064. The Nostalgia Design Trend (Opinion)

The rise and rise of nostalgic design

Design in every industry is flourishing, and this is largely due to the fact that culturally we have become a lot more accepting of all that is different. From fashion to feelings, web design to window dressing, the aesthetic of this age really is anything goes. With open-mindedness comes an open colour palette and believe me, we love it!

In design, we have seen a lot of chopping and changing, and most of the design trends don’t seem to have lasted as long as the last. However, our favourite has remained a constant fixture throughout. When it comes to nostalgia, we are all for it!

What is it about nostalgic design?

Several factors make a trend stay around a little longer than their counterparts. When it comes to nostalgic design, we can’t help but highlight the versatility of the trend itself. So in channelling those psychedelic 60’s vibes, popularised mainly due to the ‘trippiness’ of the decade itself or the smoother, slicker and more polished looking 70’s. We are offered nostalgia on a plate, in an array of totally different styles and feelings.

What happened to the bland, ariel font kind-of years?

After what seems like an eternity of unrealistic and thought-free design, we have found ourselves spiralling out of control in the decades our parents have long spoken about. Bland design seems to have almost wholly disappeared from everyday life, whether it’s in the bold prints produced by the high-end bigwigs to the in-your-face marketing campaigns of the fast-fashion moguls.

How does nostalgic design work best?

For us, it’s all about the implementation. For example, take our work with North Hopps brand identity work. We use the eye-popping colours of the garish ’80s and twin them with modern character graphics to raise the identity of the product. As technology improves as to does our capability to really perfect the colours and design work of yesteryear, creating flexibility within the nostalgic design trend.

Will it stick around?

We sure hope so! And truth be told, we anticipate seeing more and more brands buying into the trend in one way or another. As the more conservative brands around us adopt softer and sleeker homages to the past. We will remain here, loud, proud and open-minded when it comes to channelling the past when creating your brands future.