{"id":73401,"date":"2019-11-27T04:18:27","date_gmt":"2019-11-27T11:18:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.taterboy.com\/blog\/2019\/11\/vintage-graphic-design-inspiration-ideas-modern-takes\/"},"modified":"2019-11-27T04:18:27","modified_gmt":"2019-11-27T11:18:27","slug":"vintage-graphic-design-inspiration-ideas-modern-takes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.taterboy.com\/blog\/2019\/11\/vintage-graphic-design-inspiration-ideas-modern-takes\/","title":{"rendered":"Vintage Graphic Design: Inspiration, Ideas + Modern Takes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Vintage graphic design is a nifty way to create an old-school feel for projects. Today we\u2019re exploring the vintage graphic design trend, and how to use it in your design projects.<\/p>\n

Vintage elements can include typography, illustrations, photo styles, and even entire aesthetic palettes. Further, there are different eras to choose from when you want to go for a vintage feel.<\/p>\n

Vintage themes from different time periods can provide completely different visual properties and techniques to play with. <\/p>\n

Let\u2019s explore some of them!<\/p>\n

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What Is Vintage Graphic Design?<\/h2>\n

Vintage graphic design is any type of visual element that relates to another time period. While modern designs use vintage styles and elements, the common characteristic is a feeling of being transported to another time with the design.<\/p>\n

\u2026these projects take users back to another time and place<\/div>\n

Vintage graphic design creates a distinct user experience, evoking feelings of nostalgia, age, and even distinct (named) style from a certain design era. <\/p>\n

Most vintage graphic design styles can be identified pretty easily. (It\u2019s truly a know-it-when-you-see-it kind of thing.) These projects use typography styles that are associated with another time or illustrations or elements that have an aged style. <\/p>\n

The major commonality is that these projects take users back to another time and place to establish the right foundation for messaging.<\/p>\n

10 Vintage Styles<\/h2>\n

While there are plenty of vintage graphic design styles to work with, a few seem to rise above the rest. These more common vintage styles seem to maintain a mainstream presence in many design projects.<\/p>\n

Mid-Century Modern<\/h3>\n

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Mid-century modern graphic design<\/a> boils down complex elements into a simple visual form. The style often includes geometric shapes, right color, and simple typography. <\/p>\n

Pop Art<\/h3>\n

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Pop art has close ties to mid-century modern styles with bright colors and a bold feel. It\u2019s worth mentioning on its own because this is a vintage graphic design element that almost everyone goes to at some point, thanks to Andy Warhol. In addition to this classic color panel style, pop art also often features dot-grain images, comic book styles, and exaggerated color palettes. <\/p>\n

Art Deco<\/h3>\n

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Art deco styles<\/a> date to the 1920s and are one of the most identifiable vintage and retro styles. Modern art deco uses plenty of geo shapes, line icons and elements, chevron patterns, and mosaics. <\/p>\n

Baroque<\/h3>\n

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Baroque styles are more ornate and feature plenty of curves and decorative elements. The most common usage of baroque style in modern design is through ornate typefaces, such as those used for monograms, wedding invitations, or specialty display text. <\/p>\n

Punk and Grunge<\/h3>\n

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The 1970s and 80s led to an era of punk and grunge styles that still influence the \u201cdark mode\u201d designs of this era. These styles are attention-grabbing with unusual grids and text placements and bold imagery. The modern equivalent of the punk and grunge era is glitchy design styles and are related to TikTok. <\/p>\n

Letterpress<\/h3>\n

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Letterpress styles mimic the look of traditional printing. They often include embossing, shadows for depth, and other techniques to create a tactile feel. Letterpress can have a strong presence or a softer feel depending on the style used for lettering and typography.<\/p>\n

Gothic<\/h3>\n

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Gothic graphic design styles are rooted in architecture. Gothicism was popular in late medieval times and when it comes to graphic design is most commonly associated with typography \u2013 Gothic type styles \u2013 and elaborate textures and basic color palettes.<\/p>\n

Steampunk<\/h3>\n

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Steampunk is a cool vintage design that was popular in the 1970s and 80s thanks to roots in science fiction and futuristic thinking. The design style has Victorian-era influences with coils and detailing with curved lines, it uses subdued color palettes, and has a \u201cromantic\u201d look with high-fashion characters. <\/p>\n

Bauhaus<\/h3>\n

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Bauhaus is a German vintage design theory that\u2019s been around since the early 1900s. The core principle of this style is \u201cform follows function,\u201d making typography a core element of this style. <\/p>\n

Hipster<\/h3>\n

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Hipster graphic designs are often in a minimal style with lines and even hand-drawn elements and typography styles. These projects use natural patterns and backgrounds \u2013 such as wood or chalkboard \u2013 or logos that overlay still images.<\/p>\n

Ways to Use Vintage Design<\/h2>\n

When it comes to using vintage graphic design, the best advice is to implement techniques that match the tone of your project. <\/p>\n

Vintage styles will create an emotional tie between the user and the project that connects to the content, making it so much more than just a visual concept. <\/p>\n

Keep the following in mind when using a vintage design style:<\/p>\n