The Throwback Decor Trend That Will Give Your Home A Rich Aesthetic

We recently told you about a home decor trend coming back into fashion that is known as "postmodern style." Geometric statement pieces and colorful, asymmetrical furniture that ruled the 70's and 80's are making a comeback much to the excitement of folks with fond memories of this style from their childhoods and younger years. But this isn't the only blast from the past picking up steam this year; old world influences that date back centuries rather than decades are also taking interior design publications by storm. 

Designer Joyce Downing Pickens told Good Housekeeping, "I believe design should be timeless! So what is 'in' is that old-world aesthetic that never gets old." She went on,  "Darker, moodier rooms, old oil paintings mixed with a modern light fixture to the tune of not being able to place what era the room is from — that's how to achieve timeless-ness; mix and match eras!"

So how can you make this work in your home? 

What exactly does "old world style" mean? As houzz puts it, "With one foot firmly in its European past, old world style represents a sliver of history interpreted for today."  Essentially, this style draws upon the 16th and 17th centuries from various European cultures ranging from France to Spain to Tutor England. 

The appeal is rooted in how one makes it work in the modern day; it's a marriage of grand decor and modern comfort. By putting a gold-framed oil painting on the wall of a darkly-painted dining room, you're calling in the magic of the old world. But pairing it with a modern light fixture and modern dinnerware ensure you have the best of both worlds rather than feeling you walked onto the set of a renaissance period drama. 

HGTV praises the style for having a "comfortable, broken-in look" while still displaying grand fabrics and materials along with rich-looking colors and accent pieces.