkus, Christopher Lowell, Jonathan Adler, etc.

R43, you don't get it. Pandora bracelets are a way for women to socialize and make connections with other women. Women are far more social than straight men. I don't particularly like Pandora bracelets, but they serve a purpose. Gay men do the exact same thing; so, don't feel superior. Gay men fetishize Case Study Houses to the point that it is just as much a cliche a trellis rugs.

Babe Paley LOVED straw hats (and any cheap stuff) from the five and dime.

I grew up as a young gay man believing gay men are artistic and creative by nature, great at design and craft and art.

I’ll be 40 next month. The strong consensus of my gay existence is that gay men excel like no others at obsessing over their own perfect bodies, determining others’ values (or total lack of value) based on others’ appearances, and popping PrEP and taking dicks. That’s gay life in DC. Plenty of guys here live in group houses or small apartments with no style, and their lives are about being in the office, on work travel, in the gym or naked on bed sniffing poppers and texting strangers that “the door is open and the lights are off.”

I really do not think gay men have an upper hand at creativity anymore. Maybe ending persecution also brought an end to creative expression. Or else it was all a lie. I’ve been gay all my life and in or near this city all my life and I have not met one single gay man who has the barest modicum of interest in legitimate creativity. All of them, to the contrary, are ultra-conformists. They want the same body, they go to the same gym, they compete about job titles and salaries, they go on vacations to trendy spots, wear trendy men’s leggings, eat trendy foods, even have trendy sex supported by trendy drugs. They do not set any of those trends; they buy into them.

I'd rather have that frau trellis rug in every color, in every room than have to live with this gay man's hoard of dust collecting tchotchkes.

It's true that not all women have the inherent style sense of Corky St. Clair...

[quote]I really do not think gay men have an upper hand at creativity anymore. Maybe ending persecution also brought an end to creative expression. Or else it was all a lie.

It absolutely was/is. Complete smoke and mirrors. Ask any woman in a creative field and she'll tell you. It's just assumed that any crap a gay man puts out there has more value.

[quote] But the difference is straight men aren't trying to decorate, they just buy for utility and comfort.

Gee, is that what those talking fish are designed for? Come on, straight men are like anyone else. They decorate homes and apartments based on what they think would look good. It's just that most of the time, their taste is awful.

R51 maybe part of the problem is DC, one-industry town for the least artistic industry possible.

Women do not have a lock on bad design. 80 percent of the gays I know who can afford it do hotel chic and it is awful. Not quite as bad as whatever haircut they are sporting but awful nonetheless.

Gay men used to be avant-garde trend setters. Now they are consumers of trends. Absolute sheep.

Rebecca Robeson Desigb is really good. Love this Denver loft redo.

^Design.

How about if I start a thread that says, "Gay men don't know how to raise children"? Would that be acceptable to you gentlemen? No, you'd be kicking and screaming and clutching your pearls.

The misogyny on this site makes me sick.

And R15? You should be ashamed of yourself. As if men don't bash women enough -- it doesn't make you better than other women by jumping on the gay men's bandwagon.

FF R61. If I made a thread saying "Blacks are dirty criminals" would that be acceptable. No. Because blacks and gays are victims of oppressive stereotypes. Straight, white women aren't. Saying they can't decorate -- which is actually true -- isn't hateful.

R62, women are considered a minority just like gays and blacks. Ever heard of misogyny? Apparently neither have Trump supporters,

[quote] FF [R61]. If I made a thread saying "Blacks are dirty criminals" would that be acceptable. No. Because blacks and gays are victims of oppressive stereotypes. Straight, white women aren't. Saying they can't decorate -- which is actually true -- isn't hateful.

Its quite acceptable here at datalounge, and it shows up in some form or fashion every other day.

OP why would you expect most women to have exceptional taste and be skilled interior decorators. Its like expecting most men to be skilled mechanics or exceptional athletes. Most people male or female, gay or straight, don't have exceptional taste. Most people gay or straight are not skilled interior decorators.

God, it's like Victim Olympics constantly here.

You know, haters gonna hate. When it comes to interior design you have to start with one very important question: Who is this room / apartment / home / office space for (or who do you design for)?

If you put your own personal taste into your own home, and you invite people into your home, you can bet there are catty bitches among them who judge you, because they believe your personal taste suck.

If you keep your home neutral, and invite people into your home, you can bet there are catty bitches among them who judge you for being bland showing no personality in your home decor.

If you follow the latest interior design trends, and invite people into your home, you can bet there are catty bitches among them who judge you for being a mindless sheep following the latest design trends.

YOU WILL NEVER please everybody. It's your home it should reflect your design aesthetic and anyone who doesn't like it should fuck right off instead of being passive agressive and trying to make you feel small and stupid.

I'm going to stencil a trellis pattern on my greige shiplap wall.

[quote]Ever heard of misogyny? Apparently neither have Trump supporters

Most straight white women are Trump supporters.

Now let's have a serious discussion.

I'll begin: Women ARE horrendous decorators. Gay men generally don't plop Yankee Candles on every available surface and call it 'design'.

"Because they want what's safe and predictable, conventional and pedestrian."

I'd say that describes nearly everyone - gay, straight, male, female. And that's people who actually take a stab at decorating; a ton of people really don't, other than arranging the furniture and putting up whatever pictures and art they have. Sure, maybe there's a few more gays than women that are interesting in their decorating choices, but you're kidding yourself if you think a LOT gay households don't default to safe and predictable.

No, women do it at a far greater rate.

R70 Gay Men take more design risks, or at least the older generation did.

Nobody takes risks anymore. A large part of the problem is literal anti-feminism. Men a scared that anything other than beige and chrome is too feminine, women do not want to appear weak. This one of the reason for all of those deconstructed floral fabrics where they have just printed the background an left the flowers implied. Just about and historical design is too feminine whether it is Gothic revival or Shaker. As someone mentioned, everything looks like a hotel lobby, safe with nothing to offend anyone.

Straight women are a big part of that, R73. That's because it's fundamentally homophobia. Straight women, on the whole, help promote homophobia. Straight men are terrified of being called gay. Even young boys recoil in fear at anything pink. To restore the fun to interior design we would need for straight women to stop invading what has traditionally been a gay space.

God, r74, just shut up.

R75, it is amazing that someone such as R74 could be so right, and so wrong. Yes, a lot of it does have to do with Gay visibility. When gays were invisible, nobody really overthought whether chintz was Gay. Gay decor meant purple drapes, cherubs, and statues of The David. However, I really don't think this comes from straight women. Straight women aren't the primary ones putting infants in camo and football jerseys. It is the husbands who worry about that sort of thing.

However, one of the worst influences is that everyone is worried about what their house is worth. I guess it is a testament to the current sense of instability that everyone is worried about having to sell their house, even if they plan to live there for decades. Unless, you are planning to flip your house in three years, it really doesn't matter if you have white kitchen cabinets or not, or if you wallpaper the walls.

Oh fuck off, OP.

Exhibit A

When you are finished OP, kindly fuck off some more. Thanks.

[quote]Gay men fetishize Case Study Houses to the point that it is just as much a cliche a trellis rugs.

Trellis rugs are so much more available, though. And affordable.

I study decor sites every once in a while to try to educate myself but i can tell you my partner and i haven't got the design gene. We're a couple of gay cowboys who play hit and miss as we renovate our home.

R75 telling people to shut up yet will turn around in her next post and claim she's oppressed. FF. This website is supposed to be a safe space for gay men. Now we're being run off even here.

"Rachael Ray's kitchen is so edgy."

Hit me up, clueless ladies!

I would call that look Bumblebee Camouflage, r84.

R84 Robert, I can barely see the dog cum stains

My what high gloss paint you use, Robert!

That New York City print in R84 is pure woman.

Average people buy mass produced crap to present themselves as modern and tasteful. Average women are worst. They can't stand empty places. They put shit on every wall and into every corner.

Well they also love shopping aka gathering!

Drowning in heirlooms from all sides of the family. I'm going to start 'disappearing' them little by little. No one wants to inherit them & no one wants to let them go. I fail to understand why I should have to dust them and preserve them. There is also the wonderful chair one may not sit upon and the antique childrens' furniture for zero children.

I'm going to risk the inevitable ridicule here, and support my lesbian sister @ R61. Many people do not care. There is no design concept, but rather an affection for things they have collected, and assembled over the years. Comfort, and maybe practical use comes more into play. I would say the same for many butch gay men, and almost all of my straight male friends who do not live with a lady. Regarding trellis, and similar geometric trendy patterns, they're all cheap rip-offs of David Nightingale Hicks' patterns. I don't mind OP's pattern, despite the colour. Many trellis patterns harken back to an historical antecedent but are simplified; they go well with contemporary or modern traditional design. I'd rather see these than no pattern whatsoever. Some of the BEST society decorators were WOMEN! Elsie de Wolfe, Sister Parish, Bunny Mellon, Syrie Maugham, Lady Sibyl Colefax, Nancy Lancaster, Laura Ashley, Dorothy Draper, Edith Wharton, Mica Ertegun, Chessy Rayner... Need I go on?

R23 ailed it.

Bunny Mellon! Oh, j'adore Bunny Mellon.

I love my craft show wall decor you fags!

I'll bet you do, Kim. I'll bet you do.

I didn't really develop a decorating style until I moved into my house and had to furnish it from scratch. There are so many design tools that I played around a bit with arrangements and specific pieces before making any major purchases. I also went to many, many tag sales at houses built around the same time and style as mine, and bought my dining room table and chairs, two bed sets, some lamps and a really far out desk and bookcase made of wood and formica. But the point is I got to see many decorating do's and don'ts at each of these tag sales. I grew up in a colonial house decorated to the hilt in Early American. Mercifully, my mother's decorating style developed over the years but I wasn't influenced by anything she taught me. Except perhaps to stay away from fads. And the importance of ambient lighting, original artwork and proper placement, and choosing the right window treatments.

I would prefer an empty room than to have to live in a room like r15.

Gay men are the same as straight men when it comes to trashing women. It never takes more than 10 threads before women are attacked. News for you - you ARE NOT special or better than women. Get over it.

R98 Aye Aye Captain! Cheers.

Some of us are probably horrendous dressers too, OP. We don’t have to apologise to you for it, just like you don’t have to apologise to us for being a fussy Mary and aping all things “feminine”. We all just need to live and let die, and maybe stop fretting about the whether the drapes match the throw rug.

[quote]R96 I would prefer an empty room than to have to live in a room like [R15].

Do you mean R16 ?

I ask this with love...

My tastedar says anyone who claims to be a good decorator and everyone loves their home, is probably deluded.

R16 looks like the lounge at a shitty detox clinic, or in the dorm of an underfunded christian college. Its blandness makes it restful enough.

I used to work with a design firm and in order to express their disdain, the designers ((gay and straight) used to say a place looked "Like a gay man's bedroom or a hotel room".

I was a bit insulted at first but they did have a point.

A lot of people seem to think "good decorating" = a lot of decor. Or impressive minimalism.

In fact its about volumes, placement, colour and treatment of light throughout the day and evening. And cleanliness.

I like English country interiors...but scaled way back for the life of an ordinary person (like me). Nancy Lancaster, an American who married a rich (gay) Englishman, eventually became the expert on this formal -- but aged and broken in -- style. These are her "rules" (which are, granted, sometimes kind of vague):

1. “In restoring a house, one must first realize its period, feel its personality, and try to bring out its good points.”

2. “Decorating must be appropriate.”

3. “Scale is of prime importance, and I think that oversized scale is better than undersized scale.”

4. “In choosing a color, one must remember that it changes in different aspects.”

5. [italic]“Understatement is extremely important, and crossing too many T's and dotting too many I's make a room look overdone and tiresome. One should create something that fires the imagination without overemphasis.”[/italic] (EMPHASIS MINE!)

6. “I never think that sticking slavishly to one period is successful; a touch of nostalgia adds charm. One needs light and shade, because if every piece is perfect, the room becomes a museum and lifeless.”

7. “A gentle mix of furniture expresses life and continuity, but it must be a delicious mixture that flows and mixes well. It is a bit like mixing a salad. I am better at mixing rooms than salads."

(I wish she'd vetoed those big, dried flower/whatever arrangements on the desk...but, you know, okay, she was one of those rich bitches.)

I think this is my favorite decorating book....

R106 that room is not successful.

Your MOM is not successful!

R101, I think he meant he would rather be in an empty room than have to suffer being in a room WITH R15.

R106 This is her most famous interior. She owned the company Colefax & Fowler.

But I like the little rooms she did at the end of her life best, when she was downsizing.. They're more realistic.

R106, I like English Country interiors as well, but as R108 said, that photo is not a good example. The problem with the photo is that the design is dated. It probably looked fine at the time, but the colors and the dried grasses look dated today.

On the other hand, the Swedish Country look in R107 is less likely to look dated.

This brings up two issues with design. Colors are designed to look dated. There actually is a think-tank that determines what the color pallet will be in design. The color pallets are designed so that they will look dated in five years or so. In design, it really is best to avoid any of the current designer colors unless you want to redecorate every five years.

Nearly any popular design style eventually becomes a cliche whether it is French Provincial, Arts and Crafts, or Mid-century Modern. French Provincial is a good example. Real French Provincial design is the opposite of Pierre Deux. It uses very few textiles and virtually no fully upholstered furniture. The overstuffed, fabric-on-fabric look of Pierre Deux would be oppressive in the actual,not air conditioned, heat of Provence.

The other issue is one must take into consideration your environment, both inside and outside. It isn't my style, but Shabby Chic was a successful re-interpretation of the English Chintz look for the Southern California area. Actual English Chintz would be oppressive in the same way that Pierre Deux is in a hot climate. What is cozy and warm in one setting is uncomfortable in another.

R108 This is another room of hers that gets studied a lot...it's called the Gothic Bedroom

R107 = Caroline Clifton-Mogg

Links to more examples of successfully decorated rooms plz

R106, none of those interiors work today. (As a caveat, I will note that they have all been altered by the photographer and or stylist as is obvious by some of the awkward chair placements. ) Nancy Lancaster was an American and her interiors are really parodies of English country houses. Her partner John Fowler was a better decorator.

Well I went to a real design school and I am gay so you can imagine how often people hit me up for free design advice for their shitty how they dont want to spend any money on. Ever since HGTV Fraus have the idea that designers come over with all the answers, materials and will hang out all weekend painting used furniture for the price of glass of wine. They think it happens overnight and they are doing you a favor by letting you redecorate their place. No thinks, I have better things to do than to spend my entire weekend clean up your hoarder space and run with you to Ikea because you are too cheep to hire a designer.

R112 Yes, I like Rachel Ashwell's 2010 book THE SHABBY CHIC HOME....which is like her 5th book, or something...where she buys a beat-up Malibu house and rehabs it for herself on a budget. Her other books just look too precious to me, but this one is much beachier and "weekend-y" somehow; bare floors and no curtains and unframed mirrors. It's not as cloying as some of her other interiors I've seen.

[quote]R114 Links to more examples of successfully decorated rooms plz

I didn't say those rooms were "successful"...they're just what I personally like.

R116, I think you are hitting on an issue that has been around long before HG TV, but has become worse because of it. I have sat on several panels regarding Interior design and decoration. The one point I make over and over is that you are hiring a designer to tell you what to do. You don't hire a personal trainer or nutritionist and whine that they are telling you what to do. That is their job description. The same is true with designers and decorators. The problem is that so many women feel a designer is a personal shopper, not a designer. They feel they have a "vision", but they just don't have the time because they are "busy" and "important". They expect designers to be their little magic fairy and make it all happen for them.

And before you accuse me of misogyny, men are far more likely to say that this is the budget, they hate green, and it needs to be completed on a certain date, and then leave you alone... unless it is the lighting. All men think they are experts on lighting for some reason.

[quote]R116 No thanks, I have better things to do than to spend my entire weekend cleaning up your hoarder space and run with you to Ikea because you are too cheep to hire a designer.

When someone I don't love asks me to do some job for them for free, I say, "That's kind of like if I were a housekeeper, and then someone said to me, [italic] 'You know what would be REALLY FUN? How about you come by and scrub out my bathroom and kitchen this weekend!' [/italic] I don't really like to do it on my own time."

I like r106, dated colors and all. Any room with walls full of books is automatically dated anyway. It might look weird in say California, but that room would be nice anywhere with autumn.

Assuming those dried plants keep forever, I’d stick them in the corners on top of the bookshelves among the busts and framed pictures.

The rug looks very nice, I’m not into rugs at all but that one jumps out. I like how the furniture matches the colors but brightens the room way up.

Re r118 that wasn’t a chip-on-shoulder challenge, I’m not that DL asshole with nothing better to do. There’s been a lot of bitching lately about my “decor,” aka lack thereof, so I’m curious how it’s done by people who are into it. If you enjoy looking at these pics, link em! Tia

Worst of all is gay men who call themselves interior designers with absouluty no professional training. I know you think you have good taste and therefore a designer, but trust me you are not. You just like shopping and want to justify your superficial obsession with things.

Ever notice its the default cover job tile for gay men with no real job like ex-porn stars, retail queens and kept daddy's twinks? I am talking to you Andrew Cunnan, Bobby Trendy and Robert Sepúlveda Jr.

[quote]men are far more likely to say that this is the budget, they hate green

I love green.

[quote]R121 Re [R118] that wasn’t a chip-on-shoulder challenge, I’m not that DL asshole with nothing better to do. There’s been a lot of bitching lately about my “decor,” aka lack thereof, so I’m curious how it’s done by people who are into it. If you enjoy looking at these pics, link em! Tia

Oh, sorry [bold]: )[/bold] I thought you were being snarky!

I will have to think about rooms I really love. But usually you find a room, and then you figure out what it is about it that you like...you don't copy it exactly, but try to evoke the feeling of it, somehow. You try to narrow down what it is about the image that you respond to, and then maybe try incorporating some of those elements into your space.

Like, I [italic]love[/italic] this room. Partially because I'm from Northern California, and that's just a very quintessential N. California look from a certain era. So it means something personal to ME. But if you broke it into parts, you might think multiple mismatched and repurposed windows, redwood, lots of enclosing greenery, stained glass detail, "hand crafted" look, mostly bare floors, upscale hippie/boho/barefoot influence, some muted Victorian things...

This house was featured in Life magazine in 1974, then I believe RIGHT after the family that commissioned it moved in, it BURNED TO THE GROUND (!!)

Oops.

I am tired of your constant 'frau' attacks. Weren't you born ? Aren't we your allies ? I am sick and tired of your incessant bullying. And you think I am going to fight for your rights ?

This was the design inspiration for our sun room, basically just the raised area. Our sun room has wrap around windows on three sides, very similar to the windows in the photo. There is very little wall space and no pictures. Our walls are pale yellow with white trim. We have the ivy on the windows, but the sills are not deep enough for geraniums. We have a dog and two cats. Having everything slip covered makes sense.

R124, I like that design, but my first response is "how do you heat that!".

Re: pic in R124...now that I look at it closer, the furniture in the seating arrangement, and the overhead lights, have more of a 1920s or 30s vibe than Victorian. But Victorians used a lot of Turkish rugs, and the Tiffany lamp on the left started being made in 1895-ish. (And in other pics of the room, you see more Victorian-ish stained glass.) The way the windows are laid out are sort of like Piet Mondrian's "Neo-Plasticism" paintings (maybe around 1914). So those are also influences you'd research if you were trying for a vibe like that room's.

PS: I think you would heat it with cast iron stoves!! And there's a fireplace toward the left, on the back wall : )

R126 As you probably know, that is the artist Carl Larsen's house, in Sweden!! That room's also in a bunch of his paintings!! I LOVE IT!

R129, yes, I know. This is the only room that is based on an entire room, but there are Carl Larsson touches throughout or house. It is a 1740s farm house deep in the woods; so, a lot of the Northern European touches make sense. The interiors have exposed wall beams so it has a half timbered feel.

MMmmmmm....!

I'd be interested to see more photos of successful rooms that have a standard 8 foot ceiling. High Ceilings even in an empty room already make a comfortable design statement but a 15 X 15 bedroom with low ceilings, thats a challenge

R132, I feel exactly the opposite. As I mentioned earlier, when I see a high ceiling, all I can think of is the heating bill. Having the ceiling lighter than the walls helps. As unfashionable as it is, so do full length curtains, even if they are fake panels that don't close. There are really so many other things to consider, such as light, style of furniture, personal taste, etc., to make any comment.

R132 Another option is maybe you consider calling attention to the low ceiling, somehow, rather than trying for optical illusions that would raise it?

I know some people like a pale blue ceiling, hoping for a sky-like effect

You could even bring the pale blue part way down the wall, as an experiment. You can just paint over that part if it doesn't work...

R135 Muriel's color scheme. Could use some navy accents.

Gay men who gravitate towards interior design often have a higher degree of fabulosity than most. Pair this with a knowledge of the finer things and voila....

I did an image search on "low ceiling bedroom".

This looks like where Jerry Sandusky kept his victims...

Yeah high ceilings + natural light make it easy to make a room look good. Imagine r113 if the walls ended above that pointy trim - gramma’s attic.

The low (standard) ceiling rooms are so much more humble and plain. R134 looks like every remodeled house in LA, not to mention every “boutique” hotel - ugly & boring.

R124 is awesome!

R51–the point is not that every gay man, or even most gay men, have taste. The point is that among the few who do have taste, gay men are over-represented.

THE Decorator......

R141 illustrates the problem with interior design today.

The room in R134 is not ugly. It is far too safe and neutral to be ugly. It might be fun if boards from a 150 year-old barn were used rather than wood that has been pickled and processed to look liked brushed stainless steel. However, that would mean moving outside of "safe". The problem is that when boring and safe is labeled "ugly", nobody is going to attempt anything outside of "safe". It becomes a self perpetuating problem and the circle just gets smaller and smaller.

Whether a home is gorgeously decorated with impeccable taste.... or decorated by trends.... or is an empty shell, with just the basics for living, it's your home. It's what make you happy, comfortable, and reflects your way of life and personality. If you feel happy at the end of the day, walking through the door, that's all that matters. You live there, alone or with family, partner, etc..... outside peoples' opinions don't matter.

R137 and 135 are perfect examples of why one has to be careful with fashion colors. Both of those are going to look horribly out of date in a few years. R135 is already on the cutting edge of passe. R137, is close behind; though, the matchy-matchy "art" and accessories are a huge part of the problem in R137. They are the interior design equivalent of dyed to match bridesmaid shoes.

R146 so show us your version of a successful room

With low ceiling.

I don't mind the english classical style rooms EXCEPT - get the goddamned bibelots off the tables, and put away the 4 dozen framed photographs. Ottomons should be bare and coffee tables should be almost bare. And don't photograph them with half the greenhouse's flowers in a dozen bouquets.

[quote]If you feel happy at the end of the day, walking through the door, that's all that matters

Repent! Repent!

"Perhaps they influenced me more than I know, but either way, I cringe at what most women do with themselves, and their homes."

I cringe at twats who brag about how awesome they (supposedly) are while bashing other women to appear superior. I bet your house looks like shit.

I am a gay man and I decorate my house for me, not to impress anyone else. If I like it, I don't give a fuck what anyone else thinks, and yes I have a TV on the mantle above the fireplace. A huge one.

R142 your based on what evidence?

R142 your “point” is based upon what evidence?

R146 What you deem a "fashion" colour appears different to a trained eye with a knowledge of history. The ceiling colour is very close to The British National Trust's "Sugarbag Blue", an historic colour. Blue rather than white ceilings were favoured by the rich in Victorian times, in America and England: some even featured Trompe L'oeil clouds too. In Britain the colour was favoured in the Georgian, Regency, and Victorian periods for walls and ceilings. Many even painted their paneling and baseboards with it too.

R155, honey I was using Farrow and Ball before you were born. The issue is the entire picture, not just one element. Actually, the ceiling in R135 is the one timeless element.

Do we think Farrow and Ball paint is worth it R156? I’ve never used it.

R156 Really "fake sugar",? I'm an eldergay who has been sucking the air long enough.... more than a half century to be precise. That interior appears classic and timeless to anyone who has studied period design, antiques, or has visited historic properties. You are the sort of queen who shall call numerous things "dated" though they are in point of fact timeless. You are no arbiter of taste IMHO.

Hmmmm.... Referring to historic colours as "fashion colours"..... Does not sound very convincing or original to me. In R137 It is the ONLY colour used. I love how fearful people are of colour, as well as worrying their home is "dated". Almost everything appears dated after some point, unless it has an historical antecedent, or several revivals. Even then, the experts can date those second and third wave revivals. R156 ought to keep to HGTV with it's insipid designs and slavish devotion to no colour, no pattern, no individuality, and no JOY.

R156 Typical of a headstrong queen to name drop paint manufacturers too. The collaboration with The Trust ended in 2005, so get with the programme. They always referred to their own colour range as "Traditional", not QUITE historic. REAL English heritage colours are from Sanderson, and The Little Greene Paint Co. In America, documented Georgian colours as well as other period colours were best sourced from Martin Senour's Williamsburg Range. After buyouts and mergers, Benjamin Moore now continues this tradition in America.

I feel as if I've been parachuted into a nest of opera cunts, in which coloraturas have been replaced by paint colors.

Many gay men seem to default to Mid-Century Modern in their choice of décor.

I would no more want my home decor to be fashionable than my wardrobe. Give me personal style every time.

Sorry R161. I'd rather be a stickler for what is trendy fashion, and what is actually historic and timeless than blame women for poor quality interior design. It is by far easier to pick apart queens who think they know better than the rest of us who work in this field and have studied historical styles. One may fancy himself a "tastemaker", but that does not necessarily make it so.

You have to consider budgets and what is available. It's like blaming women for wearing long dresses or low rise pants when it was hard to find a good supply of alternatives.

.

OK kiddies, be specific. I referenced two rooms in my post at R146. Can we all agree that the chartreuse and turquoise decor in R135 is going to date very quickly? I really cannot believe that anyone would argue that it will age well.

The sticking point seems to be R137. I did qualify the comment by saying that a great deal of the problem is the matchy-matchy accessories. However, again, you have to take in the entire picture. First, there are several colors use. Isn't just the one color, it is the palette that will become dated. Go to any Marshalls or HomeGoods and you will see the same palette: robin's egg blue, brown, turquoise, cream yellow.

R159, these are not historic colors. They have been tweaked by a think-tank in Florida specifically to become dated. If you were to hold the fashion color up against the historic color, the difference would be glaringly obvious. It is really hard to explain on a computer screen. I am not arguing against using color. (Christ, I am the one with the Carl Larsson sun room.) I am saying be very cautious about using the color palette that is in fashion at a given moment. If you see the same colors on Kleenex boxes, stay away (and to go back to the OP's post, I have noticed that the trellis pattern has hit Kleenex boxes.) There is nothing inherently wrong with an orange, yellow, and green palette, but when it is harvest gold, burnt orange, and avocado green, it is a different matter. Unfortunately, we cannot agree to meet back here in ten years, but I assure you the color palette in R137 will look as dated as avocado green and harvest gold in ten years.

R160, Blah, blah blah. I know that. I was being bitchy... pointless bitchery... The Datalounge... remember???

r164 Oh, honey, this conversation hasn't been about women since we left the single digits.

R165 makes an ax ellent point. For those lusting after Farrow & Ball colour ranges, they can be easily reproduced with modern paint technology. After they reformulated their emulsions, and switched to water base, they are really no longer so special. I highly recommend using Dulux, which provides a much nicer finish for less than half the cost. If one has more to spend, Little Greene is a smart choice too.

Ladies, please tune your radio to J'ai Perdu Mon Eruydice while reading this thread.

You meant Eurydice R169

[quote]R155 The ceiling colour is very close to The British National Trust's "Sugarbag Blue", an historic colour.

I want a man who calls me [italic]Sugarbag Blue.

Or a racehorse.

R171 Will you accept sugarfoot, assuming you have nice feet?

R170. Mais oui.

R173 Pas de soucis vous allez bien, mon frere.

I prefer the name Sugarpuss O'Shea

[quote]R144 The room in [R134] is not ugly. It is far too safe and neutral to be ugly...The problem is that when boring and safe is labeled "ugly", nobody is going to attempt anything outside of "safe". It becomes a self perpetuating problem and the circle just gets smaller and smaller.

I agree. And the thing is, the poster asking for examples of what might work just wants his "friends" (some friends!) to stop making fun of his house. Safe and neutral would be perfectly fine, I'm thinking. At least his guests would stop throwing their canapes at him.

[italic]Tenez-moi, et appelez-moi Sac de Sucre...

I agree too. Better to be bold and brave and please oneself above all others. After all, it is YOUR abode and refuge. The guests don't need to return if they are too opinionated.

Yes, the mens are so much better with the decor.

Yes indeedy do

R177 Oui, mieux sans bleu!

R179 & R180 de trop, et de trop Trump

^Correction Trop de Trump, et Tramps

This is how I'm imaginging our poor little fellow poster, as his encircling "friends" ridicule his humble abode [bold]: (

Avec toi à mes côtés, je sens enfin que je ne serai plus jamais bleue!! Oh la la la...!!

R179/R180 Bien que je crois que leur decorateur etait Italien. Pas vraiment decore' par Trump, mais toujors un homme.

R185 Merci' Bel Ami

[italic]CALL ME BY YOUR SUGAR BAG ! !

Love the chandelier in the video R59. Unfortunately I can't find it online.

Drole, encore Appelez-moi par votre Donald Tramp encore mieux!

R189 Contact her firm; it may be custom. Some designers are happy to share sources, while others are not. Good luck, worth a try at least.

Thanks R191.

Enough queens re my ugly low ceiling dilema. We're cowboys trying to renovate our new home and after reading this thread I'm starting to believe the ornate saddle in the living room is just fine

The tv goes next to where the cable comes out of the wall.

Don't put a bed under a window. Just find a basic book on feng shui and put everything where its best and then figure out the "decor". Put your bedrooms on their own circuit breaker. Cut the circuit before you go to bed. Leave all electronics elsewhere in the home. You will sleep much better. Get a wood bed.

[quote] Put your bedrooms on their own circuit breaker. Cut the circuit before you go to bed. Leave all electronics elsewhere in the home.

Having your house rewired to achieve that is, well insane.

We're actually building our own wood platform bed as I'm tall. Easy, stylish and inexpensive. More money for Dollar Tree.

Women seem to default to '00s Spanish Colonial.

Funny R98 you are describing two of my lesbian friends and my father's taste!

OP is a troll. My Mom had incredible taste- and elegant style. Our homes (yes wealthy) were very livable, comfortable and practical- and elegant. She was the same in her dress, and in her social presentation. She was a difficult woman and mother in many ways, but man was she the real deal when it comes to taste.

^ R198

Who is the female equivalent of Gabhan O'Keeffe? WELL?

Who’s the midget in the picture?

It is not the woman who is small, it is the door that is large!

To all of you sillies, I have only two words to say: DOROTHY DRAPER. The QUEEN of all decorators, now and forever.

R200 It's rather nice to see how you are grateful to your mum for making a tasteful and lovely home for you and your family. It's also good for you to remember her here as well. I'm assuming she's passed, due to the rest of your comments, but hope those memories stay with you and bring you joy. I feel exactly the same way for mine.

This is what straight guy decorating looks like:

I care a lot about what my house looks like and I like bold, statement pieces, HOWEVER, most people don't seem to care that much about their interior design. They will buy whatever is in the shops, thinking that if things are in the store, they must be trendy and look good. That is why you get a lot of trellis rugs, because that's what was in the store.

People who care about their interiors will seek out certain pieces and buy from inconvenient locations to get what they want, but most people are happy that it looks 'acceptable'.

If the stores the general public went to had amazing stuff, then those people would have amazing stuff in their homes, but you have to remember that most people don't really care what it looks like and it only looks horrible to those of us who do.

I don't give a shit about cars and my car is a pile of junk which would probably shock others, but that is not important to me. Each to their own.

Surprised to see people judging r134 so neutral and unobjectionable. Maybe in LA it’s so common as to be approaching tradition. To my east coast eyes, it is fug. The corny “repurposed” wood, the abandoned industrial vibe, no thanks. To say nothing of the fucking barn door, LOL. I’ve never seen a barn door that didn’t look stupid unless it was on a barn.

HGTV is at fault, for sure. It's pleasant enough but will age badly.

If your house or apartment is clean, then it’s fine.

Agreed R211.

There is a study that shows women make better doctors. Their patients fare better. Seems they're better at listening and reading non-verbal cues, for some reason. Who'd have thunk it....

After one relationship with a Pottery Barn queen, and another with a mid-century minimalist who basically wanted to live in the equivalent of an empty refrigerator, I'm just happy to not having anyone nagging me about my bad taste.

I think all we self-heralded "experts" should each pitch a design plan to the poor, distressed poster who doesn't know where to turn. We need his floorplan, a statement as to his needs and budget, likes and dislikes, etc. A few pics or drawings of his existing place would be helpful. Of course, he will need to answer our many, many, many, many, many, many questions.

I guess I would ask, Are there any particular rooms in your life that have made you happy? Why?

May the best queen win...

I genuinely feel very bad for R213. It DOES sound dreadful.

I always take the dust element into consideration, and try to determine how easy something will be to keep clean. However, the things which tend to make a home cozy (throw pillows, rugs, textiles, books) are the things which attract the most dust, so it's always a bit of a quandary. Personally, I hate to dust, so I try to keep the "stuff" levels to a minimum. My inner Barbara Cartland must be suppressed.

Everything organic that breaks down equals dust R216. Even if you make the switch to 100% synthetics, even your dead skin cells shall amount to dust eventually. Dust comes in windows, and from fresh air returns too. You are being delusional my friend.

People underestimate how much work it takes to make a room lool good and more important: Effortless. Same thing with practical use.

I try not to be a bitch but quite often I go into people's houses and their interior design looks forced. And then it hits me: The design looks forced and the owners look desperate (please like me, please be impressed, ect.).

I think we lost our way of self expression when it comes to clothing or interior design. We just put on the clothes we are being offered by the mass producing clothing industry and we decorate our homes based on mass producing interior design industry. We hide behind mass market taste in order to not stand out for the wrong reasons and yeah, it's just easier since access to mass produced and mass appeal is just too, well, easy.

sorry: LOOK good and more important:

Not all of us R218. I hold great disdain for 98% of what is currently manufactured and on offer. That is why I choose antiques, hand-made objects, have my older clothes mended, and seek out vintage items when I can. I know what I want and desire before I shop. If I can't find it, I either go to those secondary markets, or do without until a reasonable facsimile comes my way. I stalk auctions and have wish lists & interest lists with online auctions. I try to never buy new cars, homes, furniture, bikes, or boats. Call me crazy, but I have taste and know value. And yes, I'm old too!

FF R98. Homophobia.

R221 I made that post. However is that homophobia?

R221 Actually, I made R99... Congratulating him... Same thing I suppose... Curious why that bothers you mate?

R221 Do you really believe you are superior to women? I hope not. EQUALITY No one is better. We are all equal. Please elaborate why you believe you are superior to women, if in fact you do. Is it merely owning a three-piece set? Or is it that you feel specifically gay men are superior to women? Where do our lesbian sisters fit into your hierarchy?

Please FF R221 He is a troll, and he is a coward. We already sadly have enough shit-stirring mysogynistic woman haters here on the DL.

R222 to R225 = same person

Today in women attempting design:

"Did some say decorating?"

"Gay men are just like straight men. I'm superior to gay men!"

If you want to (and are strong enough to) see women in action, take a look at Kaki Hockersmith's work in the White House. Dreadful. She was the Clinton's decorator. I believe all other post-war presidents and first ladies had (presumably gay) interior designers. It's very telling.

Of course, Jackie consulted Sister Parrish before she was dismissed for slapping a child, or so the story goes.

A gay website on which gay men are attacked. Will we ever be allowed a space of our own away from what we put up with in high school? Women really are insecure about their lack of taste. This thread -- in its obvious truth -- obviously hits too close to home.

Sooooo original

I wonder WHY gay men are better designers than women. Maybe our different way of looking at the world -- for us it's slightly off-kilter -- makes us take a different perspective on everything. We're more original. Not every gay man is a great interior designer, but we on the whole at least *try* for originality which does seem to come more naturally to us. It mightn't always work out, but gay interior style is usually more refined.

Hummm

Prime example. Post yours.

Some of it might be brain wiring. I think it forces balance. A mix of masculinity and softness. A flamboyant gay man forced to spend his life constantly checking himself might be suited to interior design: willing to go over the top and rein it in. Unlike women -- constantly indulged.

Gay men are a special mix of female brain coupled with male testosterone. We're hybrids!

I thought this was Tom Ford. No, David Collins:

Another angle:

r226, that's the "nellie bully queens" queen. Best if ignored.

But women do have terrible taste.

I think there are two issues with women and decorating. One is that they tend to be followers and rely on group think, unless they are the queen bee. Many are good basic decorators, but they don't think outside the box because the "box" is their community/village. Commercial decor is how they identify as part of the village.

The other issue is that women are now in the corporate world, and have a corporate attitude. In the past, women have been the humanizing influence in the come because they were not involved in business. Call is frau-ishness if you like, but women brought a sense of Gemütlichkeit to the home. Now that women are in business, every home looks like a hotel. Seriously, that is where a lot of women look to for design inspiration. We don't get life affirming references from nature or humanist references to other cultures or time periods. We get sterile references to medical labs, factories, and office buildings.

I did a show house with a designer who designed a room based on "nature". Everything in the room was dead: rocks, fossils, shells, coral, skeleton leaves, etc. Now, in truth, she probably worked backwards and chose those things because they worked with the neutral color palette that she just could not break out of, but still, it was a bit creepy.

Because not everyone wants to live with prime colors, feathers and glitter in their homes. Like gay men do.

FF R243. Homophobic stereotypes.

The reality is, of course, that most gay men's homes don't feature pink glitter wallpaper, leopard print carpet, and feather boas draped across random surfaces. But most women-designed spaces DO feature IKEA prints of Marilyn Monroe, Yankee Candles dotted throughout, and look as if they've been copied directly from an O magazine article.

R244, except, he/she can't even get that right. Prime colors? The last thing a gay man wants to do is live in a pre-school. (Well, maybe for a very brief period during Memphis Milano)

The average gay man doesn't decorate like Mrs Patrick Campbell. The average woman does decorate like Ree Drummond.

Yes..gay men really DO have the touch, don't they? Nothing like prints of Cher hung all over and Streisand albums about. Wig stands on every table with kaftans flung over the floral sofa.

Yes..blacks really DO have the touch, don't they? Nothing like prints of Cornel West hung all over and stolen albums about. Watermelon on every table with welfare checks flung over the floral sofa.

Get out of here, homophobic scumbag at R248.

Perfection is a woman's special gift!

And it need not be expressive!

^^^strangest thing I’ve ever seen.

"Will we ever be allowed a space of our own away from what we put up with in high school? Women really are insecure about their lack of taste. This thread -- in its obvious truth -- obviously hits too close to home."

LOL, 90% of bullying towards gay men comes from straight men, not women. Why aren't you attacking straight men for their lack of taste? How many straight male designers are there? Like, maybe 3? Why do you think that is?

[quote] LOL, 90% of bullying towards gay men comes from straight men, not women

Many straight women are homophobic.

[quote]Why aren't you attacking straight men for their lack of taste?

Their lack of taste has been mentioned. The point is they simply don't bother to decorate. A big-screen TV, a couch, and some beers and they're done. Many women fancy themselves interior designers -- yet lack any taste or skill.

[quote]How many straight male designers are there? Like, maybe 3? Why do you think that is?

Because they are not interested in interior design. What does that have to do with anything?

Uh...

You know, "if everyone swept in front of his own door, the whole world would be clean." If everyone would simply decorate to their OWN taste and mind their OWN homes, this discussion would not be had. Sure, we all hate some other people's taste (or lack thereof) and we should SILENTLY judge them like any good, self-respecting homosexual. Then, we can tell our friends in private how horrible so-and-so's home is. I, personally, hate that trellis shit. I am also NOT a fan of ship lap (SHIT lap), barn doors (stayed at a hotel where they had a bathroom barn door! It is did not close or shut out any noise and you could see right through the cracks...ZERO privacy and all for effect. Hideous!) and that whole "Texas chic" that Joanna Gaines does? Yeah.....no. My style is more traditional. Empire. Georgian. Federal. Modern touches. Classic lines. Jewel tones. Rich textures. A bit exotic. That stuff they do on Fixer Upper looks okay for a hotel room but not for my home. But to each his own.

And gay men do NOT have the lock on decorating. They just THINK they do. OH, oh, oh how may gay guys homes did I see in the 90's and 2000's that looked like Ralph Lauren threw up in there. Cookie cutter stuff. One guy in particular I remember had brown and red plaid CASHMERE WALLPAPER! And empire style tables with gold-leaf gooseneck legs. It looked like a place to sign a peace treaty or were Anastasia was found hiding. WAAAAY over the top for a.....small condo. The whole thing could have been fun and ironic and self-effacing (some of the stuff was beautiful and high quality) but the dude was trying waaay too hard and "competitively decorating."

R255= HM's reading room

Sorry for my typos! Typing too fast Sincerely, R256.

[quote]Joanna Gaines

Oh, yeah. That cunt again. Forget 'bout her. Funny I remember someone just posting that there were no homophobic women.

[quote]Cookie cutter stuff.

Nowhere near the same extent that women are cookie-cutter. No.

Oh, fish...

How is defending women homophobic R226, R231, and R240? You have to maintain an air of superiority over all women to feel good about yourselves? And yes, those four posts were all mine, and what of it? You all sound like bloody cult members. EQUALITY is the antithesis of homophobia. I had asked good questions, especially how R98 is homophobic. You cannot defend nonsense.

Spot on R256/R258

Walking into a gay's apartment is nearly as fun as watching an episode of the new Queer Eye.

Unhinged troll is back with admitting to wild posting sprees now at R261 and R262 and R263. This thread was supposed to be about interior design. If you actually read through this thread again objectively (you won't) you'll see it's women who have a sense of superiority. So much so that they're unable to take criticism of their derivative sense of style without throwing a fit and claiming gay men posting on a website for gay men is oppressing them. Every single thing said about women and their decorating style on is true. It stings them. That's the problem. It's women who've been resorting to homophobic stereotypes and claiming they can't be homophobic.

What's the most vapid word that you've seen hung by a woman in a house? #blessed #love #gather #family

*hangs photos of morbidly obese children everywhere*

I rather like R232 The space is bright, yet warm and rustic with nice modern pieces. Very relaxed and unpretentious. This is the sort of comfortable look many young people desire today. I would add a bit more colour, but could be perfectly happy living there.

These three cushions. These three cushions everywhere.

•puts faded white wooden Provencal mirror into room of another style*

R264 Stop trying to paint me as a homophobe... R263 is not me. I'm an eldergay who has decorated many spaces, and used to work in home furnishings. I do not put gay people down, I'm just not a queen who puts down women. Big difference.

Why don't you talk about interior design then? Why is every post about the (lack of) style by women met with a bigoted post saying all gay men's homes look like Mae West's dressing room and a shrill whine about "muh-soggy-knee"?

Please see my post at R92 then. People CAN disagree with a premise that is a generalisation. I give great examples of my point.

Gay men on gay men's website: "Women decorate like it's 2002. There style is safe and never fully realized. Posts links to reflect descriptions."

Women on gay men's website: "Ur just like strait men. I'm uhprezzed. Stop accurately describing how I decorate. Stop discussing decorating at all. Let me tell u wat a victim I am."

R271 I never made any post detracting from gay male designers, nor did I make a post regarding Mae West. You are confusing me with another poster, or you are just a shit-stirring troll.

Read the thread 274. Someone on the thread has stated that gay men have posters of Cher in every room and feather boas on their couches.

R275 Why are you and others putting that on me? You can check my posting history if you like. I'm not lying.

R271/R275 I'll go one further to evidence my loyalty to the team: many of the famous "straight" male designers who were QUITE good, pinged to me, and I always thought them to be gay. The list of marrieds and possibly closeted ones is long, but two great examples are Mark Hampton and David Hicks. I know Oscar de La Renta is late to the home design scene, but he pings as well.

•recreates the Olive Garden in her dining area*

I assume due some straight men avoid going into interior design for fear of being seen as "too gay".

Any ya'll remember that episode of Designing Women where they had a competition with an all straight-male interior design firm?

Good question R279...Even stranger to me is how many closet dwellers have the courage to go into it. I cannot even count how many I have met over the course of working in this field for thirty years. Albeit some may be in lavender marriages, or had formal bearding arrangements, but many were uptight married with children closet dwellers. They were not kind to loud and proud gay men either.

Okay... I think I'll take a break for the night... Maybe it's only one homophobic poster in this thread but I need a bit of a break.

R268 is perfectly awful. Only the sofa has potential in the right space.

Peace my gay brother @ R282. I had not seen those posts, as I must have blocked the bloke on another thread.

I haven't seen them either. Block the phobes and they disappear forever. Its heaven.

R268 looks like it’s straight out of the 1980s. Only needs a Patrick Nagel poster in a white frame to make it perfect.

R264, so you think you can mock and deride women by saying stereotypes are true, BUT when it comes to gay stereotypes, you have a typical gay hissyfit? OP was looking to incite idiots like you and it worked.

Let's just F&F the trolls. If your post is not about interior design, then don't bother posting it.

White women up to it again.

No one likes a hall monitor R288.

Blocking R290.

The almost dead orchid... My signature

Retro fridges -- why do women think they're cute?

Thanks.

Will women ever learn

I don't know why people think anyone cares if you have blocked someone.

Joanna Gaines at R296

[post redacted because linking to dailymail.co.uk clearly indicates that the poster is either a troll or an idiot (probably both, honestly.) Our advice is that you just ignore this poster but whatever you do, don't click on any link to this putrid rag.]

R260. That's a child's room. And a nice one, too. My partner created something like this in our home for his nieces when they come to visit. Nothing wrong with that room.

No. A that's a grown woman's room, believe it or not.

reply 295, that looks more like a stage set.

It is. But it's woman-style

So far one guy has had the courage to provide an example of what one might do with a 13 x 12 bedroom with low Ceilings. Any others? Its going to be a guest room in a guy's house

Light ceilings mean you can't go too dark whatever you do. Does it have a halfway decent view/light; if so, try to draw the eye towards that.

There is one window, a sort of bay window in the roo m, but not much light. So far the room is all white, white oak vintage floors and I hung ceiling to floor weighted black out velvet curtains in off white. I hate the low ceiling and feel that something should be done with it. And color needs to be introduced.

I say coral damask cushions.

There are some things that I see women do more often than men when decorating. I don't like when women (or gay men) try to do a budget "glamorous" look (unless it's for a young girl). Especially if there are craft projects involved.

R232 That may not be original, but that's like my dream look for my cottage. Other than the hummingbird fabric.

Also, like R298, I don't like the spelling out things on the wall. At least that example is simple and a bit quirky. Some people can't even contain their inspirational sayings and words to posters anymore -- they have to announce them with massive wall decals.

Also, putting words or sayings on throw pillows and coasters.

[quote]Some people

Women

B itch. B itch Bitch

Have you ever been to Val-Kill? It's very pleasant and comfortable.

One thing that really strikes me when I look at a room done by a decorator or a painting in a private gallery or a house that's up for sale - I wonder if the designer or vendor has even considered what they are displaying. Like a painting that is so jarring, violent, ugly or pointless, it is as if the artist hasn't even considered that it is meant to be hung on the walls of someone's house and looked at every day, before he put the high price tag on it. Same with decor. When I was buying my house about 18 years ago, just about everything I saw had been painted in tones of brown. Aside from making the rooms seem small and depressing, who wants to live with that? That mustard yellow room above - Colefax and Fower? - who could ever feel comfortable in that room? The current trend for dove grey is equally dreary. Just as cars as meant to be driven, clothes are meant to be worn, rooms are meant to be lived in. My gold standard now is - how does this make me feel? Would I want to see this or relax here at the end of a hard day?

In a neighborhood I just moved from you would be hard pressed to find the inside of a home painted white. I'm really appreciating white walls now and decorating with color.

I had a really weird experience in my last job. A group of us were invited for cocktails at the very wealthy CEO's home which had just undergone extensive renovations, supervised by his wife. The house was a spectacular architectural masterpiece - huge windows and views of the ocean and Italian white marble bathrooms. But his wife (former air hostess) had literally decorated the place with furniture from Ikea and not even the good stuff. It was all shitty furniture with matching coloured throws and cushions all over the place.

I thought it might have been temporary furniture as it was so crap, but after speaking to the wife she told me that she was so proud of the furniture and interior decoration which she had selected herself and kept raving about how timeless and classic it all was.

"I want something edgy for MacKunt-Leaghe's room!"

*picks chevron throw for bed and smiles self-congratulatorily*

"Brayx'nn needs a new desk to study!"

*eyes gloss over as gay store assistant tries to explain MDF and wood are not the same thing*

I think it's interesting to see how people decorate when they can actually afford to. The vast majority of people start out simply arranging the stuff that they have, stuff that they cobbled together from friends and family, a few new purchases here and there, Goodwill, garage sales - because there's not much money to work with. Most decorating is arranging that all-over-the-place stuff and then adding personal touches where you can - art and photos, plants, a few knick knacks, cheap window treatments, little shelves and storage. But, some of the BEST, most comfortable,coolest places I've been in were those types of places, or at least when people are on the cusp of that stage and can now afford to buy maybe one or two "serious" things (a nice couch, for example). These places come into their own (well, some do) and evolve over time.

Decorating becomes interesting when people can afford to do a house or a whole room in one step. That always seems somewhat artificial to me, even though there's no true reason to think that. Things easily seem more forced because there's this pressure to have a finished product. and if you're paying good money, you tend to have these expectations of transcendence. But, when you start out in life, even if you're trying to make your place look as good as possible, you're not under any allusions of really having a finished product and you're certainly not equating money spent on how good the place should look.

R289 Yuck😧 Is this the new potpourri?

R293 I have always liked vintage or retro fridges... Many men do. Some old GE refrigerators have as many fans as classic cars. Smeg is beautifully retro too. In my dream kitchen, I would own an ancient cooker too. R298 If you remove the WOW, there is nothing wrong with this plain traditional room. I have known MANY gay men putting these same tired letters up everywhere. I cannot be specific to protect anonymity, but once worked for an older gay man when much younger, and when I saw what lettering he had posted above his bed, I couldn't get out of there fast enough!

R77 Legendary decorator Billy Baldwin decorated Diana Vreeland's home.

. . . Starting in 1935, he was employed by Ruby Ross Wood, and when she died in 1950, he took over the firm. In 1952, he formed his own firm, Baldwin and Martin, with Edward Martin. They designed the homes and apartments of many well-known people, including the White House of John F. Kennedy. His clients included Cole Porter, Mary Wells Lawrence, Billy Rose, Rachel Lambert Mellon and Paul Mellon, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Mike Nichols, Harvey Ladew, William S. Paley, Pauline de Rothschild, Greta Garbo, Barbara Hutton and Diana Vreeland.[4] His commercial clients included the Round Hill Club in Greenwich, CT, Kenneth hair salon in New York City, and La Florentina in the South of France.

R311 Wow, that is quite a tapestry behind her. Persian?

Kinda brothel-y:

Oh, dear. What's on this thread? Tell me if it's bad:

If you can appreciate a very pared-down contemporary take on Country, it's really not bad at all R324. It could have benefitted from some more antiques and more "Western" flavour, but nowhere near as bad as many of the example pics posted here. I know I'm probably in the minority as an eldergay former Antiquarian who loves country, but at least it has its own identity. That cannot be said of most American hotels decorated in the last 20-25 yrs.

There are trendsetters in design and then followers. Both Male and female. I watch that flip or flop vegas and for all her garish style the woman is not a follower. She designs over the top that is really not my style but I have to give her credit. It is not the bland giant clock on the wall, shiplap and shabby chic style of Joanna Gaines that is all the rage right now.

I wish the designers would stop with the barn doors.

Joanna Gaines incorporates a lot of industrial elements in her work and i believe that's what people like so well. Does anybody appreciate all the shit she hangs on the walls? I don't think so

R328 I can design her rooms blindfolded - cement counter tops, farm sink, hardwoods pastel color on walls. giant clock in main room - stack old books everywhere. done.

Barn doors are space savers that can work well in renovations of older homes with small rooms, particularly bathrooms. New construction isn't interested in barn doors

[quote]There are trendsetters in design and then followers. Both Male and female.

Yes, gay men are trendsetters. Women follow. Generally.

Since you can't lock them who would want them for a bathroom door R330.

Horrible rug. Just horrible.

So R331 that means that gay men are “generally” responsible for poor taste, generally speaking.

R332. Maybe you could slam smack or snort lines in a corner of your garage instead.

[quote] So [R331] that means that gay men are “generally” responsible for poor taste, generally speaking.

Get you homophobia out of here.

Many trends start off well, but are then ruined when women try to get in on them.

[quote]Many trends start off well, but are then ruined when women try to get in on them.

No, trends are ruined when straight white men strip-mine them for every last penny. Though, remember, two gay men are responsible for Pierre Deux.

Regarding color. Yes, there is the general rule of thumb regarding the emotional reaction to colors, but that doesn't account for personal triggers like nostalgia (having that color, or colored wallpaper, remind you of your grandma's or parents' home). To some (most?) brown can be depressing and to some it can be comforting when they connect a particular shade of brown to a pleasant childhood memory.

R338, the other think is that color depends on environment. Brown can be fine if you live in the woods, but depressing in the city. Tropical colors can actually be depressing in northern environments rather than cheerful. Color is the reflection of light; so, the quality of light that one has affects color immensely.

^thing

r339. A very good point. Which leads me to turning your city apartment into a beach house with all kinds of maritime beach (club) accessories and color palette. Or dragging the Hamptons into your tiny apartment.

Yes, R341, I had a friend who went to Nassau and bought yards of fabric to redo her NY apartment. In NY the fabric looked dingy. It did not look good at night under artificial lighting. It was a disaster. Fortunately, she realized the mistake while the fabric was still on the bolt.

Unfortunately, MOST people are dealing with an underwater mortgage, student debt, and a flood of home decor inventory left over from 2007.

One problem women face is the size and weight of furniture. Once a large piece of furniture is put in place, it becomes a buttress and all other elements have to be added to accommodate it. I try different layouts just to see how my shit works together. I imagine someone who can't move big furniture would have greater difficulty doing the same. It's a shame; I rearrange while thinking through problems from work.

Another problem women face is consumerism as a social activity. You do not go anywhere without spending money. The amount you have determines where - not what - you purchase. Chasing the most decor for your money leads to straw carpet balls and stupid wall decals. Anyone can readily purchase a bad knock-off of good design at a big box store. In fact, you will have great difficulty wading through all the garbage to find the original because the market's been flooded with more affordable shit. Click on one shitty link for overstock furniture and it will hunt you throughout your web browsing pushing shit.

Then they have the icons to deal with - Rachel Green, Carrie Bradshaw, and Cookie Lyon come to mind. They may not be able to afford the flat, but they can afford the fucking purple chair that looks like a shoe.

R343, you are sort of correct. One of the problems with MacMansions is that people often do not have the money to furnish them once they are purchase. This is actually a issue with any architect built home. It is the architects goal to get as much of your money as possible. This is one of the reasons why the use highhats and other architectural lighting. They want the money that you would be spending on chandeliers and standing lamps.

The side effect to this is that furniture has become larger to fill those spaces for less money. It is actually difficult to find furniture that will fit in a standard NYC elevator of fit though a standard doorway nowadays. Everything is so damn oversized. Again, this is one of the reasons that everyone pushes for an open floor plan when remodeling an older house . Modern furniture is often out of scale in the older rooms.

When it comes to consumerism as a social activity, however, you have it wrong. The reality is that very few women want to be the first-on-the-block to own anything. Consumerism is about defining a group. It is a uniform of sorts. Whether it is red hats or wall decals, consumer purchases identify a person as a member of one tribe or another. Being unique means that you are "other".

[quote]No, trends are ruined when straight white men strip-mine them for every last penny.

Yes, and straight white women. They're also just as guilty.

[quote]Then they have the icons to deal with - Rachel Green, Carrie Bradshaw, and Cookie Lyon come to mind. They may not be able to afford the flat, but they can afford the fucking purple chair that looks like a shoe.

Yes.

When it comes to design straight white women are just as lacking in taste as men. The difference is men don't bother. If straight men were to they couldn't possibly come up with anything worse than those chairs that look like shoes -- which, yes, gay-haters, is a uniquely woman thing.

r344, but a tribe always has a leader, an alpha or a queen bee.

R346, but sometimes, when it comes to decorating, the queen is a QUEEN!!

[quote]Then they have the icons to deal with - Rachel Green, Carrie Bradshaw, and Cookie Lyon come to mind.

Cough, cough.

[quote]Modern furniture is often out of scale in the older rooms.

Not all the reproduction mid century modern crap that's being peddled everywhere now. It's practically doll furniture. You feel like you're sitting on the floor on those sofas. The seats are 12" off the ground.

Great painters, great decorators, not so much.

Why do eldergays love stuffy, musty grandma's attic decor?

I'd also sooner deal with a trellis rug, a straw carpet ball, an Ikea print......AND shiplap than live in that house of horrors @ R202 (does it have a dungeon?).

Only if you beg, R351...

There's problems when Rachel Greene is an interior design icon. White women. SMH.

"Rustic glamor" has run its course, women.

Chandeliers in barns seemed edgy fifteen years ago now it's more tiresome than harvest gold. Women just sit down and let gay men take over, okay?

R293 I think vintage style fridges and stoves (and sinks) are MUCH more attractive than most current ones.

They have rounder edges, and neat details.

[quote]R312 When I was buying my house about 18 years ago, just about everything I saw had been painted in tones of brown. Aside from making the rooms seem small and depressing, who wants to live with that?

People from the 1920s.

I hate brown...even most unpainted wood looks unpleasant to me. Tho I like redwood.

This rug

Glaring at R351

I like r232.

The problem with the Smeg refrigerators, R357, (apart from the disgusting name) is that no one can afford them. Contempt for the lower classes is the dirty secret of the design world.

You can always buy things second hand. I can barely remember the last thing I bought new (other than a nail file or a greeting card)

They are not expensive R362. You can get one for around $2000.

We're supposed to hate the bungalow at R232? Wouldn't pick everything in there....but I'd move in.

What about me? I know I have no professional background, training, or schooling in design but I once was a designer to the starts. OK, well one star. But milking it long after her death. And sure, I have no other clients. But I am gay so that must mean I am good at it.

Richard Simmons, if you are reading this, just want to let you know I have some free time open in my busy schedule should you need a designer to the stars.

I like r232, too. Well done.

Love Holland Rhoden's home. She comes off as a little precious though. Don't care for the green color in the kitchen.

I like the shade of green she chose in the kitchen as a color. Whether I'd find it livable is another matter.

We've been renovating so long our choices are going out of style, or perhaps I'm just getting tired of them before we even finish.

Why must *everything* be cutesy with women?

bump

Everything is designed to look dated in 5 years. Not a problem when it's an item of clothing you can give away. But it sucks that the choices you make for your home start jumping the shark within a few years. It's too costly to renovate that often.

[quote] Why must *everything* be cutesy with women?

Why must EVERYTHING be a CONTEST??

R43, If I die before my mother, she’ll most probably put a Pandora bracelet in my cold, dead wrist.

I need to update my funeral instructions: which are, please burn me to a crisp, and bury me under a spot in which a beautiful Oak tree is planted in my memory (not in my name-big difference).

And no, the tree doesn’t wear Pandora trinkets, either, bitch.

Perhaps the solution is that you be buried without hands. Then the Pandora bracelet will slip off...?

The room at r349 is a mess.

Decorating with lots of color can and does kook fantastic if done well. I’ve seen some gorgeous homes wth lots of colors that wok.

Balance is key.

R377, I think you meant R359. The problem with that room, quite frankly, is the architecture. It is a very weird space, The designer only made it worse. What is with that scrap of carpet in the middle of the floor with nothing to anchor it?. The art collage is just awful.

R359 looks like a young lady 2 years out of Spelman, good job, trying to be chic in Lexington.

[quote]Why must *everything* be cutesy with women?

Because women have a more humanist view of the world. They are far more likely to incorporate flowers, animals, and people into their decorating. Men tend to prefer geometric shapes and solid colors. One of the problems is now that girls are supposed to be grrrrrrls, traditional decor is considered to dis-empowering and we get all of this deconstructed crap that just fails. Also, sayings have been around as long as there have been samplers. The problem is that now a genuine sentiment such as "Home Sweet Home" has been replaced by something ironic such as "Keep calm and drink wine"

One thing the masses seem to love, at least in Europe, is faux Provençal decor, now mass produced in China. So you get endless taupe, cream and lots of heart-shaped knick-knacks. One holiday flat I stayed in had no fewer than 14 hearts.

R381, that sounds more Alsatian/French Alps chalet design to me: natural linen colors and red. Deer and moose are common in addition to hearts. I actually really like it. Anything is horrible if overdone. It also can be horrible if out of context. A holiday flat is fine. A city apartment, not so much.

I’m the decorating frau at R15, I’d set myself on fire before posting shit like “Home Sweet Home”, or “Keep Calm and Drink Wine”, anywhere in my home.

Honestly , you all do realize you’re talking about frauen straight out of school, or frauen in flyover land, or the poor southern belles. Right??? By poor, I mean they buy their furniture at Walmart and Costco. Nothing wrong with that, btw. We all do what we can. Most women who have traveled and earn decent salaries, decorate far above the standards of poor taste that I’m viewing here as examples.

Back to moi!

I love color, but because my furniture is modern mid century, the REAL DEAL, fyi, I’ve been cautious with my color palette.

Here’s a representation of my apartment: (below)

Color in all of the right places. Not too much in order to overwhelm the eye. Just a pop here and there. Keep the walls white when dealing with smaller spaces, such as apartments. Lots of window space for natural light.

I like the look of your apartment, r383, but I'd be terrified of knocking my shins on that table, and maybe the ottomans, time and time again.

R384, I’ve done that many times.

I'd get rid of the ottomans, r385. Seriously.

R386, the problem with living in smaller spaces, is having guests over. Ottomans gives everyone a place to sit when you have 5 guests or more over for dinner, and a GOT viewing party for season finales.

Like I said, that’s a representation of my place, but it’s 95% on target. Exact furniture placement, colors used, furnishings, size of room and furniture, etc. Even the floral arrangement! Lol!

Oh. I thought by "representation" you meant "photographic representation," i.e., a photograph of your living room.

For extra seating, I'd investigate the Aalto stools (or a representation thereof).

Thank you, r388.

I will look into them. Do they have actual stores in NYC and LA, or are they online only?

Btw, I’m a single frau. There are plenty of weirdos here on DL that are not gay men. I have to be careful posting pics. Surely you realize that. I know we’re anonymous, but I don’t ever want to run into a situation here like what happened to Miss Poo Shoes. Didn’t some DL whack job actually tracked her down & fucked with her mail, or something? Enough said.

Fantastic furniture, r388. I LOVE this...

Thanks again. Checking them out after the gym.

Don't like it, R383. It's completely, absolutely MEH.

R383. a "representation". Could someone please tell me the designer of the supposedly "real" mid century modern pieces in that pic. Because I can't identify a single one.

It looks as if you can get Aalto here, r389. Two NY stores. One in LA.

If you like the Aalto look, you may also like Jens Risom. Check DWR.

R392, aren't the white chairs and ottomans from Le Corbusier?

"Everything is designed to look dated in 5 years. Not a problem when it's an item of clothing you can give away. But it sucks that the choices you make for your home start jumping the shark within a few years. It's too costly to renovate that often."

I read Curbed Atlanta, it's one of the more robust Curbed city websites and it's fun to hear the posters pick apart all the real estate listings. A constant complaint is "this will look dated in X years and you'll have to renovate and sell." I can't imagine that many people do this. Sure, if you're one of the few people that are THAT into interior design. But, most people will keep the design even when it becomes dated. They might do one major reno during the time they own their home, many won't do it at all. Do people in general even care; are they insecure that someone will say their house looks dated?

R395, there really are two separate things going on here. One is fashion colors and patterns that are designed to go out of style. Think avocado green, harvest gold, and burnt orange. Yes, these are going to look dated.

The other are when designs become trendy. The Chalet design of natural linen and red mentioned above is a perfect example. It is timeless design scheme that has been around for generations. It will be overused for a while, but it is not going away. Similarly white Shaker style kitchen cabinets are over used nowadays, but they probably are not going away anytime soon, either.

The problem is that some people cannot settle into a home. They are always thinking about resale value even if the reality is that they will be leaving the house feet first. It says a lot about the world we live in that people cannot feel comfortable putting down roots. They feel they need to be thinking in terms of an exit strategy at all times.

Oh, c'mon R396. Every Frau for the last 20 yrs has been putting granite in their kitchens at considerable expense. Now we're told it's passe. It'a all about quartz.

And, YES, you do have to update if you expect to compete with flippers who are ALL putting in the most modern, up to date finishes. Their houses sell first and for the most. All the granny houses (nothing done to them in 20+ years) sit and sit......and sit on the market.

There are terrific female decorators. But most of us can't afford their work. Now, if we're talking about the fraus who are constantly decorating their homes with weekly trips to Tuesday Morning, then I definitely agree. And it's not just fraus: there are men who fall into that trap, too. On the rare occasions I'm stuck in a waiting room somewhere, I'll typically page through the various magazine (Martha Stewart, Better Homes and Gardens, etc) and they're all pushing the exact same looks, which become part of the zeitgeist. If you make choices without reading all those magazines or watching those home renovation shows, your choices won't be as tied to whatever the passing trend is. When I had my home remodeled, I tried to honor the original architecture of the house (1926) with a mix of inherited antiques and some carefully selected modern pieces. I'm still happy with it, and I'm in no hurry to swap anything out.

R398, god, that Priscilla Ullman decor is hideous. I have been a big defender on this thread of thinking outside of the mid-century modern box, but that is not even good "grandma" decor.

You are correct about shelter magazines. When I did design, I told my clients that I did not want to see any pages torn from magazines. Show me a scarf, china pattern, book binding, a playing card, anything ´but a magazine page. Granted, this was also a exercise in frame-bending to get the client think in a different way.

Grandma meets brothel.

Priscilla is a highly-organized hoarder.

R399, Oh, I wasn't using that decorator as an example of great design. It's certainly not my taste: I'm not an Edwardian, after all. But the individual pieces were all clearly collected over time. There's nothing there that would ever have come from TJMaxx or HomeGoods, which is what I see as the curse of the average frau 'decorator'.

Yes, but it looks like shit.

Is that supposed to be a high-point of Women in Decorating. 'Cos it looks awful.

[quote] [R399], Oh, I wasn't using that decorator as an example of great design. It's certainly not my taste: I'm not an Edwardian, after all. But the individual pieces were all clearly collected over time. There's nothing there that would ever have come from TJMaxx or HomeGoods, which is what I see as the curse of the average frau 'decorator'.

Collected over time and never reupholstered. And nothing ever discarded. WTF is up with the vinyl on her dinning room chairs?

So you believe that the "curse" of the average "frau" decorator is that they aren't wealthy enough to collect antique or vintage pieces of furniture over time. Instead they shop at discount stores. Unlike gay men, most of whom are wealthy and have multi million dollar homes overflowing with 50 yrs worth of antiques.

R402, first there is some really bad design there. Why is the umbrella stand next to the fireplace? The umbrella stand either goes just outside the door or just inside the door. I have never seen an apartment with a fireplace just inside the front door. The bookcases are badly proportioned. The should either go all the way to the ceiling or match the door frames. As it is, there are too many disjointed horizontal lines.

A lot of it is too contrived. The ceramic cat on the pillow, the bust of Napoleon in a shadow box, the mammy cookie jar (which isn't even a good, vintage cookie jar. ), the parade of rhinos over the doorway.

In all fairness, she does more or less say that it is a showroom and everything is for sale. Also, in all fairness R405, that isn't vinyl, it is a glazed leather.

Just looking at that decor, I feel as if I can't breathe. It looks like it has 50 years of dust embedded in all that overstuffed furniture. And heaven help you if you had a pet - the place would stink.

Just try watching any home-buying show. They're impossible to please. Their henpecked husbands are like dogs on a leash.

R408, you do realize that the house hunting shows are completely staged. The couple has already bought the house. It is all fake.

I know a woman who has a house full of angel figurines. Only a woman could do that.

I love Ullmann's upper east side abode... but I'm British, and so is her look. The look is rather heavy with Regency antiques, a few George III, and a couple later pieces like the GIV campaign chest. There really is not an Edwardian feel. The trompe L'oeil wallpaper may have seen its heyday, but think it works in the space. This is the sort of style that remains timeless in my mind, and to my eye. Only the sofa looked contemporary or newly made, though traditional. I can assure everyone, her antiques are the real deal. The coffee table is either new, or a stand was crafted for a Georgian butler's tray. I love the Regency wine cellarette used to support the TV.

It's an period mismatch. It doesn't look unified. It looks like what my Grandmother would do if she was born with money.

It's how great country houses atr decorated back home, so it speaks to me. A home should honestly evolve over time. Period antiques do not need to come from the same. This is a natural progression for many English homes. All the pieces are mahogany, save for a few laquer pieces. Perhaps mismatched to your eye R412, but not to an antique collector of English furniture. She worked with Parish-Hadley before beginning her firm. I think she knows a bit more than you regarding "what goes together".

[quote] A home should honestly evolve over time. Period antiques do not need to come from the same. This is a natural progression for many English homes.

Of course. No aristocrat throws out their family's old antiques because their grandparents don't match their great-great-grandparents. But this isn't a stately home. And that wasn't my point. If you're going to try and recreate that she have to work to blend the different styles together: either she hasn't bothered or has failed. It looks like an antique showroom not a British country home, if that's what she was going for.

[quote]I think she knows a bit more than you regarding "what goes together".

No she doesn't. She's a woman.

R414 You don't get it, and it's OK you're not keen on the look, but trust me, this is more stylish than one single period, as you suggest; no one does that anymore, and it looks like a museum no one would want to live in. This is a very curated look, no hodgepodge as you suggest either. Ulmann worked for David Hicks and Betty Sherrill... in addition to Parish-Hadley, all Legendary purveyors of the English Country look. You simply don't have the necessary frame of reference to hang it on. Regency furniture indeed "goes" with late Georgian. This apartment is the pinnacle of English style, you just obviously are not familiar with the real deal mate.

[quote]This apartment is the pinnacle of English style

Funny.

That apartment is the pinnacle of English style -- as attempted by a New Jersey Jewess.

I'll bet she serves lots of English Country Salad.

Actually that apartment is a showroom. It sure is cluttered but I like all the yellow lighting.

R414 What are your qualifiations might I ask? My mum owned her own design firm for decades, I am a retired Antiquarian, and worked for Sotheby's. I have decorated numerous interior spaces myself. I have been in mny great homes. May I suggest you pay a visit to the Sir John Soane's Museum next time you are in London. It could help enable you to grasp the look. I have not a clue why you are assuming she is Jewish, or from NJ. R419.

Someone who has worked with the most luminary figures in British design, and you without and credentials or almost bona fides are going to have the hubris to put this professional down! You may not care for the style, or like English antiques, but you have no authority to claim these pieces do not relate harmoniously, or that it isn't authentic English decorating. I can tell you detractors are all rubes anyway by suggesting the bookcases ought to go up to the ceiling. Another faux pas, as you are ignoring the architecural orders. The massive overdoor and mouldings adjacent to the bookcase are what everything else height-wise needs to be subservient to. Sorry, but you know nothing what you try to speak of here. Another reason you lash out and label her a NJ "Jewess".

I love Barbra actually. But that shopping mall in the basement is just a little too precious. I sense it's what most women would do with the money though.

I sure do hope the time comes when the troll posters who can't resist tossing around their Jewish slurs finally are red tagged. You know who you are. Funny how easy it is to identify you when you work them into unrelated threads and responses constantly when I post. I think that mere "coincidence" may make you qualify for stalker status. Get a life you bigoted twits.

As to our guest Brit, you protest too much. The room is a parody of English Country design. I love English Country design in the right setting. I can understand one defending the design in general, but this is really not the best example to defend. Yes, there are some lovely pieces. Yes, not all of it is bad. However, regardless of whom she worked for, or for how long, she is definitely a five candlestick decorator.

Oh, so protesting the term Jewess is not OK? FFS R424, Do you believe Negress is appropriate as well in 2018? Sick of all you bloody trolls. I'm not your "guest" either.

You can shove your five candlesticks up your arse R424

Girls, girls, you're both stuffy old bores.

Don't defend race baitors, or their racist drivel. You guys don't dump your cookies quickly enough! It's easy to spot you all.

R425, I did not address the Jewess comment at all. I cannot understand why you would mention it.

Guilty conscience R429? That was not directed @ you, now was it? UNLESS you're "fashion colour bloke" and successfully dumped your cookies this time.

I don't think R424 made the Jewess comment, though I agree wholeheartedly with your excoriation of whoever did. It does occur to me, however, to poke light fun at this description: "a five candlestick decorator."

How are the five candlesticks going in R429/R424? Yes, now I'm addressing you!

[quote]Oh, so protesting the term Jewess is not OK? FFS [R424],

Uh, R430, are you unhinged? You explicitly mentioned my post.

R431, The five candlestick comment to a reference to her Albert Hadley story.

R431 I made the initial comment to the accusation I protest too much.... I would have ceased until the Jewess slur. This same poster does this repeatedly. Some of the "Jewish" threads have come up after I have put them on block. It's not a coincidence or a rare slip of the tongue.

R434, the "protest too much" was referring to your defending the design, not the Jewess comment. FYI, my comment at R424 was my first post since the weekend. You have the wrong person.

No R435... NEVER did I direct an accusation @ you, R424.... No R # was given when I called it out and said "you know who you are". In R25 I explained why I kept protesting, why can't you wrap your head around that? Telling you where to place the candlesticks was for in essence, telling me to stop protesting.

The bloke blathering on about "fashion colours" is more than likely the stalking troll.

The ludicrous faux-library wallpaper deals the death blow to that apartment.

The fact that she doesn't even bother to pretend that she cooks and simply turns the kitchen into a bar tells me everything I need to know about the English Country Style. Those designers aren't interested in the servant's quarters. And anyway I'm sure eating out gives her an excuse to leave that claustrophobic apartment (which defeats the whole purpose).

Sotheby’s friend... what were your main takeaways from working their in regards to interiors and antiques?

Working their what, toots?

[quote]R438 The ludicrous faux-library wallpaper deals the death blow to that apartment.

I [italic]love[/italic] that wallpaper ("Bibliotheque" by Brunschwig & Fils), and have wanted to use it for a long time. The artwork in it reminds me of old childrens book illustration.

It looks cute in this cafe, too...in a different colorway.

R441, *Everyone* has a version of that wallpaper, or did. Not just B&F. It was really over used in the 80s and 90s to the point of being a cliche. The problem is, because it is a very expensive wallpaper, it was most often used in powder rooms. It was considered "fun" since so many people associate reading with being on the toilet. I still can't see it without looking for the crapper. I will say that the version in you example seems to have been re-colored and seems fresher than the traditional B&F version which was colored during the maroon and forest green/Ralph Lauren 1980s. Nowadays, it probably is best used in a commercial setting such as the cafe. Otherwise, why not have real books?

Yikes. That a gay man was defending that monstrosity shows that although gay men might have better taste than women on the whole, it isn't a universal rule.

This is the wallpaper we prefer.

[quote]R442 Nowadays, it probably is best used in a commercial setting such as the cafe. Otherwise, why not have real books?

It is a novelty wallpaper, and I see it being used whimsically. (Not in a bathroom, tho...ick.) The lady in R398 is using it because her Manhattan bedroom is tiny, and when you glimpse the wallpaper from the living room, it gives the adjoining room an illusion of depth. I think it's a pattern that's supposed to make you smile...no one takes it seriously.

I have wanted to use it in my narrow hallway, where you can't stand back far enough to really look at any artwork. I also saw someone use it nicely in a stairwell.

It would be too bold to really use in a bigger room, for me...I don't even like wallpaper, in general. But I like that one and think it would be fun for special purposes.

R445, I agree with you. Actually, a hallway is a good use for it. The issue is that it is a bit of cliche. If you were around in the 1980s and 90s, that paper was everywhere. It was like Where's Waldo? You never knew where it was going to show up (but you knew it would.) There was even a vinyl knock-off version that one could buy at Home Depot level stores. Now after 30 years, the memory of all that may be beginning to fade.

However, the article linked shows the problem with the wallpaper very clearly. It does not work in a well-lit room with a lot of furniture. It is far too busy and dominant. It works best in a hall or a stairwell where there is not a lot of furniture, or in a dark room lit by warm pools of light.

As Dolly Parton said: "It costs a lot of money to look this cheap".

R447 I suggest you shut the f#ck UP before we wallpaper your mouth shut

Unhinged woman at R448. F&F and block.

I hate that twee ducking wallpaper.

FUCKING

And why must there aways be those fucking candles every time someone redesigns a room. Candles ? How original !

R452, you mean these?

....

I find candles to be irritating, when they’re not on a birthday cake.

They’ve seen their day.

One person’s gauche is another’s haute decor. What a boring world this would be if everyone’s tastes were the same.

This isn't as bad as the other one. This one's not overstuffed, cluttered, dark, messy, in proportion, has room to actually move. But it seems odd to me to decorate an apartment in this style -- just because this doesn't really happen in my country.

[quote] What a boring world this would be if everyone’s tastes were the same.

Not if it were my taste.

R457, that is comparing apples to oranges. The one is by the owners admission, as showroom. The other has been staged for sale. You really cannot compare the two. Any real estate agent would strip the Ullmann apartment down to the bare essentials as well. I have been in the Mosbacher apartment. That is not how it actually looked, e.g., there was a proper dining room table.

[quote]That is not how it actually looked, e.g., there was a proper dining room table.

What? Is there something improper about that table?

They just don't understand how to cultivate an invigorating space with an ambiance of high drama!

No worse than the last two places.

R457 reminds me somehow of the White House: Not somewhere I'm dying to live.

Maybe it's because I'm working class, but I could never feel comfortable in a place like that. Like if I spilt a mug of coffee or tripped and knocked something off a table I've just destroyed something worth thousands of dollars.

It's not just you, R464. It's a completely sterile environment. The lady who owned it was a political fundraiser, and the room was designed to impress visitors...no one really "lives" in that room.

Usually when the owner has a place of that value/square-footage, they have a sitting room off their bedroom which is where they spend a lot of ordinary time. Or their bedroom is huge, with a couch, fireplace, desk and easy chairs at the other end. And they have a weekend house outside the city where dogs can jump on the furniture and the style is (hopefully) more relaxed.

The more I look at the apartment of that lady, Georgette Mosbacher, the more I dislike it. I hate the curved marble (?) she's put over the doors, which is maybe supposed to suggest fanlights (?) With her money, why didn't she just break through the upper walls and install real ones?

I want one to come loose and fall on her head.

I find women are constantly dropping brand names. Tacky. Gay men are bad too -- but women are worse.

I see my home as a something that is constantly changing the way I am constantly changing (moods, interests, etc.). For me interior design is not about trends or a way to distract myself, but to explore things I am interested in. That can come from movies, a book I read, a documentary, magazines, etc. It's about the desire to expand your interest in more ways than just thinking, daydreaming. Yes, that may turn my home in some incohesive mess, but it's my home and basically my 3D scrapbook canvas. For me there is a lot of fun in doing research about colors, textures, patterns, furniture, or remodeling stuff I already own in order to make it fit with my new vision.

I also learned, Datalounge was a great help in that way btw, to not take things so personally. You can't satisfy everybody. The only one you can satisfy is yourself and that's all that should matter anyway.

[quote] Yes, that may turn my home in some incohesive mess, but it's my home and basically my 3D scrapbook canvas.

Then in a way it might be cohesive: if it's about things you're interested in that's a common thread that runs through everything.

This is different from the woman who just heads to the store and buys some mass produced items in different styles and plops them together because saw bits of things on Pinterest.

That's the problem with R398. It doesn't look organic or natural. It looks like she just decided to load up her credit card.

The granny apartment @ R398 is so dark and dated. The black marble bathroom looks like it belongs in the lobby of a boutique hotel with dodgy plumbing {{cringe}}. Needs a full gut and some natural light. Only one room has windows.

That house in Columbus OH belongs here. See "Most incongruous interior VS. exterior"

I think the answer is, women don't have to be great decorators, because, most straight men aren't interested in decor. TV, good; comfortable chair, good; beer, good; sports, good. As long as the space isn't overrun with floral prints, especially the bedroom, and they have TV, beer, sports and snacks, most straight men couldn't care less about the decor. Women, more often than not, will do what attracts men; decorating therefore, follows their own taste and stays in realm of what their men will tolerate.

Women are more likely to had children too. Which changes things.

[quote]As long as the space isn't overrun with floral prints, especially the bedroom...

Interesting comment. Not that long ago (1980s), studies showed that men actually preferred a feminine bedroom. The boudoir aspect of it was appealing and sexy. I think this disappeared to a degree with more women being in business. Working women are most likely less interested in a feminine bedroom. I would like to know what the breakdown is today among men.

This is Margaux Hemingway in her grandfather's house in 1979.

Most of my places end up looking pretty much like this (minus the floral fabric, and animal heads.) Just kind of simplified preppie. You make the space bright and light, and put some older furniture, ideally things you grew up with, around where needed. Add books and plants you like, and you're done. It shouldn't look like you stressed over it. I like that simplified atmosphere and find it relaxing.

One key thing is to eliminate things that aren't actually functional. Like, in clothing design, buttons should actually button something closed, zippers should really zip. Don't have fake pocket flaps where there aren't functional pockets. It's unnecessary fakery. So, the same applies to a house. Billy Baldwin said if you don't need curtains for privacy or to block out light, [italic]don't have curtains.[/italic] They're redundant.

One thing I've cut down on is having a lot of framed pictures of friends and family on bookshelves and tabletops. They're just annoying to clean. I have some out, but also put a lot away.

This is a more expensive, manicured version of that look, by Michael Smith (who the Obama's chose to touch up their quarters in the White House.)

They decorate like they drive.

R475, that shot has two things that I cannot stand. First is the painting hung in front of the bookcase. If the painting is that damn important, remove a shelf and hang it in the bookcase. It is not as if the bookshelves are full. Second, is the painter's ladder as a library ladder. It is just too contrived. What is really annoying is the fact that this is clearly a decorator library, not a reader's library. The books on the top shelves will never be read.

I am not terribly fond of the dutch brass chandelier with the rustic ceiling either.

Oh, yeah. Books for show that you know are never read. Awful.

[quote]R477 that shot has two things that I cannot stand. First is the painting hung in front of the bookcase. If the painting is that damn important, remove a shelf and hang it in the bookcase.

I used to feel that way...that having any hung picture covering books is NOT FUNCTIONAL, and therefor, contrived. But I've seen smaller pictures hung that way that I've warmed to. I think the aesthetic idea is here's a house with extra stuff (like family paintings, or whatever) but you're not going to be so [italic] nouveau riche [/italic] as to lay everything out perfectly and preciously like you're showing it all off in a gallery. You're hodgepodging it together as time passes.

Also...you could stash some unsightly stuff behind a picture hung on a bookcase, as long as you could reach behind it from the side...everyone has some stuff they need onhand that's inherently a bit ugly.

I like the general FEEL of that room...but not all the specific details.

[quote]u're not going to be so nouveau riche as to lay everything out perfectly and preciously like you're showing it all off in a gallery. You're hodgepodging it together as time passes.

The problem is that this is the new nouveau riche. It used to be the "old brown furniture with lots of gold and green damask (yes, intentionally the color of money)", Scully &Scully look. The reaction to that is the "eclectic", my home is an antique shop look. Basically, they are two sides of the coin. The pretensions have not changed. Libraries are the perfect example. Wealthy people do not read for pleasure. The are wealthy because everything they do is geared towards making money. Reading for pleasure does not generate profit. Yes, aristocrats had libraries. They had the time to read because they did not work. Libraries are for the most part a pretension unless you are a serious reader or a researcher. Books-by-the-yard and random coffee table books stacked in artful (artless?) pyramids is just fakery of the worst kind. The problem is, as in the image referenced above, usually the design shows an actual indifference, if not outright , contempt for books.

The problem with the "hodgepodging it together as time passes." look is that it is impossible to fake. the authentic layering that happens over a long time. When a decorator attempts it, it always looks like a chi-chi antique shop. The intentional placement of items out of context looks forced, not natural. A good example was the decorator who did Aaron Shock's office. Deconstructing the artwork by hanging the pictures and the frames separately is just contrived, not fresh.

^^ ITA about that idiotic pictures separated from frames thing, it’s anti-functional, tryhard and stupid looking. Kind of like a barn door inside the house, and that painters ladder too as a decorative element.

R480 is a highly trained professional idiot of the first order. Hilarant! Les richess ne lisent pas! Eh bien, dommage que vous devez etre tres pauvre alors puisque vous etes tres bien informe' !!!!!!

[quote]Kind of like a barn door inside the house

Or one inside the horse (assuming he hasn't run away).

[quote]Also...you could stash some unsightly stuff behind a picture hung on a bookcase, as long as you could reach behind it from the side...everyone has some stuff they need onhand that's inherently a bit ugly.

That's why cabinets have doors.

Related to this, I can't stand the open shelving trend in kitchens now. It's as bad as those stupid contraptions for hanging pots and pans. Unless you're in a chef's kitchen in a restaurant, no one wants to see all your gadgets. Too much clutter.

Due to space restrictions and ergonomics, pot racks came into their own. They did not begin as a visual statement R484. Open shelves are also inexpensive and serve their purpose, especially when existing windows are trying to be preserved. Again, these were perfunctory storage methods from long ago, not meant to be done as a "look".

I prefer glass doors on kitchen cabinets. I actually cook, and I like to see what I need without keeping cabinet doors open.

I’ve been to too many gay men’s apartment to know that OP is wrong.

Same here R487! Just reading their ridiculous ideas and justifications for things is pretty hysterically funny too.

Candles and pillows...pillows and candles...

l o v e

s p e l l i t o u t e v e r y w h e r e

I get that R485. But it HAS evolved into a look. Many new kitchen designs have no upper cabinets, only shelves. Huge kitchens in newer homes, so nothing to do with limited space or preserving old windows.

I actually like the look of shelves in front of a window--- in older homes.

R484 I can't stand the open shelving trend in kitchens now.

I am not up on current design trends, and have always lived in old houses or apartments I had to fiddle with to please me. Open shelving is a void option when you have tacky cabinet doors. You could think “just replace them!” But most people might have 50 things they’d LIKE to do to their house, and maybe the cabinet doors are about 27 on the list. So you take off the doors, paint the whole thing, maybe with a pretty, contrasting color on the back wall, and at least you’ve addressed the issue to a degree. You wouldn’t store boxes of Cheerios in open cabinets, but some mixing bowls, China and glassware are pretty. They’re probably better designed and nicer to look at than the horrible cabinet doors that were killing your spirit, slllloooooowwlllllyyyyy, day by day.

VALID option....not VOID option (!!)

[quote]But it HAS evolved into a look.

This gets to one of the problems with design. Sometimes perfectly good design becomes "a look". It is overdone and eventually ends up at the Wayfair level of retail. What do you do if you really like that look?

I have had a European style kitchen for decades. I love open shelves and pots and pans at the ready. I also cook. Nothing gets dirty because it all is in constant use. For the most part, everything that is out gets used at least once a week otherwise it is in a cupboard. For me, it makes sense. I also have a proper kitchen with a door that can be shut, not an open plan kitchen. Nobody as to look at it unless they have been invited in. However, when it is "a look" for someone with an open plan kitchen and whose idea of cooking is opening a carton of yoghurt, then it is just pretentious.

Also, some of the open shelving can be used for cookbooks...

Same here R494, and agree about the pretense. I'll add it's pretentious to feel the need to change one's unfitted kitchen with open shelving and hanging pots simply because it is a popular trend. To continue changing one's decor simply to be "unique" or "different" is the epitome of pretense. Sick to death of people who fancy themselves design mavens telling us this is overdone, or this is too popular. Many of us stick with what we like, and with what works.

R496, my favorite is all of the design mavens screaming, "too many legs!". Do they not realize that fully upholstered furniture is a relatively new development?

That said, the too popular issue is a quandary. I had a friend who had one of the original Sputnik chandeliers from the Met. She had it from the original installation. Then the Met sold off a bunch during the renovation and licensed the design, which was knocked-off. It reached the point when even the corner deli had one. In a few years, she went from having the only one out side the met (well maybe) to having something that was everywhere. It is pretty much the same with any design style that become popular whether it is Gustavian, American Arts and Crafts, Mid-Century Modern, or French Provincial.

[quote]r496 it's pretentious to feel the need to change one's unfitted kitchen with open shelving and hanging pots simply because it is a popular trend.

I would think that hanging pots and pans high up over a countertop, or whatever, is a great space-saver. Those are bulky items that are a pain to stack, and rummage around in to haul out.

R498, the operative words are "simply because it is a popular trend." If it is for a practical reason, then nobody cares. When the pots and pans are purely decorative, then it is pretentious.

Yes. Purely Decorative pots and pans are silly....(like. having a million fire-hazard BASKETS!!) Though my mother would hang her copper pudding pans (don’t know the right word for them) on the walls. They were shaped like fish etc.

Truthfully, she never used them in MY lifetime. Maybe she saw her grandmother do it?

[quote]Women Are Horrendous Decorators

Women Are Horrendous

It’s so strange that so many men, like R501 and OP, just hate women, outright. Usually such men are straight.

I guess it all boils down to unresolved Mommy Issues.

r502 is correct. Gay men are usually not misogynists.

I have many thoughts. People have different tastes. What you like, you like.

However, please, I can upholster. Go to estate sales, moving sales, Goodwill if you must but please don't buy furniture from Ikea. It is poorly made and uncomfortable.

Buy a used, well made piece.Seat on it and make sure the springs are tight. Rent a carpet cleaner and clean, clean, clean your sofa or chair. Then, hire a quality upholsterer or steamstress and have a cover made to fit. Have the pillow covers made separately. They can add or take off welting, skirts, whatever. Do not have the piece reupholstered. It will cost a small fortune.

You can always save and upgrade later.

Go to the hardware store and look at the paint chips. You will find them grouped by color/hue. Say you want to paint your room yellow. Go up 2 or 3 hues of that color for your ceiling. Your room will look unified. Go up 3 or 4 hues if your ceiling is low.

If your room is small lay the wood or flooring diagonally. It visually enlarges the room.

Do not stain your hardwood floors in a trendy color. Do not tile your kitchen/bath in a trendy color. As people have pointed out Harvest Gold was once the trendy color.

That is my unsolicited advice.

Oh, and curtains/blinds. No one has them anymore, true. But people can see into your windows and sometimes a little fabric adds color, warmth and sun blocking.

[quote]r473 Not that long ago (1980s), studies showed that men actually preferred a feminine bedroom.

Like this?

I'm just dying to hear how the Melania Trumps of the world are oppressed.

My mom does everything in what I call "Country Doll". She was poor as a child, so when her and dad finally got prosperous she took over to create her fantasy dollhouse. My dad sits watching TV amid all this lace and chintz and straw. Hummel figurines fill the cabinets.

It's true: Cunts have no taste.

Cunts R us

Cunterry Barn

Bed, Bitch & Beyond

IKuntA

I bet r15 sports a thick chola drag queen overpowdered brow and long nails and wears contour makeup and thinks she's fabulous.

Another thread greyed by Fraus

I am a gay man and one of my guilty pleasures is I fill a tall Murano vase with shells from the Lido I collected when I was young. I put it on a glass and brass table by my bed in the summer. I know how shameful this is, but it is very comforting and relaxing to look at all the shells next to a soft dim light, late at night.

Holland Roden's place doesn't look bad, per se. But it doesn't look good either. It looks like the most derivative, unimaginative copying and pasting of what's trendy. It's Buzzfeed level.

Only a woMan could've done it.

[quote]Holland Roden's place

Which we will find where?

Further up thread.

My beautiful copper pots and pans were ruined by hanging them in the kitchen. Now there are spots on them I cannot remove.

Gay men are more likely to actually cook. Most women follow the Sandra Lee school of thought.]

Same with their decorating! No originality!

I can't stand fucking blinds. Horizontal or vertical, they're ugly. However, they're effective and, since I live in an apartment, I can't take them down. I covered them with black and white striped curtains. Sheers across the sliding glass door from one wall to the other to create an unbroken line. When maintenance visits for whatever reason, they always comment on how great the place looks. Really? They're curtains. But I guess nobody else, in apartments that is, wants to take the time or spend the money.

Except, r518, when I entered "Holland Roden" in the Find box, all I got was your post in R516. Link it if you want us to know WTF you are talking about. "Further up thread" is nothing but arrogant. And lazy.

[quote] Another thread greyed by Fraus

They seem to run this place these days.

People in general are pretty bad at decorating. When we think of the 30s, we think of stylish Art Deco design. But I went to a hotel that had not changed its' decor since the 30s. It was a mid-range seafront hotel. And the decor was the ugliest thing I had ever seen, hideous telephone tables and the like. Stylish decor is the exception, not the rule.

I like to look at (God forbid but its easy) Pinterest pictures of decor in other countries. I have a brain injury so lots of white is very soothing to me with pops of color. I like some wood mixed with leather and pops of color and the guilty pleasure of plants. I noticed looking recently at a pile of magazines in a waiting room that the 1960/70s touch is starting to infiltrate around the corners - meaning its got a touch of retro but the color scheme is new. I hate the dark huge granite kitchens - my house is open floor plan but if I ever build I want a kitchen that is its own room. I have a close friend who works real estate in Austin Texas she is very successful and she will cluck cluck most of the things I suggest. I told her things are regional.

Love that new Ree Drummond collection! I saw a Pinterest of it and I'm going to do an exact copy! I'm so creative!

#LiveLaughDesign

I think the bones of this house might be good but the decor! How can one tell?

Eh. Where's the great room and three car garage for me to park my car in front of?

Don’t you mean

Eh. Where's the great room and three car garage for me to park my RANGE ROVER in front of?

Where are My Gays! Thoughts on this.

Gorgeous, Beth. Now if I could just get my DH to put his socks in the hamper when he comes out late at night after being out with a male friend of his. Can't let those boys ruin my house's 'look'.

bump

The OP can fuck right off.

bump

Barbara Cartland's heart-shaped pillow is ever so...dear.

HGTV needs to conspire to make Satanic the next trend. Since women, unlike Gay Men, have no minds of their own they'll lap it up.

Holland Roden's place is at R232

By definition, HGTV can't conspire with itself. But even overlooking that, what an asinine post, even for this asinine thread.

That's how trends work. Top tier influencers make decisions, and then people follow. The decisions of a department store buyer would have once had a big impact on what people wore and decorated with in Middle America. The fact is most women aren't conscious enough to act solely outside of trends.

In happens in other fields too: In the UK if Nigella Lawson decides to do an all-Japanese menu on her BBC show sales of Japanese food rise.

Correct.

I'd consider this bad design. Since it's obviously done by a woman and fails at being usable.

OP = Bret Easton Ellis

R538 says 'my gays'.

Ya'll seen this?

I know how trends work, asshole at r539. You apparently don't know what it means to "conspire." It requires more than one participant; accordingly, HGTV (if that's your idea of a trend setter) can't conspire with itself.

Conspire with other influencers is the obvious implication. Though it is possible to conspire alone.

Oh, just concede you misused a word and move on. You're mistaken on both counts.

Yes, you just concede you're wrong. The implication is clear, fish!

Comments, bitches?

....

snappy comeback, r548.

I did like Martha Stewart's Turkey Hill. From her early days, when she had a kind of gay sensibility. Before lowering herself to her frau audience.

Tasteful friends, La Franklin thread

My general thought is that gay men are more original and creative than women, who mostly copy.

I used to like Yankee Candles, now I find they all smell so synthetic.

Lol! I love all the hatred for these stupid Fraus. How funny some of you are friends with these tasteless cunts and their tacky style. Straight men have better style, and you know COCKS!

R523, you so get it. These tacky nasty organisms are always in here giving their moronic opinions. Seriously, is there anything we can do to get rid of these pesky cunts? Why so they bother coming in here anyway? WE ARE GAY. They are not. Ugh.

R282 but you're ok with the way a lot of these people talk shit and vitriol about women? Don't you think you attract homophobes and perhaps incels?

R259, read some of your comments. Why do you hate women so much? You can come at with cussing, that's fine but seriously....why the anger?

R559 defending Homophobe Cunt Joanna Gaines. All Homophobes are cunts.

Why are you more upset about cussing than Homophobia?

Let's do a quick update: Denying civil rights to gay men -- okay. Pointing out the fact that women design without originality -- horrific violence and hate.

Some trends are okay. Like trellis, chevron. Then they get overplayed quickly.

Ladies...

Is that La Senatrice's boudoir at r563?

[quote]I'm so tired of the Trellis-pattern rugs and the hourglass gold-speckled lamps. Don't get me started on the vase full of seashells on top of a coffee table mirror.

OMG tell me about it!

....

My grandmother used to have vases filled with little plastic rock. No flowers. Just these rocks. I think this is them, or at least similar:

I feel like gay men are both more cutting edge, yet also more respectful of tradition. Though are less easily led than women (who sometimes go all out on the latest trend without consideration).

What about Palm Springs -- Gay Mecca and Mid Century Modern -- is there a connection?

I don't think women like MCM. They love shabby-chic and French and Tuscan accents.

I love a good 'Live, Laugh, Love' wall decal.

Damask is so 2005.

That OP is greyed out but plenty of homophobic threads aren’t just proves fraus run this place now.

There's something about women decorating. It always looks like they want to a big-box store and said, 'This. I'll take it. All, exactly as it is.'

....

I've been looking everywhere for an Old Reliable plaid sofa. I am determined to build an attractive room for 2019 based on the Old Reliable aesthetic. Very masc.

I always like Candace Olsen but especially loved Sarah Richardson. Both had shows on HGTV. Sarah had an assistant and the two of them played off of each other well and produced unique designs every show. Now, between the Property Brothers and Joanna Gaines every show on HGTV looks the same. No originality. I read in a design mag to follow your own lead - don't follow trends because trends come and go.

Basic gays can be a problem too. That comes from being too friendly with women. Only gay men who truly embrace gayness are the best interior designers.