The Latest Interior Design Trends 2017 Blog Series
Part Four – Finishes and Textures
23 June 2017 by Nicola Manning
The 29th annual International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) has just been held in New York City from 21-24th May. In the previous three blogs I have highlighted the latest trends in furniture, lighting and colour. This week I am focussing on the trends I saw in finishes and textures. Next week I will be reviewing the key trends in accessories.
Strongest Trend Overall – Combinations of Materials
The strongest trend emerging is the combination of metal, stone and/or timber in one piece of furniture. I saw very little furniture which was only one of these materials. The combinations provided more detail and refinement to the furniture and mixed things up a bit!
Laser Cutting – A very hot trend
The detail added to various pieces of furniture with stunning laser cutting was amazing. Not only seen in furniture but also very fine laser cut metal screens and panels.
Inlays
Inlay detailing is a very prevalent trend. The use of metals such as brass and copper, but particularly brass, was beautifully inlaid into timber furniture. The inlays are generally quite fine and and add sophistication and a touch of luxury. I also saw tiles with inlays of different colours, metals and also colour blocks.
Furniture Detailing
We saw very little furniture which was simple and plain, instead at both ICFF and various design showrooms in New York, we saw intricate detailing in terms of cutouts, inlays, textures and patterns.
Jonathan Adler
Kitchen Finishes
Again detailing and the use of metals (particularly brass) added luxury and depth to kitchen cabinetry. You can also see a sense of the industrial style coming through in the kitchen designs. I loved the hammered, very thin metal bench that I saw on one of the stands at ICFF.
The Latest Tapware Finishes and Textures
I absolutely loved the latest release of textured tapware from Italian company Gessi, launched at ICFF. Simply stunning textures in brass, copper, burnished blackened brass and bronze. I saw the different metal finishes in tapware in Milan last year and this trend certainly isn’t fading away yet. The textures Gessi have added to this range of tapware is beautiful.
The Strongest Trends in Fabric
The predominant fabric without doubt, was velvet. In the other blogs in this series, I have featured velvet furniture in the key trending colours. We saw velvet sofas, chairs, pouffs and headboards. The other dominant fabric was felted wool.
Other key textures seen were sheepskin and fur.
Detailed stitching, including blanket stitching was prevalent. Pom poms and flanging were key details seen on throws and bedding.
The Latest in Acoustics in Interiors
Wellness is a very strong theme coming through in New York. Awareness of how interior products add to a person’s health and sense of wellness is important. There were a large number number of stands at ICFF showcasing products to enhance the acoustic characteristics of our interior spaces.
We have all been to a restaurant which is completely lacking in acoustic qualities and heard how noise levels escalate as people end up shouting at each other to be heard. I really encourage hospitality space owners and designers to be far more proactive in incorporating acoustic improving design features into these spaces to enhance our experiences and to improve our health and wellness.
The range of products available has improved substantially and they can now be added to interior spaces in very clever and decorative ways.
