4 min readSometimes, a design trend that looks stunning on your Pinterest board doesn’t translate as seamlessly into everyday life. It’s easy to fall for a beautiful image online, but real homes have real-world needs, and those two elements don’t always meld. Take oversized shower “rooms,” for example. They may look sleek and spa-like, yet they can leave you shivering in a drafty bathroom. Or consider a mirrored tile backsplash that sparkles in photos but quickly reveals every fingerprint, splash, and smudge once it’s installed.
Because of this disconnect between inspiration and reality, renovation regrets than you might think. Design and construction professionals have seen it all, from impractical layouts to beautiful but high-maintenance finishes that homeowners grow tired of almost immediately. To better understand which ideas cause the most frustration, we asked contractors and interior designers to share the design missteps they’re often called in to correct. Ahead, they break down common pitfalls, plus what they recommend instead.
Marble Countertops
Marble countertops are classic, but the soft, porous stone is not always practical for every home. Laura Hammett, founder and creative director of Laura Hammett Interiors, often finds herself swapping out the material in heavily used kitchens, and instead recommends a sintered stone, like Neolith, instead.
“Clients love the look of marble but then find the reality is you can’t spill a drop of food or drink before it gets stained,” she says. “For clients who love to cook, especially with colorful spices, we recommend stones that still look beautiful, but are much more durable and hardier."
Open-Floor Plans
With the rise in multi-generational households and more people working from home, Bethany Adams of Bethany Adams Interiors says her clients no longer like open-plan living and crave a little more alone time. She first noticed this trend during the pandemic when people spent a lot of time together. “To accommodate these requests, I've added hidden pocket doors behind new built-ins and sleek glass-and-steel-framed partitions and doors to section off more open spaces,” she says.
Adams has found plenty of ways to create separation without building full walls. Glass doors and partitions strike the right balance between the privacy that clients want and the openness that they may have originally desired, she says. Cased openings can also be a good option, as they allow for design delineation without eliminating sightlines.
Outdoor Living Spaces
You may imagine yourself lounging outdoors with a book or enjoying al fresco meals and dips in a pool, but homeowners often change their minds about expansive loggias and open-air lounging spaces, Robert W. Burrage, founder of Florida-based RWB Concierge Builder, says.
Factors like humidity, heat, and seasonal storms can make it tough to enjoy those outdoor living spaces to their fullest potential. “As a result, we often find ourselves enclosing these outdoor spaces to create comfortable, usable areas that can be enjoyed year-round,” he says.
Trendy Tiles
Tile selection has been an issue on several projects that Alexis Woodbury Earman, an interior designer with The Woodbury Home, has worked on. “Many homeowners choose tiles based on inspiration photos and current trends,” she says. “Though these tile choices can be beautiful in pictures, the owner can grow tired of the trend and want to replace it with something more classic.”
She remedies these types of designs by choosing neutral-colored tiles and adding color through paint. That way, when they want to change the color in the space, they can do so much more easily.
Barn Doors and Shiplap Walls
When the farmhouse trend exploded around 2015, everyone asked their contractor for barn doors and faux shiplap walls, even if the features didn't suit the home's architecture or their family's needs, says Lesley Myrick, an Atlanta-based interior designer. She then, she has removed several barn doors from clients’ homes, noting that they’re a terrible choice because they let sound and light through. She has also removed plenty of shiplap walls, which can collect dust between the horizontal boards.
“Many people saw the farmhouse trend as both current and timeless and rushed to ‘upgrade’ their homes with these design elements,” she says. But when these additions aren’t functional for your home or lifestyle, it's a design disaster. Some of her projects have included removing barn doors and tracks and installing single-paneled doors, and in at least one case, removing a floating shiplap wall, which made room for a kitchen reconfiguration with a large kitchen island.
Glass Doors
Kitchen cabinets or pantry doors with clear glass doors can be beautiful, but they come with a few practical challenges that make them hard to live with, says designer Ashley Macuga of Collected Interiors.
“Since glass doors reveal what's inside, any clutter or mismatched items are easily visible, which can make even a new kitchen look messy if not perfectly maintained,” she says. A quick fix is to update the clear glass to reeded glass, which obscures the visual, while still keeping the elegance of the material,” she says.
Doorless Showers
Doorless showers may look great, but homeowners who had them installed often find them more trouble than they’re worth, says interior designer Shiva Samiei. Water tends to splash outside of the shower area, causing moisture damage and slip-and-fall hazards. They can also be decidedly un-cozy, leaving you feeling exposed—not a pleasant sensation when you're bathing.
Custom glass panels and new drainage solutions usually strike a middle ground, helping bathrooms preserve a modern look while containing water.
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Brittany Anas is a former newspaper reporter (The Denver Post, Boulder Daily Camera) turned freelance writer. Before she struck out on her own, she covered just about every beat—from higher education to crime. Now she writes about food, cocktails, travel, and lifestyle topics for Men’s Journal, House Beautiful, Forbes, Simplemost, Shondaland, Livability, Hearst newspapers, TripSavvy and more. In her free time, she coaches basketball, crashes pools, and loves hanging out with her rude-but-adorable Boston Terrier that never got the memo the breed is nicknamed "America’s gentleman."
