People Are Shaming Design Fails And Here Are 35 Of The Worst Ones

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Plastic bottle inside faux paper packaging highlighting design fails.

Van design fail with partial Starbucks logo, creating the word “sucks” visible to pedestrians passing by.

Delahunty created the ‘Design Fails’ account in July 2013. Over the past 11+ years, he’s amassed 31.2k followers on Instagram. The idea behind the account is very straightforward: “When design fails, we share it.”Bored Pandahas reached out to the curator via email to learn more about his project and what good design should look like, and we’ll update the article as soon as we hear back from him.Not only are the photos that Delahunty shares useful for any current and future designers as examples of what not to do, they’re all also wildly enjoyable to look at. There’s a certain element ofschadenfreudeinvolved here, too. Like it or not, human beings get a bit of pleasure from another person’s misfortune. And many of us like to think we’d never make the same design mistakes thatotherprofessionals have… even though we probably inevitably would find another way to fail.

Bored Pandahas reached out to the curator via email to learn more about his project and what good design should look like, and we’ll update the article as soon as we hear back from him.

Not only are the photos that Delahunty shares useful for any current and future designers as examples of what not to do, they’re all also wildly enjoyable to look at. There’s a certain element ofschadenfreudeinvolved here, too. Like it or not, human beings get a bit of pleasure from another person’s misfortune. And many of us like to think we’d never make the same design mistakes thatotherprofessionals have… even though we probably inevitably would find another way to fail.

Sticker on car says “UNASHAMED” with a cross, misread as “TUNASHAMED,” a design fail humorously noted in a tweet below.

Textbook design fail showing Uranus image split awkwardly across two pages.

Upside-down logo on a wall charger highlighting a funny design fail.

Aestheticsplay a key role in consumer behavior because our brains are wired to respond to beauty. Something that is visually appealing is pleasant to look at, essentially. So, good design makes you feel that the product or service is reliable and has a group of competent people behind it. Meanwhile, the way something is designed can resonate (or not) with consumers’ sense of style and individuality.On theotherhand, visually messy designs—like logos that are hard to read—project unreliability, a lack of quality, and speak volumes about the lack of editing. In other words, bad design is a sign of untrustworthiness.

On theotherhand, visually messy designs—like logos that are hard to read—project unreliability, a lack of quality, and speak volumes about the lack of editing. In other words, bad design is a sign of untrustworthiness.

Signage design fail with the text “Fashion Fart” in front of a cooperative building.

Design fail showing a baby with misplaced adult hands on a diaper package.

Glass doors with handles at The Sliding Door Company, showing a design fail with doors not sliding.

No matter how skilled, perceptive, and talented you think you are, nobody is immune to making mistakes. Everyone messes up from time to time. Nobody’s ‘flawless’ or ‘perfect.’It’s how you react to the mistakes you make that says a lot about your character. Someone who has a growth-oriented mindset sees failure as an opportunity for growth instead of something that should continue to haunt them for years.

No matter how skilled, perceptive, and talented you think you are, nobody is immune to making mistakes. Everyone messes up from time to time. Nobody’s ‘flawless’ or ‘perfect.’

It’s how you react to the mistakes you make that says a lot about your character. Someone who has a growth-oriented mindset sees failure as an opportunity for growth instead of something that should continue to haunt them for years.

Text design fail on image of couple, with text overlaid humorously resembling glasses on woman’s eyes.

Design fail on a van where door handles align awkwardly with a woman’s image.

Photo design fail with text “Shoot the kids, hang the family, frame them all” over a family picture .

Messing up a design in a very embarrassing and public manner doesn’t have to be a fail. For one, you make a mental note of all the ways you’ll do things better the next time around. But on top of that, this is actually a good opportunity to connect with your audience, clients, and coworkers.As we’ve covered earlier, displaying signs ofmild embarrassmentcan be socially constructive because everyone is likely to be more sympathetic.

As we’ve covered earlier, displaying signs ofmild embarrassmentcan be socially constructive because everyone is likely to be more sympathetic.

Sign design fail with confusing message, “Just Do Nothing Is Impossible,” featuring a person posing below.

Lemon label design fail, suggesting they’re perfect for orange juice.

Person wearing a hoodie; hood up reads “ANTI ANIMAL CRUELTY CLUB,” with hood down it’s “ANIMAL CRUELTY CLUB.” Design fails.

When you embrace your embarrassment (for instance, when the design you’ve worked so hard on gets called out for being ridiculously bad—oops!) instead of shying away from it, you show your human side and vulnerability, which is super relatable.On the flip side, if you pretend that you haven’t messed up, your social capital can crash. Furthermore, that sense of embarrassment can continue to haunt you, eventually morphing into deep-seated shame. And that’s just plain unhealthy physically, emotionally, and mentally. Laugh it off if you can. And if you can’t find the humor, at least be honest about having made a mistake.

On the flip side, if you pretend that you haven’t messed up, your social capital can crash. Furthermore, that sense of embarrassment can continue to haunt you, eventually morphing into deep-seated shame. And that’s just plain unhealthy physically, emotionally, and mentally. Laugh it off if you can. And if you can’t find the humor, at least be honest about having made a mistake.

Person struggling to drink from a hedgehog-shaped mug due to poor design, illustrating a design fail.

Magazine design fail with two-page ad mistakenly lining up, making a person appear to have a chocolate drink arm.

Sign with design fail showing “If you hard. Then you hard” and “WORK PLAY” vertically in bold text.

So, unless you’re doing things purely for the sake of artistic merit, you need to keep your finger on the pulse of consumers. Ideally, you should find a balance between function and form, as well as what consumers want and what your vision as a professional is.

Maze design fail with a shortcut marked in red, bypassing the entire puzzle.

Frosted glass bathroom stall with visible silhouette highlighting a design fail.

Spiderman tissue box design fail in front of a bookshelf filled with Terry Pratchett books.

Not every critic will be able to articulate why they (don’t) like your design (they might have a gut, instinctive reaction), but when someone offers semi-constructive feedback, it’s usually best to at least think about it.

Sweatshirt design fail with confusing “Don’t Be Happy Worry” slogan in black and white text.

A design fail with a pillar blocking access to an ATM, showing poor design judgment.

Sign near the sea with typo: “If you see someone drowning lol, call 911” – a design fail wonder.

Whether or not you end up implementing those changes will depend on your goals, timelines, and design philosophy as a whole.

Sign with poorly designed face masks on figures, highlighting design fail in essential health advisory.

Emergency phone design fail with buttons labeled 1, 2, 3; instructions to dial 999 for services.

Crab illustration design fail with incorrect congratulation message.

Which of these design fails did you love to hate the most, dear Pandas? On the flip side, were there any designs in this list that you genuinely liked?

Woman holding boxes with humorous design fail on magazine cover.