Market Data 
Months ago, I transformed my small room into a rainbow-bright space and loved it. Now, I can barely stand to be in it.
After moving in with my aunt last year, I wanted to make my beige room feel like home, especially since it needed to function as my bedroom, office, and secondary living room.
When I spotted the “dopamine decor” trend popping up in design magazines and across YouTube channels, it seemed like my perfect solution.
The trend is all about leaning into bright colors and fun designs to create a space that sparks joy. At the time, I thought adding light, levity, and color to my life sounded like a great idea.
My room makeover cost about $3,500
My dopamine-inspired redesign included a seashell-shaped twin bed, a modified Ikea desk with an extended tabletop, a wall of colorful art prints, and three hot-pink locker cabinets.
I hired TaskRabbit workers to paint a blue and purple checkerboard pattern on the walls, assemble furniture, and mount a projector.
The space’s showstopper was a curved yellow couch that resembled an elbow noodle, lovingly nicknamed the “macaroni and cheese couch.”
My total redesign cost came to about $3,500, which was right on budget. Initially, the space delivered exactly what the trend promised — a burst of happiness.
Coworkers told me how much they loved my virtual meeting background and friends commented I’d even managed to make my small space look bigger.
For a few months, I enjoyed my room, too.
When the dopamine high faded, so did my love for the space
My turning point came when I started a new contract job. I had to use the company’s equipment, so I became stuck to my desk more often and forced to work surrounded by my colorful choices.
Soon, I was spending eight hours a day in that room seeing my decor in my peripheral vision.
Around the same time, I began building a personal brand on LinkedIn. As my following grew, I developed a sophisticated but fun brand image that clashed with my room’s dopamine-bright palette.
I plan to film video content, so having a consistent and simple backdrop became important to me. My vibrant space wasn’t going to work.
Elements that once brought me joy have become frustrations. The pastel checkerboard wall and funky couch make me feel like I’m working and sleeping in a kids’ room.
The space affects my daily habits, too. I don’t like to spend more time in my room than I absolutely have to. Whenever I don’t have work meetings, I flee to another part of the house.
Funny enough, my family, partner, and friends still love my space — but they’re not the ones who have to live and work in it every day.
I plan to be way more cautious if I follow a design trend again
After just a year, I plan to redo the space to feel more classic and timeless. I’ll probably keep the desk and cabinets, paint the walls (maybe limewash or a solid color), and donate the yellow couch.
My biggest advice for others tempted by interior-design trends is to sit on your plans for a few months before you move forward to see if you still like them.
I also wish I’d just made small changes to my space at first, giving myself time to settle in before committing to a major redesign. That approach might’ve allowed me to make better long-term decisions about a space I’d be spending so much time in.
Above all, I learned that a trend that looks perfect on social media doesn’t always translate to daily life — especially when said daily life involves staring at those choices for eight hours straight during work calls.
