15 Design Mistakes That Make Your Home Look Cheap

There’s a reason interior design is considered an art form. The right design can transform a boring space into something out of a magazine. Just as incredible design and decor can make your home a work of art, the wrong vision can make your home look outdated, tacky, and cheap. The key is knowing all the most common design faux pas, so you don’t make your house look cheap.

Some common design mistakes that make homes look cheap include bad lighting, heavy and outdated curtains, and bare walls. Mass-produced and word art can also look tacky, as can too much matching or trendy furniture. Avoid oversized furniture in small spaces, and choose the right size rug for each room. Avoid popcorn ceilings and basic light fixtures, and swap out fake plants for real ones.

No one sets out to design a room to look cheap, but it happens frequently. When designing and decorating a room, remember that the amount of money spent doesn’t determine how regal a room looks. It’s all about balance and choosing the right items for the right spot. To ensure you never design a cheap-looking room, read the list of all the design mistakes that make your home look tacky.

15 Design Mistakes That Can Make Your Home Look Cheap

1. Bare Walls

One way a room can look cheap is if it’s under-decorated. If your home has many bare walls, it can look cheap and unfinished. When the eye has no interesting art and decor to enjoy, it can wander to other places.

This is when people notice an overall lack of style or find flaws that would otherwise go unnoticed. A bit of decor on the wall can go a long way in making your house look more en vogue.

2. Mass-Produced Wall Art

It’s crucial to remember that while bare walls don’t look great, some wall art can do more harm than good. Mass-produced wall art, including word art, can make your home look unnecessarily cheap and tacky. 

Large screen prints with sayings like “Home Is Where The Heart Is” or “Live, Laugh, Love” are tacky and outdated. Avoid unframed posters and anything generic. Everything you have in your home should have intention and tell a story. Otherwise, it will come across as insincere, and it won’t make the room look any better.

3. Bad Lighting

Having the right lighting can completely transform a space. It can make a drab room look warm and rich. Bad lighting, however, can make a clean room look dirty and dismal. 

To avoid a dreary, dirty, and inexpensive vibe in your home, you must focus on lighting. Avoid fixtures or bulbs that are too harsh. They will cast strong shadows, which is undesirable.

Try to capitalize on as much natural light as possible, and fill in any dark areas with warm lighting using various methods.

4. Too Much Matching In One Room 

You don’t want furniture to clash. That can look tacky and haphazard. At the same time, if everything in your room looks too matchy-matchy, as if it was all ordered off the same page of a catalog, then it can look cheap.

Instead of choosing identical colors and furniture sets, opt to tell a story with various pieces that complement each other. A room where everything came from the same store, and is all the same color, looks lazy and doesn’t elevate the look of a room.

5. Popcorn Ceilings

For several decades, popcorn ceilings have been out of fashion. Yet you still find these unsightly ceilings in homes all around the world. It’s understandable, as it can be hard to remove popcorn ceilings on your own. 

Still, it’s worth considering if you want to elevate your home's aesthetic. It can take time and money to change your ceilings, but if done right, it can potentially increase the value of your home a bit.

6. Basic Light Fixtures

Just as you don’t want bad lighting, you also don’t want basic and outdated light fixtures. Not only do most basic light fixtures give off less-than-ideal light, but they also look cheap and tacky. 

Remember that eyes gravitate towards light, which means people notice light fixtures. New fixtures don’t have to cost much money at all, but they can make a room look more expensive.

7. Too Many Knick-Knacks

It’s important you control your hoarding tendencies when you decorate a room. If you have a lot of treasures from your travels, or lots of art you’ve made and collected, remember you don’t need to display all of it.

Instead, choose your absolute favorite knick-knacks and place them strategically. You can always swap them out seasonally. Too many small pieces everywhere can make a room look tacky, old, and unkept.

8. An Unnecessarily Large Entertainment Center

Huge entertainment centers were almost a symbol of status decades ago. Nowadays, however, technology is much smaller and streamlined, and there is rarely a need for an entertainment center.

Stereos are nothing more than speakers, and TVs are mounted on the wall. Unless you have a very specific need for an entertainment center, then resist the urge to buy one, and try to get rid of your current entertainment center (if you have one).

9. Too Much Trendy Furniture And Decor

When you first move into a home, it can be very tempting to fill it with all the latest styles of furniture, and in the current trendiest design. While this can temporarily make your home look like a fancy hotel, it’s important you remember that trends change quickly.

Unless you plan to redecorate your home every few years, you should avoid buying too much trendy furniture and decor. Instead, opt for pieces that are practical and that you know will suit your aesthetic for many years.

10. Outdated And Heavy Curtains

Curtains aren’t just for privacy and controlling light. They can also make a strong statement. While in some cases, this statement is luxury or simplicity, in other cases, curtains can give off the wrong impression.

If you have old or overly bulky types of curtains, consider swapping them out for new ones that elevate the look of your room. This easy change can make a huge difference.

11. The Wrong Rug

Rugs almost always add to a room. The key is choosing the right type of rug and the right-size rug for each space. A rug that’s too small or too full of color and designs can take away from the space rather than add to it. There is a delicate balance between showing too much bare floor and not enough.

12. Oversized Furniture 

When you shop for new furniture, it can be tempting to choose the biggest and most plush pieces available. If you have a ton of space, then this should work fine. But if you have limited space, oversized furniture, including sectional couches, can make a room look cheap and crowded.

Choose furniture that is utilitarian, comfortable, and suits the size of your room. Once you have found furniture that fits these criteria, you can then focus on the design of each piece.

13. Glossy Or The Wrong Color Paint

Choosing the right paint for your walls can impact how cheap or regal each room looks. High gloss paints can look decent in bathrooms, but usually look tacky and cheap in other rooms. It’s usually fun to have a colorful accent wall, but too many bright bursts of color in a room can border on tasteless, so be careful when selecting your color palette.

14. Fake Plants

With so many low-maintenance houseplants that can tolerate limited sunlight, there is no excuse to fill your house with plastic plants. Fake plants can make just about any room look cheap. Sure, there are a few higher-tier fake plants that look real, but you should opt for real plants whenever possible. They have health benefits and can add a burst of life to any room. 

15. Clutter And A Lack Of Organization

Lastly, remember that in many cases, less is more. You’d be surprised how much nicer and more expensive a room looks when it's tidy and there’s no clutter. Opt for a less busy design scheme where it’s easy to keep things organized, and there’s no risk of clutter.

Summing Up Design Mistakes That Make A Home Look Cheap

No one sets out to make a house look cheap, and yet it happens all the time. If you plan to redecorate a room any time soon, there are some common design mistakes you should avoid. Don’t buy mass-produced artwork, and try to avoid bare walls and popcorn ceilings. Choose the right type of paint for your room, and ensure you have quality lighting and light fixtures. Buy the right-sized furniture and rugs to fill each room, and keep the clutter to a minimum.

Related Guides:

• 10 Ways To Buy Furniture And Home Decor On A Budget
• How To Choose The Right Color Scheme For Your Home
• How To Pull Off The 70/30 Design Rule