Trends for 2009
2008 was not a great year for many people. So we are all looking forward expectantly, to 2009, which promises to be a better year. So what are the Design trends for 2009? Since 2009 is starting out in economic shambles, most people are wanting “clean lines”; they are going back to basics, using tried and true designs and furniture forms that will be in style for a long time, rather than avant guard styles that go in and may soon go out of fashion. The old adage that if you buy good quality, it will last forever, is as true today as it was when it was invented. And it works! I have furniture that I purchased 25 years ago and it still looks good and is considered “trendy” all these years later– first because it is good quality and second because it is relatively simple and traditional – so it can’t be easily dated. The premise is, that if you buy simple clean lines, the piece will never go out of fashion. So clean, straight lines have come back into fashion on sofas and chairs – and, especially the backs and arms of these pieces, have gotten squarer . People today also want a little bit of luxury in their lives, so a little bit of “glitz”, especially the 1940’s glitz, is now popular as well. We are in a similar situation historically and economically now as we were in 1940 after the war – a recession - and people need to “feel good” when they come home – because they don’t necessarily “feel good” anywhere else! So 1940’s styles such as round curved chair backs are now back in style as well. Going along with this “Feel good attitude”, the new pantone color is Yellow. Yellow is like the sun, shining down on us with its warm, bright light – and is the ultimate “feel good” color. Yellow will brighten up a gloomy grey day and a gloomy grey life. So look for solid yellows, and also yellow as part of the overall color scheme of patterned fabrics. Even if you don’t like yellow as a solid color by itself, it is great mixed with other colors in a pattern in a room – or used as a soft yet sunny wall color that functions as a neutral like a beige, and doesn’t have to match the rest of the colors in the room.
The other big trend is “Green”! We now are far more aware than ever before, that we must do something about “climactic change” – to insure that the world as we know it, will be in good shape for our grand kids . So we are getting “Greener”. But we are just learning what Green means and most people still have no idea how to make their homes “green”. Many Green products are expensive, and though people have great plans, end up using non green products which are cheaper, in order to save money and yet carry out their design plans. So what is good, green and trendy? Bamboo is great as a wood substitute for flooring – and it is good and green because it can easily and quickly be replenished so it is sustainable – meaning that even if you cut it down, if you replant it, it will grow back quickly –unlike trees that take a lifetime to grow back. Sisal, sea grass and jute are green, sustainable and trendy as well – both as area rugs and even, in their solid forms, as wall to wall coverings. All these items are plants that are mashed down into pulp , made into long strands and then woven as a fiber would be – into whatever we deem popular at that moment in time. There are now even fabric pillows made of bamboo. Are they pretty? You bet! And they are simple and neutral enough that they can be mixed with almost anything. This versatility is what makes them so attractive and so “popular” so “in style” today.