We’re juuusst about there. The time for opening windows and opening wide for a big satisfying stretch and sigh is nearly here. Spring beckons. And with it the internal pull to reconsider our lives and the spaces in which we live them. To refresh and renew things.
Long a season of discovery (or rediscovery), this spring the design world is looking back to a revived joy and appreciation for mid-century modern design, aka MCM. But, this time, they’re looking at it from the perspective of how we live today and how our homes have become much more personal and layered.
There’s something from back then that’s somehow made for us today in the way the colors, sculptural forms, and fabrics combine to ground and, simultaneously, bring spaces to life. This spring, that’s got designers reveling in velvet textures, warm muted neutrals, geometric patterns, and more.
Let’s move forward by looking back, and learning what the experts think still serves us today — and tomorrow.
This Time, Mid-Century Modern Design Is Warmer And More Livable
One common misconception about MCM is that it’s cold and lifeless, not flexible enough to accommodate your unique life. To be fair, that was one of the many forms the style has taken over the years.
From an interior design perspective, in some ways MCM has always had a kind of clarity and utilitarian purpose to everything in it. But today’s designers are taking that clarity and using it as a backdrop for adding more personality, and then soften things a bit.
“Mid-century modern was about stripping away unnecessary ornament and really getting to the essence of a design gesture,” designer Jonathan Adler explains in Architectural Digest, “That clarity of vision is innately communicative and people love design that speaks to them.”
What’s new is how our homes now function and support us. So designers are seeing a kind of refreshing intersection where MCM’s clean lines intersect with the softness, warmth, and textures now essential in actually living in our homes.
Lauren Saab, of Saab Interiors, tells The Spruce, “What people are leaning toward now is a warmer version of modern,” meaning the clean, crispness is present but “mixed with stone, velvet, cane, and handmade finishes.”
The Personal Power Of Retro Patterns In The New Mid-Century Vibe
Starting in the pandemic era, our homes changed. In addition to supporting our own personal restoration and evolution, they now tell a story about our journey and our personality. As we learned in pieces like Monique Valeris’ in Good Housekeeping, today’s home interiors are increasingly defined by “bold patterns that exude personality.”
Playfully patterning in small ways and large has become another way of adding texture and substance to our stories. Mid-century modern’s embrace of textures and patterns, like geometric patterns, suits that trend perfectly.
Like many design strategies, with just a little intention, geometric patterns introduced through upholstered furniture and decorative flourishes serve as either an anchor and/or a personal expression. Designer Zoe Feldman shares with Better Homes & Gardens that “patterns bring soul, story, and longevity to the room; they never feel manufactured.”
Designer Kerrie Kelly brings this all back to MCM and its understated embrace of all the above, explaining to HGTV, “Midcentury modern style incorporates minimalistic style and an iconic yet relaxed feel using simple pattern, shapes, and solids.”
Today’s Fabrics Reveal Mid-Century Modern’s Softer Side In Your Home
The new mid-century modern’s playful use of patterns to add personality is just one twist on the style. Textures elicit emotions, like the tweed and linen readily associated with MCM. But this new chapter of the style is loving on softer feels, too.
Advances in fabrics have made them more durable and ready for the demands of real life than ever, cueing up a tactile revival. So velvet, chenille, microfiber, and more are fair game now. As Kathy, of Kathy Kuo Home, tells Elle Decor, “Homes are meant to be truly lived in, and there’s nothing that beats the ease of being able to blot away spills and stains with minimal effort.”
With the versatility of textures like velvet, you can offer so much more depth, warmth, and impact in your home, and certainly more than mid-century modern ever has before. Decorilla’s lead-designer, Joyce Huston, celebrates the impact in conversation with Martha Stewart magazine, “A velvet sofa [in a bold color] brings an unexpected charm to a room, [and] more than holds its weight as a standout piece.”
Warm Vintage Colors For Your Home Are In, Flat Neutrals Are Out
Now we’ve heard about using bold colors, and about the power of patterns. The experts also say that the new version of mid-century modern is showing up with muted, grounded tones.
Wait, what? Yeah, it’s a both/and thing.
Floor to ceiling, neutrals have power. As interior designer Ali Milch tells Real Simple, “For walls that will never go out of style, I tend to lean toward creamier shades of whites or very light taupe colors.” And designers still love how MCM’s warmer nature-inspired hues like greens, clay tones, soft neutrals, etc. so powerfully ground a space. Combined with the textures of textiles, there’s a pervasive and enduring calm.
Plus, it sets up contrasts that showcase your favorite, more bold pieces, Milch continues, “drenching the walls with meaningful art and layering complementary patterns will still add personality to a space.”
Leaning into vintage-inspired, warm neutral tones for upholstery foundations serves more than just a decorative role, it’s structural, even elemental. As designer Nina Garbiras tells House Beautiful, you can use those neutral furnishings “to highlight the architectural details and the view.” Of course, “the view” is a relative term, but think of it as shining the best light on your home’s best features.
Don’t Replace, Revive What You Love In Your Home’s Vibe This Spring
Something from Elle Decor keeps coming to mind, “…it’s clear that the midcentury modern aesthetic has left an indelible mark on the design world—a function and form we can all learn from.” Truth. Time and again.
And with the warm, earthy neutral tones, expressive patterns, and textured fabrics of this latest revival, the movement feels reborn. Kind of like springtime.
MCM’s longevity is a nod toward renewal rather than replacement that’s rich with joy and meaning. And the permission to be living your life.
One last trend we’re loving, here at the largest online furniture upholstery fabric store, is reupholstering your favorite pieces MCM-style, rediscovering their emotional and practical substance.
Your home should support and reflect you in all the seasons of your life — literally and figuratively. As designer Rebekah Zaveloff tells Homes & Gardens, reupholstering gives you “the ability to choose exactly the fabric you want… You’re investing in something with a story rather than contributing to disposable furniture culture.”
Here’s to taking a calming, refreshing, and comforting cue from a timeless design style in the season ahead. We’re here with all the fabrics you need and ready to help you find your perfect shade of mid-century modern today.