An Interior Designer Reveals How To Decorate With Vintage-Inspired Art On A Budget

Designer-Coded is where real interior designers detail their tricks of the trade to style their homes for less. If you're looking to craft a high-end aesthetic on a real-world budget, you've come to the right place.

When it comes to vintage-style artwork, I'll be the first to admit that my gut instinct, as a professional interior designer, is to hunt down the real deal secondhand pieces at a thrift store, flea market, Etsy, eBay, Facebook Marketplace, or estate sale. However, I'll also concede that sometimes those treasure hunts prove to be less than fruitful, especially if you're looking for a specific size or aesthetic to layer into existing decor. If you're lucky enough to stumble upon an authentic vintage treasure, amazing. If not, or if you don't have the time, energy, patience, or interest to shop secondhand, I'm about to shock you by saying that the next best place to find small-scale, vintage-inspired pieces is actually your local Target. Yes, I said Target.

While the major retailer has historically had a reputation as a stockist of mass-produced art (duh — Target's a huge national corporate chain), the pieces in its Threshold collections knock it out of the park. They cost roughly $10 to $30 and feature old-school motifs in unique shapes and frames, making it easy to add vintage flair to your living spaces without draining your wallet. And while I wouldn't recommend sourcing your main large-scale art pieces from a store like this, Target's small, vintage-style art pieces are just right for layering. Let me break down why these Target art releases are a hit, the best ways to incorporate and showcase pieces like these, as well as pitfalls to avoid when sourcing artwork from mainstream retailers.

What makes authentic vintage art so visually appealing and desirable is the uniqueness in subject matter and styling. From regal portraits and so-serious-it's-quirky paintings of animals to floral still lifes and elegant landscapes, vintage artwork is varied, engaging, and often a little strange — in the very best way. Its frames are equally distinctive, with unexpected shapes like ovals and hexagons that change up the barrage of 90-degree angles. Many also include ornate detailing and deviate from a basic white mat, with options in colors, patterns, textural materials, and unique sizes. And this is where Target's recent vintage dupes really shine, wonderfully capturing the essence of these pieces in terms of old-timey subjects and styling.

Target's Threshold collaborations with Studio McGee and Hearth & Hand™ with Magnolia, in particular, feature a wide range of gorgeous small-scale pieces with an antique character. I personally love the octagonal frame and striped linen mat of the Intaglio Busts Art ($15), the charming black and brass button trim frame of the Oval Framed Floral Art ($13), and the sophisticated, solemn grace of the Female Portrait Art ($26). I'm also a total sucker for any seemingly hand-sketched line drawings (like the Sketched Landscape for $20) or nearly any soothing green landscape, of which both collections offer many.

With your Target vintage-inspired art pieces in hand, successfully showcasing these little beauties all lies in the placement, styling, and surrounding pieces. This is my biggest piece of advice for incorporating mass-produced art: Pair it with one-of-a-kind originals or other funky pieces so it serves as the perfect complement for reinforcing a curated vintage aesthetic. The reality is that a lot of mainstream retailer wall decor can drag down your home's design, as it rarely packs the punch, narrative, and visual interest to stand on its own. I mean, if your neighbor has the same piece, it's hardly a revolutionary design statement, right? Instead, these quaint, vintage-style pieces are ideal for layering in with other artwork and decor that can handle more of the aesthetic legwork.

This could mean using them as decorative accents to style a bookshelf. Or, try leaning a smaller piece or two in front of a large mirror on a console for a curated display in your entry, living area, or bedroom. Perhaps one of these adorable vintage charmers would be the perfect finishing touch nestled among other items on your open kitchen shelving. As for my personal favorite, use a small, uniquely shaped or framed art piece as the much-needed addition to round out an eclectic gallery wall. Regardless of where they're best incorporated to strengthen your personal style, Target's pieces can do a fantastic — and surprisingly convincing — job of supporting the collected-over-time vintage vibes in your home.