“As clients are regularly exposed to repetitive and mass marketed design styles on social media, the wish for an authentic home will continue to increase.“

“As clients are regularly exposed to repetitive and mass marketed design styles on social media, the wish for an authentic home will continue to increase. Homes will be hardworking and productive in order for their owners to enjoy a restorative and meditative lifestyle. The future of natural home interiors looks healthier and happier than ever. Beautiful vegan interiors, ultra-organic and custom spaces, and homes filled with lush plant life that improves air quality and promotes health. The future is design that accounts for the specific individual’s needs in a healthy, restorative, and organic way.”

“A visual connection with the outdoors can improve mood and productivity“

Sarah – “Incorporating smart design and technology is a critical step in new home design – where properly designed, technology can save time and energy. This may include home appliances, HVAC, alarm/security cameras, door locks, audio/visual controls, lighting, window treatments, and more; automating systems improves the quality of life by eliminating unnecessary work.

Smart home technology is more than just the refrigerator that announces when ingredients run out, or the thermostat that has presets for each family member. The main reasons many clients are investing in home technology are safety and peace of mind. For a small home, checking all the windows and doors to make sure they are locked might wake only a few moments. The same task is long and tedious in a large estate. Having an integrated home system allows users to monitor all aspects of their home from their mobile phone.

A smart home improves the safety and convenience, allowing homeowners more time to spend doing what they love.”

Sarah – “My design practice has always closely considered our desire to be connected to nature. This means having a visual connection to nature with windows and natural light, bringing nature inside by adding plants or natural materials, and having nature-inspired objects like sculptures or furnishings that resemble natural forms. As more and more of us make our careers our focus, calmness, serenity and healthy living can be difficult to achieve without the help of nature and smart design.

Many clients are beginning to realize that there is a dramatic benefit to design that nourishes our desire to be close to nature, hence the trending terms “jungalow” and “crazy plant lady”. These popular phases have inspired images of homes filled to the brim with lush flowers and plant life. Adding plants is an excellent way to promote health and wellness, beautify your home, and improve indoor air quality.

The field of design that creates spaces inspired by and in tune with nature in order to promote the health, serenity and wellness for its occupants by meaningfully incorporating natural elements is called biophilia. Following these principles can result in positive physical and psychological improvements for individuals occupying such a space. Lowered blood pressure, stress, hormone levels and increased levels of happiness have been reported by people living and working in nature infused spaces. Using biophilic design means including pieces of nature in the design, elements inspired by nature, and mimicking natural environments with layout, architecture and planning.

Phrases like crazy plant lady and jungalow style may be catchy and new, but designing with plants certainly isn’t. The growing appreciation of plants will continue into the coming year and beyond.“

Sarah – “Embracing your truths and aligning your home with your values is paramount to a happy, healthy home life. Rather than focusing on style, many clients are finding that it is best to focus on how they want to live, and have my inspiration be born from there. Having a healthy home means being aware of what your home and everything inside it is made of, as well as aligning the design of your home with your values.

For some, healthy design and living consciously may simply require eliminating toxic materials, while for others it means vegan interior design, designing a meditative retreat, or considering their pets in the design of their home. Being aware of what nourishes you, be it animal kindness and/or human welfare can offer a clear path toward designing your home more consciously. When a home is designed deliberately, it works for you, which is why I encourage my clients to be completely honest with me about their preferences and the way they live their lives. This information is vital to my design team’s process. 

Our mental, physical, and emotional health are deeply and immediately impacted by our surroundings. A visual connection with the outdoors can improve mood and productivity, and what we bring into a home or space (finishes, furniture, artwork) determines both the quality of the air we breathe and how we function in our daily lives. With that in mind, I give careful consideration to my clients’ unique personalities, lifestyle needs, and long term goals in order to craft customized spaces that contribute to their overall health and happiness.“

“I am seeing a decline in requests for ready-made, mass-produced furnishings“

“This is a logical progression because furniture can and should last a lifetime (or two). Clients are learning that it is better to purchase healthy, hand-made furniture that will last rather than mass-produced furniture created in a factory setting. Many popular furniture retailers make it impossible to know the ingredients in the dyes or finishes in their fabrics. Even the “natural” linens are regularly treated with stain repellent finishes with undisclosed or proprietary ingredients.

Our design studio has long-standing relationships with artists and artisans who hand-make most of our goods, focusing on using natural and reclaimed materials. Because of their healthy furnishings’ high quality and personalized nature, pieces made this way tend to be more treasured by a family and stay with them for longer. My clients are choosing this quality craftsmanship over the lesser ready made options.

There are a few other fading trends: rose gold is waning in popularity, as well as the bohemian style and bling for bling’s sake. The idea that home furnishings should follow fads closely like fashion is waning. I think as more clients are search for authenticity, more clients will find their way to healthy, artisan, organic goods and furnishings. “

To be effortlessly timeless

As we’ve stated before in previous posts and to our clients here at Mega Builders Inc, incorporating aspects of the natural world is one way to take a home to the next level.

And with that, we conclude our third article in the series to explore the evolution of interior design and the route homes will take in the future. We want to thank Sarah Barnard Design for taking part in this road towards discovery and helping us map out how the near future will look and what route, in evolution, homes will take on. We also congratulate Sarah Barnard Design with the “Leadership in thought and future development of interior design” award as they are one of the interior designers shaking up the LA, California scene and were subsequently chosen to take part in the conversation of what the future holds.