The term “millennial gray” is well known among Gen Zers as the somber interior décor and furniture that millennials typically own.
One TikTok user cruelly referred to this aesthetic as “the boiled chicken of decor.”
Urban Dictionary offers a much harsher explanation, defining ‘millennial grey’ as ‘the sad shade of grey that many cover their lives with. The colour reflects how we went from mindless happiness, watching Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon in the 90s, to inflation and depression in the early 2020s’.
It has been theorized that the phenomenon is a rebellious response to the colorful childhood homes Millennials may have grown up in.
However, Gen Z seems to have taken decorating style personally and started criticizing millennials for their home decor choices.
TikTok user Lindsy Davigeadono shared a video of her home, which includes “millennial grey” appliances, furniture, and flooring.
Pictured: The “millennial grey” aesthetic
“Millennial gray” started trending in the 2010s and refers to a home that has an all-gray interior with gray furniture and decor.
One TikTok user commented online: “I’m a grey millennial but can we all remember what we grew up with? We had red carpet, green carpet, brown everything outside, orange kitchens, blue bathrooms.”
Growing up in the 90s, the home aesthetic embraced the “Tuscan villa,” which featured beige tones, grapevines, or the dreaded grape-themed kitchen.
Shabby chic was also a staple in 1990s homes, with ruffled lace, a palette of whites and pastels, and floral patterns.
Interior design experts attribute the ‘millennial grey’ to an attempt to counteract their aesthetically chaotic upbringing with a calmer, more neutral home.
Interior designer and owner of Home Narrative in Canada, Marissa Warner, said on TikTok that the trend is “somewhat our parents’ fault.”
The term refers to furnishing a house with an all-grey interior, such as sofas, floors or walls, or painting old furniture grey to modernise it.
She said: ‘The grey trend really suits our desire to move away from the overstimulating chaos of our childhood and towards a more serene environment,’ the report said. The HuffPost.
TikTok user (who declares herself a millennial) Lindsy Davigeadono shared a video of her home, which includes “millennial grey” appliances, furniture, and flooring.
“Even my house is grey,” he said, showing the grey exterior of his home at the end of the video.
However, the calming nature of the grey palette seems to frustrate Generation Z.
One commenter even goes so far as to say “this is my personal hell” in reference to a “millennial grey” house on the Internet.
Another said: “Oh my god, do you feel like you’re living in a cinder block prison? I don’t know how this isn’t depressing to people.”
Many have expressed feeling “haunted” by the “millennial grey” and finding vintage painted or covered décor, furniture, floors and walls.
A video went viral on TikTok showing before and after photos of an old, non-existent house turned into a “millennial grey” home.
While the user who posted the video acknowledged that artificial intelligence likely played a role in the initial creation of the video and photographs, the home remodeling trends that Gen Z is so riled up about are demonstrated not only in the video but also in the comments.
“If you want a modern house, buy a modern house,” one wrote in all caps.
Another user wrote, also in capital letters: ‘Why can’t they just buy a normal, boring house?!?! Why do they have to destroy everything that is beautiful and old?’
To which the creator replied: “because they hate us and want to feel like they are in jail.”
Despite many comments that understood the video was not a real home remodel, home renovation trends and old furniture definitely don’t sit well with Gen Z.
It’s not just AI that’s making the “millennial grey” home trend go viral, as more and more millennials are realizing that their chosen decor seems to fit the stereotype.
One user commented: ‘You just realized what millennial grey is, very millennial of you.’
It has been suggested that Generation Z’s horror of Millennial grey is a result of their tendency to lean more towards self-expression and individualism.
The business of fashion reported that in a survey of 1,000 Gen Z members, 89 percent rated fashion as important in boosting confidence and 82 percent said fashion is important in establishing their identities.
There are also signs that Gen Z is more willing to buy secondhand or pre-loved items, Business Insider reported, potentially contributing to new vintage fashion trends.
To counter the stereotype and avoid Gen Z’s online wrath, millennials have begun to gravitate toward “millennial green” and have started maintaining vintage decor or well-preserved older homes.