Light life

Banish winter gloom and give rooms a bright update with some fresh lighting. Gabrielle Fagan spotlights this year’s key trends

T here’s a host of new lighting effects and lights on the horizon to choose from, and experts at Habitat, Christopher Wray, Andrew Martin and Heal’s have made it easy for you to transform your home.

Here, they reveal the top trends and their best buys, so you can simply plug yourself in and switch on to 2020’s brilliant lighting solutions...

HABITAT

1. Play with colour

“Introducing colour into the home through lighting is something which is becoming ever more popular,” says Clare Griffin, lighting buyer, Habitat.

“Our Habitat colour palette for lighting, in our range of contemporary shapes and designs, lets people easily add pops of colour into interiors.”

2. Rule with rattan

“Rattan’s lightweight, durable, pliable and sustainable qualities make it one of our favourite materials to use in the design studio. People love the unusual 3D forms and design pieces with an obvious hand-crafted, natural aesthetic,” says Griffin.

“To move our rattan story on this season, we’ve moved away from just pure rattan to a new treatment of interwoven black and natural stripes, showing rattan being used in a more modern, graphic way.”

CHRISTOPHER WRAY 1. Rock a retro vibe

“Homeowners are seeking more personalised, interesting pieces in their spaces, and there’s a real revival of evocative retro.

“The distinct bold vibrancy of the 70s and the chintzy detail of the 80s are both set to return to interior design,” predicts Chris Jordan, managing director, Christopher Wray.

“For a more significant retro installation, we love the Decanter (from £495 per pendant), formed of fluted glass in a multi-light suspension.

Its sculptural design is inspired by ancient monuments. Look out for also for Tiffany lamps, which are making a comeback.”

2. Invest in new industrial

“While copper fixtures and exposed bulbs have enjoyed prolonged popularity over the last decade, other aesthetically-cooler burnished metals such as nickel and silver, as well as concrete, are set to star this year,” forecasts Jordan. “Pendants zoning kitchen or dining areas, hanging in pairs or triplets, will predominate. There’s less exposure of the bulb with these lights, and more classic forms will be important in the subtle presentation of this upcoming industrial style.”

ANDREW MARTIN 1. Turn on to neon

“Neon lighting is now in high demand and is fast becoming a must-have in

Bold designs featuring sculptural shapes, interesting texture or coloured glass make a style statement

style-conscious homes,” says Martin Waller, founder of Andrew Martin, one of the hottest destinations for innovative design.

Feminist contemporary artist Tracey Emin, who expressed her thoughts using industrial neon gas lights – including The Kiss Was Beautiful and I Promise To Love You – is credited with first popularising it in the early-90s.

Andrew Martin’s artwork collection overlays iconic photography and graffiti prints with modern light-up signage. “Nowadays, no room feels complete without art. The trend for neon lighting highlights the rise of maximalism as a luxury lighting trend,” says Waller.

“We have an expansive range of light