When styling your interiors, the year’s emerging trends can be a great source of inspiration, and will help you incorporate fun, flair and individuality into your design. Paul Garland of Andrew Henry Interiors explains how
Focusing on concepts which are timeless and easily adaptable, we have put our own twist on the upcoming trends to create two distinct interior schemes. Both are versatile, spirited and can be as thrifty or as upmarket as you desire, but integrate sustainability, positivity and pleasure to make the home a visually fun place to enjoy.
SUN-INSPIRED COLOURS
The arrival of spring and summer time and all its glory encourages vibrant colourways, inspired by the illuminating oranges of a setting or rising sun. In this trend, product design is inspired by blazing sunshine and bold sunsets, brightening the home with enlivening prints and materials. For an effective and streamlined look, pair vibrant hues with slick lines. Also, elaborating on traditional sun shapes, design plays with arcs and curves to bring new life to this beloved motif. From ceramic tiles to room dividers, exploratory angles create the joyful perception of sunshine entering the home from all directions.
To incorporate this trend into the home, window placement, shape, and dressings are crucial to create the popular indoor-outdoor look. In social areas of the home, integrate large windows opposite one another to allow light to flow effortlessly from one side of the room to the other. Choose abstract shaped window frames such as triangles and curves to draw the eyes to these focal points. For window dressings, full length curtains that can be fully pulled back either side of the window will help maximise the light in the room. Alternatively, Roman blinds in bronzes, oranges and deep reds will tie the room together, creating a decorative piece in the day, and a soothing sunset perception when drawn.
For lighting, warm white light is preferential to give a cosy feel, while in kitchens and bathrooms, downlights work well to lift the room. Pendant fixtures can add another source of subtle light and the warm, yellow-amber light of incandescent light bulbs make the reds, oranges, and yellows of a space more vivid, while muting blues and greens.
ECO INSPIRATION
Eco-consciousness and recycling/upcycling are ongoing trends set to stay. For self-builders, sustainability is a priority in material choices, longevity and economic well-being, supporting both the homeowner but also the environment. We’re all invested more in recycling, mending, and repairing. People are willing to pay extra for sustainably reprocessed yarns and salvaged materials, happily accepting little irregularities in exchange for the environmental benefits they offer.
Starting with flooring, there are many options for eco-friendly materials, varying in cost, origins and appearance. One choice, relatively new to the flooring industry, is cork which is sourced from harvesting bark as opposed to the tree itself being cut down. Cork can be finished in a variety of paints and stains to suit any colour scheme or design style and it can also be woven into carpets, as can coir, jute, sisal and wool. Bamboo gives a different, glossier look and is usually very light, working with a variety of décor schemes due to the varied choice of grains. Glass tiles, solid wood and concrete are alternative hard floor options.
For furniture following an ‘eco theme,’ a textile called Rolefin, produced using a zero water consumption process, is a great option, especially for sofas and armchairs. The material can be recycled up to seven times, contains no harmful chemicals and has an incredibly low carbon-footprint. Another option for hard furniture is formed from Mango tree wood, which is collected once the plant has stopped producing fruit. Additionally, jute is made from the jute vegetable plant and is completely biodegradable.
For wallpaper and paints, sustainable paint alternatives can be purchased from suppliers such as Little Greene Company, used by Andrew Henry Interiors in previous projects. Little Greene’s wallpaper comes from FSC or PEFC certified sustainable forests whereby for every tree that is used, a further four are planted. The pigments within the paper are non-toxic, the wallpaper paste contains no solvent and the water-based paint has the industry’s lowest eco-rating, contributing no solvent to the atmosphere (or homeowners’ respiratory systems!). For their oil-based paints, Little Greene has reformulated the elements to use vegetable oil, a sustainable alternative which does not compromise on the longevity or quality of the paint.
These trends see colours, textures and materials promote emotions of joy, hope and optimism with a direct focus on the environment and all its wonders. Trend-inspired interior design can be simple, cost-effective and versatile, perfect for all types of homes, personalities and styles.
Paul Garland is creative manager at Andrew Henry Interiors