All the trends interior designers hate, according to an interior designer

When it comes to interior design and renovating, there are a few trends and features that designers can’t stand. If you’re planning to work with a professional on your next project, here are a few things to be mindful of.

Design 

Designers can’t stand it when rooms are designed independently of one another without considering the effect on the entire house. For example, you might copy the design of a bathroom you’ve seen at a display home, then reproduce a kitchen you fell in love with while watching The Block and style your laundry based on a picture you’ve seen in a magazine. While each room might look fantastic in its own right, as a whole they don’t appear to belong together.

What we do like: Designers like it when you use forward planning and have a cohesive design that flows from room to room. Although each room does not have to match in every aspect, elements such as colours, materials and/or lighting should have a level of consistency and link together in some broader way.

Colours

Most designers despise cream-coloured paint on the walls. There are a number of very popular cream colours that Australians tend to use, but if you ask any designer they will tell you that cream went out in the 1990s. Anything that is cream-coloured or derived from cream is out!

What we do like: We like whites, warm greys and beige colours. Also, pops of darker bold neutrals and accents of timber.

Window dressings

Designers loathe vertical blinds and patterned curtains.

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What we do like: The types of window dressings that designers recommend these days are quite linear, such as plantation shutters, wooden blinds, roller blinds or sheer curtains.

Floor tiles 

Designers detest terracotta floor tiles, white floor tiles or tiles that are any smaller than 500 square millimetres.

What we do like: We like larger format tiles in a neutral colour.

Splashbacks

Designers generally do not like mirror or glass splashbacks. Glass splashbacks look flat and plain, and both mirror and glass splashbacks show up stains very easily.

What we do like: We like a splashback that has a bit of texture (even if that comes from the grout lines) so that it adds interest to your kitchen.

Jane Eyles-Bennett is one of Australia’s top interior/exterior designers and owner of design firm Hotspace Consultants. Join Jane at Home Renovators Network Australia for design and renovation inspiration and insider tips for your home improvement projects.