Here are we going to be sharing with you 10 classic design trends that never go out of style. If you’re trying to achieve a timeless look in your home and you’re not trying to redecorate or renovate every few years, Let’s go ahead and jump right into it.
I think the perfect way to make your home classic and timeless is by using a warm white paint. It’s something that’s never going to go out of home decor trends. It’s something that you can always work with to add color in, take color away. If you want to go for a monochromatic look or a colorful look, you can always do that with a warm white. Some of my favorite warm whites are Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee, White Dove, and Simply White. These have a little bit more of that creamy, warm, almost yellowish undertone that really works well with wood tones, but I think it also pairs nicely with cool tones as well. It gives off this very cozy but fresh look.
You can also go with a very neutral white paint that doesn’t have a lot of warm undertones or blue undertones, and that’s the classic Chantilly Lace. That’s a go-to white that will pretty much work for everything. I think if the main spaces in your home, like your kitchen, hallways, and living spaces are that classic color, you can change up furniture and flooring and lighting, and everything will always work with that paint color.
1. Wall Sconces
When it comes to lighting, I think wall sconces are a forever thing. They will always be timeless. They’re going to make your home look elegant and classic, and you should never second guess hanging some wall sconces. They are the one detail that you can add to your walls and to your home that take your space to the next level, making your space look on trend, but also timeless. It goes way back to when they used to hang lanterns on the walls and candles. So it’s been a design choice and a practical choice for years. Wall sconces also help frame out and highlight certain details around your home, like fireplaces, bathrooms, hallways, or even TVs. There are so many different wall sconces these days so that everyone can achieve that timeless, elegant look. They have plug-in wall sconces, which are incredible. As long as you have an outlet below that light fixture, you can hide that cord and use that wall sconce like it was hardwired. Or you can just hang your hardwired light fixture and use a battery-powered light bulb.
2. Black and White
Timeless classic design always circles back to simplicity, and there’s nothing more simple than the combination of black and white. Black and white is going to be a forever thing and it’s all over design and it always will be. You see it in tile design with penny tile, hex tiles, checkerboard tiles. It’s classic but it also can be trendy, and I think it’s a choice that will stand the test of time. If you are unsure of what to choose in your home, and you want to do something bold but timeless, you can really play with black and white, and it’s just going to work forever.
3. Hardwood Floors
Hardwood floors are always going to be timeless, but when it comes to stains and finishes, I would say the most classic look you can choose is a medium tone neutral wood, something that doesn’t have a lot of red undertones or blue undertones or yellow. Finding that perfect neutral is going to be the most timeless choice because as trends come and go with other finishes that maybe bring in more of the cool tones or the warm tones, they will always work with the neutral tone of your floors. If you don’t want to be changing the stain or changing the finish of your floors, which who wants to do that? You definitely need to pick a very neutral choice.
4. Built-Ins
If you want to add decorative, functional, practical storage around your home, I would highly recommend adding in some built-ins, you will never regret this. It is completely timeless. It is classic. It’s traditional. It’s modern. It’s all of the things, and it’s always going to be in style. There are certain ways to make them a little bit trendier, but I think the classic shelving built into your space is just going to give you that timeless look. You can, of course, do custom built-ins, which are pretty pricey, or you can do them yourself by getting the Billy bookcase from Ikea. I think that’s such a great hack to create a custom built-in look by using the Billy bookcase as the base. You can add trim and paint and really make it look like a custom built-in feature, but you can do it in such an affordable way by starting with the Billy bookcase. I think built-ins are incredible in living rooms, family rooms, bedrooms, dining rooms. They add so much practical storage that everyone can use, and it definitely takes your home to the next level.
5. Subway Tile
When it comes to tile, especially wall tile for backsplash bathrooms or showers, subway tile is going to be the timeless choice. So if you’re picking tile right now and you don’t want to have to make any changes to that tile in the near future, I would definitely recommend a subway tile. You can absolutely go with a trending color, a trending finish, but I would stick with that overall shape and size. I think the most classic way to lay subway tile is the brick pattern, but it looks very trendy and modern stacked vertically, stacked horizontally, or in a herringbone pattern. It’s usually the most affordable as well, so the budget really works well with what’s trending and what’s going to keep your home looking classic and timeless.
6. Polished Nickel Hardware
When it comes to metal hardware around your home, like hardware or plumbing fixtures, I would say the most classic, traditional, and timeless finish that you can choose is polished nickel. Polished nickel is something that can work really well with other metals. So you can always introduce trending finishes with polished nickel, especially since it is a little bit shinier. It’s fun to introduce matte finishes with polished nickel so that they don’t compete. When you’re bringing in black or brass, keep those finishes a little bit more matte or antique-looking so that the shiny polished nickel doesn’t compete with it. It looks great in a modern home. It looks great in a traditional home. It looks great with antique pieces. It’s something that really works with everything. So it’s a safe choice when it comes to timeless classic design.
7. White Marble
A design element that’s definitely trendy but is always going to be classic and timeless is white marble. You’ll see white marble in antique stores, in modern stores. White marble is the choice for sure when it comes to that classic, traditional, timeless look. It works with every single design style and that usually says a lot as well. If you can use one finish in every single home style, it’s definitely the choice for sure. But marble is expensive. It is a little bit harder to work with because it does stain. It’s pretty porous. You can get other choices. You can go with porcelain that looks just like marble to get that same look. You can also go with a quartz that looks just like marble. Or if you’re going for a temporary renter-friendly look, you can also get marble contact paper. If you’re thinking about countertops, tile, backsplash, flooring, decor pieces, you can never go wrong with marble.
8. Neutral Large Furniture Pieces
When you’re thinking about getting a dining table, your main sofa, your bed, these are large, expensive pieces for your home that you’ll probably have for a very long time. So I would always suggest going very neutral and simple for those pieces, nothing too stylized, nothing too trendy, nothing too colorful because those things will go out of style very quickly. I would absolutely stick with neutral fabric options and neutral wood tones when it comes to these pieces. White, beige, cream, and light gray are perfect neutrals for these large pieces. Obviously, it’s fun to play around with trends and you could absolutely lean into those, but you do have to be willing to potentially change those pieces in the near future. So as long as you know that, you can absolutely go for it. But if you’re not looking to spend a lot of money in the near future, I would stay classic and timeless for sure.
9. Stripes
When you’re keeping everything pretty simple and plain, you do want to add in some pattern or else it’s just going to look very boring. A classic timeless pattern is always going to be stripes. If you want to add any pattern to your home with drapes, throw blankets, pillow covers, bedding, I would go for stripes. You can add stripes in every style home and it’s definitely going to work. So that’s again how you know that it is the classic choice. You can bring in florals and geometrics and they’re always going to work with that simple plain stripe. So I highly recommend adding in some stripes to your home if you haven’t already. It’s always going to be the timeless look for sure.
Conclusion
These are some ideas that you can implement into your next renovation or upcoming projects. Let me know down below in the comments if you have any of these design trends in your home already, or if you’re thinking about implementing more of that timeless classic design in your space. I’m currently working on our family room makeover. It’s coming together so nicely. It’s going to be quite the before and after. I’m really leaning into the classic elegant design style, so I think you’re really going to love it.