My pet peeve is ”dated” It’s used so often on here regarding kitchens, the cabinets, countertops, flooring, backsplashes, window treatments, etc. etc .

I'd love to see pictures of your home, Diana, if you are comfortable with that.

I was posting in another thread and used the word ”elevate”. Then I recalled this thread. 😂 I wish so many merriam-webster words were not appropriated and overused. Especially words that have been part of proper english for many many years!

Well I think because white trim and white walls are often a default that is not "color drenching", or shades of beige is not color drenching--that's just a dull room unless it is very carefully done, but if the walls and trim and drapes are all color matched or close tones in forest green or federal blue, it is color drenching because it's not typical for most people to do this. Although historically this was just called monochromatic. But "mono" anything has some negative connotations, from monotone to mononucleosis, so drenching sounds a little more exciting.

Yes, @Design Fan, so much cliched language. It's like a shorthand, and it's lazy writing, not so much for non-pros, but for those who write for shelter magazines and blogs. They should be more mindful of the words they choose.

@Aphaea, I have lots of photos of my home on my Houzz page if you take a look there. The projects "18th C. Dining and Living Rooms, Fireplace Mantel, Suburban kitchen, Hamptons Beach House, Master Bath Extension, Dining Room Update, and Screened Porch" are all mine. The other projects are for clients.

Haha, @palimpsest, interesting take on "mono"!

I also think people get tired of words used when they hear them a lot. Just like slang is in favor then out of favor and a song that stays at the top of the charts because people like it --and ends up being annoying because you hear it too much.

In any case, I don't think it's the same as "mob esthetic" or "modern farmhouse", (which are more "made up" than other descriptions are made up, in my opinion) drenching something with color is something that means what it says, and as a design style, I am not sure it is performative except in a very narrow scope of design, because not a lot of non-high design people do it, and it's hard to do well--It's not common enough to have become performative to a client. One sees it editorially, but one sees things editorially that one rarely sees in real life. And Jamie Drake was doing this 25 + years ago, it just was not called such, and I don't think it was performative in his hands because of the skilled way he did it.

Monochromatic is different from Color Drench because the latter also inclludes the ceiling and is primarily a painting techique which does not necessarily include the furnishings.

I am not sure that the ceiling has to be included by default to meet the definition, although the ceiling is frequently included. I think if you put Color Drenching and Monochromatic on a Venn diagram, there would be a significant area of overlap as well as separate color drenching and monochrome that are distinct from each other--I think it's a little fluid. I think there are a lot of variables. While the furniture may not be included in color drenching, if some elements other than the walls ceiling and trim are not included, it may meet the definition from a painting technique standpoint, but as a room, I am not sure it's going to be particularly satisfying. And if walls trim and ceiling in all one color --I have just seen lazy paint jobs that meet that definition, when it's more or less avoiding having to cut in trim and get a straight line on the ceiling if it's white.

I've painted ceilings and cutting trim is way easier lol.

What is "performative design style"? Just curious.

For show, to cause a reaction, to attract attention.

I remember Hildi from Trading Spaces. Furniture upside down on the ceiling. Real sand instead of a sand colored carpet. David Bromstad with his 2D/3D ocean wave as a contestant on Design Star.

Certainly an interesting topic at a time when nobody knows or will ever know who actually "wrote" what, about whatever! Was it Chat GPT? Some AI generated verbiage?

The challenge today, however one may choose the words to express a though, a look, any concept for anything? Will the reader understand ,comprehend, absorb....pick one.

I've been a bit M.I.A. here, for weeks. As background, I've long ago lost count of the number of far away projects I have seen to completion from a hole in the ground, to the last picture nail in a wall, without setting a foot in the residence. This one......is in a word, killer.

I've a client who must sleep away all the daylight hours, and is wide awake all the hours any normal human, even an insomniac, would be in bed. There is an hour time difference, which would appear insignificant but is anything but. It is not new build, not clean slate, it is renovate from " I scream Mc Mansion 2000" to something in between that and "modern" , to a cleaned up version of its overwrought ,clipped corner, angled this and that mess of what I would simply call design overthink.

The client rises for the day as I sit down for dinner and a glass of wine. The brain fog is in place on her end, and mine is just forming, given I have already been at it since 4:30 am.

There are the " oh, I didn't get two emails from you, I got one", with no mention of WHICH one was received. I have a contractor unknown to me, whose answer to everything while doing what appears to be nothing, is .........."Ten Four! "!

All of this is occurring in a home with three times the space this couple requires. Language?

Someone give me the words, any combination of words to explain yet again.....

" I do not care how ugly that buddy bath may be, you will never go up the stair in this home, i do not care you think the laundry room is too large, as you do not DO the laundry, nor do you prepare meals in that kitchen of hi/low cabinetry to be obliterated. You need the resources here, and not there. Every wall we touch is a chain reaction of flooring, electrical, trim, and more and I must save you from yourself, from 2000 miles away as you zzzzzzzzzzzzz."

Put it this way:

This is fodder for HGTV, in the most real world scenario one could ever imagine, There was supposed to be an email on my screen this morning, with a summary of the meeting yesterday with the contractor and our gal providing the Wood Mode kitchen I designed . There is no such thing on my screen this morning, so I am amusing myself here until I HEAR, which will undoubtedly be as I lift a fork or a glass, tonight. I will then attempt to decipher exactly what transpired .

Whooop! There it is as I type/ 5:45 am. The text is signal she has not yet gone to bed, Keep you posted as I tap , or do not tap. If I tap, we will be on the phone for an hour, until 6:45 EST. The plot thickens...............: ) !!!! lol

I hope I have no typo's here. You know how annoyed Diana B gets with dreaded typos!

>.......................I just tapped, See "delivered". Mmmmmm. Are we awake, or going to bed? Hard to say : )

Myunderstanding of color drenching is one color for all trim, ceiling and walls and almiost always a dark color , white is not IMO a choice for color drenching since that has been done to death lately.

Poor Jan, it seems like you have a tiger by the tail. Ooopps, my mistake, I think this entire post is about avoiding the cliche. Ha!Ha! Anyway, for your own sake, take a moment to do some slow breathing. Perhaps the 2000 mile distance is good, as it will keep you out of prison-ha!ha! I have a feeling you will manage this well and have a good outcome. I hope that things smooth out quickly for you on this one.

Timeless is the word on these posts that make me chuckle. Change will happen, trends will come and go. Good design will feel like good design for a very long time. New marketed trends fall away quickly. Good design encompasses so many things, but you feel it, when you see it. I can appreciate many different styles, when the design works.

Color drench doesn't bother me so much, but some people hate the word moist too. I think it is a descriptive term, but perhaps overused in the design world, just like the list that Diana made up above. I think that so much of our culture is about marketing, that promises so much more than it actually delivers (at least most of the time).

I think that Diana has a style that works for her. She has developed and grown it over time, and she doesn't need the flashy language. Why? Because the design speaks for itself. Good design is good art. It will resonate with many people for reasons known and unknown. Often words are inadequate in describing the feeling of a good design. There are principles that guide a good design, but then there is the execution. If it's truly good, it will feel like more than the sum of its individual parts. (I might just be making that up. I think I am a big feeler, so it feels that way to me.)

I think the mono conversation is funny too, as if mono is a negative term in and of itself, where actually it means one. Just FYI: most of the major religions of our time are monotheistic.

The walls and ceiliings in my house are monochromatic white, (which apparently is not color drenched-LOL), although aka boring and overdone according to many people on this site. My house would also be hard to sell according to some of the commenters on Houzz, because I don't have white or wood cabinets. And finally I have those fake, plastic quartz countertops that are so ugly and trendy, when "real" granite is the only way to go. (But if you can't afford granite, then get laminate or Corian, because those are somehow more "real" than quartz?) Opinions all, and people have a right to have them.

And yet, I am not concerned about those statements, because they are broad strokes that don't encompass the reality or specifics of what is my home. The design of our home is beautiful and it works, despite someone else thinking white is boring, or colored cabinets are trendy. We made design choices that not only please us, but that actually look beautiful together, and are so much more than white walls or colored cabinets. Our home takes consideration of it's surroundings, and light and shadow, etc. We have been away for a few weeks, and when I got home, it felt soooo wonderful to be here.

As Dorothy said, "There's no place like home."

What a fun thread!! Love reading it all. Unfortunatley, I have used some of these cliches to help soothe the clients's mind - mostly becasue that is what they are hung up on! I really dislike it.

I don't know what it's called. But make it country/farmouse/woodsy... put a barn door on it. Extra points for plank supports on the manufactured sheet wood. Bonus if it's contemporary/modern/urban stylized.

Oxymoron concepts in general. Rustic modern, country/farmhouse and urban, the two story open concept house in all white being cozy and personal, organic industrial. There's probably more combos that have come and gone that I have forgotten about, heh. Not everything is peanut butter and chocolate awaiting discovery.

But I do like color drenching when it's done well. Not just painted surfaces, but also those tones in the furnishings and details. A full spectrum of the tones, not just a monochrome. Kind of like old mansions and their parlors, or old hollywood when color became a thing... not just color, but drenched in it. Sumptious and enfolding. Fortunate or not, I think that concept of the word is not the current concept of it. And though I can appreacate the beauty it can be, I would not want to live in rooms that are drenched. It would be too overwhelming. I love color, but need a variety of it.

As an aside, this topic makes me think of something from work. The boss had brought in a stack of old wallpaper sample books from the late 50's, maybe into mid 60's. For scrapbooking use. But talk about drenching. You could order your multi-panel focal scene for one wall, the other walls of paper, the matching trim paper, matching fabric for your furniture, and a second one for your drapes. All in the same pallette. And offered in a few color versions like pink, blue, green, yellow. Some in oranges, golds, greys. Water paper.

Re "performative" it loosely means doing something for the sake of doing it, which is this case may mean doing these things regardless of whether it is the best solution or not for the space, but because it's the thing people are doing. I don't think it's the best use of the word here, because usually it connotes insincerity (like making an apology because you are supposed to but not meaning it) and might be difficult to define what insincere design is.

I personally don't like "one clown [in the kitchen]" as used in that forum to mean you can only have one striking element, and all the rest must be secondary to it (plain)" I don't like the expression and I don't particularly believe in that rule as a blanket statement.

I love the term color drenching. It is nice to have a phrase to describe a paint scheme that I have often employed.

The term "curated", other than by a museum curator, drive me bananas.

This week there was a dilemma; OP asking about the style of her home because she wanted to add a bathroom and keep it true. I was amazed at the responses..."who cares", 'no one ever asked me what style my house is", "you don't need to do that". My question was why would you not be interested in the history of your home, be it older, newer, a "monstrosity".. I remember the first time we saw a "McMansion" development, out side of D.C.,fueled by dot com and a BS degree in Computer Science. Each home was huge, on a tiny lot, indicating the wealth of the owner. As we know, money and taste necessarily don't relate. However, every build has its history, good or bad; the sign of the time which can't be erased.

As @Diana Bier Interiors, LLC points out, new terms, like "color drenching" is just a catch phrase for a paint application that has gone back centuries. Know the history.

I would agree this is a fun thread. And to Shakespeare's question, "would a rose, by any other name, smell as sweet?"

Perhaps instead of color drenching, a room may be awash in hue, enveloped in color, or encircled in chroma, or holding a singular complexion that encompasses the space. I am pretty sure, although descriptive, that none of those will ever catch on. Thus, that is why color drenching gets used a lot. It's a turn of phrase that is descriptive, memorable, and easy to say. I bet Shakespeare might have some better ideas. Generally speaking, you could just say, we want to paint the entire space including the ceiling in one color. I include the ceiling, because I would say that most people paint all the walls in one room one color, instead of having,...wait for it...a "feature wall". Oh no she didn't!

It's your turn now, try to come up with the next turn of phrase to replace color drenching, because mine are definitely all duds!

For me, it's the term "color way." I don't know why I have such a negative reaction to the term...what used to be know as plain old "color scheme."

Wow I am amazed at the thoughtful and interesting responses here!! This community really has some very creative and insightful members. It’s my favorite design site and nothing compares.

Wondering why our language is confusing to others?

Nobody has mentioned "saturated"

"Definition: Completely soaked or drenched (e.g., soil or a sponge that is full of water and can't absorb any more).

• Weather: Relative humidity measures how much water vapor the air is holding; if the air is 100% saturated, it cannot hold any more, resulting in fog or precipitation

🥩 Diet & Health

• Saturated Fats: A type of dietary fat that is typically solid at room temperature.

• Sources: Found primarily in animal products (beef, pork, poultry with skin, butter, and cheese) and some tropical oils (coconut and palm oil).

• Health Effects: Health organizations like the American Heart Association warn that excessive intake can raise LDL ("bad") cholesterol, increasing the risk of heart disease

🎨 Color & Markets

• Color: A color that is fully saturated is of maximum purity, vividness, or chroma, with no white mixed into it.

• Business: A saturated market is one where it is difficult to sell more of a product because the purchasing capacity of all potential customers has been entirely met.

• _——___________————______________________————————_______________

• Lets do drenched : )

1. Literal Meaning: Extremely WetAs the past participle of the verb drench, it describes someone or something that is dripping wet from rain, sweat, or being splashed. [1, 2]

• Example: "A sudden thunderstorm drenched us to the skin."
• Example: "His jersey was drenched in sweat after the game

2. Figurative Meaning: Saturated or CoveredIt can also mean to be completely filled, coated, or bathed in a substance or an overwhelming atmosphere. [1, 2, 3, 4]

• Example: "A sun-drenched field" (flooded with bright sunlight).
• Example: "A story drenched in tragedy".

Common Synonyms

• Soaked
• Saturated
• Sodden
• Doused

Popular Expressions

• Drenched to the skin: Completely wet all the way to your undergarments or skin.

• Sun-drenched: An area fully bathed in warm sunlight.

• Drenched in: Heavily covered or soaked in something (e.g., "drenched in blood," "drenched in flavor").

• Just FYI ?

• Right now, I am thinking of soaking, drenching, saturating my tootsies/toenails with a nice hot water bath of Epsom salts to relieve the bloat from sitting at this desk all day , yesterday. A sun drenched day it was, the first truly gorgeous day in I have no clue how long......

• Or I may save that for later as I become drenched in perspiration , wondering how the heck this project gets finished before I need a walker or wheelchair....lol

Newsfeed article today declares ”the days of minimalist-only are over”. Then goes on to decribe ”Joy Drenching”, which is a term I haven’t seen used before. It means to fill your kitchen with personality, style and color.

melindas, I have to laugh about "color way" and "color scheme". It's terms I hear a lot at work because it's used in jewelry making and scrapbooking. In making kits for something like a pair of earrings, the findings might be of different metal colors with a few "color way" variants of beads. So a handful of kits might have 3-4 "color ways". I hear "color scheme" more often with scrapbooking, meaning the overall color theme of a project.

In a bleedover, we have a couple of people that will bring in the years popular little paint sample books to pull color ways of things. I usually makes me wonder if people are wearing jewelry to match their outfits, or their houses. Or maybe they are making objects to go into houses. And why are paint swatches being used for outfits or jewelry.

I think it all started with industry determining what colors we all should use. Every paint company has a “color of the year” and some have even gone so far as colors of the month!! It’s all about selling/marketing. Did you ever notice if a color is in it’s everywhere? But if the color gods have deemed it out you can’t find ANYTHING in that color? So frustrating

Try finding the PERFECT shade of coral. Not rust, not peach, not pink, ..........I wish you luck !

Yeah, it's there @ 675.00 a yard : )

@Diana Bier Interiors, LLC so true about not being able to find ready-made pillows, etc. if one’s decor colors are ”out”!!! Very frustrating. Luckily I waited long enough and now that my colors are back ”in” I am refreshing everything.

LOL - i just saw the new (to me) term ”joy drenching” picked up elsewhere on my newsfeed.

I just LMAO at that one,^^ because I find myself saying exactly those words, every single day.

Awash with color, that's a fun one. I sometimes hear variant of that, like awash in blues or awash in pearls. And I like kimbers suggestion of awash in hues. Sometimes it's an abundance of pink or a gracious plenty of delicas. Sometimes people have to have a gracious plenty of pillows on their beds and couches, heh.

I hear saturation too. If a project is saturated with ceylons or dark tones. Or saturating a project by adding in additional smaller pieces to add depth to the larger ones. I guess that gets back to the OP. Sometimes a project is so saturated it becomes drenched.

"Sometimes a project is so saturated it becomes drenched." HAHAHA!

And most people misuse the term "saturated" when it applies to color. I've seen it refer to deep dark colors, when technically it means the closest to the pure hue, with no black or white or gray muting it. So bright blue/red/green/yellow/orange/purple.

Just thinking about yet another term that irks me--OPEN CONCEPT.

What's wrong with Open Layout??? Why is it a concept? Did this come from those 2 brothers on HGTV? A concept is an idea, an abstraction, so why would you describe a home with an open layout, which is a reality, as a concept, which is merely a thought????

As a self-described word enthusiast, these things bother me. Say what you mean and mean what you say. Clarity in language facilitates understanding and communication.

Im so old I remember when it was open floorplan.

^^^^^ Same!

Yep, me too. LOL

Aunt Thelma up there? I'm so old, I remember when there was NO SUCH THING at all!

Mom words: "What are you doing in the living room?! I just vacuumed, you see the lines, right? Go outside before I lock you in, and stay out of the KITCHEN"

Haha my mom’s favorite was “kitchen’s closed” after she cleaned up after dinner

And of course the ever popular “go outside and play “

Parents in those days didn't feel the need to entertain their kids.

"And of course the ever popular “go outside and play “"

LOL! Yep.

My boys learned pretty early on not to utter the words, "I'm bored." ;)

Very interesting. I love blue and white porcelain lamps and use them a lot in my designs. Not so much Moroccan lanterns, Venetian mirrors or Murano glass, but I can see that the craftsmanship and beauty is stunning.

@ Diana Bier Interiors, LLC Thank you! It’s always interesting to exchange perspectives with another designer. I’ve recently been experimenting with before-and-after transformations, and in one of my latest videos I completely reimagined the same living room in four different ways. I’d genuinely love to hear which transformation you prefer — it’s always fascinating how differently designers can envision the same space.

https://youtu.be/R-2ZyyBc6EY

PES, I very much enjoyed this video. I have always been attracted to the blue-and-white procelain. But I really love Moroccan lamps and rugs as well as Murano glass. I'm quite spare in my use of them but they bring me much pleasure. Thank you for an interesting time. I'll watch your second video this evening after work.

Because I’m a traditionalist I liked the Modern Classic transformation best.