Everything old is new again. Granted I am only 30 so things like Macramé and Wicker hold a certain fascination because I have never really seen them in action. That being said. There are some things that just need to stay dead. I would like to submit for your consideration design trends that just cant be coming back to greet us…ever.
Exhibit A: Tole Painting. The sparkly eyes. The perfect dots from the end of a paint brush. The speckled finish. Its just oh so magical.
Exhibit B: Any type of couch that has fabric that looks like this:
Exhibit C: The plush pre printed goodness of this carousel horse. My grandma actually has quite a few of these at our cabin. My favorite is the majestic gray goose. He is perfectly to scale and very life like. So while I love this trend because it reminds me of my wonderful grandma so much, I just don’t think it should come back…
Exhibit D: Art work that includes a pose able teddy bear doing anything human related. Yes tea party, I am looking at you too.
Exhibit E: An adobe mountainside village nesting in the folds of Jesus fabric. Pretty sure that my MIL had this hanging in her house, with white washed log furniture.
Exhibit F: Fabric ruched mirrors. I will have you know that this fabric was very silky and nice. And those flowers? Life.Like. But it is just a little too rich for my blood.
Exhibit G: Whatever this thing is. I mean. I have no idea. Is he a rock? Is he a biscuit? Is he a dirty snowball? Its just a little to confusing for me to fully support his return.
Exhibit H: Bowling Pin people. I mean. Maybe.
PLEASE add your suggestions below. And also know that this post in written entirely in fun, if you really love one or all of these things and want them in your house, do it. And let me know, I will send you all of the treasures that I can find. All of them.
Mandi you are awesome. You don’t know how mang hideous things I’ve seen at thrift stores 🙂
I actually think a bowling pin person could look cute in a kid’s room. Minus the creepy hair and what looks like a cigarette coming out of it’s stomach between the fingers!
Until the kids start beating each other with it. 😉 hahaha
can we please be done with sponge painting walls? forever? When I was in high school I painted my walls pale blue and sponged over them with yellow and I thought it was so freaking awesome….. it was my upgrade from “the hunter green phase of the 1990s”. oye.
note to self: rethink the gallery wall of posable bear art.
so i am only 5 years older than you, but i recall macrame i my house…. i caught it at the tail end of the 70’s i suppose! and i still want to bring it back, too!!!
That mirror just made me throw up in my mouth a little bit.
If you bring the mirror, I’ll bring the shovels…we don’t have to tell anyone where it is buried.
ahhh, the bowling pin people… those bring back memories… my great-aunt had one… alright, maybe she had a baker’s dozen. but she LOVED those things… 😉
Haha these things are awful!!!! I love your blog! You’re so inspiring!!
OMG! The miroir what a dust collector!!! Funny post… 🙂
That old Mr. Potato on a spring thing is actually quite disturbing, did it originally have fuzz or did that come with age? I shudder to think.
I have enjoyed your blog for a while now but the bridesmaid/bridal shoot clinched it. This post puts it over the top. Thanks for entertaining and inspiring.
You’re hilarious! But also dead wrong. That ruched mirror is gold. 🙂
Don’t be too quick to judge. Just wait until your grandchildren start evaluating the things you love right now. 🙂
Second that, Colleen. The grands will be scraping chalk paint off late19 C and early 20 C furniture.
All the mid-century modern I’ve seen painted will provoke shudders and “what were they thinking?” comments.
They likely will trash all the outdoor banners for holidays and with last name initials….. lighting fixtures made from canning jars….the flat front farm style sinks will also be so last generation before long….
.But what i see in Mandi’s inventory, are low-priced items made to be budget gifts. Plenty of those around today.
On my list of what I don’t want to see come back are brown dish-and kitchen-ware. (Except real bean pots for really cooking baked beans); wall to wall carpeting in the entire house; green outdoor carpet anywhere; and philodendrons strung around a room.
Some older ‘homemade’ looking yard ‘art’ doesn’t wear well, either, i think. As for today’s ‘stuff” what people do to old books these days will never, I hope, become a fad again, ever. And today’s mass-produced “collectibles” will make our grandchildren laugh out loud.
Sorry, no photos. My place is more classic in style…..stuff that will last….wing chairs, books, cobalt glass (a forever color) and working oil lamps which will never go out of style as long as storms take out the archaic above ground electricity.
Your post is funny as usual. I am fifty something and figure I have seen everything. I used to have quite a few geese decorations, remember that phase? I think we all have things we liked at one time and now don’t, but also things we will always like. Just think, one fine day you may hate your hexagon wall!
I lived through those eras and they were pretty bad in the day too. Except the lodge pole furniture. That was the bomb.
That tole painting is just an abuse of the art. The tole painting I knew growing up was a lovely Scandanavian/German thing that looks classic. The turkey is just wrong. And makes me vegetarian.
You just made me vegetarian Mandi.
It’s the sad truth that the prized items of one era become the despised trash of another, and then some are rediscovered and become valued again. We never know which. Who would have thought that folks would WANT old paint by number canvas or that the mid century modern pickled oak triangle tables my brothers and I used to climb on would be worth thousands. I’ll be at least one of these things will someday be collected and prized (but not that mirror 🙂 )
Cathy
I nearly sat down hard when I saw the price tag on MCM dining room furniture in an antique store in my city…..$5,000 for a table and four chairs!!!!!!! With original wear marks. And people who don’t recognize what they have actually paint MCM!!
All this string art that folks are pin-ing away for right now? Popular in the seventies (I was in high school). I would rather be strangled with it than have a piece in my home. We thought white socks with sandals were fly paper tacky too. Everything old is new again…
Well, I mostly agree with you. But, with the help of a little paint, I would totally put that carousel horse in a cute little girl’s room! And I definitely had a border of dancing teddy bears and gymnast bunnies around my childhood bedroom.
To freakin funny! I just want to hang that mirror over that couch and seal it in tomb to never be found again 😉
These are too much! I see so much stuff like that in the thrift stores, and I always want to have some kind of before/after contest with it, like let’s see if anyone can POSSIBLY make this better. I bet it would be a challenge. And hilarious. C’mon Mandi, I bet you could totally improve that tatertot-on-a-spring … thing.
I LOVE THE BOWLING PIN GUY!!! And I like toll painting when it comes to sweet little Christmas tree ornaments. Otherwise, SPOT ON! Let’s add crocheted toilet paper roll covers to the list…
We used to have exhibit B couch in our house… Aw, I miss it!
I’ll be honest, there are times I look at Pinterest and just KNOW I am seeing the frightening “crafts” that will end up in the thrift store 25 years from now, where our children will see them and mentally write a blog post just like this very one about the hideous things their parents/grandparents made that they pray will never come back in style.
Hilarious! I vote for yellow wall paint and blue furniture of the nineties! We also had a faux ‘federation’ style here is Aus when I was a teenager, lace curtains and all, not looking to revive that one!
My sister had that exact couch in her first apartment. So bad! The only one of these that I had never seen before was the bowling pin guy and he is kind of cute.
I could do with never seeing another crochet-topped tea towel at a craft fair!!!!!
Haha you mean to say that you’ve seen the potato thing? ☆*:.｡. O(≧▽≦)O .｡.:*☆ lol
Agreed with all of the above. Especially the tole painting. And I would have to take a shower if I sat on that couch. The crazy thing is it took this long for peeps to get rid of that stuff. That means someone has been holding on to those treasures all of these years, not wanting to part with them!
I remember macrame (and even made some) the first time around and when you wrote about trends for 2014 I was all, “Macrame? Noooooooo!” Ha ha. But I definitely think it depends on how it’s done. Seems like whenever a trend catches on the first time around it gets taken to the most ridiculous nth degree but when it comes back around decades later it is more modern, fresh, and less absurd. I do agree with the above items though. They need to go to the island of bad idea trends (like the island of misfit toys.)
Spot on my friend! I recently was antiquing and looked up only to find myself being stared down by a buck… with a wedding veil on. It gave me a bad feeling
Yup. I fully agree. But honestly, you did the world a disservice by NOT purchasing these items…and then hosting a little neighborhood bonfire to end their existence. Shame on you 😉 -Misty
I think you should challenge yourself to take 2 of those items and make them rock. I think you could. You could bring all that back 😉
pantyhose crafts: https://ic.pics.livejournal.com/thehunter/54224/480113/480113_640.jpg
Dude, you’re shopping in a thrift store! OF COURSE you’re going to find old crap that people tossed away and never want to see again. The entire reason you are even able to find this crap in a thrift store is because people don’t want it anymore, so I sincerely doubt any of it is in danger of making a reappearance as a “design trend” – not that they were ever tasteful design trends to begin with.
BTW, that weird rock-looking thingy on the spring/coil? It’s supposed to be a rustic snowman decor for the Christmas/winter holidays. Ask me how I know. (My grandma had those nightmare-inducing monstrosities all over her house one winter!) All that said, I seriously think you missed a prime opportunity to show the world what a re-design goddess you are by not purchasing one of those hideous creations and giving it the Mandy treatment.
Hi Mandi, Longtime fan, first-time poster. I’m loving the bowling pin person. Not quite on its own, but the shape is fab. I could see repainting it with a new design. Perhaps something geometric. Not sure because I don’t want to ruin it the beautiful shape.
I’m feeling a bit connected to this piece about because my dad worked in a bowling alley as a kid, setting up the pins in the back , back in the days before machines automated this process. About six weeks ago, he had a triple bypass heart surgery and, thank goodness, is doing really well. I’m trying to help him to find ways to keep himself busy so he can curtail the urge to smoke. I realized he continues to spend most of his time working, even though he’s semi-retired and he doesn’t really have any hobbies. So he thought about it and one of the things he said he wanted to do was to go bowling. Not necessarily my thing, but if that’s what my dad wants to do, so be it. I’m grateful for this time we have and I want him to finally enjoy life.
I’m loving this blog post in general because you just never know how someone could be inspired. Great job!
Michelle
I literally laughed out LOUD when I saw the fabric covered frame/mirror!
I was just thinking the other day about wrapping fabric around a frame …several in fact, something bright and cheerful and hanging them on the wall…TO.GETH.ER!
Now, after seeing that ugly frame— I’m inspired to DO IT!
I feel like the little neighbor kid in “The Incredibles” after seeing them survive a flaming blast…
“THAT WAS TOTALLY…WICKED!”
Gotta have a do over on the fabric covered frame. 🙂
Love your blog.
…one who started out as a homemaker of the ’80’s … Pat
One more to add; decorative candles. You know what I mean. Like the twisted spiral kind or the tapers with an elf face molded on them. I still see guys with ponytails and one earring trying to sell these at craft shows.
Great one…..I’d like to think they will all go to the graveyard along with today’s headache-inspiring ‘scented’ candles. I should live so long.
Wow, you just made my night. Thanks 🙂 I needed a good laugh, made the most Perfect bedtime post. Now I while have dreams of bowling pin people and dirty snowball heads. You rock, Love your blog 🙂
I had to comment on this because I used to work in thrift store. If you think those are hideous (and I agree with you that they are quite hideous), you should have seen the stuff that people donated that *didn’t* make it out to the shelves. If I’d had a decent camera phone at the time, I could write an entire blog just on things people donate to thrift stores. 🙂
Hilarious. Love the post. And yes..it’s all horrible. Safe to say. Don’t do it!!!!!
Those carousel horses CAN be salvaged….I find these to be the most tolerable of all the items on your hilarious list….I’ve seen a couple of blogs where they spray painted the horses in a gorgeous color for kids rooms. I guess it is following the trend of people painting or upcycling trophies.
Okay, just found this blog and fell in LOVE! Love what you guys are doing over here and can’t wait to read more. Also, as hideous as that horse might be, a few coats of glossy silver it could be super modern! As for the rest, I agree…leave it in the thrift!! -Kate
Too funny. I am 60 and have lived through all the eras that those uglies were from. I used to macrame up a storm and my mother recently sent me a crocheted topped hand towel (ugh). I also taught tole painting and thought it was so awesome, I started waaaaay back in the strawberry and apple phase of it and went on to the sparkly eyed phase. I do still have a few items I painted but they are way more classy than that poor turkey. What I have shuttered at as they came back were the ugly 70s style clothing and colors. Although now the harvest gold, avocado and burnt orange are a bit more muted and therefore easier on the eye. I hated the dark colors of that era and love the white look now, but in my day we were stripping all the paint off painted furniture and wondering why anyone in their right mind would paint over such beautiful wood! And don’t get me started on the Ika stuff. I never liked Danish modern in my day and still don’t, but that is funny how it has come back. I guess I am more of a wingback chair kind of girl. Loved your post.
I kind of liked the adobe village.
That bowling pin guy is kinda cute…..
I grew up with this stuff, too. I was always the odd man out with odd and unusual, not-popular (not UNpopular, but not-popular) tastes. My mom laughed at me being born in different decorating eras. Given the fact it all comes back around, she let me do whatever I wanted in my room.
I remember as a kid, disliking the MCM style, even though I didn’t know what it was. It me it was “Green Stamp” furniture. If you’re old enough to remember that…. I loved what I now know was my grandma’s Arts & Crafts home. Still remains a classic on that little street in a little town in Michigan.
Then came the 70s and 80s. I ALWAYS disliked geometric, primary colored patterns, the Peter Max designs, then the off-green/yellow florals everywhere. plus the requisite brown. Brown everywhere. My cousin’s house hasn’t been redecorated yet, so if you want a time warp, visit her.
80s? To fluffy. Hair, shoulder pads, couches, rugs and thought processes. DISLIKE pastels. Floral pastels and fake brocades. That God-awful country pink the uninformed called “mauve” (pronounced as “maaaahve” vs. the correct “mohve.”) usually in some type of ruffled kitchen curtain. And the ducks everywhere. Holding toasters, toilet brushes, hair equipment, front doors open, garden stuff in place, and on curtains. Again.
I was developing into a sleek, Shaker style chick. Parson tables, minimal furniture, but delicious, dark woodwork and creamy walls.
Today? I’m done with dark cabinets, (hello 90s!) and really done with Shaker stuff, although its clean lines still whisper to me. Quality is IT, but… I’m moving towards more antique-y, sometimes a teensy bit ornate style. I live alone and I can let myself be a girly girl. At least a tiny bit.
What will the next 10 years bring? Hmmmmmm….
Too funny! Exhibit G is made from an old bed spring, which I have a collection of, but I promise I won’t make anything like that out of them. Ha Ha. These remind me of all the projects in the old craft magazines. Just can’t bring some things back!
Ok. I painted one of those awful turkeys back in the day! Honest.
I have an idea for a post for you…What are your predictions for the future? What is so very 2014 now, that everyone will get rid of, and then it will cycle back around and everyone will be scrambling to the resales shops for in 20-30 years? That way we can all hoard it now and get rich off the the unprepared in the year 2044. Oh my. That year sounds so utterly science fiction! Anyways…just an idea for you. As always, I love your blog.
LOL!! GREAT IDEA 🙂
Anyone remember the puffy fabric-covered binders? They would have been in the same era as that mirror. Shudder. I did like them at the time, I must admit.
I am worried about how chevron is so hot right now. I do love it, but I can see people in a decade or so not loving their chevron fireplace, etc.
Tears of laughter are streaming down my face making it impossible to see my screen. This post is THAT good.
Oh! The future? May we?
Sorry. Chevrons. Grain sack stripes and the Union Jack on furniture. Signs demanding you Eat Love Live Laugh Stand on Your Head, or subway locations where there are no subways. Chicken wire. Badly antiqued furniture sporting the leopard look. Huge kitchen islands, across which one cannot reach to serve or wipe. Espresso Maple anything, just like Golden Oak. Sadly, pallet or barnwood anything. Benches made out of headboards. Ladders. Probably old windows, too. Much of this stuff I really love 🙁
One thing I do love about our “era” is that the most lovely rooms on any blog or in any magazine incorporate things from many different eras. Even those butt-ugly plastic waiting room chairs can look so chic in a warm kitchen. Metal stools, long relegated to barns are showing up at breakfast bars and look cool. Antique linens over brushed nickel bathroom fixtures.
There won’t be any ducks with ribbons around their necks from this era.
“is it a biscuit?” that made me laugh pretty hard. And I agree, those sofas should be burned.
I’m pretty sure that dirty buscuit is a Christmas tree topper. Like a snowman with his scarf. Lol
Memories … like the corners of my mind! My mom was so into macramé back in the mid to late 70’s that we would drive 4 1/2 hours to get special ceramic beads with coordinating flower pots and colors of macramé rope that apparently no store in our area, one of the most populated parts of our state, sold. I was 6 to 9 years old and my main job was using the “fro comb” to pick out the tail on the hanging planters. I’m pretty sure I saw one of these still hanging in my aunt’s house at Christmas … in 2013! My husband and I married in1992 and our entire kitchen/living/dining was Southwest. The only thing I kept was a fairly expensive hand made pueblo vase that we bought on our honeymoon. I am a little sentimental about that. I think I am partial to all the tribal prints and décor because it reminds me a little of that Southwestern stuff. I can already see a few of you hiding your Ikat pillows in the back closet! And, please put away all the chevron while you are at it!
Sorry – that’s light (not like!) – I really despise auto-correct, especially that doesn’t know BARBRA STREISAND!
I hate to admit this but I used to make quilted, puffy boxes which would have gone great with the fabric ruched mirror! And that eyelet ruffle surrounding the mirror? It came right off one of the MANY floral throw pillows I made! So glad styles have changed for the better.
I would totally buy that carousel horse, gold leaf it, and use it as an accent piece in my baby girl’s nursery. But giant and blinged out works for her. She’s a 23 week preemie and kind of a drama queen. 🙂
I love this post. This should be a regular thing. Trends best left dead…lol
I love making fun of atrocious things in thrift stores… looks like this trip was awesome! What about that “bee loyal” sign, eh?! And I agree, the bowling pin could have been re-vamped into an awesome trendy paint-dipped or geometric painted piece.
1.slate paintings 2. cutesy signs” like the ones that say y’all ” 3. those huge over-sized, over stocked motel/hotel pictures( you know the ones with shiney gold colored frame)s 4. pressed wood box store furniture 5. dish towels with crocheted tops( to hang on the stove or refrig) 6. southwestern decor- resin tee pee, etc 7. those off market porcelain dolls 8. decoupaged puzzles 9. anything with nylon/polyester lace or ruffles
I recently made a Bowling Pin Cub Scout (I am in charge of pack meetings) cutest thing you have ever seen, I can send you a picture if you want. We use it as the monthly “cubby award.” It is given to the best behaved Scout and they get to take it home until the next pack meeting (1 month). It has made a world of a difference in our scouts behavior. Just thought you’d want to know in case you are ever a scout leader 🙂 Would actually make a great post since so many people out there are involved in scouts. And unlike Target, I totally don’t mind if you copy me 🙂
My mother in law still has that exact couch, love seat, and chair in that fabric! Intervention!!!
Hello, nobody mentioned mallard ducks! That was my dad’s favorite decorating motif and he had them in his office forever.