Imagine a home that fits your wardrobe, with notable retro style and vintage design aesthetic. Let your wardrobe shine with this simple tutorial on how to add a vintage vibe to your pad. You don’t have to be a design professional to reinvent your home in the vintage style you love so dearly.

Settle on a Decade

Unlike your wardrobe, you don’t want a design aesthetic that draws from multiple decades. Instead, choose one or two decades that mingle well. Homes look best when the design is fairly uniform. Decorating with items from a wide range of decades could end up looking messy.

Make a Plan

Redecorating a home requires some patience and careful planning. You’ll want to create a list of changes you’d like to make, beginning in your most important room. Which room in your house is in most desperate need of a vintage makeover? Begin with that room and then slowly make your way through the entire home.

Make a list of the items you want to replace. You’ll also want to create a budget, saving larger denominations for hardware purchases and furniture. Keep updating your lists and spreadsheets as you go along, taking care to keep things nice and organized. Remaining organized will keep your home in order, while you’re busy redecorating.

Painting and Lighting

Painting walls and replacing light fixtures in vintage colors is the fastest way to add some vintage design aesthetic to a room. Choose colors of the decade. If you’re not sure what colors are appropriate for your vintage room, look at Pinterest boards for some inspiration. There are lots of users who have created decade-inspired boards, with links to the original design articles.

You don’t have to be a design professional to paint your home, but it helps if you are. If you love the process of redecorating your home, maybe you’re meant to be a designer? Check out some of the best interior design schools to determine if this career path is right for you. Chances are you’d make a great interior designer, one who focuses on vintage design.

Furniture and Accents

Thrift stores are excellent sources for vintage furniture and accents. Even if an item was made in a particular decade, so long as it’s in the style of the decade it should work. Many companies specialize in creating retro-inspired pieces for their customer base. If you’re lucky, you’ll find one of these high-end designs on a thrift shop excursion.

Accents should be used wherever necessary and fit into the decade-inspired theme. For instance, in a 1920s inspired kitchen, you could mark containers using old marquee style writing. A simple stencil is all you need to get this look. Driftwood stained items look amazing in any 1920s inspired room. If you’re curious which items to choose for a decade-inspired vintage room, check out Pinterest again for ideas.

Final Touches

Vintage rooms need a few final touches to truly work. You could add a bookshelf laden with books popular in the decade you chose as your room’s main focus. Or, you could add some vintage drapes or a blanket across the sofa. Small details will truly bring your room together and make it easy for guests to see the room for what it is: a vintage-inspired design and your dream space.

Guest post by Jennifer Northwood

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