I know I’m not the only one who keeps coming across home renovation videos just to watch a beautiful mid-century living space be turned into what looks more like a doctor’s office.
I also know I’m not the only one who’s completely over it.
The rise of greys, beige, and whites in modern interior design is probably — for me, personally — one of the worst trends we’ve allowed to take off. In all honesty, I also once loved the “millennial grey” aesthetic and set out to fill a Pinterest board with as many photos of it as I could, but those days are long gone.
With the “sad beige” trend, where there’s a lack of colour, there’s a lack of personality. In the Apartment Theory article “Please, I Beg You to Sell Me a Home with Personality,” writer Heather Bien says these days, a house that doesn’t have white kitchens and gray floors is hard to come by. Yikes.
As a matter of fact, most newly renovated houses on the market are devoid of colour beyond the taupe-gray neutrals we’ve come to associate with “millennial grey.” But this style wasn’t always dominating home design, nor did it start here.
The monochromatic styles of “sad beige” emerged amongst the push to steer away from the maximalist idea that more is better — something that we saw a lot of in the early 2000s. For many millennials, growing older meant that the bright colours, bling, and excessive amounts of pop culture posters lining their bedroom walls were a thing of the past.
At the start of its emergence, these boring grays and beiges were actually markers of maturity and sophistication. When I moved into my first apartment, part of the reason I chose to apply for it was because it had dark gray flooring. Looking back, it’s no surprise I felt sad for the first few months and then proceeded to buy every colourful blanket, poster, and knick-knack I could find.
If anyone were to ask me if I missed that place, I would say yes. But would I go back and live there? Never again. My dream home is nothing close to that first apartment, and it’s the reason I feel so strongly about interior design trends today.
Apartments and houses used to be places where we felt warm and cozy. I’m pretty sure we aren’t supposed to feel like we’re living and sleeping in a corporate office building 24/7.
I mean, what happened to the mosaics and elegance of the ’20s, the conversation pits of the ’70s, the funky patterns of the ’80s, the bright colours and wallpaper of the ’90s, and the warm browns/reds of the early 2000s? Where has the creativity gone?
I’m not saying that you can’t feel “at home” in a space made up of only neutrals. A lot of people do enjoy that style of decor, I just think it can be a little… depressing.
So, it’s time to say goodbye.
As passionate as I am about this need for change, I’m not the only one who’s looking to bring life and personality back into my home.
With sad beige on its way out, we’ve begun to see a rise of maximalism in interior design, and it’s the kind that looks like an adorable curated antique store — or like my mom’s idea of a perfect home in 2006. Either way, both are more ideal than a sad, concrete-looking box.
We’re entering a new era of trends, but it’s no longer about following the masses. My ideal apartment, like many other people my age, is something that combines my own interests and personality with design trends of the past. Like fashion, modern interior design is made up of and lies at the intersection of many generations and styles.
Nowadays, interior decoration comes down to picking and choosing from an amalgamation of different styles rather than trying to align yourself with one. Take my plans, for example. My dream apartment is something of a mix of the ’20s, ’70s, and early 2000s interior design trends. It’s a place defined by earthy greens and cozy browns, with splashes of reds and oranges here and there.
It’s a space that’s bathed in warm light and decorated with all different kinds of funky carpets. It’s a home with colourful tiles in the kitchen and bathrooms and furnishings from all over the place in every corner. There’s furniture lying around that has been passed down from family or found on the Facebook marketplace; vinyl and art that has been picked over the years lining the walls; and knick-knacks and decorations that I’ve collected from antique and thrift stores spread throughout every room. It’s the best possible living space there can be, but that’s also only my perspective.
Everyone’s ideal home is different, and that’s something we’re really starting to see these days. One search of “apartment design” on TikTok or Pinterest will bring up tons of different interior styles and layouts. Even the exterior of homes is starting to reflect our personal preferences. Take a stroll through any neighbourhood in Toronto and you’re bound to find architectural styles of all different sorts: Tudor, mid-century modern, cottage, Victorian, and even sometimes gothic.
After years of mass-producing the same houses and trying to keep up with popular styles, we’re starting to branch out. People are seeking individuality and finally beginning to find pleasure in their own unique visions again. As one might say, “The world is healing.” (Or at least part of it.)
So that’s that. Long gone are the days of sad beige and millennial gray, and hopefully — crossing my fingers — they never come back again.
At the end of the day, it really does come down to personal preference, and we’re starting to see that a lot more frequently. You can’t tell anyone how to live or how to go about decorating their space, but you can take charge of your own.
If this brief history lesson and my words are anything to go by, it’s that the age-old saying is true: home really is where the heart is. (That is unless you’re a fan of millennial gray.)