Gr e y is certainly one of the hottest wall colours now that white is increasingly set aside in favor of more interesting options. As grey often is a bit cold, I love when it’s combined with warm purples, reds and pinks. And brown leather & woods. Here’s some great examples! Oh and I like the frame hanging to the left – a fun alternative to the gallery style.

There’s some exciting things going on at the Trendey headquarters right now! A stylist just vistited and tomorrow photo shoots will take place in my little abode. Stay tuned :)

| pic 1 & 3 via  living etc, feb 2012 issue / pic 2 via hus & hem |

And some info: We get quite a few questions on how to decorate a specific room. It’s nice to hear from you and our answers are found here. Now, we have been using our imagination on the basis of your descriptions, but in order for us to deliver advices and ideas that’s at least fairly appropriate, please attach a photo of the room in question (it is now possible via the contact form too) if you want us to think & feedback. Happy week!

 

…if you dare. 2012 seems to be the year we see colours used in new exciting ways. Pink might be the most burdened colour, carrying heavy girlie-girlie luggage. Finally it’s set free, perfectly used and cooler than ever!

| pics: living etc. check this round of hot red-pink too!  |

It’s the last trembling hours of 2011 and time to look back and summarize. And mostly though: focus of the future! During the year, I’ve done a few trend summaries, here’s one from early 2011, and one from summer of 2011. Although Trendey hasn’t dedicated it too much space, the Megatrend of the Year 2011 has undoubtely been Industrial style. And a bit less mainstream, but still strong: dark painted walls. The Colour of the Year 2011 is – lonely at the top! – blues. Greenish blues, turquoiseish, greyish, cobolt blue…(And as a side note when it comes to colours: carrot-orange). And the overall way of decorating: MIX, MIX, MIX!

Picture via Heart Home Magazine, which I hereby appoint Online Interior Design Magazine of the Year. Launched in September 2011, this British quarterly publication is far better than many of the traditional glossy magazines. [Here's a pic from issue #1] The Interior Design Book of the Year is not Decorate imho, it’s Nomad. A Global Approach To Interior Style by Sibella Court. I both hope for and anticipate more globetrotter style in 2012. The Interior design feature of the Year 2011 is – again, a clear choice -  Frame Groupings. Photos, paitings and pictures has been grouped in various inspiring ways. Often gallery style and more and more assymetric as the year has passed. Speaking of art, in 2011 we’ve also seen small but exciting trend coming up we named arty farty…

| pic via vogue living |

Colourful and artistic! The Decor Item of the Year 2011 has to be the antlers. Mostly seen in Scandinavian styles but found everywhere and anywhere. My guess is we’ll see a wider range of animal heads in 2012 [like this cool thing!] The trendiest kitchen style this year has been a Country + Industrial mix [like 'industrial with warmth' or 'country sleek'] And in my opinion, the Overdose of the Year has cernainly been Public Toilet Tiles! I’m both hoping and guessing for more variations when it comes to tiles in 2012. Which leads to the Room of this Year: Bathrooms! Finally bathrooms are allowed to be a room too! We once and for all leave the sanitized and utilitarian bathroom ideal behind in 2011…

| love this pic, also via heart home magazine issue 2 |

The New White this year is beige. Less sharp and cold than whites and the perfect backdrop for colourfulness – not least the globetrotter vibe. The interior design clichees of the Year 2011 reads undecorate and personal style: great ideas, diffucult concepts. Undoubtedly part of the future! R.I.P. prepackaged styles and do’s & don’ts… Other things I loved in 2011 and wish to see more of, is the lovely drinks trolley, the creative odd chair mixes and the very useful chalkboard paint (just look at this gorgeous example at Sf Girl by Bay, and this at decor8). Actually, I so want more of the contemporary countryish style too.

Quite a few things have been said about the 2012 trends. Ideas have been spoken that the next few years will bring a strong urban farming & 70s theme. For spring consistent reports say soiled pastels, greys & beiges, and an overall movement towards more cozy homes; homely and comforting with textiles, rugs and personal decor. IKEA displayed quite a few gorgeous rugs in the 2012 catalogue, and I don’t think the kilims have reached their peak yet. And hey, not to forget the exciting return of the house plants. Cosy ECLECTIC is my decor theme of 2012 :)

A fresh new home decor year is upon us and Trendey wishes you a year filled with happiness, luck & love. Thank you masses for visiting & chatting with us this year!

| homey & eclectic, via heart home magazine issue 2 |

In spring 2012′s colour scheme, faded pastels, beiges & greys are the main ingredients. Dark graphite grey provide the contrast. Add wood (preferably blonde) and glass or transparents. So says the trend oracles. Typically springish & nice! Above pic is a shoot of our dining area; pics below via sköna hem & skeppsholmen.

Love this composition! This is actually the same home as in this post (taken nearly 4 yrs ago; it’s quite cool to compare two gorgeous versions of the same room, and see how tastes & trends evolve).

Faded & beautiful. Top-trendy for spring 2012 and a slightly granny-esque or Faded Glamour vibe.

Lastly, I think the grey wall in this kitchen below is awesome.

…is certainly a favourite topic of mine. I can’t get enough of nicely decorated bathrooms, because in Sweden, we are uncontrollably late in that regard. It seems to take forever to leave – or at least ease up – the sterile totally-tiled ideal. I’ve collected some dreadful Swedish examples in this post (along with some inspirational, of course). And here’s another round of homey and nice – decorated! – bathrooms.

| via little blue deer |

Bathroom + WIC is such a nice combo! Something in the corner, with the shoes & boots, makes it look a bit like a hallway, but apart from that I think it’s gorgeous. Great example of the motto A bathroom is a room too..

| via country living |

Interesting! Gives me think of both an orphanage from the 30s and Russian nouveau riche. Though contemporary.

| via two ellie |

Just a little bit of decor. But enough to make it homey & cozy! And below, an Asian vibe. Clean and strict, yet very inviting. Lovely black floor…

| via sköna hem |

Or Nomad – Bringing Your Travels Home is the title of Sibella Court’s latest book. It’s a photographic collection of travel shots and styled spaces. She has globetrotted and treasure-hunted to Japan, Italy, India, Syria and Mexico. Each place make a flavour with colour palettes and misc. stories. Room settings are inspired by ideas, photos and mementos, showing that any decorative background can be restyled with travel touches.

I realized I haven’t written a review about Sibella Court’s book Etcetera, but in comparison, Nomad is (imho) much more interesting. While Etcetera represents what I regard as typical Sibella Court-style – the glass jars, treasures from the bottom of the ocean, and ethnic-eclectic on smokey white vintage backdrops – Nomad takes a global step forward and delivers insprition from all over the world, still Sibella Court-ish and very likeable. My personal favourite among the exotic interior travels in the book is, at least after a first glance, Mexico!

Decorating a home is – like many other things in life -  a journey. But one needs not go travelling all around the globe in order to embrace the globetrotter approach to interior style. No tickets needed, just open this book and indulge! Or any other book, or movie or people’s home or nature or whatever inspires you. It is actually, in Sibella Court’s words, a matter of seeing things in a new way. And bringing it home. Sibella’s decor philosophy is about adding and subtracting, rearranging and recycling, transforming and rethinking a space to reflect your personality, lifestyle and adventures. The ideas can be as simple as painting a wall or creating a new ‘art wall’ or layering different textiles on your bed or hanging a new piece of fabric over your window. What the book Nomad wants to do, and does, is help open your eyes and fuel your imagination. After all, decor is all about stories and things reflecting you and your life. After reading Nomad, I feel the need for a touch of Mexico in my home.

And I’ve updated my top 5 of places I’d like to travel to:

1. New Orleans, Nashville & Memphis (by a big American car, listening to Townes Van Zandt and June Carter)
2. Clearwater Beach, Florida (for a loooong sunny vacation)
3. Paris (been there once, 20 years ago; must go back and stroll along the bridges nighttime)
4. Sri Lanka (the land of my brother-in-law)
5. Buenos Aires (to exercise the Argentine tango)

Where would you love to travel? And would you bring it home? :)