At the May Court Club of Oakville’s recent Table Tops event I listened to co-owner of Cocoon Furnishings, Glyn Austin speak about the current trends in home decor. Read on for the top 11 trends occurring now and to see them live and get advice on your own decorating desires, visit Cocoon in Oakville.
FURNITURE IS GOING GREEN
Both indoors and out, customers are concerned about the products they choose to furnish their homes with and want eco-friendly pieces from drapes and chair covering fabrics to incorporating reclaimed wood into furniture.
Tip: when you buy reclaimed pieces of furniture, ensure they’re made in North America because the wood will already be acclimatized therefor will not crack or warp. Some companies, such as Hickory Chair grown their own trees and are used in making their furniture.
SMALLER FOOTPRINT
The smaller spaces that many of us occupy now require smaller pieces, and there’s a lot available. Corner sofas, chairs, tables and recliners are smaller and clean looking. Dining banquettes and double setees and ottomans easily work in smaller spaces.
MULTI-FUNCTIONAL FURNITURE
Pieces that have more than one use functionally speaking are ideal – and they also make themselves useful for almost any room in your home. Consider an ottoman that converts into a twin bed, bedside dressers that have storage for smaller pieces of clothing or accessories, desks that can convert into beds. Not forgetting the furry members of the family, choose a side table for your family room that also doubles as a crate/bed for your dog. Divans with a trundle bed underneath are great for guests.
TECH-DRIVEN FURNITURE
All of those tech devices need to be charged – having desks and side tables with power ports make having your phone or tablet ready to go is very convenient.
VINTAGE & ANTIQUE
Pop culture influences are still strong. Pair an antique dining table with modern chairs. Vintage Great Gatsby-inspired lighting by Aerin Lauder looks glamorous and romantic.
GLOBALLY INSPIRED
Cultural influences also appeal, with people looking to pieces for a bit of Zen and calmness in their space through Asian-inspired furniture and accessories. Moroccan prints are bright and intense for chairs and pillows. Indian sun-bleached rugs add subtle colour.
GROWING IMPORTANCE OF OUTDOOR FURNITURE
Bring the indoors out. We want spaces created for comfort that also offer durability against the elements (which means you won’t have to dash to get the covers and cushions if it starts to rain or worry about colours fading). Sunbrella fabric is durable and attractive.
CUSTOM FURNITURE
With the influence of social media we are bombarded with options, colours and styles when it comes to furniture that might not be readily available in retail stores. High headboards, beds, custom height ottomans, coffee tables – if you dream it, it can be done.
LIFESTYLE FURNITURE
Pieces to enjoy and relax in: old, worn-look leather, chaises that can be placed anywhere (bathroom, bedroom, kitchen – even the front entrance). Secitonals can be used separately, moved and arranged as needed or used conventionally. Swivel chairs allow for comfort and easy positioning for any area in the room.
COLOUR
Blue is very popular, as is grey. Accent colours in orange, freesia and neutrals are best in grey (such as Revere Pewter by Benjamin Moore), which is extremely easy to work with.
Popular Pantone colours: Dazzling Blue, Radiant Orchid (colour of the year), Celosia Orange, Freesia & Paloma.
BRASS
Hardware, furniture legs and lighting are becoming available in brass. For other metals such as silver and gold, you don’t need all of one tone or the other – mix them!
