These 16 Homes Embody Modern Golden Girls Style

Written by

Adrienne BreauxHouse Tour Director at AT Media
Adrienne BreauxHouse Tour Director at AT Media
For more than 10 years, I've led Apartment Therapy's real home content, producing thousands of house tours from around the world. Currently, I live in my maximalist dream home in New Orleans, Louisiana, with my partner, a perfect dog, and a cute cat.
updated May 3, 2019
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(Image credit: Ellie Arciaga Lillstrom)

“Golden Girls” is a quintessential television show that aired during the ’80s but whose design influenced has lasted long into today. While the original sets of the show had definite ’80s vibes, it’s not hard to imagine what their home would look like today, considering the prevalence of boho style, rattan, and palm leaf prints. The 16 homes below aren’t exact copies of the decor from the show, but these rooms certainly exhibit a “Golden Girls” spirit!

(Image credit: Minette Hand)

“When you live alone, your life is do-it-yourself. My proudest DIY, then, is that I created a home I love—that I can be alone within it without being lonely. If I don’t know how to do something, I watch YouTube videos and figure it out. I move my furniture around at midnight if I suddenly decide I hate the layout. You don’t have to wait on somebody else to build a badass life. Do your thing.”

(Image credit: Melanie Rieders)

Our Style: Jonathan Adler goes dumpster diving at the Golden Girls estate sale.

(Image credit: Lisa Diederich)

If Mary Tyler Moore moved in with the Golden Girls, their home might look something like Bridget’s vintage-inspired Chicago apartment. “I love the natural wood and plant-heavy look of the 1970s,” she says.

(Image credit: Jessica Isaac)

Citing Palm Springs and Miami as strong stylistic influences, the couple’s apartment is full of perky pastels, a fun mix of patterns, and a variety of lush textures, which make their modest West Hollywood apartment feel like a lavish, poolside retreat.

(Image credit: Ellie Arciaga Lillstrom)

My Style: I love to mix and match different styles—the luscious bohemian look, Parisian chic, minimal…My goal isn’t necessarily to achieve a certain look or style, but instead make anyone that walks into my home feel warm and happy.

(Image credit: Marisa Vitale)

Samantha—an artist, surface pattern and textile designer, creative director, ex-florist and wallpaper designer—is responsible for the retro, bold elements to the home. While James, a landscape designer (with a talent for carpentry) tied the look together with his penchant for natural woods and great taste in plants.

(Image credit: Anna Spaller)

Every touch of gold (from the little teal and gold duck windowsill planter to the large gold-rimmed mirror in the living room) complements the space and gives the condo a super cohesive, chic feel without pretension.

(Image credit: Esteban Cortez)

Austin and Alex are both architects, so aside from having a great eye for design, they tackled the project of renovating the space themselves. The space was previously… well, drab. They gutted the whole thing and rebuilt it themselves, opening it up and truly brightening it. They added vibrant wallpaper by Justina Blakeney, installed a modern kitchen, and added a ton of plants in every nook.

(Image credit: Franke Chung)

They recently wallpapered their bathroom, which elevates the room in so many ways. The deco style palm wallpaper is from Cole & Son.

(Image credit: Esteban Cortez)

Our Style: My style, succinctly put, is Happy Californian Danish Mid-century Golden Girls Greenhouse.

(Image credit: Julia Steele)

With Lindsay’s love of color and design and Chris’ deep-rooted love of mid-century pieces (many of their furniture items are from his mother), they have created a home that boasts a contemporary take on mid-century design and is true to their personal style.

(Image credit: Mackenzie Schieck)

A confetti-like array of colors were on display around her space in the form of bold palm tree wallpaper, patterned pillows that ranged from geometric to abstract, an eclectic collection of framed originals and prints, and thoughtfully chosen furniture that anchors the space.

(Image credit: Jessica Isaac)

Our Style: Color-filled boho with a healthy dose of the ’70s

(Image credit: Lula Poggi)
(Image credit: Lula Poggi)

Andrea wanted to have a “grown up” look for this house, but also a casual home full of Californian vibes, nature, and sunshine. She achieved this atmosphere by getting rid of some walls and incorporating a lot of natural materials. The house today is the perfect combo of casual and sophisticated, and a place where the family can both entertain and relax.

(Image credit: Esteban Cortez)

Biggest Indulgence: With no hesitation, plants! We just can’t get enough green life in our space. Call it an addiction, but hey—the worst is we open up a plant shop, right?

(Image credit: Diana Liang)

Inspiration: The free bohemian spirit of the ’60s and ’70s, the minimalism movement, nature, the desert, and all of my Detroit artist friends!