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Anyone who's ever visited a post-soviet country would've probably noticed some dull and depressing Eastern Bloc apartment buildings. Designed solely for one purpose—to put a roof over the heads of as many residents as possible, as quickly as possible—these buildings are definitely not the greatest example of charming architecture. However, the people who lived behind the iron curtain learned to make the most of what they had, and that included decorating the yards and hallways of these hideous apartment blocks. However, creativity and taste don't always go hand in hand. While we would like to say take a look at these amazing, mesmerizing, wonderful gardens and hallways, all we can actually say is look at these... quirky gardens and hallways. Of course, this doesn't apply to all of them because there's some amazing ideas in this list as well. But mostly... well, we really don't want to get your hopes up. Scroll down below. Upvote. Comment. Roast us. You know, the usual.

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#1

64-year-old Kristina Šeniauskienė has gone viral for her impressive garden in front of the apartment building where she lives. "I work for the compliments," the crafty woman told the local TV station. "Throughout my life, I have never received as many compliments as I do now," she added. Every day, she spends somewhere from 5 to 6 hours working on 60 different plants in the garden.
She started taking care of the garden 11 years ago. "When I'm working outside with the flowers, I don't feel any pain," she said. "But when I come back, lay down in my bed, my body starts to get sore. So I feel better here [outside]. Just like in childhood—I don't want to come back home in the evenings," she added, smiling. "Every year, she comes up with some new compositions," one neighbor told the TV news station. "We come here like it's some kind of museum."

Kristina Šeniauskienė Report

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Raine Soo
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is a beautiful and well tended urban garden. I would love to meander through it.

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Created on Christmas Eve back in 2018, the Facebook group Laiptinių puošimo grupė has over 3.5k members now. The group description says that it welcomes everyone who takes care of the decor of hallways and gardens in apartment buildings.

#7

Sandra Kasperūnaitė Report

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Jane Dorothy Warner
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My old mum tried to make the gardens of the retirement flats pretty, just as she had kept a lovely garden all her life, but some b**** kept ripping up the plants!

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The group Laiptinių puošimo grupė was founded by Giedre Viliulyte, who is still an admin, and her dad, Giedrius Viliulis (yes, they both have the same name and it's adorable!). When it was created, Giedre and her dad shared photos of beautifully decorated hallways among their neighbors. However, after Giedrius deleted his Facebook account, his daughter decided to attract more members to the group—and succeeded!

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"I founded the group along with my dad, Giedrius, back in 2018 right before Christmas. We were inspired by the Christmas decorations in our 12-story apartment building," the group administrator, Giedre, told Bored Panda.

#18

"Please look after my flower until February 7"

"Please look after my flower until February 7"

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Amy Grant
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

this one is sad :((( It says "Please look after my flower till Feb 7". Neighbours clearly failed :(

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#19

Laiptinių puošimo grupė Report

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Raine Soo
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Do you suppose all these tire swans are an homage to Tchaikovsky's 'Swan Lake'?

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"While riding the elevator, it was fun to see all the different decorations on each floor. At first, we invited only close friends and neighbors to the group with whom we shared photos of the decor on our floor," Giedre explained.

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#22

Laiptinių puošimo grupė Report

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suzanne werbiski
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Actually I really like this eclectic style! it all somehow works together and love the curtains

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#23

Liepa Gaidauskaitė Report

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Cori
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

No... no no no no no. That's going to show up in my nightmares tonight.

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"This group would always lift my mood and I wanted to see more posts, especially since the trend of decorating hallways and gardens in front of apartment buildings is big everywhere in Lithuania," the group administrator told Bored Panda. "So, I started brainstorming ideas on how I could attract more Lithuanians to the group."

#27

Evelina Kosmonautika Report

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Andrew Gibb
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

just like the Louvre, but in the hallway of a block of Soviet era flats

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"I had been following a Lithuanian blogger named Mahila for a long time, and her sense of humor seemed similar to mine so I messaged her about my group and she shared the link to it on her page," Giedre said. "That's when the group really started to bloom! Members started flooding it with photos of their own hallways, little gardens, and squares from all around the country," she added.

#33

Laiptinių puošimo grupė Report

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Mark
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Hope no one has a pooping accident in the time it takes to move the plants without dropping them!

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"I have not resided in Lithuania for quite a while now and when I try to tell my friends in the UK about this group and the tradition of decorating, embellishing, and sometimes grotesquely uglifying our hallways, they don't seem to get it," Giedre explained to Bored Panda. "It's nice that Lithuanians are able to laugh at their own bizarre tradition. While the group was intended for "lovers of aesthetics," everyone understands pretty well that the group was created in order to offer a unique glimpse at this cultural heritage."

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#54

Laiptinių puošimo grupė Report

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#63

Laiptinių puošimo grupė Report

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#64

Laiptinių puošimo grupė Report

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Mark
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I have these on my Christmas each year, i think I got them from Ikea

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#69

Laiptinių puošimo grupė Report

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