Interior trends aren’t for everybody. Sometimes you don’t want to douse your home in pastel hues or drown your living room in brass and gold; the colours don’t suit every home or every personal taste. However, it’s hard to style your home to make it look up to date with the rest of the world, but not like a trend victim. So how can you design your home without falling victim to the latest and overused trends? Here are some interior design tips for those who hate trends.
I’ve Got A Blank Space…
A crucial factor in maintaining a classically designed home throughout the years is keeping your canvas blank. You shouldn’t avoid colours altogether, but keeping your walls white is an easy and foolproof way to add and subtract pieces from your home as the years go by. This way, you don’t have to cringe every time you walk into your living room and see a bright orange feature wall, surrounded by your Scandi furniture. With a blank canvas to start with, you can add colour and personality into the space with your decor. If you’d like to stay on trend, but only a little bit, add feature pieces of decor that can easily be taken away once the trend is long gone.
Marble
Now I know this is currently on trend, but marble has been cool long before Pinterest found it. Marble is a timeless and classic accent to any kitchen, and it’s an accent that will never become dated or go out of style. Sure. granite may come in and out, and maybe wooden tops may be the next big thing, but marble is so classic and cool that it will look stylish and on trend no matter what year it is.
Grey Gardens
No, your home doesn’t need to look like it’s occupied by Big Edie and Little Edie Beale, but using grey tones and hues throughout your home is a wonderful trick to add depth and class to any home interior. If you’re needing a bit of convincing, Angela Morrison from Style Create Design has the perfect reason why greys are a classic accent.”Grey and charcoal colours continue to add sophistication to any space, are easy to live with and a versatile palette to incorporate into any home.” Get inspired by Angela by following her on Facebook and Instagram.
Greys are also a great transitional colour to have in your home, as they flatter and suit almost any piece of decor. Honestly. You can incorporate the latest trends, classic pieces, contemporary art or even industrial lighting with greys and charcoals. Janette Baker from Wallstudio, explains how you can incorporate grey with any decor, including an adventure theme. “Mountainscapes, teepees and anything outdoor inspired. Pair grey and green together with natural timbers.” Find out more about Wallstudio by following them on Facebook and Instagram.
A Focal Point
Your eyes should be drawn to something when you enter the room. It can be anything from a couch, a painting, or even your bed sheets. Adding a large painting into your home is not only a great conversation starter, but it’s also a great way to express your individual style. If your space is smaller, you can incorporate mirrors into the equation, which will make the space appear larger and reflect light into the space, which adds life and amps up any boring room. For more small interior design tips, go here. If your room is a bit bland, inject colour, pattern or texture into it! Remember, you’re not following any trend rules here, so go wild!
You, And You Alone
At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter what’s fashionable, what’s on trend or what others are telling you. Your home belongs to you, and no one else, so why not just follow your gut and decorate your home the way you want to? Voight Holger, founder of Design Doctors explains how your human brain reacts to certain interior design. “The human brain responds to beauty in an involuntary way. Neuroscientists at the University of Parma in Italy discovered that showing people images judged as beautiful strongly activated the right amygdala, the subconscious emotional processor in our brains. Applying this knowledge to interior design means that people can't help but respond emotionally to beautiful design. They are innately wired to do so. By creating beauty in artful ways, designers inspire, captivate and entice people. We humans like to tell ourselves we make "rational" decisions when the truth is most, if not all, of them, are emotional. We justify these decisions with our rational explanations after the emotional decision is already taken. The heart responds much faster than the brain..” So no matter what’s on trend right now, if you don’t like it, why incorporate it into your home? Decorate your space with things that make you happy, not what magazines tell you. Get yourself a health check by following Design Doctors on Instagram.
Sometimes interior design isn’t about following trends. Sure, trends can dictate what you see in stores and what you see online, but you don’t have to follow them like the law. Have some fun, open up your mind and get creative, that’s what design is all about!