Decorating
How to Master the Art of Making Kitsch Cool
Are kitsch and cool mutually exclusive? These interior spaces prove they can, in fact, be bedfellows
Kitsch (adj): art, objects or design considered to be in poor taste because of excessive garishness or sentimentality, but sometimes appreciated in an ironic or knowing way.
Cool (adj): fashionably attractive or impressive.
The definitions of kitsch and cool place the adjectives at opposite ends of the spectrum but, as these interiors demonstrate, kitsch can be cool and cool can be kitsch. All it takes is a little knowhow, imagination and creative confidence. Here’s how to master the art of making kitsch cool.
Cool (adj): fashionably attractive or impressive.
The definitions of kitsch and cool place the adjectives at opposite ends of the spectrum but, as these interiors demonstrate, kitsch can be cool and cool can be kitsch. All it takes is a little knowhow, imagination and creative confidence. Here’s how to master the art of making kitsch cool.
Be colourful
This multi-coloured palette of carpet tiles includes blues and greens with orange and pink. While the bright colours may clash, the white walls and furniture are simple and restrained so as not overwhelm.
This multi-coloured palette of carpet tiles includes blues and greens with orange and pink. While the bright colours may clash, the white walls and furniture are simple and restrained so as not overwhelm.
Be contemporary
A kitchen can go from kitsch to cool by ensuring the execution of the overall concept is still contemporary. The lines and curves in this kitchen are reminiscent of an American diner and complemented by pastel colours and warm lighting. But with clean white surfaces, timber flooring and plenty of natural light, this kitchen keeps it cool.
A kitchen can go from kitsch to cool by ensuring the execution of the overall concept is still contemporary. The lines and curves in this kitchen are reminiscent of an American diner and complemented by pastel colours and warm lighting. But with clean white surfaces, timber flooring and plenty of natural light, this kitchen keeps it cool.
This kitchen is a similar throwback to the mid-20th century but with a clearly contemporary interpretation. The pastel colour palette is pure post-war America when products and spaces expressed the optimism and prosperity of the era. But mixed with timber joinery, clean lines and a functional layout, the kitchen is as cool as a cucumber.
Browse more kitchen photos
Browse more kitchen photos
Be restrained
One standout neon sign, whether contemporary or vintage, can add a cool touch of kitsch without being over the top. The key here is to be restrained. Keep everything else natural or neutral and let the sign illuminate the space with light and colour. In this room both the sign and the sideboard are standout features and everything else is kept minimal so as not to detract from either piece.
10 signs you’re addicted to kitsch
One standout neon sign, whether contemporary or vintage, can add a cool touch of kitsch without being over the top. The key here is to be restrained. Keep everything else natural or neutral and let the sign illuminate the space with light and colour. In this room both the sign and the sideboard are standout features and everything else is kept minimal so as not to detract from either piece.
10 signs you’re addicted to kitsch
Various vintage pieces are offset in this bathroom with a red neon ‘hotel’ sign above the industrial trolley used as shelving. Together they add a gritty feel while still being cool and contemporary.
Be nostalgic
A trio of flying fowls screams middle-class suburbia. First produced in 1930s in England, the ceramic collection was an affordable and popular home decor item that secured its iconic status in the post-war era.
A trio of flying fowls screams middle-class suburbia. First produced in 1930s in England, the ceramic collection was an affordable and popular home decor item that secured its iconic status in the post-war era.
Today, choose contemporary models or go full out with a vintage set but make it cool by keeping everything else warm and modern.
Flying birds on wall: Little Salon
Flying birds on wall: Little Salon
Be fun
If there is one animal associated with kitsch it has to be the flamingo. As the name of luxury hotels, and as a pink plastic garden decoration in the 1950s and 1960s, the flamingo has long been associated with leisure and fantasy.
So how to help the flamingo migrate from kitsch to cool? In this case, keep it black and white instead of plastic pink. Then kick up the cool factor with another bright colour such as sunshine yellow.
Fresh twists on your favourite interior fads
If there is one animal associated with kitsch it has to be the flamingo. As the name of luxury hotels, and as a pink plastic garden decoration in the 1950s and 1960s, the flamingo has long been associated with leisure and fantasy.
So how to help the flamingo migrate from kitsch to cool? In this case, keep it black and white instead of plastic pink. Then kick up the cool factor with another bright colour such as sunshine yellow.
Fresh twists on your favourite interior fads
Be creative
Powder rooms are often a space of restrained decoration due to their limited size. But because it’s a space that people don’t spend much time in, why not be creative?
This bunny bathroom has Hutch wallpaper by artist Hunt Slonem for Groundworks. The trio of gold frames breaks up the black and white illustration and creates pictures without actually incorporating more artwork.
Powder rooms are often a space of restrained decoration due to their limited size. But because it’s a space that people don’t spend much time in, why not be creative?
This bunny bathroom has Hutch wallpaper by artist Hunt Slonem for Groundworks. The trio of gold frames breaks up the black and white illustration and creates pictures without actually incorporating more artwork.
Be courageous
This powder room is likewise creative and courageous. However, in this case it is the frame itself, not what is within the frame, that grabs attention. A rainbow of fantastical fluoro frames are affixed over a wall and complemented by the colourful blind above the window.
This powder room is likewise creative and courageous. However, in this case it is the frame itself, not what is within the frame, that grabs attention. A rainbow of fantastical fluoro frames are affixed over a wall and complemented by the colourful blind above the window.
Be tongue in cheek
Kitsch can also be cool when it’s obvious there’s a laugh to be had. This trompe l’oeil wallpaper evokes a bookshelf in the bathroom. The Bibliotheque wallpaper by Brunschwig & Fils is by Richard Lowell Neas, an interior designer and decorative painter known for his murals.
Tell us
Have you made kitsch cool? Share your moves in the Comments section.
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Kitsch can also be cool when it’s obvious there’s a laugh to be had. This trompe l’oeil wallpaper evokes a bookshelf in the bathroom. The Bibliotheque wallpaper by Brunschwig & Fils is by Richard Lowell Neas, an interior designer and decorative painter known for his murals.
Tell us
Have you made kitsch cool? Share your moves in the Comments section.
More
Browse more design ideas
The floor is doing all the talking in this graphic bedroom. Carpet tiles lay the groundwork for a courageously colourful room, and the modular flooring system means you can mix and match colours based on personality and preferences.
This bedroom has a monochromatic colour palette of of shades, tints and tones of red that bring the floor to life. It’s complemented by Pop Art posters and vividly patterned cushions for extra punch.