Such a question is surely destined to ruffle some feathers.

My opinion is as follows. When you first see something in high end national shelter magazines, especially if you do not like it, it probably means it is very "IN". (we usually don't like things the first time we see them). Eventually you will see it in local design magazines, then in the homes of your most design conscious friends. You will see it again and again and probably start to like it. Then, when it makes it to Bed Bath and Beyond, or even Walmart, it is out or in its way "Out".

That said, very few people are aware of this "In", "out" process, and even fewer care. But there it is.

I wouldn't worry about it too much, because it can be quite costly to be truly au courant, and it is so damn ephemeral.

As for classics, I am not sure there really is any such thing , alas. I grew up thinking Queen Anne furniture was classic but a Queen Anne leg is the death knell to a certain demographic. Or the changes are subtle. For example, how can you go wrong with hard wood floors? Simple. If they are too yellow or orange they are out. My house had pickled floors when i toured it 5 yrs ago which i thought was hopelessly outre but is on its way back. Very dark floors are in now but , well, give it a few years! Even Persian rugs; colors and styles go in and out of fashion.

I think MntRdRedux has nailed it. I would also say that I think things that fit the house are closer to "classic" than anything else will be.

I generally avoid patterns that seem to have hit market saturation, ie they are at WalMart. Because at that point, I figure I will probably be tired of it soon. Otherwise I don't pay much conscious attention to trends except to be happy when my colors are in so I can find throw pillows and such more easily.

I don't think that something that has been recently trendy will be considered classic in five years even if it has existed for decades/centuries. Things go in and out of style (like Queen Anne furniture). If I were you, I wouldn't purchase quatrefoil drapes if I was concerned that they will look dated in a few years. They probably will.

The first time I saw quatrefoil was my parents kitchen flooring, probably original to their 60s house: avocado with dark olive. It was really interesting to see it recently popularized.

I'm trying to just do what I love and would enjoy for the long-run.

For me, a good way to identify the type of "classic" that appeals to me was to look at design history books.

I cannot get past Mtn buying curtains at Wal-Mart.......sorry!

See, Toriat, that is what I meant! You cannot discuss this without ruffling feathers!

I was telling Annie today I have a lot of Ikat and personally I think it is out out out. But most people I know don't even know what Ikat is, could not pronounce it if they did, would have no idea it was ever in, and heck, I like it.

PS Springroz. Detest Walmart for a multitude of reasons. Do not understand why Persil is sold there; I send DH!

Mtn, I've started seeing a lot of your corals and the dragon print around too...

the lavender and sage has been a real struggle for me to find, which probably means it will be everywhere next year...

toriat, if your drapes are inexpensive and you like the quatrefoil, then go for it. If however they are expensive, then skip the motif and go for a solid or a stripe....much safer if you're looking for longevity....

I bought our curtains from walmart....of course they are plain, thermal backed and a color that will hide all that construction mess..........and until I rid moms place of all the indoor spiders those curtains stay. My dad would have a fit when I would de-spider it since spiders are so wonderful in the garden (great but not in the house!!)

I think if you want a trendy pattern, get it on throws or pillows but otherwise look for what makes you happy not what is in this weeks trendy home mag. Just like most of us of a certain age are thinking "wait I just got rid of all the brass what do you mean it is back" Next thing you know it will be all about the queen anne legs. The metal coffee tables are hard for me to like, pretty sure I was happy to get rid of them the last time they went out of style. Same with all the tufted seats and backs, I love the look too, but remember how much dust they can hold and just how fun it is to sit there with a tooth brush and the vacuum. Tufted is something I would only do on something I would have no issue dropping off at the thrift store sooner rather than later.

Is it possible to be both classic and trendy? All the designs you mention are centuries, possiblyy millennia old. They have gone in and out of fashion many times since the first person thought them up. Are they trendy now? Are they out now? Are they any less classic for all that?

My rule, is buy what you like, whether it's "in" or "out", "trendy" or "dated". Everything at one time or another is one of those "things", so why worry about it? Personally, I think a home that has a mix of furnishings from different eras feels timeless, but then an all MCM home makes my heart sing too.
To each his own works for me. If you and your family like, go for it.
Angelo says it very well. The only thing is, I don't care at all about looking for ideas from others. I have my own ideas of what works for me. I know what I like. Period. Has that changed over the years? Sort of, but only in how our home looks. I've always did what I liked and not because it was what everyone was doing. In fact, if everyone else was doing it, you could bet I wasn't.

This is such a great topic. I don't know if anyone can really give you a definitive answer, but one thing I like to do when considering a big purchase is to look at vintage decor books and magazines, even old movies, and see what you can spot that is still "in". I still say buy what you love, but it helps to see the styles and shapes that seem to endure no matter what the current trends are.

Well, I think budget is a consideration. I make my own drapes so it's not expensive (except in time and effort) for me to swap them out. But if you're shelling out big bucks (whatever that means to you) for window treatments, then, just like other big ticket upholstered pieces, it pays to go more timeless and save the trends for the less expensive accessories.

Wait, they sell Persil at Walmart? Googling the nearest Walmart.

Anyways, I think the older I get the more I think I know what I like, but then, you really can't avoid being influenced by what's going around you. For ages I thought, I will never, ever like 50s decor, but then I see some MCM homes or some furniture pieces and think, I could live with those.... Or is it because it's MCM now and not 50s?

kswl2 ITA! I watched that clip last night and had to roll my eyes because I see lots of bad design here, executed by moi LOL! I think what he's saying is you should choose the decor you love, but it still needs to be designed nicely.

I guess it's fine for someone with a good eye for design to throw out the "rules"--they have the discernment to evaluate what works and what doesn't on their own. And I think that is where Angelo is coming from. But for those of us without that eye, rules prevent some egregious mistakes.

Yeah, sorry, I agree with KSWL. It might work for him, and for other design professionals, because they have innate sense of what works (they created the rules!).

Of course, it goes without saying, you can always just do what you love. But most people who seek out design information do so because they do not "love" the result of such non-advice advice. They want to make informed choices ... choices informed both by good guidelines and by "what they love".

ETA: Nosoccermom, Yes, exactly on the MCM. I freely admit. I am a design amoeba. I have no free will. Show me glossy pictures again and again and pretty soon I will want it, regardless of what it is. It is sad. Wanna buy some ikat? I got some Moroccan tile fer ya' too!

I think back to the decades I've lived through and one thing that seems to separate trendy from classic is whether the look feels contrived.

Examples would be bunches of drying herbs hanging upside down in a kitchen a la Martha Stewart in the '80's (guilty...) Tuscan style kitchens with faux grapes & vines hanging from the soffits in the early '90's (my MIL) collection of white faux antlers in the den of a New England colonial early 2000's (neighbor) and lately RH-wanna-be industrial looking cart-style coffee tables in suburban tract homes.

Things like this that elicit a "Hey, that's neat" when you initially come upon them in a design mag usually end up looking lame in retrospect when everyone starts copying it, and definitely not classic.

@mtn: Maybe we can tell ourselves that it's the classics from the 50s or earlier we love, like a real Eames or le Corbusier or Breuer and not the mass market designs they inspired. Then, of course, I love the "cheapo" pine farm furniture from the 18th, 19th century or earlier.

Eeek -- I can't edit my comment... when I wrote "bad design here" I meant, literally, here at my house. NOT here on the forum, the GOOD design advice on the forum is why I am an avid reader :-)

OK, but what if you had Scandinavian pine bookshelves before IKEA or even Scan? Or an industrial cart as coffee table before anybody else had ever seen these, and before RH or now World Market mass produced them?

Kind of like people wearing bleached or even torn jeans before you could buy the 300+ distressed designer jeans.

"Tuscan style kitchens with faux grapes & vines hanging from the soffits in the early '90's"

Lord, I had forgotten about those! What was that book some woman wrote about moving to Tuscany? I think she is singlehandedly responsible for that faux Italian / olde European nonsense.

mtn - I'll buy your ikat esp if you had a weak moment and fell for some color. In exchange, I'll do your Walmart shopping. ;)

Under the Tuscan Sun, by Frances Mayes?

" I am trying to figure out if they have become classics or are now dated."

They are classics that had a sudden move to the limelight ... and will go back to being classic real soon now.

Oh I forgot ogee and chevron on my list. I did not mention paisley or plaid or houndstooth as they are not having a moment.

I do like what Angelo says. Obviously if you are a design professional you need to work with a client and may need to follow or recommend trends or classics depending on the job. For the ordinary person I think what he says has merit. It won't always turn into a room that has a lot of appeal but at least the people living there will love it.

kswl2 wrote: I'll call BS on Angelo first, lol. There IS good design and bad design.

Very true Kswl2, but that's not what Angelo said. He told the viewer to go out there and look at the good and bad and then choose to use what they love in their own home. Though he said there were no rules, I believe he meant we shouldn't worry about them, but to do what makes us happy. And yes, some homes will look fabulous and some will look like pooh, but if the people that live in them love them, then so be it. We worry too much about what others think. What should matter most is to enjoy living in our homes, not worrying about what others perceive our homes should look like. Others don't live there.

Decorating a home, like how we dress or wear our hair, is truly personal. If we have to worry all the time about whether or not it's pleasing to others then we lose our creativity, the freedom to do what we love. In my book that's sad. If you think about it, if everyone followed that line of thinking, wouldn't the world be a terribly boring place? Everything would be uniform looking, (and I don't think even those with OCD like myself would be totally happy) music would all sound the same, all artist would paint what things literally looked like. The TV movie The Stepford Wives come to mind. The rule enforcers are the men in this movie. They have an idea of what is right and expect the women (those that like freedom to be themselves) to follow their rules, no matter what.
Sorry to everyone that didn't care for what Angelo said, but I think he's right in giving everyone freedom of choice to do what makes them sing, be joyful and love their surroundings.

I do very much agree with your comment that good design is not the same thing as trendy design. Never has, never will be in my opinion.

cawaps, like anything, rules can help one do anything better than without them. Rules are somewhat like instructions for putting something together. When written well they help and I believe most design "rule" are well thought out. My hubby can attest to my being big on following instructions, having often said to him "If all else fails, read the instructions." Which in the case of decorating ones home can help too. But they shouldn't keep someone from trying or even using something they personally like that doesn't follow the rules. I think Angelo's point was more about being fearless in doing what you love. To be creative. I'm sure the way he worded it gave quite a few other designers a lot to talk about.
I have to admit I take after my Mom in just knowing what is pleasing to most. But we have to remember that not everything pleases everyone. What one person thinks of as beautiful another may think is ugly. Discernment is in the eye of the beholder.

Melle_sacto, I knew what you meant.

Toriat, thank you! I'm glad I'm not the only one that got his point.

Pastels seem to be 'in' right now as far as color goes {just check on some paint store websites what the trending colors seem to be} , but I could care less about the 'trend' & love my vivid color. My house always cheers me up when I walk in!

"Oh I forgot ogee and chevron on my list. I did not mention paisley or plaid or houndstooth as they are not having a moment."

I just bought a Ralph Lauren paisley comforter set. It looks marvelous. I get joy from looking at it.

IDK but I love plaid and houndstooth and have been seeing quite a bit pop around in magazines this fall. Pillows, rugs and in fashion mags. Does that mean its out, out, out?

In trying to put together this last house I find I want rules. Need them actually. I have no problem throwing a bunch of whatever into a room and pronouncing it done. My DH is trying to rein me in. So when someone says look at the good bad and ugly then feel free to do what makes your heart sing, well, my heart sings a bit off key sometimes.

That and I like trendy stuff. Is there a 12 step for that?

I think context is a huge issue that hasn't been mentioned yet (or I missed it scanning too quickly).... but the whole tuscan grapes/european look is classic if you're in Italy. And it's why some of these patterns can look out of place and overly trendy down the line. I think it helps to stay true to your region, your home, and your lifestyle. And to not over do any one style... I live in an area where lots of homes are being converted to "craftsman bungalows" - but they are anything but and aren't fooling anyone by putting fat porch columns on a ranch style house. I love craftsman, don't get me wrong - but I don't think it makes sense to force a house to look like something it's not. Both inside and out.

The trouble with "do what you love," is that I love chocolate and I love garlic, but they don't work together. Not that either one is bad, but... (now someone is sure to come along and say they adore chocolate-covered garlic, but I hope you'll get my point.)

A wise person once said to me "eclectic is fine, but you want to stop short of hodgepodge." He was looking at my clippings of "things I like." I try to remember those words, but I probably should write them on my arm with Sharpie at times!