It’s back! Love It or Hate It, our beloved panel game where interior designers sound off on everything home, was back in action at this year’s LEGENDS. Hosted by Chairish co-founder Anna Brockway and One Tree Hill alum Sophia Bush (who just so happens to be a major Chairish fanatic—“It’s three am and the orders from me are just coming in. Literally.” she says), this year’s panel was full of first-class tastemakers with serious design cred.
Sharing their thoughts on everything from open shelving to hanging pot racks were Nate Berkus, Jeremiah Brent, Betsy Burnham, Sarah Sherman Samuel, Nathan Turner, Mary McDonald, Georgia Howe, and Mat Sanders. Needless to say, discussions were lively and opinions were fierce. So, what exactly were designers thoughts on aforementioned pot racks? We’ve rounded up the designers’ thoughts on 12 of the year’s hottest trends.
Kitchen
COLORED KITCHEN CABINETRY: 8 LOVE, 0 HATE
“It does depend on the color. I love green—but not for cabinets.”— Georgia Howe
OPEN SHELVING: 7 LOVE, 1 HATE
“Where do you put the ‘I Love Dad’ mugs and the sippy cups?!”— Anna Brockway
“I would argue they’re more utilitarian. They’re either a place to display items the homeowner has collected or things that are important to them.”— Jeremiah Brent
BUTCHER BLOCK COUNTERTOP: 6 LOVE, 2 HATE
“I like that the more messed up it gets, the better. I’d even like an old, rotten block. That’s probably unsanitary, but it’s fine.“— Nathan Turner
WHITE SUBWAY TILE: 6 LOVE, 2 HATE
“I would like it to take a break and come back at another time.” – Jeremiah Brent
“It’s like vanilla sorbet…There are better options that are more interesting at the same price now.”— Nate Berkus
HANGING POT RACKS: 4 LOVE, 4 HATE
“It’s literally hanging clutter! Clutter on your floor or your table is bad enough, but you’re going to hang it from your ceiling?!“— Sophia Bush
Bedroom
QUILTS: 6 LOVE, 2 HATE
“There are all these beautiful layers to it. My grandma used to make quilts and they were so personal… I’ll sometimes switch to a quilted blanket in the summer.”— Nathan Turner
NEEDLEPOINT PILLOWS: 6 LOVE, 2 HATE
“I needlepoint everything! I needlepoint footstools. My dad used to needlepoint.” – Betsy Burnham
TOP SHEET: 5 LOVE, 3 HATE
“Wow, this is very controversial. My question is, where do you put your monogram?!”— Anna Brockway
BOOKS DISPLAYED SPINE IN, PAGES OUT: 4 LOVE, 4 HATE
“I have this in my house right now and I’m going to defend it, because people are like, ‘those books never get read!,’ but they go up after they’re read. I’ve read them all, but I’m not a double reader!”— Sarah Sherman Samuel
Bathroom
ANTIQUE BRASS HARDWARE: 8 LOVE, 0 HATE
“A + for brass. Everyone who just renovated their bathrooms is like, Thank God!”— Sophia Bush
VINTAGE RUNNER IN THE BATHROOM: 8 LOVE, 0 HATE
“I like a rug, but not an old chenille thing with baubles hanging off it.” – Mary McDonald
“It’s a runner, so you can roll it up and drop it off at the dry cleaner. Easy.”— Nate Berkus
COLORED BATH TOWELS: 3 LOVE, 5 HATE
“We don’t have colored towels in our home. We like a white towel, personally. Right? Do you still like white towels?” – Nate Barkus (following the couples’ opposing views on a surprising number of trends)
“Yes.”— Jeremiah Brent
Photos by Lily Glass