Popular Color Palettes Through The Decades: 1880s – 1910s

Past Popular Colors

Curious which color palettes were popular through the decades? At Dunn-Edwards we believe
that color and history go hand in hand. It’s one of the reasons we created our Then, Now and
Forever® Collection of historically accurate paint colors inspired by architectural styles of
the American West. We’ve previously taken a look back at popular paint colors from the
1920s—1960s, as well as popular paint colors from the 1970s-2010s.

Now we’re taking a deep dive even further back and looking at the kinds of color palettes that
helped define each decade from the 1880s to the 1910s. This includes paint colors popularized
in Victorian architecture as well as Craftsman style homes. Here are four color palettes
that helped define each decade.

1910s

Craftsman architecture played a large role in defining in the 1910s design. When it came to the
Craftsman style and its defining ideological characteristics, Craftsman homes were all about
simplicity, function, and incorporating the surrounding natural landscape. For that reason the
1910s paint color palette seen here includes natural browns like our 2022 Color of the Year, along with
dusty roses, muted greens, and smooth creams. Colors such as these were more restrained
and helped convey the simplicity of the design style of the time.

To see why Craftsman homes and their natural color palettes are the perfect homes to fall in
love with during autumn, click here.

1900s

The 1900s straddled late Victorian architecture and the Arts and Crafts movement. The latter of
which served as a kind of counterpoint to the former. The Victorian era is known for its
industrialization of ornate design, while Arts and Crafts is a rebuttal against that technology and
rather a re-embrace of handicraft and skilled craftspeople, a philosophy also shared by one of
today’s popular design trends—cottagecore. The color palette below is thus reflective of the
1900s position as a kind of bridge between the two eras' styles and popular colors—late Victorian
which highlights pastel and bright hues, and also the muted, natural-inspired tones of Arts and
Crafts.

For more Victorian pinks, pastel or otherwise, check out these inspiring shades of pink.

1890s

While early Victorian palettes may be marked by dark tones such as ruby reds, it’s hard to take
your eyes off (literally) the combination of plucky pastels and other bright hues that highlight late
Victorian architecture. These attention-grabbing shades don’t shy away from much of, well,
anything. Because the Victorian era lasted for around 70 years the style’s sub-genres and color
preferences are vast. Included in these vast sub-genres are Queen Anne Victorians where
bright reds and soft yellows make a favorite combination. The derivation of synthetic pigments
made these diverse paint colors possible.

1880s

The 1880ss saw the influence of Charles Eastlake, a British architect and founder of the
Eastlake Movement, on the Victorian era. A prime example of which is the Bell House [hyperlink
to “TNF Collection Highlight®: Bell House] located in San Francisco, Calif., and for which
the namesake color Bell Blue seen below is derived. A mixture of the Victorian era’s original
earthy tones and the more exuberant blues and yellow colors of the Queen Anne era make up
this particular paint color palette.