Trend Forecast 2021

Long before any of us had heard of Covid-19, environmental issues were already high on the agenda and an awareness of our responsibility to the planet was increasing significant. As we move into 2021, there will continue to be a decline in conspicuous consumption and a demand for greater sustainability. We’ll grow ever more interested in provenance and the stories behind the items we buy for our home. Recycling and upcycling will become second nature, brown furniture (that is furniture made from solid, dark wood such as walnut and teak) will gain in popularity and there’ll be greater appreciation of the character pre-loved items bring to a home.

DIY has been big news this year as more time at home has led many of us to want to create interiors that work better for us. This focus on our immediate surroundings will continue into the new year and our plans may well become more ambitious. Not content with merely reducing clutter and changing the colour of the walls, some of us will fundamentally change the way our homes work.

In recent years, we’ve started to see a move away from open-plan to ‘broken-plan’ spaces in which structural elements such as glass partitions and half walls create distinct areas for different uses within a larger space. In many ways, broken-plan is the best of both worlds as it provides separation and privacy whilst retaining the light and spaciousness of open-plan living. With multi-generational living on the rise, the desire for broken-plan living can only increase.

Some of us will go further in our quest for form and function. How about putting your kitchen in the centre of the house and the living spaces near the light? The architect Frank LLoyd Wright advocated this over one hundred years ago and it does make sense if you think about it; kitchens function beautifully with artificial light and won’t suffer by being placed in a dark part of the home. This frees up rooms with lots of natural light to be lived in and enjoyed. Equally, why have the living spaces on the ground floor of the house and the bedrooms above if the top floor receives more light. We expect to see the concept of the ‘upside down’ house gaining ground in the coming year!

Our hesitance to use strong colours in our homes in the past has often been due to concerns about what others may think. Not any more. This year has taught us the importance of being surrounded by what makes us happy and colour can do this more than any other decorating tool. We are becoming increasingly aware of the colours that resonate with us and more confident in using them in our homes.

Earth tones and greens of all descriptions will continue to be popular but we’re likely to be bolder with colour in 2021. Features walls will make a comeback and we’ll fully embrace colour blocking, a technique that involves pairing two or more bold colours together. And we won’t stop at living spaces. Colour will extend into our bathrooms as these critical spaces become as reflective of our personalities as every other area of our homes.

The positive impact on our health and well-being through connecting with nature has really come to the fore this year. Helped by the amazing weather in Spring and Summer, we rediscovered the outdoors and despite a drop in temperature, the recent national lockdown has demonstrated that we want to maintain this connection. So perhaps the new year will see us adopting the Norwegian adage, ‘there’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes’, and getting outside whatever the conditions.

Back inside, we’ll continue to embrace the principles of biophilic design, with colours, patterns and textures that remind us of nature. And suppliers of indoor plants will be swamped with orders!

So, could next year be the year we fully embrace our individuality, recognise our place in the world and make planet-friendly choices in our homes? Sounds great to us. Bring on 2021….