Mason jars, fairy lights and chevron patterns, oh my.
The formerly Instagram-chic pieces, once a hallmark in millennial interior design, are out —and if you still rock them, your decor could be aging you.
Instead, an architecture and design expert has revealed the swaps necessary to Gen Z-ify your home.
Mushrooms are akin to the millennial obsession with pineapples, while checkered patterns are Gen Z’s version of the once-popular chevron design, New Yorker Reeves Connelly, 26, said in a viral TikTok video, which garnered 5.6 million views.
“Same thing with coffee table books —like this Tom Ford book had every millennial in a chokehold,” he explained of the hefty, jet-black book, published by Rizzoli, with bold lettering on the front.
“And now, Gen Z is obsessed with these colorful Assouline books,” he added, showing a photo of the colorful hardcover works “Capri Dolce Vita,” “Amalfi Coast” and more.
While Gen Z is drawn to clamshell decor, millennials once opted for “sea urchin-looking things.”
“The squiggle mirror has to be the most Gen Z-coded piece of furniture there is,” Connelly explained, alongside a photo of the mirrors with pastel-hued frames, comparing them to the 2010’s low-profile, hexagon mirrors.
“I feel like the millennial’s version of that are these geometric hanging mirrors.”
He also likened Gen Z’s infatuation with cowboy couture —boots, hats, cow print —to that of mustaches, spectacles and top hats that overtook millennial culture.
“Animal prints are timeless,” said Connelly, who boasts over 706,000 followers on the app. “But the way that millennials paired the zebra print with these neon colors is very similar to the way that Gen Z styled the cow print but with pastels instead.”
And, if you were around for the Tumblr-era fixation on aesthetically pleasing fairy lights, Gen Z’s rendition is the strip of neon LED lights lining their bed frame or walls — essentially, “the same thing in a different font,” he said.
“Someone needs to study the impact of the Mason jar on millennial culture —they were everywhere,” Connelly continued, adding that the “Gen Z equivalent” is stacked ring cups.
Commenters couldn’t help but devise their own comparisons —the millennial owls and succulents have been ousted by the Gen Z frogs and mushrooms, some users noted.
“I haven’t had the guts to tell my sister that her cowboy frog tattoo is her generation’s mustache finger tattoo,” quipped one person, who was praised as a “kind sister.”
“Fairy lights were so much better than the neon strips though,” lamented another.
“I don’t care if they’re just generational trends I’m just happy to see color added to home decor again,” applauded someone else, denouncing the “millennial gray” home aesthetic.
“Ultimately everyone finds a generational font, it’s a delightful surprise every time there’s a new iteration,” another user wrote.
