5 Tips for Adapting a Vintage Aesthetic for Your Home

The vintage aesthetic has made something of a comeback in recent years, and its influence is virtually everywhere you look—from architecture and interior design to fashion, media, and art. If you have the opportunity to decorate your own home space, you may be considering going the vintage route and giving your home an “old school” or “aged-up” kind of look. But how do you stay true to the vintage spirit, and where exactly do you start?

While the term “vintage” encompasses classic design styles that first trended at least twenty years ago, an item doesn’t necessarily need to be that old to evoke a vintage feel. You’ll find plenty of contemporary furniture and home décor items that fit in perfectly with your idea of old school glam, and you can furnish your home with a combination of these and actual vintage pieces. As you’ll find when you start decorating, the fun will be in the choosing.

Below are five practical tips for incorporating a vintage vibe into your interior design. Try any one of these to add some vintage warmth and character to your home.

Find Visual Inspiration from Vintage Sources

First, if you don’t already have an intended look and feel for your home, draw inspiration from other sources that you consider vintage. These can include anything from old interior design magazines to old Hollywood flicks from decades past.

In terms of design elements like shapes, textures, and colors, which details from these sources jump out to you? Start from an idea of what you like, then make plans to replicate that in your own home spaces.

Adopt a Vintage Color Palette

Many people attribute certain colors to their idea of what’s vintage, for example warm and muted tones. Doing something as simple as choosing items that fall within a vintage color palette can help you evoke a classic and beautiful aesthetic.

For example, try furnishing your living room with chairs and a sofa bed in retro colors. Some examples of hues that will really stand out for their vintage feel are lime green, burgundy, mustard yellow, sea green, carmine pink, and raisin black.

Choose Materials That Evoke a Vintage Aesthetic

Certain materials may also be better than others when it comes to bringing out that distinctively vintage atmosphere. Wooden tables, chairs, desks, and bed frames with elegant lacquer finishes, for example, will convey old world luxury. Metal dishware that’s accumulated patina, or lost part of its luster due to oxidation, will show the beauty of well-worn, well-used, and well-loved things.

“Vintage” and “retro” are also ideas that can be communicated through texture. Shaggy carpets, macrame wall hangings, and brocade drapery are now back in fashion, so why not try styling your living room, dining room, and bedrooms with them?

Acquire Vintage Items in Vintage Stores, Antique Stores, and Other Avenues

Of course, if you want to be authentic in your vintage design strategy for your home, you’ll want to populate it with items that have actually gotten on in their years. There are several avenues that you can explore, including vintage stores, antique dealers, thrift shops, and online stores that specialize in vintage memorabilia like posters, artworks, sculptures, and glassware. Also consider online marketplaces where people buy and sell online.

How much you’ll spend on such items depends on their condition and their value in the current market. While some vintage items can command a high price, many others can be bought for an excellent bargain. You’re also not limited to buying things per se; there’s also the option to attend swap meets or to join zero-waste groups where people offload old but functional furniture pieces.

Decorate with Vintage Mementos That Are Dear to You and Your Family

Lastly, you can have a lot of fun and bring a lot of warmth into your home by furnishing it with things that are both vintage and that have personal value to you. Hang old sepia photos of your parents and grandparents, where they’re rocking old-school clothes and hairstyles and enjoying their youth in their favorite old haunts. Make a place for that old guitar that you inherited from a relative, or display the very first video game console that you played in the ‘80s, ‘90s, or early ‘00s. Your home can be a place where you celebrate your personal history and the histories of those dearest to you. That’s where it can draw a sense of timelessness and appeal.

Takeaway

Decorating your home along the lines of vintage and retro doesn’t have to be expensive or complicated. More often than not, all you need is creativity and resourcefulness to transform an otherwise bare and nondescript space into something full of classic character. Old is gold, as they say, and this may apply to your house, flat, or apartment. Look to the past for inspiration, and have a good time bringing out that wonderful vintage vibe.