TREND FORECASTING
Sandra Könings-Blokdijk talks to us about the art of predicting future fashions in furnishings and interiors
What does trend forecasting involve?
I help brands work out what they should be working on for the future and what the market will want. By connecting what I read, what I see and what I feel, based on 30 years’ experience, I can identify emerging styles. There’s a certain logic to trends – they operate on a roughly seven-year cycle.
Does your work in uence the way you decorate your home?
I get a lot of inspiration at design fairs and I collect lots of things from !ea markets, which I use when I’m talking to my clients. So my house is full of things like that – it’s where I test things out, o"en without really realising it. I painted a room green seven years ago and put a new green fabric on the sofa and my family all complained: ‘Why have you done this? Why have we got a dark green sofa?’ Now that they understand, I’m ready for the next step and I’ve painted that room a warm blue!
Describe your average day
No two days are the same. Sometimes I’m going round trade fairs and shops or visiting clients. Other days I’m working from home, writing presentations. Today we had a photoshoot followed by a meeting about colour choices for the packaging of a !ower company.
What’s your favourite trend of the last few years?
I’m a colour person, so I love it when colour is back – I wanted a pink wall at home, but my husband’s not so keen. I’m enjoying all the rich textiles. I’ve found someone in Italy who makes carpets using really thick woollen ‘ropes’. I have some on my desk right now and we’re discussing what he can make for me.
And your least favourite?
I see how black and white schemes can work, I understand the appeal, but it’s not for me. It doesn’t work for my personal taste.
What key trends will we see this year?
So" pink – millennial pink – is #rmly established and is set to get bigger for the average consumer, becoming more mainstream. There will still be more houseplants and next year we’ll start to see dried !owers as well. We’ll see more velvets and other tactile textiles. It’s about texture and comfort – it’s a scary world out there and we’re seeking happiness and more colour at home.
Key trends for the end of the decade?
Brown will be back. Lots of rosewood, and the colours of whisky and cognac. The drinks, themselves, too. Drinks cabinets and trolleys will also increase in popularity. And this will go in two directions: a masculine, dark wood look, and also a fun, funky disco trend.
Photos and family aside, what is your favourite possession?
My collection of blue glass from the Fi"ies that came from my grandmother.