As a consumer, it's great to be "in-the-know" as to what will be the next new interior design trends. But do you ever wonder where those trends come from? As a forecaster, I will share five of the factors that will indicate where trends start. Watch these trends, and you, too, can forecast what will be hot next.

Economy
When the economy is down, people feel pessimistic about their lives. The colors they tend to gravitate to have a dirty, muddy undertone. When people feel optimistic, they will tend to gravitate to cleaner, clearer colors.

This year, we have a mix of optimistic and pessimistic colors. No one palette is more important than another. Watch the grays to become the new neutral. If your style is contemporary, mix in a lipstick-red color with the gray. If you are more traditional, try cream as a wonderful accent to the new gray.

No matter what Hunter Douglas product you choose, you will find a color to complement your decor and lifestyle. If it's blinds you want, you have about a billion choices in wood and metal.

Apparel
Forecasters watch which colors, prints and textures people are wearing. They know if people are comfortable wearing a trend, they might also be comfortable living with it.

Forecasters generally watch women's fashion. Think of your favorite department store and how much floor space is devoted to women's fashion as opposed to the men's department. Women are the trendsetters for fashion as well as being the colorful creature in fashion. Citrus greens have been a fashion statement on and off the runway for women. But if my husband came home with a lime-green blazer or jacket, I might wonder about him!

How many of you bought a garment made of chenille, velvet or velour? It might be a solid or a burnout velvet. Have you noticed how the fabrics are the hottest fabric in interior design? We all thought that velvets died when Elvis did, but I guess since he has been spotted, so have velvets!

What has been the new color in fashion? Gray. It could be solid, but it's also showing up in tailored menswear prints. It can be worn by men, women and sofas alike. As you might guess, it's appearing in the latest interior design trends. Look for a wonderful mix of neutrals to showcase these looks.

Another trend that started in ladies fashion is sheer fabrics. Not just the sheers of my mother's generation, but beautiful, visually interesting sheers. Watch for tablecloths. You will find these sheers in window covering products such as Hunter Douglas Luminette® Privacy Sheers and Silhouette® window shadings, with the Signature S-Vane™, or Nantucket™ window shadings. These are gorgeous sheers with the plus of privacy.

Although it's generally women's fashion that sets the trends, we do watch men's fashion, specifically men's ties. Remember years ago ties had little prints, for example foulards, geometric and paisley? Well at that time those were the same prints that were popular for the home. Today's ties are more stylized, colorful and contemporary and so are our fabrics for the home.

TV and Movies
Trends are influenced by what people watch on television or at the movies. You can be influenced in color, style or design. If I may use some history, Dynasty gave us the white-on-white or tone-on-tone look. I sometimes call it the No Children look. Why? Because it's what the Carringtons had in their living room. Miami Vice got us into a warm pastel color group. As I said, TV can influence us in more ways than color; it can affect style such as furniture. During The Cosby Show we saw sales of traditional furniture soar because of the Huxtables family home style.

Right now Friends and Frasier are giving us a contemporary look. Friends is an eclectic "friendly", soft, no rules, contemporary look. On the other hand, Frasier has an upscale, status-oriented, contemporary flare to it that is straightforward.

World Events
When the world's eyes are on a particular area, it will eventually affect the home fashion arena. Let's look at two current trends.

The first trend is called "decayed elegance". This look has evolved from the war in Eastern Europe. You've seen this look in drapery hardware, accessories for the home, lighting and garden statuary. You will find Damasks, Jacquards and Velvets in this category. They have an Old World look that looks new for today. It's a time-worn look. Not bright and shiny new looking but a look that has history, almost like it's mellowed for at least several decades.

The second world event trend to take notice of is Asian. This pared down look transcends many cultural boundaries. Look for the Asian influence in symbolic fabrics and simplistic design. Its influence is felt from furniture to fabrics to accessories. In window coverings, look to Vignette® Modern Roman Shades or Country Woods® wood blinds to fill this need.

Art
Forecasters watch touring exhibits. These art exhibits are generally viewed by large numbers of people. When people like the artist and his or her style, it might affect them and how they live.

Monet has been on tour, so look for the influences of watercolors to appear. This year's palate has those wonderful watercolors in green, blue, rose and yellow. These colors look fresh and are very livable.

There it is... the trends in a nutshell. How long does a trend last? Generally seven to eight years. By knowing what influences the trends, you can make a more educated guess as to what will be a trend and what will be a passing fancy. The "look" is up to you. Make it personalized, make it warm and comfortable — make it you!


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