2016 / 2026 – Interior Trends Edition
I have really enjoyed seeing friends (and strangers) post the ‘2016 is the new 2026’ trend. I love the nostalgia and the progress people have made to where they are now – posting their highs and lows, moments both cherished and overcome.
Something it made me think about was interior trends and how they’ve stood the test of time. I began to look at my old photos to see how my own taste has changed.
Colours
The 2010s will always be remembered for the interior colour choice of painting the walls grey and I’m afraid I too was a victim of this design choice, however in true millennial hipster style I will claim that I was a visionary and did it before it was a big trend! I was influenced by a photographer who shot my final fashion designs at art school and said grey is more flattering than white, and also by the light grey walls in the TV show Seinfeld. When I said I wanted to paint my walls grey, most people around me were confused why I’d choose such a grim colour. Then a year later, everyone was doing it.
The other main colour people remember from this era is millennial pink and I was absolutely a victim to this trend too. Pink is one of my favourite colours and I loved this pale, cool pink tone.
A colour trend people often forget from this era is white. Maybe it’s because a lot of people my age were in rental properties but white was very trendy and much more popular than the early 00’s magnolia shades.
Versus 2026: I can’t imagine using grey or white on my walls now, as I tend to lean more towards warmer, creamier shades (though I did paint my shed interior white). I would still decorate with pale pink, especially warm tones.
Textiles
In 2016, a lot of my textiles were extremely ‘quirky’. Cute cartoon styles appealed to me and really popped against all that grey!
Looking back, there was also a lot of faux fur in the 2010s, a trend that seems to be dying out in interiors.
Versus 2026: I still have my quirky cartoon pieces and my faux fur cushions, though while writing this I realised they really don’t speak to me like they did in 2016! I feel like I’ve grown out of the cartoons (though I’ll be keeping my little My cushion). I still love the faux fur look but it ages terribly, especially when you have messy, sticky little hands playing with them! They definitely aren’t a family friendly textile!
Homeware
To me, this is where the trends have changed the most. Apart from minimalism being very popular (2016 was the first time I attempted the KonMari method), there were still trends that I don’t see being in vogue in 2026.
The one that has most obviously aged is the metal of choice being copper and rose gold. These metals were the biggest trend of the time and have become really rare to see in modern homes.
Another big trend that I bought into was owls. The owl trend is so nostalgic, but everyone around me knew I loved them and I was often gifted owl items, so I ended up accumulating quite a few pieces for my home.
Versus 2026: I still have copper in my house! My pans and toaster are copper, and I still really like that tone of metal. I was also accessorising with brass in 2016, and that seems to have aged much better. When it comes to owl decor – I still have owls, and I still buy owl pieces! They are timeless to me, they remind me of Athena, goddess of wisdom and I like to think they bring good luck. That’s the thing with trends – sometimes, they just so happen to align with your interests!
Furniture
We had little to no budget in 2016, so any new furniture in our home came from one place – Ikea! We would make a day of it, take a trip down to Glasgow or Edinburgh and fill the car up to the brim with flat packs. I look back now and I can’t believe we were able to carry some of it home, we really squeezed everything we could into that small car!
Everything we bought was minimalist white Ikea furniture with the exception of a small side table we bought for £5 from Gumtree. We thought it was a coffee table but we were too embarrassed not to buy it when we arrived and it was tiny! We took my husbands old bed from his parents house and the sofa sets we had were second hand from family friends.
Versus 2026: I have hung on to some of our Ikea furniture pieces but I am slowly selling them and replacing them with better quality vintage furniture. My Ikea trips have been replaced with shopping second hand, as I still love a bargain and I prefer the quality. That being said, I still enjoy Ikea.
So what trends do you still love in 2026, and what trends do you think should forever be left in 2016?
