Vintage Wallpaper Ideas: Through the Eras

If there’s one interior design theme you can count on staying it style, it’s vintage. From the hardened rock ’n’ roll 70s era to cottagecore style and everything in-between, it’s a trend that never seems to go away and one that’s so easy to work into your own home decor. 

As one of our favourite inspirations when it comes to designing, our vintage wallpapers range from styles inspired by the Victorians to more modern takes on each unique vintage era.

So without further ado, let’s rewind and take a step back in time and take a look at our vintage inspired wallpapers through the eras...

Image features Circular Tin Tile wallpaper and Tin Tile White wallpaper

Edwardian Era 
Lincrusta was a huge trend amongst the Edwardians and as the first washable wall covering, proved a huge success when it was invented towards the end of the Victorian era. It was a deeply embossed and made from a gelled linseed and wood flour paste. Lincrusta is still available to buy today but with it comes a hefty price tag due to the traditional methods used to make it, which is why we came up with our own version of the popular vintage design. Our Tin Tile and Circular Tin Tile wallpapers each give a hyper realistic look of the Lincrusta style, with a Woodchip & Magnolia twist (and for a fraction of the price).

Image features Garden of Dreams Magnolia mural and Garden of Dreams Exotic mural

1920s
Often known as 'the Golden Age of Wallpaper', the 1920s were a period of decadence and glitz and the wallpaper was often inspired by films set in faraway lands, exotic places and the art deco movement. Bird and tree motifs were amongst the most popular and our Garden of Dreams mural epitomises this era perfectly. 

Image features Betsy Fan Ditsy Smoke wallpaper and Betsy Fan Ditsy Tobacco wallpaper

1930s
The Art Deco movement had well and truly taken off by the 1930s and wallpaper had also become more affordable and mass produced by then too. Known mostly for floral and geometric styles, the designs often had an art deco flair to them, much like our Betsy Fan design.

 
Image features Cottagecore Pretty Pink wallpaper

1940s
The 1940s were a more simple time compared to its predecessor eras. Defined by World War II it was an era of austerity and wallpapers reflected that with more simple and humble floral designs. Tying in with the recent Cottagecore trend, our 1940s inspired wallpapers such as Cottagecore  bring a sense of quiet calm and vintage chic to a space. 

Image features Wisteria Lemon wallpaper and Violas and Butterflies Mint wallpaper

1950s
By the 1950s the war was over and the general public had a more optimistic outlook on the future, looking towards lighter pastel colours in their homes. Florals were still popular but in fresh lemon and soft pink shades, just like our Wisteria Lemon and Violas and Butterflies wallpaper designs. 

 
Image features Va Va Frome Festival Red wallpaper and Tropic Coral Red wallpaper

1960s
Remaining colourful, patterns become more daring and oversized in the 1960s. Huge flowers were extremely popular with the rise of the hippie movement and rich colours such as oranges, greens, yellows and browns were the direction in which a lot of homes took. Our nods to this era include our Va Va Frome Festival Red, Tropic Coral Red and Va Va Frome Sunset wallpapers. 

Image features Love Her Madly Python wallpaper and Rapture True Leopard wallpaper

1970s
An era dedicated to rock 'n' roll, life was hedonistic, exciting and daring. It was a period of time people threw out the rule book and started to rebel, which is where the inspiration for our fearless Rapture True Leopard and Love Her Madly Python wallpapers came from. 

Image features Dynasty Strip Noir Oyster wallpaper and Dynasty Stripe Sage Green wallpaper

1980s
The most popular wallpaper style of the 1980s was chintz. It paid homage to the arts and crafts movement of the 19th Century and wallpaper borders in particular took off as a huge trend. Some styles were matchy matchy whilst others just plain wacky and are a huge source of inspiration for us (hello woodchip!). We have however brought the popular wallpaper border of the 1980s into the 21st Century with more modern designs and modern takes on classics like our Dynasty Stripe.

1990s
The Damask print had already been popular for decades but it really took off again during the 1990s when it was used in homes up and down the country (I think we have Lawrence Llewelyn Bowen and his Changing Rooms to thank for that!). We've given the neutral damask styles of the 1990s an update with brighter and more bold colours like the green, blue and pink of our Fearless wallpaper.