What Was the Worst Decorating Trend from the Year You Were Born?
Rose Heichelbech
The ’50s were the beginning of space age patterns and modern furniture. There’s so much to love about this decade in design, but there were a few bad eggs among an otherwise interesting and aesthetically pleasing time in home furnishings.
1950 – Very Low Sofas
Via/ Library of Congress
1951 – Grey Oak
This color of furniture was a hit when it came out. But, it went out of fashion quickly- probably because it didn’t coordinate well with the many other wood pieces in people’s homes.
Via/ Internet Archive
1952 – Hard Sofas
Unfortunately this trend hung around for quite some time. A function of the design of this style of sofa was that the seats were extremely hard, and as the sofa aged the springs were intimately felt. Scratchy fabrics often accompanied the hard seats, adding to the tragedy of a sofa that looks great but feels terrible.
Via/ Internet Archive
1953 – Tchotchke Shelves
Via/ Flickr
1954 – Shell Chairs
Much like the hard sofas of the era, these chairs often looked elegant but felt awful.
Via/ Flickr
1955 – Sofas Longer than Cadillacs
How long does a sofa really need to be?
Via/ Library of Congress
1956 – Color Block Interiors
This design statement made many a room instantly busier. While not a bad concept on its own or in a minimalist setting, often too many colors were added to a room which already had an abundance of hues.
Via/ Flickr
1957 – Bright Yellow
Via/ Flickr
1958 – Pink Kitchen Cabinets
This is a love it or hate it type of decor. Some of us would love to have a pink kitchen today, but most would probably err on the side of caution. In the example below it’s the mix of colors that really makes the kitchen seem a tad overboard.
Via/ Flickr
1959 – Cuckoo Clocks
Via/ Flickr