Ushering in the trends of 2012

It’s finally up and running, the year 2012 that is!  And with the new year come the proclamations and predictions of what the approaching 365 days have to offer. In the field of design, a lot of the so-called “trends” have slowly been creeping into the scene since the past year and prior, but the flip of the calendar compels us to consolidate and reassess how these innovations would move forward.

With design and manufacturing forever evolving and producing new resources for design, creative experimentations will never cease, and that’s what I love most about technology—it makes design concepts possible in the real world. And a new year signals a better world—even for design.   Here’s to 2012!

Neutral palletes. Grays remain strong this year, with their hues going either cool with bluish overtones, or warm with beige overtones. Gunmetal grays and “greiges” [the term coined for the (grey) gray-beige mixes] are used with various shades of white to create a clean and neutral palette. Absolute neutral grays of black and white fade out, as these have neither character nor personality. Off-whites will continue to flourish with hints of muted color from practically any hue on the color wheel.

Bold tertiary colors. Mixed from primary and secondary colors, tertiary colors are the new favorite accent tones as they throw a punch with their strong, saturated hues. Yellow-orange, red-orange (Pantone’s color for 2012, Tangerine Tango is essentially a red-orange), red-violet (plums and purples), blue-violet, blue-green (turquoise; aqua) and yellow green (apple green)—are used as accents to predominantly neutral background palettes. You can use them as your sofa throw pillows, or to accentuate one wall of a room,  or on the artwork hung on your wall, or as smatterings of color throughout your accessories.

Textural applications. Same material, different application. Tile, wood, stone and many other finishes are used more imaginatively through some variation in the way they are cut, installed and finished.  Wood is installed using different species (a trend that was probably sparked by the use of old or reclaimed timber) allowing the natural grains and colors to create visual texture; tiles and stone slabs are cut in different sizes and installed in varying depths. Even glass and fabrics are not spared, as they can be glued and laminated to create what, from a distance, could appear to be a different material altogether.

Lustrous surfaces. In sharp contrast to heavily textured surfaces, other materials are applied to complement and create contrast. Turning completely the other way, pearlized, metallic, gloss and satin finishes are used in lieu of plain matte finishes, with their transparency, sheen and luster imparting a certain softness and luxury to the ruggedness of heavily textured surfaces.

Scaled-down furniture. Furniture pieces are being scaled down into smaller sizes and finer proportions, a gradation probably brought about the reduction in the size and scale of everyday functional pieces like desk lamps, table clocks, computers, television sets and other appliances. It’s also brought about by the reduction in size of our living spaces, as our cities become more crowded and spaces become less available. Tabletops are becoming thinner, just as their legs are too, and bulkier pieces like buffet tables, consoles and drawer chests are becoming more slender and less enclosed. Materials like synthetic solid surfaces, glass and sheet or solid metals make the scaling-down structurally possible.

Natural materials. With healthier “green” concepts all over our consciousness, natural materials such as paper, linen fiber, wood, bamboo and most especially those that are untreated or produced and used in their most natural state will flourish. Aside from their naturalness of being a component of healthy living, their innate characteristics left unprocessed also means less use of precious energy. Hand-woven linens and cottons, unfinished wood and unpolished stone will be seen working with synthetic and man-made elements to create some very rustic yet modern environments.

I’m liking 2012 already!

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