You may be spending more time around the house these days, devoting more attention to refining the style and personality of your home, and trying to make each room more functional, engaging and stylish.
To inspire you to create the awesomeness you desire for your home, here are some some amazing images of unique, well-designed spaces – stunning baths, to-die-for kitchens, altogether incredible interiors – all to help you get more enjoyment from your home.
To kick off this column, we thought we’d start you off with our Top 5 Home Décor Trends for 2012. The great thing about trends is that they are just like any other set of opinions – you’re always free to take note of what you like and disregard the rest.
Let us know what you think, and how you plan to re-imagine your living space in 2012.
Menswear Inspired
Head of the class in home design trends for 2012, menswear-inspired fabrics and patterns – plaids, houndstooth, herringbone and pinstripes – stand out as the most unique, new trend spotted for 2012 (via 2modern).
Upholstered furniture, throws, pillows and more bearing the classic patterns and clean lines of these iconic menswear fabrics cut a bold, manly swath in the been-there-done-that world of home décor trends for 2012 (via Unexpected Interiors).
Color, Color and More Color…
Each year the folks at Pantone proclaim a must-have color for the year, and Tangerine Tango is “it” for 2012. (One wonders what mysterious methodology they use to come up with these choices – surely there’s secret formula locked away along with the Da Vinci Code in some musty vault.) But hey, if tangerine is not exactly your thing, spin the wheel and choose a different shade, because you need a little color in your life (via Access Decorati).
Jewel tones are also hot again this year (as if they’re ever out of style). Pops of amethyst, sapphire, citrine, purple or even a dash of blazing hot red make great accents (via Access Decorati).
Eastern Flavors
Look east to bring a well-travelled, cultured air to your home’s decor in 2012. Neutral wall paints like gray, ivory, and taupe (shown here with the Knot Collection from the Home Decorators Collection) allow the rich accents of the chair, desk and bookshelf to really come alive.
More exotic, more embellished Asian designs expand to include Moroccan influences. Rich, hand-carved details (as seen here in the living room pieces from the Maharaja Collection at Home Decorators) give a room the swagger of globe-travelling sophistication.
Gold and Mixed Metals
Its always nice to have a little gold lying around, and this year gold tones and accents are high on almost every designer’s list. Gold lends a note of opulence to this Asian inspired bedroom featuring the Nance platform bed and nightstand from our Home Decorators Collection.
Mixed metal accent pieces like this hammered metal bowl echo the current fascination with authenticity and hand-crafted goods in the never-ending cycle of old things becoming new once more.
Green Design
Advances in technology and the growing demand for eco-friendly products like energy efficient lighting make for beautiful healthy homes. This concept kitchen, with a 100% post-consumer recycled paper countertop, recycled glass backsplash and recycled rubbercork flooring is just the beginning of the green living revolution (via houzz).
Starkness in design and color with shots of bright colors
Has a tendency to shock the senses. Not real pleasent
On a daily bases.
There are 3 trends that I’ve read about which I don’t agree with:
1. Wallpaper. Almost everyone I know has said “Once I remove wallpaper, I will NEVER put it up again.” The wallpaper industry will have to work hard to change that attitude.
2. Salad bowl sinks. Attractive, but drop a hair dryer on it or chip it; it’s just annoying and will scream “late 2000′s” down the road.
3. Glass tiles. Other than being “see through,” what’s the difference between these and the horrid little tiles that are probably being ripped out as too 80′s?
Just my opinions. Thanks for reading.
Hi Nancy,
Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us – and thank your for reading The Apron.