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Interior Design vocabulary · Interior Styles

Eclectic

Meaning in interior design, with examples

/ɪˈklektɪk/adjectiveCommon term

In interior design, eclectic means: Mixing furniture, objects and ideas from different periods, styles and places in one room, held together by a shared colour, material or mood.

In Turkish: eklektik, karma

How it is used

Used for homes full of personality and collected pieces: an eclectic mix, an eclectic interior. Done well it feels personal; done badly it looks random, so designers repeat colours or materials to connect everything.

Example sentences

  1. The flat has an eclectic mix of Turkish kilims, mid-century chairs and contemporary art.

  2. To keep the eclectic style from feeling messy, we repeated the same green in every room.

Common collocations

  • eclectic mix
  • eclectic style
  • eclectic interior
  • eclectic collection
  • contemporaryDescribes the style of design that is current now, usually with clean lines, neutral colours and a mix of materials; it changes as trends change.
  • mid-century modernA style of furniture and interiors from roughly the 1940s to the 1960s, known for clean lines, tapered legs, warm woods like teak and walnut, and organic shapes.
  • Art DecoA glamorous design style of the 1920s and 1930s, known for bold geometric patterns, symmetry, curved forms and rich materials such as marble, brass, lacquer and velvet.
  • layeringCombining several levels of something, such as light sources, rugs, fabrics and textures, so that a room feels rich, deep and comfortable rather than flat.

More terms: Interior Styles

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