With every year comes a host of exciting, intriguing, and occasionally mystifying new design trends which cause thousands of design enthusiasts to flock to world-renowned exhibitions such as the Surface Design Show and the London Design Festival to catch a glimpse of latest creations by top international designers.
2014 has seen a huge variety in home and interior design trends: fabrics ranging from ethnic prints to animal hides, light woods and brass reintroduced into the home, and an enchanting blend of interior and exterior designs indoors.
With sustainable design continuing to flourish, and the merge of technology and interiors rapidly increasing, let’s take a look at what could potentially be the next big trend: the unity of lighting and furniture.
Lighting up your home
When it comes to designing a home, aesthetics feature high on the list with lighting often taking a back seat. With the power to transform any room at the flick of a switch, lighting is essential to getting the ambience just right in your home. Whether you’re in need of a bright, motivational office space, or a relaxing, therapeutic bathroom, lighting can help you achieve just that.
Most recently, designers have begun integrating technologies into furniture and home furnishings, from living room furniture that wirelessly charges your smart devices to kitchen countertops with built-in appliances. Could the unity of furniture and lighting be the next big trend in design?
Functional furniture
While the term may bring to mind a variety of uninspiring, characterless household items, functional furniture can maintain a superb sense of style. Take, for example, Nautinox Milano’s Between Table. Part of their Giornonotte collection, this sophisticated table consists of a solid teak wood top, a hand-polished stainless steel frame, and a built-in wireless LED panel covered in a recyclable waterproof Batyline fabric. Ideal for both indoor and outdoor use, this table is the epitome of practical furniture, yet stylish too: ideal for brightening dark corners, early evening reading, and easy to move around without hazardous wires getting in the way.
In a similar vein, designer Holly Bradshaw-Clegg’s responsive Pascal Stool combines human interaction with industrial chic. Simplistic in its design, the Pascal Stool is pressure-activated: the bulb lights up when the seat is occupied. Speaking with Dezeen Magazine, the designer spoke of her concept behind the stool:“While reflecting on my daily activities, I took note of simple tasks that could be improved. I often get comfortable in my chair ready to relax, read, or work on my laptop; only to realise I have forgotten to turn the light on.”
Surprisingly comfortable, the stool makes for a great reading seat, and with the electronics smartly hidden from view, it can seamlessly fit in with a variety of decors. Take a look at the stool in action in this video.
Therapeutic designs
Bathrooms are often considered special and private spaces; calm hideouts from the hustle and bustle of other parts of the home. Lighting can severely affect a bathroom ambience, and no one understands this better than designer Melissa Sopel. Melissa entered the Reece Bathroom Innovation Award with her Glowing Bath: an acrylic colour-changing tub with a hidden surprise. Not only can you to set colours to suite your mood, but also plug in your MP3 player so that the bathtub changes colours to match the beat and rhythm of your music.
Not dissimilar is Domolight’s elegant LED shower head which uses ‘colour therapy’, bathing its users in soothing lights as they shower, much like a spa experience. With a minimum flow capacity of 25 litres per minute, the shower head is also equipped with a remote control so that users can easily customise their colour therapy programme at the press of a button.
All about aesthetics
The aesthetics of a living space can be enhanced by lighting, and UK-based designers Lite House have taken this a step further by integrating aesthetic lighting into their products. Their illuminated glass splashbacks are an ideal way of brightening a dark kitchen, and come in three varied and unique designs. Lite House’s low-energy 5 bottle capacity illuminated wine racks also make a wonderful lighting feature for any kitchen.
Last but not least is the captivating Bright Woods collection by Italian designers, Giancarlo Zema Design Group; a collection of low tables and stools that invoke enchanted woodlands and create an almost dreamlike atmosphere. A limited edition, the furniture is crafted from wood and resin rings which are lit by integrated LED lights.
About the Author
Written by Ian Holbrook, founder of Premier Lampshades – the home of uniquely British, handmade lampshades and lampshade repair solutions.
