Wishful thinking for 2019

The ins and outs of the interiors world in the coming year

THE sombre portraits of Edward Hudson, founder of COUNTRY LIFE and champion of Sir Edwin Lutyens, don’t suggest a man who was given to vacuous pronouncements on trends such as ‘Arts-and-crafts is the new Gothic’ or ‘well, darling, I’m just having a bit of an Aspidistra moment’.

More than 80 years after his death, much of what Hudson created or championed is still with us, from COUNTRY LIFE to Lutyens buildings and furniture (including some that graces our offices).

It’s because of this element of permanence deep within the DNA of the magazine that we try to avoid breathless predictions of what’s hot and what’s not, but what we we feel should be cherished and what shouldn’t. Here are some suggestions for the coming year.

IN Furniture shops

The antediluvian practice of actually looking at furniture before you buy it will make a comeback in 2019, overcoming the ruinous habit of ordering something sold as a ‘witty vintage-style chandelier’ that you bought as the result of a dangerous combination of a cleverly photographed picture on a website, a credit card and a bad case of ‘Chianti goggles’.

Deep fringes

Last seen in the 1980s, but now making an appearance on sofas and armchairs in Mayfair clubs and restaurants that are so exclusive that virtually no one has ever crossed the threshold. Deep fringes lend a louche, luxurious look to upholstery that’s part Oscar Wilde, part arms dealer.

Cushions

A new generation is discovering the capacity of a jaunty cushion to cheer up a dowdy looking sofa and sales are reported to be brisk. In addition, those with a ruinous addiction to the pleasures of fabrics costing £150 a metre are heeding the sentiment of the old decorating proverb and are ‘cutting their soft furnishings to suit their cloth’. Choosing an embroidered linen for a pair of curtains can require a small mortgage, but it can be made to go a long way on cushions, as well as small slipper chairs and ottomans (see below).

The ottoman

These unsung heroes soften the look of a room like nothing else. They also create useful extra seating (once the copies of COUNTRY LIFE, Christie’s catalogues and risqué Robert Mapplethorpe monographs have been tipped onto the floor).

Lutyens furniture

The great man not only designed some of the greatest buildings of the Edwardian era, but also some beautiful furniture. The 150th anniversary of his birth will precipitate a renewed interest in such glories as his Napoleon and Spiderback chairs.

OUT Irony

It might be a good thing in a stand-up comedian, but irony is a terrible thing in a piece of furniture, light or cushion. Let’s wave goodbye to flock-covered antlers, 1950s-style jukeboxes, lava lamps, disco balls and anything described by retailers as ‘retro’, ‘seventies’ or ‘fun’.

Over-complicated lighting

Previous generations had the simple choice between dangling pendants, blinding strip lights, chandeliers and a few table lamps liberally spread over occasional furniture in the drawing room. Today, we’re faced with downlighters, uplighters, LEDS, dimmers, multiple circuits, remote controls: the list is endless.

It’s probably all a walk in the park for someone with a first in electrical engineering, but more challenging for those with a poor third in history of art.

Inbuilt obsolescence

Cynical retailers have discovered a robust business model in feeding our insatiable desire for things that are cheap, flimsy and will need replacing in a few years’ time (by the same cynical retailers).

Furniture that’s been well made from decent materials is the way forward. If it’s value you’re after, your local tip will yield better-quality furniture than most pile ’em high, sell ’em cheap outfits.

Plastic

One-use plastic might have been the focus of attention this year, but synthethic materials are also prevalent in badly made furniture and textiles that are destined for landfill in a few years’ time. Wool, wood, linen, cotton and stone are Nature’s gift to our homes.

Overthinking

As the legendary New York decorator Dorothy Draper pointed out ‘if it looks right, it is right’. The best rooms are those that haven’t been designed to with an inch of their lives; let’s cut out the over-co-ordinated schemes, torturous tablescapes and desperate-to-be-different colour schemes.