Things are a changin’ in the design world and everyone is talking design trends for 2023.
I’ve been watching all the little videos on Tik Tok and Instagram from literally everyone on the planet who is even slightly interested in all things home.
They are fun to watch, I wish I was better at video and creating those cool little moments of content. However, blogging is my stomping ground and I’m sharing my own forecasting here today, linking up to some of my favorite blogging friends who are sharing their own forecasts too.
I’m really going to focus on lasting trends here with my predictions. I looked at these with the question, “Will I be choosing that for a client 5 years from now?”
Let’s dig in…..
2023 Interior Design Trends I see coming in hot for this year and beyond are:
Skirted Upholstery
Multiple coffee tables and ottomans
Burl wood furniture
Wallpaper!
Bistro style metal shelving
Multiple chandeliers and pendants hung in one space
Tambour paneling
I have a few trends that I believe will be going out at the bottom of this post, so keep scrolling! :-)
interior design trends Coming “IN” hot in 2023
“Will I be choosing that for a client 5 years from now?” I can say resoundingly “Yes” to these trends.
1) Skirted Upholstery
I noticed this trend in the last two Highpoint Markets and I think skirts on upholstery will be on the rise in 2023.
This is not new, of course, but we haven’t seen that much of it in recent years as people opted for less fussy, more clean lined interiors. I do believe we are in for a softening of design and a little more detail and “extra” in the years to come though and skirts certainly fit into that trend.
I also saw floral upholstery introduced in several showrooms at market, but I’m not calling that a trend yet. It might be a good look for lovers of a grandmillenial style, but I don’t think it will be mainstream.
Here are a few of the skirts I spotted this past year at Highpoint.
I love a tailored skirt and even more with tape trim added at the bottom. HPMKT 2022 | carlaaston.com
This skirted ottoman with nailhead and tape trim makes for a pretty centerpiece of the seating group. HPMKT 2022 | carlaaston.com
Skirted dining chairs can add softness to a dining room. HPMKT 2022 | carlaaston.com
The skirted upholstery here makes this furniture seem a little more dressed up. HPMKT 2022 | carlaaston.com
2) Multiple tables and ottomans
I love the versatility that multiple coffee tables and ottomans or a combination of the two can bring. You don’t always have to get one big coffee table! I have 4 ottoman stools as my main coffee table and we pull one up to the sofa for our feet as we want. It’s much easier than pulling up a big ottoman. :-)
Take a look at these examples from Highpoint Market I saw in the 2022 markets.
A table with ottomans tucked in can add extra places to perch in a living room.
Grouping small tables together into a mass is an easy way to add flexibility to your furnishings arrangement. carlaaston.com
Move these small tables around where you need them on this outdoor deck with a long banquette.
Nesting coffee tables can create a larger, asymmetrical footprint and then can add flexibility to your space.
Need an oval shape coffee table? Try two round nesting tables instead.
2) Burl wood furniture
I do love some burl wood, I saw more of it at Highpoint Market last fall. I think this will be trending up as I’m starting to see it more at the retail level too.
Burl wood is great for accent pieces. I would not do multiple pieces in a room, but one coffee table or an etagere is a nice way to bring some contrast and interest to the wood tones you have in your space. I also feel it is rather style-neutral so it mixes well with other styles of furniture.
See some of these examples below.
This light burl wood etagere is an interesting find, seen at Highpoint Market. carlaaston.com
A burl wood nightstand creates an interesting look in this vignette at Highpoint Market. carlaaston.com
A burl wood bath vanity could work in any style home. carlaaston.com
This burl wood table could work with many different styles of furniture. carlaaston.com
3) Wallpaper
For all those of you worried about wallpaper getting dated, don’t worry, it is not going anywhere anytime soon. It has been going strong and it will continue! I could see myself specifying wallpaper for a client in 5 years. The nice thing is that wallpaper can run the gamut in style and what it can bring to a space. There are great peel and stick varieties too, if you’re a bit reluctant.
Walls, ceilings, cabinet backs…..I think you can’t go wrong with wallpaper. Even if you are selling your house in a few years, a tone-on-tone wallpaper pattern or textural grasscloth just uplevels a space. I love how we are seeing wallpaper in spaces like laundry rooms, pantries and closets now too.
Wallpaper adds interest in this guest bath in The New American Home 2022.
Wallpaper fills this space with a garden ambience in the Pasadena Showcase House of Design. Designer: James Hernandez Interior Design
The pool cabana change room was filled with pattern in the Pasadena Showcase House of Design. Designer: The Art of Room Design
Wallpaper on the ceiling of this library in the Pasadena Showcase House of Design, Stephanie Hatten, SH Interiors.
The subtle wallpaper in this primary bath adds so much to the space. Carla Aston, Designer | Colleen Scott, Photographer
4) Bistro style shelving
Bistro shelving is not only for the kitchen! We all know bistro shelving is being seen in high end kitchens everywhere, but I’ve been seeing them in other rooms of the house too.
KBIS 2022 Kitchen with bistro shelving | carlaaston.com
In the Pasadena Showcase House of Design last May, it was used by several designers in the library, the poolhouse and the kitchen. I’m using it in a media room bar now (soon to be installed).
Bistro shelving in the library of the Pasadena Showcase House of Design. Designer: Stephanie Hatten, SH Interiors
When I head to KBIS 2023 at the end of this month, I’ll be looking for more vendors of this type of shelving, like this one I found last year.
Bistro type shelving popular in 2023! carlaaston.com
5) Multiple Light Fixtures - Chandeliers or Pendants
The McMansion is not dead, nor are open plan homes. Let’s face it, while smaller rooms are intimate and inviting, people do still love wide open space and high ceilings too. They aren’t going anywhere. So, how do you light them?
With multiple light fixtures!
The 7 chandeliers I used in my large living room with super high ceilings, in the Seasonal Living Showhouse.
These 4 large lanterns help light and fill the vaulted ceiling in this hill country home project I’ve been working on. They’ve recently been installed and they look great! Designer: Carla Aston
Multiple light fixtures hang from the high ceiling of a showcase home.
6) Tambour paneling
I’m seeing more tambour wood paneling in cabinetry and wall finishes. Although I probably wouldn’t ever do this horizontally without making sure there was good maintenance for dusting, I do like the vertical version.
It’s a nice application for curved surfaces and it can add detail into a clean-lined modern aesthetic.
The fastest way to create a tambour wall or cabinet front is with panels that are pre-made like in the pic above. However, it can be a good DIY.
In this home below, The New American Home 2022, seen on tour when I was at KBIS last year, they ended up creating these paneled walls with half round dowels, individually. The tambour paneling was not going to be in on time for the show, so they made do this way. Honestly, it looked very high end.
Tambour wood panels made this upper floor’s landing interesting and textural in The New American Home 2022.
These tambour look paneled doors were cool in The New American Home too. It’s a modern look that has some detail.
Tambour look door fronts on furniture can be a rather style-neutral look.
Going out
These are trends that I think I won’t be choosing for clients in 5 years. I think that although there are exceptions, mostly I think they will die out and they will date your home in the next few years.
1) Bulky, oversized curvy furniture - 80’s style
I’m not the only designer saying this is soon to be passé. While I understand it is different and fresh to many, I remember the 90’s when all this stuff was tossed out and spaces were redesigned. I just don’t think it will be something I’d select for a client in 5 years and really, I’m already over it.
Do you think you would buy this furniture 5 years from now?
Bulky, jumbo sized, curved upholstery may not last 5 more years as a design trend. carlaaston.com
The bulky, curvy style furniture doesn’t have long-lasting appeal to me. It feels very trendy. carlaaston.com
These oversized curved details might not be something that will last for the next 5 years. If you’re looking at purchasing investment furniture, I’d pass on this look. carlaaston.com
Now, there are some curvy details that I love seeing now. Curves that are more gentle and slight. Curves that form to the body for comfort and aren’t just jumbo sized for the sake of being jumbo. :-)
YES to these curves!
The graceful concave curve of this console seen at Highpoint Market makes it a timeless beauty.
Classic and beautiful, these curved chairs in the living room of the Pasadena Showcase House of Design are truly timeless. Designer: Robert Frank Interiors
I really like the curved front of this sofa from Rowe, seen at HPMKT in the fall. It is great for people with short or long legs and kind of gives a more cozy feel to the furniture layout.
The curved top and face of this sofa adds some softness to an otherwise boxy shape.
I do love a curved swivel chair too, I think these will be timeless. They just so easily fit into almost any style interior and the shape makes it easy to tuck into a seating group.
Curved swivel chairs are easy to add to almost any room’s furniture plan.
Not only are they comfortable, they rather straddle styles so they can work in many situations.
2) big sectional sofas
Just because you want to seat lots of people in your small living room at one time doesn’t always mean you can do that and have it look sophisticated and designed. I see a lot of homes with big sectionals that don’t work in the space and there is just no flexibility with them.
Sometimes they work really well and they fit the space and needs of the family perfectly and sometimes they just look too big and awkward for the space.
Get a furniture layout done and consider if you might move in a few years, because your sectional could possibly not work in a new home.
I’ve seen these divan style sectionals a lot at Highpoint and I just feel they have a very limited use and life span. They look almost commercial to me, like they should be in a mall. This one below takes up a lot of room! I just don’t see people using that to sit and watch tv or hang out for a while. (Oh, and it is sooo low to the ground too.)
I don’t think this style sofa is very useful in a home and therefore, might not be a good investment for a long-lasting piece of furniture.
If you have a big space and need this kind of seating where everyone can pile on and lounge together, then sectionals are great.
If you are are more comfortable in a chair, if you like your own space without someone nestling in beside you, if you entertain a lot with people that are not going to be snuggling with you on a sofa, then a sectional might not be the best choice for your home.
Big, round sectional sofa for a big space.
More 2023 Trends to Come!
I’ll be doing another trends post coming soon so subscribe below to get that in your inbox.
Check out these design bloggers to see the trends they are noting for 2023!
Cindy Hattersley Design | Classic Casual Home | Design Indulgence | Life on Virginia Street | Most Lovely Things
