These Trends, Straight From Milan Design Week 2026, Might Just Set the Tone for Interior Design for Years to Come

I’ve just landed back on home soil after just a few days at Milan Design Week. It’s one of, if not the biggest design fairs in the world, and though I’ve got no real proof, this year felt bigger and more dynamic than ever.

A few days isn’t enough to take in all that the main design fair Salone del Mobile, and the Fuorisalone (the events, exhibitions, and installations that take place in the city itself) have to offer, but thankfully, Livingetc had a small army of editors taking on the challenge.

With that in mind, I’ve asked them to tell me what made an impact on them this year. That might be one standalone idea that is sure to set the tone for design going forward, or those finishes, colors, and more that have cropped up time and time again, undeniably, during the week. Here are the interior design trends they spotted, and some of my own, too.

1. Mixed Metallics

The mixing of warm- and cool-toned metals together was one of the most interesting trends I spotted for this year. Think of it as the natural evolution of the stainless steel trend. “Stainless steel was still around, but paired with bronze,” Design Lab by Livingetc stylist Iokasti Sotirakopoulou reported back. “It warmed it up and made it feel less industrial and more decorative.”

There’s also an ease and a sense of laissez-faire in mixing these metals together. At Dimorestudio’s newly opened gallery, glitzier chrome, bronze, and brass sat side by side, but in schemes that felt cool and edgy, rather than too ‘thought-out’.

2. Unexpected Mint

You remember the 'unexpected red theory'? Well, this year, I kept seeing the same idea cropping up, but with a fresh, pastel mint green. Where Italian style often centers around warm, neutral color schemes, injecting a small hit of mint feels like an odd choice, but it just works.

It's a little disruptive, in a way that makes the scheme feel alive, but it's just soft enough (less jarring than something like an acidic green) that it doesn't bring harshness in the contrast.

3. Lacquer

“Hi-shine was everywhere, for both older pieces updated in a glossy finish and new pieces created in it,” says Livingetc’s executive editor Pip Rich. “It creates a moment of glamour and eye-catching intrigue.”

Lacquered tables have been a big trend for some time, but expect to see it in more unexpected applications, too, like used as a wrap-around for comfortable accent chairs to give them structure and textural contrast.

Colors felt different, too. “Lacquer was still big, but in much softer shades,” Iokasti says. “Warm browns, mint, olive green, pale blue, and muted neutrals.”

4. Oak

Walnut has dominated for years at Milan Design Week, but now oak is breaking out — softer, cooler, even friendlier. “It goes well with the cooler tones that are coming through too, the blues and the pastels that clash with warmer woody hues,” Pip says.

Italian design brand Porada is finally able to use its own oak forest (the wood takes three years to treat), and “it was a joy to see this evolution from the brand's signature Canaletta,” Pip adds.

5. Blue

It might be too early to say, but there was one color that emerged as a unifying theme across a number of collections. “The color was blue: from an icy, almost-white at Natuzzi to deep marine at Saba,” says Pip Rich. “It seems that blue's freshness and links to holiday skies are the feeling we're all going to be wanting.”

However, with blue, there seemed to always be a contrasting balance. I saw, often, blue with oranges, tans, and reds, but used in proportions that looked new and fresh, like this bedroom for the Nilufar Grand Hotel exhibition, designed by duo david/nicholas, pictured above, using hand-embroidered wall coverings designed with de Gournay.

6. Powdered Glass

Glass is always a serious material at Milan Design Week, so we’ve seen it used in a million dynamic ways this week. Pip’s favorite? “A micro-trend, but the gem-like gleam of powdered-glass finishes on side tables at Gallotti&Radice seems like an idea that will take hold. It's intriguing and jewel-like, a new way to use an old material.”

6. Blurred Lines

Forget color drenching — this year, Milan was all about contrast. However, to stop blocks of color feeling too harsh in comparison to one another, designers are playing with tricks to add softness.

One of those tricks is the use of blurred lines and soft boundaries. For designers Draga & Aurel's collaboration with Murano glass makers Salviati, soft, organic borders introduce interesting color contrasts, while at rug makers Jov Designs' installation collaboration with Bieke Casteleyn (one of my favorites of Fuorisalone), blurred motifs brought a retro feel to a neutral color palette.

7. Romance

There was a sense of romance in the air this year in Milan, meeting the modern, minimal Italian in brilliant form.

Florals were a big story. "Cherry Blossom used as motifs at both Porada and Armani/Casa, the prettiness of rose-colored petals marks a general softening even by brands like these, which aren't traditionally associated with pattern," explains Pip.

Elsewhere, Calligaris’ collaboration with fashion brand Twinset brings lacy textiles to armchairs with a modern Italian aesthetic.

And that's just a small look at the trends emerging from Milan this year. There are trends in kitchens, bathrooms, lighting, rugs and more that we're just starting to unpick.

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