2009 trends…
On my recent trip to New York City I spent quite a bit of time going into a variety of stores ranging from furniture, general stores, accessory and gadget types to fabric and trimming stores. Literally we were all over the city from one end to the other, from China town to Times square and I have to say, people are spending money and not just a little bit here or there, I saw serious spending.
I think it would be safe to say that even though our economy seems to be in a tail spin, it isn’t as bad as one might think. Even if they were all bargain shoppers (which many were not judging from the host of designer names across their bags) people are still spending their hard earned cash on odds and ends, not just necessities.
That brings me to my point, and yes, I do have one! A lot of my clients want me to design a room for them sometimes using what they have and building upon it, others want a room completely from scratch and some even just want to remake a room on a limited budget. All of these scenarios have there challenges but they can easily be done on any budget. For those of you on limited budgets, there are a lot of things that you can do to build up an interiors existing design style or even to enhance it. This is easily done by accessorizing your home. Small flourishes, such as introducing new vases and lamps, as well as inter-changing lampshades and cushion covers, are all great ways of bringing life to a room. Choose a colorful piece of furniture and make it a focal piece. Be bold, make a statement with your furniture. Functional design doesn’t have to cost a lot. There is a huge range of stores out there to get great iconic pieces that suit your taste and budget.
New colors bring new life. Autumn/Winter 2009 will see a fusion of nature with a desire for stylish, sophisticated and edgy design. Furniture shapes will be more rounded and comfortable and a warm, autumn color palate will be used to complement the new ranges. Fig is a key colorway for the forthcoming season. Bold and bright colors are also big this year, give it a go!
Eclectic accent pieces are proving popular, this incorporates traditional influences from around the globe with a modern twist.
The decadent baroque trend will start to diminish in 2009. If you like to decorate according to trends then here are some tips for you: an incoming trend is updated 1950s retro style silhouettes with bold colors, abstract shapes and geometric patterns. Key items will be wire framed chairs, black lacquered wood tables, quirky wall graphics and metal furniture with laser-cut lace patterns.
All white Furniture. The trend for all-white furniture has not yet reached its peak and is still very much alive. As well as having a lightness and clarity about it, it’s also timeless, and easy to team with other colors, or tone on tone. White also provides an excellent showcase or back-drop for other materials.
Bright, shiny colors. The opposing trend to this is one of bright, shiny colors, leading to a demand for glossy furniture. This trend is all about smooth, shiny surfaces, as well as high-gloss lacquered fronts on cupboards, chairs and tables. Chairs and sofas are cropping up covered with lacquered leather, and even upholstered furniture has high-gloss elements teamed with matte upholstery.
Large lighting, again. Another strong theme emerging is over-sized lamps and shades, giving an exciting new look for lighting as well as a focal point in the home.
Flamboyant Wall coverings. Wall coverings are similarly flamboyant, as well as abstract designs, also taking center stage are nature-inspired prints of flowers and trees for your walls.
Home grown style. Following on from flowers and trees, there will always be a demand for furniture and accessories inspired by nature, with an overtly craft-oriented feel to them.
The hand crafted look. Dark, bold schemes are still fashionable, but more to the point, designers are taking a playful approach with traditional furniture by blurring the borders between professional production and technical ornamentation. Things that aren’t actually handmade are taking on the appearance of being painstakingly hand-crafted in styles reminiscent of traditional craftsmanship techniques. Combining materials is still a hot trend, too. The harmony and softness of fabrics and upholstery meet the austerity of braided leather, lacquered woods and metal. New interpretations and re-editions of tried and tested classics combine the familiar with the new.
Pearl-escents & Mother Of Pearl. There are dynamic things happening in the world of tiles! Hand-crafted mother-of-pearl tiles come in a range of gorgeous, lustrous colors, all made from recycled shells from the seafood industry. These tiles are also show-casing new wall and floor tiles in a range of dramatic new textures and surfaces.
Old but new classics. You only need to look at the car industry to see how the current trend for taking old, classic designs and breathing new life into them with a re-vamp can be incredibly successful. Those icons of the flower-power age, the Mini and Volkswagen Beetle, have both been re-styled for the 21st century. The same is true of certain styles of classic furniture, such as this floral upholstered Egg chair.
Danish Design. Talking of Denmark… Always very high profile, the design-conscious Danes, fielded a range of interesting pieces at 100% Design 2008, including Normann Copenhagen’s Norm 03 sculptural stainless steel lamp and the vibrantly red Corona chair from Erik Joergensen Moebelfabrik. The sculptural lamp is picking up on a wave of shiny stainless steel pieces of furniture, which, along with glass, while undoubtedly creating an impact, must be one of the trickiest materials to keep free from finger prints and smears, especially if it’s a piece of furniture such as a chest of drawers that is in constant use.
Scanning for trends requires watching a variety of industries for future tendencies in design; it is a rapidly evolving world which requires designers, companies etc. to know about future trends to create successful ideas and projects. Success is more than a cool design and smart function, you need to understand consumer behavior as well to know the needs.
We can learn a lot by observing the most trendy consumers and innovative products. However, observing is one thing. To fully understand and use trends, it requires that we are constantly on the edge of developments and understand the process and how to communicate it.
