Whenever I do a Q&A, one of the most common questions is “Do you have any design regrets in your house?” I usually pause before answering. Despite a few renovation missteps, overall I’m happy with the choices we made because they suit the house we live in now.
Many decisions were intentional trade-offs: I saved certain favorite styles and pieces for a future home where they might be a better fit or where we would live longer. Still, after living with some choices for a while, there are a handful I would reconsider. None are disasters, but given an unlimited budget (and a chance to do things differently) I’d change them. Here are the ones that stand out.
Our Black Fence
We chose a black stain for the fence because it was the most affordable, durable, and straightforward option when we updated the backyard. To match new and existing sections we could either paint or stain dark. Painting would have required more upkeep and labor, so a dark stain felt sensible.
While I love how the plants stand out against the black backdrop, the overall darkness is more than I would pick now. In hindsight I might have painted it a lighter color and accepted the touch-ups over time. A lighter finish would have felt less heavy and more in tune with the sunny yard.
Wallpaper Near A Kid’s Toilet
This one makes me laugh now. The tiger wallpaper we installed is gorgeous, but placing wallpaper so close to a child’s toilet wasn’t the most practical decision. Add to that the rushed prep work—we didn’t smooth and level the wall properly—so the result looks a bit uneven.
I’m leaning toward removing the wallpaper and painting the wall a coordinating blue to tie in with the tile. I’ve thought about a limewash for texture, but durability and cleanability around a kids’ bathroom are concerns. If anyone has experience with limewash in high-use bathrooms, I’d love to hear about it.
Waiting To Decorate Our Most Lived In Room
We put off finishing the living room—the room we use the most—for far too long. Other areas needed immediate work or furniture, and we squeezed in pieces from our previous home to get by. For two or three years the layout was awkward: you often walked straight into the back of a couch when entering the house.
That makes hosting awkward and gave a poor first impression of the space. Next time, I’ll prioritize and finish the rooms we actually live in day to day before tackling lower-use areas.
Not Committing To A Room’s Purpose
Our second bedroom is huge and sun-filled, yet after nearly four years it still isn’t a fully functional space. We kept changing its intended use—master bedroom, guest room/office, nursery, then a craft room—so it never settled into one practical role.
I wish we had committed to a purpose right away instead of trying to anticipate every future possibility. That indecision meant wasted potential in one of the best rooms in the house. Lesson learned: use the space you have for what you need now.
(The photo above is from when we staged the room for a collection launch—look at that natural light!)
White Walls That Are… “Too White”
We selected a bright white for most walls, which felt fresh at the time, though my taste has warmed slightly since. After testing various whites (always do that when choosing paint!), I recently used Dunn-Edwards’ French White on a desk and loved the subtle warmth it added.
I still love white walls, but next time I’d likely choose a white with a touch more warmth to avoid the starkness that comes with very bright whites.
Decomposed Granite in Our Backyard
We added decomposed granite to break up the expanse of turf, despite my brother advising otherwise. He was right: DG isn’t pleasant to walk on barefoot, and it tends to look messy thanks to weeds and debris from surrounding trees. It requires more maintenance than we anticipated, and for our family it’s become low on the list of usable surfaces.
I also bought a fire pit without checking reviews thoroughly and ended up disappointed in its performance—another reminder that a little research goes a long way. I still appreciate how the area visually separates the yard, but decomposed granite is unlikely to feature in future landscaping plans.
Photos by Jeff Mindell
What about you—do you have design regrets in your home? Which choices would you change?
If you’re curious, I also shared my biggest design wins in the house if you’d like to read about the things I’d absolutely do again.