These 1980s Decorating Ideas Are Popular All Over Again

If interior design sites and spreads have felt flashier in recent days, you’re not imagining things. Trendsetters of all kinds are leaning into the bright, brassy aesthetics of the 1980s, when minimalism was meh and more seemed downright mandatory. Characteristically ‘80s color palettes, motifs and silhouettes are popping up everywhere, and the style they serve can make contemporary spaces feel more layered and flat-out fun. Read on to see some of the decade’s greatest hits — and how they’re trending today.

From statement-slab coffee tables and backsplashes to luxe wet bars and formal foyers meant to evoke Mediterranean retreats, homeowners of the ‘80s couldn’t get enough of dramatically-veined stone, especially high-contrast marble.

Designers now reach for the same materials with a mismatched, over-the-top cheekiness, as in this powder room. The ultra-feminine purple wallpaper and cheerful tulips puncture the dramatic green marble’s masculine formality. The new, lacquered finish on the repurposed vanity updates its antique character.

While powder rooms are an excellent place to try this extravagant materials trend, a full-blown 1980s-remixed kitchen, like this one, proves that you can't have too much of a good thing. Here, designers paired showstopping slabs of green marble on the countertop and backsplash with a gold-trimmed hood, appliances and sink; they then chose yet another rich stone slab for the brass-wrapped (we repeat: brass-wrapped) island.

Clean, contemporary lines on the white oak cabinetry ground this kitchen in the 21st century. That said, this home’s commitment to green marble and warm brass would have suited a chic host or hostess 40 years ago every bit as well as it does today.

In addition to opulent stone, '80s designers were all about eye-catching metallic fixtures. Gleaming accessories are lots of fun, but there’s something undeniably satisfying about a luxe centerpiece like this grand canopy bed. (Bonus points for the iridescent side table perched beside it.)

Graffiti became more recognized as artistic expression in the 1980s, thanks in part to artist Keith Haring. He created more than 50 public artworks between 1982 and 1989, and his signature style became a part of the decade’s graphic language. His work remains so ingrained in American culture that the U.S. Postal Service released stamps with one of his drawings 40 years after he created it. Decor brand Yellowpop’s Keith Haring collaboration reimagines some of his most iconic figures in LED form — a pitch-perfect riff on the 1980s’ ubiquitous neon pieces.

Today, graffiti-inspired art adds a pop of '80s nostalgia to contemporary spaces, like the colorful heart-patterned piece by James Goldcrown in this neutral living room.

This kitchen vignette is a hat trick of ‘80s design references, beginning with its renter-friendly peel-and-stick wallpaper in a Haring-adjacent pattern. Its butter yellow refrigerator and cabinetry revisit the era’s appreciation for both warm pastels and color blocking (thanks to that old-school, ice blue countertop).

High-contrast checkerboard patterns, recurring and oversized circles, spheres and cylinders, scalloped and serrated edges — energetic shapes like those popularized by the influential Memphis group of artists and designers — were ubiquitous in the ‘80s. The figures’ super-saturated and playfully pastel palettes are turning up in their original incarnations once again; they’re also branching out into moodier colorways, as in this subtly jewel-toned living room.

This exuberant entertainment center, custom-made by Silt Studio, riffs on Memphis designer George Sowden's work and features plywood painted to match the fabulously-bold loft apartment it calls home. Look up a local maker and invest in a genre-straddling piece like this one to experiment with retro-graphic design — or get creative with stains, plywood add-ons and paint colors to transform a piece you’ve already got.

In their heyday, pastels weren't just for kid's bedrooms. 1980s designers and homeowners alike utilized these softened hues in living rooms, kitchens, bathrooms — no space was off-limits. In this pastel-drenched space, architectural details like the arched niche are highlighted in a more saturated hue to put a contemporary spin on the sentimental blush walls. Billowing aqua curtains keep things fresh.

Cozy, ultra-tactile textiles were all the rage for ‘80s suites that felt like personal cocoons. This maximalist, ‘80s-inspired bedroom pairs atmospheric blush walls with a deep-piled mustard velvet headboard; channel-tufted panels carry up the vaulted ceiling to create a dramatic canopy effect. A cloud-gray coverlet on the bed layers in another soft, honeycombed fabric.

We’re not suggesting giving your home the head over heels Studio 54 treatment, but borrowing a bit of nightclub glam is a fine way to pay tribute to the urban glitterati of yore. Paired with other '80s trends, like the textural Sherpa chairs and pastel walls, a sparkling mirror ball feels right at home in this disco-ready dining nook.

Large-scale, leafy prints, like the fabric on this armchair, are staples of 1980s style with its penchant for Palm Beach panache. For a contemporary take, use a tropical print on one accent piece — not the whole room.

This vintage sofa’s silhouette is surprisingly user friendly — and totally eye-catching. The wide upholstered arms are perfect for lounging, and the negative space beneath them gives the piece a light footprint. Treasures like this one can be tricky to find, but secondhand chairs and occasional tables with similar bones turn up (and are worth snapping up) on sites like 1stDibs.

A certain subset of Generation X has an affinity for the liberal use of chintz, thanks in large part to the utter dominance of the Laura Ashley company (which had more than 220 stores and grossed around $130 million a year in the mid-80s). Pattern-drenched spaces like this bedroom by designer Michelle Gage — in which one blue-on-white botanical climbs up the walls and across the ceiling and another spreads across the bed — are considered quite the power move today.