Intero A Berkshire Hathaway Affiliate
Maria Elena Casillas, Intero A Berkshire Hathaway AffiliatePhone: (408) 821-2649
Email: MariaCasillas@InteroRealEstate.com

Bring the 90s home: Decor ideas for maximum nostalgia

by Maria Elena Casillas 03/16/2025

The fashion world has seen a resurgence in trends from the 1990s, and interior designers have noticed the same with 90s home decor. While it might be easy to recall decorating trends from other decades, some aspects of the 90s can be more difficult to grasp.

Luckily, this guide will help inspire you - either with design ideas or just nostalgia - by highlighting the very best home decor trends from the 90s. Here’s what was all the rage:

Solid primary colors

Decorators in the 90s did not shy away from mixing hues from across the color palette, as is evident in the prevalence of solid primary colors in interior design. Whether using large blocks of solid color to paint walls or adorning furniture with throw pillows, it wasn’t uncommon to see an entire rainbow of saturated red, blue and yellow.

Artificial houseplants

The quality and variety of artificial plants exploded in the 1990s, offering homeowners amazing new ways to bring greenery inside without the hassle of keeping it alive. These modern artificial trees, flowers and ferns were advanced enough to seem lifelike from across the room, and only needed dusting to maintain.

White wicker furniture

Wicker furniture has been around since long before 1990, but truly became a style staple during this decade. White wicker furniture was especially popular, and the trendiest spaces had entire matching sets including couches, armchairs, ottomans, coffee tables, end tables and more.

Paired with floral upholstery, white wicker is the epitome of a summery 90s home - both indoors and as patio furniture.

Folding screens

Decorative folding screens were a stylish way to divide a space while also serving as a standalone art piece. Typically inspired by Chinese and Japanese decor and aesthetic, folding screens made of lacquered wooden panels or semi-translucent paper were all the rage in living rooms.

Turquoise

While bold colors were at the forefront of 90s style, turquoise was the center of attention. All shades of turquoise were present in 90s interior design and fashion, creating a bright note of contrast when combined with magenta, violet and even yellow.

Wallpaper borders

Wallpaper was out in the 1990s, but wallpaper borders applied to the tops of walls were in. The most popular motifs included vines, flowers, fruit and other botanical elements, and came in every color scheme imaginable. Wallpaper borders were especially popular in kitchens and bedrooms, and provided style-savvy homeowners with a simple DIY decorating option.

If other decor trends like blow-up furniture, canopy beds or beaded curtains are not to your liking, you can always consider these 90s interior design elements. While trends don’t always fit everyone’s personal taste, a trip down memory lane might yield surprising insights into your next home decorating project.

About the Author
Author

Maria Elena Casillas

  

You don’t need to do this alone. I am bilingual in English and Spanish, and I have been in the industry for over 20 years, after earning my degree in Business Management and successive studies in Human Resources and Technology. Never content to let my education lapse, I also received a certification in Negotiation Skills from Pepperdine University and attended courses at Stanford University. A leader in the field, I am a member of the Santa Clara Board of Realtors and served as a professional standards ombudsman for 8 years. I completed a term as the President of the National Hispanic Organization of Real Estate’s Santa Clara chapter in 2016, now serving as this organization’s National Vice President. I pursued additional in-depth training to achieve professional designations as an ABR (Accredited Buyer’s Representative), CRS (Certified Professional Specialist), and SRES (Seniors Real Estate Specialist), GREEN certification, and RCS-D (Divorce Real Estate Specialist). Far from being a meaningless alphabet soup, this demonstrates how proactive I am in pursuing the latest knowledge so that I completely prepared to satisfy all my sellers' and buyers' unique needs. I am committed to Excellence!