While your parents' plastic-covered sofa and brass fixtures scream 1985, other boomers have mastered the art of timeless style - and the difference has nothing to do with money.
Ever walked into your parents' house and felt like you've time-traveled? Not in the charming, vintage-poster-and-record-player way, but more like stepping into a museum exhibit titled "Middle America, circa 1987"?
I've noticed something interesting after years of visiting homes across generations. Some boomers have homes that feel effortlessly elegant, places where you immediately feel comfortable and somehow more sophisticated just by being there. Others? Well, their spaces scream "we haven't changed a thing since Reagan's second term."
What separates these two groups isn't money. During my time serving ultra-wealthy families at high-end resorts, I learned that throwing cash at decor rarely creates good taste. The difference comes down to specific choices that either keep a space feeling current or leave it trapped in amber.
After restoring my own 1920s bungalow here in Austin and watching how different generations approach their spaces, I've identified the key decisions that matter. Here are the eight decorating choices that reveal whether someone has timeless taste or just stopped paying attention somewhere around 1985.
1. They treat wood furniture as furniture, not sacred relics
Remember those massive oak entertainment centers that dominated living rooms throughout the '90s? The ones built to house a 200-pound TV and approximately 47 VHS tapes?
Boomers with timeless taste understood when these pieces outlived their purpose. They adapted, sold, or repurposed them. Meanwhile, others still have these behemoths taking up half their living room, now awkwardly housing a flat-screen that looks comically small in comparison.
The same goes for that formal dining set nobody uses. People with good taste recognize that furniture should serve current needs, not past aspirations. They're not afraid to let go of the mahogany dining table for twelve when they only host Thanksgiving every third year.
When I moved into my bungalow, the previous owners left behind a gorgeous built-in china cabinet. Beautiful craftsmanship, sure, but I use it for books and bar supplies. That's the difference. Timeless decorators adapt pieces to their actual lifestyle rather than maintaining shrines to how people lived in 1985.
2. They understand that beige isn't the only neutral
Walk into certain boomer homes and you'll encounter what I call the Beige Plague. Beige walls, beige carpet, beige furniture, beige art featuring beige flowers. It's like someone decided the height of sophistication was making your home look like the inside of a cardboard box.
Those with genuine taste discovered other neutrals exist. Warm grays, soft whites, even deep charcoals. They learned that neutral doesn't mean absence of color, it means colors that play well with others.
My place in Austin? The walls are mostly white, but it's a warm white that changes with the light throughout the day. Add in some natural wood tones and a few carefully chosen colors, and suddenly you have a space that feels both calm and alive.
The beige-everything crowd got stuck believing that playing it safe meant sophisticated. They missed the memo that safe often just means boring.
3. They stopped treating the formal living room like a museum
You know that room. The one with the plastic-covered sofa. The one kids weren't allowed to enter except on Christmas. The shrine to what-if-important-guests-visit that sits empty 364 days a year.
Boomers with taste long ago realized the absurdity of maintaining unused square footage in increasingly expensive homes. They either eliminated formal living rooms entirely or transformed them into spaces people actually use. Home offices, libraries, music rooms, whatever serves their actual life.
The frozen-in-time crowd? They're still maintaining these pristine, uncomfortable spaces that nobody enjoys. They're literally paying to heat, cool, and clean rooms that exist only to impress hypothetical visitors who never materialize.
4. They let go of matchy-matchy everything
There's something deeply 1985 about having your sofa, loveseat, chair, ottoman, throw pillows, and curtains all in the exact same fabric pattern. Usually involving some combination of mauve and forest green.
People with evolved taste understand that coordination doesn't mean everything matches perfectly. They mix textures, vary their patterns, and combine different wood finishes. Their spaces feel collected over time, not purchased in one trip to a furniture showroom.
I learned this lesson in Thailand, actually, where I spent time in beautifully designed homes that mixed modern pieces with antiques, local crafts with international finds. Nothing matched, yet everything worked together. That's the secret: harmony without uniformity.
5. They update their window treatments
Those heavy, dust-collecting valances with multiple layers of fabric swags? The vertical blinds that haven't been cleaned since Bush Senior was president? These are the calling cards of homes stuck in the past.
Smart decorators simplified their windows years ago. Clean-lined curtains, modern blinds, or even going bare when privacy isn't a concern. They understand that windows should frame views and let in light, not showcase how much fabric you can hang from a rod.
The difference is stark. Updated window treatments can transform a room from funeral parlor circa 1986 to bright, contemporary space without changing anything else.
6. They display art, not just family photos
Don't get me wrong, family photos matter. But when every single wall surface displays nothing but school portraits from 1973 through 1999, arranged in matching gold frames, you've created a time capsule, not a living space.
Boomers with taste curate their displays. They mix family photos with actual art, whether that's original pieces, quality prints, or even interesting objects. They update photo displays to include recent memories, not just freeze everything at their kids' high school graduations.
They also discovered that not every photo needs displaying. Some memories can live in albums or digital files without requiring wall space.
7. They embrace modern lighting
Brass fixtures with etched glass shades. Track lighting that points nowhere useful. That chandelier with fake candles that's trying way too hard. These are the ghosts of lighting past that haunt too many boomer homes.
Those who've kept their spaces current upgraded to better lighting years ago. They understand that good lighting transforms spaces more than almost any other change. They've discovered LED bulbs that actually look good, fixtures that provide both ambient and task lighting, and the revolutionary idea that you don't need a ceiling fan in every single room.
In my own place, I removed three ceiling fans and installed simple, modern fixtures. The rooms immediately felt taller, cleaner, and about twenty years younger.
8. They recognize that collections can become clutter
Finally, we need to talk about collections. The Precious Moments figurines. The commemorative plates. The Beanie Babies that were definitely going to pay for retirement.
Tasteful boomers either pared down collections to a few meaningful pieces or display them thoughtfully rather than cramming every surface with tchotchkes. They understand that fifty of something rarely looks better than five carefully chosen examples.
They also stopped acquiring new collections. They recognized that just because you bought one ceramic lighthouse doesn't mean you need to dedicate your life to obtaining every ceramic lighthouse ever made.
Final thoughts
Here's what I've learned from years of observing how people live: good taste isn't about money or following trends. It's about paying attention, editing ruthlessly, and being honest about how you actually live versus how you think you should live.
The boomers with timeless taste didn't stop caring about their spaces in 1985. They evolved, adapted, and made conscious choices about what stayed and what went. They understood that homes should reflect who you are now, not who you were during the Reagan administration.
The truth is, any generation can get stuck. I see millennials already crystallizing around certain trends that'll look dated in a decade. The key is staying aware, staying flexible, and remembering that your home should serve your current life, not preserve some idealized moment from the past.
Your space shapes your daily experience more than almost anything else. Why live in 1985 when you could live in the present?
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