Everyone is looking for a little refreshment as we start 2022. Who doesn’t want a change from the challenging and often painfully dull routine of struggling to stay optimistic and happy during the second year of a global pandemic?
By now, we have all found a few ways to bring ourselves some comfort and variety as we continue to work from home. Juggling a hybrid work schedule with family life and personal life can be difficult, and there’s a good chance you’re seeking out some inspiration and positive change this new year. It’s true that political trends and fashion trends shift and change in reaction to movements, cultural dynamics, and the political landscape (among other factors).
Sometimes, trends are based in practicalities. Think about the invention of the heel, meant to keep people’s feet out of muddy roads! The handshake, for example, came about so people could greet someone else without fear that they would be hiding a weapon in their hands.
It’s similar for the design industry, and interior design is equally influenced by cultural and historical developments. As we head into 2022, I’m highlighting a few major design changes that you can expect to see in homes and living rooms around the neighborhood. Many of these new changes have come directly from one of the most significant events of our time: the global pandemic. From luxury laundry rooms to home theaters, here’s what you can expect to see in the world of interior design this year.
Let me show you!
#1. Restaurant Style Home Bars
The pandemic has made it increasingly difficult to mix and mingle at bars and restaurants. As a result, people are looking to entertain at home. One of the biggest changes? An at-home bar. What better way to bring a fun and relaxing atmosphere to your home than a small, built-in bar?
You don’t need to make major changes to incorporate some more fun design elements into your home. You can set them up in a corner of a good sized kitchen, or within a new basement or lower level entertainment space.
Examples of restaurant-style home bars
In the first image, you’ll see a new bar area that we incorporated as part of the new layout and design for a large family of six. This family enjoys entertaining friends and family at home, as well as having a fun place for the adults to relax in the privacy of their own home. “Island Stone” tile, reclaimed and stained wood planking on the right hand wall, and a beautiful combination of finish materials make for a glamorous and vibrant design feature!
In the second image below, you’ll see a bar designed for the same purpose. But look at what a different feeling this bar has, from a design perspective. While equally eye-catching and on-trend, it is a little more visually quiet and has a sleek, more minimalist design. The beautiful figured wood (Sapele mahogany) gives the bar a very high-fashion look. Dazzling!
#2 Plant Mania: It’s a jungle out there!
Most of us love to be outside, so what could be better than bringing the outside in? Over the course of the pandemic, the popularity of indoor plants took off! I’m not seeing this trend slowing down in 2022, either.
Plants give the whole room a soothing and peaceful vibe, but the health benefits extend beyond the visual uplift. Plants make us feel more integrated in the natural world and actually produce fresh oxygen for your interior spaces! Plus, as you can see in the below photos, the lush abundance of green color looks fresh and provides gorgeous texture and contrast, in even the most minimalist and neutral of spaces!
#3. Woven Furniture: Used inside!
Speaking of the outdoors… how about another trend that brings that outdoor feeling inside? Another big design trend in 2022: woven furniture used in interior spaces.
While we identify woven furniture with outside spaces, there’s no reason we cannot use this beautifully textured, often inexpensive, and casually styled furniture inside as well! In the image below, the very simple interior has only a few elements, and really only three total colors: white, soft light gray, and wheat/soft beige tones of the wooden and woven furniture.
Why is this so appealing? Because the subtle color palette is soothing and pleasant. Plus, the overall room is given much-needed visual interest and texture through the use of the woven pieces. Voila!
In the image below, light gray woven baskets dominate the interior. This design is thematic in nature: it’s all about a monochromatic palette and the multiple woven baskets! Their texture is lovely, and gives our eye enough to take in and enjoy. It’s a lovely minimalist palette–full of soft blues, gray, and cream. These casual, woven pieces not only bring the feeling of the outdoors in, but make us feel peaceful and at home.
#4. Luxe Laundry Rooms and Pantries
A client of mine with three busy children recently shared with me how much she hates doing laundry! “I have to do so much of it, and it is so boring, that I really, really need my laundry room to be a space I don’t mind spending time in! I want it to be fun and beautiful!” she told me.
Mast Design to the rescue! We gave her laundry room a chevron-patterned tile plank flooring and ‘punchy’, fun-painted cabinetry, and some gorgeous lighting to make the space feel cheerful and bright. Bringing in the fun!!
Luxe and well-designed pantries have also become a big “ask” among many of my clients. Pantries are THE new thing!
Why? Well, during the pandemic, so many people started cooking a majority of their meals at home. With well-designed pantries, you can have both the joy, peace, and ease that comes with a well-stocked kitchen. Who doesn’t love the idea of organized, easy to see-and-grab rows of pasta, cans, and sauces?
Of course, not everyone has such an enormous space like the one below. Not every pantry will be the picture-perfect giant space that doubles as a storage area. But even so, genius things can be done to create amazing storage and function in smaller spaces, too!
Not really looking for a new food storage space? Wine storage options have become super popular, too. During a major basement renovation for a recent client, we created a wonderful wine storage area under the stairs leading down to the basement. Perfect use of space to store their abundant wine collection!
#5. Home Theaters
Home theaters are ALL the rage right now! From family rooms to basement spaces that have cozy furniture designed for optimal (and uber-comfortable) movie viewing, to whole rooms designed for just movie-watching, home theaters are yet another trend coming out of the global pandemic landscape. It’s no surprise, either: movie theaters have had to close on-and-off during the pandemic, and families are increasingly interested in creating the drama and comfort of the movie theater in their own homes.
Recently, as part of a major basement level design and renovation, I designed and installed a fantastic home theater–complete with a full-size movie screen, sumptuous seating, a state-of-the-art projector, and a back-lit, paneled wall with a new gas fireplace. The homeowners love it, and enjoy weekly movie viewings at home!
Stylistically, your home theater can look and feel any way you like! From open-plan rooms with a flexible furniture arrangement focused around the viewing area to “niche” theaters that are all about the drama of the authentic movie experience, the possibilities are endless!
In this image below, the family opted to incorporate the home theater as part of a master space plan for their new basement space. Adding a movie theater was so important for this family with two boys, who often liked to gather with their close family and friends to hang out.
As you can see, the movie screen wall was designed to also provide TONS of great storage and an open shelving display. It also contains the recessed built-in space for the large screen TV. The dramatic, fun “bonus” feature of this space was the LED light, built-in to the ceiling soffits, that changes color with the flick of a switch!
#6. Palette Trends: Comfort, Serenity, and Joy
It should come as no surprise that across many different cultures, in all parts of the world, interior color preferences tend to shift towards soft, soothing, and serene colors that feel uplifting as well as comforting and peaceful.
During these pandemic years, the Benjamin Moore Color of the Year for 2020 was First Light, a super soothing, lovely blush pink. This year’s color of the year was October Mist, an equally soft, serene shade of sage green. Both these colors read “relax, breathe…” while also serving to feel energizing and uplifting.
As you can see in the image below, using soft pink as an accent and highlighting color (against a navy wall as seen below) is also a great way to use this versatile color! So, in 2022, let’s embrace the pink moment!!
Making these trends your own
Understanding these awesome new trends will help you feel well-equipped to handle any major plans for your home in 2022. These six hot interior design trends for 2022 will be showing up everywhere, so keep your eyes out for all the ways these colors, features, and elements will appear in homes, restaurants, and hotels everywhere! Enjoy!!