Your home might be your castle – but it seems some people are so embarrassed by their home décor that they will ban guests from visiting.
According to research by the House & Garden Festival, almost three-quarters (71 per cent) of people in the UK admit to being secretly unhappy with the state of their homes.
In fact, more than one in five people said that they are so embarrassed that they resort to banning guests from entering their homes at all. One in 10 people said that where they cannot shy away from hosting friends and family, they only entertain them outdoors in the garden, on the terrace or balcony, so guests don’t have time to ruminate on their indoor surroundings. Others go to further extremes to avoid their interiors altogether with one in 100 people admitting that they find their décor so unbearable that they will often make up excuses not to go home at all.
But it seems that we are always on the lookout for more home decór ideas with almost one in 10 people admitting that they actively snoop around in the homes of friends and family for design inspiration. And many are quite the budding interior stylist with over a quarter (29 per cent) of people saying that one of the skills they most would love to master is picture-perfect interior styling.
When asked what was holding them back from refreshing their interiors so they could love their homes once again, almost a quarter (24 per cent) of people quoted the hassle of having to go from shop to shop to get everything they need. More than one in 10 (14 per cent) said that the lack of ideas and knowledge about the latest design trends means they remain stuck in the past, while a similar number, more than one in 10 (13 per cent) said that they can never decide on anything suitable hence the continual procrastination.
Luke Potkin, show manager of the House & Garden Festival said: “Despite being very house-proud and having good intentions for refreshing our decór, many of us just seem to be stuck in a rut. A lack of inspiration and accessible advice, coupled with busy schedules and the hassle of journeying to all the necessary shops means that most of us never get around to updating the décor that causes us so much unhappiness and embarrassment. Our homes are our havens – it’s important that we feel comfortable in and are proud of our décor, as so much personal time and social entertaining is spent indoors.”