HOT TRENDS IN HOME DECOR FOR SUMMER AND FALL
Everything’s coming up yellow as we embrace imperfection to create cosy havens
If last year was all about Millennial Pink and unicorns, which we saw trending in everything from home decor to fashion, then this summer and fall we’ll be embracing Gen-Z Yellow and llamas.
“I think we’ve all had enough unicorns,” says Etsy ’s Dayna Isom Johnson. “It’s time for the llamas.”
A home decor and fashion trends expert, Isom Johnson is a regular on U.S. television shows like Good Morning America and The Today Show, and is set to appear alongside Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman on NBC’s upcoming show Making It, a crafting competition series.
She has been the resident trends expert at online marketplace Etsy. com for seven years, and says she’s witnessed it transform into a site that attracts 33 million buyers daily and hosts 1.9 million sellers, 87 per cent of whom are female.
“I’m very proud to work for a company that allows women to run a business on their own terms, and whatever success means to you is completely up to you,” she says. “Whether that means you are a stay-at-home mom and you want to fuel your creative energy, or that means you’re working full time and it’s a side business for you, or you’re a student and you like to make whatever that may be and this is helping you pay your student loan.”
Gen-Z Yellow, Isom Johnson says, encompasses shades of banana and mustard. She predicts we’ll be seeing a lot of it in home decor in the summer and fall.
“We’ve seen a surge of searches, like 20 per cent, for yellow items in the last year,” she says. “Gen-Z Yellow is such a cheerful and bright colour.”
Another hot decor item, says Isom Johnson, is the Monstera plant, both in its plant form and in print versions, such as the plant leaf printed on to textiles like pillows, sheets and curtains, and replicated in wall art.
“On Etsy, we’ve seen search queries for the Monstera leaf growing at a rate between 90 and 170 per cent in the last year (from 2017 to 2018),” she says, “which is insane.”
Another trend they’re noticing for spring and summer is the return of rattan — in coffee tables, vintage mirrors, magazine racks and chairs, Isom Johnson says.
“It was very popular in the ’70s, but now it’s back better than ever,” she says.
When it comes to fun summer trends, Etsy has named one “tuttifrutti.”
“It really stems from people wanting to bring a little more joy and cheerfulness into their lives,” Isom Johnson says. “And this one is so fun, so colourful, and what I love about this tutti-frutti trend is that it’s not only happening in home decor and in party supplies, but also in jewelry, specifically in over-the-top bananas or cherry earrings; they’re just a lot of fun. I think for a long time we were stuck in that minimalist everything, very straight edges, serious and clean, and now it’s time to introduce a little fun.”
Moving away from the idea of achieving perfection in your home and embracing imperfection is something Isom Johnson has been speaking about a lot lately.
“In today’s crazy world, more than ever people are craving a space that is relaxing, is inviting and that they want to spend time in,” she says. “Self care actually starts within the home and within home design so because of this, I’m seeing a lot of modern takes on incense holders and meditation poufs, the rise of crystals and meditation and things like that. I think it derives from wabi-sabi (the Japanese tradition of embracing imperfection), and so you’re seeing these handmade elements in the home that are all about being relaxed, enjoying your home and creating an oasis.”