Elevate your home with these remodeling design ideas for 2025, and discover a beautiful glance back!
Home trends come and go, and I don’t recommend leaning too hard on them. What I pay attention to are the ideas that create a beautiful, semi-timeless, comfortable home that blends with the updated needs of today’s lifestyle.
I believe that trending elements should either be easily and inexpensively changeable once the trend vanishes or be an updated version of a design that upgrades the home in a modernized and newly timeless way. And I am thrilled that the trends for 2025 meet that criteria!
Here are the home remodeling design ideas I have observed rising to the top for 2025 …
A Beautiful Glance Back | 2025 Home Remodeling Design Ideas
The 1920s and 1990s are my two favorite home-building decades to look back upon because they are similar. The 1920s brought us the Craftsman Bungalows, Tudor Revivals, Cape Cods, and Colonial Revivals, all with cozy semi-open floor plans, beautiful woodwork, and warm tones and textures that invite relaxation.
The 1990s homes leaned into the beauty of the 1920s characteristics but with modernizations. The beautiful white or dark, stained wooden staircases of the 1920s either remained white or became honey oak-stained wooden staircases in the 1990s.
The 1920s saw the creation of beautiful homes with semi-open floorplans that were modestly sized—just over 1,000 square feet. The 1990s ushered in homes with similar footprints but were expanded beyond 2,000 square feet.
Gorgeous wooden built-in elements also remained a standard for the modern 90s and provided more storage in the now larger home.
I reflected on that history to say that the home design world is taking another glance back at the best elements of the 1920s and 1990s and is incorporating them in gorgeous 2025 ways.
It makes sense.
We spend more time in our homes as working from home remains a normality, and we are hanging on to our homes a little longer while the housing market adjusts. Therefore, our current homes require being remodeled to meet our liveability needs. What better way to meet those needs than by utilizing the methods that worked before?
Cozy Semi-Open Floor Plans | 2025 Home Remodeling Design Ideas
Sledgehammers can stay in the toolbox! >insert happy dance< Open-concept floor plans are not my favorite; an unpopular opinion, I know. I understand the thought behind them; the idea of knocking down walls for an expansive, flowing space may sound appealing, but the practicality can be problematic.
Everything Is Everywhere
Open floor plans mean that everything you do in one room affects the rest of the home. Everything you make in the kitchen flows freely throughout the house, whether it’s cooking smells, noise, or clutter. Leftover dishes and the aftermath of meal prep are on full display—not my ideal for creating a serene living environment.
Inefficient Heating and Cooling
A wide-open space is much harder to heat or cool effectively. Without the insulation of walls to create distinct zones, you’re left using more energy to keep your space comfortable.
Acoustics
Open-concept homes can feel like echo chambers, especially if they have hard-surface flooring. The lack of walls to absorb sound means conversations, TVs, and kids playing can all blend into a cacophony of noise.
Limited Decor and Storage
With fewer walls, there’s less opportunity to hang art, add built-in storage, or create purposeful spaces. The result can be a home that feels cluttered despite the expansive layout. Built-ins, bookcases, and even artwork all play an important role in breaking up a space and giving it character and personality.
Clutter
While the idea of an open space might initially seem clean and simple, without walls to divide and organize, rooms can quickly become a visual mess. There’s something beautiful about the strategic placement of walls that guide traffic and create clear zones within a home.
Instead, I highly favor the semi-open floor plan, which allows for a thoughtful balance of openness and division. By incorporating walls to maintain sight lines and airflow, you get the best of both worlds: a home that feels connected yet still offers structure, privacy, and a more efficient use of space.
Instead of automatically investing in expensive structural beams, consider your sightline needs, expand doorways, and remove only non-structural walls. This will preserve your long-term privacy, the character of the home, and your money.
Beautiful Woodwork | 2025 Home Remodeling Design Ideas
One of the most striking elements of homes from the 1920s and 1990s is the emphasis on craftsmanship. Beautiful, strategic woodwork, such as baseboards, wainscoting, and built-ins, are not only visually pleasing but also practical.
Baseboards
Baseboards, for example, aren’t just for show. They serve an important function by protecting your drywall from scuffs and dings, especially at the kick point.
Built-ins
Built-ins are another timeless feature making a comeback. These versatile pieces, whether bookcases, cabinets, or window seats, provide ample storage without sacrificing walkable square footage. They also add a sense of permanence and character to a space, making it feel custom and tailored to the homeowner’s needs.
Wall Paneling and Crown Molding
Additionally, wall paneling and crown molding are easy, cost-effective ways to elevate the aesthetic of any room. Whether you opt for simple beadboard or more intricate wainscoting patterns, these features can instantly transform a plain wall into something special, adding texture and dimension to your space. Crown molding, too, frames a room beautifully, drawing the eye upward and making ceilings feel higher and the room more expansive.
Warm Inviting Tones & Textures | 2025 Home Remodeling Design Ideas
I’m thrilled to see a return to warmer, cozier aesthetics inspired by the past. For me, the perfect combination is warm colors paired with warm metals, creating a sense of comfort and timeless elegance.
Creamy Whites and Warm Tones
Creamy whites that lean slightly warm, paired with the warm 2025 picks by popular paint brands, help create an inviting atmosphere. These tones feel more lived-in and welcoming, a nod to the coziness of homes from both the 1920s and the 1990s. Better Homes & Gardens has a great article spotlighting each brand’s 2025 color pick.
Warm Metals
Brass, muted golds, and champagne finishes are becoming the go-to metals, replacing the cooler tones of chrome and stainless steel. These metals pair beautifully with modern wallpaper patterns, rich wood furniture, and warm, creamy walls to create a space that feels both stylish and comfortable. I think keeping matte black and oil-rubbed bronze hardware works just as well with warm colors; even a warmer brushed nickel works nicely.
Overall, I think the tone being set is a step back from minimalist modernism, which brings cozy wood, walls, and colors back into the home in a way that feels fresh, functional, and timeless.
As always, it's a pleasure chatting about our homes with you. I love hearing about the plans you have for yours, so drop a quick note HERE to get started. Until next time, cheering you on!
