You make a good point. Those who overuse these tools to an annoying or bothersome point will make the things we love come off as annoying. I'd prefer to discuss the use of restraint with the people who overuse these features rather than have them taken away.
From personal experience as an software engineer who's been in the field for around 5 years now. I have interviewed over 15 people in the past year for each of these positions and hired around 7 of them. (Mid west, other locations may varry.)
Software developers code programs based on an engineer or architects specs. They normally come from a scale up coding facility. Don't not all think about future selves but how to get things done right now. Usually understand business goals pretty well.
Software engineers have a deep knowledge for common design patterns, probabilistic programming, and semi-fast prototyping. They also shine bright when data mining or artifical intelegence comes into play. Not normally very focused on the business goals, but strive to know more. Normally hired directly out of college or after 5+ years experience as a normal developer.
Software architects do little coding but are normally software engineers on steroids. They have a vast knowledge and understanding for how systems work together along with having around 15 years of SEexperience. Normally they have a good understanding and connection to the businesses success.
The company I am currently with is similar in size to yours, with the same ratio of product members vs others. We don't exactly do design reviews, instead, we have a very talented VP of Marketing. He is the one that approves or redesigns things that the product team creates. This is very helpful as he has been here since the beginning and always keeps up with the latest design and user experience trends.
Might look into having someone take ownership of the design on your team. I don't think this is the most efficient method of attack, but it does work while the company is small.
