It is 10:40 on a Monday night and I literally have to start writing while the hideous images are still ingrained in my brain.
I just found out what it would be like to live inside a Lemon. And it is awful , revolting , and yes , even as sour as you may imagine. This was thanks to a husband and wife team who emptied a garage bag of ideas inside someone’s vacation condo and then declared themselves a success. The she of the duo calls herself a “Jersey Girl”, I am so sorry for those of you on the East coast. A bad association to live with.
HGTV , I don’t know if you are trying to help our Profession or destroy it. Help us by inflicting those awful images on your viewers of why you should run screaming to your nearest accredited Interior Designer. Or hurt us by convincing the public that by hiring one of us that this would be the bitter end result.
I have decided it would only be fair if HGTV would run a disclaimer before some of their shows. Something to the nature of , “The following show depicts uneducated , inexperienced , and ill trained non-professionals whose taste levels are questionable.” Or maybe at the end of the show flash to the way the room could have been if someone who truly was an Interior Designer had been given the same space to work with.
Here are some things a genuine Interior Designer will NOT do to your space.
1. We won’t paint your daughter’s
bedroom the color of raw lobster meat , and furnish it by rummaging through what has been left out for the Saturday morning trash collection.
2. We won’t act like serial killers with an artistic bent and duct tape your young son’s
headboard with sloppy colored stripes, while bragging about how no one has ever done this before.
3. We won’t install
black and white carpet squares in your living room in a parquet pattern that reminds us of why Op Art can give us vertigo , and what not to do when you are having Flash Backs.
The whole reason we learn the basic fundamentals of Interior Design is because you have to understand balance , unity , flow , variety , scale , proportion , color schemes , and yes , hopefully discover a sense of style and artistic talent. Forget about getting into budgets , health , safety , welfare , or any other technical consideration that goes into planning a space. These would be alien concepts to the drivel that is being vomited forth to the awaiting public.
So HGTV , I guess this is what you call entertainment , like watching plastic surgery on TV or slowing down to stare at a crash. It is a sick fascination , wondering how truly awful the revealed room will be. And it is UGLY people , just plain UGLY .
Please stop giving our industry a black eye , come on HGTV , where are the real Design Stars ?
All you have done is given me a lemon phobia , 
from now on I will be claustrophobic everytime I even smell a hint of that lemony freshness . No more lemonade , lemon chiffon pie or lemon slices in my tea. Bad design has a color now , and it ain’t mellow yellow.
Peggy Oberlin Interiors
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This is so true, especially the newly graduated students who are trying to break into interior design. This is why I don’t watch HGTV, instead, I fill my head with Architectural Digest, Veranda, and the many inspirational professionally designed interiors and just dream of someday becoming a sought after designer, not a decorator! This is a good example that the ASID needs to start advertising on HGTV. A good place to start educating the general public that there is a difference between horriable design and professional design.
Your best one yet, Peggy and totally on point. When do the real designers get to be exposed? I believe good design can be for everyone but these shows are certainly not going to help.
Peggy, darlin’….you couldn’t be more correct. Maybe you could write to HGTV and offer to make lemonade out of that sour mess! While these decorator game shows are entertaining for their train wreck taste, we should persuade all our clients & friends to ask HGTV to start showcasing accredited designers’ work.
just so bad , i covered my mouth in horror when viewing
Peggy,
I watched the same show and thought how did these people get their own national TV program? This really gives designers a bad name! I understand the concept of “no rules” but when it’s combined with “no taste or thought process,” this really is a train wreck as described above. Really do appreciate your insight into this and thanks for the blog.
yes , this was over the top bad design , I do not get it at all
Now now everyone, let’s not get too hasty. I’m waiting for a possible new show called “DRECK-ERATOR” where several of the “winners” of previous design shows get together to do an entire show house! Wouldn’t that be special?!
Too bad gimmicks trump strong design education and work ethic.
As you stated Peggy, interior deisgn is life time learning process. So I do watch HGTV because you do see some interesting products etc etc. I got home from school last night, I said to Janet my wife..OK now….. this is stupid, if that’s design I don’t want to watch it. So I swhitched the channel confident that we weren’t missing anything. All I can say is that was corny!!! As we were just saying yesterday; public awareness is needed here. Thanks for this great report Peggy.
Love your blog. My apologies for being a Jersey Girl!
my apologies that she bragged about being from there and tried to drag you all down , lol
This is why I adore and support you gals! You are the difference in great interiors. Not to take away from the Housewives sagas (although I really don’t like those either), perhaps we could suggest a show about REAL Tasteful Designs from SW Florida? You would be featured of course.
I have a hard time as well with some of the comments by the so-called Judges on these shows and/or the ones that judge what homeowner got the best for their money.
They comment on some of the dumbest things without knowing the criteria for the project and then come out with their own home furnishings line on HSN and the stuff is pitiful.
THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR BREADING! OR, EDUCATION! THIS SHOW IS REALLY LOSING IT —[ talk about brain drain] — UNBELIEVABLE.
I wonder if the poor clients have sued——