5 Design Trends to Leave Behind in the 1-9!

So we are at the middle of the first month of the brand new year in a brand, spanking new decade. I love new beginnings! With every new beginning, there are also endings that must occur and the same can thankfully be said for the interior design industry. Interior design professionals love to make predictions on the coming trends for home furnishings and décor, and I am no exception. My next blog post will be all about the new trends for 2020, but before I even get there, please join me in waving goodbye, good riddance and saying peace out to some of the trends of yesteryear that I truly hope you guys will finally let go of to walk into the new year in step, in style and in the know!

1. All Glam Everything

If you are a fan of Instagram pages that show beautifully designed rooms, some of the best often have a piece or two all glammed up with some bling. Some bling can be sexy in a space… a chandelier and a crystal vase, maybe a jewel studded headboard and a set of bedazzled candlesticks on a dresser. But honey, some of these wanna-be designers just take it way too far, blinging every item in site and that can go from glamorous to tacky in 2.3 seconds!  There definitely is such a thing as too much is WAY TOO MUCH! You can have a luxe looking space without everything in the room shining bright like a diamond! These rooms are typically done by a stylist and not true designers, who understand the rules of proper placement and editing a space’s content. Rooms should have focal points and places for your eyes to rest. If everything is so sparkly, your eyes will be tired and it can all just look costumy and far too over the top than a relaxing space. For the coming decade, let’s use the jewels and sparkly things a bit more sparingly! As many other trends are coming in, this is one that is becoming a fad, so don’t give in or your space will be looking quite outdated.

2. All White Kitchens

I specialize in kitchen design, so boy am I happy to see this trend fold, although many will still not go for it! I’ve been doing kitchen design since the mid 1990’s and white has gone out of style twice during that time. The first time was for the oak and cherry kitchens in the late 90s to early 2000’s and then again when Espresso was a big deal in the late 2000’s to early 2010’s. Some consider white to be a classic and to a certain extent it is, but ALL WHITE EVERYTHING is certainly a trend, and quite a boring one, especially when you are an interior designer who designs kitchens, which have endless door styles, wood species, countertops and backsplash selections to choose from. I cringe every time a client tells me they want a white shaker kitchen. I know what’s coming out of their mouth next… white marble looking countertop… and what? You will never guess… WHITE SUBWAY TILE! Can we be any more predictable? Where’s the fun in this?

Thankfully enough, colors are becoming a mainstay in the kitchen, and as all aspects of design strongly shift to all things colorful and, well, not so white, you will see less and less of this indecisive looking choice. The latest white kitchens are getting broken up with colorful walls, a resurgence to wallpaper or bold backsplashes incorporating another color beyond white. Even the ever-so-classic (and still boring) subway tile is getting an update, with colors, beveled glass, cushioning and colored grout. All white DOES NOT mean clean… CLEAN MEANS CLEAN! Let’s opt for some interest!

3. Rose Gold

There’s not much to say here, except “they tried it”. It’s beautiful, but this trend came and will quickly fall by the wayside, as it just can’t gain popularity. You can equate this to the fact that, even though it’s a metal, rose gold is PINK! Many men just can’t stand behind it. They hardly rock pink shirts, do you think they’re letting you add pink to the kitchen or living room? Most likely not.

Now, let’s not confuse this with the trend of blush colored furniture. I’m referring to metallic décor and hardware, like the jewelry. You’re not even seeing so much of it in jewelry nowadays. Gold is the newest old metal, reborn in bright and champagne form. Skip this fad altogether!

4. Gray as a Neutral… ALL OVER EVERYTHING

I emphasize “all over everything” for a very good reason with this one. So, unless you have been living under a rock, and some of you have, you know that brown and tan have been dead and buried for a good many years and gray became the new neutral around seven or eight years ago. Unfortunately, some are turtles to the trend and are taking this neutral just a bit too far. They are blanketing their homes with it from floor to walls to furniture. Gray can be dull and stark and cold and lack interest if done wrong and many have taken it there. It’s become an “easy” choice, yet, like tan, gray has undertones. Even better, unlike tan, gray has undertones in pretty much every color palette, so you can warm it up or jazz up a space with a blue gray or a plum gray or a minty gray. Neutrals are meant to anchor a space when someone wants to play it safe, but they were never meant to go everywhere… it creates boredom. Adding white does not make it better, color does! Speaking of color, wait till I tell you all about the new neutrals… your head might explode! I’m not telling you to stop using gray cold turkey. Just understand that us designers have moved on from it. There are way more color palettes to choose from than the obvious one… let’s give it a rest!

5. The Model Home Look

So I know what you might be thinking… “of course I want my house to look like a model home. Who wouldn’t?” I can tell you who… designers! We’re sick to death of spaces devoid of personality. Yes, we were the same ones telling you to take away all your family photos in lieu of some abstract art. (well, not all of us did this, but I’ve been guilty of this unpersonal, model home look a few times myself) I understand that model homes are beautiful spaces that create oohs and ahs and when selling your home designers ad realtors strongly suggest that you remove personal items and family photos so the home buyer can picture their own items within the space. The problem then became that the homeowners loved these spaces so much that they carried on this lifeless trend and then this look was duplicated everywhere. We replace pictures of our parents with tchotchkes, personal items from our kids with groupings of 3 vases or 5 statues and candlestick holders. Soon everyone had pale sage or aqua bathrooms for that spa feel and living rooms with wall art from Home Goods with very abstract non-descript splashes of color. What is it? You don’t know, but it matches the curtains and throw pillows on the sofa. Before you knew it our homes became cold, lifeless spaces where the only way you’ll see a picture of your family is to bring it up on your phone, art had nothing to do with what you liked and every one was making knife chops in the center of every pillow! Those days are gone!!! Expressive spaces are back, creativity is back… Let’s look at your family. Let’s make a tasteful gallery wall of photos. Let’s place old fashioned pics of grandma on your buffet and your daughter’s first ballet recital on the mantel. Let’s tell a story on a wall or a theme in a room. Let’s give your space some personality and show off your memories. Let’s skip the absent look for a more lived in space.

 

So that’s my story and I’m sticking to it… 5 trends that are no longer trendy in the new decade. Out with the old and in with the new baby! Stay tuned for my next post on where we are taking design this year. Have a great week. Besos