Little Known Interior Design Mistakes That The Property Brothers Say You MUST Avoid
Since 2011, The Property Brothers have helped homeowners
transform their living spaces. These are the blunders that they want to
ensure you steer clear of.
Few property experts are more visible than The Property Brothers.
Together, Drew and Jonathan Scott have helped dozens of homeowners transform their properties as part of their hit TV show Property Brothers.
But that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
The brothers have managed to leverage their property talents into a budding media empire. Beyond their main show, they’ve also appeared on Buying & Selling and Forever Home.
They pitch their skills against each other on Brother vs. Brother and they’ve even expanded into working with the rich and famous with Celebrity IOU.
We’re not telling you this because we want to write an article on The Property Brothers’ TV credentials.
Instead, we want you to see that Drew and Jonathan have seen and done it all. With well over a decade of working in property behind them, they know all about the mistakes people make with interior design that prevent them from selling their homes.
This article shares some of the mistakes that The Property Brothers say you should avoid.
Mistake #1 – Allowing Clutter in the Foyer
It’s easy to let stuff pile up in your foyer.
As the entrance to your home, it can often act as a dumping ground for all of the things you don’t want to take into the house. Coats and shoes can pile up alongside bags. And eventually, the foyer starts to feel like an obstacle course that you have to navigate to move further into your home.
Of course, allowing this to happen is a mistake in terms of having to navigate clutter. But The Property Brothers point out that it’s also a mistake that leads to a false impression of your home.
In one episode of Buying & Selling, Drew told a homeowner what his cluttered foyer really said:
“All you’re saying in this house is, ‘There’s no storage, there’s no room.'”
This is the last impression a seller would want to give to a potential buyer. By clearing up the clutter and making your foyer appear bright and airy, you create a much better first impression. The foyer will look larger, which translates to the rest of the home.
Mistake #2 – Hanging Art Too Low
In 2019, The Property Brothers wrote an article for Better Homes & Gardens. Among the issues they highlighted as being common in the homes they’ve worked on, they pointed out one in particular that always bugs them…
Hanging art too low on the walls.
As they explain:
“When it comes to artwork, we'll often see it placed way too low on the wall, and then there's this giant void of space above it.”
That void of space creates a false impression of the height of the room. The viewer’s eye is drawn to the upper edge of the artwork before anything else. By hanging a piece low, you’re wasting space while making it seem like there’s less space to use.
Interestingly, the brothers point out that people have a habit of doing the same thing with curtain rods. And again, this creates the impression that the room isn’t especially tall.
In both cases, the solution is a simple one…
Hang them higher!
Mistake #3 – Focus Only On What You Can See
As interior designers, our first focus tends to be aesthetics. We want to design rooms that look fantastic and make people feel happy to spend time in them. However, The Property Brothers point out that focusing only on what you can see is a mistake.
Why?
Jonathan provides an example:
“We always recommend a bathroom membrane system, which goes under tiles to prevent them from popping and cracking, and keeps water from getting into the substructure.”
Attractive décor also needs to be sustainable.
By losing sight of the underlying features and systems you can install, you may reduce the lifespan of anything you add to a property. In many cases, what you can’t see is crucial if what you can see is going to stay in good condition.
Jonathan sums up his point:
“I tell clients, 'if you're spending $15,000 on a bathroom, spend an extra $1,000 to guarantee you'll never have a mold problem.'”
An investment into what you can’t see today may mean you spend less time fixing what you can see tomorrow.
Mistake #4 – Poor Timing
We all know the feeling when we step into a room that needs a little work…
We want to get started on it as soon as possible!
As it stands, the room feels like an eyesore that you just want to close the door on. By jumping straight into fixing the problem, you could have a space that’s ready to use in a matter of weeks.
And that’s usually the case.
However, there are some times when it’s better to wait before fixing up a room. According to The Property Brothers, renovating while you have toddlers in your home can be a recipe for disaster.
Why?
You fix something up…
And your little one may just find a way to break it.
Their advice is to wait until the kids grow up, as Drew explains:
“Now, you fix the place up, and they're not going to trash it like they would when they're 1-year-old.”
Ultimately, this mistake is born out of a desire to fix a problem. Before you jump into designing a new room, ask yourself if the time is right. Sometimes, it’s better to wait a little so that the room can last longer. The same advice can apply if you have a pet that you’re still training. As long as an occupant in your house can damage something without understanding its value, it’s best to hold off.
Mistake #5 – Believing Money Solves All Design Problems
In one episode of Buying & Selling, The Property Brothers worked with a homeowner who’d made the brave choice to hang wallpaper that had an extremely bold pattern.
The homeowner’s justification?
The wallpaper cost a lot of money so it must be good.
But that isn’t the case. As Jonathan explained to the homeowner:
“Just because you paid a lot of money for it doesn’t mean it’s the best for the space.”
This applies to everything you might use to decorate a room. Obviously, paying more should mean that you get better quality in terms of sturdiness. But even an expensive piece may stick out like a sore thumb if it doesn’t suit the mood that the rest of the room conveys.
Before splashing the cash, always take some time to ask yourself if you’re making the right decision for the room.
Mistake #6 – Buying Rugs That Are Too Small
In their article for Better Homes & Gardens, the brothers highlighted another issue that they see far too often:
People buy rugs without considering whether they’re the right size for the room.
The most common mistake is to buy too small a rug that just sits on its own in the center of the room. In their article, The Property Brothers explain what size a rug is supposed to be:
“As a rule of thumb, when it comes to area rugs, at least all front furniture legs should fit on the rug. This grounds the space and makes the room feel more cohesive.”
So, if your rugs don’t do this, they’re probably breaking up the design of the room.
What if that’s the case for your room?
The good news is that you don’t necessarily have to get rid of the smaller rug. Instead, you can place it on top of a larger one to create a nice layered effect.
Mistake #7 – Following Trends
This is a mistake that people commonly make when designing their kitchens.
Instead of going with something attractive, regardless of trends, they just follow what everybody else is doing. Of course, this means the kitchen can end up looking bland and uninspired. But there’s another issue that Drew highlights when talking about this mistake:
“The bolder your kitchen, the quicker it will go out of style, bringing down your home’s resale value.”
Some aspects of trends, or fads, can allow you to accentuate a room. But if you follow them fully, the room loses its sparkle when the trend dies down.
The key advice here is to design something that has some personality while avoiding the bold choices that trends tend to try and force onto people. You can take a small piece of an idea and turn it into something you own, rather than taking the whole idea and turning it into something that people will get bored of.
What Mistakes Are You Making?
Do any of the mistakes shared here sound familiar to you?
Perhaps you’ve made one of them when working with a client. Or, you’re a homeowner who has to hold their hands up and say they’ve allowed clutter to get the best of their foyer.
Whatever the case may be, you at least know what the mistakes are thanks to The Property Brothers. And that means you can get to work on fixing them.
That’s where we come in.
At Duke Renders, we take your design ideas and turn them into photorealistic 3D renders. That means you can see what your ideas will look like before you take the first steps towards transforming a room.
We’re waiting to help you fix up your space.
To find out more, BOOK A STRATEGY CALL WITH US TODAY.
