EMBRACING THE ELEMENTS
There are three big themes we’ll be seeing in home furnishings and decor for fall, and we’ll also see them in fashion, says Jason Templeton, director of Simons Maison, the home section of Quebec-based fashion retailer Simons.
The first, he says, is based around the idea of “modernist lounge,” being rich and with opulent touches of nature.
“Opulent patterns,” Templeton says, “precious stones, velvety textures, rich patterns and motifs inspired by William Morris, the British designer of the 19th century, and then adorned with tassels, or macrame, or crochet, or ruffles.”
The second theme, he says, is the complete opposite. Calling it “elementary,” he says, we’ll see in home decor minimalist design, Japanese origami influences and “very basic, clean, geometric pastels.”
The third theme, which seems fitting for Canadian fall, is loosely based on Ireland’s Aran Islands, the rocky, exposed, raw and beautiful islands off the coast of Galway.
This landscape, translated into home furnishings and decor, will appear in the abundant use of “knits, wool, fur, rich colours and rustic plaids,” forest and animal prints, such as foxes, bears and deer.
Simons’ buyers travel extensively to Europe, Asia and Australia, spending much time observing fashion trends, and fostering relationships with designers around the globe, Templeton says.
Alongside the Simons Maison in-store collection, which is also available online, they launched an online-only home furnishings and furniture platform just over a year ago.
Over the next six to 12 months, says Templeton, they are focusing on offering products by Canadian designers and artisans that he says won’t necessarily be cheap, but will be “unique and inspired,” alongside a more affordable range of products that the Simons Maison team designs and directs import from overseas.
Two Canadian design brands already carried on this platform are À Marée Basse, which produces prints made from “treasures they find at low tide,” and the cartography of iLikeMaps.
“You’ll go on to the Simons’ website and you’ll have the complete in-store collection, and then the furniture section that’ll have higher-end local artisan products, and then more affordable, but design-inspired direct imports by Simons,” he says.
One incredibly successful partnership with a Canadian designer that Simons has fostered, Templeton says, is that with HGTV star Samantha Pynn, who is releasing her fourth collection with the retailer this fall.
“Sam’s a person who has definitely got her own ideas on decor, and how she likes to decorate, but she’s not a prima donna,” Templeton says. “She doesn’t impose against high wind and strong currents. If we feel changes need to be made, she’s very open. It’s very much collaborative.”
Pynn’s new collection, which includes bedding, shower curtains, cushions, and tableware, features “more of a mix of colours” than her previous three collections, and a lot more texture. “We have chunky knits, we have pompoms, we’ve got tassel,” she says.
Something we’re seeing everywhere from home furnishings to fashion is “more embellishments,” she says, with tolerance for patterns, and mixing more than one pattern, seeming to be much higher these days.
“You see all these very young women wearing super long skirts, and lots of detail, and embellishments,” she says.
“Floral on the bottom, stripes on the top, and then tassels on their bags. I think we’re just much more open to it. It’s almost like ‘what else can we do?’ because we’ve done so much, right?”
When it comes to the colours we’ll be seeing in home decor for fall, she says, it’s a real mash-up.
“We’re seeing Hunter green, which is ’90s,” she says, “and then harvest gold, which is ’70s, and then that lush pink, which is ’80s. It’s not just one era, it’s multiple eras. It’s kind of like ‘we want it all’!”
Pynn’s fall collection for Simons Maison is far from over the top, however, her signature style being understated and user-friendly.“It always has to be really usable,” she says. “That’s the most important.
“To me, it’s all about the customer, the buyer or home decorator, because I know how frustrating it can be when you see ‘oh my goodness, there’s so much crazy colour, and pattern, and embellishment out there, how is that going to fit into my home?’
“And so what I really try and do is take what’s on trend, and put a spin on it that’s easy to work with.”