Remote working has continuously increased in popularity since the turn of the millennium — especially during the current 2019 Novel Coronavirus pandemic — and so has taking on do-it-yourself projects from home, as people are designing and redecorating their interiors down to the last exquisite detail…
Top 10 Cities to Take On Do-It-Yourself Home Projects in the United States
…and the best way to show off your amateur home design these days is via technology and social media, as staying home has become the new “going out.”
The #DIYhomedecor hashtag is alight with decorating trends, maverick ideas, and all the satisfying before-and-after pictures you desire — but where in the world are these divine interiors hidden? More importantly, which home décor styles are trending right now?
Instagram was scoured for every #DIYhomedecor image with location info attached. Where these home décor photos were taken was analyzed — as well as which design trends the amateur home designers of Instagram are using the most. As a result, a lovely map and gallery were created to help you navigate on your search for inspiration for your new home look.
This article from Budget Direct highlights the top hot spots where home décor styles are trending at the moment.
I have been given express written permission to use the illustrations, photographs, and the verbatim text from the aforementioned article in this article; so let us take a break from the news of the day and virtually visit the top ten cities in the United States to take on do-it-yourself home projects for a little fun in our lives.
The Wide World of DIY Interior Design
The map of #DIYhomedecor hashtag usage illustrates the Instagram amateur decorating hot spots in the world. Zoom in and out to explore your region, and hover over or tap the hot spots for more details.
London, England, is the world capital of #DIYhomedecor. 961 Instagram photos taken in London were found using that hashtag. But the U.S. is the land of amateur interior design. America has a total of 26,476 images next to second place U.K., which has just 5,055 posts.
In Australia, DIY seems to be an east coast thing! Melbourne (141 posts), Sydney (127), and Brisbane (100) are the cities where the most homeowners are taking on the challenge of decorating their home by themselves. Queensland is the number one state for DIY home décor, with 320 posts in total.
The top #DIYhomedecor trends & design styles
The hottest amateur home décor trends and styles were identified using the #DIYhomedecor hashtag. By style, we mean the overall look of a DIY makeover. For example, Modern is the most popular style, and Vintage is second place. A home décor trend is a detail, technique, or feeling that has caught the imagination of the home-decorating masses. For example, macramé textiles are the number one DIY trend at the moment, and hygge — a Scandi sense of coziness — is also in the top 5.
Scroll through the images below to reveal Instagram’s hottest DIY trends and styles and learn a bit more about what each hashtag means.
1. Macramé
A key retro 1970s look, macramé can trace its roots back to 4,000-year-old Babylonian and Assyrian braiding techniques. Macramé is a fun way to create curtains, blankets etc. from your material of choice (hemp, yarn…) using a range of special knots.
2. Bottle Artwork
#Bottlecraft is a cheap and creative way to utilize all those empties in the kitchen. Use fabric, glass pebbles, sand, even a kiln to make anything from a country-style vase to a full electric table lamp.
3. Hygge
The Danish concept of #hygge — or coziness — has gone truly international. And as the outside world gets less inviting, the allure of hygge continues to grow. The comfort and simplicity of rustic detail is the surest route to a hyggelige home.
4. Chalk Paint
Chalk paint is a matte, water-based paint. You can easily add a ‘distressed’ look for a vintage, farmhouse-style look. Use it on walls, or as a trendy way to breathe new life into tired furniture.
5. Paper Craft
The simple, homely appeal of the top 5 #DIYhomedecor trends concludes with pure child’s play. There’s an online tutorial to teach you to fold anything you can imagine, from hanging paper mobiles to origami table decorations.
1. Modern
Interiors in the modern style look great on Instagram. Clean lines and a keen use of natural light create a bold, simple, geometric image. Every piece of furniture looks like it was precision-engineered to perfection.
2. Vintage
‘Vintage’ applies to any look that makes use of styles, materials, and objects of yesteryear. Some vintage-inspired DIY projects focus on a single decade. The real art is to mix-and-match eras without ending up with a junk shop look!
3. Rustic
You can achieve the rustic look primarily through your choice of materials. Wood, burlap, copper and stone add that farmhouse feel. Reclaimed materials and upcycled objects evoke the ‘make-do-and-mend’ spirit.
4. Boho
Bohemian style is the laid-back, eclectic look that won’t die. Handcrafted pieces (time to learn macramé), expressive outlines, and far-out patterns will transport you to the 1970s Greenwich Village loft space of your dreams.
5. Cottage
Cottage style pairs the minimalism of the modern look with a rustic-style ‘lived-in’ patina. Your imaginary cottage is a holiday home, so hide the clutter of daily life, make it bright and airy, and add pillows and throws wherever you can.
The Top 5 rooms Instagrammers are Decorating Themselves
The kitchen is the most commonly DIY-decorated room on Instagram. We found 21,296 #DIYhomedecor-tagged posts set in kitchens. The garden and bedroom were a pretty close second- and third-place with around 17,000 posts each. The bathroom is in fifth place, for those Instagram photographers lucky enough to have a ‘smallest room’ big enough to get a decent photo.
Kitchen
The Instagram kitchen lends itself to a rustic aesthetic. The smell of baking is heavenly against a setting of exposed wood. Traditional equipment like an Aga stove will help you enjoy the full experience, melding lifestyle and aesthetic together. There are so many details to fix in the kitchen that it was the clear ‘winner’ of most-decorated room by over 3,000 posts.
Garden
The garden is a blank canvas where the hobbying DIY-er can try things out and tinker to their heart’s content. Chalk paint breathes new life into garden furniture and walls and can give an urban yard that cottage getaway feel.
Bedroom
The bedroom should be a comfortable and restful place. It’s a good spot to try out your macramé skills, adding a sense of softness with a woven headboard, for example. 17,640 bedroom-themed posts were found from Instagram’s amateur home design community.
Living Room
Your living room style will depend a lot on the make-up of your household. Instagram’s family homes proudly display their kid’s paper crafts in the living room. The modern look works well for sophisticated urban singletons and couples but quickly loses its edge with messy young’uns around.
Bathroom
A tiny bathroom is a DIY décor challenge. How to fit all your ideas in and make it look bigger while keeping the smallest room usable? Instagram is the place for inspiration, and the popular modern style is a sensible way forward due to its efficient use of space and tendency to look wipe-clean hygienic.
Methodology and Sources
500,000 Instagram posts tagged with #DIYhomedecor were analyzed to find out where in the world each post came from — then the geo-location data was sorted into country, city, state, region, and province to create the visualizations you see today.
The data was collected in June of 2020. Please click here for more information and the full data behind this project.
Summary
The word amateur comes from the Latin word for love — so if you lack the confidence to redesign your home by yourself, remember that you have more love for your home than a hired interior designer ever will. Take strength and inspiration from your do-it-yourself comrades on Instagram, and give a little love back by sharing your efforts with the #DIYhomedecor hashtag.
As a disclaimer, this information is general in nature only. While Budget Direct has endeavored to ensure the information which was collected is accurate and current, it is not guaranteed. Neither Budget Direct nor The Gate accepts liability for this information.
Photograph ©2018 by Brian Cohen.
