Best of London Design Week

London Design Week is held every year, with at least 4 shows around London exhibiting all creative talents and design inspirations from around the world. This was definitely one of the best and most inspiring design weeks I have been to! I am really excited to share the latest trends that were show cased this year.

This coming year the main focus is all about “Transparency and Making Home” – what does this mean for us as consumers and designers?
• Transparency equals honesty for the consumer from retailers and designers, be more in touch with the consumer – emotion sells.
• Making home equals creating personalized spaces that are cozy, warm, nurturing, sensitive, self caring and a space that expresses ones individuality.

The main Design Trends are:

• Personalization: Creating spaces that express ones individuality. Design this year is not about all the elements matching, it is about mixing and matching that relate to your personality.

• Be local: Support your local craftsmen / suppliers and indulge in the local culture around you – going local equals been connected to your community.

• Get smart: Technology is getting and looking smarter, the designs have more “ personality “ with more aesthetic as to blend into an interior.

• Kitchens: The kitchen been one of the most important rooms in the home will become more slim line and will have more technology added to it. Making the kitchen a workable, simple, enjoyable and more efficient space to be in the home.

• Connection to the outdoors: More glass more openness, bringing the outside in or simply enjoying been outside. Living; eating and cooking outside will be a big trend this year. Homes will be designed with larger windows or sliding / stacking glass to create indoor / outdoor living with more openness within the home.

• Co-Living: Relates more to social gatherings with forced interaction. This is created either by 1 long dining table where you are forced to socialize with strangers or dining tables where the bench is used instead of separate dining chairs.

• Pairing materials: Interior finishes and furniture will see a trend of pairing finishes. In interiors we will see composites and stone mixed (perfect for counter tops). Furniture design pairing can be: cork + brass paired or plywood + copper.

• Low cost materials: More low cost materials will be used, especially in lighting design, we will see materials of: plywood, cork and corrugated plastic.

• Craftsmanship: In craftsmanship we will see the rise of: lace; crochet; weaving; rattan weaving and interlacing textures brought through in fabrics, wallpapers, furniture,  ceramics and pottery. This creates more “romanticism” and a sense of “perfect imperfection”.

• Color palettes trending:
Warm color palettes mixed with metallics (eg: terracotta; blues; greens; coppers). Primary colours (eg: red; blue; yellow; white; black). Contrasting your color schemes (eg: blue + yellow)

Ending note: Design has moved to a new level, when creating a space become more conscious about your “design experience” – how is this going to make you feel. Tap into your senses, think about the sound, smell, sights, touch and taste that you are going experience!

Anna Correia – Interior Consultant

E-mail: anna@annacorreia.co.za