From time to time, Gentle Readers, a TikTok follower will send a question that really gets me thinking. The gist of a recent question was:
What if you do something to your house and you HATE IT?!
That was all the information I was given. Intriguing, right?
No matter what the (perceived) design disaster is, though, first, you take a deep breath, and then you live with it for a week. Or at least a few days.
Change is hard. And seeing something new can be a shock to one’s system. Even *I*, when a chair is unwrapped or a paint color revealed (in my own house, I hasten to say) have been known to declare, “Ugh! It’s awful! I hate it.” Then someone (often Tilly) calms me down and reminds me that change is hard and seeing something new is a shock to one’s system, and the next time I walk into the room I think I’m a genius for making such a brilliant interior design decision.
Assuming you have given it some time and you still think you have a decorating disaster on your hands, here are some scenarios and solutions.
What if you hate your new sofa?
Check the return policy. If it’s a new, non-custom sofa, you should be able to send it back. It will cost you some money — a delivery fee, possibly a re-stocking fee — but chalk it up to a learning experience and pay.
If the sofa is too big for the room and you cannot return it, you’re a bit stuck. Put it on your neighborhood list serv and cross your fingers. You will NOT get what you paid for it, even if it’s brand new, so knock some money off the price from the get-go to indicate contrition.
If the sofa is too small for the room, try putting an occasional chair (meaning wood, rush, lucite, bamboo – not an upholstered lounge chair) or table next to it to fill out the wall. Hang several pieces of art (a gallery wall) over the sofa instead of a single piece to draw your eye up.
If the sofa is the wrong color, yeesh and I’m sorry. Reupholstering is expensive, as you undoubtedly know, so place a different colored throw over the back and multiple pictures in the corners. Distract. (And maybe turn the lights down.)
What if you hate your new paint color?
This is where it’s REALLY important to give yourself a few days to adjust. But if you still hate it, paint truly isn’t that difficult to change, whether it’s you or someone else who is doing the painting.
Know why? Because the prep is done. The walls, trim, and ceiling have been sanded, holes patched, nicks filled…that’s what takes so much time. So if you simply don’t like the wall color (let’s hope you went neutral on the trim and ceiling), it’s just not that big a deal to buy a few gallons of paint, tape off the trim, and put on a new coat. It’s not FUN, but it’s possible. And don’t beat yourself up; paint colors are tricky.
What if you hate your new (patterned) wallpaper?
This is REALLY theoretical, because if you’re working with me, you absolutely WILL NOT hate your new wallpaper!
But let’s pretend that you are flying solo, and you feel you’ve made a grave error. The answer is to hang things. A mirror, a group of mirrors, large pieces of art (ideally with wide mattes)…cover the wallpaper at focal points: over the fireplace, over the sofa, on the largest wall of the front hall, etc.
Then, add busy-ness. Make sure that the wallpaper isn’t the only pattern happening. If you already have a neutral rug, put patterns on the furniture in the form of pillows and throws.
If the wallpaper is 2-color (blue and white, for example), bring in other colors via accessories and art. Try to make it so that the wallpaper isn’t the star of the show.
I hope this is helpful, Gentle Readers. We all make mistakes, so please do not force yourself to live with a design decision you feel is wrong. I know it’s money, I know you feel bad about it, but just fix it, learn from it, and move forward. Onward and upward.
Annie Elliott Design is based in Washington, DC, with offices in St. Michaels, Maryland and Middlebury, Vermont. Our style? Where classic and modern hang out and drink gin.