Comfort in an apartment is a special component, without which no design will look attractive and stylish. But unfortunately, not everyone knows how to properly add comfort and a quiet home environment to any interior.
Every person can create a beautiful and stylish interior
Let's try to present a few basic rules that will help give individuality to any style direction of the room.
The main trends in the interior of 2022
Trends can be long-term, and some can be quite short-term. In interior design, you should pay attention to those that are valid for 3-5 years. Because this is a real trend based on the processes taking place in society.
Environmental friendliness
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The trend towards environmental friendliness in the interior has been visible for the last 10 years. Sustainable materials are natural and often age beautifully. They are also highly recyclable or simply last much longer than conventional materials: this is not a desk made from the cheapest plastic that might break after a year or two.
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Posted by Sibast Furniture (@sibastfurniture)
The question has always been controversial: is wooden furniture environmentally friendly or not? On the one hand, we cut down trees, but on the other hand, the tree ages gracefully and lasts a long time. Therefore, unlike MDF and chipboard, which can swell from humidity, wood is much more environmentally friendly, more beautiful in the interior and more natural.
Technocraft
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Publication from Boffi official (@boffi_official)
The second global trend is technocraft - a tendency to combine high-tech production and handicraft historical techniques in the interior. This creates new ideas and concepts, because manual labor will never cease to be valued.
Tactility
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Another noticeable trend is tactility: in the interior it is important to alternate surfaces so that everything is not glossy or matte, smooth or rough. And the richer the interiors are, the more interesting they are.
Personification
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Personalized interiors are becoming increasingly in demand when spaces are created that are permeated with a person’s cultural codes or that transmit the DNA of a brand.
There is a phrase “we are greeted by our clothes,” but in fact, the interior says much more about us. And this is exactly the second stage of awareness: you can change clothes quickly enough, but the interior is something that you have been creating for much longer, and something in which you live.
Loft
Brutal industrial style. It looks modern, fashionable and interesting.
Loft style rules
- Structural elements. The loft appeared when old factory buildings began to be converted into residential premises. The structural elements were not hidden, but made an integral part of the interior: beams, iron columns, ventilation and water pipes are in plain sight.
- Brick and plaster. The best materials for wall decoration.
- Open space. The loft interior should have a lot of free space, so do not overload the apartment with furniture. Ideally, a loft-style apartment is a studio, zoned using color.
- Unusual decor. For example, road signs, metal panels and advertising posters.
- Lamps. No pretentious chandeliers or lampshades. The light in the loft should come from lamps hanging from wires.
Ulyana Petrukhina
It seems to me that when choosing the interior of an apartment, you should first of all focus on your life and capabilities. It’s worth asking yourself questions and doing a little research! What do you value in your living space now? What is missing? What can’t you give up today, and what might you need in the next 3 years?
Watch video blogs, scroll through Pinterest, visit some professional design exhibition - write down everything you like and see what lights you up especially strongly.
Timeless interiors
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And yet you shouldn’t try to keep up with trends and trends. There is a concept of “timeless interiors” that live outside of time: examples of them can be found in such geniuses of the 20s of the last century as Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret.
When we compare good and bad design, the good one is the one that lasts for 30 years or more.
Therefore, it is now impossible to single out any specific direction. The same Scandinavian style, which appeared en masse on the Russian market 7-10 years ago, is gradually becoming boring, and is no longer used as often. But in the Scandinavian countries it will also be popular, because each country has its own mentality, and it is this that shapes the style.
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Light colors to create coziness
Since it is quite easy to furnish an apartment in light colors, you should know the basic rules on how to avoid boredom in such rooms.
A bright sofa as an accent in a white Scandinavian-style living room
Use colored decorative pillows, drapes with patterns in pastel colors, and rugs with small patterns. All this goes well with soft milky beige shades.
Minimalism or a lot of details?
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There is a trend for minimalism and asceticism, but this is again connected with the global trend for environmental friendliness and recycling. Minimalism also becomes understandable from the point of view of conscious consumption.
Nevertheless, last year the boho style became relevant, which is not without excessive decorativeness. Or, for example, in Scandinavian design, especially among the Danes, which we always considered very laconic, the New Scandi trend is developing. Boho elements and brass just appear in it. Therefore, it cannot be said that everything goes into minimalism - it all depends on style and preferences.
Eclecticism
Eclecticism is suitable for those who love variety. This is a very flexible style that can be transformed to suit any mood.
Rules for an eclectic interior
- No more than three styles at once. The main rule of eclecticism. Choose two or three styles you love and mix their elements in one space. Adding a fourth or more styles can be dangerous: there is a risk of slipping into bad taste.
- Plain walls. For style elements to work harmoniously together, they need a blank canvas. And plain walls are ideal for this purpose.
Ulyana Petrukhina
I am always in favor of having a constant base in the interior, which can be supplemented, modified and upgraded to suit yourself without capital emotional, construction and material costs.
I would like to see a little bit of everything in the interior, but the most important thing is that after crossing the threshold there should be a feeling of “hurray, I’m home!”
On my YouTube channel there is a section “Tours of apartments and other spaces.” I really love all the spaces that I was able to visit, but the most vivid impressions, perhaps, were left by two apartments: the one in which I lived in New York, and the apartment of my friend Anton Boytsov.
I remember the first one for its layout - this is exactly the standard of a Euro two-room apartment, which is still rarely found in the layouts of domestic residential complexes. The bright Manhattan apartment had a spacious guest area combined with a kitchen and hallway, and a separate compact bedroom.
For me, Anton’s apartment is a perfect example of a well-thought-out studio space (although it was originally a one-room apartment). Here is an interesting approach when working with the kitchen and the ceiling, which seems to go into the furniture. A combination of Scandinavia and loft style. There are many interesting details and even an attempt to integrate a “smart home” system into such a space - there is definitely something to be inspired by.
Layout features
The pandemic and quarantine influenced the fact that each of us wanted to limit our personal space at home or psychologically allocate an area for ourselves to work, for example. We've learned that open floor plans aren't a plus in every environment. But, speaking from the point of view of design and planning decisions, this issue can be solved not only with the help of walls and partitions.
In principle, open spaces work like this: when we highlight certain groups of furniture, zoning them. There are sound-absorbing screens or wall-mounted sound-absorbing materials that can be integrated into the interior without major construction and thereby protect certain rooms from excessive noise. Zoning also occurs thanks to compositional solutions - carpets, lowered ceilings or floor ramps.
Provence
Cozy style comes from the south of France. Elegant, light and charming.
Provence style rules
- Warm pastel shades. Sand, pale green, soft blue, lavender, muted yellow, ecru. These colors are used both in the design of walls and floors, as well as in furniture and decor.
- Flowers. Live ones, such as lavender or peonies, can be placed on the table. Flowers in Provence are also present in the form of an ornament on furniture, wallpaper or textiles.
- Aged furniture. Over time or artificially. It is desirable that it be made of light wood.
- Forged decor. For example, chandeliers, cabinet fittings, mirror frames.
Using vintage
Photo: Kristina Nikishina (Vintage chair and Veronika Tabenskaya in the OPEN Interiors project)
Vintage in the interior is becoming more and more understandable even to non-professionals. Previously, there was no trend for so much vintage in private interiors, but now it is clearly visible. Even in public spaces they try to introduce vintage items. Sometimes even new items made of natural brass try to age. But this process is labor-intensive, so everyone is on the side of vintage fans.
The use of soft floor pillows and rugs in the apartment
Carpets create a feeling of coziness, so you shouldn’t neglect them and actively introduce them into the interior of both living rooms and bedrooms. In order to furnish a room, you should put a carpet on the floor that matches the style. They fit perfectly into any space, from high-tech to ethnic interiors. The room immediately becomes cozy with them.
A well-chosen rug will become a highlight of the interior of the living room, bedroom or kitchen
You can also use floor pillows. But they are more suitable for oriental and boudoir bedroom options.
Floor pillows create an atmosphere of comfort and warmth; if necessary, they can be easily moved to another room or stored in a closet
Current colors in the interior of 2022
Photo: Kristina Nikishina
If we talk about the colors of the year - gray and yellow, then this is a purely marketing story. The predictions of the Pantone Color Institute are not a general line at all and do not mean that other colors have gone out of fashion.
Fashionable - when it is stylish, when it is personalized, when it speaks about you. Therefore, color trends announced by Pantone are optional.
When choosing a color, you should focus on a scientific approach - there are the works of Johansen Itten “Color Theory” and Wilhelm Oswald “Color Science”; the Itten circle, developed at the beginning of the last century, helps to compose palettes. There are simply principles for arranging shades from the color wheel and seven types of contrasts. This is what designers follow in order to achieve a certain emotional charge from the interior.
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As for your choice, you can turn to your favorite paintings as a source of inspiration. For example, the geniuses of the Renaissance were chic colorists, and the palette of their paintings can be played up in your interior. Or look at your favorite landscapes: nature also makes no mistakes. These points can be used as a starting point when thinking through the design.
How to choose the right color scheme and lighting for an apartment
Color and light are very important. Even if the room is decorated with expensive materials, it is an illiterate color solution and an inadequate level of lighting that can ruin all your endeavors.
The color palette of the interior in any style should be based on 2-3 basic tones
Most often the base color is neutral, be it light or dark. And bright colors serve as accents. They should be small in area and harmoniously combined with the main color. In this case, you will be able to furnish a room that will have excellent taste.
Textured wallpaper and painted walls
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Posted by FRESCO / WALLPAPER / FABRICS (@affrescoru)
Now there are wallpapers that imitate certain surfaces and materials; they are neutral, without ornament. Many people choose them because they do not require perfectly aligned walls.
de Gournay X Aquazzura (Photo: degournay.com)
As for prints, jungle flora and fauna, as well as geometric patterns from the 1970s, remain on trend. From premium brands you will find embroidery, painting, and fine spraying with this theme. Of course, the more interesting the surface of the material, the more expensive it is.
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You shouldn’t use the technique yourself when we have wallpaper on one wall and the others are simply painted - this is a very primitive solution. And, if designers use this, usually all these wallpaper panels are framed by architecturally defined nodes, rather than simply flowing from the corner of the wall to another wall.
Using vertical space from ceiling to floor
Don't leave bare walls. After all, they are the ones who cannot leave a cheap impression even with the most expensive repairs. Hang paintings or other decorative elements on the walls, such as panels, decorative fans or other ethnic figurines, masks, etc.
Panels, posters or paintings will become the central elements of the room and emphasize the good taste of the owners of the house
If you resort to this technique, the house immediately becomes individual, and not a faceless space.
Textile trends 2022
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Publication from MANDERS. English decor (@manders_kraski)
And here it is not without environmental friendliness. Even in the designated aesthetics of cabaret and kitsch, where there is a variety of rich textures, in addition to velvet, faux fur appears. Connoisseurs of nature can safely continue to work with natural materials: their origin can be emphasized by imperfections and flaws in shades.
In addition to natural materials, high-tech ones are also appearing, which are distinguished by wear resistance and hybrid origin - this again refers us to the trend of technocraft.
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Posted by Lene Bjerre Design
