5 trends that must end in 2015

Here are five home design trends that need to be dropped along with that ball on New Year's Eve.

Mason Jars

Jars and flowers and wire and burlap and string and...lace for some reason.

I can't believe I'm actually talking about Mason jars in 2015. Enough. You are not a farmer's daughter, sowing seeds in the afternoon before slipping into a dress and improvising the decor for a wedding reception. We're not buying it. We've seen your Pinterest boards and know you've been planning this for months.

Also? Drinking glasses exist.

Keep Calm and Carry On posters

See? Even the joke versions of this poster are boring.

In 1939, the British government designed a series of posters intended to raise the morale of the public in the shadow of the Second World War. Millions of copies were printed, but they went mostly undistributed and forgotten until being rediscovered around 2000. By 2008, reproductions were everywhere. By 2009, reproductions were everywhere everywhere.

I'd be okay with Keep Calm and Carry On posters if I believed they were truly helping people keep calm. About anything. Since they've clearly lost their effectiveness, I think we're ready for what was once a cute novelty to step aside for something fresher.

White trim with beige walls

Life inside a catalog. A very boring catalog.

Okay, let me hedge on this one a bit: White painted trim is fine. We have a lot of it, too. But white trim with beige walls needs to be put out to pasture. We see it over and over and over. There's nothing special about making a home look like a dowdy Pottery Barn catalog. Try something new.

Stainless steel appliances and granite countertops

If you train people to like something, they will like it. And they will demand it on House Hunters.

There's nothing necessarily bad about stainless steel appliances - aside from how hard they are to clean - but there isn't anything special about them, either. At one time, stainless surfaces were the domain of professional appliances. That time is long gone, and, let's face it, most of us aren't professional chefs. We don't get the fascination people still have with them, and wish more appliance manufacturers would start rolling out new options. White, black, or, if you're so fortunate, color appliances often create more attractive, welcoming kitchens.

There's nothing necessarily bad about granite countertops, either. Aside from the maintenance and the gross colors and the ornate edges and... But it's time to consider other options. Quartz is tougher, soapstone is handsomer, and marble's unmatched for beauty over the long haul.

Tuscan style

Tuscany is not a suburb of Dallas. You don't have vineyards. You have an HOA.

The Tuscan style evokes a rustic, sun-baked aesthetic. Crumbling stone patios, simple wood furnishings with iron accents, terra-cotta tiles, textured wall finishes, and trompe l'oeil murals.

In short, it's hideous.

We don't know why it caught on at all, let alone why it took over half of Texas. The American interpretation of Tuscan style is nothing at all like Tuscany, but instead 25% Olive Garden, 25% Mexican restaurant, and 50% discount furniture. And 100% of it needs to go.

Agree that these trends need to end in 2015? Please share! Disagree with us? Let us know what you think is on its way out.

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