To ask how often you change your furniture & decorate

[Stripyseagulls]

I’m a lazy cow/ not particularly motivated by home furnishing trends. I have nice stuff but I tend to replace when it breaks!

My friend redecorates & buys new furniture/ sofas every 18 months to stay up to date with trends. She loves all the Instagram stuff/ posts her house pics etc.

I feel like I slob but I literally can’t be arsed! Apart from the expense; I can’t be bothered to treat my home like a lifestyle magazine. I would rather go out to the park with the kids to be honest or going on holiday!

Aibu to feel like a shabby slob though?! How often you revamp everything?

Almost never. Currently sitting in a room we haven't ever painted and we moved in fifteen years ago. Same with carpets - never changed them. Would love to but it costs so much to redo a house and there's always something holidays I'd rather spend my money on.

Haven't bought new furniture for about ten years. The sofa I'm on is so tatty it has throws chucked over it to hide it.

Why does repainting your walls & changing your sofa = having a modern house

I think she means more "up to date with the latest trends" than modern. We've just replaced our incredibly dated bathroom for a new one. When choosing shower, tiles and so on it was all about what looks good, but also what looks timeless and won't date quickly. Because I don't want to be feeling in 5 or even 10 years that the bathroom is oldfashioned. It's a huge waste of money and wasteful in terms of resources too. We are not on such a tight budget that we couldn't afford to do the work, but it's so totally unnecessary.

On the other hand if you slavishly follow the design trends decided on by the retailers and bought that grey crushed velvet sofa with mustard yellow cushions two years ago, it's looking dated. Because it was what i'd describe as "trendy trendy" rather than just modern.

I hate "trendy trendy" houses. They are so lacking in individuality and style, all the owners do is copy someone else's ideas and buy what's in the shops. I have far more time for houses which reflect the owners' personality. So much more heart and soul in them, even if the owners' style isn't the same as mine.

Same as you, OP.

DP and I disagree on many things, but two things we do agree on are a dislike of throwaway consumerism and that neither of us has any interest in interior decor whatsoever. In theory, we probably should redecorate and update, but in reality neither of us gives a toss, we can’t bring ourselves to replace stuff that isn’t worn out or broke and we both have better things to do with our leisure time.

We’ve lived in this house for ten years. The kitchen and lounge have been repainted, in exactly the same colours as previously!

The sofa has been replaced, because the old one was old.

Bedrooms have been re-painted also, and two have changed colour.

We still have the same curtains that we brought of the previous owners!

I never buy new furniture. Ever. I buy antiques as they are much better quality and usually cheaper than new.
I usually buy second hand white goods though I did buy a new gas cooker recently because I couldnt find one to fit the space. But I bought my washing machine for 30 quid. It was less than 2 years old but was being old because the owner had decided on a new colour scheme
I'm not a recycling nazi but it does seem a massive waste or resources as well as time and money
If you like the furniture you have, cherish it and pass it on to someone else when you are done.
And spend the money on something meaningful

I'm really house proud and decorate and cushions or colours every 3/4 years. But I buy second hand furniture and sell things on. I spent years upgrading cheaper items but always sell on.

It's nothing to paint a room or change wallpaper and that's what I would do every 3 or 4 years to keep things fresh and because I enjoy it. I would fir instance, get out cushions I had 10 years ago in my bedroom to use somewhere else so my own stuff becomes new to me.

Op, your friend is being extremely wasteful but it's not a choice of doing little like you and changing furniture yearly. There's a whole lot of space in the middle between you and your friend.

I suppose it depends how much stuff you have anyway and how much spare room you have to move stuff too, decorating in our house with all the furniture and DH’s bookcases full of books is a major operation but I suppose if your house is fairly minimalist it is quite easy to decorate every few years.

@OtraCosaMariposa every 2 yrs seems really excessive though imo. I used to work in fashion & magazines & it normally takes at least a few seasons for a trend to actually become a trend. Think of how long grey & subway tiles have been popular. Although that poster may be just using the Pantone colour of the year as inspiration I guess.

I'm the same as you & think most people want a timeless, classic look. Rich people spend a lot of money on interior design that looks like it evolved over a number of years!

When I had my first flat which was about 1000 sq feet, not terribly high ceilings and no intricate paintwork I painted it all myself when I moved in.

Five years later I bought a house, about 1450 sq feet. High ceilings, walls that needed relining, deep stairwells. Beyond my scope. In 1986 it cost me about £1000 to have the 12x27 living room stripped, relined and painted. £450 for a repaint five years later. The carpets were £2500.
Seriously, where do you get the money from and why waste it?

Still plodding on through house 2 after 9 years. We're replacing some of the cheap "starter furniture" some of which is 20+ years old. If something is still good, we pass it on/ sell it on. Some things like a "dark wood" chipboard stereo cabinet were a bit too passé for function and current trends and just simpler to take off to be recycled.

The old house was done up over more than a decade. Some rooms were redone, mainly because they were getting tired or some were rush jobs such as painting over wallpaper. They were then redone properly including replacing aging original carpets. The whole house was perfect to us for a glorious 5 months before we moved on sooner than expected!

Big projects like kitchens and bathrooms, we've never had long enough to need redoing, and want a long life from. Our kitchen probably looks dated already, but to us it's warm and homely. We choose things for comfort, function and to look homely to us, not fashion. We did replace a sofa suite after about 6 years as it was just too soft for the comfort of our backs and sold it on as it was otherwise still good. The current one would never grace pintrest or instagram, but our backs love it which matters far more!

We've had the same bedroom furniture in 3 rooms and our dinning table for 16 years. TV/stand is still our first flat screen telly and around 9-10 years old. Our bed is 15 years old (mattress is newer), ds's double bed about 3 yrs as old one was done/too small..

Sofa are around 10 years old and due a change as very saggy and a bit grubby now.

We buy when things are broken or well worn.

I'm too lazy to even change a colour scheme by repainting, using accessories etc, replacing furniture every couple of years is very wasteful.

Your friends sounds like she has more money than sense, is bored, is bonkers, or possibly all three. It is her money and her choice I guess. I dont follow trends and decorate rooms the way I want them - so they get a refresh when needed but that’s all. Just had my bedroom and music room repainted in pretty much the exact same colours because i like them! Have replaced furniture when it needs it or if I am changing a room round and the current stuff doesn’t work anymore in the new style. I have gone through 4 coffee tables in my front room because I keep changing things - but that’s over a twenty year period. When I get rid of a piece of furniture, it goes to a local charity for those who need it. I find changing small details makes a huge difference - throws for sofas, different styles of tie backs for curtains, new light fittings etc. Each to their own - it’s your living space and should be a joy to be in.

This is an interesting thread... I am really surprised that some people say that their furniture, paint, etc starts looking tired and shabby after only a few years. I have always bought furniture in the assumption that it will last me for my lifetime, unless it’s a cheap item that is being bought as an interim measure...

I tend to paint walls when needed (not that often!) and update small th)nags on an ad hoc basis - e.g. might buy a new rug to replace an old scruffy one, some new cushions, etc.

I've never heard of anyone who replaces their sofas after eighteen months as their norm, is there more to this? Because that's highly unusual.

I tend to be given furniture that others are no longer using, or to buy it second hand. In my entire house, I now realise, there is only one thing I have bought new- an ornate side table. I have also inherited some furniture I love.
None of this is virtue, just haven't really had the money to buy new furniture plus, as with clothes, I find I can get much better quality second hand.
I do love interior design though and enjoy reading about it and buying the odd sparkly bit of crap from Home Bargains and co.

I got sofas from IKEA. I can change the covers if I ever feel like a change of decor or when the kids ruin the ones I got

The sofas are staying for at least their 10yr guarantee. I refuse to have them less than a decade! Our last ones were 12yrs old and went to someone we knew starting out in first house. They're still going strong and would still be here but they didn't fit into our lounge now.

Isn't it generally the aim to buy furniture that you never replace?

cue the virtue signallers being horrified about the enviroment...

It's not 'virtue signalling' though. It is genuine surprise from most people, that anyone buys furniture items, only expecting to keep them for 2 years or less. Don't get me wrong, I happen to love my tumble dryer too. I use it because the benefits to me, in my life outweigh any concerns I have about using it. I also drive and I rather like flying off to the sun once every 2 - 3 years. I also eat meat an no doubt do all sorts of other things that a true environmentalist would disapprove of. But I can't be doing with 'waste' (of anything) when there is no point to it / no advantage to be gained, as there is with the things I do do that might not be environmentally sound. It is that which I think many of us can't get our heads around.
So, using a disposable nappy is a darn sight more convenient and esy than a washable one, so, although they end up in landfill, it is easy to understand why most people make that choice at a time of their lives when they are exhausted. But just replacing something that isn't 1/10th of its way through its lifespan, for no gain, is what is puzzling.

New sofas 19 years ago but had some of the leather replaced last year. Lived in current house 28 years and have decorated each room 3-4 times

Depends on room/ furniture etc. But as a rule every 20 years unless paintwork is looking particularly shabby then as little as every 5 years

My furniture is pretty much all Ikea. Over ten years old (I'm early 30's and bought it when we were starting out) and still going strong. A bit of wood glue was needed when we moved bits around but that's all. I hope not to replace them at all, although that is optimistic.

As for painting, I've done the whole place once since moving in.

We have lots of furniture from IKEA too.

I can certainly see the bookshelves and storage lasting forever.

The dining table unfortunately needs replacing after 10 years due to water damage warping the surface. Things like that I'd prefer to swap for solid wood versions. May still be from IKEA!

We ought two cheap sofas when DS was born (18 years ago) from MFI (remember them? ). We fully intended to replace them after a few years when our DS was through the ‘messy’ stage - but they are still absolutely fine, covers can be washed in the washing machine.

We offered to buy our DS a double bed when he showed us that he could keep his room tidy, as he hasn’t, we haven’t needed to buy the bed.

We have been in our current house about 10 years, half the rooms have been decorated since we moved here, I would love to repaint the sitting room but such a massive task I can’t face it, am hoping to find a decent decorator.

I do love flicking through Home Decoration magazines, but it all seems such an effort to re-do your home all the time, as well as such an expense and waste of resources.

*Isn't it generally the aim to buy furniture that you never replace?g

Well no, not usually. I can't perceive when I bought my first sofa it would do me for the next sixty years or however long

We generally change sofas about every 10 years or so. They are what I would call mid range cost £500-£1k type sofas