This Mash-Up Design Style Is Like If Art Deco and Art Nouveau Had a Baby (It’s Coming for Your Living Room!)

At the start of 2020, Apartment Therapy predicted the resurgence of Art Deco style. The movement’s centennial anniversary felt like the moment for the interior design world to look back at Deco’s soft curves, shiny finishes, and streamlined geometric motifs to recast them anew. And that’s kind of what happened: Over the past few years, sofas have become increasingly curvy, pared-down graphic patterns have stayed popular, and Pinterest proclaimed bold chrome the “it” finish of 2024 after years of brass being dominant.

But what we didn’t totally clock — until now — is how this 21st-century Deco might itself evolve (and potentially in retrograde). Because in the past year or so, we’ve been seeing a style that’s seemingly a shift back to what the original Art Deco movement was a reaction against: Art Nouveau. But it’s not Art Nouveau in its purest form. What we’re seeing is a trend blend we’ve dubbed “Retro Nouveau.”

What is Retro Nouveau?

Retro Nouveau is a mashup design style that takes the organic motifs, stained glass, and ornate shapes of Art Nouveau and melds them with retro (and even Deco-coded) touches like bold colors and geometric patterns. Examples of these interiors certainly include vintage and vintage-inspired touches, but modern and contemporary pieces can be mixed in, too.

This might not be the first time you’re hearing about Retro Nouveau. Back in December 2024, for Apartment Therapy’s The State of Home Design designer survey for 2025, we soft-sounded 154 designers on what they expected to be an emerging design style for the year. Almost half — 44% — of respondents chose Retro Nouveau for its vintage-inspired, quietly luxurious, and borderline fancy aesthetic.

What Does Retro Nouveau Design Look Like?

Trying to spot this style in the wild? From what we can tell, the magic is in the mix. Think putting a very Nouveau Tiffany lamp on a carved buffet depicting greenery and animals next to a very 1950s-looking piece of artwork, as renter Francesca Grace did in her former LA apartment.

You can follow pro designers’ leads, too. Mix a bold animal print wallpaper with a faceted mirror and custom-cut, bowtie-shaped stone vanity backsplash, like designer Dara Beitler did in the powder room above. Or hammer home the retro vibe even more à la designer Amanda Jacobs in her bar project below. There, she mixed classic checkerboard floor tiles with Cesca-esque chairs and punchy colors (think: teal walls and Deco-inspired, channel-back mustard banquette-style seating).

What Are the Characteristics of Retro Nouveau Interiors?

Taking a step back from these specific examples, though, the Retro Nouveau interiors we’ve been spotting seem to share some of these characteristics:

• Nature-inspired patterns that are highly stylized and whimsical (vs. realistic)

• Stained glass windows, doors, and accents

• Gilded and high-shine finishes

• Sinuous shapes and ornate details/ornamentation

• Darker woods and bolder colors like pinks, maroons, browns, blues, and greens

• Retro-meets-Deco design elements like checkerboard floors and geometric prints

Shop the Retro Nouveau Look for Your Home

Want to give this eclectic style a spin? I made a mood board of some of my favorite Retro Nouveau finds. They’re all also shoppable below. I can’t wait to see how this design aesthetic continues to evolve and take the rest of this year and next by storm.

AT Retro Nouveau Picks July 2025

1. 

   Romy Handwoven Wool Rug, 5′ x 8′

   Quince

   $500

   The internet’s fave dupe brand, Quince, is on the checkerboard rug game with the Romy Handwoven Wool Rug. The brown and tan colorway feels like the Retro Nouveau-inspired pick, but you can’t go wrong with any of these combos — and an 8×10 is under $1,000, which is fairly reasonable for all-wool construction.

   Buy Now

2. 

   Dale Tiffany Cape Reinga Tiffany-Style Accent Lamp

   Lamps Plus

   $98

   This Tiffany-style lamp might be what your console table or desk is missing. Mix this kind of a piece with, say, bold-patterned wallpaper in a home office for a Retro Nouveau pairing no one saw coming.

   Buy Now

3. 

   Corrigan Studio Aveon Mid-Century Modern Tufted Channel Velvet Dining Chairs

   Wayfair

   $287 (was $250)

   This pair of chairs feels like Retro Nouveau style to a T, thanks to their mashup design. You’ve got Deco-inspired channel upholstery, a Nouveau-esque cognac colorway, and mid-century metal legs all combining in one silhouette.

   Buy Now

4. 

   Maura Squiggle Shape Light Switch Cover

   Urban Outfitters

   $16

   It may not be intricately carved, but this light switch cover sure is shiny and retro in its squiggle shape. Imagine it against a funky wall color, like turquoise or deep teal.

   Buy Now

5. 

   Sinclair Tassel-Fringed Velvet Pendant

   Anthropologie

   $298

   The velvet fabric and fringe trim give this funky pendant a Retro Nouveau feel. It’s also lightweight, meaning it’s a great candidate for swagging overhead in a room with no hard-wired lighting.

   Buy Now

6. 

   Art Nouveau Retro Mid-Century Floral Brown Wallpaper

   HappyWall

   $5

   This tone-on-tone floral wallpaper is the perfect amalgamation of retro and Art Nouveau motifs. You have the sinuous flower representing Nouveau and the concentric circle detail that’s 100% retro.

   Buy Now

Further Reading

We Used Our New “Room Plan” Tool to Give This Living Room 3 Distinct Styles — See How, Then Try It Yourself

The Design Changemakers to Know in 2025

Create Your Own 3D Room Plan with Our New Tool