40 Times Designers Forgot Things Need To Be Cleaned When Creating Them, As Shared On This Facebook Group
To most of us, cleaning is a chore. Something we do just because we have to. So we try to optimize the process as much as possible. Get it done in the fastest way possible, with the least amount of energy required.
However, some people probably haven't picked up a vacuum cleaner or a dust wand in their entire life.
There's a private Facebook group with a pretty self-explanatory title, called 'Things designed by people who don't have to clean them', and it has about 40,000 members, all sharing pictures of objects that absolutely terrify Monica Geller and Adrian Monk. From an amethyst sink to a dollhouse PC case, continue scrolling and check them out for yourself.
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Dollhouse Fishtank
Please don't treat your fish like toys! Goldfish need a 500l tank, and need a group of atleast 6 goldfish. They are intelligent and beautiful animals
The founder of the group, Will Feetham, created it out of his passion for the design world. "We spend most of our time in spaces designed by other humans, and sometimes subtle careless decisions during [the design process and construction processes] cause a huge amount of hassle for the people that use the space," Feetham told Bored Panda.
Currently, the group is private and you have to answer a few political questions to get in. Feetham has had pushback from the applicants about this as the group seems anything but political, however, he believes that the design and maintenance of our spaces are deeply political. "The entire point of 'Things designed by people who don't have to clean them' is that those who design and those who maintain are not the same," he said. "Because we spend most of our time in spaces [designed by others], this disconnect has a huge impact, especially on those who traditionally don't have power in society."
"Looking at bad design helps highlight the importance of good design, and thinking about who will clean what we design makes us focus on the importance of inclusion in the design process. As a tag group, we can inject a bit of thought about these issues into a lot of different conversations which makes me so happy."
If we were to get specific, Feetham got the idea for the group from a picture of a topographical relief sink modeled after a lake, which he has been told is in the California state library. "It's beautiful, and the concept is both insightful and educational. In the execution, though, the designer didn't consider the people who would have to clean the installation. Clearly, a lot of thought went into the concept, but that thoughtfulness doesn't seem to have extended to maintenance. 'Things designed by people who don’t have to clean them' just popped into my head."
As you could guess, Feetham himself doesn't like cleaning. "As a cisgender man in our patriarchal culture, I have been allowed to do less than my share of household chores at many points in my life," he said. "Equality is deeply important to me, and I have come to understand the many ways, large and small, that the caring and cleaning work that forms the foundation of our daily existence is minimized."
According to him, our society tends to devalue the invisible service class, who are often women and people of color. So they are left to pick up the pieces, literally, and tend to the performative aesthetics of our consumer culture.
Feetham describes the content of the group as design-focused critical analysis. Some of the things that get submitted a lot are carpets in places it shouldn't be, crafts that involve gluing shells and rocks, and impossible to clean windows. "The start of the group was more focused on public infrastructure, but we also have a lot of content about consumer goods and home decor that create a maintenance nightmare."
These Wine Bottles/ Decanters/ Glasses Look Really Cool, But Cleaning Them? Hell No! I'd Probably Used Them Once And Then Threw Them Into A Fireplace Or Something
Cutlery Set
They’re Gorgeous And I Want One, But They Must Be Such Dust Catcher
Those Poor Books!
I Love The Idea Of A Volcano Egg Cup As Much As The Next One, But You Will *never* Get All The Gross Crusty Egg Yolk Out Of All Those Crevices
The Opposite Of Mini
This Would Be A Pain In The Butt To Clean, But 11/10 Would Buy Anyway
And It's Not Even Cute
Ikr? Why would you want this? I bet it's pretty expensive too.
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Right? Why not at least make it look nice? Maybe cut the pieces smaller and into the same shapes. this looks like a pile of rotting kelp
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dead crow wings?? that's the most macabre conjecture I've ever heard...
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Who would even want this, let alone be willing to pay $350 for it?
Yeah, noooooooooooo! How TF do you vacuum something like this? Plus, the strips are so long, anything—-and I mean ANYTHING could hide in them.
I would enjoy the smell of leather jackets but it's a right mess to keep clean and ugly as all get out!!😬
Ever since we have not called this a paper cut. It’s a metal SLICE. They look like those individually packed cheeses but...points....many, many...geometric memories...
I had one of these... and my older cat pooped on it.. never got it all out. Had to through it away. Expensive too!
if I didn't know that it was from a leather jacket I would have liked it I can also see it in some punk rock's house
Such a waste of leather, it could have been recycled into something much cooler and more useful
It doesn’t even look that good... at least in my opinion. If anyone actually likes this, you do you.
I HAD ONE OF THESE! And yes, it was absolutely impossible to get clean. That’s why we got rid of it.
Sure, I'd love to have a giant pile of melted-tire-looking rags all over my floor.
*PLOP!* Please excuse me, but I just broke my wrist tripping on your *shudder* carpet.
Gonna just say it, maker probably just decided to recycle their scraps rather than properly dispose of them.
They make felt mats similar to this for doggos to hide their crunchy foods in for a safe foraging schnuffle puzzle experience.
Just add a bulldozer and incinerator smokestack and the look of "Dystopian Junkyard Wasteland" is complete!
I know someone with this rug in their kitchen. It's disgusting! Impossible to clean even with a vacuum. Needs to be burned. Just gross.
That Is The Car Of Someone Who Has Given Up, That Thing Does Not Get Cleaned
All Those Tiny Eyes
Imagine eating cereal before bed and waking up at night and that thing is next to your head on the side table
I Would Have A Very Bad Time Checking If My Nails Are Clean Or Not
Mud, Poop Dog, Dirt, Sand...
Oh My
Ah yes, the succulent nail art. Made only for photos and not actual wear. SimplyNailogical did a video recreating this trend a while back.
Cursed
My New 1.5l Snorlax Mug That I Got From Zing. Didn’t Realise It’s Mouth Was A Big Hole
This Is What Happened In Jumanji
Never mind cleaning, how do you walk in that?! Or is it just ornamental?
I Got One Of These For My Daughter. The Hot Liquid Needs To Go Through The Hole Into The Space Between The Outer And Inner Walls Of The Mug. I Have Tiny Bendy Brushes And It’s Still A Nightmare
Found In My Local Marketplace
It's got two leg things? And i reckon the corner of the walls is holding that up. This is just glass, feathers and wood thrown together as a "table " marketplaces are a real mix of good stuff and crap
Note: this post originally had 74 images. It’s been shortened to the top 39 images based on user votes.
