Design Anatomy
Welcome to Design Anatomy, where we examine the world of interiors and design. With a shared passion for joyful, colour-filled, and lived-in spaces, Bree Banfield and Lauren Li are excited to share their insights and inspiration with you.
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Design Anatomy
The Top 7 Interior Design Trends 2025
Unlock the secrets of 2025's most exciting interior design trends with us, Bree Banfield and Lauren Li. Ever wonder how trends sneak their way into your home, even if you’re not paying attention? We'll reveal the subtle ways in which early adopters, cultural moments, and even global moods influence the environments we create around us. From Meryl Streep's iconic fashion monologue in "The Devil Wears Prada" to the art of trend forecasting, discover how these elements shape the spaces we love and why staying informed is crucial for both professionals and enthusiasts.
Join our vibrant discussion on crafting spaces that are not just aesthetically pleasing but also authentic and personalized. We explore how to harmonize high-end design with personal touches, moving beyond the sterile showroom look to create homes that tell stories through sentimental pieces and second-hand treasures. Discover the charm of a bookshelf brimming with books and the allure of screen-free spaces, where interaction takes precedence over entertainment. Learn how transforming traditional living spaces can foster deeper connections and create environments that prioritize meaningful experiences.
Finally, we dive into the dynamic blend of old and new with a focus on integrating antiques and technology in modern homes. Explore how incorporating vintage furniture and unique design elements can coexist with contemporary tech, offering a balanced and stylish space. From textured interiors and eclectic designs to colorful bathrooms and kitchens, witness the shift from minimalist to maximalist aesthetics.
As we wrap up, we invite you to engage with us, share your thoughts, and participate in our exciting journey through the ever-evolving world of interior design. Celebrate the intersection of timeless style and the latest trends with us and make your living spaces truly your own.
Want the low-down on the good stuff? Sign up for the launch of Design Edit by Bree Banfield - curated pre-selected decor collections, workshops, design tours and trends. Learn more: BREE BANFIELD
Need an expert to guide you on how to create your DREAM home? Join the Style Studies Essentials course, learn more: STYLE STUDIES ESSENTIALS
Hey designers, let's get you working on amazing projects, increase your fees and straighten out your process. Lauren Li helps interior designers at all stages of their career inside THE DESIGN SOCIETY
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Welcome to Design Anatomy, the interior design podcast hosted by friends and fellow designers. Me, b Banfield.
Speaker 2:And me, Lauren Li, with some amazing guest appearances along the way.
Speaker 1:We're here to break down everything from current trends to timeless style.
Speaker 2:With a shared passion for joyful, colour-filled and lived-in spaces.
Speaker 1:we're excited to share our insights and inspiration with you and if you want to know a little bit more about what Lauren and I do in our day jobs, you can jump into the show notes and find some links there. Mine will take you to sign up to our newsletter for info on trends, the short courses we'll be releasing this year and also our pre-selected collections that help you decorate your home on a budget.
Speaker 2:Lovely. What a nice way to sort of kick off the year with a nice plan. You know, somebody can purchase one of your collections and they're sort of like you're holding their hand almost.
Speaker 1:Totally. Yep, they get me a bit on a budget. Yeah, it's really smart.
Speaker 2:That's really smart. So if you wanted some help with your interiors as well, um, I have a course called the style studies essentials um. So if you like some of these kind of you know ideas that brie and I are talking about because I think we're pretty much on the same page with everything right, Bree, um, in the course, you know, I can really guide you through to make those decisions for your own home, and if you're an interior designer listening, I'm helping you just be the best designer that you can be for 2025. We are starting a group of actually two groups. We've got an emerging group, we've got an established group of interior designers, and it's just a mentor group, and we've got you. We're here for you, we want to hear what you have to say, we want to see you, we're going to catch up in person, and just a really small bunch of interior designers together. So it's going to be so fun. Enough about that, though, because this is going to be such a fun episode, Bree, we have got so, so much to talk about.
Speaker 2:So much in fact that we realized we couldn't even fit it into one. Yeah, so yes, today's episode is all about the trends for 2025 interior design trends.
Speaker 1:And we've kind of narrowed down what we think are our favorites, so they're not necessarily ranked from like one to whatever we're going to do. Seven, yes, and we're just. They're the ones that we think are also probably going to last a while too. They're like enduring trends, I think.
Speaker 2:Well, you know, Bree, that sort of brings up that whole topic of you know the word trends. It is kind of divisive. It can be kind of triggering for people Like how do you sort of define what a trend is?
Speaker 1:Yeah, it is very triggering, particularly for designers. We find a lot of people we will ask them about trends, right, and they say, oh, we don't follow trends. And I always find that not. I find it amusing because I know they don't necessarily follow trends. They'd be very aware of the trends, but they're often part of the trend cycle, because what happens is we have these early adopters who start doing things that people notice, and it's not just them. It'll be multiple people who don't know each other, but they're all influenced by whatever's happening in the world or what they're taking in. And it can be as simple as pop culture, the movies they're watching, the art exhibits they're going to what's happening in terms of the global mood, and then they seem to produce similar things. And that's what we often look for when we're trend forecasting is those threads that aren't connected, but you can see something similar happening. So that's a trend.
Speaker 1:A trend is like a technical thing it's not made up, it's an observation of what's happening or what's going to happen and where it's heading. And I think that the word people get confused with when they get all kind of on their trends, or sort of fast fashion, et cetera, is fad. So for me, a fad is something that's way more manufactured and maybe influenced by a trend. So they might go oh, the trend is vintage, so let's put out something that's retro, that's cheap and nasty, that all the teenagers are going to love, because the trend is vintage. So the fad is that and that's the thing you see in the stores that kind of gets sold out and all of those sort of things, and it kind of feeds into that fast fashion. So that's how I kind of differentiate, because you can't not be part of a trend, right? It just that's what happens, which leads us really to our first trend that we're going to talk about.
Speaker 2:Oh, I just love that and I mean I think, yeah, you and I are just on the same page as that and I know that not everybody sort of understands trends in the way that we do, but it's something I think about a lot and, as you sort of said, ryder, in the beginning, there, you know, a lot of designers say I don't follow trends and it's like, well, you still need to be aware of what those trends and even what the fads are, because you need to be aware of it so that you can say that's not for me, but I can see, that's what the Joneses next door are wanting, that's what you know. The I can see that's what the Joneses next door are wanting. That's what you know.
Speaker 2:The average kind of, you know, consumer is looking for yeah, for sure, yeah, so yeah, it's really interesting and I think we spoke about. You know if you are unsure of what we are talking about. When it comes to trends, I think there's nobody that put it better than Meryl Streep herself in the Devil.
Speaker 2:Wears Prada which we referenced in a previous episode. It's just. It sums it up perfectly for me, I think if you're living in the culture, you are consuming content, you're in this. You know political space that we're in right now, like you. Just the interiors are just a response to that.
Speaker 1:Definitely. Yeah, pretty much everything we do in life. Unless you're living off the grid and not being part of society in some way, you're influenced by a trend and trend. You know we talk about trends and we're obviously in the interiors world. Trends is a word that goes across everything. It's just something that we see happening and it's an influence really.
Speaker 2:Exactly.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I feel like that's what made me laugh when I saw someone post about this first one that we're going to say, which is the trend is not following trends and the post that I saw it was Nicholas S who posted it and I had a laugh and it was. I think it was a Vogue. It was probably more about fashion potentially, but it was a Vogue kind of poll and I think what it said was like the one that was overwhelmingly so, like you know, it had the little line graph, overwhelmingly popular was and they called it trends are done and I went okay, that's a trend. That is so funny. The trend is that trends are over, so it just can't escape it. So I thought that was kind of almost the best example.
Speaker 1:And what it means is which we'll dive into is that people don't want to just follow something blindly because someone said this is the look and we have seen that quite strongly happen in the past, right With, I guess, Scandinavian's probably a really good example. I'm talking about the very cliched Scandinavian look and then that definitely got picked up and really ran with that for a very long time. I guess that was a very strong interior trend that got, I guess, maybe even overused, I would say, because it's kind of more of a classic look when you pull it back and take it apart. But I think what people are trying to say is we want our own space, we want it to reflect us, so we don't want it to reflect a particular style, and so the trend is to make it your own right and I think that unless you know, as what you said at the top, unless you are living somewhere like I, have a fifth cousin who lives in the Arctic Circle.
Speaker 2:I don't think Timo is following, he probably has a trend of his own?
Speaker 1:Who knows? I don't think Timo is following any trends.
Speaker 2:Egg fur, though Exactly Brain, deep fur, yeah. So he's the only person I can think of that doesn't follow any trends. And I also agree that it does feel good to feel like you know what. I've chosen this myself, I've put this look together, I've created this for my own, to reflect my own personality. But you know, the fact is, in this point of time, everybody else is doing that and I think you know, in our homes, to get that look, that individuality, of individuality, a great way to do that is through family heirlooms or things that are handed down.
Speaker 1:Yes, Because they're uniquely yours right. No one else is going to have that.
Speaker 2:Well, I think they carry their own meaning. You know, I've got this tapestry that I've hung up above my fireplace and it's just, you know, one of those things that you've just seen throughout your whole entire life. It's very comforting and it doesn't have any meaning to anyone else, but my nan had that up in her house.
Speaker 1:I love that.
Speaker 2:You know, that's something for me and it's something that I can't just go around the corner and find at my big box store Freedom, ikea, west, elm or something like that. But you know, as you also said, they will try to create that look of something that almost is faux distressed. Yes, that has a look of age when it actually isn't old, and I think that's when we get into fad territory.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, for sure, the things that make your home your own will often be those things that have been handed down. Or, like another point we had was you know something that's to do with your culture. So it could be you know that you have family in India and you go back there every year and you pick something up there and you bring that home with you. Or it's just your travels. You know it might not be your particular culture. You really love traveling and so every time you travel, you pick out a vase or an artwork or something small that you bring home with you. I try and do that, for sure, and then that has meaning as well. So I think the other thing with this trend is it's also trying to make sure there's meaning in in the interior and why it's there.
Speaker 1:You didn't just sort of walk into a store and go okay, I really like that, that, that and that. Let's put it all together, which is fine as well, but people don't. People want to be in spaces where they feel connected. They feel connected to it, and to feel connected to it it's often a memory of where it came from or why you bought it or why you love it, all of that stuff, Whereas when you walk into a store I mean, I had furniture for a while where my memories connected to it weren't great because there was arguments about buying- these things you know, like, and I, and that was what was connected to these pieces, and so there weren't wasn't great vibes, right, you need the vibes to be good in the pieces you have.
Speaker 2:Totally. And I think you know we had such a great conversation with Brem in a couple of episodes ago and you know he was just like shocked. He's shocked when he has clients and I've felt the same. They have nothing, they have nothing. You know, I've had a client who was in her sixties and she was downsizing and she had no furniture.
Speaker 2:She'd sold it all but you know, maybe that was a way for her wanting a clean slate or whatever the reasons, were, I didn't go into it, but that's why I love it when a client has a piece of furniture they have bought when they were overseas or they've moved and they've relocated and it's something that they have with them and I build a concept around it. But it is kind of funny because when we look at our Vogue Living and our Bell magazines, they're the very items that are taken out of a photo shoot.
Speaker 1:Often they are, except for at the moment, I think, because those are the things that are creating this look, and I think that I can almost tell her sometimes, you know, you'll see a shoot.
Speaker 1:I was looking at something recently and everything in the room was individually amazing pieces, but it lacked that thing where you were like this feels like someone's home, not a showroom or a gallery, and you can sort of lose that a little bit in that high end too. So I think that's what we're seeing happen in that high end space is that maybe, and maybe the designers are sort of the ones kind of pushing this as well. They are kind of encouraging people to go. Actually, that's you might kind of think that's daggy because it's come from you know, your great-grandparents or whatever, but actually, when we put it in this context, it becomes this unique piece that nobody else has and it makes the room, because it gives the room something that it didn't have before right, and that's, I guess, part of our job. To do that too is to, you know, try and get them to see it in a different light that's exactly what I was going to say.
Speaker 2:I think that's a great designer that can come in and see something that the client you know we see something so often you don't even see it, you know like my tapestry, for sure you know if you're if you're a designer, you can actually see that with a fresh context and think, no, if I pair it with this and this, we can give it a new lease of life and it can help tell your story. And if you don't, you know if you went through that Scandinavian phase and you just got rid of all your stuff?
Speaker 2:you don't have things. I still think you can get that look, but it's not from your big box stores, it's from going to just your local op shop, yes, and finding something that somebody else bought on their travels.
Speaker 1:Yeah, or, marketplace is always great too, right?
Speaker 2:I mean, there's a bit of digging that you have to do absolutely obsessed with marketplace and she's found some incredible things, and these are on a budget as well. But I still think that even though it doesn't tell your story those objects, those pieces of furniture they still tell a story and.
Speaker 2:I think they just give a room, instant soul and atmosphere, yeah, so you know, going to your op shops, going on marketplace, finding some things that somebody else bought on their travel, and you can carry on that story and I love trying to like make up, but I'll, if I buy stuff, I have to make up a story about like who had it and what they did.
Speaker 1:That's cute, that's cute I love it In my head. You know, like, whatever it was, I won't go into it now because I've gone for too long, but yeah, it's nice to just make up a little imaginative story about it.
Speaker 2:I think you can still get that well-travelled look even if you haven't travelled, so don't let that stop you.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:I think that leads on to our number two sort of interior design trend for 2025, which is really that overarching theme of spaces that are lived in.
Speaker 1:Definitely.
Speaker 2:And I mean that's something that I bang on about a bit and I mean you're thinking, hang on, what do you mean lived in? Obviously, we live in our houses, but I think it's previous sort of styles that clean, almost again. Going back to that Scandinavian look there's cupboards, put everything away, and the minute that you put your phone down on the kitchen island bench it stands out because everything is so packed away that you can't even relax and live in your space.
Speaker 2:And yeah, I guess that's my childhood everything had to be always put away, so I feel very, um rebellious leaving stuff out. So I love this lived in?
Speaker 1:look, yeah, it definitely is. Uh, I feel like it's it's kind of just pushing back on the fact that we're seeing a lot of overly curated spaces, I think in the past. And then AI images, which are quite perfect right, they're a little bit too perfect. There's something missing there, and so what we're seeing is this you know, we want spaces to be real, we want authenticity, and so sometimes that comes with, you know, a bit of clutter and the fact that, well, this is the space that I live in and read books or whatever it is you do there, so it needs to look like that. I do that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, like I think exactly what you said.
Speaker 2:It's a space that we live in, so make it look like we live in it and actually create and design our spaces to allow for that ease of living that things still look great when there is a spot to put them on display, whereas I think, with you know, there's really clinical white kitchens where there was just overhead cupboards, storage, storage, storage for days, which don't get me wrong. That's fantastic. And we're not talking about leaving your Tupperware out on display. It's those, you know, handmade your favourite mugs, your favourite dishes, your favourite, you know, salt and pepper grinders, like they're aesthetic appliances that you leave out. Yes, yeah, and it's just part of living with ease. It's like effortless.
Speaker 1:I struggled with that for a long time. I have to say I hate stuff on kitchen benches. I don't even like my toaster. I mean. I guess if you had like something was quite beautiful. Mine are pretty basic stainless steel, not super fancy. But I've recently, I think, moved towards going. No, you know, I actually like a bit of the olive oil and the salt dish and that stuff because it does feel more real and then you can think about those things in a more fun way and go okay. Well, if they're going to be on the bench, why don't we make them cute and add to the aesthetic of the space?
Speaker 2:But I did struggle with that. I know it is a huge, yeah, mind shift, I guess, but I think it comes back to you're not overly styled, easy, and I think you know we want to talk about kitchens and kitchen trends in a whole other episode, because there's so many things to talk about with you know. Kitchens and that in terms of materiality, design and just how we're living in our kitchens yeah, definitely too much to talk about today. And I suppose when we're talking about those lived-in interiors, it's engaging all five senses as well, which I love, definitely.
Speaker 1:I mean, you and I are huge fans of music that can set a mood. Lighting we've talked about this and we'll probably continue to. You know, rattle on about how important lighting is, but then scent as well, right? So so you know, using beautiful candles and even that comes back to lighting as well. I was away on New Year's Eve at a beautiful home down in Rye and I remember sort of sitting there at night with the group of people and how wonderful it was that there were I think there was maybe some lights on in the background that were pointed at something beautiful, but we just had like two taper candles and then some lower sort of lantern candles on the table and everyone just sitting around and, wow, it was so relaxing.
Speaker 2:And everyone looks good too. It's very flattering light. Well, I've gone to the dark side because I have bought fake candles.
Speaker 1:Wow, they are easier.
Speaker 2:You know why, though, are they the right?
Speaker 1:color though.
Speaker 2:They are. I got them from West Elm and they do a really nice flicker as well. It was because I'm so sick of replacing my candles, because I've got them outside in like a glass lantern at the front door like kind of like a Scandinavian kind of thing, and they melt in the sun and I'm like, oh, that's so annoying, they keep melting and falling over, and spilling everywhere.
Speaker 2:So anyway, I think that it's actually beautiful. It does give you that ambience and I mean, yeah, nothing beats the real thing, but in a, you know, southern hemisphere summer.
Speaker 1:Sometimes we need a bit of practicality.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they melt, but yeah, I think, lighting it just definitely if you can create pockets of light where you are actually living or ambient light as a backdrop. You know, as you said, Lots of options of lights, like don't just have.
Speaker 1:I mean, I think a lot of people would just go I have down lights and then there's a full stop after that. It's so easy to add just lamps, just add lamps, put candles on the table. You know, when you're chilling out at night, turn it off, even if you're watching the tv, like just having a lamp as well. I don't know. There's just something about that mood that can be created with lighting. Anyway, we'll off. We're probably going to go on about lighting forever, but forever.
Speaker 1:I'm never going to stop because it's so impactful but that sort of comes back to like when you said um, creating like spaces where the light sort of I don't know delineates an area, um that that's the other thing we're seeing is like people creating beautiful little corners in their home or I guess we would call it a vignette where you know there might be a beautiful chair and maybe it's not a chair you even sit on, it's a little bit sculptural, or it's an older vintage piece and it has a little table next to it, maybe there's a plant, maybe there's a lamp or a little piece of art. But just creating those little moments where, when you walk through your home and you clock that, you kind of go.
Speaker 1:Oh, I love that you have that little moment of going. Oh, I love that.
Speaker 2:That's I think something that's happening too. I love that and I've actually said that to a client. I said once well, we've got our sofa here, this is where we're going to. You know, sink in, enjoy watching tv. But we'll have like an armchair, but maybe a slightly sculptural armchair. Probably wouldn't sit in it every day.
Speaker 1:And he just looked at me like I had three heads well, some people are overly practical and don't I think they undervalue um beauty in a way. Right, not everything has to have a practical use. It can be there just to bring you joy, and that is its definition. Like it doesn't have to be. What am I going to sit on that chair for? Well, you're not. Maybe you'll put your shoes on one day, but maybe you'll never sit on it. But you'll have those moments where you look at it and go it's beautiful, I love it. That's just as important, surely.
Speaker 2:Yeah, a chair in a hall at the end of a hallway, but if there's three people living in their home and there's enough sofa space for them, and then that extra chair is for when you have guests over. Yeah, you might not be sitting on there for two hours watching your Netflix series or whatever, but yeah, I think that is something that people really struggle with, that putting aesthetics sometimes in front of comfort.
Speaker 2:We're not totally throwing comfort out the door because we've still got our comfortable sofa, but I don't know, does that kind of go against that lifting look? Well, I think it's about enjoying your space and really enjoying and living in every part of it, even if it's comfort for sitting in and I've sort of said that, comfort for the eye to be really enjoying every single corner.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so, like you know, I think that if your whole home feels like some kind of gallery or showroom or you know interiors showroom, where you kind of just like put everything there and there's no love in it, there's no lived in aspect, then that's what we're sort of saying isn't like that very minimalist look where everything is put away and there's no hint of a human. That's what we're saying is kind of not working. The opposite of that is what we want.
Speaker 2:Love it. I heard this term bookshelf wealth and I was like, oh, I love that and again it's about not always putting away everything, and remember that trend where there was, you would face your book spines the other way, so that all you would see is like a white beige sort of yes, that's ridiculous. It's very contved. It's not about living in a space.
Speaker 1:No, it's about filling shelves, isn't it?
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's meaningless. Whereas bookshelf wealth. The way I like to interpret that is that books are not colour-coded, they are just. They're not perfectly arranged.
Speaker 1:It's just an abundance of books and again, it's something that you can't just get in a day that's so true, I have a slight obsession with books, which you probably already know, but I like old books as well, like trying to find older books and not just buying lots of new ones. I do try and avoid the colour coding, because there's definitely a part of me that wants to do that.
Speaker 2:Oh, I love doing it, don't get me wrong, and I don't rainbow it, but I do lightly groove them into black books. Yes, it needs to still be aesthetic to me.
Speaker 1:I've seen some bookshelves which have a whole heap of fantastic books on there, but it does my head in. I look at it and it kind of almost gives me anxiety because it just looks so much better.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I don't want to pull them all out and rearrange them.
Speaker 1:Like a crooked picture. You know it's like.
Speaker 2:Oh, I know, I think it's all the different. I think maybe grouping them into size would be better.
Speaker 1:Yeah, definitely, because if they're all like I think they've also it can't be too crazy to the eye Like you need. I think it can't be too crazy to the eye. You need to have I don't know some logic to the bookshelf, even if it's about what you have there. Maybe you've got it in kind of genres or something you know, or your travel books are together and you know your novels are in a different spot and often that kind of ends up being similar sizes anyway, but yeah, you know Flack Studio David has an incredible collection of books, yeah, and I love to go in and have a look at his bookshelves because they just look just absolutely wealthy with books.
Speaker 1:Yes, okay.
Speaker 2:Well, so we've talked about this lived-in look, which I think. Then, our next trend we've noticed is back to formal living rooms with no TVs or screens.
Speaker 1:I don't think we have to be careful of the word formal, don't we? I? Do think that because Because we're saying you still use. I feel like when we grew up, a formal living room was like the good front room that nobody sat in. It just looked beautiful and mum was like don't put that there or whatever it is, whereas we're saying it's dusty. It can still be obviously a beautiful, you know good front room but it's used, but not to watch tv that's right.
Speaker 2:So what do you think about um a room with no big black square on the wall?
Speaker 1:yes, placing that.
Speaker 2:Placing that with an artwork how fabulous, yeah, and then reorientating the furniture towards people.
Speaker 1:So that we're having conversations, yeah.
Speaker 2:So I think that would be quite indulgent, quite luxurious to have a space like that. But I also think, coming back to trends, yes, are people tuning into the six o'clock news every night?
Speaker 1:Never.
Speaker 2:No, that would be depressing, but my dad would it would be In fact. I think I've been to his place before.
Speaker 1:He's like we've been doing something else and suddenly he's like putting the TV, and so I'm like what are you doing? He goes six o'clock, it's time for the news. Oh we still do that. I just go and get my news when I feel like it because we've got access to that Right and I also I mean we won't get too political. But I also find like generally, depending on what channel you're watching, that's not the news I want to watch.
Speaker 2:I know, I know, but I think it does come back to you know, trends. You know people go oh, they're just not important. And who cares about trends? I People go oh, they're just not important. And who cares about trends? I don't follow trends. Well, I think. Not watching the 6 o'clock news has been a huge change in our viewing habits.
Speaker 1:Well, it's streaming too right, it's access to things when we want them, whereas before you'd be like, oh you know, I'm trying to think of an example Dawson's Creek is on at 8.30 or whatever, and we have to all be in the lounge room watching it.
Speaker 2:We saw something quite cool about that too. Yeah, we used to do that. That's true, because now we could all be in different rooms watching different things quite easily, and I think that does segment a family a little bit, where you would all come together to watch a show, whereas now everyone's on their own individual screen.
Speaker 1:But maybe that opens it up right to having the room that doesn't have the screen and it's just so like because there's a screen in the bedroom or there's a portable screen. You kind of watch a lot of stuff on my iPad that you take from room to room, so maybe the TV becomes a little bit less important because we're not centralized around being in that space watching that one screen. So it opens it up to maybe being a room where you hang out, have a conversation, have a drink, play a board game, read a book, all of that stuff, Love it.
Speaker 2:Well, I mean, that's what I was wondering. People think trends aren't important, but here is a big trend and it's directly influencing how we live in our spaces. Yeah directly influencing how we live in our spaces. But do you think it's a room devoid of screens altogether? Because I think, as you said, people have their individual screens and maybe instead of having that one communal screen, we all have our own individual screens, and then we need to allow for provisions like power so that if you are on your laptop, ipad, you can plug in.
Speaker 2:I mean, I'm just trying to feel like real life here. It would be so cool if we all just sat around and talked but in real life not everybody has.
Speaker 1:Um we're talking about bram again, but I'm just thinking he gave a really great example of them being in a small. You know um, he was an apartment space and they ended up putting the tv room in like kind of their spare room and it just changed the whole way they live. So they went specifically in there to watch something and that was the space with the TV, and then they kept their kind of main living area without a TV so that it was a bit more conducive to conversation and other things, and I love that. But I'll put it out there that say, most families might not have the option for a TV room and a living room, or even if we call it a formal lounge room. So I think the option there is to try and have a TV that can be a piece of art. You know the Samsung frame Thank you, had a moment, and I think it is obviously more TVs that do that now or it's hidden. In comes your designer piece of joinery sliding door, something clever.
Speaker 1:I've seen so many clever hacks for that, though that aren't, you know, big joinery pieces that cost a fortune. Yeah, so maybe it's about just minimizing the focus of the room around that one black box.
Speaker 2:I think that you know is something we have strived for for many years, interior designers. Whenever the client says think that you know is something we have strived for for many years, interior designers. Whenever the client says, oh no, you know, he wants the biggest TV that's on the market, you just your heart sinks.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:But I think it's becoming more of a reality. I think that slowly we are seeing a shift away from wanting that big black square on the wall. Yeah for sure, time will tell. We can hope, yes, yes, we can hope yeah.
Speaker 1:We have touched on this one, but vintage and antiques and you've done a little bit of a like we had this conversation before. But okay, antique versus vintage what's the difference and what was your take on that, lauren?
Speaker 2:Well, I always just understood that antiques were anything older than 100 years old. So therefore, when we describe something as vintage, it's something that's not as old as 100 years. So it could be something from the 70s and 80s. And I think I grew up you know my mum and still does go to antique stores all the time, so we were just dragged through antique store after antique store as kids Don't touch this, don't touch this, don't touch that. Are we going yet? And my mum, you know, bought lots of antiques and back in the 80s and 90s there was a huge country, almost a bit of a Victorian revival, and my mum was all in on that.
Speaker 2:And we have seen all of these incredible pieces handcrafted wood, inlay, one-of-a-kind pieces be sold for next to nothing and my prediction is maybe not this year, but in a few years time, we actually see a huge appreciation for even going back, as you know, victorian pieces in our homes, because they are one-of kind, they are quality, they are readily available and they're really affordable. I don't know. I was doing a lot of research trying to find examples of interiors with these older antiques and I didn't find a lot.
Speaker 1:But yeah.
Speaker 2:I did see Brim as we were talking about. He comes up a lot because I love his work.
Speaker 1:He's just imparted too much wisdom for us not to reference him.
Speaker 2:He really did. But I think the key is if you are using an incredible antique piece brown furniture, it's kind of known as you need to pair it with a contemporary artwork and it creates that really cool tension and it needs to be not all antiques's mingling within other areas, not about creating a look that's from one specific um point in time.
Speaker 1:It needs to. It needs to be relevant by making, because I feel like it starts to feel a bit reproduction, even if it's real right. If everything is of a particular moment and that's not, I don't know, I don't feel like it's relevant, but what?
Speaker 1:what is relevant is having lots of moments from different eras brought together to make something meaningful in a space right, and that's the difference, I think, when we when we talk about antique and I feel like we, that probably brings to mind somewhere that's quite stuffy and and, like you said, like don't touch anything, you know, sort of those sort of spaces, um, but this look that we're heading towards, like don't touch anything, you know, sort of those sort of spaces, but this look that we're heading towards, which is a bit more, you know, even just that lived in or you know, having that meaning, that individual connection, that's where it can come from, adding those sort of special pieces, particularly if you've spent time hunting it down. I think Totally that gives it a lot more meaning, doesn't it? Oh, definitely, I think Totally it gives it a lot more meaning, doesn't it?
Speaker 2:Oh, definitely, yeah, I think that it is mid-century modern, has been so strong and has really dominated, and I think what we're going to see less of is that kind of museum. Look, here's the classic, iconic mid-century pieces everywhere. It's about having, definitely, you know, holding onto them, but it's mingling with those, oh, unexpected, incredible inlay dresser next to the artwork, next to the mid century piece and the 1930s unusual lamp. I don't know, Like I think Athena Calderon is doing that as well.
Speaker 2:She's got an amazing mid-century beach house. She's mixed in pieces from the 70s, even older and contemporary. That's really interesting. It's kind of a collector look, isn't it?
Speaker 1:It's like you've been collecting things that you love and then you're sort of bringing them all together and it does hark back as well to a really important, forever overarching trend that you know will never stop now, which is sustainability. So it's far more sustainable to, you know, search for pieces, particularly locally, that have been pre-loved, yes, and you just giving them a new lease of life by putting them into your space or even restoring them in some way or upholstering them in something fun and sort of shifting the narrative a little bit of a piece that's maybe vintage, but then you put a modern fabric, or maybe it gets repainted or whatever it is. But that feeds into that eclectic look, but it also feeds into a need for being more sustainable with what we put in our homes, right?
Speaker 2:Definitely. And you know, because you know I might be saying, oh, you know, we're seeing less mid-century. It doesn't mean, oh my God, well, I've got these amazing mid-century pieces. Do I need to change that? Of course not. But you know, as we were talking to our friend Simone, simone Haig, a few weeks ago ago and in one of her clients has an Eames lounge chair and again it's an iconic piece we've just seen so often, and reupholstering that in an unexpected fabric just gives it a whole new lease of life.
Speaker 1:For sure?
Speaker 2:So yeah, it's just reimagining those pieces and making them a little less predictable, Definitely so. Number five is color drenching, which we have seen in the past few years. But what about pattern?
Speaker 1:drenching. Yes, I love this and I also think, like you know, the drenching is a new word, but really we mean, you know, like immersive color or even color blocking, which was when we started to see those tonal interiors. So color blocking became less about like literally a block of color on a wall or whatever, and more about the fact that you chose a color like a blue or a terracotta, and then you use that color in different inferences throughout the space. And now you know, the extension of that is having lots of pattern and a clash of pattern, you know so, also usually with colour and not and kind of making sure. I think the way to do it is mixing the scale of the pattern and the style of it. So you could have, like you know, a tiny floral with a wide stripe, or, but, like you know, it doesn't have to be two, it could be ten.
Speaker 2:Well, I think that the person that has done it. One of the best ways is nicole nicole from atelier nd like looking at her examples is she uses a small scale pattern, almost like a paint color yeah around as a backdrop, a small scale pattern, and then, because it's a small scale, people think oh my god, isn't that going to be so busy? It's actually the opposite.
Speaker 1:Your eye doesn't read every single intricate pattern. Yeah, you're right, we both did this with. And then, because it's a small scale, people think, oh my God, isn't that going to be so busy?
Speaker 2:It's actually the opposite, your eye doesn't read every single intricate pattern.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you're right, we both did this with our fingers, like a little dusting, a little pattern. It's our version of jazz hands, interior hands.
Speaker 2:But it's, yeah, it's a small scale pattern. It reads as a I don't know an overall surrounding, immersive, I guess, as you say, immersive backdrop to a larger scale pattern. Yeah, and I think that's the key Small scale plus a wider stripe, a big scale pattern. So when we meet, we just mean the pattern repeat. How often that little scale pattern repeats and tying it together with similar colours? Yeah, so that's key as well.
Speaker 1:And I get that look is not going to be for everyone. It's that maximalism look that we've spoken to Evie about. But I think that you choose the patterns or the colours that you really love and you know that's the thing we've talked about as well is that you're decorating. It's a joyful look. It's not a serious look. It's one you do because you want to feel like uplifted in that space or like you know it's a bit quirky and it makes you smile, like it's definitely, you know, looking for joy, I think.
Speaker 2:And it's not an accidental space. Those spaces are very carefully considered and very carefully planned because color drenching I mean that's quite bold to choose a paint color. Paint the walls, trims, doors, ceiling, in all the one color.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:But pattern drenching is really for the brave. You really can't just happen on that by accident. It is quite planned.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's true.
Speaker 2:I think we've also seen material drenching, so that could be even, you know, marble kitchens, marble bench, marble splashback, marble shelf, yeah, even, maybe even marble cupboard fronts, like there's that kind of that material just really going hard on that yeah, yeah, making a very strong statement with one particular material.
Speaker 1:Yeah, material drenching, yeah, drenching everything.
Speaker 2:Maybe even tile it's very wet out there it is. You know, we get carried away with these terms, don't we? We do.
Speaker 1:Well, I guess they're not backlash to that. But there's a reason it exists and we've already referred to it in our other episode where we talked about what's out and we just use neutrals as an example of trends that are kind of coming through and why. But neutrals are definitely on the rise. We obviously saw a huge rise in color and people gaining so much confidence in the use of color, which is fantastic, and neutrals are always there in the background, but I think that popularity is sort of rising now because of that comfort factor and people do want to feel safe and those neutral tones, particularly the warm ones, I don't think we're talking about.
Speaker 1:You know, when we say neutral, neutral technically means it sort of isn't warm or cool and sort of sits in the middle and can work with everything. We're talking about lots of really warm, light and dark tones. It's earthy and grounding, not sort of lots of whites and cool tones and in that sort of minimalist way we're talking about, I guess, maximalist use of neutral, which comes into right, it's like, because it comes back to. You know, what used to be my favourite word and now I use it probably 500 times a day is tactility. It has to be tactile and that's how we connect to it. It's not soulless it's still got lots of life.
Speaker 2:Okay. So it's not neutral in terms of we'll just paint everything white and we're just going to get a beige rug and a beige sofa. Yes, it's about really ramping up. It's not boring. Yeah, ramping up the texture, the contrast and materials.
Speaker 1:Materiality is probably the other one. So having timber and terrazzo and a marble and a really highly textured dare I say boucle, I mean you know they still have their place as long as it's not cream with white walls.
Speaker 2:A highly textured was the key. Yes, highly textured boucle.
Speaker 1:In fact the boucles that I love now. I mean, I've actually always loved a boucle. We used to do a beautiful carpet back in the day when I was in the carpet industry. Of this like boucle style carpet I kind of wish. I mean I know they still exist, they're usually very expensive but that there was a lot of high and low, so it wasn't like an even texture, it was like really kind of baubley and you know like you could feel the texture as soon as you touched it.
Speaker 1:That's definitely and the mix of that. So it can't all be the same. It has to, you know, be a mix of those textures. So you know like there might be something finer, that's just like a really plush velvet, but against that really textured um fabric and fringing, even so, like it could be very neutral. But then there's fringes on things and skirts on, you know, benches or the bottom of a sofa. So there's a lot of tactility, there's a lot of materiality. So whilst it's a very calming space in terms of the colour, there's still lots of interest happening in the room.
Speaker 2:So it seems like an easy option neutral I don't have to, I'm actually cancelling out colour. Okay, that sounds easy, but it could fall flat pretty easily if you don't implement texture, I think so and contrasting materials, but also even shape, like I think that if you are just going with pretty, maybe very linear things, then it could look quite flat.
Speaker 1:So then that's why you need to throw in a gnarly wood kind of like a live edge coffee table or something like that. Organic Snap.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we should count the amount of times we say the same word at the same time.
Speaker 1:Exactly. No, that's it, I think. And then we did have a little note about um. You know, maybe pop in was like one little smack of color, and it's often red or burgundy yes, or you know, in that tone, just like that unexpected red theory could be a little stool or like, not a lot of it.
Speaker 1:That has to be the right balance, because that's the other thing with the neutrals, I think, and you know where we, when people do think neutral is easy. Um, I think neutrals are actually neutrals and whites are some of the hardest colors to get right and people think it's not until they start to look at it and then they go. They go to the paint store, bunnings or whatever and they go, oh yep, that's great white, and they bring it home and they do a sample. Or they just look at the chip at home and go hang on a minute. Now that doesn't look. It looks kind of green or looks a bit pink, because it changes so much the inference, or don't you mean until they've painted the whole room that colour.
Speaker 1:And then they realise that happens right all the time, please don't do that. Please don't just walk in and buy a tin of paint, thinking it's white, it doesn't matter, and bring it home and paint your room.
Speaker 2:Please paint a test pot or get a large sample of it and check it, because you will be just lucky if it works, I think. Oh, I agree. Um, so we can add that unexpected red in terms of, I think, as you said, a side table.
Speaker 1:I that or it could be.
Speaker 2:you know, I think I saw Tali Roth. She did this base of a sofa in red and it just looks so luxurious it's like a trim, a detail, an accent.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it does add a sense of luxury. You know there's a surprise and it's unexpected, but there is. I think red does hurt towards being it's weird. Red is an interesting color because it can feel very luxurious or it can feel very kind of fast and you know, yeah, not cheap, but you know I think it's.
Speaker 2:It needs to be paired with a lot of wood tones. I think if you're wanting to add that red into a white space, it doesn't work connects back to warmth a little bit, because the wood is obviously going to have warmth in it yeah, it needs to have the warmth it needs to. It can't be like the shiny red splashbacks in a white kitchen, like that's not what we're talking about. Sorry if you have that, because that's not an unexpected red.
Speaker 1:That's just a red that we've seen before in a bad way 2000s thing, I don't know, I feel, oh, it's not good.
Speaker 2:Um, and also I've noticed blue like a light, like a neutral, almost right, yeah, light pale blue.
Speaker 1:It's not too green, it's not too purple, just sort of sits in the middle. It works. So, honestly, blue and brown, or blue and neutral and earthy tones is such a beautiful combination, you know maybe add a bit of chrome against all the warmth ties it back to the blue yeah, now we're talking love that and I think that that brings us to our seventh look that we are predicting for 2025, which is more colour in our bathrooms and kitchens For sure.
Speaker 1:Yeah, we were talking about this before and how I think it does tie back to the very first trend of wanting kind of individual spaces. So you're looking to do that through colour because you don't just want, like, a neutral tile, because, let's face it it, how many neutral tiles are there? How many white tiles are there? Even if you pick one that no one else has, it's still going to look like every other bathroom. So it's like trying to personalize it through color and I think that over the years, with the rise of the use of color and seeing people use it and gaining confidence, we're now at that point where we've got the confidence to invest in tiles or marble or something that's a bit more of a permanent thing than just paint on a wall or a cushion on a couch.
Speaker 2:We can kind of like take that leap now and have have color in bathrooms and and kitchens as well I mean, I think that an all-white kitchen, we are so fatigued by it, it does feel dated to do an all-white kitchen. So we're like okay, well, what are our options? And I think an easy way, an affordable way, is to do a color, because timber kitchens are expensive, yeah, but laminate is quite well, it's fantastic, affordable, yeah, and there's so many great colors that are available in laminates.
Speaker 2:True, yeah, or even like a two-pack paint finish. Then you've got the whole paint color palette to choose from.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And I think you know, as you said, you start small. You start being exposed to spaces with a lot of color, where then you're seeing less of those all-white spaces. So you're gradually getting more used to seeing spaces in colour. You start accessorising and using colour. You start maybe adding a paint colour and then you're working your way up to going. You know what I have dreamed of a pink kitchen. Yes, I think that's something we talked about with Nicole. We talked about that.
Speaker 1:Well, I remember once you went to me, I've dreamed of a pink kitchen. I went, really Didn't pick you having it, and you went no, no, just as an example. Oh, okay.
Speaker 2:Yeah, exactly, I know exactly. Maybe I don't know what colour have I dreamed of as a kitchen? I don't know. I think really just any colour, I think it goes back to that. I want a yellow kitchen Yellow, immersive, that immersive and standing by it and loving it. And I think even Evie in our past episode, I think it was for her that yellow, that example- of painting the room yellow and just actually not realising how much it would add so much joy into her everyday life. Isn't that cool?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean, people do underrate colour and how great it feels to have chosen a colour that you really love or connect with, and I know that's much. I think it is trickier to do. I think people are very scared of doing that for kitchen cabinets because it's a lot more difficult to change it. But I think this is also where, probably, you know, engage a designer or even just like when you're getting your kitchen done, a kitchen designer who knows their stuff and when it comes to colour and knows what works in a space in terms of scale and where you're using it, because we're not necessarily saying it's all one color.
Speaker 1:It might just be you know that the top cabinets are a color, or that you choose a beautiful stone that has like a little thread of color through it and then you pull that color out and connect it back, so it still has to work really well all together, and I think that's that is a trickier thing to do potentially than just choosing all white. But you won't regret it because you'll have an amazing kitchen that isn't dated, because it belongs to you in that way, because it's that combination. Do you know what I mean? Like you didn't go. Oh well, white kitchens are in, so I'll have a white kitchen, so it's the same as everyone else's. When you decide to invest in color or something different in your kitchen, it definitely becomes uniquely yours, right? Which is a trend. Oh, I'm a fan.
Speaker 2:Back to that again, but I think it is. I think we are just getting exposed to more coloured spaces, that we are hopefully going to feel less scared.
Speaker 1:Yes. I think so. I think as don't. I really do. I think so too, yes, I really do.
Speaker 2:No more white kitchens, so good For do. No more white kitchen, so good for now. Yeah, I know it's so funny because we're both blabbing on about it, yet we're going back into our white kitchens, but anyway. So yeah, and I suppose this is the thing as well you know we've sort of said this before brie that you know, these are the things we've observed, these are the things that we have noticed, because we're just always obsessed and we're always looking. It doesn't mean that we are dictating to you that you need to change everything and throw everything out, like that's just not what this is all about um.
Speaker 1:So, but you know, what we want is maybe there's something you connected with that we talked about, that. You went yes, that's what I want, that's how I feel about that particular way of living, or whatever it is. Um, so it's just about awareness and knowing that you have lots of options too. There's never one trend direction too, like you can take something from everything that's going on and still make it your own space, or you can take nothing and just stay with whatever you have, but anyway. But then why would you be listening to us in the first place?
Speaker 2:Love it. Well, yeah, I guess that's our hope, isn't it? That you create your home to be the best it can be, and I think that we know how fulfilling that can be.
Speaker 1:Definitely yeah.
Speaker 2:It's just worth it, it's worth thinking about it and it's worth doing it. So I think that's sort of where we're coming from.
Speaker 1:That sounded like a.
Speaker 2:Dulux ad. Oh my God, I think Dulux should definitely come and sponsor us?
Speaker 1:Yeah, they need to now. Well, it's been so fun to talk about this because we're both obviously quite passionate about it and, yeah, hopefully everybody gets something from it, and we'd love you guys to, you know, jump on our Instagram and pop some comments in when we post. Tell us what you think about it. We really want to know Totally.
Speaker 2:So good. Thanks, Brie.
Speaker 1:Thank you, Lauren Bye.
Speaker 2:Bye. So thank you guys for listening in and just a quick reminder if you would like some help with the interiors for your own home, I can help you in a course called the Style Studies Essentials. Or for designers out there, come into the Design Society for business and marketing and all of the things.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and in the same show notes you'll find a link to sign up for my soon to be released furniture collections, pre-selected furniture collections and cool trend information, and then, in the future, some short courses on styling and trends as well.
Speaker 2:So good Bree. We've got the utmost respect for the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation. They're the OG custodians of this unceded land and its waters, where we set up shop, create and call home and come to you. From this podcast today, A big shout out to all of the amazing elders who have walked before us, those leading the way in the present and the emerging leaders who will carry the torch into the future. We're just lucky to be on this journey together.