I started my design career in fashion, for Calvin Klein. I remember feeling how unfair it was that good design and beautiful fabrics were limited to the privileged and vowed to spend my career designing for the mainstream.
Moving from New York to London, and true to my word, I designed for Marks & Spencer, Miss Selfridge, French Connection, Principles, Asda, then settled into trend and colour for TU @ Sainsbury's.
I loved the eight-week turnaround, the fast pace of meetings, reactive sourcing, and quick decisions. How utterly naive to think this could end well. The amount of clothes one company churned out was enough, but multiply that, and it’s no surprise we are where we are.
Now, twenty years later, I see the same patterns happening within interiors.
Interior trends were always slow, taking years to slowly trickle down from trend shows and famous interior designers before hitting mainstream. But now, social media has fast-tracked the trend cycle, and what would’ve taken years now only takes months.
The pressure to make our homes look relevant, perfect, designed feels at an all-time high. The constant onslaught of sales pitches hidden behind ‘helpful’ interior design advice, or your favourite influencer obsessed over a new product that they handily ‘link below.’
Our homes have become just another commodity. The perfect opportunity to make money for someone else through the continuous launch of new products to make any of our recent purchases feel dated quicker than ever. What was Spring’s hottest look feels tepid by Autumn, and each new drop is designed to unconsciously make us doubt ourselves. Flaunting the replacement in our faces, zapping our confidence to make us feel stupid for choosing last season’s lamp or cushion, let alone still having it in our homes.
But it’s okay, because these, I like to call them instant interiors, are made cheaply and feel disposable for a reason, so you don’t feel so bad for replacing the £30 cushion or lamp, because it didn’t cost that much. But where do they go? They don’t just puff into thin air.
This has to be the most unscrupulous business model there could be, but also the most profitable, and it will continue to benefit if we keep giving it the power. Instead of letting an industry dictate, we can stop letting it doubt our own ability in choosing things we love for our homes.
I know following what everyone else is doing is easier, safer, but we don’t really need anyone else to tell us what to buy; to be fair, we don’t really need to buy anything that frequently. But if we do want to buy something, we shouldn’t let the fear of getting it wrong outweigh the joy and creative process of choosing something we’ve found ourselves and love.
To break the cycle of buying frequent updates, where you can buy pieces that you can keep for years. And I don’t only mean vintage or expensive brands. I have an H&M home cushion cover from seven years ago that I still love and is going strong. Check the quality to see how long you think it will last. I’d go with the rule that most things that aren’t used daily should be able to last years and ideally your lifetime, then still be in good enough condition to pass onto someone else.
Some things we can do if we are buying anything:
If you need to buy anything that will be fixed to your home: flooring, kitchen, windows. Go with the mindset you won’t be replacing… ever.
If you’re buying furniture, invest in pieces that you love and will last. Could it be passed down to your children or someone else? Buy with intention, look after it, then pass it on.
Take your time. Use your wise mind and create some distance between it if you’re unsure; take a walk, leave it in your basket, put it on hold. Don’t rush.
Choose things that tell your story and share a little about you, not someone else. You will love it more if it’s personal.
Unsubscribe from email updates and unfollow anyone who pushes instant interiors.
Be proud when you ignore the latest product launches.
Know that making a home has absolutely nothing to do with trends.
Don’t ask an interior designer/influencer for details of anything they are subtly selling.
Instant Interiors: Fast fashion for the home. Retailers mass-produce passing interior trends quickly and cheaply, through frequent new releases to encourage consumers to treat homeware as temporary and disposable.
Back in February, I wrote this piece about trends and to only buy into them with your eyes open. Only six months later, and silver has hit the high street, arches have already been poo-pooed, the lived-in look has been made commercial and dark wood is on the rise.
I’m going to say it: interior designer Heidi Caillier has a lot to answer for. I’m sure invisible cash registers ting every time Caillier releases a photo from a recent project, as they know it will inspire a plethora of products perfect for convincing their customers this is what they now need in their homes. I’m also guessing it’s only a matter of time before she has her own products to launch that can be copied.
Working within trends for the last 20 + years, I can see the patterns of the gentle nudging of things into the opposite direction. So, if you are ever unsure if you’re buying into a trend, see if it’s flooding your feed and if you can notice the opposite slowly appearing.
Zendaya’s ghost lashes are a brilliant example. You couldn’t get anything more opposite to big fake stick-on lashes if you tried.
I write to help reduce any shame or pressure around our homes. I’m pointing out looks that will start to look dated because of the nature of instant interiors, not to tell you you made a mistake or to shame you. I do hope you chose everything in your home because you loved it.
Because if you love something, you won’t care. If you do enjoy buying into the latest looks, I’m sharing this to help you make an informed decision and be aware it could look dated quicker than you’d hope.
Other opposites I think we’ll see more of from interior designers/influencers/retailers:
We’ve had long curtains with an exposed pole for quite a while now, and I’ve seen shorter curtains and pelmets making a strong return.
Long curtains and pole by Studio McGee - Short curtains by Cote de Folk. Pelmet by Beata Heuman.
Veiny marble, I feel bad saying this, and I really hope anyone who chose this was because they loved it, and not because it was cool, because it won’t be cool for much longer. Wood and stainless steel worktops will replace it… sorry.
Veiny marble worktop and splashback by House Nine Design - Wooden worktop by Heidi Caillier.
I’m so happy to see this one go - tonal over-styled shelves will be replaced with the things bookshelves are made for; books, ornaments, life. Just gutted it’s now a trend.
Clean, organised, overstyled shelves by Amber Lewis Design - Messy, overcrowded shelves by Heidi Caillier
Kendall Jenner’s floral sofa will inspire many a sofa over the next few months/years.
Plain white sofa by Studio McGee - Patterned sofa by Heidi Caillier
Pattern won’t be limited to sofas. Get ready for a clash of pattern and say goodbye to tonal. Patterned curtains will be commercial, and wallpaper will be big. Wallpaper is expensive, difficult to put up and a pain to remove; please go into this trend with your eyes WIDE open.
Tonal colours and prints by House Nine Design - Mismatched and clashing above and wallpapered hallway below, both by Heidi Caillier. Wall panelling will most likely fall out of favour soon and be replaced with wallpaper.
Other opposites to watch out for:
Banquette seating = Round dining table
Painted kitchens = Dark wood or chrome
Built-in boot rooms = Freestanding furniture in hallways
Bathroom vanity = Pedestal sink
Black and white checkerboard tiles = Natural stones
Zellige tiles = Small mosaic tiles 90’s vibe
Brass taps, handles = Silver
Sludgy paint colours = Cleaner, bright tones and gloss will be back, especially now that Caillier posted the image on the left of a current project.
Trends
Wellness will be a big trend and packaged up as something to buy, but you can’t buy calm; please don’t fall for it. Feeling calm comes from within; work on that before you buy a candle, ‘cosy chair and cosy blanket’
I think Art Deco will slowly influence homeware. Tiffany-style glass shades could replace pleated fabric shades at mass-market level.
As always, I encourage you to do whatever you want with your home. And the best thing you could do if you need to buy anything for your home is give yourself a social media ban for two weeks leading up to the purchase. I guarantee you’ll buy something completely different without the influence.
Thank you for reading!
Claire x
P.S. The temperature of the room I’m writing in is 30.5 degrees. If there are typos or it doesn't make sense, please let me know if I have below… I apologise; at least you know I haven’t used AI!
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