The design choices of 2014 are being shaped by uncertainty over how long current home owners will stay and what future buyers’ tastes may be. So, home owners’ needs and style preferences are more influential in today’s designs than what buyers want.
Here are ten changes that design pros and manufacturers say are emerging and will make greater inroads:
- Smarter, Less Costly Automated Controls: With lives continuing to be busy and automation costs coming down, it’s become more affordable to control a home’s systems—temperature, security, electronics, lighting, and more—through a single device, even from an iPhone, iPad, or iPod.
- Outdoor Living Rooms and Screened Porches: A trend that began a few years ago continues to inspire home owners to think beyond terraces and decks. These spaces have more of the feeling and function of an indoor room—better furnishings, fire pits, curtains, and even televisions and audio systems. Some spaces are designed as courtyards for greater privacy, yet with high-efficiency glass windows and doors to make them energy-smart and seamless with indoor rooms.
- Outdoor Kitchens, Vegetable Gardens, and More: Interest continues in outdoor food preparation of all kinds—as simple as a grill and as elaborate as a built-in cook’s station with sink, storage, beer tap, pizza oven, refrigerator, and countertops. Newer amenities include a hybrid grill that permits cooking with both gas and wood or charcoal and prefabricated kitchens that save funds.
- Themed Designs: After years of stark contemporary design, themed decorating is making a comeback.
- Media Frenzy: With more families remaining home for “staycations” rather than traveling, rooms are being devoted to TV and other multimedia entertainment with comfortable seating, tables, and good lighting.
- More Double-Duty Furnishings: This trend means that the one “room” in a house that’s not shrinking is the garage, which is often still big enough for two cars and storage.
- Lighter Looks: Smaller homes and spaces call for scaled-back pieces and better illumination that makes rooms look larger.
- Green Merchandise: Interest in sustainable products and materials keeps attracting attention—particularly when it comes to choosing paints, adhesives, countertops, and flooring.
- Handcrafted Elements: Many home owners desire hand-crafted artisanal pieces for a greater personalized look.
- Stylish Kitchens and Bathrooms: The transitional look—a middle ground between traditional and contemporary—has become more popular.
No matter what the market’s doing though, the best advice you can give to home owners is to make design decisions based on their hearts and wallets rather than media predictions and hype.
Product: Moon Sofa
Product price: £369.00
The Moon Sofa is a straightforward outdoor rattan sofa, in the practical sense, but incorporates a beautiful & contemporary half-moon design.