Design Formula

Bring the power of dimension and depth to walls and floors with colour, texture and form.

- Joanne Molina

Emerson said that “every wall is a door”. And that’s how today’s designers are thinking about surfaces. Taking cues from a sense of luxury that is understated yet profound, floors and walls are being transformed into sites of artistic and creative self-expression with new materials and bold innovations.

Gone are the days of the almighty doyennes of ‘universal good taste’. Instead, consumers are choosing more thoughtful, difficult roads and letting personal emotion and preferences – rather than so-called trendsetters – guide their choices for the colours, materials and textures that help create their homes.

“A new generation of hyper-connected and hyper-informed consumers is reclaiming control… Consumers are becoming trendsetters themselves; full-fledged influencers. They share their finds with their communities, revealing themselves, or flaunting themselves in some cases, making commitments and voicing opinions. This is what we have called the ‘showroomisation’ trend: it is no longer the product that makes the consumer, but the consumer that makes the product,” says Vincent Grégoire from trend agency NellyRodi, who designed the Inspirations Space and the Café-Bookstore at this year’s Maison & Objet show in Paris.

Our desire to express what we love may well include any hue, so instead of just one colour we found that variations of muted hues and rich, layered textures in calming, soothing tones are being embraced. Like spaces, they are fluid and have an extended range of compatibility and mood, such as leather wall coverings with inspiration from contemporary sculpture.

Rugs, floor tiles and stone show the same inclination towards customisation – as well as a bit of whimsy and magical thinking via natural stone, fibres and textures that can reflect our personal and artistic journeys.