The Gen Z population is a hard nut to crack. Realistically, who can keep up with what the words rizz, bussin, and ate mean, unless you have kids, were born between 1997 and 2012, or are chronically online? Here at ELLE DECOR, though, we stay in the know—having demystified what Charli XCX’s Brat summer was, jumped on the “very demure, very mindful” bandwagon back in August, and otherwise kept in touch with all things hip, cool, and TikTok-powered.
One area Gen Zers are consistently vocal about is home design. After all, according to 2024 Redfin statistics, though Gen Z homeownership rates have stagnated last year, they still outpace those of older individuals back in the day. Specifically, homeownership rates for Gen Zers between the ages of 19 and 25 are higher than what was the case for millennials and Gen Xers when they were the same age. This is to say: The fresh-faced generation is moving into homes (and renting apartments!) of their own, so of course they have an opinion or two about what’s hot and what’s cheugy.
Want to get your own digs to Gen Z–approved levels in 2025? Look no further than these four data-backed trends, which are bound to come out on top as the calendar turns. You’d be delulu not to follow them.
Lavish and Ornate
It’s no easy feat to ‘scape the perfect baroque-inspired table or channel rococo vibes in interiors overall, but Gen Zers are clearing those hurdles by sourcing dated objects in antique stores and beyond (more on this later!). “I’ve noticed a lot of ‘mixing old and new,’ where people are mixing thrifted finds with more modern elements,” Danielle Carolan, New York-based content creator and host of the short-form series AM Uncovered, tells ELLE DECOR. “Platforms like Facebook Marketplace and thrift shops have made finding vintage items easier and affordable, so people can experiment with these styles without a big commitment.”Whether it be hosting a full moon dinner party with an over-the-top, luxe centerpiece situation or adorning their living rooms with bronze candelabras that look straight out of Bridgerton, Gen Zers are tapping into the “more is more” ethos without ever entering tacky territory.
Cherries
andy cohen powder room with mylar wallpaper an andy warhol silk print and other extravagant touches
Douglas Friedman
Cherries take center stage in the bathroom of Andy Cohen’s old West Village apartment, featured on the pages of our October 2017 issue. He was ahead of the curve!
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Food-themed art and design always had cultural staying power, and one look at Warhol’s Campbell’s Soup Cans is all that’s needed for confirmation of this fact. The culinary fascination we’ll be seeing all over the place in the world of home decor next year is cherries (yes, cherries!).
Per Pinterest, “cherry vibe” rose in searches by 325 percent, “cherry bedroom” experienced a bump of 100 percent, and “dark cherry red” spiked 235 percent. Scrolling through TikTok makes these numbers tangible: There are popular videos of cherry ornament–laden Christmas trees, disco ball cherry DIY tutorials, and even cherry-themed front door vignettes.
One explanation for this? Cherries are bold and life-affirming, which is Gen Z’s preferred design direction. “I’ve noticed Gen Z gravitates toward brighter, mood-boosting colors,” says Carolan. ELLE DECOR A-List designer Jessica Davis echoed that sentiment last month: “People are really diving into rich colors with jewel undertones.”
Another reason is that Gen Zers simply aren’t afraid of having a little fun. “For a long time, designers and home experts believed we had to follow specific design rules to achieve attractive interiors,” home style expert and HomeGoods Featured Finder Ursula Carmona tells us. “This generation is all about infusing their existing design style with personality and whatever speaks to them.”
WGSN, one of the world’s top trend forecasting agencies, is predicting a more generalized rise of fake food interior design decisions next year, across items like “trompe-l’oeil candles, stationery… [and] also furniture and room decor,” according to a press release. Cherries fit squarely into this growing obsession.
Paint your bedroom walls cherry red, top your bed with some cherry throw pillows, or else keep it subtle via cherry cocktail picks (like these ones from Anthropologie) during your next soiree. Either way, you’re in for a sweet, juicy treat.
Little Lights
One way to achieve the dreamiest level of ambiance possible, while reducing harsh overhead lights? Investing in a shower lamp, a trend started by content creator McKenna Barry. Here, ELLE DECOR A-List designer Eric Hughes shows us how it’s done.
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“No big lights. It’s all ambiance and lamps,” says Lee, referring to Gen Z’s revulsion with doctor’s office–adjacent overhead lighting, epitomized by the viral TikTok sound that declares one should never (ever, ever) use “the big light.”
Maura Clark, lighting expert and owner of an eponymous lighting design studio, weighs in: “What I’ve been seeing for residential [spaces] is we are shifting away from exposed lighting. There’s a lot more focus on diffusion.”
“A big no-no is having only having one type of light in the room,” she continues. “You want to have different types of light sources because that also is part of mood enhancement.”
Gen Z’s take on lighting is not your grandmother’s recessed can lighting situation. This generation is making spaces softer and moodier vis-à-vis sunset lamps, floor lamps, and even tabletop firepits. The proof, as it turns out, is in the pudding (or, in this case, the data). The leading service platform Taskrabbit’s 2024 Trend Report, compiled by analyzing thousands of Taskrabbit bookings made by Gen Z and beyond, mentions that requests for hanging lights are up by 42 percent. According to the platform, “mood lighting is…key.”
The element of diffusion mentioned by Clark can be created with fabric lampshades (this is a kitchen trend we’re predicting for 2025, btw!), plug-in wall sconces, and more. A key non-negotiable? Having lighting that’s easy on the eyes and makes you excited to return to your cozy abode each and every evening.
Secondhand Steals
blue washed open hutch desk with a vase of coordinated hydrangeas against a blue background
Frank Frances
One thing about Gen Z is that they’re going to be hitting all the antique stores. We love this vignette in the upstate New York home of Sheila Bridges.
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While older folks might peg today’s youngins as careless, Gen Z design trends are actually nothing if not thoughtful. “I think that there is a lot of curation happening for Gen Z. Every single item that enters Gen Z space is so considered,” says Lee.
This is achieved primarily through an emphasis on secondhand, vintage furniture finds versus hitting up household name retailers for, say, a new nightstand. Lee taps into the Gen Z thought process: “It’s like, okay, this is kind of the vibe that I want to go for. I know that I might be changing my style or my aesthetic throughout the year, but I’m going to look at Facebook Marketplace because that’s a more sustainable way to cycle through styles and recycle furniture.”
Oftentimes, secondhand takes on a highly personal meaning. “Basically everything in my apartment is secondhand or custom. The desk that I have [here] is my favorite piece of furniture—it was my grandmother’s desk when she was an English school teacher,” Lee shares.
If you’ve been following our content—and keeping up with Internet happenings in general—this trend should come as no surprise. The boom of the #furnitureflip hashtag on TikTok, representative of the larger phenomenon of people sourcing antiques and giving them 180-degree changes, proves that vintage furniture acquisition is hot right now (regardless of what’s done with it after purchase).
And it’s not exclusive to Gen Z tastes, either. Designers everywhere are also riding the vintage wave. Anthony Barzilay Freund, editorial director at e-commerce powerhouse 1stDibs, tells ELLE DECOR—commenting on 1stDibs’s 8th annual designer trend survey, which polled 643 international interior designers—that “vintage furniture continues to have broad appeal, even in rooms that skew heavily contemporary.” Furthermore, over eighty percent of respondents reported that they used at least one piece of furniture from the 1920s through the ’90s in their design schemes.
Gen Z is an enlightened generation and, just as its members are wary of fast fashion, so too do they give mass-produced home objects the cold shoulder. This approach, in turn, is environmentally conscious and guaranteed to add instant charisma to any home. Just think about how a distressed side table adored throughout generations, whose patina is proof of this love, would look. Then envision a cookie-cutter one with a plain, white, glossy finish. Enough said.
