Home décor trends to enjoy and imitate
There’s been a huge focus on homeware and decorative trends during 2020
Electricals Online
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Given that we’ve seen so much of our homes this year, due to local and national lockdowns, and with some people’s homes doubling as their workplace, we’ve stared at the same four walls perhaps more in 2020 than we would any other year.
DIY was one of the only things we could do during the summer, with so much time on our hands and because so few alternative pastimes were on offer. Reconfiguring our homes was another movement made popular through necessity; whilst working from the kitchen table is fine once in a while, it’s not practical if homeworking becomes a long-term thing.
So, what decorating trends have arisen during this year of perpetual doom?!
Individuality
Keeping up with the Joneses used to be something people strived for. If Maureen at Number 42 ditched her net curtains for wooden blinds, some of her neighbours would have felt compelled to do the same.
Nowadays, for a number of reasons, aspiring to a lifestyle outside of your budget is a no-no. Fast fashion has become a negative, and this change of mindset filtered into our homes. As a result, there’s much more emphasis on upcycling and revamping furniture, so that it shows off our individual tastes and preferences.
Followers of Mrs Hinch and Stacey Solomon have made the interiors of their homes grey throughout, in homage to the two influencers. However, this cold, clinical look has attracted just as much criticism as adoration. For each copycat decorator, there’s someone who enjoys putting their own stamp on things.
Floral wallpapers
Gone are the days of wall-to-wall chintz. In previous generations, incorporating florals meant extending it to the carpet, sofa, curtains and soft furnishings, as well as the walls, until the room looked like the inside of a florist’s.
Today, floral wallpaper is much more sophisticated and much less busy than designs of the sixties and seventies. In 2020, large blooms on plain backgrounds make a statement; toned with plain furniture and soft furnishings in complementary colours, the look can be dramatic without being overwhelming.
The power of one
Simplicity has certainly been a key component of 2020. Clutter only causes problems, and as rooms/spaces have become multipurpose during the pandemic for those working from home, it’s important that the furniture and/or decoration earns its right to be there.
One beautiful ornament, one statement piece of furniture or one accent colour is enough.
Clutter doesn’t always have to be physical; if a room is too ‘busy’, it can be visually distracting.
Indoor plants
When we weren’t able to explore national parks or fly away to sunnier climes because of the virus, we brought the outdoors inside. Little accent plants, such as succulents and cacti, look great alongside tall potted plants that create their own drama.
The olive tree, apparently, is what we’re all coveting at the moment, though ferns and palms have also proved popular during 2020.
Luxury fabrics
Silk sheets, fluffy throws and velvet furniture…being confined to the house has seen us choose sumptuous fabrics. Our homes have very much become our domains this year—why anyone would choose design over comfort when both are easily achievable at the same time puzzles us.
The channels for escapism may be narrowing due to the virus; if we have no choice but to curl up with a good book/wind down in front of the telly, most of us would much rather do that under a faux fur throw than a scratchy tweed blanket.
Dual purpose
Space may have been at a premium even before you were asked to work from home. Shoehorning your PC and other office paraphernalia amongst your things may be necessary, but they’re not the most aesthetic things to have in your home.
Having electrical equipment, computers, files, and stacks of papers on show doesn’t just spoil the beautiful lines of your home, it can blur the lines between your work/life balance.
There are pieces of furniture around that are not just statement pieces in their own right, but they’re practical, too. Filing cabinets that can look as if they’ve arrived from the time of the French Revolution; modular seating that can be rearranged to become a practical workstation with hidden plug sockets; beautiful bookshelves that can open out into a desk—there are loads of options available nowadays.
2020 has given us the time and impetus to change our surroundings. There are many sources of inspiration when it comes to finding gorgeous things for your home; Pinterest is particularly great for this kind of thing. One warning, however, once you start coveting the things you see on Pinterest boards, you’ll never stop…
Article written by Electricals Online
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