While mosaic tiles have never completely fallen off the map, it's fair to say they haven't exactly been the go-to choice for bathroom projects in recent years. Overshadowed by the uber-popular Zellige tile and other similar styles, it had been a while since the mosaic was in the spotlight. But now, the tide is beginning to turn, and it seems we may just be returning to a new golden age of the mosaic.

With over 9.9K Google searches last month, mosaic tiles are climbing the ranks as one of the most popular styles around, and with countless gorgeous examples to ogle over, ancient and contemporary alike, it should really come as no surprise that they're emerging as one of the most prominent bathroom tile trends of the year.

Perhaps what has set mosaics apart from other tiling ideas is just how much space for creativity there is with them. With shiny, metallic finishes that turn your shower into a disco ball, and intricate patterns that bring detail and depth to your space, there's an idea for everyone within this ancient style — it's no wonder it's stuck around so long.

Why Are Mosaic Tiles Back in Style?

Flick through your favorite magazine, or take a scroll on Instagram, and you're bound to find a fair few examples of this type of tiling, especially in bathrooms. It's become one of the defining bathroom trends of this year, and the experts agree.

"We've seen a real increase in demand for mosaics over the past 18 months, particularly for bathroom floors and shower enclosures," shares Damla Turgut, the founder of Otto Tiles, a favorite amongst designers. In fact, it's become so popular as of late that they've struggled to manage to keep up with the demand.

This increase in sales is no doubt assisted by the virality of the style, with countless dreamy mosaic tile-covered spa bathrooms taking over social media as of late.

There's something both refreshing and familiar about this look, a unique blend that makes it particularly appealing for interior designers and the average homeowner alike. The bathroom space had been so saturated with Zellige tiles for the past few years that we're now craving something new, and mosaics sit in that sweet spot of being different, but not intimidating. They have the benefit of history on their side, giving them the promise of an enduring style, while still appearing thoroughly on trend.

The Zellige craze has also opened the door for more detailed, textured finishes to enter mainstream styles — something mosaics can offer so beautifully. As Damla explains it, "People have become much more familiar with handmade tiles and have a greater appreciation for the variations in color, texture and finish that make them so special." Mosaics offer this, and more, allowing for a greater exploration of creating tiled patterns and prints thanks to their petite proportions.

"Mosaic has a warmth and a handcrafted quality that large formats rarely offer," agrees interior designer Daphne Meeus. In her designs, mosaics have offered a way to bring warmth and intrigue into the bathroom. "To me, large tiles often feel colder, and many of them imitate other materials like marble, which I'm not drawn to."

This is also what led designer Susannah Holmberg to use this tiling style in her recent Utah desert house project. The home was dominated by warm woods and natural materials, and mosaic tiles felt like a natural extension of that material palette. It feeds into a wider trend she's noticing: a tendency towards human-led design. As she says, "I think people love this material lately as we’re all craving elements that feel natural/hand cut as opposed to sterile and mass-produced."

They're also impressively versatile, working perfectly across the home. For designer Martin Masse, this is exactly what makes them so appealing. He tells me, "We use mosaic extensively in the showers of our projects, but we have also used it for kitchen splashbacks, for example." They provide a way of bringing more detail and finesse into these spaces that are typically dominated by functionality.

Why Designers Love Them

There's a level of detail and intricacy offered by mosaics that many other tiles fail to provide. With the small-format design, you're able to create patterns and shapes that bring a real presence into your room, turning a functional space into something striking and decorative.

The long history of mosaic artwork provides a foundation for exploration within the design process, opening up the possibility for creating a bathroom mural or a more modern plaid tile finish. Artists like Amy Exton are modernizing the tradition, using these time-honored techniques to create eye-catching designs that function like pieces of art within the bathroom. And with a growing desire for more personal, individualistic homes, it only makes sense that this tiling style is gaining popularity again.

But equally popular among designers is a more simplistic approach, using mosaic tiles to create a new kind of tile-drenching effect. Unlike larger-format tiles, these small shapes come together to create a greater sense of fluidity. As Martin describes it, "The closely spaced joints create a sense of uniformity that larger standard formats cannot achieve. The paving patterns define the layout and thus create a rhythm and a sense of direction."

In the past, these smaller and more frequent grout lines had become one of the most significant drawbacks of the style. In a minimalism-obsessed world, larger-format tiles offered a way to reduce the visual disturbance of a grout line. However, nowadays, people are more open to this look. "I'd rather fully embrace the joints of a mosaic, which become part of its texture, than deal with a few large joints that end up badly placed," agrees Daphne. "With mosaic, the grid is intentional; it gives the surface rhythm and makes it feel alive."

Working with mosaics introduces a greater opportunity for creativity, allowing you to build something that feels truly unique, reducing the risk of your home looking like everyone else's. "Even a fairly simple octagon, coin, or basket weave design can look completely different depending on the colors you choose," agrees Damla.

They are also a particularly good choice for small bathrooms or rooms with awkward layouts. "Because the individual pieces are smaller, they can work particularly well around curved surfaces and in areas where larger tiles would need more cutting," explains Damla.

The smaller surface heightens the impact of any texture or variation within the tile, making for a more dramatic effect, which is why mirrored or pearlescent mosaics have become particularly appealing as of late. It was this idea that drew designer Tamsin Johnson towards a disco-like, metallic mosaic for her bathroom project.

As she explains, "I felt this project needed a treatment that pushed it into a slightly more dramatic space, something with a little electricity to contrast the Rojo Alicante's weight and more formal bearing in the space." The shine and reflection of these mirrored tiles offered just that, bringing a touch of glamour and playfulness into this bathroom, lifting up the dark, heavy stone.

How to Use Mosaic Tiles in Modern Bathrooms

There are countless ways to use these tiles within our bathrooms, with something to speak to every design style and taste.

For a more modern, minimalist look, the floor-to-ceiling tile-drenched finish is particularly appealing. It offers more interest and depth than a larger-format tile, while still maintaining that sleek, all-encompassing finish.

This tends to be the approach adopted in Martin's designs, where the same tile is applied across the entirety of a shower enclosure. By opting for this full coverage, floor-to-ceiling finish, Martin was able to create a portal-like effect. He wanted it to feel "as if we were stepping into a cave to have a shower; you’re transported into a completely different atmosphere the moment you step into the shower."

This technique uses the tiles as a way of creating distinction within a space, developing a border through color and form, and adding more structure to a room.

"We often use it in a rather bold way, applying the same mosaic to the floor, walls, and even the ceiling so that it creates a striking contrast with the rest of the bathroom," he says.

There's a beauty in the intensity of this look, allowing you to make an impact without sacrificing simplicity.

For Daphne, the key is in allowing the mosaic to be the start of the show. "Let the mosaic be the main gesture and keep the rest calm," she says. She recommends building the rest of the design with this in mind, opting for materials that will play a supporting role rather than battling for the limelight. "Warm wood, honed natural stone, mirrors and warm-toned metals all work well alongside it. Earthy, slightly muted colors suit it best: deep greens, ochres and warm whites."

This applies to Martin's fully-drenched look just as much as it does to a more traditional mosaic finish, as seen in this Maddux Creative-designed bathroom, where the mosaic tiled floor adopts the style used across Ancient Greece.

When you're working with a more textured tile, like the mirrored ones used by Tamsin, subtlety becomes all the more important. It's about balance, and it's not always easy to get it right. "Used wrongly, I feel it would be garish and gaudy, but here I feel it adds some playfulness, tension, and elevation," says Tamsin. "A meaningful comparison here, I think, is to dressing — too far and it looks costumed; the right amount and it looks elegant. I think ultimately this look needs to be balanced with some formality."

If you're keen to delve deeper into the history of this on-trend tiling style, try reading up on the Ancient Roman 'unswept floor' tiling style; the ancient design is making its return, and the story behind it is fascinating.

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Decorating with color is all about getting experimental — experimentation is where the best ideas are born. This month, Livingetc is crushing on Glacier Silver as one of the hottest hues to bring into your interiors. And no, this doesn't just mean gray; rather, decorating with silver involves a certain level of materiality. Think stainless steel sideboards and cabinetry, chrome decor like table lamps and vases, and getting creative with where and how you use this 'color'.

Silver, whether as an interesting accent or across all of your cabinetry, creates a uniquely stylish space. Not only does it root your scheme in a cool, otherworldly shade, but it can provide surprising warmth by bouncing light around, and it adds that essential tactile element. It's kind of a powerhouse, silver. Here's all you need to know to incorporate it into your home this season.

When trying to define silver as a color, it's safe to say that it definitely leans into gray territory. It reads as an equal-parts blend of black and white, but with a lustrous, metallic finish. So it shares a hue with gray, but unlike decorating with gray, silver brings the shine.

But what does decorating with this color look like in contemporary homes? There is certainly something to be said about how you define silver. Historical homes and classic design eras might have seen more real silver details, but in today's interior design trends we are typically working with materials like stainless steel, brushed metals, and chrome accessories.

"Silver carries something of the old world; chrome still holds a promise of the future. Both appeal to a rather instinctive part of us. People are drawn to things that shine," says interior designer Felizia Berchtold, director and designer at Studio Tutto Bene, which has worked with metallic finishes in many of their projects.

But if we are talking about incorporating stainless steel into your interiors, a metal associated with worktops, refrigerators, and even hospital trays, I know what you're thinking: won't a room packed with metallic finishes read as cold and almost clinical? But on the contrary, as Felizia explains, "Silver-toned metallic finishes catch the light and frame it. It also borrows color from its surroundings, shifting through the day."

Being such a neutral shade also works in silver's favor, as you can use this color almost anywhere. "We actually think of it as an architectural material, or as light, rather than a fixed color," says Felizia. When you come at it from this angle, then how to decorate with silver tones becomes more instinctual.

For instance, chrome against wood and warm tones brings a contrasting crispness. Whereas alongside stone and cooler tones, "it picks up their atmosphere," says Felizia, and a more tonal landscape or mood is created. "With black and white, the reflections of the silver become particularly clear," Felizia adds.

Different material pairings will either harmonize or create contrast in the design, and depending on the kind of atmosphere you want, you can lean into either. And as mentioned, color and light will bounce off the reflective surface, making it even easier to carry a hue or tone throughout a room.

So while silver finishes do work everywhere, there are some places that are more of a natural place to begin trying this color and texture. Silver is often in kitchens and bathrooms, specifically in hardware or a precise architectural detail, but occasionally across an entire surface. "In our Milan pied-à-terre, the kitchen is completely covered in silver leaf. Its surfaces dissolve into reflections, allowing it almost to disappear, while also giving it the presence of a jewel."

Again, think about how you want the conversation of the room as a whole to translate.

And as I say with every bold color, it pays to go big — even when an accent feels like the safe option. For example, a kitchen with full stainless steel cabinetry, a large chrome home bar with all chrome barware — these confident applications read as fully realized, rather than a half-baked attempt.

And if you are nervous, just remember how grounding this tone can actually be. For instance, silver finishes with a grounding olive rug beneath them will carry the green around the room. "You might be surprised by how much warmth this supposedly cool material can hold," says Felizia.

Futuristic-inspired designs, like the Space Age style, often come to mind first, but silver colors and finishes hold many more decorating opportunities than you may expect. Think of it like an elevated (and very shiny) neutral.

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But when wellness trends declare that 'working out is the new going out', what does that mean for the home gym? Does anybody even want to give up a corner of their home to a couple of dumbbells and a treadmill anymore when there's a world out there ready to make their workout part of their social calendar?

I spoke to contemporary designers about what home gyms will look like in 2027 and how they've evolved from the simplistic, function-driven spaces they once were.

Are Home Gyms Still in Demand?

As someone who often replaces time at my apartment gym with a bookable slot at a more design-forward, workout-diverse studio set against an Instagrammable backdrop, I wondered whether home gyms are still in demand in houses with the space.

"Yes, absolutely," says interior designer Nina Maya. "Home gyms remain an important part of the luxury residential brief in modern homes, and the appetite for more comprehensive wellness spaces has grown. What has changed most noticeably is the ambition behind them."

She explains that people are thinking about how their homes can support movement, recovery, and time to themselves within a busy life. "The gym is increasingly considered from the earliest architectural conversations, with proper thought given to its location, outlook, and relationship to other spaces. That represents a significant shift in how much importance people place on it."

Interior designer Rebecca Hughes also finds that home gyms continue to be an important consideration in contemporary homes. "In a world that is increasingly fast-paced and digitally driven, creating space for wellbeing has never felt more important," she notes.

"We’re certainly still seeing strong demand for home gyms, although the focus has evolved over the past few years. What was once often a purely functional space is now being considered an integral part of the home’s overall design and lifestyle offering."

How Have Home Gyms Changed?

Co-founder of Alama Studio, Gabriele Zanni, explains that the home gym is no longer simply a room where you put a treadmill, a bench, and a few dumbbells. "People are investing more in dedicated fitness spaces, but they are also asking for these spaces to feel like an actual part of the home," he shares.

"We are seeing this particularly in highbrow residential projects, where the gym is planned in tandem with the architecture and interiors from the very beginning. It is becoming less about 'having a gym at home' and more about 'having a space at home that happens to be a gym'."

Nina points out that the biggest evolution is towards a complete wellness environment. "A gym might sit alongside a sauna, steam room or cold plunge, with space for stretching and quieter activities. The design needs to make moving between those experiences feel natural," she notes.

"There is also a much greater emphasis on atmosphere. Natural light, garden views, warm materials, thoughtful lighting, and beautifully integrated storage all contribute to a space you enjoy spending time in. Aesthetic weights and all-around equipment have become part of that design language, with timber and leather finishes allowing it to sit comfortably within a considered interior."

Are Home Gyms Performative?

In the era of the performed home and working out in third spaces becoming a status symbol, this trend of performative design extends to a home gym without skipping a beat. However, that's not all bad.

"Social media has also made these spaces more visible. Rooms that were once tucked away are now being designed with the same attention as the principal living spaces, and standalone gym pavilions can become beautiful architectural features in their own right," says Nina.

"However, I would be careful about assuming that visibility tells us why someone created the space. A separate pavilion can offer a valuable psychological transition, giving you somewhere to step away from work and domestic distractions. For me, the real luxury is having a space that makes looking after yourself an easy, enjoyable part of everyday life. Its lasting value is in how often you use it."

Gabriele has also picked up on a certain performativity in home gyms, saying, "Fitness has become much more visible culturally, and social media has obviously played a role in that. A beautifully designed gym can be as much part of someone's lifestyle and identity as a kitchen, a car, or a piece of furniture.

"But I think there is a more interesting shift happening underneath that. People are no longer choosing between performance and aesthetics. They expect both."

Get the Look

If you don't have the space for a full-blown home gym, then a wellness room might be the best thing you can do for your home. And be sure to subscribe to the Livingetc newsletter for more trend reports.

Already boasting the approval of some of the most respected tastemakers, the shell has emerged as the unlikely decor icon to pair with your dinnerware this year. Not only did Posh Spice herself feature them in her recent collaboration with Westwing, but they were also a major point of inspiration for the it-girl's favorite jeweler, Jessica McCormack, when designing her recent collection with L'Objet. In both of these collections, the coastal motif is given a luxurious makeover, finished in shiny chrome and polished ceramic, ushering in a new aesthetic era for the shell.

Once restricted to a solely coastal, beachy aesthetic, the shell is having a new design moment. Perhaps partially inspired by our growing desire for the unpredictability of nature, shells are a perfect example of the random beauty that AI can never replace. This is, in part, what inspired Melissa Borovali, founder of Hide and Stone, to develop her own collection of shell-centered decor and jewelry. "Shells are having a resurgence because designers are reimagining them through a modern lens, coinciding with a broader global shift toward sustainability that is drawing people back to natural materials," she tells me.

There's also something about the unique formation of shells, with all their texture and variation, that makes them such an appealing material to explore in design. "Texture has become the ultimate element of exploration in fashion and design. Beyond their innate aesthetic, shells offer a medium that is naturally beautiful yet durable enough to withstand manipulation, allowing them to be elevated into high-end, lasting design," says Melissa.

Pairing the natural material with more luxurious, elevated materials, like silver and gold, is what has allowed the shell to transcend beyond that beachhouse look. "I combine natural elements with solid gold, silver, and semi-precious stones to honor the craftsmanship of every piece," says Melissa. In other collections, shells are reimagined purely from these luxurious materials, transforming the natural form into something wholly new.

No matter the material, these shell-centric designs bring a touch of whimsy and elegance to your dinner table setting, with an organic, sculptural quality that can only be found in nature.

There is something undeniably enchanting about these shell designs, transporting you back to a childlike place of wonder and excitement, which is exactly what every dinner party could do with a little bit more of. And it doesn't hurt that they are incredibly chic, too. And if you're looking for some more stylish hosting ideas, these interior designers' hosting tips will have you covered.

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Bathroom wallpaper is uniquely positioned as a safe space to step outside your design comfort zone. It's a room where it becomes less intimidating to do something that feels a little bolder than you'd do elsewhere.

There was a time when the bathroom was viewed as little more than a purely functional space, free from the flourishes and fancies applied to the rest of the home. Thankfully, we've come a long way since then. Nowadays, it's not unusual for the modern bathroom to be a design highlight of the home. There's something about the intimacy of these rooms that invites a little extra drama, and what better way to make a statement than with wallpaper?

1. Earthy Neutrals in Nature

In this Philadelphia home, designer Brittany Hakimfar sought to create moments of warmth and coziness within a large, bright home.

For this bathroom, Brittany leaned into the darkness, covering this petite powder room in a beautiful patterned paper decorated with leafy foliage and exotic trees, turning a small room into a big design moment.

2. Fine Line Illustrations

For interior designer Sheena Holton, the biggest struggle when renovating her Art Deco apartment was the lack of natural sunlight, leaving some rooms almost completely in the shadow, particularly this small bathroom.

Instead of focusing on what she couldn't change, Sheena searched for ways to bring some playfulness to the space. "It wasn't possible to change the developer's designs for the bathrooms, so I concentrated on making this a fun space," says Sheena. "It's small but uplifting."

3. Blushing Beauty

"The client has a particularly fashionable and daring personality, so we knew up front she wouldn’t be afraid of unique wallpaper options," shares Maria Hogrefe from C&M Interiors.

"We immediately loved the feminine nature of the wallpaper once we received a sample memo from a local vendor. The wallpaper was used sparingly, but it truly ties everything together with historic-style nude muses with an antiqued backdrop."

4. Candy-Striped Sweetness

In this bathroom, candy cane-style striped wallpaper feels sweet and playful, but the muted, pale color palette gives it a more calming feel, keeping it from slipping into circus territory.

"A stripe gives rhythm and can be used in a myriad of ways," say Kristin Fine and Analisse Taft-Gerste from The 1818 Collective. In loft bathrooms, where the slanted ceiling can make the space feel suffocating, a striped wallpaper brings some continuity to the space.

5. Hidden Narnia Doors

Though not technically within the bathroom, in this home, the ensuite bathroom is hidden behind a wallpaper-clad wardrobe door, creating a Narnia-like entrance into the room.

"This bedroom is dominated by a large built-in wardrobe covered in wallpaper that once again evokes distant landscapes and exotic imagery," shares Marco Rulli, co-founder of 02A Studio.

6. Pattern-Maxxing

One for the maximalists out there, this pattern-drenched bathroom combines patterned tile floors with delicate floral wallpaper and a contrasting patterned shower, too.

It could easily come off as overwhelming or crowded, but thanks to the pale background and sage green trim, the final result has a whimsical, storybook-like quality to it.

7. Textured Warmth

In this small bathroom, designer Zac Evangelisti, from ZARQ, paired a custom-made marble bathroom sink with a wallpaper featuring a green, knotted bamboo pattern against a silk moiré background.

The silky background provides an extra element of depth and warmth, while the Viola Calacatta sink remains a striking focal point in the design.

8. Croc Chic

A small powder room provides the perfect opportunity to do something slightly more experimental than you would otherwise consider, and this elegant toilet, with its green, crocodile-effect walls, is the perfect example of that.

The rich green pairs beautifully with the warm brass bathroom hardware, and the textured finish certainly makes a statement, without feeling overdone.

9. Portal to Paradise

In this tiny ensuite bathroom, palm-tree patterned paper sits alongside rich, red bathroom tiles, making for a transportive space, like stepping straight into a holiday. Sitting within the loft's color palette of warm reds and earthy greens, this awkwardly sized bathroom makes the most of the limited space available.

10. Never-Boring Neutrals

In this Notting Hill home, designer Brian Woulfe wanted to build a neutral color palette without any of the coldness you find with bright, stark whites. Instead, he opted for softer, creamier tones across the home, building warmth with shades of beige, brown, and cream.

Although sticking to the same color palette, this bathroom marks a departure from the stylistic norm used across the rest of the home. "We hadn’t used any wallpaper anywhere else, and we wanted to give guests that moment of 'wow' when they walked in," says Brian.

11. Old World Luxury

Designer Christian Bense wanted to create a space that felt more like a living room than it did a typical bathroom, and with wooden floors and elegant mural-covered cabinetry, he did just that.

The design refers back to the home's Georgian roots, while still feeling thoroughly modern. It's sleek and undeniably impressive, hiding utilities away behind the patterned pocket doors.

12. Eclectic Layering

The patterned, tiled sink may be the show-stopper in this bathroom, but the delicate wallpaper makes for an excellent supporting act.

It would've been easy to keep the rest of the bathroom pared back and allow the tiles to do all the talking, but by going the opposite direction and pairing them with some equally characterful touches, the designers were able to create a bolder, more impactful space with a stronger visual identity.

13. Sunshine Doodles

Emanating a sunny warmth, this little powder room combines ochre colored tiles with sunshine-yellow paper, decorated with the playful, childlike drawings of blooming florals and wisps of grass.

The drawn-on effect of this wallpaper offers a touch of whimsy to this space, as does the wavy-framed yellow mirror above the sink. There's an atmosphere of joy to this room, turning a space dedicated to functionality into a moment of optimism.

14. Multi-Dimensional Monochrome

The clients behind this home weren't afraid of decorating with color, so this room made a departure from the norm for them. But just because they stuck to black and white doesn't mean it was any less packed with personality.

Veined marble and the monochromatic artwork mimic the black-and-white patterned surface of the wallpaper, making for a layered, multi-dimensional effect.

15. Drawn-On Guest Room

Another bathroom from the previous home, this room pays homage to the beauty and whimsy of femininity.

"This guest bathroom wallpaper the client had been eyeing up for a while, and we were happy to give it a home here. It's a celebration of women and cheerful femininity. There's a fine line between celebrating a paper like this and keeping the overall design elevated, so we grounded the space with more muted tile colors," says Clara Jung, principal designer at Banner Day Interiors.

16. A Touch of Sheen

Wallpaper doesn't always have to entail a big, bold pattern. You can find countless gorgeous designs that place importance on texture rather than pattern, and these can often have an even more striking visual effect.

Take this room, where the subtle shine of the pink, panelled wallpaper brings a luminosity to the small powder room, giving it that jewel-box quality.

Wallpapers We're Loving

There's clearly a growing appetite for more personality-led, characterful homes nowadays, which is exactly why we expect this style to become one of the biggest modern bathroom trends of the year.

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All Hallow's Eve — Halloween's original name in medieval times — is a night of storytelling. Ghostly tales around the fire in the darkness, quietly inspiring fear. And I stumbled upon a designer-styled space curated for a Halloween dinner party that's like a folkloric tale brought to life.

Los Angeles-based interior designer Marco Zamora transformed his home into an extravagant surrealist landscape that invites guests not just to appreciate the visual masterpiece, but to experience it, too. From a floating, ethereal ghost in the entryway to a magnificent circus-like bar lounge, Marco shares the inspiration behind his Halloween decorating ideas for this year's dinner party and how you can recreate the look.

The Entryway

With an impressive social media following of 2.3 million on Instagram and 1.5 million on TikTok, Marco is well known for his creativity — sharing elaborate DIY projects across his platforms, often using his own home as the foundation. This particular project piqued my interest from the first teaser.

'Surrealist Ball' was the theme for the Halloween dinner party he hosted this year, and was inspired by the first Halloween dinner party he hosted the year prior. "Someone commented on one of my posts saying the event looked like it was pulled straight from a dream. Ever since, I’ve wanted to create a fully immersive experience centered around that same otherworldly, dreamlike imagery," says Marco.

"I absolutely love curating extravagant experiences for my guests, and Halloween provides the perfect opportunity to lean into that creativity," he says. "It has quickly evolved into an annual tradition that my friends, my followers, and I all look forward to."

For his Halloween entryway, he bought 100 red roses to cover his entire spiral staircase — his favorite element to style in the dinner party scheme — making it look as though the staircase was completely overtaken by them. "The entrance to my home already feels dramatic in the best way, and I wanted a design to match that energy. Making it look as though the roses and branches were naturally growing out of the stairs delivered that exact drama and felt hauntingly romantic," Marco shares.

Of course, 100 roses is a lot, but even a slightly pared-back approach would be striking. You could even order artificial roses to reuse each year, repurposing them slightly differently each time, and this pack of 12 Laelfe Burgundy Roses on Amazon would do just the trick. You could also skip the roses entirely and forage some branches to cover your staircase with, for a less romantic but statement-making look.

The red lighting and fog Marco incorporated in his foyer are also highly impactful and "complete the haunting, dreamlike atmosphere," Marco explains. While technically a sleep aid, these Red Light Plug-In Wall Lights on Amazon are an easy way to recreate the vibe, or you could replace your existing lightbulbs with red varieties for the occasion — Amazon has a big selection of red lightbulbs to choose from depending on your fitting. Plus, this Littleboyny Fog Machine, also on Amazon, has a fog discharge distance of 3-5 meters plus a removable cable remote control for added versatility.

The pièce de résistance in the entryway? The ghost, of course. "I wanted guests to encounter an eerily beautiful moment the second they walked through the door. To achieve this, I sculpted a floating, dancing figure entirely out of chicken wire to resemble an ethereal ghost," says Marco. It was, however, by far the most challenging element of the project — "incredibly difficult, but such a fun challenge!" Marco says.

Using something like this TOYPOPOR Chicken Wire on Amazon, Marco worked on the sculpture section by section, starting with the skirt, scrunching it into shape before using fishing line to attach it to a disco ball motor on his chandelier.

This Disco Ball Motor comes with a remote, and this Nylon Fishing Line would work well; both are available on Amazon — plus, you could also use a ceiling hook if you don't have anything else to attach the motor to, like this Pack of 5 Adhesive Ceiling Hooks on Amazon.

And when you're not spinning ghosts for Halloween, you can use the disco ball motor for an actual disco ball, too — disco interiors are still very much a thing.

The Dining Area

Marco decided to use his living room as the dining area for the Halloween dinner party, which meant moving all his living room furniture elsewhere — though it was definitely worth the effort. The framed view of the red-lit trees in the garden defines the surrealist space and gives Martin Scorsese vibes, too.

"I wanted the dining area to evoke a dark, eerie setting grounded in surrealism," explains Marco. "The space was anchored by unexpected elements, including a swan centerpiece and custom ballerina candle holders that I handcrafted. For the backdrop, I draped sheer fabric and formed a central opening to frame my large window that overlooks the garden. To enhance the mood, I bathed the trees in red light, allowing a haunting glow to naturally creep into the dining area."

This Auraglow Garden Spike Light with a Red GU10 Bulb on Amazon is a great outdoor uplighter for your trees and walls to create an eerie scene — and if you don't have anywhere to stick a spike, you could try these LED Flood Lights instead, also available on Amazon.

Marco's Halloween tablescape also features one of this year's biggest tablescaping trends — outside of spooky season, too — which is calla lilies as tableware. From runways to restaurants, the calla lily is the flower to have on your table, and although Marco has incorporated real calla lilies into his table setting (cut and placed over thin black taper candle holders), you can also buy calla lily-shaped candle holders, like these Silver-Colored Candlesticks at H&M, or these Antique Brass Ninfea Candle Holders at OKA, which I'm completely obsessed with.

Decorating with sheer curtains in this space adds to the sense of romance that's evident throughout the entire scheme, bringing softness, movement, and, of course, plenty of drama — these Black Voile Curtains on Amazon would be the ticket.

The result is a space that really does feel otherworldly — it keeps you guessing, thinking, and your eye dancing from one unexpected moment to the next.

The Bar Lounge

For the final room transformation, Marco turned his library into a cocktail bar lounge of dreams, featuring a tented ceiling that's to die for — pun intended. "I envisioned draping fabric across the ceiling to create a circus-like tent," says Marco. "My goal was for guests to feel as though they had just stepped into an extravagant, otherworldly spectacle."

To create the ceiling effect, Marco strung together red and white curtain panels, which he then tied together at the top, wrapping them around his ceiling light while nailing each panel's ends along the top edges of the room. You can get these Single Plain Voile Net Curtains in red and white, along with a variety of other colors, on Amazon, along with the Ceiling Hook I mentioned earlier.

"I also carried the red lighting into this space to maintain a cohesive, immersive ambiance throughout the entire home." The 'horror red light' is also echoed in the reds of the ceiling drapery, roses, bows, and velvet curtained doorways for a wonderfully considered scheme.

Part bar, part theater — it literally looks like a stage to me — let the cocktail performance begin. And Halloween or not, Marco's bar accessories are elegant additions that elevate any home bar setup, and I've found similar pieces to help you get the look in your own space.

I asked Marco if the project turned out to be quite expensive in the end, and he said it wasn't as much as he initially anticipated. "I repurposed a lot of décor, such as fabric from previous projects. For the elements I didn't already own, I was able to source them affordably from Facebook Marketplace, Wayfair, and Amazon. I love being resourceful and reusing items from past events to stay in budget," he says.

It boils down to creativity and working with what you've got as much as possible. Plus, if you're passionate about what you're creating, the results will always reflect it. "I remember hosting my very first Halloween dinner party and bringing my creative vision to life in a new way. It was an exciting experience that taught me the importance of trusting my instincts, embracing my creative perspective, and taking pride in the details I put into my work. The biggest lesson I took away from that first event is that people naturally gravitate toward what you put love into," says Marco.

When you're committed to telling a story, people want to listen.

If Marco's Halloween dinner party has inspired you to do some last-minute decorating, these Halloween door decor ideas will add spooky curb appeal, and some are DIY, too.

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Green will always be in style — what changes is the specific shade. Emerging from the sluggy olives and soothing sages right now is one particularly refreshing pick: mint. Often described as an 'oxygenated green', mint sits somewhere between the natural world and a more futuristic, digital one, making it the perfect interior design trend for SS27.

"Mint is so futuristic because it’s wrapped up in the mid-century space-age palette, as well as contemporary tech, screen, and app culture," color expert Amy Moorea Wong explains. "Its light-filled pastel teeters on the brink of a bright, almost neon, which makes it feel weightless, synthetic, and unearthly. In the home it’s a punchy, jolt of vigour that’s striking and audacious (without the retina-singeing properties of a real fluorescent)."

Livingetc's editor, Hugh Metcalf, also reported seeing the green color trend everywhere at Milan Design Week this year. "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," he shared at the time.

In a broader cultural sense, you could argue that mint green has been trying to break through for a while now. On the runway, it was spotted in Fendi's Spring/Summer 2026 collection as a floaty, floral bomber jacket. Days later, in Matthieu Blazy’s first drop for Chanel, all eyes were on a pair of mint-green croc-leather pumps.

More recently, mint green was hard to miss at Loewe's 2027 spring ready-to-wear show at Paris Fashion Week — a handbag here, a striped shirt there. It acted as a form of punctuation — at once fresh and cheerful, yet also remarkably liveable.

So it makes sense it's now making its way into our interiors. "We like this kind of green because it feels fresh and optimistic, but also has a strong connection to modernist design," says Samantha Hauvette, one-half of Paris-based studio Hauvette & Madani. "[In the armchair pictured above], it acts almost like a punctuation mark: a small but very deliberate burst of color that brings energy to the room and creates a dialogue with the turquoise used elsewhere in the apartment."

Aside from the fact that we could all use a little more optimism in our lives with the state of affairs right now, Chicago-based designer Jennifer Sucher thinks the trend is growing because people are generally more ready to decorate with color at the moment. "I think a lot of people resonate with shades of green, but mint feels really fresh and new; it feels unexpected," she adds.

"It is particularly good at conjuring a 1930s-1950s feel, which can be great fun and gives it a slightly nostalgic quality," adds color consultant Harriet Slaughter. "With that fresh, rejuvenating quality, it works beautifully in bathrooms, kitchens, and other light, bright spaces."

So with a shade so energetically charged, how do you actually work with it in an interior? The obvious answer is small doses. Just as the 'Unexpected Red' Theory taught us about using bold color in our homes, a small pop of mint — especially an unexpected one — can be all a space needs to feel fresh and punchy.

Take the living space pictured above, for example: a minty table lamp advances against the warm-toned palette around it. If you want to create impact, "The red side of the color wheel naturally complements mint," says Amy Moorea Wong. "Rust, rosy pink, and cherry would be my first tester pots."

Interior designer Jonathan Richards, co-director of Australian studio Richards Stanisich, would agree. While the building's Art Deco heritage inspired the mint green ceiling pictured below, "it was also just a gut feel for what would work well with all the pinks and terracotta tones we had elsewhere in the design," he shares.

And while mint green features a few times throughout the home, the colored ceiling above the staircase is Jonathan's favorite. "[It] holds the space together," he says. "Throughout the house, the ceilings are used as room-defining features" — there are glossy sky-blue ceilings, timber ceilings, and curved rendered ceilings — "but in the biggest space, the central stair, a gloss mint green really anchors the interiors."

"Mint is an interesting color because it isn’t quite one thing or the other," explains Harriet. "It sits somewhere between blue and green, softened by white, so it has the calming qualities of both while still feeling light and playful."

"Mint is like a leafy green dialled up a few notches — more how we feel the flavor should look than a truthful ode to the plant," says Amy. "Like a minimalist, digital take on nature, it soothes without being sleepy, coming across as airy, crisp, and cool while retaining its link with the outdoors, should things get a bit too pixelated. Does it bring the garden into the home in the same way a fern or forest green does? No, but it makes that restorative, nature-vibe contemporary and relevant, as well as fizzing with energy."

But with a color like mint, it's especially important to consider how lighting may affect this shade of green paint. Get it wrong, and you could end up with a space that feels strangely sickly or overly clinical.

"Mint can seem clinical because it has strong ties to the bathroom (thanks, toothpaste) and other starkly lit hygienic environments," explains Amy. "The color is just asking to be wipe-clean and hard-surfaced, so to counter this, dodge harsh materials and shapes, bring it in via timber, textiles, or in unexpected areas, and layer in warm lighting."

If you really need to tile, "Pair mint with natural materials, roundness, or a sense of whimsy to soften the space, so there’s no way you could mistake it for your hygienist appointment," she adds.

As such a playful color, there are plenty of ways to decorate with mint green. "To add depth to a minty room, play with the shades and hues around it," says Amy. "For high contrast, bring in deeper greens such as bottle or forest green, which retain that sense of calm, or inky navy for a cooler contrast." How will you use it?

You can read the rest of our Style Pulse trend report online, now.

As interior designer Róisín Lafferty puts it, "I love when materials almost match, but not quite." Across luxury interiors, designers are layering finishes that sit in the same tonal or textural family, and finding that the tension between them can deliver more design depth and longevity than a striking or stark contrast.

Naturally, the results can appear quiet at first glance. A soft clay-pink wall beside plum and peach marble, burr wood against veined stone, swathes of suede framed by swirling veneer, or one type of wood grain sitting next to another. But look longer, and the differences reveal themselves as a shift of grain, a change of sheen, two very different wood grains, or even just a variation in tone. These rooms feel layered, as though they have been considered and curated with a honed eye, and over time.

Some designers push the interior design trend's limits with competing grains and tones; others keep the look tight and close to matching (but importantly not matching). This is the 'texture near match' trend, and it’s one of the most absorbing ideas in interiors right now.

Tactile Dissonance and Friction

This kind of friction is a gentle thing. It lives in micro-contrasts, a grain that runs a fraction coarser or a finish that catches the light differently, rather than in a color pop doing the talking.

At Project Regent’s Park, designer Katie Harbison keeps everything in one tobacco register. Cotton velvet lines the walls and mohair covers the sofa and ottoman, "both the same color, but different fabric families, so the walls and seating read as one envelope."

"It's about building depth with one color instead of contrast, so the materials do the work," says Katie.

It's a form of color drenching here, but there's a friction that lives in the light. "When two materials are close, the differences are subtler, and they come from the way light catches each surface rather than from a sharp change."

The final layer is a bespoke artwork by Heath Wae, created after Katie sent him physical samples of everything. It picks up the color of the velvet and mohair "in paint, so the scheme carries right up the wall instead of stopping at the furniture," while its canvas profile defines it differently from the smooth walls and upholstery.

The Argument for Tonal Monochromatism, With A Little Tension

Choose to stay inside one color family, and the surfaces are free to compete. At Colt Manor, Róisín Lafferty's Georgian powder room, Viola Carnival and Breccia Pernice marble bring coherent plum, burgundy and peach tones, while the soft clay pink of the walls sits alongside them rather than against them.

Here, the marbles carry the drama, each with its own veining and pattern. The paint plays a supporting character role. "Rather than introducing a contrasting color, I wanted the paint to sit within the same tonal family as the natural stone, creating a softer backdrop that draws out the warmth and subtle variations within the marble," Róisín explains.

Her summary is the whole trend in miniature: "Nothing matches exactly, but everything feels connected."

The Death of the ‘Safe Pair’

For years, the dependable way to add texture was to pair opposites: rough against smooth, matte against gloss. It works well for contrast in interior design, but in some respects it works so well that it has become something of a default design move. Dare we say, it’s a little fatigued. Designers are now looking for something less predictable.

For the interior designer Nicholas G Potts, founder of Nicholas Potts Studio, part of the push away from this choice comes from time spent staring at screens. He says the sameness of "AI-generated images which inevitably trend towards 'safe'" is “a challenge to be more personal and individualistic”.

Nice Projects, the studio behind 40 Duke, Selfridge's Members' Club, put it down to our appetite for touch: "as humans, we all enjoy materials that engage the senses, especially touch, and using tactile finishes just feels better and connects us to our environment".

Simon Mayhew, founder of design studio TXTURED, goes further, making the case for rough against textured: "You don’t always need a smooth surface to balance out a rough one. Sometimes it’s those subtle differences in texture and tone that make a space feel more considered and give it its character."

Matching everything is no safer bet. "If everything matches or nothing sticks its neck out, this can have a dulling effect, hiding the beauty that a material or an object brings to a space," says Nicholas.

His Watergate pied-à-terre shows several strong grains working in close conversation. An ABC Worldwide Stone onyx wall was the anchor, and the rest of the scheme builds from the pinks within those slabs. Wood veneers followed close behind.

With that much figuring in play, restraint matters. "We knew that we'd be using some very bold materials, so there is some white space [here, burnished plaster with just a bit of sheen] to allow the elements some breathing room."

Wood Grain On Wood Grain

Put one wood grain finish beside another, and the instinct is to match them. However, Nicholas Potts treats it with care. Matching woodgrains, he says, "can be like matching patterns in an outfit — admittedly it can be dangerous territory, but some of the same rules apply to interiors as they do sartorially."

In the entry of the Watergate pied-à-terre project, he doesn't try to match the timbers at all. The veneer does the heavy lifting. Only two logs of okoume were used for all of the paneling in the apartment, and as the team worked through the panel layout with the cabinetmaker, "we realized that each portion of the log had its own identity". In the entry, they chose a portion with "a lacy grain that almost took on a textile appearance (somewhere between a damask and a Jugendstil print) when it was quarter-matched". He adds that "with the curved plan of the room it feels like drapery."

His rule of thumb: "If things are similar in type, shift the scale, and harmonize (through a color or a theme) rather than replicate."

Subtle Complexity

At first glance, 40 Duke, Selfridges London's private members' club, appears closely paired and coherent — and tonally, it is. However, look a little closer and your eye is pulled in by the subtle material complexities that designers Simone McEwan and Sacha Leong, cofounders of Nice Projects, have chosen to include in the scheme.

The walls are lined in yellow travertine, a nod to Selfridges' brand color, and a thread that runs throughout the club. Underfoot, marble and terrazzo trade patterns within the same golden family, so the floor feels rich, but not distracting. Then there is that table, arguably the room's quiet centerpiece and the pièce de résistance of the project.

Made by Floris Wubben, it could easily have been a piece curated to contrast. Instead, the designers chose a glaze close to the rest of the palette, which they felt was "a fresher and more unexpected approach". Whilst the visual texture appears 'matched' to other materials in the space, the handmade, glazed finish feels, and on closer inspection looks, different to the stone and terrazzo, and that small difference is what keeps the eye moving, delivering the all-important element of discovery as guests sit down, touch the table and realize it’s a differentiating factor.

Simon Mayhew describes the same slow reveal in his own spaces: "You might not notice everything at first glance, but as you spend more time in the space, you start to spot those little details and unexpected finds. I think it's those elements that give a room its character and make it feel like it's evolved naturally over time." That is the near-match at its best: a room that feels layered over time, rather than just 'styled up' in a day.

This trend has longevity — you heard it here first. So, whether you’re going to keep the look exceptionally close, or let the leash out into a more diverse mix of textures and grains that push the trend to its limits, consider this the green flag to dabble in near-match territory.

You can read the rest of our Style Pulse trend report online, now.

Finding a tile you love is the easy part; working out how to do it justice is where I seriously struggle. Even the most gorgeous bathroom tiles can look a bit naff if the installation is sub-par, or your tile plan has the imagination of a landlord tarting up a rental. Where you start and stop, which direction you lay it, and what you put alongside it all need thinking through, preferably before your tiler arrives. A simple stripe can transform a modern bathroom’s proportions, while getting the scale right can make two attention-seeking patterns sing rather than sink. These are the decisions that I find far more interesting than whether a tile comes in another three shades of green.

Our roundup of bathroom tile ideas shows how much mileage there is in thinking beyond that initial purchasing high. From mosaics and diagonal marble stripes to cleverly tiled bath panels, we’ve gathered inspired spaces and advice from the designers behind them to help you do something more interesting with whatever tile you've set your sights on.

1. Send Stripes Sideways

Give a striped tile floor a more adventurous angle by laying it diagonally. It’s a simple twist with a big decorating payoff. The pattern cuts across the room, breaking away from the straight lines of walls and cabinetry. And in pink and green marble, it’s hardly going to go unnoticed.

Having already embraced a graphic marble floor in their kitchen, the now-owners of this pink bathroom were ready to carry that confidence upstairs. Diagonal bands of Jordan Pink and Jade Green marble tile from Balineum bring movement to a space that's full of beautifully considered details, from the curved glass enclosure to the slender patterned tile borders.

Those borders, also from Balineum, were actually the starting point. “The client fell for the decorative tile, and the palette developed from there, including the darkest green metal glazing bars around the bath and shower,” recalls Jo leGleud, who designed the space with Steph Worrall at Maddux Creative before the pair founded Worrall leGleud Interiors. With walls painted in Shell 1 by Paint & Paper Library and ceiling in Edward Bulmer’s Jonquil, plenty is going on. “But the repeated colors keep it connected. The floor tile gets to be exuberant because everything around it speaks the same language.”

2. Soak Up the Color

Bathroom color drenching is one decorating obsession we’re in no hurry to get over, it’s just so cocooning and cozy. For its Orange House project in Sokcho, South Korea, architecture studio one-aftr takes the idea onto tile, wrapping a pale pink bath in glossy orange custom tiles by Palet. It’s a bathing nook we’d happily retreat to, preferably with the door locked.

“Inspired by the changing colors of the surrounding foliage, we wanted to create an immersive bathing experience through variations of orange,” recalls Joon Ma, co-founder of one-aftr. “In contrast to the restrained concrete and timber surfaces of the living spaces, the bathroom becomes a more saturated, sensorial environment. The subtle variations in the tiles from Palet create a textured field of color that transforms the bathing recess into a space of its own.”

Note how the lighting is as carefully considered as the tile. “We integrated concealed linear lighting along the upper perimeter of the bathing recess to wash the tiled surfaces with a soft, indirect glow,” explains Joon. “The light accentuates the glossy texture and subtle variations in the tiles, bringing depth and warmth to the orange surfaces while reinforcing the immersive quality of the space.”

3. Take Stripes to the Top

A small bathroom with a tall ceiling is a fine excuse to get a little carried away with vertical stripes. In Pearl Lowe’s Notting Hill bathroom, pink-and-white skinny metro tiles by Bert & Mays provide a candy-striped backdrop to BC Designs’ curvaceous Senator bath. The brass shower ring and billowing shower curtains add to the sense of theater.

“I think we can get a little too hung up on the idea that small bathrooms need to be kept simple. Sometimes a bit of pattern is exactly what a room needs, and this is a brilliant example of how you can be quite brave with your tile choices and actually make a space feel bigger,” says Keeley Sutcliffe, design manager at BC Designs.

“The vertical stripes naturally draw your eye upwards, but what I particularly love is how they wrap around the entire room. Rather than drawing attention to individual walls and where they meet, you get this lovely continuous effect that almost distracts you from the room’s actual proportions.

“The width of the stripes is really important here, too. Go too wide, and you risk making the room feel more enclosed, whereas these slimmer bands have an almost wallpaper-like quality,” adds Keeley. “They’re bold, but there’s a softness to them, particularly alongside the curves of the bath and the warm brass.”

4. Dip into DIY Pattern

Designing your own tile pattern gives you a bespoke look using tiles straight off the shelf. Choose a simple shape in a handful of colors, then build your own repeat, experimenting with bands, checks and intersecting stripes. You control the scale and color combinations, which is how Regan Baker Design arrived at this custom plaid using Fireclay’s square ceramic tiles for this colorful bathroom.

“This client loved color and pattern and was never afraid to go for it – they even pushed us to do more in some spaces, which we loved,” says founder Regan Baker . “Building a plaid out of simple square tiles in orange, blue and cream felt both classic and a little unexpected at the same time.”

The recessed storage niche is especially clever. “We planned its size and placement before anything else so the stripes run right through it and the shelf lands on one of the orange bands, which keeps the pattern flowing across the wall,” she adds. “My advice is to map the full layout before tiling, checking where the bands meet the showerhead and tub edge, and work from the center so full tiles land in the most visible spots.”

5. Create a Backsplash Tidemark

Dado-height tiling may sound a little dated, but think of it as a backsplash that keeps going, and the idea feels much more current. Extending the tile beyond the vanity gives the room a continuous band of color and texture, with the basin area setting the height.

“Rather than continuing the bathroom countertop material as a backsplash, we used the wall tile instead, treating it the way a traditional splashback would be handled and aligning the transition point with the bottom of the mirror frame,” explains Sherrell Neal, founder and principal designer of Sherrell Design Studio. “The result is a detail that feels deliberate rather than arbitrary, and gives the room a tailored quality.”

Above it, Backdrop’s Wabi-Sabi wallpaper in Moss picks up the geometry of the slim glazed brick tiles in a larger grid. It’s a clever pairing that blurs the boundary between the two finishes, and offers a lot more energy than a plain painted wall.

Terrazzo brings another current material into the mix, while the wood vanity and linen curtain add warmer, softer textures. “For anyone worried that generously tiled walls might feel too clinical, playing with tile scale and layering in natural materials is the answer. Contrast creates interest, and interest is what keeps a room from feeling cold,” she adds.

6. Double Up on Pattern

Patterned floor tiles can hold their own against patterned walls, provided the two have different roles (and play nicely together). Here, Vanrenen Hanbury pairs a densely patterned green Moroccan floor tile with broad striped wallpaper by Adam Bray, giving each surface a distinct look.

The solid green bath panel links to the floor while offering a welcome stretch of uninterrupted colour. Whether your second pattern comes from wallpaper or tile, this is an excellent example of why you should look beyond plain walls to accompany decorative tile underfoot.

"When exploring multiple patterns, compare samples in the space. Look at them from the doorway as well as close up. If both patterns demand equal attention, try changing the scale or style of one before abandoning the combination," recommends co-founder Sarah Vanrenen .

7. Tile Wrap the Bath

A bath panel is prime decorating space, and far too good to waste on plain white plastic. Give it the full tile treatment and even an inexpensive built-in tub can get a boutique upgrade. “I like to look at the walls and floors as a blank canvas and create a ‘frieze’ or ‘carpet’ to fill the space — bath panel included,” says interior designer Henri Fitzwilliam-Lay.

“How you lay a tile can completely change the way it reads and creates its own texture,” Henri adds. Bands of pale blue and navy Balineum tiles wrap from the walls onto the bath front, their pointed borders giving the stripes a little bite. Precise alignment keeps the whole thing looking sharp. Plan the panel alongside the walls so the pattern turns each corner without breaking stride.

8. Carry Into Your En-suite

Matching your ensuite bathroom tiles to the bedroom wallpaper takes decorating coordination to a satisfying extreme. Why stop at picking out a color when you can carry the whole print through? In this project by Leveson Design, a sliver of space borrowed from the guest bedroom became a bathroom that feels very much part of the same decorating plan.

The wallpaper and tiles are both Cindy Leveson’s Cornflower Stripe in Pink & Green, with the floral repeat scaled down for the ceramic version. “They are made to order in England and, because the colours match — although the tile is a smaller scale — they work beautifully together and keeping the paint colour the same in both rooms made perfect sense,” explains Cindy.

Farrow & Ball’s Whirlybird green connects the spaces, while the patterned tiles make the shower feel like a miniature extension of the bedroom. “It is a nice surprise to turn right into the bathroom and find a fully tiled shower which matches the bedroom wallpaper.”

9. Go With the Ombre Flow

Ombre walls bring the loose, inky appeal of a swishy watercolor to bathroom walls, but with a much higher tolerance for splashes and toothpaste splatters. Here, Jacobs + Interiors has used Artistic Tile’s Ombre Extender Black Marble Mosaic to take the vanity wall from charcoal overhead to near-white below, letting the color drift between the two.

“This is a home on a beautiful lakefront in Iowa, and the tile’s soft organic flow had a water reference that we loved, creating a feeling of relaxation and suggestion of the water lapping at the shore,” says Yvonne Jacobs, founder and principal designer of Jacobs + Interiors.

That apparently effortless fade has had a fair bit of help behind the scenes. The tile supplier worked from the designers’ drawings to coordinate the pattern with the mirrors, lighting and vanity. Plotting the full wall before ordering is essential here, says Yvonne; you want the most interesting bit of your mosaic on show, rather than hidden behind a mirror. “The tile came in sheets, and we chose a grout color on the lighter side as we wanted it to feel light even in the dark areas,” she adds.

10. Add a Baseboard Border

A tiled baseboard is a small detail with plenty of scope to be as creative or restrained as you choose. Here, plain wall tiles get a little zhuzh from a row of black triangles — enough to interrupt the grid without taking over.

“Wrapping the geometric tile border around the base of the walls as a tiled ‘skirting’ is a brilliant way to visually anchor the room,” says Angela Simpson, co-founder of Simpson & Voyle. “It helps draw the eye to the more dynamic floor tile, without committing to pattern from floor to ceiling.”

A plain tile border in a color borrowed from the floor or elsewhere in the room can be enough to pull the scheme together. For something more playful, try a scalloped edge, alternating colors or a checkerboard strip. As Angela proves, a little pattern goes a long way at ankle height.

11. Supersize Your Mosaics

Mixing veined stone slabs with an equally showboaty mosaic tile floor needn’t end in chaos. Vanessa Deleon embraces the combo in her bathroom for the 2026 Kips Bay Decorator Show House New York, matching Viola Reale marble with Artistic Tile’s Custom Varo by Ali Budd Waterjet Mosaic.

Conceived as a wellness retreat designed for total immersion, it comes complete with a shower, cold plunge, and vanity arranged as a ritual sequence. “The slabs came first for me, and then I needed something to ground it,” recalls Vanessa. “I selected the custom Varo because it felt like a rock formation, and it pulled all the colors together.”

The oversized mosaic pieces help, too, with their broad curves holding their own alongside the marble’s sprawling veins, without adding a blizzard of tiny detail. “For an immersion room, I really wanted it to feel tranquil - a little bit of zen, but with a twist,” she adds.

12. Know When to Go Plain

Knowing when to stop is a useful decorating skill and one of the toughest to pull off, especially when your tile shortlist keeps getting longer. In this bathroom by Appreciation Project, Otto Tiles' Marrakesh Stripes and multicolored mosaics both made the cut, but generous stretches of plain ecru give each pattern space to register. Cover every surface in competing designs, and you’d lose those lovely individual details.

“I always like to strike a balance of playfulness and modernity,” says Natasha Lyon, co-founder and creative director of Appreciation Project. “I was originally inspired by Victorian pathways and their beautiful borders. I wanted to recreate this in a modern way.”

The patterned shower seat adds another reason to look beyond the basin area, while pale wall tiles keep the view from becoming too busy. Their glossy, uneven surfaces also prove that plain needn’t mean flat or characterless.

13. Bring Back All the Trimmings

One of our favorite traditional bathroom trend revivals sees tile’s supporting cast step back into the spotlight. We’re talking decorative borders, dado rails and corner pieces, all getting fresh attention from designers. “Clients are increasingly using these smart detail pieces – and that’s really exciting: that’s a return to traditional tile installations,” says Sarah Watson, founder of Balineum.

This vibrant bathroom by Henri Fitzwilliam-Lay is an excellent case for getting a piece of the action. Glossy green herringbone sits above a deep patterned lower section, with graphic borders keeping the different designs in line. It’s old-school detailing with absolutely no interest in looking old-hat.

“Most people when tiling just use plain field tile, but consider adding a tiled skirting, dado rail, ceiling cornice and mix colours and sizes,” says Sarah. “I’d use two or three colours across some different shapes to create panels – just like you would with plasterwork and paint in another room in the house.” The key is to choose those finishing pieces alongside your main tile, with border heights planned around sinks and windows.

15. Work Those Curves

Bathrooms often come with a shed load of straight lines and hard surfaces, so a curvy bathroom floor tile can be a brilliant antidote. Here, Zoë Feldman lets Fornace Brioni and Cristina Celestino’s Bibiena Cotta Bianca tiles for Clé Tile snake across the floor in oversized interlocking shapes, loosening up the strict grid of the wall tiles, shower screen and window.

"The interlocking tiles introduce warmth and visual structure, which helps anchor the space," says Zoë. "We kept the surrounding elements simple, using a vintage stool and a custom vanity to support the floor without competing with it. The bathroom is small, so we also love how this floor adds character without relying on lots of additional finishes.”

The scale of the tile choice here is worth an extra mention. Those broad, generous curves read as one strong gesture rather than lots of fussy little pattern, which keeps the space feeling graphic not fussy.

Before you commit, check out the mistakes making your bathroom tiles look cheap. Falling in love with the samples is easy; spending all that money and still feeling underwhelmed is a lot harder to handle.

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The beauty of a green kitchen is that it can be fresh and sharp, deliciously murky, or rich enough to make even a modest run of cabinetry look fancy. Few colors are quite so accommodating of both a pale oak floor, a wildly veined slab of marble, or pretty much anything else you want to place near it. That versatility genuinely makes green one of the best kitchen colors, with enough scope to keep designers interested, regardless of the latest kitchen trends.

These 13 kitchens show just how much range it has, from sage Shaker cabinetry to more adventurous combinations that'll convince you to stop playing it safe. Above all, they prove green kitchens have the sticking power of Gorilla tape, not least because there’s always another way to style them.

1. Go for Green Stone

Green stone brings depth, variation, and movement that a flat paint color simply can’t match. It’s not a move for the cash-strapped, but it will produce a rock-solid kitchen that will feel cool forever. This Studio Duggan project is one of the best examples I've seen in recent years, and I highly doubt it will ever get old.

Note how the deep forest tones shift into brighter mineral greens across the sculptural kitchen island, while a slender metallic frame gives the backsplash slab the look of a large-scale artwork.

"The Verde Guatemala marble brings a huge amount of color depth and vibrancy — far superior to that of a painted finish," adds interior designer Tiffany Duggan, founder of the studio.

2. Load Up on Greens

Samantha Bartlett’s kitchen for Martin Moore at London’s most recent WOWHouse is an excellent study in why repeating green needn’t be boring. Fusion Green quartzite established the palette, joined by an Officine Gullo cooker in matcha, Arte vinyl wallpaper, aged-verdigris Porta Romana lighting and softer green seating. "I wanted the tones to feel as though they belonged to a landscape, rather than matching exactly," she says.

The trick is knowing which greens should command attention and which should fall back. "The matcha cooker, for example, has a real presence, whereas the verdigris lighting and softer greens in the seating reveal themselves more gradually," she explains.

Different materials further loosen the effect: "Stone, patinated metal, upholstery, and enamel all absorb and reflect color differently, so using subtly varied greens gives the room much more depth than repeating one exact shade," she adds.

The kitchen lighting control, directed by John Cullen Lighting, adds another shift, changing how those tones are perceived from fresh daylight to warmer evenings. Samantha’s guiding principle is pleasingly simple: "The colors should feel collected rather than rehearsed." And the burgundy rug prevents all that botanical harmony from merging into a blur. "For me, it’s about creating a sense of connection without everything feeling over-prescribed. That slight tension and variation is what gives a room personality and stops it feeling overly designed," she explains.

3. The Fifth Wall

A green kitchen doesn’t have to rely on cabinetry; taking the color overhead can be far more unexpected. The color green travels from the cooker to a wallpapered ceiling in this characterful kitchen, beginning with a Lacanche range in Tilleul and a custom hood color-matched by James Dawson. "The home has such wonderful storybook charm," says Sandra Lucas, founding partner of Lucas/Eilers Design Associates. "We wanted the kitchen to feel like a natural extension of that."

"From there, we selected a favorite Rule of Three fabric to recreate as wallpaper for the ceiling, fully customizing the colors to complement the range," she adds. "Its delicate pattern draws the eye upward and connects the kitchen to the adjoining breakfast area." White Carrara marble provides the pause: "I just love how it gives your eye a place to rest so you can fully enjoy the pattern overhead."

4. Give Pink a Greener Partner

Pink and green can quickly tip into confectionery territory, but earthier versions of both have far more interesting chemistry. This was one of the final projects from Maddux Creative, before founders Jo LeGleud and Scott Maddux established their independent practices. The palette grew from an extraordinary slab of Fusion Wow marble, with Paint & Paper Library’s Jaipur Pink on the base cabinetry and Edward Bulmer’s Pippin bringing a muddier green overhead.

"Pink and green are one of my favorite, slightly unexpected color combinations — they do appear together regularly in nature," says Jo. "I’d take my lead from there: find a shade you love and find its counterpart, a combination that helps each to flourish."

Timber keeps the combination grounded, while the curves prevent it from becoming too buttoned-up. The floor adds another layer: three colored marbles form an asymmetric tartan inspired by Villa Necchi, carrying green right across the room. "It’s not for the rigid and symmetry-obsessed," says Jo, "but a playful use of marble that provides an anchor and a beautiful sense of scale."

5. Sharpen Jewel Green With Black and White

Greens in bold jewel tones really come alive against something crisp. Here, black and white strip away any muddiness or heritage heaviness, making a deep green feel clearer, richer, and more graphic. Bright Designlab used Sherwin-Williams’ Dard Hunter Green on the cabinetry against Mosaic House’s Bordeaux encaustic floor, and the contrast makes the green feel particularly rich, almost like velvet against a patterned lining.

"The black and white floor came first, landing early on, and it heavily drove the decision to go for a rich cabinet color," recalls Katie Dahl, creative director at Bright Designlab. "In a smaller kitchen, we wanted a clear visual hierarchy, with quieter elements giving the eye a place to rest so the room wouldn't feel overwhelming or too busy." The restrained white hood does exactly that, while letting the jewel-green cabinetry remain the star.

6. Draw the Line With Green Tile

Taking green tile from floor to ceiling turns the color into part of the architecture, rather than simply a decorative splashback. Here, cream metro tiles wrap the walls, interrupted by a dark green horizontal band and deeper sections of green at dado height. Softer grassy-green cabinetry introduces another tone, keeping the palette layered rather than too neatly matched.

There’s also a lovely bit of history behind the scheme. "Chipped, curved tiles were unearthed from the renovation site, so the owners of this property decided to reinstate some new ones," says Helen Parker, Creative Director at deVOL. "That decision shaped the kitchen, a little something to get the design kick-started, and the satisfaction of putting a bit of history back into a building — we love that whole thought process."

When planning a border like this, set out the line across the entire elevation so it connects neatly with windows, shelves and corners. Pay attention to grout color too: a stronger contrast will emphasize each tile, while a closer match lets the green read as a more continuous band.

7. Give Green a Tailored Edge

When green runs across an entire bank of cabinetry, a little definition goes a long way. Here, La Cornue’s Brands Hatch Green is crisply outlined in stainless steel and brushed brass, framing the doors, drawers, and cooker with fine metallic lines. Against such a saturated backdrop, the effect is precise and polished rather than weighty, while the veined green stone introduces a looser, more organic pattern.

"Green continues to resonate in kitchen design because it has a natural warmth and timeless quality. This particular shade feels rich and sophisticated, bringing a sense of understated luxury," says Wafa Taktak, Kitchen Project Manager at La Cornue. "The enameled range cooker surface gives the colour exceptional depth and a luxurious, furniture-like quality."

If you’re introducing metal trim to green cabinetry (or any color cabinetry for that matter), use it to emphasize the shape and proportions of the doors and drawers rather than as decoration alone. Keep those lines consistent across neighboring cabinetry and appliances, and use changes in metal finish deliberately. Here, the warmer brass corners add subtle contrast to the stainless steel, without breaking up the overall composition.

8. Find Your Green in Aged Copper

If you’re hunting for a completely different way to bring green into your kitchen, verdigris copper is about as far from a neat paint swatch as it gets. Ledbury Studio went all in on the concept here, cladding all the cabinet fronts in hand-patinated copper. Against the terracotta wall, the richly mottled metal has an almost painterly quality, turning a run of straight-edged cabinetry into something closer to abstract art.

"The verdigris copper was never going to be one color. Across a single door it moves from a light turquoise to an iridescent sea green, and it shifts again with the light through the day," says Charlie Smallbone, founder of Ledbury Studio. "This was the effect we worked for many months to achieve, carefully developing each sheet by hand to ensure they looked both individually stunning and came together as a whole."

Copper isn’t the only metal that develops character with age: brass and bronze can also acquire rich patinas, although the color and rate of change will vary according to the alloy and finish. Ask to see larger samples rather than relying on a small swatch, and establish whether the surface will be sealed or allowed to continue evolving after installation.

9. Let the Grain Shine

Stained timber kitchens are how adventurous designers are delivering a serious dose of green without sacrificing the thing that makes wood worth looking at: its utterly unique grain. In this sensational kitchen for the latest Kips Bay Showhouse in NYC, Sarah Witkin of Bilotta Architecture commissioned a custom blue-green stain specifically for the scheme.

"The blue-green stain on flat-cut white oak was developed by Bilotta Kitchens to match the flashes of green that glimmer throughout the explosive earth-toned Patagonia quartzite slab. The blue-green stain was also chosen to act as a neutral contrast to balance the warm reds and whites in the stone," explains Sarah.

"Unlike solid painted color, the matte finish stain allows the natural oak grain to dictate the saturation of the color stain. The organically textured surface also has more depth and a more tactile quality in your hands, especially when paired with the integrated bullnose edge pull we designed for the space."

10. Blue and Green Should Definitely Be Seen

The old tale about how ‘blue and green should never be seen’ overlooks how naturally these neighboring colors sit together. ‘In this house, the kitchen sits closer to the garden, so we wanted to bring that fresh outdoor feeling inside by combining green with blue,’ says Michelle Jager-van’t Hof, Head of Design at Even Eleven Interiors. ‘The two colors create a fresh interplay, but introducing two distinct colors and contrast also brings just enough tension to keep the scheme interesting, while still feeling calm and cohesive.’

As unlikely color combinations go, Farrow & Ball’s Vert de Terre wraps the tall cabinetry, and Selvedge gives the island its stronger presence, while vintage bar stools upholstered in a fabric containing both shades help pull the palette together. Taj Mahal quartzite on the countertop and niche introduces a warmer neutral, while the niche’s rounded profile is repeated in the decorative molding on the tall cabinets.

"We wanted the green to feel soft and natural against the wall, while the darker, stronger tone of the island gives the kitchen a solid focal point," explains Michelle. "Together they create contrast without either color becoming overpowering."

Above the island, green glass pendants introduce green in a more translucent form. "They create a warm, atmospheric glow above the bar, complementing the more functional lighting provided by the three Serax spotlights placed in a row alongside them," she adds. "We like combining functional lighting with more decorative pieces to create different layers of light."

11. Go Pale but Make it Interesting

Too sassy for safe cashmeres and creams, but not quite ready for dark greens? Pale sage hits a very useful sweet spot in this Neptune kitchen, running across cabinetry, paneling and walls for a proper wash of color. Pale it may be, wishy-washy it is not.

"Sitting between a warm and cool tone, sage works comfortably as a neutral without dulling the space," agrees Fred Horlock, Design Director at Neptune. Sage’s muted character also makes it easier to use in volume. "The subdued, timeless feel of Neptune’s Sage paint works well in a busy environment like a kitchen, as its soft tones create a calming environment," he adds.

As ever, the antidote to all that softness is texture. "When using any pale green on the cabinets or walls, pair with different textures and materials to add warmth and interest without overwhelming the look; try light oak furniture, rattan lighting or wicker baskets, with brass hardware to elevate the look," Fred advises. In short, we’re calling it — sage green kitchens are still in style.

12. Let Lacquer Deepen the Green

Dark green looks far more interesting when the finish has a little luminosity. Lacquer gives color depth and subtle movement as light travels across the surface, which is exactly what makes the Empire Green cabinetry in Alessandro Moriconi’s French Riviera scheme feel so rich rather than flat.

Moriconi specified bespoke doors edged with rope-like moldings inspired by nautical detailing and Provençal basketry, adding another layer of shadow and texture. Black burgundy stone across the countertops and backsplash pushes the green darker still, while neatly absorbing the Lacanche range into the composition. A gray travertine-lined opening to the dining room cools everything down, making the kitchen feel like part of a bigger decorative story rather than a standalone color moment.

13. Go All In on Botanicals

Green cabinetry is only the beginning here, with leafy wallpaper and flower-like glass pendants taking the garden theme right up to the ceiling. The generous sweep of pattern gives this narrow kitchen an immersive feel, while solid cabinet fronts provide that hearty dose of green.

"This kitchen was designed for a client who is an herbalist and passionate about nature, so green felt like a very natural choice," says Emma Joy, co-founder of Studio Farra. "Of all the colors, green has perhaps the strongest connection to the natural world, which makes it particularly lovely to use in a kitchen, where you’re cooking and working with fresh ingredients, from colorful vegetables to seasonal fruits. We chose Stable Green by Paint & Paper Library, a deep, earthy shade that works beautifully with the Arts and Crafts character of the house and the botanical wallpaper."

Before committing to a similarly deep shade, try samples alongside your kitchen wallpaper and countertop materials, checking the combination in daylight and under your evening lighting.

"What I particularly like about using a darker green on kitchen cabinetry is how it changes throughout the day. In natural light, you pick up more of its green tones, while in the evening it becomes much richer and moodier," adds Emma. "Here, the contrast with the pale stone worktops and the colors in the wallpaper gives the kitchen plenty of character without making the space feel too dark or enclosed."

So, if you’re still nervously typing is green overdone into your search bar, these kitchens should give your fingers, and brain, a rest. Save that energy for choosing your shade (matcha green kitchen anyone?) — that’s where the real deliberation begins.

And for more design ideas for your kitchen and beyond, subscribe to the Livingetc newsletter, and all the latest will be delivered directly to your inbox.

The calla lilies trend, however, has pulled it off. From being spotted on the runway at Wes Gordon's Carolina Herrera fall show to Cult Gaia's internet-famous clutches to walking down the aisle in the hands of this season's brides, and finding itself twirled and twisted on the tables of hot restaurants — it's everywhere. And now, it's being designed into tableware, too.

I spoke to stylists about what these flowers bring to the table and included some of my current favorite calla-inspired pieces to make your autumn table feel a tad more romantic.

Aista, stylist and founder of Aiku Floral, says calla lilies have broken out of the quick-gimmick trend cycle because their beauty lies in their simplicity.

"Whether you're decorating with the flowers or styling themed decor, embrace their natural shapes and don’t worry about perfect symmetry," she advises. "Sometimes, the most beautiful arrangements are the ones that feel effortless!"

Iokasti Sotirakopoulou, stylist at Design Lab by Livingetc, also explains that these blooms will forever be a timeless inclusion to any tablescape. "They have such a sculptural silhouette that I'd let them lead the tablescape rather than crowd them with lots of other decoration," she notes.

"I'd bring in soft, tactile details like linen, handmade ceramics, maybe a few garden-inspired touches, and let the flowers' elegant shape do the talking. Even a single stem or a calla lily-inspired finishing touch can make an autumn tablescape feel more personal and connected to the outdoors."

Creative director VH Rafaello tells me that the present love for calla lilies influenced one of his recent artistic endeavors. "This trend of calla lilies going beyond just the flowers shows how creativity can begin with something so unexpected, and how materials that might otherwise be overlooked can become part of something beautiful," he notes.

"For me, it was never just about styling flowers. It was about exploring the relationship between raw materials, form, texture, and nature."

So, if you're setting the table with these florets and you want your decor to feel in tune with your floral arrangements, or you wish to write a more understated love letter to calla lilies without a stem in sight, here's some table decor that understands the assignment.

Another thing we've spotted at all the coolest tables this season? Dark green dinner plates. And it'll tie into your biophilic theme perfectly.

Sign up for the Livingetc newsletter for more design ideas ahead of hosting season.

Butter is no longer simply an essential; it's a luxury, and we're displaying it as such. Don't believe me? Just take a look at the elegant, shell-shaped Isla Stainless Steel Butter Dish at Westwing, designed by none other than Victoria Beckham. A surprising star product from her recent collaboration with Westwing, the delicate design turns a simple curl of butter into the cherry on top of your tablescape — and if Posh is pro-butter dish, then so are we.

The rise of the butter dish has not come from nowhere, though. There's been a few years of this growing butter-based phenomenon, and there's hardly a food stylist out there that hasn't created some kind of weird and wonderful display from the stuff. Perhaps nothing expresses this obsession better than the highly photographed piles of whipped butter that sit proud on the counters at Copenhagen's Atelier September. The snow-white peaks of cloud-like spread have become as popular a tourist attraction as the colorful houses lining the canals. But it's not only these butter mountains that have done the rounds on social media; we've seen butter candles burning bright, butter platters decorated with edible flowers, and delicate vintage butter molds, too.

But as beautiful as these displays are, they aren't exactly the most compatible with the average day-to-day routine. And this is where the butter dish comes in. It's an easy way of elevating the everyday, and this is what designer Henry Holland loves about them: "It's something that sits on your kitchen counter or dining table every day, so why shouldn't it be something you really love looking at?"

And it's not just the designers that are loving them; these once old-fashioned items have become the object of desire for many a Gen Z and millennial. So whether you're looking for a way to take your dinner parties to the next level, or you simply want to add a little bit more joy to your morning slice of toast, a butter dish is the kitchen item we all need right now.

As the cost of living increases and true luxuries become increasingly inaccessible to the masses, we've been seeing a growing interest in embracing life's little luxuries, and that's exactly what this trend offers.

"I've always loved the idea of taking something we use every day and making it feel special," explains Henry, who just recently added a very stylish butter dish design to his collection of homewares. For him, this design signified an attitude of appreciation for the small things, finding ways to elevate everyday rituals into something that feels that little bit more special.

This is something Henry has noticed more generally in our attitudes towards interior design trends nowadays. "I think there's been a real shift in the way people think about their homes and the objects they surround themselves with," he says. People are finding the beauty in the mundane, appreciating the luxury of domesticity: "There's something quite lovely about the ritual of setting a table properly, even if it's just for breakfast on a Tuesday morning."

This item also reflects the growing appetite for the past, as shown through the countless nostalgic decorating trends we've seen popping up as of late. There's something pleasingly old-fashioned about the idea of a butter dish, like something you'd find in your grandparents' home. This was also part of their appeal for Henry, who says, "I also love the slightly nostalgic, almost old-fashioned nature of a butter dish and the idea of reinterpreting that in a way that feels contemporary, playful, and a little bit sculptural."

This idea of playfulism is also essential to this design's appeal. "Younger generations are having a lot more fun with their interiors and are less concerned with everything matching or following a particular set of rules," says Henry. "A butter dish is a relatively small way to inject a bit of personality into your home, and I'm all for anything that makes the mundane feel a little more joyful."

For much of the younger generation, our experience of adulthood feels so removed from the kind of lives our parents and grandparents were able to live at our age, so finding little ways to feel a bit more grown-up, as though you really have your life together, has become all the more appealing. Sure, you may not be able to own property, but at least you have a butter dish, and doesn't that have to count for something?

The right butter dish can add a little personality to your breakfast or dining table, but if you want to take it to the next level, these food stylists have turned displaying your favorite spread into an art form.

"I love treating butter as a little sculpture rather than just something to serve with bread," creative director and food stylist Clara Santa Isabel tells me. In one installation, Clara constructed a wall of butter, decorated with engravings of the brand's name. In another, bowls of fluffy whipped butter sit beside delicate pastries, braided in the shape of knives and forks. "It's such a versatile and malleable ingredient, which makes it perfect for experimenting with shapes, textures, and compositions. From geometric blocks to organic forms."

To Clara, the familiarity and accessibility of butter is exactly what makes it such a good subject. "It's a basic ingredient that almost everyone knows and can relate to, and there's something really interesting about giving it a completely new perspective," she says.

And of course, the dish is essential to the display. "I think the dish should be part of the composition, not just a container," she says. But this doesn't have to be limited to the traditional butter dish: "I love playing with the relationship between the butter and the object holding it, whether that's a beautiful vintage silver dish or tray, a ceramic piece, or something completely unexpected such as fabrics, mirrors, paper, pedestals," says Clara.

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If you're looking for more ways to level up your hosting game, these interior designer hosting tips will have you covered.

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Different types of kitchen layouts create different opportunities for eating together. A long, narrow room might suit a table beyond the cooking zone; a wider footprint could accommodate dining alongside an island. A built-in bench can make a sociable spot out of an otherwise awkward corner. Your room’s size and shape will help steer you towards the right arrangement, but working out the best kitchen-diner ideas always involves giving the dining element as much attention as the kitchen itself. That means comfortable seating, flattering lighting, and enough space to get up without negotiating with three other people.

These popular kitchen-diner layouts show how to bring the whole arrangement together, so your kitchen isn’t compromised by dining or vice versa. Here's how interior designers make them work. Getting your guests to leave will be another problem entirely…

1. One-Wall for the Win

One-wall kitchen layouts leave room for a generous dining table without an island guzzling up space. At A.LONDON’s Hertford Street project, that suits a home where the social calendar is rife with dinner parties and entertaining.

"With the kitchen occupying one wall of the main living space, we wanted to soften its functional appearance and create a room that felt equally suited to dining and entertaining," explains Edward Bishop, interior designer at A.LONDON. "The freestanding dark timber table becomes the focal point, complemented by sculptural ceramic pendants."

Behind it, the kitchen’s orderly layout does more than look pleasing. "The existing arrangement places the cooking area centrally between two banks of full-height cabinetry, creating a strong sense of symmetry while accommodating essential storage and the apartment’s mechanical and electrical services," he adds. "We built on this balanced composition through the decorative treatment, using richly veined marble, carefully styled open shelves and a restrained palette to give the kitchen a more furniture-like quality, in keeping with the wider living space."

Borrow the approach by giving the kitchen the same decorative attention as the dining area, then check the less glamorous logistics: enough countertop for prep and room to open appliances behind occupied chairs.

2. End on a Breakfast Spot

A double galley layout’s long sightline deserves something good at the end, and this little breakfast setup delivers as a wonderful kitchen-diner idea. A fluted pedestal table and cushioned window seat give this long, narrow kitchen a café feel, with great odds of getting your favorite spot!

"The kitchen has a separate dining room adjacent to it, so we wanted to create a more informal breakfast area within the kitchen itself," says Tabitha Organ, founder of Tabitha Isobel. "The existing bay window provided a natural spot for this, allowing us to make use of the architecture while creating a lovely place to sit, enjoy a morning coffee and look out over the garden."

Making that invitation to linger work alongside a busy kitchen took some strategic appliance positioning. "We positioned the main appliances, including the fridge and dishwasher, along one side of the galley, together with the bins, to keep the practical elements of the kitchen in one area," explains Tabitha. "This helps to organize movement through the space, while the breakfast area at the far end remains easily accessible without getting in the way of cooking and preparation."

As a planning benchmark for double galley kitchens, allow at least 42 inches (107cm) between opposing work surfaces for one cook, or 48 inches (122cm) for multiple cooks. When adding dining, always check the route with any freestanding chairs pulled out: fetching a second coffee should be an easy trip, not an obstacle course.

3. Run Table and Island together

Placing a dining table parallel to a kitchen island keeps cooking and eating within conversational reach, with stools for those stopping by and proper chairs for those staying for dinner. In this kitchen by Laura Stephens, the positioning also gives the cook a particularly good outlook.

"The owner is a keen cook and wanted to be able to stand at the hob on the island and face the dining table, with the sofa beyond, so that she could cook while chatting to family and friends," explains Laura. "She also didn’t want to have her back to the garden, which lies beyond the dining table."

Making both seating areas comfortable comes down to planning the gap with everyone in position. "We allowed 1.5 meters between the island and dining table, which gives the space room to function comfortably when both are in use," says Laura. "It was important to consider how the kitchen would work when it was busy, rather than simply measuring the gap between the island and table when everything was pushed in."

With people sitting at the island and around the dining table, you still want to be able to move through the space without it feeling cramped or having to constantly ask someone to move their chair. "The parallel arrangement creates a clear, practical route through the kitchen-diner while keeping the island and dining table close enough to feel connected and sociable," adds Laura.

4. Position Dining Beyond the Island

Placing dining beyond an island in a kitchen-diner makes good use of a long room, especially when there’s a window worth settling beside. In her own home, interior designer Jess Cooney turned a former formal dining room into a kitchen, with walnut cabinetry leading towards an oval table and cushioned bench.

"The dining area at the end under the windows was a large cabinet originally. It was a great spot to add a long bench instead, then put an oval table there with a few chairs around," says Jess. "That space is light-filled and the best spot to sit and have breakfast."

Getting the proportions right meant planning the island and dining furniture together. "We gave four feet from the end of the island to the end of the table to pull a chair in and out and navigate around the space," she explains. "The scale of the island is balanced by the space around it, leaving at least four feet to each countertop on either side."

The long room also benefits from a few curves. "We used rounded fixtures over the island and breakfast nook to break up the long, straight runs of lines," says Jess. "We also put the large refrigerator in the pantry and used fridge drawers in the island to create more of a “hotel vibe” in the big, open, light-filled space, and we love it!"

5. Try a Split-Level Island Layout

Joining a dining table to an island puts serving space within arm’s reach and removes the need for an aisle between two freestanding pieces, so it can work well in small kitchens. In this project by Ina Rinderknecht, the timber tabletop also echoes the surrounding cabinetry, giving the spectacular marble a more relaxed companion.

"This solution gives the family a warm, comfortable dining space without the feel of a conventional bar counter or worktop experience," says Ina. "The marble worktop is set at a comfortable height of 93cm, while the integrated dining table sits at 74cm. The table is secured to the stone island by a concealed internal support structure and rests on a single leg, leaving the space beneath largely unobstructed so the chairs can be moved easily around it."

The trade-off is flexibility: an attached table can’t simply shuffle sideways when extra guests arrive. Alternatively, a freestanding design butted against the island gives you the option to pull it out or extend it when friends descend. Whatever you do, plan the seating capacity early and preserve an easy route around the outer end, particularly if it leads to busy exit routes.

6. Build a Banquette Into the Island

An island with built-in banquette seating brings everyone together for dinner without making the table compete with the kitchen for floor space. In this collaboration between Blakes London and Joanna Williams Interiors, combining cooking and dining in one substantial piece solved a problem with the room’s proportions.

"This rectangular room was too narrow to accommodate a kitchen island as well as a dining table," explains Annie Burrows, lead designer at Blakes London. Backing the bench onto the island removed the need for chair pull-out space on that side, making plenty of room for both.

Specify the cabinetry, upholstery and table together, allowing for seat depth, backrest thickness and knee room, plus clearance for the loose chairs opposite. A pedestal table, as used here, helps people slide along without negotiating a forest of legs.

If you’re considering a cooktop directly behind kitchen island seating, plan its setback and the relationship between hot pans, countertop and upholstered backrest. A successful kitchen-diner is a comfortable place to linger, with the cooking safely on its own side.

7. Zone Dining With a Low Partition

A structural column in the middle of your new kitchen extension might not feature on the mood board, but in this project by Cor Domi, it gave the layout its direction. "Once we’d opened up the back of the house and added the side infill, it had to stay where it was to hold up the floors above," explains Greg Daulby, senior designer at Cor Domi. "We didn’t want to just box it in and pretend it wasn’t there, so we worked the layout around it instead."

The column now sits within a low partition, with a curved tan leather banquette tucked alongside it. Oak and brass detailing give the dining corner a suitably dressed-up finish, while continuous polished concrete flooring connects it to the kitchen.

"We worked out the partition height from sightlines; that way it screens the worktop from the table, but you can still talk to whoever’s cooking," says Greg. "For the seating, the table overlaps the front of the bench by about 100mm so nobody’s reaching and the curve and the pedestal base mean people can slide in from either side without getting trapped at the end."

That roughly four-inch overlap is a useful project reference, but you should also consider bench depth, back cushions, and table height, as they’ll all affect comfort levels in a banquette scenario.

8. Make Dining Open-Plan

An open-plan kitchen-diner makes spending time together easy, especially when cooking and eating have their own clearly defined zones. In this project by Kate Guinness, a wide opening connects the spaces while retaining enough wall to frame the view and give each area its own identity.

"We wanted to ensure that moving from stove to table was as easy as possible, so the dining area was located directly next to the kitchen with the seating area to the right, just out of shot," recalls Kate Guinness, founder of Kate Guinness Design. "We introduced a peninsula to the kitchen to provide some definition between areas without restricting movement and giving as much storage as possible. This also allowed for some stool seating for more casual eating/drinking/chatting."

The existing opening couldn’t be widened because it adjoins the staircase enclosure, but shared wood flooring and repeated timber finishes strengthen the connection. Meanwhile, a rug beneath the dining table marks out its territory without adding another physical boundary.

If you’re going for a similar open-plan space, choose furniture and cabinetry together, and check the route through the opening with dining chairs pulled out and stools occupied. Keep the peninsula clear of that passage and check that its doors and drawers can open without blocking walkways.

9. Separate With a Peninsula

A galley kitchen layout with a peninsula makes an efficient kitchen-diner, keeping the cooking zone compact and dinner within easy reach. In Martin Brudnizki’s own Sussex apartment, the peninsula forms one of two parallel kitchen runs, placing the sink opposite the cooking area and presenting a smart paneled face to the dining table.

Attached at one end, it needs fewer circulation routes than a freestanding island. "It works a bit like a counter in a restaurant, allowing those not partaking in the cooking to watch the theater of it instead," explains Martin.

To borrow the layout, allow enough room within the galley for bending to the oven and opening drawers, then plan dining-chair clearance separately on the other side. Keep the approach around the peninsula’s free end clear, positioning the dishwasher so its open door won’t block the route. Reserve a stretch of countertop near the table for plating up and passing dishes across.

Green cabinetry, peach walls and a spirited display of plates give the working side of this kitchen just as much decorative attention as the dining area. "Interiors should be beautiful and exciting, but they also have to function and be practical," says Martin. "I think this kitchen embodies that principle."

10. Try a J-Shaped Kitchen Layout

A J-shaped layout packs the working kitchen along one long wall and around the far end, leaving the main floor open for a generous dining table. In Suzy Hoodless’ west London home, that extended run provides cooking and prep space, while the sink sits beneath the window and a short return completes the tucked-away working zone. Red Børge Mogensen chairs bring a shot of color to the central ash table.

Leading off the living room, the kitchen balances everyday family life with space to entertain. Keeping the table at its center means the same generous surface can host homework, an impromptu lunch or a full dinner spread for 10, with pendant lights giving the dining a clear focus.

To make a J-shaped layout work, give the short return a specific job. It can provide extra prep space or storage, but its length needs to leave an easy route into the far end of the kitchen. Plan the corners carefully, checking that drawers and appliance doors on adjoining runs can open without clashing. Keep frequently used items within easy reach along the straight sections.

For more ideas to make your kitchen a sociable dining space, these are the five things interior designers always include in eat-in kitchens that also hides the mess when hosting.

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All too often, kitchen flooring is an afterthought, a practical decision that rarely receives the time and attention it deserves. Some boring variation of wood or a plain, neutral stone; it's generally treated as little more than a backdrop for the rest of your kitchen design. Which is exactly why so many kitchens end up feeling rather lacklustre. Throw some color on those floors, though, and it's a whole different story. Suddenly, your kitchen springs to life, emanating a bold confidence that a classic floor finish never could. It's a simple move that sets your kitchen apart and makes it feel truly original.

There's a certain cool nonchalance to a brightly colored kitchen floor. It's impactful without trying too hard. And in this neutral-dominated design climate, there's something quietly rebellious about integrating color in such an integral, permanent way. Whether you opt for a pastel pink, poured-concrete base, or a sleek, red linoleum finish, there are countless ways to make this look your own; these are a few of our favorite ways to make the most of a kitchen's '6th wall'.

1. Bauhaus Brightness

Inspired by Steinholzestrich, a flooring finish found in many buildings in the former German Democratic Republic, including the iconic Bauhaus building, Gisbert Poeppler modernized this historic design feature, opting for a neon red linoleum for this modern kitchen, as opposed to the cement mix of the original material.

"We were drawn not only to the distinctive colors of these floors, but also to how naturally they belonged to their surroundings," explains Gisbert of the classic Bauhaus color. "With the red linoleum, we wanted to reference this history while translating it into a contemporary and welcoming atmosphere."

Although red can often be thought of as an intensely bold, powerful color, in this home, it provides a surprisingly comforting base. "Unlike traditional tiles or a concrete floor, the red linoleum brings warmth to the space and creates a cozy atmosphere," explains Gisbert.

In this room, where natural light was limited, the floor provides its own kind of sunny warmth, adding an energy that it could have otherwise lacked.

The bright red floor sets this kitchen apart from the average kitchen, but this is exactly what Gisbert wanted. It wasn't meant to be a 'conventional working kitchen' but rather a social gathering space, with a welcoming, playful energy. "The colorful floor reinforces this character and gives the space its own distinct identity."

Contrasted with the rich, royal blue painted ceiling, the kitchen is designed as a sandwich of intense primary colors, with a bright, neutral base sitting in between. "For us, the key is to create an overall atmosphere that feels coherent without being too perfect or overly designed."

2. Pastel Pink Edge

Proving pastel pink doesn't have to be overly flouncy or feminine, in this home, pink concrete floors add softness to this cool, industrial design kitchen extension.

For Dickon Hayward, from Material Works Architecture, this flooring style provided a relief to the warm, natural materials that dominated the kitchen. "We looked at different ways we could bring a contrasting color and extra warmth to the space," explains Dickon. "When we found a sample of the pink concrete flooring and showed it against the other proposed materials, it was an obvious win."

In this light-filled space, where exposed-timber beams and raw plaster walls provide the core material palette, the soft pink floor helps ease the utilitarian nature of the space. While in some rooms a colorful kitchen floor acts alongside the other colors in the design, in this home, it becomes the focus. "We used it more as an accent feature against a neutral backdrop — where it can really pop, define a distinct character for the space, and become a conversation piece," says Dickon.

It adds a sense of depth that can often get lost beneath the clean lines and straight edges. In contrast to the textured finishes of plaster and oak, the poured concrete flooring feels smooth and consistent. "For us, it’s all about getting the right balance of texture and color — thinking about the space as a whole and developing a balance that is stylish and contemporary but also warm, natural, and welcoming."

3. Minty-Fresh Foundations

In this home, the idea for a colorful floor in the kitchen actually came from the homeowners' impressive collection of Jadeite dishware, a feature that became central to the design, displayed on a suspended plate rack along the wall.

Wanting to further highlight the milky green tones of the jade dishes, designer Tim Cuppett, from Cuppett Kilpatrick, opted for a minty, pale green Marmoleum sheet flooring, a beautiful echo of the unique shade.

In this newly-built kitchen extension, Tim was keen to bring a more vintage feel to the space, making it more cohesive with the 20th-century home it's attached to. It was with this in mind that Tim chose this flooring: "This particular color recalls early modern design to me; we imagined the kitchen to be a mid-century addition to an early 20th-century home."

With neutral kitchen colors used across the cabinetry, this mint tone becomes the predominant color in the space, repeated across the dishware, the floors, and in the Patrick Pucket painting on the far wall.

4. Milan-Inspired Vibrance

When we think of white kitchen cabinetry, more often than not, the image is one of a bleak, minimalist kitchen. Ruined by the spaceship white kitchen of the early 2000s, this look has been somewhat of a no-go for modern kitchens in recent years. However, as this kitchen proves, there are times when a bright white cabinet is exactly what a kitchen needs.

In this space [above], it provides a necessary point of contrast to the boldness of the rest of the design. The two elements need each other; without the blue floors, the white cabinets could seem sterile and dull, and with a colorful cabinet finish, the blue floors would be fighting for attention, making the whole space feel suffocating.

Hannah McKnight, from Fawn Galli Interiors, knew the bright blue floors would have to be the star of the show. "A colorful floor gives a kitchen depth and a jolt of color," she says. And to allow it to shine, the rest of the space had to feel markedly restrained. "I like that contrast: something unexpected within a room that still feels light and airy. The surrounding materials and softer colors are what give the bold color room to work."

In this Upper West Side apartment, Hannah blends the original, prewar features with a bolder, more contemporary design style, drawing on mid-century modern designs to develop a transitional style that feels like a natural fit in this impressive New York home.

It would be easy to write this style off as hyper-modern, almost futuristic in effect, but, as Hannah says, "This project shows how well it can work in a kitchen that mixes classic and contemporary elements. The apartment kept its prewar character, while the kitchen brought together custom cabinetry, marble, subway tile, a Saarinen table, and vintage chairs. The blue floor is part of that mix of old and new."

5. Tension in Turquoise

With warm wood cabinets and elegant marble countertops, this kitchen could very easily have stuck with a traditional flooring style and passed by as just another stylishly neutral design. However, with the addition of the turquoise tiles, this space is elevated far beyond the average kitchen, becoming something far more interesting.

"In the kitchen, the oak and marble create a warm, restrained base, while the turquoise ceramic floor introduces a more unexpected sense of tension and energy," says Samantha Hauvette, one of the founders of Hauvette and Madani.

The floor color allows the otherwise simple design to develop a deeper sense of character and depth than a neutral floor would have allowed for. It highlights the texture and warmth of the wood, making the minimalist kitchen design feel more intentional and considered.

It comes back to Samantha's approach to decorating with color. Instead of allowing the colors to lead the space, in her projects, she uses color to accentuate. "We like the idea of color acting as punctuation rather than as an overly obvious decorative gesture," she explains. At Hauvette and Madani, colors are chosen based on how they interact with the existing materials and architecture, allowing the home to choose the colors, rather than forcing a space to adapt to a new color palette.

There's no interest in following design rules here; color is incorporated based on intuition, finding what works for the space most honestly rather than simply following what others would do. So while many would have opted for a colorful tiled backsplash, Samantha found she preferred a different approach. "On the floor, it anchors the space and influences the entire atmosphere, while allowing the walls and other materials to remain calmer," she explains. "It is quite a subtle way of introducing a bold color: it has a strong presence, yet still feels integrated into the architecture."

Colorful floor not your thing? Perhaps you'll have better luck with the fifth wall, and our collection of designer-approved kitchen ceiling colors is a great source of inspiration.

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When a room is wrapped in a single color, whether an earthy brown or a vibrant green, its boundaries seem to blur and the space takes on a more immersive feel. Introduce high-gloss paint onto the ceiling, though, and you create an instant sense of contrast — even if you’re using exactly the same color. The sheen catches the light, alters shadows, and draws the eye upward. “A glossy ceiling brings an entirely different dimension to color drenching,” says Sasha Bikoff.

So, is a glossy ceiling the next step of color drenching? And is painting your own ceiling in a high-shine paint finish a good idea — or fraught with decorating risks? Let’s discuss everything you need to know about this trending technique.

Why, When, and Where a Gloss Ceiling Works

A color-drenched space has fewer visual interruptions, as the room’s walls, window frames and other architectural features tend to recede more into the background. This makes living spaces and bedrooms, in particular, feel bigger and yet more cocooning. Painting the ceiling in gloss doesn’t automatically undo those benefits; it just recalibrates them.

Why go to the fuss, though, if traditional color drenching already works? “This is a natural evolution of the look but with added fearlessness,” enthuses New York-based interior designer Sasha Bikoff. “Playing with different finishes on the ceiling transforms it from a passive surface into an architectural statement, giving a real sense of depth and energy.”

“Glossy ceilings are a return to more expressive interiors, bringing richness and theatricality,” she adds, referencing the 1970s and 1980s in particular. The look shouldn’t just be reserved for these kinds of maximalist interiors, though — the treatment is effective in neutral shades as well as bold jewel tones.

“Even in a white room, the interplay between matte walls and a high-gloss ceiling adds layers of texture. People associate these finishes with grand, formal spaces, but I love bringing that glamour to everyday living,” says Sasha.

The paint reacts to light very differently compared to matte and eggshell finishes, reflecting natural and artificial sources in a more direct way. “The primary function of a gloss ceiling is to create these reflections,” explain Ana Arana and Enrique Ventosa, co-founders of Plutarco.

“It maximizes light throughout the day and makes your lamps and candles look stunning at night,” the pair add. “This effect works especially well in rooms with curved and vaulted ceilings.”

Don’t be put off if your space has more typical proportions, however, as a little reflective shine can elevate even the boxiest of spaces. “It’s a brilliant idea when you have a relatively low, continuous ceiling, too,” says Laura Panebianco, who heads up her own design studio in Mexico City. “It makes a standard ceiling feel like a more intentional part of your design, giving the room a feeling of completeness.”

Where to skip this look? “There are different ways to bring a beautiful luminosity to spaces with uneven ceilings, visible imperfections, and recessed architecture,” suggests Sasha Bikoff.

How Do You Get a Gloss Ceiling Right?

Experienced decorators will all tell you that gloss is a lot trickier to work with than standard matte emulsion. It is notoriously unforgiving, fiddly to apply, and, once it’s actually applied, highlights all of a surface’s bumps, scratches, and blemishes.

Ironically, the qualities that make the gloss finish desirable in a space are the very things that make it so difficult to execute. “Due to its reflective properties, every application mark and imperfection becomes more visible,” explains Dominic Myland, the paint expert and leading color authority.

“In a color-drenched room, reflections tend to reveal all the uneven areas that are hard to spot, too,” he adds. “These imperfections catch the light differently throughout the day, making an even application all the more important. Thorough preparation is essential, and your ceiling should be smooth, clean, and properly primed. For a flawless finish, bring in a professional.”

Gloss introduces visual contrast, and having this sheen ‘up top’ ends up drawing attention to the surrounding materials below, particularly when everything is in one uniform shade. To make the space feel livable and less like a hall of mirrors, avoid introducing too many other reflective or lacquered finishes.

“For me, restraint is key,” says interior designer Georgina Jeffries. “It works best when the ceiling sits in conversation with softer textures and natural materials, rather than having lots of different elements competing with each other.”

Georgina favors nuanced hues like olive, tobacco, and terracotta over high-octane colors. “For our studio, color drenching is less about using one shade everywhere and more about creating continuity, so working tonally can be just as beautiful. Whenever I use a high-gloss ceiling, I want it to be something you experience as much as something you see.”

Sasha Bikoff, on the other hand, tends to take a bolder approach. “A glossy ceiling doesn’t have to overpower a room, though,” the designer explains. “Not everything has to be an ultra-reflective, mirror-like lacquer to achieve a beautiful sense of depth. You can play with the level of sheen.” For a similar effect to gloss but with slightly less shine, try an understated satin paint finish.

Tempted to pick up a paintbrush? Applying gloss to the ceiling won’t automatically make your space feel bigger, brighter, or bolder, but it is a great idea for enlivening a color-drenched room with contrast and texture. Lighting conditions and the other materials in your space all play more than a supporting role.

Whether you’re figuring out problems with high ceilings or are considering swapping paint for wallpaper or tiles overhead, leaving the ‘fifth wall’ plain white may now seem impossible.

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And while, yes, it's important to consider surfaces that will be easy to clean, that doesn't have to mean one-note. Mixing materials, from marble to timber, tiles, cement, and even textured glass, adds interest and will make the space feel more spa-like.

Below are 40 design-forward shower ideas to get you started.

1. Open and Shut

"Rather than enclosing the shower completely, I opted for a half-glazed screen to maintain a feeling of openness," explains designer Tiffany Howell of Los Angeles studio Night Palm. "It allows the room to read as one cohesive, light-filled space, more akin to a chic hotel suite than a traditional bathroom."

2. Curve Appeal

The satisfying curve of the wall separating the shower from the bathroom in this project by New South Wales-based Anna Carin Design wasn't just for surface-level good looks.

"The house had two baths, but one was sufficient, so this room gave up its bath and became a better shower room," says principal designer Anna-Carin McNamara. "The curved tiled wall wasn't for decoration; it answered the existing door position and did away with the glass screen, which no one ever wants to clean. Practicality, done properly, reads as beauty."

3. Screen Queen

Beautiful, shapely brass double doors leading into the shower give this scheme by Pasadena-based House of Honey elegance — as does the rest of the material palette.

"Our goal was to elevate the everyday," says founder Tamara Kaye-Honey. "Richly veined stone, warm brass, and reeded glass turn a daily routine into something more sculptural, sensual, and glamorous."

4. Glow Getter

Glass bricks are going nowhere, and work well as a way to screen off a shower without losing light in the space. Created by London architect Simon Astridge, this amber-colored screen — made of Venetian glass bricks — stands out against the cream microcement walls and casts a warm glow over the scheme.

5. Check Mate

A striped curtain and zellige tiles give this niche a theatrical edge. "We wanted something enveloping and bold, enclosing the shower in a jewel-like chequered box," says Tiffany Duggan of Studio Duggan. "The space lacks natural light, so we embraced the subterranean feel. It's good to have fun with smaller spaces, as it adds personality and a little playful jolt to the house."

6. Marble Might

De Rosee Sa design studio and Ca' Pietra stone and tile artisans collaborated on this beautifully veined shower niche. "There is something very unapologetic about giving a shower its own front door," says Grazzie Wilson, head of creative at Ca' Pietra. "Taking the marble around the opening, rather than keeping it behind the glass, changes the whole feel of the space. The shower becomes somewhere you step into, not an enclosure pushed into the corner."

7. Grid Lock

A heritage-style shower door extended over the vanity unit is a feature in its own right. "The materiality and design of a shower enclosure should be as intentional as every other selection in a bathroom," says Kirsten Blazek of LA studio A1000XBetter. "In this relatively small bathroom, we designed a custom brass shower enclosure that maximized the space and elevated the room's aesthetic, transforming a functional element into a defining feature."

8. Color Pop

"I wanted the shower to be its own special moment, slightly hidden around a corner to allow a layered su24 Walk-In Shower Ideasrprise as you enter the room," says Pierce Jordan of California/Texas design studio Shane & Pierce. "The Calacatta Rosa marble was found in Italy before the home construction began. I wanted to portray this space — with its typically feminine colorways — in a gender-neutral way, with hints of masculinity."

9. Curtain Call

Who said shower curtain ideas can't be stylish? Interior designer Ginger Curtis created a sensory, tucked-away retreat nestled behind some simple drapery.

"The key is thoughtful design — using luxe finishes, smart layout, and features like this stunning shower curtain instead of glass to soften the space and add style without shrinking it," she explains.

10. Double Trouble

Designer Kami Schaffner says her clients wanted a shower idea that felt cohesively planned, "but the long, narrow footprint of the room — combined with awkwardly placed doors and windows — posed a design challenge."

"To make the most of it, we reimagined the layout and created a doorless walk-in shower, placing the tub inside the shower zone to form a modern wet room," she explains. "The open layout allowed us to go big — with dual showerheads, ample space, and designated zones for each person to store their self-care essentials."

11. Stone-Drenched

In the space above, designer Julie Hillman wanted the shower to feel like part of the room. "I hid the faucets and everything in a niche so you can’t see anything but a glass box," she says. "It was important to me to use a powerful stone, and for the floor to continue from outside of the shower, so it's all cohesive. Then I used a leftover block of stone to create a stool with an organic shape."

Slab showers actually tend to make the space look more expansive. "I often specify large format tiles set horizontally, making the space appear larger," shares interior designer Julia Mack. "The result is virtually seamless and contemporary without all of the grout joints of a smaller, more standard tile."

12. Embrace Curves

Walk-in shower ideas are a great way to embrace unusual architectural details like nooks or curves. "We made a bold statement in this kids’ ensuite with a floor-to-ceiling tiled arch framing the shower like a work of art," the team at Three Birds Renovations says of the shower above. "It's fun, functional, and a little bit fabulous, showing how even the smallest spaces can pack a serious style punch."

The curved shower wall, clad in blue zellige Kit Kat tiles, gives the shower the same coziness and privacy of a traditional enclosure, but with the ease of a walk-in shower.

13. Seeing Stripes

Striped tile configurations have been a big shower trend in recent years, especially when laid vertically. This simple layout has the illusory effect of heightening a room.

"We played on the low ceiling by using vertical striped tiles to visually stretch the height," explains designer Sarah Simmonds. "We also incorporated a flush ceiling-mounted shower head, shower niche, and concealed vanity mirror cabinet to help make the space work as efficiently as possible, allowing the colors, patterns, and textures to take center stage."

14. Framed Well

In this bathroom, the same high-contrast stone seen in the tub, vanity, and shower spills over onto the door frame, inviting you in. This beautiful outline not only makes the space look more cohesive, but it also allows the small, tucked-away walk-in shower to really stand out.

"We framed the shower in the same warm-toned Viola marble as the bath, echoing its sculptural presence and drawing a subtle visual thread between each element," explains Eliza Davey of architecture and interiors practice, De Rosee Sa.

15. Integrate a Tub

If space allows, turn your walk-in shower into a fully immersive wet room idea by including a bathtub in the same area. This layout can transform the experience (try a cold rinse after a warm soak) and allow for a more cohesive visual design.

Sarah Montgomery says a shower-bathtub setup is sometimes necessary with an awkward blueprint. Faced with an awkwardly angled wall in the bathroom above, "We reimagined the space by designing a combined shower room," she says. "At the far end of this room — where the angled wall narrowed the footprint — we positioned a compact soaking tub that fit perfectly into the niche. Nestled beneath a window, the tub feels naturally integrated, as if it were always meant to be there."

16. Or a Shower Bench...

For a true spa bathroom feel, add a shower bench. Inspired by European spas, Ginger Curtis at Urbanology Designs wanted to create a truly serene shower in the design above. "Stepping inside feels cozy, enveloping, and even triggers a dopamine release — it’s a space that nurtures both body and mind through Neuroaesthetics," she says.

17. Step It Up

By raising the floor, you not only bring the shower area into focus, but you also section it off from the rest of the room so it remains dry and usable at all times. (It's a practical choice for plumbing, too.)

Lindye Galloway, founder and chief creative officer of Lindye Galloway Studio, was tasked with creating a serene shower retreat for her clients. "I've always wanted to incorporate a platform like this, and it was the perfect addition to divide the large bathroom with dimension," she says. "It created an elevated moment that highlighted this statement spa-like space."

18. Under the Stars

Designing a shower under a skylight makes for a truly immersive experience. In the morning, natural light will help regulate your circadian rhythm; in the evening, you can moonbathe under the stars.

For the project above, designers at Studio Go Ibiza were designing a shower with accessibility in mind, but didn't want it to feel "adapted." "This en-suite bathroom, complete with a walk-in, captures that intent," says founder Sam De Ridder. "The existing skylight became the central anchor, around which we organized the layout, resulting in a space where daylight, access, and clarity come together seamlessly."

Skylights can also help prevent mold growth, reduce electricity bills, and sometimes even negate the need for a bathroom fan (if ventilation is built-in), not to mention being a great option for windowless loft bathrooms.

19. Book-Matched Marble

"To achieve a luxurious look, it's important to choose materials that have real design integrity and solidity," says James at Drummonds. "Large statement pieces such as a walk-in shower are part of a trend for ever more luxury in the bathroom; we see this too in the increasing popularity of elements such as freestanding baths, too."

For beautiful symmetry that adds visual harmony to your shower setting, consider book-matched marble, as pictured above.

20. Double Doors

As if the Arabescato marble wasn’t loud enough for this bathroom trend, this spacious shower speaks volumes with double doors, an extra dose of drama for a space that usually gets a simple curtain. "Perhaps it is the color of the door — in this case, it was powder-coated a soft white — or perhaps it is the shower door handle," says David John Dick, a cofounder of LA’s DISC Interiors. "Both are opportunities to bring a subtle moment of visual surprise to one’s space, and to break the mold."

21. Screen Queen

A custom shower screen injects visual interest, even in small bathrooms. Here, an amber resin panel inspired by Victorian architecture drenches the bathroom in a tangerine glow. "I would always make it go full-height of the room so you don't have to have any additional horizontal supports or armatures that can ruin the look," says Alex Holloway, creative director at London’s Holloway Li, when choosing a custom screen.

Even if bespoke resin panels like these aren’t exactly within reach, you can still make a statement with traditional materials that draw the eye. "Frosted, clear, or textured transparent materials are great because they are more forgiving than plain glass from a maintenance point of view," adds Alex.

22. A Twist on Minimalist

While standard showers are often rectangular or stuck in a cubicle, it pays to think outside the box, like this sculptural stall with curved walls. Who said minimalist has to mean boring?

For this cream-colored minimalist bathroom, Susannah Holmberg leaned into the natural shape of the circular shower. "We chose a small format tile that intentionally lays out with some variation, so it has the most lovely, matte, artisanal finish," she adds. "It reminds me of a seashell after being smoothed and rounded by the waves.”

23. A Shed?

"Often showers are simply glass cubicles, but we felt that, for the design of this bathroom, it would be interesting to use the shower's 'walls' as a very decorative feature on the outside," says Angus Buchanan, creative director and co-founder of London’s Buchanan Studio. "We were able to create the symmetry with the WC shed and bring some color and pattern into the bathroom."

As a result, the opportunity for visual interest is flipped inside out; while shower wall ideas are often reserved for inside the cubicle, giving the shower its own structure creates a new way to incorporate shapes, textures, and materials — here, beauty is on the outside.

24. Center Stage

Create a new focal point by pulling your shower out of the corner or away from the wall. "This shower is in the middle of the room, which makes it unique — it’s a glass form with a metal structure, and the marble surround gives it height and an artistic, almost sculptural frame," says NYC-based interior designer Sara Story, who embraced the central placement with a showstopping base. "I used a very lively pattern of stone in the design — given the size of the space, it could handle it."

25. Color-Blocked

The easiest way to give a small bathroom shower personality is by tiling it in unique colors. In this project, the multicolored space with unique patterns gives the shower area a big boost of personality and allows the shower head to really stand out. It also distracts from the shower's small square footage.

"To maintain cohesion with the property's color palette, I brought the same color scheme into the bathroom," says Michelle Boudreau, founder of Michelle Boudreau Design. "To add visual interest, I used standard-sized tiles and incorporated a captivating bold graphic pattern with a juxtaposition on the floor and the wall."

26. A Standalone Shower

If you're lucky enough to have a large modern bathroom and want a stand-alone wet room, this one by Paradowski Studio is one to take note of. The design maximizes the beauty and versatility of marble, and the high-concept structure looks elevated, giving a hotel style bathroom vibe. "The minimalist clean lines stand in opposition to the maximalist scale of the free-standing shower block made of large-format marble slabs," say Zuza and Piotr Paradowski, founders of Paradowski Studio.

27. Stone Cold

Usually, spa and steam shower rooms are designed in a continuous stone that makes the room not only feel bigger but also calmer and more relaxing. A marble bathroom in a heavily veined design will add layering and depth to the room, as sometimes a single material can make a space feel too one-dimensional.

"We designed this shower area in Ceppo stone for a spa-like feel," says celebrity interior designer Kelly Wearstler. "The tribute stool in this space is custom-designed by us."

28. Hide Lighting

Shower lighting ideas can be tricky, as you can't just install any fixture due to its high moisture environment. This is why recessed lights, or flush mounts, do well in such a space.

"Acrylic ceilings with diffused lights are perfect solutions to all your light troubles," says Nishita Kamdar, founder of Studio Nishita Kamdar. "And for those who like to bring in a mood — remember no bright, harsh lights — add in backlit wall fixtures and turn on the music to create a peaceful ambiance."

29. Storage Niches

Built-in niches look especially beautiful when carved in tiles. "The primary bathroom I designed for my clients immediately pulls from São Paulo," says interior designer Mark Grattan. "One of the very first moments I noticed on my first trip to Brazil a few years ago was the use of mosaic tile on many exteriors of buildings. However, the most unusual application was the living room and bathroom at Casa de Vidro. It felt refreshingly retro. I’ve never met a mosaic with abundance like this. It felt new, opinionated, and full of quiet noise. "

30. Timeless Terrazzo

This homeowner worked with the smaller dimensions of this spa and shower room by choosing terrazzo flooring and walls, which gave the space a sense of luxury. Integrated seating is raised above the floor, making these heavier details appear lighter.

The tap and shower head are from the Davinci collection at AF New York. These ceiling lights are from Delta Light.

31. Shower-Tub

The warm woods, graphic tiles, and sleek fittings are beautifully combined in this space. We love that this wet room has incorporated a plunge pool, too, and even better that it's a deep tub that will cocoon you up to the shoulders.

In such spaces, experts suggest using wall-mounted faucets. "Having a floor-mounted solution can create more issues where the water can cause leaks over time when breaking through the sealed caulk at the perimeter of the space," says Alex Epstein, lead interior designer at Annapolis-based Purple Cherry Architects.

32. Pony Walls

This brick, pony wall separates the master bedroom from the shower room, without breaking the floor plan. These walls are actually great architectural additions to a room that retain the charm of an open-concept space.

"Pony walls are nice as a soft architectural separation while keeping the visual feel open and airy," says interior designer Kristen Pena at K Interiors.

33. Squeeze Into an Alcove

This stylish shower room boasts a porthole window that offers views of the outdoors. It creates a whimsical vibe and gives the room a special look. The white tiles ensure the space feels clean, breezy, and welcoming, while the views and architectural arch remain the focal points of the room.

The step-up shower with the door also ensures that the room feels secluded and a special unit within the bathroom.

34. Statement Stone

The green marble bathroom sink continues through the glass shower partition to become the seating in the shower. It looks particularly special when juxtaposed against the white tiles in the space.

The continuous stone also gives the room a design touch, while the brass/gold stool adds a pop of color to the otherwise muted space.

35. Alfresco Enclosure

A great way to make a small bathroom feel brighter is by making it alfresco; or adding a skylight above. The natural light streaming from above will make this space feel airier, cheery and more welcoming.

Plus, the light well will double as a design feature in the room and make the square footage feel not so tight anymore.

36. Mixed Marble

While it is common to see a white marble bathroom, it is truly a unique visual to see different colored marbles make home in a bathroom. Take this space, for example — the white walls, juxtaposed with the heavily veined marble seating give this bathroom a striking look.

If you want to pack your small shower with personality, this is a good design trick to follow. You could even add some marble bathroom accessories to add other colors to this space.

37. Lave Stone

While it is usual to see stone, such as granite, marble, or travertine in bathrooms, as these offer a luxurious and spa-like ambiance, it is quite unique to see lava stone make an appearance. The strength and versatility of this material allows it to go through several types of treatments, which is impossible with ceramic or marble.

This is a great stone for tiles and wall claddings, counters, bathtubs and even sinks.

38. Natural Beauty

Thanks to manufacturing technology developments, the marble look is available at a fraction of the cost of authentic marble. These realistic alternatives are also easier to care for than the real McCoy. When it comes to tiles, bigger is better. Fewer grout lines create a fuss-free, uninterrupted finish that’s hard to achieve with smaller tiles.

This shower makes a big impact, thanks to a simple mix of marble, chrome, wood, and very little else. The walk-in design creates a luxurious, open feel, especially when installed with a fixed shower panel and minimal framing.

39. Crittall-Cool

Crittall-style windows are enjoying a moment. In fact, metal-framed windows — first invented in the 19th century — are so popular that their comeback includes doors and partitions, too. Elevate a monochrome scheme with a metal-framed shower panel.

Here, it pairs well with the vanity unit. What its basin lacks in depth, it makes up for in width, extending into the shower to create a handy shelf.

40. In the Frame

Crittall-style glass translates well in the bathroom, where creating a stylish space that feels both light and open but retains an element of separation is a key objective. Pair an industrial aesthetic with classic metro tiles or ramp up the luxe with marble.

If you have an unusually shaped bathroom like this one, go for a custom-made enclosure. If you’re worried about the bathroom looking too industrial, team a natural material like marble with the steel frames to give it a spa vibe.

FAQs

Can I Put a Walk-In Shower in a Small Bathroom?

We all know showers are a better solution than a bath in a small bathroom, but are walk-in showers still a good idea, or is a traditional enclosure best? While walk-in showers typically take up more square footage than a shower cubicle unit, there's no reason why you can't scale it down.

"A walk-in shower can actually make a small bathroom feel larger," says Ginger Curtis. "It opens up the space visually and eliminates the visual clutter of a bulky tub or framed shower door."

Even a small corner can be dedicated to a walk-in shower. Just remember to use a glass screen (if it's not a dedicated wet room) to prevent water spray.

Is a Walk-In Shower a Good Idea?

Walk-in showers are usually a sound choice for your bathroom, but as Emma Scott, director of client design at C.P. Hart, says, it depends on the unique layout of your bathroom and, of course, your personal preference.

"A walk-in shower offers a more seamless, simple look, is easy to maintain, and the layout can be created to suit the space," she says. "However, be mindful that since it's not enclosed, it can sometimes feel colder because it doesn't contain the steam. Walk-in showers also typically require more space than an enclosure to ensure the water from large shower heads is contained."

What are the Disadvantages of a Walk-In Shower?

While walk-in showers have many functional and aesthetic benefits, they're not without their drawbacks. As mentioned, walk-in showers may feel a little cooler without the enclosure to trap steam.

"That’s where materials and layout matter," says Ginger. "I often skip the glass door and use a luxe shower curtain instead — it adds texture, softness, and makes the space feel less rigid or cold. It’s also easy to switch out if your style evolves."

Rebecca Hughes, founder and creative director of Rebecca Hughes Interiors, says she actually prefers enclosed showers because they help contain the water, citing drainage and extraction as common problems of walk-ins. "For this reason, we would always recommend having a separate enclosed shower," she says.

Looking for small bathroom ideas, specifically? Just because the room may lack space doesn't mean it has to lack style. From bold colors to wallpaper, slabs of marble, and clever architectural features, small spaces are perfect for big ideas.

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"We love materials that respond to light and bring an interior to life," says Hugo Vince of L'Atelier HA, the studio behind the project. "Lacquer creates reflections that shift throughout the day and as people move through the room." It's a finish that both stands out and lives with you, no matter what color or piece you apply it to.

High-gloss furniture, lacquered finishes, and a shiny surface or two seem like relatively easy details to incorporate. But using them in confident, adventurous applications is what makes them even more eye-catching.

A lot of this personality comes simply from the sheen. "Lacquered surfaces never look quite the same as the light and viewing angle change," Hugo continues. "Their reflections animate the cabinetry and create interesting shifts in perspective." Lacquer or high-gloss finishes "also give colors more depth and emphasize curved forms," says Hugo.

The trick with high gloss, like most decorating ideas, is to create balance in the design. In your own space, you can translate lacquered finishes however boldly or subtly you wish, as long as there is a sense of balance. For example, "we paired it with softer or more textured materials to balance its gloss: velvet, rugs, and the brushed stone used in the kitchen," says Hugo.

Below are a few stylish pieces that will make a statement and feel like a naturally fashionable addition to your home.

When we get the chance to peek inside homes with bold personalities, inspiration always surges. This Space Age-inspired Parisian home definitely packs a design punch, but I'm left with an overwhelming desire to bring a little more glamour and gloss into my home. Lacquer walls next? Anyone?

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The real charm of this interior design trend is how the rugged surface lifts a minimalist scheme by introducing subtle texture and interest, adds edge to a contemporary look that's overflowing with smooth, honed surfaces, and elevates a playful scheme by making everything feel a little more handcrafted and considered.

This clever note of contrast is why designers are incorporating rough-edged finishes into their schemes more and more. "I think we're naturally drawn to pieces that tell a story, and a rough-edged table does exactly that," says Steffanie Ball, co-founder of Australia and US-based furniture brand En Gold, which counts beautiful textured-edged beige marble dining tables and raw fossil stone plinths among its collection. "It celebrates the imperfections that make natural materials so beautiful, rather than trying to disguise them. In a room filled with clean lines and refined finishes, that rawness introduces warmth, character, and a sense of authenticity. It creates some contrast, which is often what makes a space feel layered rather than flat."

In his own studio, Adyn Kelly, founder of his eponymous Australian-based interior design studio, incorporated a table made out of travertine, used for the jagged-edged top, and chrome, which adds contrast to the rough-and-ready look. "We looked to create something with an organic feel," says Adyn of the design. "The edge reads as a natural fracture, the opposite of the legs, which are machined, straight, and precise. We wanted the top to appear to float, so we balanced its weight against legs that barely register."

Dining tables are an obvious starting point for this finish. So much of eating is about the senses beyond taste, which is why, for example, food looks and tastes better in a handcrafted ceramic bowl than it does on a mass-produced plate. The pleasure of being able to run your hands along the roughed-up edges of a table adds a little something to the experience of sitting down to eat. But if you're hesitant to invest in such a big piece, where else could you incorporate a rough edge?

For Yasmine Ghoniem, director of Sydney design studio YSG, one should look beyond the dining room. "We'd use them on the surface edge or legs of a coffee table," she says. Or venture beyond the table altogether: "Perhaps also along the fronts of a bedside console or feature wardrobe in a primary suite."

Adyn concurs: "I'd use it anywhere the surface is looked at more than it's used — a plinth, a coffee table, the end of a bench run, a powder room vanity where the drama is the point," he says. Practicality plays a part here, too; after all, this finish will never be the easiest to clean.

"I'm a big believer in repeating materials and textures throughout the home so that they feel intentional," says Steffanie Ball. "Rough-edged detailing works beautifully on coffee tables, consoles, shelving, and plinths, but it can also be incorporated more subtly through objects such as stone bowls, vessels, or sculptural decor. The key is restraint — you don't need it everywhere. A few thoughtfully placed pieces create enough contrast to bring depth and a stronger connection to natural materials throughout the space."

1. Drawn by Hand

"A smooth edge tells you a machine has been there and looks like every other table," says Adyn Kelly. "We wanted this to feel natural, like a raw edge straight out of the ground. Except it isn't — it's water-cut, and every line and step of it was drawn. The textured edge has a life of its own: it holds shadow, and it changes as the light moves across it."

2. Toughened Up

In the dining room of their Elden Ranch project, En Gold used their La Via table as the centerpiece. "The inspiration for this came from wanting to preserve the honesty of the stone," says Steffanie Ball. "Rather than overworking it, we wanted the edge to feel as if it had been shaped by nature, while pairing it with a form that feels calm and architectural. That's a balance I come back to often in my work — something organic alongside something considered. I tend to pair it with softer elements like upholstered seating, timber, linen, and warm lighting."

3. Well Worn

As well as a carved edge, this round dining table in an Ibizan project by Paris-based interior architect and designer Emmanuelle Simon features a hand-gouged finish on the base and the middle for extra texture. In making the table — the Tiga design from the studio's own collection — Emmanuelle wanted to evoke "the faces of a cliff".

4. Cutting Edge

"The kitchen's shell we inherited had white walls, plus glass and steel doors framing the courtyard, so we needed to add tonal and tactile warmth," says Yasmine Ghoniem of this space. "The custom table's caramel shade and hand-pitted timber bookends do both, bringing a rustic charm that steers away from looking too ornate, as the detailing is minimal. It's a gathering space for meals or casual coffees throughout the day, so it's nice for everyone to run their fingers across it, connecting them to social moments."

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Edges are often overlooked when it comes to design, but they're a feature that's perfect for playing with. Take these decorative kitchen countertop edges, for example. Whether fluted, honed, or a rounded Dupont edge, it can elevate a simple design into something striking.

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"It makes me so happy," Yotam says. "Cecilie suggested including little illustrations of things that are meaningful to my children. So there's a taco, a Dungeons & Dragons logo because they play so much of it, and a cartoonish portrait they did of their cousin. I'm hoping that when they come home to visit in their 20s, it will feel like a wall of memories."

Yotam's approach of making a kitchen backsplash as decorative as, say, the living room rug or cushions on the bed, is part of a growing trend. More designers are daubing murals across kitchen walls, turning away from the space being one of pure function, and towards something more personal.

"It's a real wow moment when someone sees this commitment to joy in your space," says muralist Charlotte Fuller, whose work has appeared on backsplashes. "I have a tile mural in my own kitchen to make me feel positive and inspired as I make the first cup of tea of the day. Under the boldness, there's a connection to nature and the abstract, to energize and relax. I like to think of my work as portals for dreaming, providing a moment to pause, find calm, and reflect."

Backsplash murals come in many forms — hand-painted on tiles (Yotam's was done off-site, fired, then affixed to the wall), daubed directly onto walls, or even as stained glass or wallpaper.

For the latter, extra care is advised. "We have protective finishes that can be applied to textile grounds, such as dyed silk or hand-painted fabrics, but these are not heavy-duty and can dull design elements and colors," says Harald Donoghue of luxury wallpaper brand de Gournay. "It's sensible to add a backsplash or protective barrier in glass or Perspex to allow for maximum protection."

If you're considering a decorative backsplash, take a lead from Jules Gallop, founder of JAM Design Works, a design studio that used stained glass for one.

"Start by thinking about the backsplash as part of the overall design, rather than as a decorative addition," she says. "The colors, patterns, and scale need to work with the cabinetry, worktops, and lighting. Accurate templating is essential, particularly around sockets, switches, and cabinetry, and you need to ensure it is specified for an area that will be exposed to heat, water, and cleaning. Samples are invaluable, as colors and textures can look very different alongside the other finishes."

While kitchen backsplash murals don't have to be big, this is not a moment to hold back. "A design this bold needs room to breathe," says Charlotte. "Now is the time to go big and create immersive spaces for expression and dreaming."

1. Meadow Mood

Sophie Ashby of Studio Ashby commissioned Anna Glover to create this floral-themed mural in a London kitchen. The tiles are from Balineum, and Sophie wanted to evoke the feel of an English meadow, even in such a functional space as a kitchen.

2. Silver Screen

In a kitchen in Shanghai, de Gournay's hand-painted Uki Hana wallcovering gleams above equally metallic cabinets. It is printed on tarnished silver-gilded paper, and the brand recommends that if you go down this route, you should cover the wallpaper in Perspex to protect it properly from splashes and humidity.

3. Glass Act

This stained-glass splashback was designed and commissioned by JAM Design Works Ltd and produced in collaboration with specialist stained-glass maker Tenby & Penny. JAM created the pattern specifically for the clients, incorporating personal meanings, colors, and references within the design.

"This piece was incredibly heavy, so we had to reinforce the wall behind it and encase it in a way that the LED panels within could be accessed if ever necessary," says studio founder Jules Gallop.

4. Color Therapy

Muralist Charlotte Fuller is a big believer in the uplifting power of a backsplash artwork. "To decide what you want, start with how you want to feel in the room, and the wider context: the tones, materials, and light you already have, and where in the space the mural will sit," she says. "Choose colors already in conversation with the room. They might be lightly reflected in your countertop, cabinetry, or even a rug. And think about what sits in front of the wall — a shelf, a tap — so the mural works comfortably with that."

5. Wild Thing

Paris-based designer Pierre Yovanovitch commissioned artist Matthieu Cossé to create this mural on the tiles of a celery-green kitchen in an apartment in France. It is intended to evoke the natural skyline, and shows how even an ultra-modern space can be given a hefty slice of whimsy.

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But the kitchen backsplash isn't the only place tiles are starting to tell stories in the home — hand-drawn bathroom tiles, in a modern Delft style, help make these once purely functional spaces feel hyper-personal.

An all-encompassing approach to British culture in the 90s, this London design exhibition brought together icons of the era across all mediums, introducing the varying stylistic trends happening throughout the nation — from the stunningly stripped-back intimacy in Juergen Teller and David Sims's photographs to the flamboyant artistry in the fashion of Alexander McQueen and Vivienne Westwood. Many of the greatest artistic achievements of the decade were on full display, including Chris Ofili’s moving No Woman, No Cry, a standout piece in any room it’s placed in.

There were the instantly recognizable images that have come to define the time, like Juergen Teller's 1998 Young Pink Kate, as well as lesser-known (but equally significant) works, including Hamad Butt's 1992 installation, Familiars. This was, as the Tate Britain's director Alex Faqhousan explains, part of the goal of the exhibit. By "bringing together icons of the era, as well as artists who were too overlooked," the curatorial team was able to establish a more honest, authentic depiction of the time, as opposed to a flat, clichéd recreation.

Of course, there are plenty of shots of Naomi Campbell and Kate Moss to admire, but equally represented were the more exposing, more illuminating artworks that perhaps haven't sustained the same level of cultural significance, but offer a true representation of the artistic culture of the time. It's an honest view of the decade, addressing the flaws as well as the highlights, and allowing you to step back in time and experience it all over again. Or, for 2000s babies like me, for the first time.

1. Minimalism As Authenticity, Not Simplicity

One of the leading themes of this exhibition, and perhaps of the era more broadly, was a celebration and exploration of minimalism. Today, minimalism in design is often viewed as some sort of lacking, an essential absence of personality or meaning. It's become tied up with the 'millennial beige' aesthetic, and has, in this age of maximalism, become somewhat of a dirty word.

In the 90s, however, a different kind of minimalism was defining the era. Arriving as a response to the flamboyant excesses of the 80s, the youth culture was searching for a way to rebel against the 'more is more' approach adopted by their predecessors.

The result was a stripped-back simplicity. A raw, authentic expression of minimalistic style. It wasn't characterless and beige. If anything, it was the complete opposite. It was honest and exposing, a celebration of truth. As one of the exhibition curators, Helen Little describes it: "Minimalism isn’t about a coldness and a lack of content. It’s distilling things down to their truest and purest state of being."

This approach was perhaps best expressed in the photography of the era. In the images of Juergen Teller and Corinne Day that line the walls, there's a clear desire for honesty and authenticity; any hints of artifice are stripped away, leaving us with a clear, exposing view of the subject.

In terms of design, this approach can be communicated in how we explore the finishes and materials we work with. Helen described the "focus on intentionality and materiality and using spare materials to make something new," which became so present in the art over these years, and today, we can adopt this same approach in our homes, finding pieces that express this authentic materiality in their design.

2. A New Type Of British Identity

While this era is so often characterized by the explosion of 'Cool Britannia' and the renewed sense of pride the British youth felt towards their cultural identity, this exhibition adopts a more complex view of what it meant to be British in the 90s, with a specific focus on the Black British experience.

Alongside the rise in Britpop and Union Jack-clad pop stars, there was a cultural reckoning taking place, and a developing understanding of the disparity in experience across different racial groups. Chris Ofili's No Woman, No Cry takes the viewer back to the 1993 murder of Stephen Lawrence and the institutional racism that removed any chance of justice for his family. Donald Rodney's moving work, In the House of My Father, explores similar themes, looking at the Black British experience of the British healthcare system.

Despite this setting of injustice and inequality, this room displays the achievements and resilience of the Black British youth in the 90s. At the center of the room, Ozwald Boateng's fantastically tailored suits stand proud, commanding in the suave simplicity of their construction. British director Steve McQueen is also honored in this room, with his silent film, Bear, playing on the wall.

A celebration of what we would now call Black Excellence, and what has been described as the 'most meaningful room' for curator Edward Enninful, this space explores a different side of the Cool Britannia movement.

3. The Allure Of Grunge

It wasn't all stripped-back minimalism, though; equally present in this era was a grittier, more outwardly rebellious stylistic approach. It was, as a 1992 story in American Vogue called it, 'Grunge and Glory'.

In many ways, the essential components of minimalism were still present. There was an honesty and authenticity that lay at the heart of the grunge movement. But this was a far cry from the 'clean girl' version of minimalism we know today. This was the anti-aesthetic aesthetic, revoking the very idea of the contrived intentionality that went behind the highly curated stylistic trends that came before it.

The grunge movement was more interested in exploring the truth behind the lived experience than it was in constructing a new version of it. Works like Barbara Walker's Attitude show an interest in embracing all aspects of the human experience, elevating the moments we previously would have disregarded into art.

Things were a little more undone, a little less contrived. A rejection of style that has ironically become one of the defining styles of the time. And even in our homes, grunge interior style can bring this same sense of stylistic nonchalance.

4. Utility Above Aesthetics

As you step into the third room of the exhibition, bright white walls are replaced with something a little darker. A small TV in the center plays Mark Leckey's Fiorucci Made Me Hardcore, a short film compiled from found footage of British nightlife through the ages, culminating in clips from the 90s underground rave scene. The walls that surround it are plastered with images of sunglass-clad ravers huddled around a DJ, and bleary-eyed friends slumped on the Brighton shore, roll-up cigarettes in hand.

What is striking about these images when compared to similar shots of nightlife in the 80s, or earlier, is the relative simplicity in the style of the subjects. Look at images of the Blitz club, just a decade prior, and you'd see a sea of the most highly stylized individuals, each dressed up as if playing a character. In the 90s, however, this degree of expression was swapped out for a more functional approach to dressing.

There was, as curator Dominique Heyse-Moore explained, a focus on utility. Young people were going out in clothes that they could dance, move, and sweat in without worry. There was a rejection of the curated approach to self-image that was so integral to the 80s. Instead, there was a more relaxed authenticity to the style.

This idea of a more casual, collected approach to self-expression is something we can carry through to our homes, too. It's all about trying less and allowing things to occur naturally instead, with more of a collected interiors approach.

While pop culture has exploded with 90s nostalgia in recent years, with the hit Love Story series reigniting a love for the cool elegance of 90s minimalism, this exhibition introduces us to a different view of the era, one that is rooted in the British experience and all the subcultures and movements that made the 90s what it was.

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I look at countless beautiful kitchens every day. And after a while, they can begin to blur together, an indistinguishable mash-up of hyper-trendy styles, culminating in one beautiful but ultimately uninspiring mass. So, when I come across something genuinely different, it always piques my interest. And lately, no kitchen finish has intrigued me more than these brilliantly blue kitchen countertops.

Swapping out the white, veined marble finishes we see in every kitchen for something far more striking, these swirling blue stone counters bring that same touch of nature-inspired beauty into our home, but in a way that feels wholly original. It may sound completely out of the box, but it's already become a fast favorite amongst designers in the know, and I'm predicting it won't take long for this look to be in all the most exciting modern kitchens.

Calming yet sometimes energizing, blue is a color of contradictions. It challenges our expectations without seeming wholly out of place, creating an air of creativity and intrigue in the home.

When there's such a clear focus on referring back to nature in interiors (as shown through the trend for earthy color palettes and natural materials), but in kitchen design, this generally translates into warm neutral tones, wooden kitchen cabinetry, and natural stone counters. No less beautiful, but expected.

That's exactly what makes a blue countertop feel so unusual. When given the natural movement and texture of a stone, blue takes on a whole new quality — bringing the ocean waves and bright blue skies right into your kitchen, providing a whole new way to draw upon nature in your home. This is what inspired designer Anna Carin to use a Pallido Blue calcite for the kitchen pictured above: "Rather than introducing blue as a purely decorative color, the stone allowed us to bring the feeling of water, sky, and nature into the interior in a very tactile way."

When you're working with natural stone or a material designed to mimic the appearance, these blue counters take on a unique sense of fluidity and variety that can add a lot of depth to a kitchen. "We love the natural variation and uniqueness of the material; knowing no other worktop will ever be quite the same," adds Ester Corti, from Mitchell + Corti Architects, who also chose a unique, deep blue stone for a recent kitchen renovation.

Despite being such a statement shade, a blue countertop can also be surprisingly versatile. At least, this is what Matilde Valagussa (of Atelier Zero) found when using blue quartzite in a Milanese apartment kitchen. "It can feel very rich and almost meditative, but it is also an extremely versatile color," she explains. "Depending on what you place around it, it can work naturally with other cool tones or create a very beautiful tension with warmer colors."

The kitchen can so often be one of the most chaotic rooms in the home, constantly brimming with energy and activity, so finding ways to diffuse some of this energy can help bring balance to the home. And, as Anna points out, "There is something inherently calming about blue." It's a color of gentle relaxation and peace, a perfect addition to busy family kitchens.

"I think there is a growing appetite for kitchens that feel more individual and less formulaic," suggests Anna. "We're moving away from the idea that a kitchen has to be completely neutral to be timeless."

There seems to be a degree of fatigue with the same-same look we've been seeing in kitchens over the recent years. A lot of kitchen trends are actually just a reframing of one that came before, and rarely will anyone adopt anything other than neutral kitchen colors in a space that's so expensive to design.

So, something truly original, like a blue countertop, couldn't be a more welcome change. It's a way of challenging the idea of what a modern kitchen is meant to be, creating something that feels authentically unique, while keeping the space feeling welcoming and enjoyable to be in.

It's this balance between neutrality and surprise that makes this color such a beautiful fit for kitchen worktops. As Anna says, "Blue is particularly interesting because it has that balance of color and calm. It can feel contemporary without being trend-driven, and it connects naturally to ideas of water, sky, and landscape."

How to Style Blue Kitchen Countertops

For such a unique finish, a blue countertop can be surprisingly versatile when styling. In fact, depending on what you pair it with, it could work in practically any type of kitchen design.

"With the right combination of materials and colors, it can work in a very contemporary interior as easily as in a more traditional one," agrees Matilde. For her, it was more about considering how it would relate to the other finishes and colors in the space: "A material or a color becomes convincing when it has a clear relationship with everything around it."

The way you build your kitchen color palette around blue will also make a difference. If you want to make it the accent, try layering the counters with other shades of blue, creating a more layered, cocooning look. Or, for a more contrasting effect, make blue the counterpoint against other warmer tones, as Matilde did in the kitchen pictured above.

And while it can work in any style or kitchen layout, if you want to highlight the material's relationship to nature, this will be particularly effective in brighter, lighter homes. "I particularly like blue stone in homes with a strong connection to natural light or landscape," says Anna. "It can echo the colors outside without becoming literal." When the blue counters can bounce off the blue skies outside, the relationship becomes more inherent to the design and intensifies the natural effect.

When picking out the finishes for the rest of your kitchen, consider whether you want the countertops to be the accent or simply a part of a broader visual language for the space. If you prefer the sound of the first option, Anna suggests pairing "blue stone with warm, tactile materials that allow the natural variation in the stone to come through. Timber, warm whites, soft neutrals, natural linen, and aged metals all work beautifully with it," she says.

However, there's no need to get too bogged down with what does and doesn't work with a blue counter. Even smaller details like the metallic finish of your kitchen hardware leave plenty of room for experimentation. "It is actually quite versatile and works well with brass, stainless, or nickel," adds Ester.

If you love the idea of a kitchen that feels both calming and energizing, but a countertop feels like too much of a commitment, there are plenty of other blue kitchen ideas worth considering, from paint to decor.

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However, just because you don’t have a vast swathe of marble for your kitchen counters or cladding the walls of your shower doesn’t mean your home can’t benefit from the beauty of this material.

My advice? Get to know your local stone yard, and get into the world of offcuts. You can have small remnants of stone and types of marble cut to fit your needs, and not only can it look amazing when applied in the right way, but it's sustainable too.

“We believe natural stone can be equally impactful when used with restraint,” agrees Sally Knibbs, design director of Sally Caroline. “Thoughtfully placed moments of materiality that bring depth, contrast, and a sense of quiet luxury to a home.”

Stone yards are, in my experience, usually more targeted towards trade customers than they are for someone renovating their home themselves. You won't find a flashy customer service desk in a stone yard, necessarily, but they're often more than welcoming to any sort of customer (if in doubt, call before you turn up).

And while you can go to a stone yard yourself to source a large slab of marble, granite, or a composite material for yourself, the beauty of these spaces is that they're also usually stacked high with offcuts — small or awkwardly shaped pieces of stone from other projects which don't have a lot of value by themselves, but are too good to throw away.

I've bought a lot of offcuts over time, and in various sizes. They've been used for everything from shelves and windowsills to kitchen island counters to coffee tables, in all sorts of materials, including granite, marble, travertine, and quartz (basically, whatever I liked best in the yard).

But, don't just take my word for it. I've curated some projects to inspire the uses of offcuts and marble in smaller amounts to inspire you.

Get the Look

This idea is a great way to use bolder, more exciting marbles and other natural stones in small amounts, and those styles are some of the biggest kitchen marble trends this year.

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As the most popular modern window treatment idea, there are so many different styles, fabrics, and colors to choose from that it can be hard to know where to start. That's where the experts come in.

I've deep-dived into the Livingetc archives and pulled together the best curtain ideas for adding subtle elegance to bold drama. So if you're looking to buy curtains, consider this your ultimate source of inspiration for interior designer-styled curtains.

1. Mix the Patterns

"Our coppery curtains are incredible as the patterns differ on both, accentuated in the daytime when sunlight filters in from behind," says Yasmine Saleh Ghoniem who designed this sustainable home in Melbourne. "We love their pom-poms." Who said curtains have to match? These custom rust-colored curtains instantly add intrigue to the space.

2. Add Subtle Texture

The owners of this southwest London Victorian terrace designed by Anna Burles, founder of Run for the Hills design studio, wanted their home to be at once a cocooning and exciting space, making use of every nook and cranny. The curtains in this space are a perfect example of how you don't need color to add depth to a space, instead letting texture take center stage.

3. Opt for a Delicate Valance

For this Montreuil residence designed by Julie Nebout and Giuseppe Punzo of La Fotosintesi, warmth and personality were key. Decorating with sheer curtains not only allows sunlight to filter into the space throughout the day, reflecting off the large aluminium screen for added warmth, but the delicate valance also adds an extra layer of softness and romance.

4. Use as a Decorative Flourish

Curtains aren't just for windows — shelf skirts are an often-overlooked design idea and a great way to add softness to a space (and hide clutter), as this project by Arabella Maza and Stephen Maginn of Archive for Space proves. Textural draped linen curtains are used throughout the home, from radiator covers and cabinet skirting to doorway curtains, forming a cohesive poetic language.

5. Create an Ombre Effect

'Joy Haus', as this home is aptly named, is a celebration of color. "The palette evolved into more than 15 carefully choreographed hues," says designer Ruby Shields. "Every color responds to the light, orientation, and purpose of its space, but equally importantly, to the spaces before and after it," adds Ruby — and these ombre-effect curtains perfectly enhance the room's color narrative.

6. Cocoon With Contrast

Entrepreneur Séverine Redon and her partner Olivier wanted to create a "warm and immersive atmosphere" in their Geneva apartment, with a nod to 70s retro design. This chill-out space in the open living area is a masterclass in using curtains to add contrasting color and zone a space. With the ability to envelop the seating space in a cocoon of warm yellow, the opposing curtains also frame the space perfectly.

7. Soften With Peach Sheers Curtains

Color and materials play a key role in this bold, immersive 60-square-meter home in Paris, a short stroll from the Moulin Rouge, designed by Hugo Vince and Adèle Nourry, co-founders of Atelier HA. The soft peach 'Andora' curtains — a wide-width voile in pure wool — by Nobilis complete this living space, adding soft drama, texture, and tonal color.

8. Choose Heavy Drapes for Depth

The deep brown tones of the curtains in this home office area are part of a wider earthy color palette used throughout this Kazakhstan apartment designed by Diana and Elina Musakulov, founders of sdelaemremont. Enhancing the wood tones and pairing wonderfully with the warm sunshine yellow walls, the brown curtains add depth and a cozy feel to the space.

9. Blend Them Into the Walls

Blending the curtains seamlessly with the walls was the approach of Charlie and Josh Karlsen of Opus 11 when designing their London home. This bedroom curtain idea works so well to define the mood of the space — soft, enveloping, and calming, while also being light-filled and interesting.

10. Create a Patchwork Masterpiece

"Across the ground floor, living and entrance, curtains by Isabel Farchy — made using fabrics from her own collection — introduce softness" says Ashley Law, founder of Flawk studio, which has a signature style of 'refined playfulness'. The curtains bring together the home's color palette with a pop of fun and visual intrigue.

11. Choose Tonal Pattern

"The rear living room was designed as a retreat, complete with an open fire, a fully stocked bar, and a cinema curtain that gives it the feeling of a cozy den," says designer Zoe Willis of this mid-century-inspired Victorian terrace. The curtains add a sense of theater to the space and mirror the tones of the artwork above the sofa.

12. Use Linen for a Relaxed Feel

As one of the best curtain fabrics, according to designers, linen curtains fold 'happily', offering a relaxed, natural feel, as seen in this Byron Bay home designed by YSG Studio. Used in the corner of a seventies-inspired sunken lounge, the curtains' earthy tones bring the space together, adding an extra layer of texture and depth.

13. Take Them to the Ceiling

This style of curtain, taken right up to the ceiling, accentuates the room's height to create a luxurious, clean-lined look in this neutral living room designed by Dan Rockenbach, founder of Charleston’s Rockenbach Design Studio. "Each piece serves a dual purpose, contributing to the overall aesthetic while offering comfort and practicality, making the living room both a visual and experiential centerpiece of the home,” Dan explains.

14. Keep Them Short

In the long vs short curtains debate, this hallway curtain in this Rome apartment designed by Marco Rulli, cofounder of 02A Studio, makes a case for short. It ensures the specially commissioned mural remains the centerpiece while enhancing it by drawing out the botanical greens of the painted landscape.

15. Use a Pelmet

While a more traditional approach, there are plenty of modern pelmet ideas that add a decorative touch to your curtain ideas, as seen in this Upper West Side apartment designed by Christine Gachot, co-founder of NYC’s GACHOT. Also a practical choice for hiding curtain rod brackets, pelmets can show confidence in an interior scheme and help to add structure and a 'finished' look.

16. Add a Pop of Color

Curtains are an easy way to inject a pop of color into your space, and these rust-colored velvet curtains uplift this dining area in Sha Wang's home. Founder of design studio Atelier Fēn, Sha designed the home for her family, which hinges on the tension between color and no color. The velvet adds weight to the curtain's texture and warmth in the rusty orange tone.

17. Blend Them Into the Room

Almost hidden in the corner, these curtains blend into the wall while also relaxing the space with texture and quiet elegance, allowing other unexpected details to shine. Designed by Chris Rak and Kathryn Robson of Robson Rak, this Melbourne home, where "nothing is really linear", nods to the home's history while adding a bold, contemporary touch.

18. Go for a Vibrant Pattern

Decorating with patterned curtains is a great way to add a bit more personality to your space. In this Art Deco-inspired home in Florida, designer Chelsea Cox of Chinotto House used them to pull the colors together in this open plan space, from the artwork to the furniture, adding a dynamic layer to the scheme as well as a visual pop.

19. Choose a Valance With a Trim

What could be more romantic than cream sheer curtains with a valance and contrasting trim? A total showstopper in this elegant apartment in Kazakhstan, designed by Fariz Mamedov of FM Interiors, the French fabric curtains add a sense of nobility and multidimensional depth. Plus, taking them right the way up to the ceiling is a great way to use curtains to make a space look bigger.

20. Tie in Other Decor Details

Designed by Anna Møller, this 1930s family home in London is as practical as it is cozy and stylish — and this curtain idea is no exception. Adding depth and quiet drama, the curtains echo the colors of the space from the walls to the sofa and rug, creating a cohesive scheme that complete the look.

21. Go Wall-to-Wall

When windows go wall-to-wall, take the curtains with them. Designed by Trevor Wallace, the principal and founder of Reflect Architecture for multi-award-winning record producer Noah ‘40’ Shebib, the curtains in this 2,700 sq-ft Toronto penthouse — previously one of the sets of the TV show Suits — add a layer of intimacy as well as refined contrast with the darker hues and modern angularity.

22. Conceal a Desk

Curtain ideas come in many forms, including cleverly concealing a desk area, as seen in this theatrical Warsaw apartment designed by Gosia Kotyczka of Warsaw's Obiekty Studio. "Despite the high volume of stimuli and textures, the entire apartment — just under 50 m² — reads as a coherent, logical, and harmonious composition where every element has its place," Gosia explains.

23. Use Drapes to Separate Spaces

Designed by Jennifer Kranitz of Set Setting Studio, this dining area is separated from a living room by the thick drapes that fall from a double-height, two-storey ceiling, which define the zones and create a wall of texture and color as well as a practical, statement-making feature.

24. Go Dark for Moody Elegance

As well as helping to introduce a light and airy feel into spaces, curtains can also help to create a moody atmosphere, with dark tones that help to create a cavernous effect, as seen in this cozy living room designed by Allison McAfee and Naina Hotchkiss of Park Interiors, which perfectly balances the visual and tactile. Using a darker tone than the olive green walls, the curtains make the space feel effortlessly layered.

25. Choose Café Curtains

Café curtains in kitchens continue to be a major curtain trend, and for good reason. Inherently timeless, this stylish yet practical choice offers privacy without compromising light in a delightfully elegant manner, as demonstrated in this mid-century-inspired Brooklyn Brownstone designed by Crystal Sinclair.

26. Bring the Detail Into the Room

"The screen is covered using leftover material from the curtains," says designer Jo leGleud of Maddux Creative. "The owner complained of glare from the big windows, so we wanted to do something that felt quite soft." This curtain idea cleverly carries the pattern detail into the room, almost making the room divider and curtains come together as one.

27. Define a Space

This mezzanine modern bedroom that is revealed or concealed by romantic curtains with an elegant trim, is inspired. Designed by Oksana Zavarzina of the Moscow-based interior design and architecture firm Lake & Walls, the project, called Jazz Apartment, "gained its character and distinctive atmosphere from these historic buildings," Oksana explains, which were constructed in 1972 and redesigned in 2026. The white curtains contrast with the bedroom's chocolate-colored walls and echo the white of the living area below.

28. Be Brave With Black

Sometimes it pays to be bold, like in this pre-war apartment on Manhattan’s Upper West Side designed by New York–based designer Jessie Schuster. Tying in with the color of the dining chairs, the black curtains serve as a bold backdrop to the equally bold and vibrant red artwork, allowing each element of the space to truly pop. "The artwork inspired vignettes and color moments throughout the home,” Jessie explains.

29. Take Them Into the Center