7 Old Interior Design Trends Making A Comeback in 2024

2024 is the year of comebacks in the interior design world. Trends from decades gone by are starting to creep back around and find themselves in modern homes. It’s always funny how design trends play out like this. Something gains notoriety for a few years before it disappears from the face of the earth. Another trend takes its place, only to be replaced by a different trend and so on. Eventually, we come full circle and the original trend rules once more!

This year has already seen some big interior design trends make comebacks in our homes but here are some of the most popular old trends to welcome back:

Wooden Kitchen Cabinets

Back in the 1960s, all kitchen cabinets were made from natural wood materials. As the years flew by we adopted different styles and materials, with vinyl cabinets being the most popular in most homes over the last decade or so. These cabinets feature different colour variations and metallic accents on the handles – but the times are changing yet again.

In a wonderful move, wooden kitchen cabinets are back! They’re bringing a natural style into the home and a classiness that modern kitchen cabinets just can’t compete with. There’s a certain level of style that comes with wooden cabinets making them suitable for pretty much every kitchen interior. You can still opt for the metallic accents on the handles or go for a fully wooden approach. The best thing about wooden kitchen cabinets has to be their ability to pair with marble countertops. The two go together wonderfully and help you create the ideal kitchen space.

Open Shelves

The idea of open shelves is an interesting one spawned in the early 2000s. It’s one of many quirky 2000s interior design trends making a comeback this year. The premise was simple; rather than having closed shelving with decorative items in display cases or tucked away, you opened them up.

Homes ended up with shelving built into the walls but with an open face. This gave you extra storage space for decorative pieces, allowing you to stamp your authority on the home design. We’re seeing these ideas come back a lot in recent times, so open shelving hasn’t had to wait too long for its comeback! People love the idea of making little alcoves with open shelving. It’s a great use of wall space and provides the perfect setting for house plants, art, photos, books and much more.

Big Bold Furniture Pieces

We went through phases in the 60s, 70s, 80s and even the 90s where big furniture pieces were legit. Everyone wanted a massive sofa or a big dining table. Every living room had a statement armchair or a large coffee table that drew all the eyes towards it. Then, for whatever reason, we entered the 2000s and 2010s and Ikea took over. It brought the idea of Scandinavian interior design to our shores and showed the benefits of minimalism. Rather than enjoying large furniture pieces, we swapped them for smaller, more intricate designs. This included tables that folded outwards, sofas that were more space-conscious and much more.

However, while Scandi interiors are still very popular, more and more homeowners are reverting to the previous ways. Gone are the small kitchen tables, replaced by solid large tables that dominate a room and make a statement. Big, bold coffee tables are back, flanked by large sofas taking up a living room. Perhaps we spent too long focusing on minimalism that we realised it made our homes lose some character. Whatever the reasoning behind this trend’s reemergence, we’re happy to say statement pieces make a comeback.

Statement Art

Speaking of statement pieces, art wall decor is coming back in 2024 and beyond. This was a hugely popular trend in the late 90s and early 2000s where every home seemed to have bold pieces of art emblazoned on their walls. You probably went to your parent’s home or grew up in a household that had random art hung in the living room or hallways. You never heard your parents talk about art, nor did they ever go to galleries. They weren’t so much interested in different artistic movements as they were keen to follow the interior trends of that time!

As time went on, statement art took a backseat. It was reserved for proper art enthusiasts while the majority of homes preferred to keep their walls bare. Now, it’s time for art to make a comeback! Hanging framed pieces on your walls brings a sense of character to a home and lights up any space. It’s particularly beneficial in hallways as they often feel quite bare and unwelcoming. The great thing about this trend coming back is that it’s easier than ever to get your hands on quality art prints. You’ll find designs and art from amazing artists – both classical pieces and some from new minds – complete with great bold photo frames to truly make a statement. Hang them in your home and see how much they elevate any living space.

Closed Floor Plans

Step into any home that was built between 1970 to 2000 (and even earlier than this) and you’ll find closed floor plans. This was how homes were traditionally made; every room was sectioned off and allowed to be its own thing. There was a living room, a dining room, a kitchen, bedrooms, a bathroom and so on. Then, we moved deeper into the 2000s and saw this trend drift away, replaced with open floor plans.

Walls were knocked down and rooms were merged. This largely happened downstairs where we saw kitchen and dining areas combined – sometimes even adding in the living room as well. The idea was to create a more spacious home, and it worked. Some people still love this concept to this day, but closed floor plans are making a comeback.

We’re going back to the days when rooms had their own space and didn’t have to share it with other rooms! Okay, some people still like the idea of a kitchen/dining space, but we’re no longer opening them out into living rooms too. It turns out some homeowners love the idea of having rooms for specific purposes – this coincides with the return of statement furniture, especially in dining rooms.

Bright Colours Everywhere

Bright colours dominated homes in the ’60s and ‘80s but they went away to be replaced by…well…nothing at all. We went through a pretty long period of every home looking the same on the inside. Where once we had brightly coloured walls, the alternatives were different shades of white, grey, beige, etc. Neutral colours were everywhere and continue to be present in some homes today.

But, things are changing! Bright colours are making a comeback, especially pastel colours or very vibrant colour schemes. People love the thought of making their homes unique or bringing some new style to their interiors. It starts with different bedroom colours to personalise these intimate spaces and make them feel more welcoming. This then bleeds out to other areas of the home – like the living room, hallways and so on. Expect to see fewer homes covered in neutral colours and more adding splashes of bright colours or pastel colours here and there.

Conversation Pits

Okay, this isn’t so much a returning trend as it is an old trend we wish would return. Conversation pits were big in the 1970s and transformed the living room by giving it a sunken floor. This layered approach to interior design produced a wonderful place to put large built-in sofas and furniture. It was like a lounge within a lounge, but we never saw much of them after this decade.

Perhaps that’s because most people associate conversation pits with hippy households, but we’d love to see them make a comeback again. There’s something so unique and stylish about dropping the floor by a level or two and having a special area to converse as a group or watch TV. Think of it like having a mini home cinema within the lounge. There are so many ways to design a modern conversation pit without it being too crazy or impractical too. Loads of older trends have returned from the past, so why can’t this one? It’s certainly something to keep on your radar or perhaps you can get ahead of the trends and be one of the first people to implement conversation pits again!

Interior design trends come ago with seemingly no rhyme or reason behind what’s trending. We love things for a few years before getting caught up in something else. Eventually, the best trends come back around and remind us of why we used to love them. We’ve picked out seven old trends in this guide that have either made a comeback or are making a comeback in modern homes. Which ones do you like the most and can you see space for any in your home? It’s all about personal preference though we love how most of these trends move us away from the very bland modern interior design ideas. Too many homes look the same these days, so let’s jazz things up a bit.