15 Things Boomers Hold Onto That Make Their Homes Look Stuck in Time
Walking into some Baby Boomer homes feels like stepping into a time machine that whisks you back to the 1970s. While nostalgic charm has its place, certain decorating choices can make a home feel outdated rather than vintage-cool.
Many Boomers cherish these familiar items from their heyday, creating living spaces that tell the story of another era entirely.
1. Plastic-covered sofas
Remember grandma’s living room where nobody was allowed to sit? Plastic sofa covers were once the height of furniture protection sophistication.
Families would encase perfectly good furniture in clear, sticky plastic that made awful squeaking noises and stuck to bare legs in summer. Despite being practical for preventing stains, these crinkly covers scream “formal living room that’s never actually lived in.”
2. Heavy drapes and valances
Nothing says “we bought these curtains during the Reagan administration” quite like floor-to-ceiling fabric fortresses adorned with swags, jabots, and valances.
Often in dusty blues, burgundies, or forest greens, these window treatments block natural light and collect decades of dust. Paired with tie-backs, tassels, and ornate curtain rods, they transform windows into elaborate stage settings rather than simple sources of sunshine.
3. Floral wallpaper from the ’70s
Loud, busy patterns featuring oversized blooms in eye-searing color combinations once dominated American walls. Orange dahlias, mustard chrysanthemums, and avocado leaves created a veritable garden of visual chaos.
Wallpaper borders often accompanied these botanical explosions, doubling down on the floral theme. Many Boomer homes still showcase these vintage patterns, preserved like museum exhibits of interior design history, faded yet stubbornly clinging to dining room walls.
4. Brass bathroom fixtures
Gleaming brass faucets, towel bars, and light fixtures once signaled luxury in American bathrooms. Now they’re telltale signs of Reagan-era renovations.
Frequently paired with cultured marble countertops and shell-shaped sinks, these yellow-toned metallic elements have long since lost their luster. Yet countless Boomer bathrooms maintain this brassy glow, often complemented by matching toilet paper holders and toothbrush stands forming a complete golden ensemble.
5. Glass block walls
Architects of the 1980s apparently believed no shower stall was complete without a wall of glass blocks. Square or hexagonal, these translucent building materials let light through while maintaining privacy.
Beyond bathrooms, glass blocks appeared in basement windows and as room dividers throughout Boomer homes. While offering a certain aesthetic, they’ve become architectural time stamps, instantly dating any space to the era when Miami Vice was must-see TV.
6. Doilies on every surface
Lacy little fabric circles protect furniture while simultaneously announcing “an older person lives here.” White crocheted doilies adorn armchair rests, sofa backs, coffee tables, and any other surface that might benefit from decorative protection.
Intricate patterns crafted by hand or machine, these delicate fabric pieces were once prized possessions. Boomer homes often feature collections inherited from mothers and grandmothers, creating layered textile landscapes under lamps, figurines, and family photos.
7. Carpeted bathrooms
Somehow, putting absorbent fabric around toilets seemed like a good idea once. Carpeted bathrooms reached peak popularity in the 1970s and never completely disappeared from Boomer homes.
Wall-to-wall carpeting or plush toilet-shaped rugs in harvest gold, avocado green, or powder blue surrounded fixtures. Mildew concerns aside, nothing dates a bathroom faster than fuzzy floor coverings designed to match toilet seat covers and tank toppers in coordinating shades.
8. Oak entertainment centers
Massive wooden fortresses once housed bulky tube televisions and hi-fi systems across America. Golden oak entertainment centers dominated living rooms with their imposing presence and multiple compartments.
Complete with glass doors, adjustable shelves, and dedicated spaces for VHS collections, these furniture behemoths anchored family rooms. Many Boomers still maintain these wooden monuments, sometimes with flat-screen TVs awkwardly perched where cathode ray tubes once lived.
9. Lace curtains
Delicate, sheer window coverings in intricate patterns once filtered light in countless American homes. White or cream-colored lace curtains allowed Boomer homeowners to maintain privacy while letting sunlight stream through in diffused patterns.
Often paired with heavier drapes for nighttime, these lightweight window treatments collected dust and yellowed with age. Yet they remain fixtures in many older homes, casting doily-like shadows across living rooms and bedrooms like ghostly reminders of decorating trends past.
10. Shag carpeting
Long-fibered floor coverings once represented the height of home luxury. Deep-pile carpeting in burnt orange, chocolate brown, or harvest gold cushioned feet in millions of American homes during the 1970s.
Requiring special rakes to maintain its fluffy appearance, shag carpeting trapped crumbs, dust, and memories in equal measure. Despite being impractical and difficult to clean, some Boomer homes proudly maintain original shag, complete with vacuum track marks and well-worn paths.
11. Recliners with built-in cup holders
Dad’s throne room wouldn’t be complete without an oversized recliner featuring built-in conveniences. Bulky chairs with integrated cup holders, side pockets, and sometimes even phone stands dominated Boomer living rooms.
Upholstered in sturdy fabrics or faux leather, these command centers let patriarchs watch football without ever needing to stand. Modern minimalist design philosophies reject these comfort-first furniture pieces, but many Boomers refuse to part with their beloved relaxation stations.
12. Avocado green or harvest gold appliances
Kitchen color schemes once embraced bold, saturated hues that now instantly date homes to specific decades. Refrigerators, stoves, and dishwashers in avocado green or harvest gold were status symbols in the 1970s.
Surprisingly durable, many of these colorful appliances continue functioning in Boomer kitchens fifty years later. Matching range hoods, countertop microwaves, and even toasters completed the coordinated look, creating time capsule kitchens that defy contemporary stainless steel uniformity.
13. Formal china cabinets stuffed with collectibles
Curated collections of porcelain figurines, commemorative plates, and crystal glassware deserve proper display. Wooden china cabinets with glass doors showcase treasured possessions that younger generations rarely accumulate.
Hummel figurines, Precious Moments statues, and Department 56 villages fill these cabinets to bursting. Carefully arranged and dusted, yet rarely used, these collections represent decades of gift-giving and souvenir-buying that modern minimalists find baffling yet Boomers consider essential home decor.
14. Wall-to-wall wood paneling
Dark wooden walls once represented the pinnacle of den and basement finishing. Sheets of wood-patterned paneling transformed concrete block walls into cozy retreats without the expense of actual woodwork.
Often in medium-to-dark brown tones, this ubiquitous wall covering darkened already dim basement rec rooms. Lots of Boomer homes maintain this distinctive feature, sometimes partially painted over in attempts at modernization that never quite succeed in disguising the unmistakable vertical grooves.
15. Ceiling fans with ornate light kits
Combining illumination with air circulation seemed practical, but execution often veered into excess. Ceiling fans featuring elaborate light fixtures with multiple bulbs encased in frosted glass became standard in Boomer homes.
Adorned with fake brass finishes, decorative pull chains, and sometimes even stained glass elements, these overhead installations make bold statements. While modern ceiling fans embrace sleek, minimal designs, many older homes still sport these chandelier-fan hybrids with their distinctive clinking sounds.