Miami Tropical Deco is the blend of Miami’s historic Art Deco architecture, 1980s pastel revival, and lush tropical influences. It’s part neon nostalgia, part soft pastel hotel-suite vibes, and part vintage coastal glamour. It’s the aesthetic that defined Miami and the one I’m now building my home around.

Traditional Art Deco is bold, metallic, geometric, and rooted in the 1920s–1930s.
Miami Tropical Deco arrived later , especially in the 1980s, and softened everything with pastel colors, tropical motifs, curved shapes, and hotel-inspired comfort. Think less “Empire State Building,” more “Ocean Drive at sunset.”

My first trip to Miami in 2018 lit the spark, but it took seven years of repeat visits for me to fully understand why I loved it. The pastel hotels, the neon at night, the tropical greenery, the textures, everything just clicked in a way no other place ever had. This blog is where I put all of that inspiration into context.

Absolutely. Miami Tropical Deco is a feeling, not a zip code. Soft colors, glossy surfaces, chrome or brass accents, lush greenery, and a few thoughtful vintage pieces can instantly bring the vibe into any home.

Soft peach, mint green, flamingo coral, aqua, lavender, lemon sorbet, and pastel yellow, all inspired by Leonard Horowitz’s iconic Miami palette and the sunrise over South Beach.

Not exactly. It’s influenced by 80s design ,especially chrome, lacquer, sculptural shapes, and hotel-suite interiors , but it blends that with Miami’s original Art Deco architecture. The result is softer, more coastal, more dreamy nostalgic.

Start with color. Pick a soft pastel for your walls or accents. Add chrome or lacquered surfaces. Incorporate tropical greenery. Mix in one or two vintage pieces. It’s about building atmosphere and feeling, not buying everything at once.

My Miami origin story, my design philosophy, the history behind the aesthetic, room-by-room breakdowns as I decorate my new townhouse, and the vintage finds and design ideas that shape the Miami Tropical Deco identity. here