Design Hot Take: Can Designers Stop Trying to Hide Everything Useful?

What came first: The TV oregon the decorator hatred for the TV? Hello friends, and invited to this week’s installment of Arlyn’s Curmudgeony Design Takedown. Today’s episode? My deficiency of tolerance for hiding the things successful our homes that we request and precise regularly usage conscionable due to the fact that they aren’t “aesthetic.” That achromatic distant control? ::Gasp:: The cablegram modem? MAKE THAT THING INVISIBLE INSIDE A RATTAN BOX STAT! I’m not huffy astatine the tendency to person utilitarian things that look bully and amazingly displayable, but loving plan and a beauteous country don’t person to besides travel with a grade from MacGyver University for however to disguise everything successful show to look similar a vintage lipid coating oregon woven basket.

For anyone speechmaking this who is saying, “Arlyn, it’s each astir reducing ocular clutter,” to that I say: “Yes, I agree, but also, you astir apt lone deliberation that due to the fact that you work it successful an nonfiction I wrote a decennary ago.” While I get anxiousness spikes erstwhile things are retired of place, cluttered, oregon untidy, I besides similar my location to enactment effortlessly without barriers I’ve created for myself successful the sanction of Pretty. Cable absorption is 1 thing, but nary 1 should person to sacrifice due lighting (#TheBigLight) oregon being capable to alteration the transmission due to the fact that a faux stack of books covering your cablegram container is blocking the signal.

Who are we doing this each for? Ourselves? Our visitors? We can’t carnivore to look astatine a thermostat? A doorbell chime box? Honestly, I deliberation this each deed a fever transportation erstwhile images of homes, some by designers and amateurs alike, became a immense portion of our mundane vernacular. As idiosyncratic who has produced hundreds, if not thousands, of luxury location mag features, I cognize however overmuch is edited retired due to the fact that cords and airy switches are arsenic hated by creation directors arsenic they are by designers. This created an aesthetic civilization wherever we each got utilized to seeing houses without functional things similar outlets, and present presume we besides request to find a mode to Photoshop them out, but successful existent life. [Side story: I was watching an occurrence of House Hunters past night, and the featured homebuyer was a pistillate who made fiscal empowerment contented for societal media. She kept saying her location needed to beryllium “aesthetic” and was hyper-focused connected achromatic countertops and achromatic hardware due to the fact that she claims it’s what she needed for her assemblage to spot her arsenic successful. My eyes are lone conscionable coming guardant from the backmost of my head.]

Phew! Now that I’ve gotten that disconnected my chest, let’s research each the “designer disguises” that I find mostly unnecessary, and nary 1 should beryllium pressured into reasoning is necessary, either:

Designer Disguise #1: TVs

Let’s commencement with the astir polarizing topic: The television. I’ve written connected this circumstantial subject successful the past and got a ton of opposing feedback. Many agreed with maine that a TV is not a happening that needs to beryllium hidden. It’s a portion of our lives, and conscionable due to the fact that it’s a “big achromatic box” doesn’t mean it’s hideous and should beryllium banished. Others brought up immoderate bully points astir not liking the distraction, and that it’s adjuvant to enactment it distant down cabinetry oregon creation oregon immoderate different concoction erstwhile not successful usage to absorption connected different things similar connecting with loved ones, reading, oregon conversation. I’ll judge that, due to the fact that I cognize that we each person antithetic lifestyles and media tolerances.

But much and more, it conscionable feels similar this happening that galore of america usage regular is immoderate benignant of smear connected an different beauteous space. Mind you, TVs are smaller and much inconspicuous than ever before. The freestanding furniture-like Sony acceptable that graced my parents’ surviving country erstwhile I was a kid is simply a acold outcry from the level panels of today, and yet we’re obsessed with faking radical and ourselves that 1 simply does not beryllium successful our surviving rooms.

By far, my astir pressing question to each of america present today, whether you’ve thought astir hiding your TV oregon hatred the idea, is arsenic follows: Why are we putting truthful overmuch unit connected ourselves for design/styling perfectionism? I cognize that our homes are our sanctuaries, and they should marque america consciousness astatine peace. Visual clutter truly tin rise our anxiousness levels, but are we jumping done performative hoops to marque ourselves consciousness better, oregon due to the fact that the Internet slash the plan industry, the large “They,” told america we request to fell each these non-decorative things distant from the satellite if we privation to beryllium perceived arsenic having bully taste, oregon amended yet, chic (the highest podium decorativeness of each the location benignant qualifies, evidently)?

Designer Disguise #2: Cable Boxes And Remotes

It should travel arsenic nary astonishment that immoderate accoutrement to the hideous tv would besides request to beryllium shrouded successful secrecy, concealed from our delicate eyes. Does the supra handbasket solution look cleaner and tidier than the unfastened crate with cables popping retired of it? Yes, sure. A spaghetti-like knot of cords would animate anyone to find a solution, but the sheer fig of videos connected the Internet dedicated to cutting holes successful baskets and boxes to sphere a pristine shelfie oregon mantel is dizzying. As agelong arsenic determination isn’t a messiness of agelong cords spiraling from it, collecting particulate bunnies, a cablegram box, oregon immoderate remotes adjacent conscionable acceptable successful a tray connected a support oregon atop a publication oregon 2 is bully capable for me.

Designer Disguise #3: Kitchen Appliances

of course, em’s farmhouse room is simply a literal dream, but it does consciousness similar a “designer” room tin nary longer see disposable appliances, but a diagnostic range.

I preface this conception with the information that I precise overmuch similar the mode a seamless room with panel-ready appliances looks. But it’s specified a comic happening that idiosyncratic decided to deliberation up 1 day. “How bash we fell the precise things successful this abstraction we request the most?” Refrigerator and freezer? Make them guess! Dishwasher? Just unfastened drawers and cabinets until you find it. Obviously, the radical who unrecorded successful a location with this benignant of room are acquainted with and larn wherever everything is, truthful nary of this is simply a existent concern. However, let’s ponder for a infinitesimal the question I support bringing up: Why are we adjacent doing this?

Designer Disguise #4: Air Vents & Door Chimes

To me, determination is simply a quality betwixt making thing look better/sleeker, similar good-looking aerial vents, for instance, and covering up thing due to the fact that you’ve been led to judge it’s ugly. I had this thought precocious portion speechmaking the newsletter sent retired by Apartment Therapy’s Design Director Danielle Blundell. She’s a longtime enactment adjacent whom I respect greatly, but successful the latest email blast, a scholar asked her for her proposal connected covering her doorbell chime container successful her rental. In an effort to supply a solution, she recommended putting a portion of creation connected a hinge to screen it up. Sure, that works, but it’s the benignant of happening that reminds maine of however it has felt to beryllium successful a mid- to plus-size assemblage astir of my big life. So overmuch guidance connected however to formal your assemblage to fundamentally screen yourself up arsenic champion you tin to instrumentality radical into reasoning you’re someway thinner than you are, alternatively than nurturing a civilization of acceptance and self-love. “Cover it up!” is the sanction of the game. Maybe the doorbell chime container is wholly good and tin just…remain visible, hm?

Left to right: Nickel Door Chime | Knock Doorbells Steens Resonator Door Chime | Satin Brass Builder Chime Door Chime

I tin get down with a replacement of a cheapo, achromatic integrative chime with thing much stately similar the above, but hiding it distant successful shame is conscionable not thing I deliberation we should beryllium putting our energies into.

Designer Disguise #5: Any Kind Of Tech Interface

I’ve written truthful galore stories successful my past (by request) for different outlets astir however to fell your thermostat, your electrical boxes (sure, these are reasonably ugly), and each those kinds of things. My answers were ever on the lines of what Danielle suggested for the reader’s doorbell chime. It usually involves a hinge and a portion of art. It’s benignant of the go-to. Sure, looking astatine a beauteous portion of creation is ever going to beryllium amended than looking astatine a integer read-out, but for thermostats successful particular, I impulse you to permission them alone. After immoderate research, it has travel to my attraction that they bash not enactment arsenic good astatine signaling ambient somesthesia erstwhile the airflow is restricted, arsenic it would beryllium down a canvas, etc. Meaning, the somesthesia power is hindered, and that’s a thermostat’s main purpose.

Designer Disguise #6: Cords & Outlets

This 1 is comic to me. I deliberation a tucked-away outlet wrong a drawer is genius arsenic a charging station, but arsenic soon arsenic we get into faux coating (above) oregon offset drawers that you request to support unfastened erstwhile the outlet is successful use, that’s wherever you suffer me. Not to instrumentality thing distant from an creator oregon woodworker who could make thing similar the above—it’s very, precise good done—but however scratched up volition that beryllium from outlet prongs not precisely gathering their introduction points? Perhaps this is simply a premier illustration of signifier implicit function. There are galore beauteous outlet covers retired there. Do we truly request to beryllium playing hide-and-seek with them?

The aforesaid applies to cords. As I’ve mentioned, I’m not against managing cables from becoming tangled messes. If you person the means and the will, moving cables down the walls is wholly fine. But I person a concealed to share: Your location volition ne'er beryllium arsenic cord-free arsenic that professionally photographed and retouched location you respect due to the fact that many, if not all, of the lamp cords and the similar person been deleted from the last image. Let america clasp the world of our homes, lamp cords and all.

Bonus Designer Disguise #7: Family Photos

And finally, a small bonus, due to the fact that I don’t needfully deliberation this is simply a “designer” happening much than it is simply a “styled and photographed mag home” thing. From experience, galore household photos are often removed from houses featured successful people for privateness reasons, but bash maine a favour and instrumentality a look astatine each the gorgeous rooms you person saved successful your bookmarks and Pinterest folders. How galore of them person household photos? A small country array with rows of petite frames with abuela, cousins, champion friends’ babies? Gallery walls of non-descript oregon aesthetic abstract art, yes, but hallways afloat of mismatched frames with 4″x6″ prints are a happening of the past. I privation to cognize who lives successful a location erstwhile I spot it. I privation to spot their life, their family, their memories. Find a mode to show them successful a mode that feels tidy, if you must, but tin we delight commencement decorating with household photos again?

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Friends, I’ve reached the extremity of my complaints. I emotion a beauteous location arsenic overmuch arsenic the adjacent person; aft all, I’ve made my surviving penning astir beauteous homes. Don’t wound the manus that feeds you, and each of that. But thing I won’t bash is conscionable judge a bizarre presumption quo I don’t perfectly align with to salvage immoderate illusion of having cleanable sensation and an adjacent much pristine home. Release yourself from the request for flawlessness. Leave your distant connected the java table. Print retired that photograph from your household abrogation and enactment it connected your console table. Have outlets you tin spot and use, and not person to hunt for. You merit it.

Until adjacent time…

Opening Image Credits: Design by Mel Burstin | Photo by Tessa Neustadt | From: Mel’s Living Room Reveal