 Nature Inspired Interiors 2009
Interior trends for the New Year look set to be influenced by the Credit Crunch. For one thing we could well be spending more free time at home, so we'll be needing our homes to provide us with a calm and welcoming retreat, as well as making for an interesting and cosy interior in which to entertain friends and family.
Secondly, with the slow down in the housing market and more of us deciding to stay put for the time being, we may find ourselves thinking about how we can create more space and storage.
Nature & Nurture
Perhaps we've become a bit disillusioned with the economy, but it seems like more of us are yearning for the simpler life of bygone times, and more of a connection with the natural world in our daily lives. Schemes inspired by nature create a more gentle and calming atmosphere than bold Wow Factor statements. All that's needed is to take your cue from the limitless colour combinations found in the natural environment – for example the rich berry colours, deep dark browns and mossy greens of woodland foliage, the dusky pinks, bronze and indigo of a sunset, or the muted greys, blues and browns of the seashore to name but a few.
To create a feeling of space, use more muted colours for the overall colour scheme and keep richer tones for accent colours. If however you're after a more opulent look, you can use a warm, darker tone on a feature wall, with lighter warm toned colours on the others. Use deep shades of chocolate brown, burgundy and plum for furniture and upholstery, and contrast with accents of cream, pale gold and ochre for your cushions, lampshades and so forth. Try using fabric or paper which has a reflective quality, even if only subtle, to help light and keep the scheme from being too heavy.
There are some wonderful textured and special effect wallpapers that create surface interest with everything from grasscloth to flaked cork studded with metallic pieces, and hessian effect papers to real silk (treated to prevent staining). And of course there is plenty to choose from if you prefer to stick to the natural theme using a more conventional paper displaying the delicate motifs of flora and fauna.
Natural materials too such as granite, slate, limestone, metal and wood all help bring the outside inside. Even better if their surfaces have a natural patina or are weathered. Matt brass for example makes an interesting change to shiny chrome for metal fixtures around the house.
A simple collection of driftwood or pebbles is also effective. But if you're feeling a bit more adventurous, you can even go for the huge fabric pebbles by French designer Stephanie Marine ( http://www.smarin.net/ ) which act as chairs, cushions, bean bags or even ottoman which both kids and adults alike will love!
 Livingstones by Stephanie Marine
This look is all about texture so where possible use natural or tactile fibres such as cotton, wool, linen, silk, velvet and cord. Use plenty of cushions and throws and experiment juxtaposing different textures such as wood with metal, leather with stone or fabric with shells.
Suggested wallpapers:
Brian Yates – Papyrus, Filigrane, Helium, Highlights - Arte
Galerie – Texstyle 3, Woodland, Pacifika, Grasscloth
Nono – Invito
Osbourne & Little – Papilio Vinyl
Ronald Redding Designs – Designer Backgrounds
Suggested fabrics:
Harlequin do a wide range of natural colours and textured fabrics
Designers Guild Essentials – Naturally 2
Eastern Promise
 
The London and New York catwalk collections for Spring 2009 have been heavily influenced by all things Japanese. As the boundaries between the fashion and interiors industry are becoming increasingly blurred, this look can easily be carried into your home.
Opt for a blossom pattern paper and create a feminine look for a bedroom by papering all four walls, or go for a more subdued look by choosing more masculine colours and papering a single wall. Combine with simple furniture and broad picture frames in dark wood or black lacquer to balance the look.
Suggested fabrics & wallpapers:
Harlequin – Tamika (Fabric & Wallpaper)
Romo – Rubani (Fabric & Wallpaper)
Thibault – Teahouse, Tidewater (Fabric & Wallpaper)
Digiwall
The boundaries of wallpaper are being pushed forward so that your walls can become a works of art in themselves. One way to achieve this is to blow up your own photograph (or licenced image) to room size proportions. Images can be anything from snapshots of your family, misty forests, giant flowers or even satellite imagery. By choosing the right image, you can even create the illusion of more space in a small room – look for images which provide a view. Prices usually start at about £40 a square metre for this service.
Suggested wallpapers:
Vescom and Muraspec create digital wallpapers from your own/licensed image
Nono – Wallpower – variety of abstract photographic images.
Eclectic
An imaginative mix of furniture and accessories makes for a more interesting room than a fully coordinated look. Try contrasting vintage with new, natural objects with manmade and so forth. Create unity by grouping items of the same or similar colour or grouping disparate tems in a display cabinet. Get your personal treasures and family heirlooms on display – they tell your life story after all and make your house a home, not a magazine page!
Save on Space
Unifying colour schemes throughout the house will help create the illusion of more space, as will using a wallpaper that has a lot of “background”, as if the eye were seeing through the design. Create the visual effect of more space by using large mirrors or suitable paintings which draw the eye beyond the boundaries of the wall.
There has recently been a trend to more open plan living, which means dining, living and cooking areas are often found in one space which can result in a conflict of interests. Aside from using furniture that doubles up as storage space, try using a room divider to hide children's toys or separate an entrance area from the main living space. These are versatile as they can be moved about as and when necessary. If your screen allows, you can even try putting wallpaper on the panels to tie into the rest of your scheme.
Katy Dussart
05 January 2009
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