Moroccan Rugs: How Important Is It For You To Go Against The Grain In Design?

You’ve seen that wallpaper billions of times, but you LOVE it…the question is: do you use it in your design project or home?? This question was prompted a few weeks ago when our EHD mentee, Key was asking Emily about using a chair in her living room project that she “had already seen everywhere.” It really got me thinking, because historically if I liked something I’d just go ahead and use it, especially if I thought I could use it in a cool way… I wanted to hear what everyone else thought on the subject, so I turned to our EHD Insider Community, and asked the question:

To my surprise, LOTS of people had thoughts to say on the matter. This “overused thing” can be a fabric, a pillow, a vase, a wallpaper, a chair…or literally ANYTHING. Here’s what Emily said about it:

Em’s bringing up something interesting…as a designer you’re always trying to push boundaries, so repeatedly using the same things or using trendy, overused pieces can feel like you’re in the safe zone (we’ll get more into this in a sec). Key also had some insight…(she’s the one who brought it up, after all). Here’s what she said:

So it’s also really about your personality…I’m also the kind of person who gets tired of things quickly, but for some reason that’s why it seems comforting to me to just use the pieces you want to use when you want to use them, right? If you’re gonna switch things out anyway, why not just go for it? I guess maybe that means if it’s easy to switch out (ie: vase, pillow throw) then go for it and if it’s not as easy to swap then don’t (ie: wallpaper, couches, any big pieces of furniture)? The next comment is from Katherine Wu and I thought it was particularly hilarious and so relatable:

Hahahaha this was so funny to me. It’s really true! If you’re not in the social media/design blogger kind of world, then it really doesn’t matter since masses probably aren’t seeing your home and you really should just do what makes you happy. But speaking of, check out this next comment by Alessa Makuch:

If you’re curious about the post she’s referencing, I highly recommend you read it (and if you already have read it, then re-read it because it’s such a gem and it’s so fun to read Arlyn’s writing always). I LOVE the philosophy of design like no one’s watching, although I also super appreciate the acknowledgment of young designers trying to build their portfolio. I CAN RELATE…my MOTO is my first real design project ever and it feels so stressful to try to make it fun yet feel sophisticated while also doing something unique, creative, and heavily original.

Chris McGovern said he also relates. He’s an awesome designer & reader (if you missed his kitchen project we featured, you can check it out here). Here’s what he had to say on the matter:

MAYBE I would jump off a bridge if there was a bungee cord attached alright, Chris!!??? Anywho, I couldn’t agree more with what he said. It’s so accurate in every way, AND he brings up the “swap out easily” point we addressed earlier. I read this and was like “true, true, and true.”

So what are your thoughts on the subject?? Let’s chat in the comments. Thanks for reading!