While the design trend in recent years past has been leaning more modern minimalist, sort of a “Studio McGee” look, these days tradtional design seems to be making a comeback.
I don’t know about you, but I’m seeing it all over social media (Tik Tok, in particular, where younger people hang out more), and they are ooo-ing and ah-ing over their grandmother’s houses and things. They are hunting down vintage items to decorate their homes and apartments with and are loving just about anything that is a little older than them and isn’t so cookie cutter.
We are definitely seeing more prints and femininity in fabrics and wallpaper on the market, responding to that demand too.
It’s the “coastal grandmother” aesthetic, or the style of a home that has been collected over time. It seems that these young adults have found the Nancy Meyers’ style homes from her movies like “It’s Complicated”.
I think traditional design is on the rise and I, for one, am happy about that.
I do love a transitional look and even some minimalism, but adding in vintage items and a few antiques can give you a mixed, unique look that you can call your own.
And really, the more unique all of it mixed together becomes, the more likely it will not look trendy or of-a-certain-era, down the road.
So let’s say you went all in with a more minimalist approach.
How do you add in some of that traditional aesthetic that brings about a more timeless and collected vibe?
Add a few vintage or antique items.
Start a few collections of your own.
Keep those older generation’s keepsakes in the family.
Add small patterned fabrics and brown wood furniture.
Add books to your bookshelves.
1) Add vintage or antique items
Even if you have an all-white house with modern furniture, you can add in an antique or vintage item here and there in just about any room in the house.
We have an antique clock and barometer in dark wood from my husband’s father, that we’ve hung in our entry hall. Both add some history and that collected vibe to my mostly-white-walled-home.
You can find all kinds of things to collect that might interest you at antique fairs like Round Top, Facebook Marketplace and local thrift stores.
A quirky little seat to add in a corner somewhere?
These boxes from an antique mall look like many of the vintage wood boxes I have.
These antique chairs add so much character to this seating group of all clean-lined modern furniture.
A vintage globe can add some color and hint at a love of travel in a home.
2) Start a few collections of your own
What are you interested in? Books, small paintings, plants, shells? There are so many ways to show your personality by starting a collection of your own. I have candlesticks, ceramics, glassware, small wooden boxes (a collection started by my husband’s grandmother and handed down to us) and more.
My collection of brass and pewter candlesticks, many of which came from the grandmothers.
I promise I’m not a hoarder and you don’t have to be either!
If you are looking for ways to personalize your home though, starting a collection or two can help fill your walls, tabletops and bookshelves so things aren’t so bare looking. They can reflect you and your interests and give your home a more unique feel.
3) Keep those older generation’s keepsakes in the family.
It’s so funny to see these young people on Tik Tok, walking around their grandmother’s homes, really seeing it for the first time with all the vintage items within.
They are fascinated and I couldn’t help but think, if they just asked, their grandma would likely LOVE to give them some of that stuff!
You might not want to be so quick to donate a whole household of belongings when granny moves off to the senior living home. Check out what’s there and keep it in the family, if you find it interesting.
4) Add patterned fabrics and brown wood furniture.
Your next upholstered items could be a soft pattern. Florals are coming back in style these days and I’ve even seen tapestries used on upholstery and hung on walls again. (That doesn’t mean faux Tuscan is ever coming back though!) :-)
These photos below show floral upholstery from a trip to Highpoint Market. While I wouldn’t add in a floral skirted sofa in a minimalist home, I might use a patterned fabric in drapery or pillows or maybe a bolder pattern on an ottoman, etc.
Floral and patterned upholstery is becoming a noted trend these days. This might be a bit much to add in to modern, minimalist home, but this style is growing in popularity.
This beautiful floral on a chair in the Wesley Hall showroom at Highpoint, would a lovely, traditional touch to a more modern aesthetic without feeling out of place.
Patterns on upholstery can add more depth and layering to a modern, clean-lined space.
The pattern (wallpaper) on this modern piece of furniture adds a lot of personality and color.
Adding pattern and color to furnishings can help make a minimalist look more interesting and approachable.
In this blogpost where I talk about some of the Youtube decorating channels I had been enjoying after my surgery this past fall, I mention the Homeworthy channel. It is full of designer home tours and so many have floral or small patterned upholstery and/or wallpaper.
Most are not big, plain modern mansions but definitely lean in to a layered, more traditional approach to decorating.
This is a popular look on many of the designer home tours on the Homeworthy channel.
Dark wood furniture and cabinets are nice to intersperse into a light interior. It doesn’t have to be a full dark wood dining set or anything big, something small works just fine to add character and personality.
I use my mother’s wood bar cart and my MIL’s antique trunk in my home office for extra storage.
Not ready to try brown wood furniture? Try burl wood. It truly goes with any style.
5) Add books to your bookshelves.
One of best and most prolific accessories I’ve found at thrift stores available for anywhere from under a dollar to a few dollars, are hard back books. I’ve purchased some for photoshoots to fill shelves and I’ve been so surprised at what I’ve been able to find for really cheap.
These books, below, were found at local thrift shops and used in this bookshelf styling giveaway I did awhile back.
Thrift store books found in local shops for bookshelf styling. carlaaston.com
I have to say, if you want a home to have that collected vibe and look like it came out of a Nancy Meyers’ film, you need books on the shelves. :-)
See more ways to add personality to your interiors below!
This blogpost was thoughtfully written by me, Carla Aston, not by AI, ghost writers or guest posters.
Open floor plan homes can be tough for people who want colorful interiors. Often, these homes are more neutral since the walls run from one space to another. Today, I have 9 ways to incorporate color into an open plan home, so that you won’t feel like you are living without it any more.