Many of us have spent a lot of time working from home over the past two years and this has created a marked shift in interior design trends. Comfort has become a top priority, with bold colours, tactile textiles and playful patterns taking centre stage. Neutrals are out and biophilic spaces are in, with plants and natural materials bringing the outdoors inside.
Credit: Biofilico Biophilic Design Consultants
Sustainability plays a key role in this year’s interior trends too, with both consumers and designers becoming more aware of utilising materials that cause less harm to the environment.
Our top interior design trends for 2022 list below offers further inspiration, so that you can begin to plan the room of your dreams.
Playful Patterns
Most homeowners believe that curating spaces with playful patterns is a task best left to professional interior designers. However, there are ways you can achieve the look yourself if you follow these top tips.
Credit: Dalmar Hotel, Fort Lauderdale, Marriott
First choose a primary shade, for example blue, then when you’re ready, begin focusing on the smaller accessories, such as cushions, pictures, throws and ornaments. Work around your dominant colour, blendingpatterns and tones with the same thread throughout. When you’re comfortable with these choices, select the larger pieces such as rugs and curtains.
One key trick is to ensure you have balance in the room. This means fewer patterns centred in one space. Bold patterns need time to breathe, to sit on their own - therefore, should be broken up into sections to maintain an eye-catching, yet not overwhelming effect.
If you plan to introduce playful patterns into other roomsin the home, don’t feel the need to maintain the same theme or colours throughout, be diverse with your choices and tap into your unlimited creativity.
Take inspiration from interior magazines, luxury homes online and hotel websites and tailor these ideas to your own preferences to create a fun, eclectic space you will be proud to show guests.
Finally follow your instincts, there’s nobody better that knows your taste than you.
Sustainability & Ethical Living
Professional designers believe that creating a sustainable space is more vital than ever and they are becoming more focused on how our daily choices affect the environment.
Credit: Naturalcollection.com
There are several ways to make rooms more sustainable spaces. Homeowners can use sustainable paints, and select lighter, brighter colours to help illuminate the space. This lowers the need for lightbulbs and other forms of artificial lighting. Use voile style curtains to let in as much natural light as possible and upcycle old furniture to give it a new lease of life.
More companies are using recycled plastics or sustainable and reclaimed wood to create products too. Abstract House uses zero plastic in their products and packaging, and their photograph frames are sustainable, made with real glass. They are a perfect eco-friendly addition to any wall or console table.
Plastic kitchen utensils can be exchanged for natural wood (unvarnished) and storage boxes, mats and furniture can be made from rattan.
Rattan grows at a rate of 2cm per day in tropical terrains and can be harvested within 2 years without interrupting the rainforests natural balance. Once the rattan is harvested the vine tips are replanted to grow again, preventing the degradation of forests and protecting keystone species.
Materials such as bamboo are also perfect for home exterior and interior décor such as feature walls. Bamboo can store carbon and is an effective CO2 absorber, thus minimising environmental impact. It can be used in furniture, flooring, even housing, replacing timber, plastics, metals and cement.
Statement Gallery Walls
Artwork can brighten up any wall, whether it’s a painting, black and white print or cherished photograph, andmixing it up a little, with different size frames and designs, impacts the space even more.
To create the perfect statement gallery wall, in a bedroom, lounge or dining area, begin with a favourite piece, make it the focal point then build your entire collection around it. Look at the space you are working with, the furniture and colours, then imagine what will complement these items.
A key is to keep the gallery wall visually consistent with a chosen theme, it may be nature, family, travel or a specific art genre or colour palette. A well-layered art gallery wall won’t need to be replaced regularly and will stand the test of time.
Also consider the materials. Do you want to mix and match textures or use simple one-colour frames? Size is also an important factor as different frame sizes and the way they are arranged keeps the space interesting to viewers.
Abstract House has a large selection of picture and photograph frames, all hand-crafted in-house in London, and as they are made to order, this prevents any waste. Items are produced on site to minimise carbon footprint through transportation, and FSC sustainable wood and paper is used, thus helping to support the environment.
Biophilic Design
Biophilia translates as ‘a love of living things and nature’, and academic studies have shown that plants and natural materials can do more than improve indoor air quality, they can also boost productivity, mood and wellbeing in a dedicated space.
Modern workspaces, commercial buildings and hotelsalready use biophilia as a tool for interior design. Singapore’s Changi Airport has a nature themed retail and entertainment complex with a living green wall and a 40-metre-high rain vortex inside the airport.
Although it’s not always possible to recreate such elaborate structures, shelves sprinkled with plants, bamboo feature walls and natural hand-crafted wooden and rattan furnishings work perfectly.
Trendy London co-working space MissionWorks also incorporates biophilia into their offices, with a mock beach, deck chairs and plant life to create a meditative space where teams can brainstorm ideas or take time to relax after a busy day.
Recreating this style in the home doesn’t have to be expensive. Head to a local garden centre for inspiration. When you have chosen your plants and ceramic pots, your home can be transformed within a matter of days. You’ll feel refreshed and revived and connected to nature, in a space away from laptops, tablets and TV screens.
Nature Inspired Prints & Textiles
In 2022 we are also inspired by nature prints and textiles. Matthew Williamson boasts a stunning range of nature-themed wallpapers to brighten up an entire living area, study, bathroom or bedroom.
Eclectic patterns range from ‘Ventura’ – infused withflowers and scarlet macaws, ‘Tyger Tyger ‘in rich colours with prowling tigers and then there’s ‘Deya Meadow’ - a glorious field of wildflowers and dancing butterflies.
These wallpapers, accompanied by lamps, cushions and rugs can breathe new life into a room or hallway of neutral tones and assist relaxation, helping you to escape into your own imagination when the working day is done.
Calming Blues And Celestial Hues
The colour blue trends once more in 2022. Whether you seek an opulent and luxurious atmosphere, created by deep, dark blues or a playful energetic room curated with sky and powder blues, there’s an interior design look to suit all.
Blues can be warm or cool, the outcome depends on the colours paired with your primary shade. For example, if you’re aiming for a warm blue room, choose sapphire jewel tones and add yellow, bronze, gold or orange soft furnishings and accessories. For a cooler look, pair with silver, white or ice diamond chandeliers – perfect for a festive winter makeover.
Sky and powder blues popular with bedrooms, bathrooms and nurseries also make a return, uplifting smaller spaces, making them appear light and airy.
Lapis Lazuli marble tables and worktops are en-vogue and constellation walls, soft furnishings or galactic prints tempt our imaginations to venture far, far away.
However you decide to transform your home in 2022, just follow your instinct, and let the colours find you.
