Furniture trends come and go just as fashion trends do. Tropical prints used to be all the rage, but most people are unlikely to decorate with them now. But, only some furniture trends go out of style. Timeless furniture trends make your home look classic and welcoming year after year.

Check out this guide to review outdated and classic furniture trends, and learn how you can achieve a timeless look by using furniture that never goes out of style.

3 Timeless Furniture Trends to Incorporate

Since popular furniture trends go out of style, it’s best to incorporate them with classic furniture. Think of it like seasonal decor — you can base your decor on the trends you like but keep timeless trends as your base. Then, when you grow tired of the popular trend, you can switch back to the classic look. 

One example is decorating with chevrons, which was popular a few years ago. Instead of redecorating your entire space, you could use chevron pillowcases for the sofa pillows and change them out when you want. 

Keeping classic furniture in your living room and other rooms can help you maintain a timeless look. The following are timeless and sustainable furniture trends you can incorporate.

1. Simple Lines and Designs

The key to timeless furniture is its simplicity. While you don’t have to fully embrace minimalism, furniture with clean lines and simple, proven designs can fit into any room of your home with any decor style. 

Bold prints and colors are excellent ways to set the tone for a room’s style, while simple, functional pieces add substance without standing out. Investing in understated furniture provides a solid base that you can dress up in any way you like.

2. Space-Saving Multifunctional Furniture

When it seems like there can never be enough space, multifunctional furniture will come in handy. Multifunctional furniture pieces allow you to use the same room for multiple purposes without cluttering it. Some popular transforming furniture items include:

• Wall beds: Wall beds have been around for many years. Today, they can offer an alternative to sleeping on the sofa, folding up so neatly that you’d never guess a bed was there. If your bedroom doubles as your office, you could opt for a wall bed with a built-in table or desk. These wall beds look sleek and save you space by combining your bed and desk.
• Transforming tables: Tables are versatile furniture pieces you can use to eat a meal, decorate with or complete work. Transforming tables give you the option to combine use and save space. For example, a home office desk could convert into a cabinet.

3. Mixed Styles

Instead of committing to a single style or era — mid-century modern, French provincial, contemporary — consider blending the new with the old. Mixing and matching your furniture with individual pieces that appeal to you keeps you from settling into a single style that might fall out of favor. 

Incorporating vintage or antique pieces with modern furniture lets you bring a piece of the past into your design while creating a space that’s uniquely yours. 

3 Outdated Furniture Trends to Avoid

Furniture trends can fall out of fashion for many reasons, including overexposure, limited usefulness and being thrown over in favor of a newer trend. Whatever the reason, these trends have overstayed their welcome.

1. Monotonous Neutrals

While neutrals are always popular, the days of all-white bedrooms and living rooms awash in a sea of gray are coming to an end. The silver lining is that there’s no need to worry about finding an exact match for your favorite chair’s stone gray upholstery.

Of course, this doesn’t mean you need to abandon neutrals entirely. Instead of matching them, embrace the idea of layered neutrals. You can create a varied look by choosing furniture in different neutrals. For example, you could have white walls, a slate gray sofa, pale gray armchairs and brown tables. Furniture in shades of brown, white and gray also makes an excellent neutral base for various decor styles and pops of color. You can add bright accent pillows and wall art to give your space a new look.

2. Faux-Distressed Farmhouse

While farmhouse is one of the most classic furniture styles, certain aspects are losing popularity — most notably, the faux-distressed furniture popularized as “shabby chic.” Authentic farmhouse furniture is built to last and inevitably collects a fair amount of genuine nicks and scratches. If the farmhouse style appeals to you, avoid faux-distressed furniture in favor of the real deal.

3. Fast Furniture

Fast furniture is inexpensive, often temporary furniture that lasts only a few years at most. Like fast fashion, it often uses cheap materials and flimsy construction methods, so while it’s easy to purchase it can be nearly impossible to repair. While fast furniture makes it easy to keep up with the latest trends, it also means spending more as you cycle through pieces.

Ditching fast furniture can also help safeguard your health. These pieces frequently use particleboard, plywood and fiberboard, which often contain formaldehyde in the resins that hold them together. Studies have found that in addition to irritating your eyes, nose, skin and throat, formaldehyde can cause certain types of cancer.

Sustainable Home Trends

Sustainability is poised to be one of the most significant new home trends, and it also shows every sign of being lasting. Here are some of the most prominent characteristics of this trend:

• Built to last: Investing in durable, high-quality pieces over fast furniture will save you money in the long run while saving furniture waste from landfills. Look for Cradle to Cradle certification to find pieces you’ll be able to disassemble if you need to move them or repair and replace individual parts.
• Reclaimed or sustainably sourced materials: Some furniture companies use wood, iron and glass from old furniture or buildings, reducing their need for new resources while adding a touch of history. A label from the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certifies that a product uses recycled material, sustainably sourced wood or both.
• Non-toxic glues and finishes: Water-based glues and finishes are a safer, more environmentally friendly alternative to solvent-based ones. Look for CARB2 and TSCA Title VI certification to ensure your furniture won’t emit formaldehyde or other volatile organic compounds.

How to Achieve a Timeless Look in Your Home

To achieve a timeless look in your home, you want to: 

• Focus on functionality: Classic bedroom furniture and timeless living room furniture focuses on functionality. It may not be the trendiest or most glamorous, but energy efficiency, durability and storage are needs you will always have. Since you will always need functional furniture, it remains trendy.
• Use interior trends for inspiration: Don’t completely redecorate based on what’s popular. Instead, incorporate the popular trends you like with timeless furniture.
• Utilize art and decor: You can modernize your space with art and decor. This keeps your interior current no matter what the architectural style of your house or your furnishings are.
• Avoid overcrowding: Make sure you space your furniture so nothing feels cramped or cluttered. Give yourself room to move around. 

Stick to Timeless Design Choices With Resource Furniture

Multifunctional furniture will never become outdated. It allows you to save space and money. Today’s designs are more sophisticated and stylish than ever before. When you want your home to feel fresh and spacious, look no further than Resource Furniture.

For 20 years, Resource Furniture has provided homeowners with beautiful, high-quality space-saving furniture pieces. Check out our multifunctional seating options, transforming tables and desks or wall beds with various styles and sizes. Contact us for more information about our furniture or if you are looking for something specific.