After years of insipid interiors, full of mumsy magnolias and hospital ward whites, home décor began to burst out of its chains in recent years, with trends for bold jungle prints, quirky flamingo motifs, glittery mirrored surfaces and shiny metallics.
So where is it all heading this year? Well, according to the experts at Ideal Home magazine – and they should know – 2018 will be all about a big re-discovery of colour.
Not of the wall-to-wall kind, because apparently safe old grey is set to remain as the neutral colour of choice for most home improvers – but there seems to be a big emerging trend for ‘pops’ of vivid colour, whether that’s in the form of a feature sofa, a collection of cushions or a bold wall hanging.
The colours that are likely to be lighting up our living spaces this year include rich violet, navy and bright emerald green.
And highlighting these jewel colours will be another fashion statement for 2018 – dark wood. Apparently we are tiring of all those Scandinavian-inspired bleached woods and looking instead for richer, darker wood tones and a more glamorous, retro look.
The good news is that it’s easy to create this fashion statement on a relative budget, simply by searching in vintage furniture shops for those classic dark wood pieces of furniture that had fallen out of favour in recent years. You may find that with a bit of TLC, wax and polish, good old elbow grease and perhaps a new set of metallic handles, you can transform an unloved piece to something that’s the height of interiors chic this year.
The other big trends to look for are global-inspired prints in rich earthy shades, lots of textures including rattan and wicker furniture, tactile fabrics such as velvet, and 3-D embellishments such as beading and appliqué.
One blast from the past that’s enjoying a massive revival is 1970s-style macrame, which features in lampshade and plant hanger designs in the interiors collections of practically every big store this year. Anyone who experienced this particular kind of hippy-chic first time around might be a bit dubious – but the later generations seem to be lapping it up!