The Best and Worst Interior Design Trends Through the Decades

28 Replies to “The Best and Worst Interior Design Trends Through the Decades”

1. In Australia, the most influential colour of the late 90/00’s was LIME GREEN! Particularly in furniture/upholstery/homewares. And the ubiquitous “feature wall” which was a random colour and frequently every room had a different coloured feature wall in a different textured finish (sponge paint, suede, heavy brush strokes etc.)

2. My parents redid their living room in the 2000s and got rid of a really beautiful mid-century Moroccan inspired deep red sofa with carved teak for a sage green, kind of bland sofa. I wish they had kept the earlier one, which was Immaculate because only company sat on it, other than on Christmas Eve…

3. Loved this Nick!

4. You missed the bicentennial passion of the 70s which I blame for colonial Americana style, which was kind of ridiculous.

5. You have a new sofa? ❤

6. Now that I'm old, I can speak from experience about the interior trends of the past. Mid-century modern was an important influence in the 1950s, but the thing you'd see in the majority of American homes was Early American. Shudder. People think of pink and turquoise as 1950s colors, but so were coral and forest green. Often coral and forest green in the same wallpaper. The early 1960s were a continuation of the 50s, maybe a tad more sophisticated. The late 60s, after the Beatles and the hippies was when the colors and styles went wild. Supergraphics on the wall, or Marimekko that you bought at Storehouse. Bright saturated colors. The seventies were like you described, a continuation of the late 60s with organic elements and house plants. The first Earth Day was 1970. Toward the end of the seventies we saw the arrival of track lighting and industrial grade carpet. The 1980s were post modern, yes, but also an on-going struggle between Santa Fe and Miami for dominance. After that, it's all a blur. Still haven't heard anyone use the word 'taupe,' even thought that was the euphemism for beige by the end of the 1970s and beginning of the 80s.

7. This is pretty thorough, but you missed some things: in the 1950s, Early American far outweighed MCM style. The 1960s also had a strong trend of French glam/European formal as well as teenager funky. The 1990s saw lots of dark green and burgundy upholstery with faux finishes and cherry wood. I sure hope your prediction of eclectic style proves true!

8. The "kids" getting old enough to buy furniture now, still live in their parents basements, don't work and can't figure out what bathroom to use. I'm thinking a more juvenile style or no style at all is on the way????

9. It's possible & perfectly acceptable to combine some aspects of the different decades – the key is to figure out what to add or to avoid . Design advice : drinking copious amounts of wine while doing this is also acceptable – for better or worse , you'll be happy w/ your efforts ! ????????????????

10. I've been looking at real estate listing for a decade now. In central FL you could see everything from the late 50s to late 80s in the houses where people died.
    Now I seriously want to find the dude who started the 'word art' trend, and tie him to the guy who said grey was the color and flog them both in public.

    It is more difficult to get the feel of an all grey room than one filled with 80s crap

11. My parents bought a house in 1962 and the dining area had wood paneling. Mom was the first person I knew who sanded it down and painted it

12. FYI, it's pronounced "For-MIKE-ah", not "FOR-mick-ah".

13. Are there are weird background sounds (or music) in this video or is it my computer? Thank you.

14. i'm curious to see what, if any, effect the pandemic will end up having on this decade's style.

15. Does anyone else remember on Trading Spaces that one designer who always, like, glued straw or feathers to the wall or some nonsense like that?? I’d watch a super cut of that trend ????

16. In the U. S. during the very late 70's – early 80's, we went through a "Southwestern" phase. Art by Gorman, DeGrazia, Georgia O'Keefe were mass produced and hung in many homes. The mid 80's were informed by Miami Vice with all the ugly mauves and other pastels. Late 80's, we moved into our Ralph Lauren phase with navy and green plaids, leather, rich fabrics. Ralph stayed with us for quite a while until Shabby Chic arrived on the scene. I think we're moving back to more traditional style now, Grandma Chic and (thank goodness) some color. This was a fun walk through the last decades!

17. I have to admit i love those huge tuscan kitchens. I cook EVERYTHING from scratch (can we all say fresh bread…. mmmm) but they are A LOT of upkeep. I have a simple, builder grade kitchen that's large and it works…… zero character I'll admit. The builders put in grey cabinets and floor.

18. and one more thought. if you want to relive all those beautiful (not) mass—market trends, just look for a new house. you’ll see it all, from sea green linoleum to jacuzzis in the bedroom to endless forests of orange oak evvvvverywhere and terrible puffy black leather sectionals with cup holders (the trend that will never die).

19. did you get a new couch?

20. the proliferation of large format, full color shelter magazines starting in the 1960s really drove a lot of international trends. also, coffee table books starting with terence conran’s in the 1970s and new home design stores in the 1970s brought it to the masses. also magazines collaborating with builders to build model homes (then advertised in full-color sections in newspapers) that would entice new buyers. this was started by architectural digest and house beautiful in the 1950s. nick, this was really good today.

21. Completely agree with your analysis of “shabby chic”. ???? Lots-o-shabby, no chic.

22. I always dreamed of having one of those cool sunken living rooms. ????

23. Great stuff, but you (and every other designer) skipped a couple of big design crazes (at least here in the US). Maybe you’re trying to blot it from your mind, like the rest of us. Haha! In the late 60s/early 70s we had an explosion of tacky Spanish revival/gothic interior design that featured black vinyl or leather furniture, chunky, ornately carved dark wood, deep red carpets, curled wrought iron… everything, and bullfighter paintings, figurines, etc. Sometimes it leaned more into the generalized Mediterranean feel, and featured Grecian columns and rain lamps. (Where mineral oil trickled down fishing line to resemble rain). Then in the early-mid 70s, we had an awful Early American/Colonial revival in decor. It was truly one of the ugliest design trends ever! Given a choice, I’d actually rather have the Spanish revival bullfighter/man-cave look. LOL. Keep uo the great work. Your videos are always fun!

24. Growing up in the 80s into the 90s, I remember all the houses we lived in were white walls, golden oak cabinets with white tile countertops, bisque appliances and ivory switch and outlet plates. Glossy faux-marble 12×12 white tiles with cream grout, beige tiles in the bathrooms, carpet in the master bathrooms, and either golden carpet left over from the 70s, or cream carpet. I love it for the nostalgia, and hate it for existing.

25. My dream home is all authentic vintage 1950s but in real life it’s all takes on MCM by Wayfair, Target, Overstock, and Home Depot. ????

26. I’m 49 so my first foray into designing for myself (without Bon Jovi posters) was in the mid-90s. My 90s designs were brass cherubs EVERYWHERE, navy blue, hunter green, and burgundy in plaids and houndstooths, and the sunflowers on everything in my kitchen. Wrought iron swirly sconces for ball candles. And every room had a tea light candle potpourri double boiler with spiced apple or peach potpourri warming in it. And Party-Lite candle holders! ????

27. You forgot about, what I like to call, "College Girl Chic". Everything is organized, pink, gold, and marble on cork board style. Maybe it was a blip.

28. Great video. Question: do you find that trends tend to accelerate as time goes on, or do we just notice them more, or both. Like Nick said a “trend” that started in the 60s (wood paneling) could take hold and blossom in the 70s, and then endure through the 80s as people gradually renovated and built spaces differently, so the trend really spanned three decades. Mid-century is really nearly 50 years, depending how one counts the period, whereas post-modern seems to only last a couple of decades. BTW, interesting related debate I had with a friend, which Nick reminded me of when he mentioned that the 80s saw the rise of more pastel colors…. I think maybe loosely. I look at 80s colors more neon than pastel. To me pastels were really in in the 90s. It’s like the sitcom Saved by the Bell, my friend thought that look really represents the 80s, but I saw it more as a 90s show. In reality it began in 1989, but most of its seasons are 90s, so it’s like there’s less of a break in fashion/design between 80s and 90s than between 70s (modern) and 80s (postmodern).

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