Spotlight: Lara’s Top 10 Design Trends

Lara’s Process For a Small yet Beautiful Thanksgiving Table!

November 4, 2020

A Day In The Life of Lara Michelle

February 17, 2021

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T he start of a new year—and new decade—is the perfect time to assess our interiors and make changes that will improve the feel and functionality of our homes. Home decor trends for 2021 are all about creating a home that's comfortable, functional, and most importantly, a reflection of you. Here are 10 of my personal favorite Design Trends for 2021!

1 A gravitation away from grey towards brown: The color grey has been the go-to neutral for a while now, but we’re starting to see an evolution to a grey/brown, and a movement toward warmer tones. I've been selecting more taupes and what I call "greige", which is a combo of gray and beige for my client's designs. Grey is still popular, but it is definitely getting some competition these days from warmer tones such as browns, softer off-whites, and taupes.

2 Incorporating embellishments: I love using trims and am so glad trimmings are coming back in a new, understated way. Trims add incredible visual impact, texture, and tie colors together in a unique and creative way. My favorite applications for trimmings are on throw pillows, curtains, and furniture.

3 Curtains: I still love a simple roman shade in a pretty fabric, but curtains and understated valances are making their way back into my designs. Clients are embracing the use of fabrics and textiles for window treatments, it dresses windows up a bit more and creates a warmer, more inviting look.

4 Sourcing Online Antiques: Many brick-and-mortar, locally-owned home stores and antiques shops are embracing the growing e-commerce world by either launching their own websites or placing their one-of-a-kind inventories onto home-oriented e-commerce sites. This expands the opportunity to find one-of-a-kind items for interior designers and homeowners alike, and means antiques, vintage pieces, and many one-of-a-kind items can now be legitimately sourced without leaving your home, a very welcome new convenience!

5 High Performance Fabrics: Evolving textile technology has lured outdoor upholstery fabrics and trims inside, making for easy care interiors whether for a city loft or in a country retreat. High-performance outdoor textile design has so greatly evolved that even the savviest of interior design professionals sometimes can’t tell the difference between interior and exterior options. Fabric houses are producing great-looking acrylic velvets, faux leathers, and treated canvases. Stain-resistant fibers make for awesome dining room chairs, mildew-resistant fabrics perform wonderfully as bathroom shower curtains, fade-resistant textiles make perfect window treatments. And when these tough-as-nails options are imagined into decorative pillows, sofas, and shades? A beautiful home just gets easier to keep clean under the messiest of families :-)

6 Supporting local and contracting custom work: I think it’s so important to use local craftspeople and workrooms to support your community. The current trends toward one-of-a-kind pieces in upholstery and hard goods supports these businesses. It’s important to note that custom doesn’t always mean more expensive, either. I have curated an amazing team of local contractors and craftspeople who can produce items in half the time larger or overseas companies take. It's just so much easier to collaborate on designs and solve issues when your people are so close by, we text each other any day of the week and get an immediate responses and I can pop in to see progress/correct mistakes/make changes on the spot. That just doesn't happen with big companies!

7 More use of Wallpaper: I’m totally obsessed with the magnificent wallpaper options out there these days. I use wallpaper in just about every project we design for client’s homes. From accent walls, backs of bookcases, powder rooms, and ceilings, the ways to use wallpaper is truly limitless. Wallpaper companies are also making vinyl wallcoverings that are super durable, stain resistant, and absolutely gorgeous. You can really get that wow factor with wallpaper. I know this fabulous trend will be staying with us for years to come :-)

Mixing antiques with modern pieces is very on trend for 2021

I hope the use of beautiful wallpapers is a trend that's here to stay!

8 Break from Pinterest: With Pinterest and Houzz there has been so much ‘copy-cat’ decorating, I’m seeing clients who want more originality in their homes and from their designers. I use Pinterest with my clients as a discovery tool, to find out what my client likes and dislikes so I can select items that best reflect their interior design style. Pinterest is still great for the DIY'ers and for ideas and inspiration, but if you're looking for truly unique room designs, choose an experienced interior designer with the depth and breath of original designs.

9 Conscious consumerism: This trend follows the concept that less is more, but with a focus on buying fewer things but making sure those items are of the very best quality. It also incorporates eco-friendly design decisions. Refinishing a floor rather than pulling it up and tossing perfectly good wood is much more appealing to clients these days to achieve the goal of having a new looking floor. The use of eco-friendly paints, fabrics, and furniture is getting more and more popular. Recycling old furniture and cabinets is definitely also on trend.

10 Natural Stone: In 2020, we started to see marble and natural stone backsplashes take center stage in the kitchen and bath, and we will see even more of this in the coming year. In lieu of tile, my clients are gravitating toward making a book-match with two pieces of marble that create a wonderful pattern. It makes a dramatic, natural statement. I've done this on fireplace surrounds too and it is quite a showstopper!

I hope you enjoyed learning about my Top 10 Design Trends for 2021. If you’re interested in learning more, please contact me or leave a comment in the box below. I’d love to hear from you!