Designer Roundup & What To Expect In SS17

Keeping your ear to the ground and spotting trends and developments in any art form is a tough ask. Making sure your finger is on the pulse of what’s new in the field of design, painting or literature can be a full-time job.
Luckily, and for the time being at least, following these evolving trends is still possible in fashion and interior design.
Could it be perhaps because these things are present and visible all around us? Or it could be that their editorial can take up half the magazine space at your local Tesco?!

However, the changes and difficulty in clearly defining a style, direction, or genre are becoming increasingly challenging in interior design as well. Similar to music in the 21st century, so diverse and readily available in such enormous quantities, we seem to select what we have stumbled upon and happen to like, stopping still like statues before exploring further.

With this blog post, we decided to jump into the rabbit hole, delve a little deeper and take a look at a number of designers who seem to have second sight when it comes to future trends. This diversity thing seems to be working out well for all of them and (as we can’t share their crystal ball) we can only be better off by glimpsing through their recent designs and learning a bit about our world from them.

Andrew Martin

Andrew Martin is a powerhouse in UK interior design and has the flair to prove it! Martin is well-known for mixing and matching all cultures and eras but somehow always finds a balanced blend. He is blatantly unafraid of colour and claims to enjoy bringing seemingly contradictory styles together in an amazingly complementary way. A true artist in this trade, Martin is involved in the development of the interior design scene and is set to surprise audiences and clients alike all over again in 2017 with bursts of wondrous colour in perfectly put together spaces.

Martin is also heading the organisation team for this year’s Andrew Martin International Interior Design Awards and is involved in other interior design awards and events. It seems he is always keeping his eye out for new inspiration. It’s next to impossible to predict what Martin’s designs have in store for us in 2017 and beyond, but it’s safe to say he will surprise and delight as usual. His balanced, modern blend seems to be a common thread running through all of the top UK designers collected in this list.
Martin claims that geometric prints with a pinch of South American influences are the trend for the summer of 2017, while his love of velvet is sure to pay off this year.

Anouska Anquetil

Soft, feminine, and classic interior design with a contemporary, gentler twist has been making a big comeback in recent years.
This year seems to be the year that femininity, soft beiges, creams, misty pinks, and earth tones make their way back into homes for good.
Perhaps among those most responsible for the popularity of this particular trend is Anouska Anquetil. Anquetil takes modern English classic styles and meticulously gels them with a Parisienne feel, a clear indication of the years she spent working in the French capital. Anquetil and her Gilt Studio still see glamour and colour on the rise in 2017, so expect to see more with the added element of her signature feminine touch.

Anquetil’s unique blend of styles and colours come to life with exquisite decorative pieces. High gloss lacquers and luxurious details that are discreetly nestled into wonderfully sophisticated settings. True ladylike charm, but in a very contemporary way, are the hallmark of this designer.
Anquetil is perhaps also the best example of the aforementioned globalisation trend. A somewhat typically urban French style that fits so naturally into British design.
Who would even have imagined something of the sort two decades ago?

Bernie de la Cuona

Every designer has their speciality and every era has its own recognisable style. While world-renowned Bernie de la Cuona is among the most famous interior designers in Europe, it seems that this year’s trends indicate that her time is yet to come. De la Cuona’s favoured speciality, an addiction almost, are textures and textiles – put together in one piece when achievable. And this woman achieves it in spades!

That being said, her favourite details, texture and textile alike, are making a comeback, almost in a retro 1970s sort of way, minus the neon colours and large prints. A perfect combination for de la Cuona’s vivid, marvellous designs and the ideal inspiration for her. Her stellar rise has been duly noted, but we have yet to see what she can really do with all the fabrics in play this year. She recently presented her new collection of linens, mixing them with other rich natural fabrics like cashmere and satin, and expects such high-quality natural fabrics to be a hit this spring and summer.

Charlotte Crosland

Similar in passion for colour and pattern to de la Cuona, but completely different and utterly unique in style, Charlotte Crosland is another famous interior designer who is a fan of the mentioned 2017 trend of varied fabrics. The multi-award winning designer juxtaposes contemporary and traditional styles to create entirely new evergreen spaces that seem to belong in no era and in every era.

Crosland aims for a sense of cool contemporary yet cosy. Her work proves time and again that cosy doesn’t necessarily mean rustic and can fully fit into a neat, clean, modern design, with all the warmth of a quaint, rustic country home. Bright colours are back in a big way for the spring and summer season this year and Crosland is sticking to them.
In her own words: ‘The neutral, safe, soulless interiors that have become such a widespread trend are not for me. Just as people are different, I like my designs to be different, and different from each other.’

Saskia Blyth

For those who want their interior designer to go all in, this designer is happy to comply. Saskia Blyth is expected to gain even more stellar success in 2017 due to her originality and penchant for the distinctive.
Current design trends combine colour diversity and multiculturalism. Tone these down in an elegant sophisticated way and you get precisely what Blyth delivers every time.

The 21st century has seen entirely new concepts of spaces and rooms come to life – from indoor pools in the oddest places to home cinemas and almost unfathomable closets. Blyth somehow specialises in all of these, leaving every space, no matter how novel or unusual, looking like it was conceived to be exactly what she makes it.
Blyth has also established her own design business, Blyth-Collinson Interiors, specifically for those looking for her unique style.

Henrietta Spencer-Churchill

Want your home designed royally? Who better to do it than an interior designer who was raised in a palace!
A blue blood herself, Henrietta Spencer-Churchill is part of the UK’s creme de la creme in more ways than one. Her bloodline comes through clearly in every one of her refined designs.
Raised in Bleinham Palace, Spencer-Churchill is less prone to experimenting and sticks to all things tried, true, and timeless. She claims to remain unphased by trends preferring to remain true to her habit of looking for her inspiration within the architecture of each home.

While traditional classics are not an up-and-coming trend in 2017, they are exactly what they appear to be – timeless. Interior designs with historic refinement and attention to detail as those of Spencer-Churchill’s will never go out of style. Her work may very well outlast many of the designs of her contemporaries. With so many changes, patterns, new fabrics, concept rooms, and various other novel design elements and influences, classic regal design seems refreshing and balanced.
Spencer-Churchill’s style and talent is hugely desirable. After all, when in doubt, stick to the classics.

Louise Bradley

Louise Bradley has proven over the years that she is about more than just interior design. Bradley is, in and of herself, a brand.
The designer now has a signature furniture line, an interior design practice, and is dabbling in architecture as well. Interestingly, she is not the only major designer to be branching out this way. It seems this phenomenon too could be a growing trend to catch on and flourish past 2017. The all-in-one brand name designer, who can also provide structure and centrepieces for the home seems to be a trend of itself within the future of interior design. Following the likes of Bradley will prove to be a fascinating barometer.

She seems to be disregarding the 2017 spring and summer vision of bright colours. Instead she’s staying true to the trend of rich, natural fabrics. Her newest collection is complete with clean geometric shapes and neutral colours throughout. A really fresh design we simply adore!

Bradley has been conquering London homes as her designs are ideal for city living. Effectively blending high functionality with modern, elegant aesthetics and comfort.
So many homes and so little time seems to be this designer’s motto du jour. She continues to line up designs, making each one unique and perfectly adapted to their owners. Working mostly in limited, varied, urban spaces could explain her decision to branch out with her own lines and entire architectural schemes.
With this much urban experience, we expect Bradley is an expert in what a big city home requires today.

Michael Reeves

Pared-down chic is what Reeves’ style is all about. Heavy on neutral colours and paying specific attention to interesting yet toned down details. As a result, his touches blend seamlessly with a room as much as they stand out.
One might call Reeve’s style ‘the new classic’. A very balanced, contemporary elegance that’s incredibly difficult to pin down and describe.
Michael Reeves is also, among all the neutrals and contemporary simplicity, a big fan of antiques. These timeless additions are what really pulls his designs together, giving them that confounding element of us not quite sure which era we’ve entered. Fascinatingly simple and balanced, with an impeccable eye for detail, Reeves seems to be onto something well past 2017.
He is among those who predict the revival of spaces like libraries, parlours, and fully fitted laundry rooms. We’d love a parlour in our home!

Joanna Wood

For faithful English design, from head to toe and for all time, it’s Joanna Wood that comes up stage front and centre every time. Wood’s English style is classic to its core with just the right amount of modern sprinkled across the room like a smidgen of spice.
Her use of colour is reminiscent of 17th and 18th-century paintings. Tones and hues that seem to have walked straight out of a Vermeer. Lively and welcoming shades of lapis blue, ochre yellow, and sage green set as centrepieces. Wonderful details distributed with impeccable British dignity and elegance throughout the room, curated and well-thought pieces carefully placed exactly.

In age-old English tradition, these rooms also include antique tidbits, either on display or hidden as treasured family heirlooms. Wood’s passion for both her work and culture shine through in every detail. Her style turns such soft colours and details into truly grand designs.
Lewis & Wood’s new collection presented at Chelsea Design Week 2017 is all about intricate fabric designs and neutral colours, a trend we’ll definitely be seeing more of this spring and summer, and Wood’s designs carry a signature all of its own.

Tom Bartlett

When speaking of trends and what SS17 might bring, Tom Bartlett could be right at the top of the list. Modern as modern can be, through and through, Bartlett might have invented the concept. He might claim to not necessarily be bound by so-called “good taste” at all times, but it is difficult, if not impossible, to find anything kitsch or tasteless in any of his designs.

Bartlett designs as if he were painting a snippet of modern life and society. Could this be what interiors in 2017 are truly about and why we’ve left Tom for last?
He embodies modern interior design.  His work leans to the distinct possibility we are moving away from eras that stick solely to one recognisable style. His is a contemporary look that we can’t place on a timeline or to a specific geographic area.

Interior design is more than an art. All types of art are borne from their origins, but interior design cohabitates with us, in our time. Perhaps this is exactly what now looks like: a collection of idiosyncrasies that somehow come together into a beautiful whole.

Guest Blog Post by Rose Quartz Designs

Hope you found this of interest – please share on your social media. Sign up for the newsletter below and make sure to let us know your predictions for SS17.

For our take on the interesting, new and novel in SS17, have a read of our blog posts. We cover all home decor from changes in Vinyl Flooring, unique and innovative Feature Tiles and wonderful Floral Splashback designs!