It is no mystery why The Queen’s Gambit attracted over 64 million views within four weeks of its release in late October 2020. Not only did the miniseries captivate its viewers with an unusual tale of an orphaned girl named Beth Harmon who turned out to be a chess prodigy, the series also provided audience members a chance to live vicariously through the post-war era of the 50s and 60s when people were rebuilding, redesigning, and reimagining life. Beth Harmon took us to chess competitions as she traveled across the country and globe that we ourselves could not physically do during the worldwide shutdown of 2020. With Beth, we were able to explore cities we longed to visit, and alongside all the reasons for escapism, we were especially inspired by the 50s/60s interior designs. While her devastating childhood was fittingly desaturated into muted tones, her rapid journey to fame and confidence manifested itself in explosions of flowers, patterns, and geometric shapes that we love so much about the 50s and 60s. Explore our inspiration boards and join us as we recreate the pattern-filled retro life.
Home Decor inspired by Queen’s Gambit
To recreate the different moods presented in The Queen’s Gambit, we divided our home decor inspirations into three categories. Explore the links below for our favorite home decor inspired by Queen’s Gambit!
Pastels and Plaids: Beth’s Adolescent Life in Kentucky
When Beth enters her adoptive parents’ home, her monochromatic life suddenly turns into a burst of patterns and colors. Her adoptive mother’s penchant for florals and pastels wrap each room from floor to ceiling. Beth walks through the entryway and looks into the living room framed within teal curtains. A backdrop of two different wallpapers–one floral and one plaid, both in pastels–are set on pastel-colored carpet. She enters her bedroom that parallels the living room, but everything is pink. Floral bedsheets and floral curtains on a canopied bed almost camouflage themselves within the surrounding pink and plaid wallpaper. As Beth transitions into suburban life, florals and pastels whirl around her innocence and adolescence.
Checkers and Bold Patterns: Beth’s Competition Life around the Country and World
Checkers and plaid are dominant patterns in the show for their obvious representations of chess. When Beth begins to delve into the world of competitions, we see her surroundings gradually change from pastels and florals to earthy tones and geometric shapes. The hotel room in Las Vegas uses sage-green, diamond-patterned wallpaper and a bedspread patterned in mint and brown shells. In Mexico City, the competition takes place in a lobby-like setting where a giant mosaic window seeps light through colorful quadrilateral shapes. We see Beth rising in fame and confidence as her surroundings display more defined shapes. Just like each hotel in the show had it’s own distinct color scheme and vibe, you can treat each room in your home this way for home decor inspired by Queen’s Gambit.
Midcentury Modern: Beth’s Independent Life in Kentucky
*Spoiler alert!* After Beth’s adoptive mother’s sudden death and her major loss in Paris, Beth finds herself alone in her Kentucky home. She buys the house from her adoptive father and finds herself motivated for change. We see her creating her own style as she literally takes down her past. Abstract art and geometric shapes replace landscape and animal paintings. Kitschy, yet beloved, items that used to embellish the rooms are boxed. She then fills the home with new furniture that is interestingly in the same dark teal color but in mid-century modern designs. The scene where she tears down the teal curtains finalizes the closing of her previous chapter. While keeping similar color tones of her adoptive mother’s decor, Beth’s choices symbolize her past shaping her newfound stability and self-assurance through her use of geometric shapes and richer hues.
Clothing inspired by Queen’s Gambit
Of course our urge to makeover everything in Queen’s Gambit style does not stop at our decor – it’s impacting our wardrobes as well! Fortunately for us, retro nods to the 50s and 60s are not off trend right now. In fact, most of the items below are totally current! Cue the cat eye sunglasses and cardigans.
This post is a part of our In the Mood For series where we show you how to recreate interior design styles and fashion inspired by people we admire! Click any of the links below to check out some past posts from this series!
Wes Anderson, Jane Austen’s Emma, Hamilton