6 Tacky Home DIYs That Instantly Make a Home Look Bad, According to Contractors

There are also certain home designs that can give the home a dated or tacky appearance, like using too many fake plants or putting up ‘word art’ signs everywhere. To ensure you don’t make a mistake when deciding on your next job around the home, we spoke to an expert in the home construction and renovation industry to find out what tacky home DIYs make a home look bad and what projects you should take on instead.

Painting Countertops to Look Like Marble

There are a few cheap, DIY jobs you can do to quickly cover up cracks, scratches, or fading surfaces, but it’s important to note that these fixes should always be considered as temporary until you have the time or budget available for a proper upgrade.

One such DIY quick-fix is painting your countertops with paint that is designed to mimic the basic appearance of marble.

“Painting your countertops to look like marble rarely recreates the natural veining and appeal of real marble convincingly,” says Dustin Wince, Director of Estimating and Preconstruction with BOLT Builders. “And if you aren’t an artist it can easily look cheap.”

Instead, you can try refinishing the countertop, or if you have the budget available, replace the countertop entirely for a high quality look.

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Shiplap and Wood Boards

At one point, it was common to see shiplap and wood paneling in just about every home, but those days are long since past. Now when a home has extensive wood paneling throughout the basement and main floor, it simply looks cheap.

“It makes the home look bad because it can feel too busy or it distracts from other architectural features,” Wince says. “And if it isn’t done right will be an eye sore in your home.”

It’s much better to put up finished drywall, then choose a suitable color of paint and simply paint the walls. Not only is this much easier to accomplish, but it will make your home look more appealing, instead of cheap and tacky.

Peel-and-Stick Backsplashes

Adding peel-and-stick backsplash tiles to your kitchen should be seen as a temporary feature that can help cover up cracks, fading, or other damage in the short term.

Wince says that peel-and-stick backsplashes are “going to look bad because the tacky design will draw your eye to it for the wrong reason and make your home feel like it was a cheap renovation that an amateur worked on.”

These finishes should never be put to use as a standard option for the home, but rather as a placeholder until you can find the time or put together the budget to hire a pro to install a new backsplash.

Actual tiles have a significantly different appearance, due to the texture of the tiles, so anything that tries to simply mimic this look typically falls short.

Faux Brick or Stone Wall Panels

From a distance, a faux brick or stone wall panel may accurately mimic the appearance of the intended material, but the closer you get, the easier it is to tell that it’s a simple pattern applied to wood paneling.

The biggest issue is that these panels don’t accurately portray the depth and texture of real masonry materials.

“Even if you like the style, over time it can look cheap when the painted panel surface starts to chip. It also will scratch or fade easily,” Wince says.

You can always paint the walls and ceilings with any color you choose, but if you really want that brick or stone look, then save up and invest in real masonry finishes for the home.

Overly Themed Rooms

While you or someone in your home may love a particular theme, when it’s plastered all over a room, it can quickly detract from your home.

“Anything like a pirate room or jungle room can look more cheap and tacky than cool and stylish,” Wince says. “It usually comes across as gimmicky and can make the room feel chaotic or overwhelming.”

This isn’t to say that you can’t have personal touches in your own home, just that these themed upgrades should be blended with the existing aesthetic, rather than taking over the space.

For instance, you can add tasteful art or decor that represents the themes you want to display without investing in themed furniture, themed lighting, or themed wall murals. A little bit goes a long way, while a lot can feel overwhelmingly cheap and overdone.

Plastic-Veneer Furniture

Plastic-veneer or laminate furniture has been touted as a quick, effective way to improve the look of your home decor.

“If you do it wrong it’s going to look sloppy and like it was done as an after thought, making the room look unfinished and cheap,” Wince says.

There is also a high chance that the plastic or paper will peel, scratch, or fade, leading to further issues with the appearance.

Instead, invest in high-quality furniture, or if that is outside of your budget, consider painting or staining the furniture for a more attractive finish. You may also want to switch to metal-framed furniture, which can be easier to paint and refinish, and will often be cheaper the high-quality wooden furniture.