When it comes to interior design trends, everyone’s got an opinion, whether they know it or not. We’ve all walked into a room before and thought, whew, something about this place just sucked the life out of me.
And as it turns out, interior design trends have changed quite a bit over the last 30+ years. Specifically, millennials have become infamous for their preference toward minimalism — like, I’m sure you’ve heard the term “millennial gray” before, which is still alive and well.
But us Gen Z’ers are getting pretty sick of the colour-drained appearance of, well, EVERYTHING nowadays…because it’s turned once-fun interior design into a snooze-fest. And once you see the “then vs. now” photos with your own eyes, you won’t be able to un-see that the world is indeed “losing colour,” as said in a viral TikTok with a whopping 17.5 million likes.
So let’s go through some examples, shall we?
1.
Here is a parking lot in 1989, full of cars in an array of colours:
2.
And here’s a parking lot in 2022, where every car looks pretty much the exact same, and black now seems to be the most popular choice:
3.
Here’s what a classic kitchen in 1980 might’ve looked like:
4.
And here’s a super popular kitchen design today:
5.
Here’s a home from 1970, which practically screams “residential suburb in America”:
6.
And here’s a modern house that you’ve probably seen a million of in the past few years:
7.
Here’s a restaurant in 1992, with tons of adorable signs, colour, and seating:
8.
And here’s what the average casual eating experience looks like in 2025:
9.
Here’s a vintage living room from the ’80s that feels like it belongs to your adorable grandma:
10.
And this is what’s considered a “cozy” living room today:
11.
Here’s what every teen’s bedroom looked like in the ’90s and earlier:
12.
And here’s what a teen’s dream bedroom looks like in 2025:
13.
Here’s a typical bathroom from the 1960s:
14.
And here’s a photo that probably could’ve been taken of the bathroom inside your house:
15.
Here’s a rather simplistic, yet still complete and colourful master bedroom from the 1970s:
16.
And here’s a modern master bedroom design that’d have millennials squealing with glee:
17.
Here’s an empty beauty salon from the ’60s, complete with hairdryers, seating, the whole shebang:
18.
And here’s what that same place might look like in 2025:
19.
Here’s a house from the ’90s, decked out in Christmas decor, absolutely filled with warmth and love:
20.
And here’s a beautiful living room decorated for Christmas today:
21.
Here’s what you could expect a birthday party — or really any party — to look like in the ’90s:
22.
And here’s what it could very well look like today:
23.
Here’s a baby’s bedroom in 1997, complete with an adorable wall decal and colourful toys:
24.
And here’s a baby’s room today, which feels more like an adult’s room than anything else:
25.
Here’s what a fancy restaurant looked like in 1989:
26.
And here’s a restaurant that gives “boujie” vibes in 2025:
27.
Here’s the type of playground we all grew up on:
28.
And here’s a modern playground that, honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised to see in public:
29.
Here’s what was considered a basic, plain ol’ apartment building in the ’90s:
30.
And here is a newer set of apartment buildings that might look cooler in their shape, but lack any colour whatsoever:
31.
Finally, here’s what McDonald’s looked like in 1980, with those classic golden arches you could spot from a mile away:
32.
And here’s what many McDonald’s locations look like today, with that new, modern look:
So there you have it! Now, you can be the judge: is the world losing colour? Do you actually prefer the modern look? Let’s talk about it in the comments below!
