The Living Room Lighting Trend That'll Be Shining Bright In 2025

At the end of every year, many of us typically like to predict what the new year will bring. If you love decorating and designing your home, then that means looking at what the new interior design trend forecasts are. When it comes to your living room in particular, a new lighting trend is emerging for 2025, and it's as aesthetic as it is practical. The trend involves no longer limiting yourself to using one type of light design and instead mixing contemporary styles with vintage pieces. 

If you don't particularly like antiques, don't balk just yet! You don't necessarily have to mix and match your modern farmhouse black sconces with Victorian Tiffany lamps. It can be much subtler than that. Instead, you're supposed to choose vintage lighting that will blend in and accent the lamps you already own. You can choose items with similar shapes, finishes, or even colors, which will help the vintage pieces meld with your current design. This is similar to the idea of using many indirect, soft light sources in a kitchen to create a cozy feel, which Joanna Gaines says is a trend that's here to stay. Both design ideas create a layered look that provides more interest in a space.

Trends don't just pop out of nowhere. Instead, a slow shift in attitudes and tastes takes place over several years, creating a pocket of time that is ready for that new style. When it comes to mixing vintage and modern lighting, the movement is taking root because people want more personal, lived-in homes over the cookie-cutter and simple spaces we have been embracing for the last five or so years. Rather than creating showroom-like spaces, people now want to focus on comfort and hominess. "I was always told the more layering there is in a room, the more relaxed it will feel," decorator Gavin Houghton told House & Garden. "A room needs to be like a person you'd like to get to know, which means it needs to be interesting and erudite, to have history and background."

And that's exactly what this new trend does — it creates a more dynamic, interesting space. Rather than looking like your room stepped out of a Target catalog, it will have some history and depth due to the vintage lighting mixed throughout. They'll be like conversation starters. "Imagine pairing a sleek, minimalist pendant with a vintage Murano glass lamp or delicate plug-in shaded sconce. This juxtaposition brings character and depth to interiors," Sara Swabb, founder of Storie Collective, told Martha Stewart.

Now that you know why vintage lighting is making a comeback, how do you put it into practice? If you don't usually dabble with vintage items, it might be difficult to envision how to bring them into your own living room. Luckily, it's not too hard. The trick is to match either the antique finish, color, or shape to what you already have. For instance, if you have a black Studio McGee chandelier in your living room, match that ironwork with a black oil lamp for a side table or black sconces with crystal globes.

On the other hand, if you have brass modern floor lamps, juxtapose them with brass mid-century table lamps. Or, if you have a penchant for globe pendants and rounded sconces, mirror that bulbous shape with curved table lamps that have bulbous lampshades. Sourcing these pieces will also be half the fun. You can look everywhere from flea markets to thrift stores to Facebook Marketplace to relatives' basements. You could also use thrifted items to create a designer-worthy lamp. It's a fun new trend that will push you to create a more interesting living room design.