Not only does Garrett point out the annoyance of word art, but he goes on to offer examples of how to evoke the same emotions using personal experiences, something I've seen no other designer do. Bravo!
Your channel is so refreshing! Our home should reflect who we are, our personality. Design is there to help us put everything together, not to copy every new trend. I had a friend who came to my house and said that I had a lot of family photos. She never displays any personal photos in her home. I love to decorate with things that mean something to me. Instead of the bowl with the beaded garland that you see everywhere, display something that you find beautiful. Karl Lagerfeld once said: '' trendy is the last stage before tacky'' . I think it applies to design as well.
The family photo gallery can look nice when done well. I think people just find it 'tacky' when there's no order and just a bunch of frames of different sizes and shapes that clash with each other and look cluttered (or if it's just too many of them). Getting nice frames of decent sizes instead of small ones that won't have you squinting to look at a photo is a good idea in my opinion.
I love that you are so unashamedly real. Books on bookshelves, sentimental fine art over trendy downloaded throwaway pieces. Interacting with collected pieces. If I could subscribe to only one design channel it would have to be this one.
It’s so funny how once a trend is no long trending it’s tacky. A functional space is tacky depending on who you ask lol. I’m so glad that bookshelves can be bookshelves again. And it’s okay to display our memories lol. I also enjoyed the ideas on how to replace word art! Thanks Garrett this was fun💕
I totally agree with everything that you said, particularly the words! I always say that if you HAVE to have words on the wall behind your sofa, have them say something useful like, Empty The Dishwasher, or There's Clothes In The Dryer. 😁
Garrett- another great video but I was really surprised that for the word art that you didn't suggest that people paint them white (or whatever color) and use them as a blank slate to create your own original artwork. (reduce, REUSE, recycle) Also, if I could piggy back on your bookshelves without books critique to include bookshelves with the books turned backwards. WHAT IS THIS ABOMINATION? Does the person not understand that the title is on the spine? How does one find a particular book? Or do they just not read? WTF? I feel like no reader would store their books like that and if you're not a reader then why do you have all those books? And if you don't need the books why do you have the bookshelves? And then I'm down this never ending rabbit hole.....why does the room exists if it's not to store bookshelves & books? Why you bought a house with rooms you don't need? And on and on until I excuse myself to go hyperventilate into a paper bag. LOL
Yesss, bookshelves are for books and not just for bowls with wooden pearls inside. However I have one single board of books with the spine towards the wall, sorted from white pages to yellowed paper because it looks nice... but all of them are unread.
I can't believe that people are stealing ornamental grass!! Our ornamental grasses (not Pampas) are all in bloom and look gorgeous right now and I would be majorly pissed if someone cut bouquets out of them! And for these "influencers" to be condoning stealing the grass is terrible! Shame on them! Grow your own or buy some! Don't be stealing from others!
I have a minimal wall gallery of a few home grown art from the hands of persons within my family-- particularly from my sister whom I sadly lost a year ago. I hold her work sacredly which comforts me and that I'm so proud of. I have so much decor that I'm able to switch things out as well. Thanks Garrett. You always assure me that I'm on the right track. ✅
I was happy to hear that you don't discourage family photos. After all it is a house that families live in, why not have family photos??? I find it intersting to look at other people's family pictures. They help define you.
The thing if first peek at when visiting someone is their books and records (or films). I think it's interesting, even more so when they have a huge collection where you can sort of see how their preferences have evolved over time.
Thank you for speaking out against this whole idea of having neither books nor family photos in your house. I’ve been seeing that everywhere and it just looks like a person is selling their house so they can’t have anything personal up. I just remodeled and have been feel stressed about putting my treasured items back on my walls. Thank you for reminding me how much nonsense these two “trends” are!
I'm so glad you enjoyed the video Joanna! It's your house so definitely consider ideas but then make it your own. Thanks for subscribing to our channel. We appreciate it. :)
I live in SC and every other person has Pampas grass on the sides of their driveway, like ornamental. Nobody brings it in the house, but at Christmas some people spray paint the plumes red. Now that is tacky!
I hate word art, but I found this throw pillow at the thrift store that says "old friends are the best friends" and I don't think I could ever get rid of it. The needlework is beautiful. It sits next to a teddy bear with curly fur that my grandpa gave me when I was in surgery.
Instead of pampas grass, I collect sticks. Dry, weathered sticks without the bark. I find them in the woods or by the beach, and I put them in thrifted mid century vases. I may be a bit crazy, but I like it. The sticks add a sculptural touch, I think. I don't have so many, and I don't keep them all on display in a row. :)
You are so tactful in your critiques of design trends. I love it. It would really take all my strength not to just say "how am I supposed to judge you based on your book choices if you don't have any books on your bookshelves?!" 😂 😂 😂
Garrett! What a jewel you are! Classy practicality. You addressed the gallery wall choice without being defensive while acknowledging not everyone appreciates family photos. I have a small space and my hallway is my Memory Lane. With five grandchildren (yes, my dear, even grannies like your style 😉) who live far away, the walk down the hall always makes me smile. That's what our homes are about. And you remind us all how precious it is to love and be loved... whether or not designer pundits agree with how we show it. Thank you, Garrett. Keep up the good work!
When did gallery walls become controversial? I have a collection of painted and photographed trees that are all original. I will keep it up because it is sentimental and beautiful. I also have a gallery wall of family pictures in a less visible location. What’s crazy is in a few years it will be all the rage again
I just love your ability to articulate and incorporate the sentimental aspects of life into your design. A reflection of rare authenticity and old world class Garrett♥
Commenting for the algorithm! :D Love your videos! Also as a wedding florist - we HATE pampas grass and so does every venue...it comes apart and makes a huge dusty fuzzy mess that is SO hard to properly clean up and floats around for days. Can't wait for that trend to be gone!!
Recently found your videos. Not only are you utterly brilliant and talented...BUT YOU HAVE AN ENGLISH BULLDOG!!! Over the past 26 years, my husband and I were blessed with two Bullies. I send your dogs all of our love. I smile as soon as you are on my laptop. I find you so sweet and interesting and talented and thank you for sharing your brilliance (and your dogs) with us! Love, health and happiness to you, kind Garrett! (And your dogs, and your husband, of course!)
What a lovely comment! Thank you so much. Cornealius is our handsome and cuddly English Bulldog, and Linus is our sweet and vivacious French Bulldog and then of course there is cute Albert, our amazing 16 year old special needs PeekaPom that we adopted 3 years ago. He's a hero and so smart and nothing holds him back. They all regularly guest star in our videos.Thank you so much for subscribing and supporting our channel. :)
I can’t stand rainbow book shelves - my memory isn’t good enough to remember what colour a certain title is, especially if the dust cover gets removed. And those that store books with the spines facing the back, obviously don’t read those books. We store everything alphabetically, even though my husband likes the idea of genres. I do agree that we store books by author and storing dvds by director would make sense, but (did I mention this before?) my memory isn’t that good! Thanks for an entertaining video. I love how you have classic furniture and modern art - please tell us how you manage it?
I have hundreds of books and my floor to ceiling bookshelves are in our bedroom. Because I also have a poor memory I have placed my books according to genre or category. That really makes it a lot easier if I'm looking for something specific that I "know" I've got "somewhere"! Sometimes I don't recall the actual name of the book or author, so category works really well for me. I've also go hundreds of music CDs and some movie DVDs. The music CDs I go category, then musician. And with movies it goes by funny, scary, favorites, foreign, and documentaries. And often time the music is alphabetical after genre! Whew!! :-)
Yes to all of this! As an avid reader, I am totally baffled by the trend of color-grouping books, displaying them spine-in, or eliminating them altogether. Just why? I especially like your examples of alternatives to word art. I have art from places I’ve traveled and they all hold wonderful memories for me. The only thing I have with words in it was a gift from my son - my grown sons were my “men of honor” in my wedding, and one of the framed in a shadowbox our wedding invitation, some of the dried roses from my bouquet, and a pewter salt shaker he found in the old theater where we got married. I love it less for the words in the invitation than for the sweetness of the gift and the memory of sharing that time with family and close friends.
So yea, i had a framed piece of word art in a room - i wasn't crazy about it but its size was something i needed to anchor other artwork on the wall... I decided i needed to find something else but couldnt find anything that was the same sized frame to replace- so, i bought some William Morris designed fabric , removed the "bless this house " sign and framed the fabric instead. I love it and it was very kind to my budget.
There is a big time luxury influencer who styled her bookshelves with books with blank pages and fake old books. I assume she can read but I know that she and her husband can't spell or punctuate to save themselves. But someone must like that style because they live in a million dollar home and buy 15k Birkin handbags. Not every shelf is a book shelf, though. Sometimes a shelf is just a shelf. BTW the AD that came up during the vlog was for pampas grass. LOL
Real comfy is what we all are looking 's a place that we all love, whether it be our friends, family, or helped me make it designed my house and gave me a new sense of are truly the best!
Ok, the dog made me subscribe. Thanks for the awesome videos that make interior design fresh, fun, and easy to understand. I love your personality & energy. 😊
KEEP giving us alternatives!! Am a new subscriber and don't often comment but LOVE your channel!! I redecorated in the early 2000's but much has gone out of style so continually searching RU-vid and Pinterest for timeless decor. SO, SO, SO glad I found your channel, I really appreciate you giving us alternatives to tacky, trendy or out of date decor! thanks!
Thank you for sharing your personal and beautiful memories. I too have many things in my home and on my walls that bring me back to a special moment, or person who has passed. Another great video. ❤️
Really enjoyed this video! Not only does it inspire and energize me, it makes me appreciate that even my fairly mundane home has hope as long as I keep the focus on reflecting what brings us joy and not just decorating for the sake of decorating.
I love to collect blue and white decor too. I sometimes put some of them together and always rearrange them with others, but no lining them up. I loved this segment Garrett. Thank you lots !
I absolutely adore you. You always bring so much common sense to design that I forced to just howl with laughter. Especially love the bookcase segment(retired Emglish teacher) Be blessed
OMG FINALLY Someone spoke out about that "PAMPAS GRASS" situation, I was thinking I am the only one "allergic" to them 😝, VERY TRUE! "DUST COLLECTOR "! Very well said!
Yana Crystal,,, I agree with you! I just don’t like the way it looks. It seems like everyone and their mother have the pampas grass! Not a fan. Also not a fan of beads laid across books. Once I see that everyone does it, I say away from it.
I mean... any and all decor collects dust. The vases, the jars, the sculptures, the vessels, the collectibles - everything does unless you're picking it up and moving it around pretty often. I think ppl just like to hate on the pampas grass because it's been overused recently. For people who suck at keeping plants alive, I think using various dried plants and grasses are a better option than those fake plants (which also collect dust). Sorry, but I don't agree that a basket (um. which is also basically made out of dead grass...) can provide the same feeling of nature that some people are going for.
Hi Garrett, I love your video's. Keep them coming! I really wish someone would talk about the tackiest thing EVER! That being a beautiful, expensive sofa or bed being covered and hidden with 2 dozen throw pillows and 3 throw blankets. It is ugly and very uninviting. Family and friends have to resort to sitting on the floor so as not to disturb the pillows. I can't imagine trying to take a nap in the bed without fighting the pillows for 1 square foot of mattress. Tacky! Tacky! Tacky!
Creating memory books with your photos in it is a lovely way do you have those photos clothes you can bring them out and show them when people want to look at them. Have one or two out on a coffee table with your coffee books!
Wonderful Video again Garrett !!! You inspire me so much !!!! I like you so much and you stand in the first row of my favorit designers!!!! My note to books: When i moved to my current house, i packed 25 boxes full of books. I didn't know I had so many! Since I was still setting up the new house, I put the boxes in the garage. When it came time to fill the bookshelves, I first picked out my favorite books. Then I gradually created categories. Literature, Travel Books, Cookbooks, Furnishing Books, Gardening Books, Psychology, Spiritual Books. Again and again something was added. I still have books in the boxes in the garage that I don't want to give away yet, but that haven't made it into my library-office either, because all the shelves are now full. I always resolve to weed out some because it is unlikely that I will be able to read them all again in my life. But books are treasures for me, memories, adventures in my head, part of my life, I spent many hours with them. How could they be given away?
Thank you so much for the lovely comment! I’m so glad you are on this journey with us to create the premier interior design channel on social media. Thanks for watching and subscribing. 🎃🎃🎃
I like the bookshelf part, I like all of it but the fact you gave us options of what to do always make me so happy to know you….well you know what I mean. Love the Central Park art and the story. Thanks for the education and your guest speaker who did not speak is a beauty.
Thanks Garret, really love your content. Another thing I find terribly tacky is buying books for the sole sake of decoration. Like, oh pauhleeeze! People will buy books based on the cover colour to go with the decor. Never any intent on even reading the title, lol. That, my friend, ticks me off and what almost made me totally give up on interior designers. Totally agree with you regarding the bookless bookshelf. I'm not a minimalist, but I am also the one that tidies up my home. I'm all for decorating, l like putting up art, having some sculptures, but should stay away from the trendy NOW garbage - mass produced stuff. Better to have less but good.
I've always had a gallery wall. I love them. In my home now I have them on a plain wall in my dining room. It's quite a dark room, if unlit, so not in your face but just photos of family etc that we all like to look at. As to the bookless book shelves, that should be a crime 😱
Word art has had it's day. I do have a large sign in my kitchen. Basically the rules of the house with humor. By the pantry. Our kids get referred to it often. I still like it and it's not distracting. When kids are older, I'll pass it on.
😂 words on the wall - nope. Pampas grass - just looking at it makes me sneeze and itch! Thank you for sharing, this was fun. Thank you for your personal stories, they are beautiful. Best to you!
I have books all over- don’t have a single book in a bookcase. I have one small bookcase in a private area and we keep souvenirs there and some small collections. My grandmother had a huge built in bookcase in her very formal living room. Not a book on it. All antique crystal, vases etc. She did change it up often. About collections. A real collection takes time to build and sometimes when it gets to a certain stage it can be displayed together. But when it was just a designer who purchased a bunch of stuff to look like a collection- it looks tacky.
This is a terrific video. The signs are a particular peeve of mine. So many of them sound like commands for behavior, (I don't really need to be told to be thankful) or else they are identifiers of things that everyone can already identify. I also love gallery walls. I put a 1915 photographic portrait of my Great Grandfather and Great Grand Grandmother on their wedding day among pictures of my sons and grandchildren and it has definitely been a conversation starter (My great grandfather came to the US from Germany, then ended up going to Texas when it was offering 40 acres of land to people who would come to live and farm the land.) (My great grandmother was only 16 and looks scared to death!). The gallery wall keeps your house from looking sterile!
The tackiest thing IMO is plug-in air fresheners. Ahh! They’re filling their homes with unnatural chemicals! Isn’t it common knowledge that scented air fresheners trigger migraines and allergy attacks in a lot of people? Do these folks think it’s cool to chance poisoning their guests? Plus, they always smell so, so fake. Natural scents can be a problem too, but plastic Glade or whatever plug-ins are the worst, for me, haha!
So...is my "Basic witch" planter tacky? Asking for a friend, obviously. The Pampas grass not only creates a sneezy dust pile itself, but it attracts dust from the environment. You can't clean it without destroying the grass in the process. Back in the 80s, we used to have a lovely floor vase with Pampas grass and peacock feathers in it. It looked pretty for about a month, then it just became grotesque wad of dust and cobwebs. I agree about collections. I like to switch them out when I do the seasonal deep cleaning. I used to think that I should have every piece visible, but the items lose their punch and whimsy when they are crowded into a big display. By switching them out I can keep them preserved part of the year and enjoy them when they on display.
I have a gallery wall of gilded, gold frames. They are different pieces of art I've either made or I picked up somewhere (because I love them). I'll pick up a frame and trade out the prints for something else. The wall is on the main pathway to the master bedroom, and so furniture is not an option. It's a 10ft by 8ft wall and I covered it in gold. It's my favorite thing in my living room.
Regarding Pampas grass - we have a similar plant in New Zealand called ToiToi, which my Mother said was unlucky to have in the house! LOL!! It certainly could shed in certain seasons.
Hi Garrett I’m so glad you brought up the pompous grass thing, I was thinking am I the only one who can’t stand it. If I want to see it, I’ll just step outside.
Fun video, Garrett. I don't mind a gallery of family photos on a wall as much as when pictures are collaged inside one big, light oak frame without any defining mat between images. I had a four shelf bookcase my Father made in junior high school. It wasn't ornate, very simple, and aside from a couch and a coffee table, it was the only other piece of furniture I had in my first apartment. So it housed a small t.v., a plant, two silver candlesticks and because I couldn't afford any nice books, I did stack all my Architectural Digest and National Geographic magazines and boy did I think I was fancy LOL However, the case did finally collapse under the weight! P.S. Love the Bully fur baby, just want to squish his puppy cheeks.
Thank you so much for your lovely comment! I’m so happy you appreciate my interior design aesthetic. I’m proud that we have so many sophisticated and very intelligent subscribers on our channel. Thank you so much for your support and subscribing to our channel! Much more to come. 😎😎😎
Garrett, I swear you're my brother from another mother. I absolutely love the way you incorporate things that have sentimental value in such a creative way. I have a collection of family photos that I rotate on my bookshelves, so many memories in every photo. I agree, what's a bookshelf without books. Even my some of my books have sentimental value. I have my grandma's and great uncles first bibles, a book that was passed down for generations from my dad just to name a few. I've never understood the pompous grass hype. I do use some dried wheat grass in my home during the fall months, but other than that I'm not wanting a collection of dust. Word art 🤢 never got on board with the trend.
Oh, this is so refreshing! I too don't get the point of having bookshelves without books! Kindle is lovely, but sure there's at least a handful of books worth having in print.
Your videos are so great, thank you! Garrett, I really dislike the deep niche in the wall over fireplace mantels that are designed to house the television. I think the space above the fireplace is too special to use for the television. And I would like to know if you think there is such a thing as too many built-ins. What if a person wanted to hang a piece of art work on that wall? What if a person wanted to change the furniture around and couldn't because of all the built in bookcases and cabinets? I would enjoy hearing your opinion on those issues.
OMG! BOOKCASES! I have so many books!!!! I do have most of my books stored in the Den (reference, text books, paperbacks, leather bound, gardening books, etc), and in the Living Room (2 large & deep bookcases plus 1 built in) I place the pretty books that are nice enough to display, but 80% of the shelves in the living room have books or board games or a very small curated pile of DVDs. The bookcases are deep enough I can also store extra throw blankets. To have a WHOLE bookcase without books? Then you have a CURIO CABINET!
I agree a bookcase without books is not appropriate in my view, and true you would have some form of a curio cabinet. Sometime people miss the functionality aspect of pieces like bookcases in interior decorating.
Yeesss!! Thank god I am not the only person who thinks of the bookless bookshelf. I see so many of them in my friends and families home that are full of nice individual things, but cluttered things. lol
Thank you as always: I would realy love to know how to light the wall behind the staircase... And how to place painting, Photos etc. ? would be great. Thank you
I really enjoyed the video and your personal art stories.I love your black & white gallery wall and I also have a black & white gallery will but in my breakfast nook. Pampas grass and dried flowers are so dusty looking and I don't like the depressing vibe it portrays (I'm a live plants type of person)! I'm not shaming anyone who loves them as my mother was a huge fan of dried flowers, mushrooms etc! Cheers from beautiful Ontario🌼🍂🍁🍂🌼
I think there should be a video on interesting bookshelves and creative places for them in the house. Some of us have thousands of books and 50 square-meter flats... No designer truly talks about this.
Thanks for watching, and hopefully supporting the channel by pushing the subscribe button. I will definitely give your suggestion some thought, and see how to possibly incorporate it into a future video. :)
Thanks so much! It's the wonderful celebrities that many of which we have had the great fortune to know or meet several times that makes it beautiful. :)
Hello 👋 confession, I have a “the milk and cream co. “ serving tray at my coffee station , I love that for me 😂 but that’s it. I love me a coffee station. I also love a wall gallery that is done well and not just a bunch of randomness going on. Great video as always!
Hi Garrett I am glad to have found your channel. The design tips are actually realistic. I am from Punjab, India. We experience extreme cold and hot weather conditions.
Ah...books! I am a real bookworm and collector of books. I have books in every room in my little, one bedroom house including the loo. Great video, thank you.
I’m a handletterer and I totally agree about the word art. Word art should be placed sparingly, made very personal (not cliche and mass produced), and/or with history/sentimental connection to it. And preferably, with a unique design aspect to it. Not kitschy.
