20 Times Designers Must Have Realized Their Mistakes Way Too Late

Ashley Hunte
The side spine of Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Last Olympian, that contains a typo.
reddit | Nitroid_X

Designing something is always fun and games, until you realize too little too late that you let a mistake slip by. It happens to the best of us, that's for sure.

And it definitely happened to whoever designed these things. I think the lesson here is that you should probably give things a once-over — or maybe a twice-over — before you give them the final okay.

"They definitely should have spell checked this ingredient list on these marshmallows."

A pack of marshmallows with an ingredient list that lists "moifiend" cornstarch.
reddit | GamingIsLife91

Yeah... that's supposed to be "modified" cornstarch. I mean, unless moifiend is the new way they're sticking cornstarch into marshmallow pieces.

Spoiler alert: it isn't.

Makes you think about all the typos we never saw because a proofreader caught them first.

"Parking lots be like:"

A spot in a parking lot that has a post right through the middle of it, making it unusable for cars.
reddit | reaperseye

This is the spot you find when you go to the mall during the holidays. Sure, if you're riding a motor scooter or a bike then you could probably use that spot. But for the rest of us, it's just the unfortunate side-effect of someone who didn't plan a space very well.

"It’s not so bad if you catch it all, I guess?"

A water fountain where the spout of water sprays out of the bowl, and onto the wall/ground next to the fountain.
reddit | ThaddeusRock

I think this can actually be fixed, if someone goes and adjusts the water pressure. But still, how do you install a fountain and have it go this wrong?

So close, and yet so far.

A stack of doormats that have a poorly drawn rainbow design on them.
reddit | Pucky2019

This is so bad, it almost seems intentional. But, like, why would anyone make this rainbow look so bad and disjointed on purpose, and let it go to market? It just makes absolutely no sense to me.

"This casserole dish pretty well needs a dentist to properly clean it. It's headed to the dump."

A casserole dish with a border design that features raised bumps around the edge. A closeup shows dirt that's caught in the grooves.
reddit | WakeMeUpBeforeUCoco

Everything about this is painful to look at, to be honest. Not only is the design itself kind of weird, it's totally impractical! It looks like teeth that need a serious flossing.

"Is it hell or is it springtime?"

A sign that's meant to say, "hello spring," but the O is a ring that doesn't match the rest of the word.
reddit | rubawaytheday

Either someone out there doesn't understand that this sign could've worked if the O matched the rest of the letters, or they're telling us that spring is hell. To be honest, either seems possible.

"Good Friday is Thursday this year."

A calendar page for April 2022. Thursday the 14th is designated as Good Friday.
reddit | BeardedFetus

Weirdly enough, I also saw a calendar that had Good Friday on a Saturday. You'd think that a holiday that literally has a day of the week in the name would be easy to label on a calendar, but I guess it isn't.

Works great! You know, until...

A bulkhead along a ceiling. A hole in the drywall allows for a cable to pass through, which is attached to a plug.
reddit | Oson360

I mean, if you never have to move that cable, it'll be just fine. But the second it breaks, or you want to move that thing to a different spot, you're out of luck.

"My friend bought this bag and I'm not impressed."

A close up of a tote bag that has the words "sample text" on it, rather than actual words or phrases.
reddit | Bluebullbulley

Wow, that's pretty deep. "Your sample text here..." it's basically poetry.

All jokes aside, this is probably as hilarious as it is frustrating to look at. And someone actually bought it.

"This pay thing blocks the menu."

A drive thru menu for a Tim Hortons that has a card chip reader in front of some of the menu options.
reddit | krnl4bin

A cool idea in theory (paying before you get to the window?). But the problem is that the chip reader is in the way. What if you wanted to see all your options?

"Make sure you use the left lane cause left lane closed."

A road sign along a highway that reads, "Major accident left lanes closed use left lane."
reddit | Ben_Over420

Oh, they probably meant your other left. Or maybe their left. Or maybe all lanes are actually closed, and this traffic is about to turn into gridlock or something.

Fixing curbs is hard.

A curb that's curved in one part, breaks off, and then starts up again in a straighter curb right next to it.
reddit | RileyRhoad

Okay, but it really shouldn't be this hard. Even if the two sections don't match up completely, they probably could've looked a lot better than this. You know, if the people who did this actually tried.

"The backrests on this bench."

A woman sitting on a bench, demonstrating how far away the backrest is in comparison to where you would be sitting.
reddit | Zestyclose-Gur2224

Oh yeah, because any short person (or average size person, for that matter) who wants a backrest will totally sit so that their feet are dangling over the edge of the bench. Makes so much sense.

"How am I meant to hold this comfortably?"

A clear glass mug/cup with a small handle that's shaped more like a tab, also made of glass.
reddit | Sadsasuke_E

Short answer: you aren't. Either somebody tried to prioritize fashion over function (and failed, because that's ugly), or you're simply not supposed to use that cup as a cup. I dunno why you'd want it for anything else, though.

"Impenetrable design."

A door lock with a keypad. The numbers used in the combination are clearly highlighted thanks to the wear in them.
reddit | pniro

I think when you have a numeric keypad like this, you're meant to change the code every now and then. The only problem with that logic is that literally no one is going to change their code. So we end up with this every time.

"What the hell do it want us to do then?"

Instructions for a paint that tells you to stir well, but also not to stir.
reddit | NoPerspectiveGuy

Obviously you're supposed to stir well. But also, don't stir at all.

Maybe the instruction is to stir before you use, and then never again. If that's the case, they worded it very badly.

Elsa.

A kid's face mask featuring Elsa. Folded in half, it looks normal, but then when it's open, it shows two profile shots of Elsa side by side.
reddit | SelmarKim

You can so tell that they just copy pasted the same picture on both sides of the mask, but forgot that you don't wear it folded in half. On the plus side, it's so dumb, it's almost a good design. Almost.

"This house was built about 4 feet below street level. Now they will have a very short, steep driveway down into the garage."

A house that's in the middle of construction. Because it's below street level, it looks sunken.
reddit | karmanopoly

There are a lot of issues with this house, like how you have to walk down to get to it, and the fact that the driveway is gonna be so steep. But I'm mostly hoping there's some drainage, or else it's gonna flood like crazy.

"This popcorn bag that says microwave for 2 minutes 30 seconds, but has a picture of a microwave with 3 minutes on it."

Microwave popcorn instructions. The picture shows 3 minutes on a microwave, but the instructions say 2 minutes and 30 seconds.
reddit | llamalalley

I'm not gonna lie, I'd have no idea which time to follow. Good thing most microwaves these days come with a popcorn button.

"Percy Jackson And the the last Olympian??"

Two Percy Jackson books. One reads, "Percy Jackson and the the Last Olympian."
reddit | Nitroid_X

They probably messed up and put "the" in there twice in a row because it's supposed to be Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Last Olympian.

...I always knew being a Percy Jackson kid would come in handy someday.