I don't know what I did wrong although I suspect I did something wrong with the UI mods. I've tried MTUI, Darnified and the unfied UI project for IMCNNV compatibility.
I've sat a few hours configuring and downloading mods and I really want to avoid reinstalling the game since I only have it on steam. I've tried all combinations of installing,
reinstalling, uninstalling the UI mods.

Can anyone tell me what i likely did wrong and how I fix it?

Can you post some images?

Delete or temporarily move (better option) your fallout new vegas\Data\Textures\Interface directory and see if the problem goes away.