wall decal overkill? [survey]
ok, after the dVider email i got yesterday i decided it was time to rexamine the wall decal trend. counting that email, i've gotten over 40 emails over the last 3-4 months with new wall decals from start up companies. some have been stunning (domestic, le louisettes) but others have clearly been an attempt to hop on the wall decal band wagon and make a quick buck off the trend (the giveaway is when a company is founded in august of this year and puts in their press release, "we decided to join the decal trend"). so i thought, i wonder if anyone else is getting sick of the trend? then i figured, why not just ask? so i set up a little SURVEY to see what you guys thought of the wall decal trend. in? out? too early to tell? cast your vote HERE and i'll put the results up tomorrow. have fun! [wall vinyl above, which i love, by walldesign. ps: the press release i'm mentioning wasn't dVider's]
Labels: windows and walls
posted by design*sponge @ 20.9.06
32 Comments:
what i find most funny? the prices. with one afternoon of web research and phone calls, and a few hours fiddling with illustrator, i had some designs i think would make nice decals, and i had found materials and suppliers, and knew how to have things custom made.....for a little less money than, say, buying the same crap everyone has from blik.
CREATIVITY, PEOPLE!
Overkil or not, that one in the photo is atrocious
OVER THEM!
And I'm over birds, baroque, mid-century and tree prints while we're at it ;)
-carrie
OVER THEM!
And I'm over birds, baroque, mid-century and tree prints while we're at it ;)
-carrie
I used to work at a sign shop a while ago, and I can tell you exactly how they're made.
They're cut out on a vinyl plotter with a program I believe is called Omega. If you go to a local sign shop, and give them an Illustrator file, you can easily have your own wall decals too. The vinyl is 13" wide, which is the only restriction. I would suggest creating a design yourself, or go another route with purchasing some EPS sets from You Work for Them or other EPS providers.
The only thing that companies like Blic have is a nice color selection of vinyl, but you could probably look around long enough. We ended up purchasing some patterns from Blic, which were totally a rip once we saw that we used to create these things all the time. In fact, when I was in college I had vinyl wall stickers that I had made on my wall, only if I had thought to act on it.
The good ones are good but the schlocky knock offs are annoying. I wish they'd make some peel on and off wallpaper for those of us who can't glue on our rental walls.
Trish
OVER THEM!
And I'm over birds, baroque, mid-century and tree prints while we're at it ;)
-carrie
Ditto, Carrie! So very over the flora/fauna, bird/animal thing. It's not original anymore, people. Hasn't been for years. Let's move on please and thanks!
And I agree - the wall decal thing is getting overplayed very quickly.
- Ann
i agree with trish, the time spent designing so-so wall decals could be better spent making some beautiful temporary wallpaper, though preferably out of something other than vinyl.
but i am also SO over it. i could never imagine putting one in my home. some are cute from a design perspective, just as the illustration or graphic, but it feels like it would make my home feel like a retail store or something. i dunno, i never got into it.
it will be interesting to see what the poll shows...so far 60% are OVER them. i think some of them are fantastic, i just don't want to see any more pop up companies jumping on the bandwagon unless they have something new and fresh to offer. please, no more bird decals. please?
d*s
I'm not quite over wall decals yet, because I'm still waiting for a design that I just can't live without. Nothing thus far. Have to admit, when Blik first came out I did buy some (Sweet 16 dots) and enjoyed them until I moved. But since then I have not seen any designs that really interest me. And I agree - the Baroque thing is played out already.
Temporary wallpaper is an awesome idea!
all I gotta say is that I was waaay excited about them because I live in an apartment AND I'm too lazy to paint & repaint UNTIL I moved and peeled my blik birds off my wall and they peeled all the paint off and the birds were in no way reusable. This defeated the whole damn purpose and I was pissed! I haven't even seen yet how much the landlord will take out of my deposit for that crap...
I'm SO glad this debate is going on. Do we really need another wall decal company? Seriously...
Chen
Uh! I've been over the wall decals for the longest time. In fact, I've been over them since the first person OTHER than Blik decided to design/sell them. Don't get me wrong, I love wall decals...hell I have some on my wall right now but I HATE that they've gotten so popular (wow I'm a snob). So I'm staying true to Blik and saying "I'm so sick of wall decals, unless they're from Blik!" Ok that's all I have to say. :)
i love looking at the motifs on offer with all these sticker designers as they can be inspirational.
believe it or not the bird thing is still breaking here in the UK - as we havent had it so long, people are yet to tire of it.
hmm, not really over it. I hate how things become new and then are over in a month. In the design conscious word the idea is no longer new, but many people still have no idea what they are. I just moved into an apartment in brooklyn where I am not allowed to paint, so it seems like a solution to white walls. Ive thought about making my own in stead of buying them. Who knows. Its sometimes exhausting how things come around and are decent ideas and then everyone is doing it. But sometime, somewhere the decorative throw pillow was invented, now look at how many throw pillows there are. Maybe its a trend that people are marketing on. I say if you like how it looks in your home, (over or not) put it up.
"Ditto, Carrie! So very over the flora/fauna, bird/animal thing. It's not original anymore, people. Hasn't been for years. Let's move on please and thanks!"
Me too!!! I'm not so much over the animals but I am very over the flowers and the whole screenprinted and sillhouettes thing. But I can't really seem to get away from it. And I have a feeling it won't begin to fade away any time soon. I'm so ready to move on to another gigantic trend.
not over it! it's just a medium, a way for people to be decorative, and i don't fault anyone without time or graphic design skills for wanting to cover up a big, blank wall. it is just one dot on the continuum between folk-art stencils and full-blown wallpaper.
it seems people are more annoyed at the speed that trends happen these days. web retailers (like me) and design bloggers (like grace) are both the problem and the solution, as are modern manufacturing techniques, easy shipping across the country, etc.
and p.s. - there is someone making temporary wallpaper but isn't a very cheap process yet.
I knew the bright floral silhouette thing was over when I saw them on throw pillows in Walmart (a couple of months ago). And they looked just like the ones I'm seeing all over the design blogs still. At this point I can't imagine putting something like that on my wall. I'd love to see something fresh, though I do appreciate seeing ideas disperse quickly enough to be feasible on the cheap.
i think it's pretty funny that someone would put "we've decided to join the decal trend" in their press release. uh, thanks for announcing that! press releases should say something newsworthy, not "hey we're doing something everyone else is already doing!"
as for trends, i've stopped writing them off. everytime i say, "i'm of sick birds/deer/silhouettes/whatever"--someone new comes along and revamps a trend in a way that knocks my socks off. i think if you can take a trend and throw in some personal creative exploration--it can totally work. but if you're just out to regurgitate, don't bother.
i'm actually not waiting for the next trend, i'm waiting to see who the next style-maker is going to be...the next j.adler or k.wearstler!
Love them. Wall decals give renters and those with commitment issues a chance to add some spice to a bland wall. Just because something becomes popular doesn't mean people should stop liking it. It's popular for a reason.
If it is good design, shouldnt it transcend the trend?
check out rosenthal porcelain, i have a set called "maria" designed about 100 years ago. they still carry it today..and is soooooooo modern. THIS is what i call a good, lasting old trend...forget about wallpaper...what about an affordable coat of white paint...
alright guys the survey is officially closed and the results are pretty interesting :)
thanks for your thoughts and i look forward to (and welcome) seeing companies who can advance the wall decal look without simpling piling on to what already exists. the idea isn't a bad one but when companies pop up to make what already exists, but just in a different color or slightly different style (and for the same price) it gets a little clogged. the market, that is.
ok, stay tuned for results :)
d*s
Rule of thumb. Buy it cause you like it. Not cause it matches your couch.
sorry i've been out of town and missed your survey...if it still counts, i guess it's like wallpaper - perhaps here to stay....but i do agree would be nice to see a fresh design.
I think they are in still...just the creative ones. See a company called slicksticks.com. These guys are actually real artists. Some of the designs are kinda basic, but they also have some very creative stuff. The best I've seen so far really. I especially like the army men one.....bought it a week ago.
"So very over the flora/fauna, bird/animal thing. It's not original anymore, people. Hasn't been for years. Let's move on please and thanks!"
"I am very over the flowers and the whole screenprinted and sillhouettes thing"
I don't understand: over nature? over screenprinting? broaden the category enough and everything's 'over'. by these arguments the 'flora/fauna, bird/animal thing' has been over since before civilization because that's when the 'trend' started. to dismiss anything under such a vast category seems as unsophisitcated to me as jumping on the trend [for the sake of it] in the first place.
Not to sound like another "snob," but as Blik has reached Urban Outfitter middle america buyers, I feel more of a need to search for something a little less commonplace for my walls??
http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/shopping/product/detailmain.jsp?itemID=24398&itemType=PRODUCT&iMainCat=336&iSubCat=303&iProductID=24398
ah too bad I missed the survey. I'd have to say they are still in, well, at least in this part of the world where I live in.
Believe it or not, there are still a lot of other ppl who don't even know what a decal is, or how to apply it. And these ppl are also big spenders on furnishings. I know this because I supply decals to stores here.
I don't think we could ever get away from flowers/birds/animals thing. They are the typical designs that appeal most to a huge, I said, huge market. So it's no surprise if more and more decals appearing in similar designs.
Just go with whatever decal design you like, don't bother about the trend. Your home should reflect your own personal flair.
I work at a graphics company that does vinyl signs. As previously stated, you can make your own by bringing in a custom image as a vector file.
Our plotter goes up to a 3foot width and can usually run about 7-8 feet in length before going askew. Plus, if you go to a store you can make sure to request low tack vinyl.
I'm not really over them at all! I just bought my first house and can't wait to design my home with custom vinyl graphics! Of course...I am a graphic designer, so I won't be buying them from anywhere... :) I'll be making my own...
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