The trends, new launches and names to know for the year ahead...
TOP TRENDS FOR 2020
1. MAKE DO AND MEND
According to interior designer Harriet Anstruther, 2020 will see a big rise in people upcycling, repairing and personalising their home accessories. This year there is a big focus on sustainability and reducing our waste, and this is one of the ways it will translate into the home. “As a society and planet we need to do more of make do and mend,” says Harriet. She continued: “Upcycling has of course been going on forever, but perhaps more people will want to learn the skills required and workshops will become more of a desire in domestic projects. Recently I put a sewing room into a house; the client stitches for pleasure, not as a trade & stores beautifully folded towers of vintage fabrics & baskets of yarn on slatted shelves around the room.”
Read More: HOW CRAFT GOT COOL
Using your hands and making things allows us to get back to who we are. The haptics, the senses engage and together with a need for productivity, invite us to focus carefully on a single task thoroughly. The results, however small enliven, gratify.
2. GRANDMILLENNIAL STYLE
Leading on from this trend of making do and mending, 2020 also sees a rise in bringing granny chic back into our homes with ‘Grandmillennial’ style.
Come again? Grandmillennial style is essentially about modern-day design co-existing with retro elements. It’s about incorporating hand-me-downs and inherited pieces, alongside second-hand vintage pieces and reclaimed furniture and making them look at home in a modern interior. Millennials are incorporating dated, previously faux-pas items in their modern homes and giving a fresh take on a look they’ve known all their lives.
Over the last year we’ve seen more foxed mirrors, more tassels and fringing – including the return of tasseled lamps –more wild floral prints, more scalloped furniture and mid century modern pieces, and the SS20 collections are awash with wicker, cane and rattan furniture. In fact, people are even turning to needle point – and even Taylor Swift and Julia Roberts have picked up the needlepoint hobby.
3. Global Influence
Pinterest has announced their top trends for 2020, revealing that it’s not just our food tastes and travel bucket list that are influenced by the exotic, but increasingly our homes, too.
From Australian landscaping to Indian inspired living rooms, and from Spanish bathrooms to French antiques, 2020 is all about capturing the essence of global style.
Read More: Spanish bathrooms and four more Global Interior Trends To Look Out For In 2020
As we all travel more and are exposed to more design influences and ideas abroad, it’s only natural that those influences are reflected in our interiors. ‘Today’s travellers are prioritising meaningful activities like cooking classes and artisan visits over common tourist spots. Once they return home, they’re trying to recreate those experiences on their plates and on their walls,’ says a Pinterest spokesperson.
4. Arches
You need only spend five minutes scrolling through images on the ’gram to clock that arches are having a moment in the shape spotlight, gently curving across some of thehottestnewhotelsandrestaurants.Yetfearnotifyourhomeisn’tblessedwiththis architectural detail and use as a motif instead. Interiors guru Dorothée Meilichzon is the woman to follow, whose design for the Il Palazzo Experimental hotel in Venice sees the shape on headboards, doors and an arcade-clad front desk (pictured).
Arches run through every aspect of the interior at Il Palazzo Experimental hotel in Venice.
5. plaster effect
Moving away from exposed brickwork and heavy metals, 2020’s answer to the industrial look will take a softer turn with sandy, textured walls reminiscent of raw plaster. For the most part, we have our ever-growing eco-conscience to thank; acrylic- and oil-based paints with nasty VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) no longer have a place in the woke decorator’s toolbox and are being sidelined for limewash – a water-based, VOC-free alternative that is built up in layers to create a textured, chalky patina.
Limewash specialist Bauwerk Colour is the name to know for achieving eco-friendly walls with character.
6. deep pile
If 2019 was the year that velvet became omni-present, 2020 will see our love affair with deep-pile textiles continue with the rise of heavy-weight wools, bouclé, mohair and sheepskin, taking these cosseting fabrics from autumn/winter novelties to year-round staples. Check out Raf Simons’ flecked Atom bouclé for Kvadrat; Zinc Textile’s genuine shearling by the metre and Arlo & Jabob’s Benelux Bouclé. And we’re not just demanding superior comfort indoors; the outdoor arm of Pierre Frey’s Natecru collection features fleece-feel fabrics in 100% acrylic dralon for a little garden luxury.
Chairs in Anais wool and linen blends from Pierre Frey’s Natecru Wools II collection, from £180 lin m, make for sumptuously soft seating.
7. REEDING
You won’t find a flat surface in sight as reeded detail, found on everything from walls to furniture, continues to bring tactility and texture to interiors. Trove – the first furniture collection from Studio Duggan – uses this surface detail across chic case goods in unexpected shades of green and yellow, while both rustic getaway Le Barn in France and Surrey’s Beaverbrook hotel (pictured) feature delicately fluted bar-fronts beautiful enough to distract you from their cocktail menus.
A gold fluted bar screams old world opulence at Sir Frank’s Bar at the Beaverbrook hotel in Surrey.
8. decorative joinery
While custom-made storage has long been the go-to solution for dressing awkward spaces, designs are heading in a more ornate direction that proves shelving and wardrobes are the ultimate spaces in which to sprinkle some design flair. A play on materials and texture is key; designer Matilda Goad is a fan of updating built-in wardrobes with cut-away cane panels while Suzy Hoodless favours lines resembling tongue and groove to bring surface detail to otherwise simple MDF doors.
Recessed handles create shadows on an otherwise all-out pink scheme in the bedroom of interior designer Suzy Hoodless.
9. buckles
The devil is in the detail, so they say, and designers have their attention firmly on straps, belts and buckles for the foreseeable. Leather is your best bet for buckling down in style; take your cue from Mallorcan studio Nico Guevara whose Canapé daybed (pictured) is pulled together by a belt strap. In Shanghai-based Neri&Hu’s Twelve AM collection for Molenti & C, meanwhile, thin strips of leather have been used to pin caramel-coloured cushions and headrests to wooden frames across a bed, bench and alcove, bringing a fresh twist to the pair’s celebrated Eastern aesthetic.
Strap it up: oiled walnut meets ikat upholstery via a belt buckle on this piece from Nico Guevara, Teixits Riera and Axel Alconchel.
10. Dark Kitchens
The trends for darker kitchen cabinetry and Scandi noir help to explain the fact that searches for black and navy blue kitchens are up 93% in past six months, with matt and powdery finishes. One of the strongest style trends that has come through in modern kitchen design is the colour blue, and this can be traced from classic Shaker-style kitchens right through to chic and minimal modern spaces. Whether it’s on walls, floors, cabinetry or splashbacks, blue has replaced grey as the go-to on-trend colour – and it is particularly navy blue kitchens that are turning heads at Livingetc HQ.
11. CONSTELLATIONS
Designers have been searching the skies for inspiration – with heavenly results. Think sophisticated astronomy and zodiac patterns, star-strewn plates, galaxy murals, galactic surfaces and cosmic tile work. From subtle hints to all-out tributes to the night sky, celestial motifs have been shooting across fashion and interiors.
See our favourite cosmic-inspired pieces
See the latest Kitchen Design Trends.
12. SCALLOPS AND SCALES
We’re calling it the ‘Blue Planet effect’ because this season’s interior looks took a dive deep under the ocean with sea creatures swimming across every surface. From scalloped furniture to fish scale tiles and all things curved, wavy and ocean-inspired, we’ve fallen hook, line and sinker for the under the sea trend.
13. CRITTALL STYLE
There’s no denying that Crittall-style has been staging a comeback – and not just as windows and doors, but as walls, rear extensions, room dividers and even shower screens. Edgy and versatile, the sturdy, slim-profile frames tap into the current trend for all things industrial. It’s no wonder Crittall-style has been dominating our Pinterest feeds.
14. NUDE
Would you go nude? The latest interiors trend is barely there, warm, earthy neutrals. For the past few years, grey has dominated the neutral interiors palette. But sandy shades are back, and proving to be anything but boring. Now don’t get us wrong, we love grey, but we’ve found ourselves increasingly drawn towards the warmer, friendlier tones of oatmeal and stonewashed linen. Think fleshy toned, earthy jute, canvas, wool, wood and hemp – which, face it, all sound way nicer than beige.
15. MERMAID TILES
There’s a new wave of tile shapes taking surfaces by storm. From fan-shaped fish scale tiles to complex quatrefoils, tiles are taking on more fluid forms with rounded edges and irregular shapes. Options include fan shaped scallop patterns, fish-scales, curvy eye-shaped T-drops, ornamental quatrefoils or the simple but effective hexagon. These more unusual shapes piece together to create striking effects, adding instant interest to modern bathrooms, cloakrooms, kitchens and even hallways.
See all the Bathroom Trends for 2019
16. MID CENTURY MODERN
While many interiors trend have a sell-by date, Mid-Century Modern style somehow never goes out of style. There’s no denying Mid-Century modernism is everywhere, providing style inspiration for everything from the latest hotels, restaurants and bars to luxe new apartments. The design classic Eames chairs are everywhere and the cocktail cabinet essential of the two martini lunch is fast becoming a modern must-have. 1950s chic never goes out of style with low-slung lines and natural woods still influencing designs today.
17. VELVET
Searches for velvet have increased by 400% over past six months and is the most searched for fabric. Sumptuously seductive, velvet beds and velvet sofas are some of the most covetable ways to bring the look home.
18. Living walls
The trend for lush and leafy living walls continued to grow. We saw cool interpretations sprout up across hotels, restaurants, and retail spaces and now we’re seeing them in stylish, modern homes too. Loved by green-fingered urbanites, they’re a genius use of space and perfect for compact gardens, courtyards, roof terraces, patios and balconies – if you can’t grow out, grow up.
19. LINE ART
One of the hottest interior trends is inspired by the free-flowing illustrations from the likes of artists like Picasso, Magritte, Miro and Matisse. There’s no doubt about it, we experienced a figurative boom thanks to the artworks of the 50s and 60s, with abstract facial components making waves across interiors. With online searches for ‘line drawings’ at an all-time high, the delicate style of art saw a renaissance in modern homes. From vases with faces to pretty plates, patterned glassware and illustrated cushions and rugs, figurative art finally stepped into homeware – and we love it.
20. DECORATIVE PLATES
Pretty porcelain plates deserve to get noticed – whether at your next dinner party or proudly displayed in your cabinet or on walls. You won’t want to leave these hidden in cupboards. It’s time to display your decorative dishes!
21. FOXED MIRRORS
Foxed, mottled, or antiqued – whatever you choose to call them, distressed-style mirrors have been creating a buzz this year. They add intrigue and mystery through faded, patchy reflections, while the silvered background keeps them looking chic. Get the fairest of them all with our edit of stylishly distressed mirrors.
22. MODERN KILIM RUGS
Who doesn’t love a bit of ethnic style? Kilim rugs are everywhere, with modern interpretations offering bold, graphic patterns in everything from pastel shades to neons and even monochrome. Despite having been around for thousands of years, their timeless designs still look fresh today. Kilim patterns provide a pop of colour to modern interiors, adding global sophistication with an eclectic edge.
See the latest Bathroom Design Trends.
