Hottest Trends From This Year’s Top Design Events

Couldn’t make it to High Point or Milan? We take you to the latest design events in spirit with a roundup of the trends evident at the industry’s biggest design gatherings. The spring design events really set the tone for the year, revealing the directions that will dominate the furnishing and accessories space for months to come. Let’s take a virtual tour of the most recent design events and review the innovations that took center stage.

Interwoven 2023: A Look at What’s Next

High Point Market: Colors and Shapes Abound

This year’s High Point Market in North Carolina was awash in color, shapes and personality. Gone was the neutral color palette and crisp straight lines so prevalent over the past several years. In their place: deeper, darker colors, often in bold patterns and stripes, combined with lots of soft curves, evident in everything from chairbacks and headboards to coffee tables and lighting fixtures. Showroom after showroom accentuated how curved shapes can add flow and motion to a room while creating a natural feel that’s a stark contrast to the minimalism that once ruled.

The shift to all things natural was evident in the predominance of organic and eco-conscious materials, along with natural wood furnishings, finishes and textures. Many manufacturers showcased outdoor performance fabrics made from ecologically friendly components, more responsibly sourced and produced, including options free of PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances).

Performance fabrics also featured prominently in the indoor furnishing lineup, thanks to technological advancements that make them comfy enough for indoor use too. And to extend the use of our beloved outdoor spaces—no matter the time or temperature— manufacturers used the High Point stage to promote a wide range of outdoor lighting and heating options, including rechargeable lanterns and tabletop fire pits.

Milan Week: Making a Bold Statement

At Salone del Mobile Milano—the Milan Furniture Fair, an annual Milan Week staple—designers were treated to dramatic installations from the likes of Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Prada, Dolce & Gabbana and other world-renowned brands.

Not surprisingly, a common theme that permeated a number of these displays was our penchant for outdoor living. Luxurious fabrics and furnishings that were once relegated to indoor use took center stage in beautiful outdoor spaces, demonstrating that the best designs can provide a seamless experience.

Ease: combining eco-friendly design, recycled or natural materials and earth-inspired colors of blues and greens

Hosted by the International Textile Alliance, Interwoven 2023 at High Point proved a fabric lover’s paradise. Designers especially flocked to the event’s newest feature: the Interwoven Trend Galleries, created to reflect consumer preferences in the form of new textile options. Curated by Fashion Snoops, the galleries featured four themes intended to represent where textiles are headed next:

Design: characterized by organic shapes and materials, along with a mix of warm colors and neutrals, for a look that blends minimalism and comfort

Vitality: bringing together organic materials with bright, vibrant color schemes and the polish of metallics, glass and silicone

Honored Legacy: mixing heirloom and modern styles with rich textures like brass and leather and colors that run deep

Texture was also on full display at Interwoven, with plenty of applications for the outdoor spaces our lives now revolve around. The new Sunbrella showroom featured a wide array of performance fabrics at different levels and price points, including the Richard Frinier collection. And Culp showcased its LiveSmart Solutions line of indoor/ outdoor fabrics, which combine the best of both worlds: the easy cleanup and durability needed to stand up to the elements with the same softness and suppleness that consumers expect of their indoor fabrics.

For example, Armani opened up its local headquarters at the Palazzo Orsini for the launch of its first outdoor furniture collection, with sofas, tables, lounges and accessories gracing the gardens and adjacent spaces. Meanwhile, Tuuci displayed its Ocean Master MEGA MAX parasol available in sizes up to 24 feet, designed to withstand sustained winds up to 45 mph and gusts to 75 mph. Combining robust construction with elegant style, it’s the kind of shading solution that will surely feel right at home in the most expansive of outdoor spaces. And for those who like to ponder the what-ifs, Tuuci provided a Virtual Shade Studio that uses gaming technology to allow the user to see various outdoor shading designs come to life in vivid 3D.

No matter what the client’s style, preferences or personality, this season’s top design events offered something for everyone. How it all plays out is up to the designer’s vision!

International Window Coverings Expo 2023: We’re Motoring!

Whether they went in search of stylish and functional window coverings for indoor rooms or innovative shading solutions that make outdoor spaces more livable, designers discovered no shortage of options at this year’s International Window Coverings Expo (IWCE) in Charlotte, NC. And if there was a dominant theme to their offerings, motorization was it!

Horizons was among the many suppliers that demonstrated the ease and convenience of motorized shading systems, offering the same coordinating fabrics in both roller and pleated roman shade styles for a cohesive look across every room in the home. Likewise, automation was on full display at Somfy’s booth, where visitors got to test out the company’s motorized shades using a remote or phone app. Somfy’s innovative solution makes it easy to organize shades into groups, then raise or lower an entire room’s window coverings with one touch.

With outdoor living now one of the hottest home trends, what would IWCE be without the industry’s top outdoor window covering suppliers! Insolroll was one of many manufacturers exhibiting motorized retractable screens perfect for keeping out the sun and the bugs while providing unimpeded views of the great outdoors.

From interior rooms to exterior living spaces, designers and their clients are using color more generously, as the spring 2023 design events underscored. Bold hues were in abundance everywhere—from indoor furniture and accessories to cabana fabrics, sun-shading umbrellas and upholstered lounges for the most luxurious outdoor areas—whether in solids, stripes or patterns.

While technology tends to dominate the outdoor window covering scene right now, the importance of aesthetics didn’t go unnoticed. Forest Drapery Hardware showed off its design offerings, including drapery rods in metallics, hollow acrylic and a showstopping rose gold. And for those who like the natural look of wood but prefer a softer feel, Alta Window Fashions displayed a new woven wood shade with a zero-gravity lift system for easy operation.

Hues & Views

What’s Trending on the Color Palette

When color authority Pantone revealed its 2023 spring/summer color forecast, the 15 selected shades included just five subtle neutral colors and 10 bolder, more playful ones. The five Core Classics embrace quiet, calming hues with the versatility to span interior and exterior spaces, like the serene effect of aquabased Skylight, the softness of Vanilla Cream or the freshness of Leek Green. The shades are all about impact, from the deepness of Beetroot Purple and the dramatic orange of Tangelo to the bright pink of Crystal Rose and the fun-loving Peach Pink. And in a nod to a summer barbeque staple, Empire Yellow pays homage to the classic yellow mustard.

So what colors are likely to dominate in the latter half of 2023?

Taking a page from Pantone’s 2023 Color of the Year—the vivid, eye-popping Viva Magenta—many of the colors forecast to serve as focal points this year are big on impact. In fact, Pantone’s color trend report for this fall predicts that vibrant colors will rule the day—a trend the company believes is influenced by the vividness of the colors that consumers experience on their digital devices. Think: the reddish fuchsia of Rose Violet, the earthy brown of Burnt Sienna, the richness of Red Dahlia or the deep blue of Eclipse.