Interior design aspects to give up in 2019

As early as the second half of last year, specialized magazines and blogs, in the voice of well-known designers from the US, UK, Europe or Australia, started to present the trends for the coming year. In general, they express their views on "what will be worn", but also what they'd like to stop seeing in interior design in 2019. Being quite a lot of recommendations under the "so, so not" column I tried to find the common denominator. The recommendations below resulted, with most of those who tell us how we should decorate in 2019 agreeing that these trends should be gone.

No grays, monochromatic decor or predominantly white in interior design in 2019

Gray, so much used in years gone by, has reached saturation and out of favor. The recommendation is a return to warm brown tones. We are urged to abandon neutral colors and move towards those with more personality.

Monochromatic decorating is no longer on the designers' radar either. We should avoid "ton sur ton" combinations, with walls, sofas and curtains in shades of the same color. Let's choose more color that brings a better tone and a desire for adventure.

Among the hard-to-accept monochromatic decorations is white. Keita Turner of Keita Turner Design New York, believes that interiors should have color, personality, evoke adventure, and make you feel cheerful. So "leave the boring white palette out and bring in the colors," she says.

Industrial and rustic industrial design is in free fall

Designers have had enough of exposed pipes, factory decor and aggressively exposed beams. Industrial design, which has been the center of attention in recent years, had its last moments of glory in 2018. No more wooden poles and old pipes, coffee tables resembling factory trolleys or lamps made of beams and thick chains. In 2019, we're being urged towards warmer tones and styles that allow for the most personal expression.

Maximalist design to replace minimalist design

For years minimalist design dominates interiors. The Scandinavian style, found in many Nordic furniture and interior decoration stores, is simple and easily adaptable to less generous spaces in apartments. It's a style that appeals to young people, characterized by lightness, naturalness and simplicity, offering the bare essentials.

Designers are beginning to see it as far too simple and lacking personality. As a result, they are turning their attention to other styles with means of expression that are closer to each individual's personality. Some even say that this year the trend will be the opposite and many designers will adopt the maximalist style. I will come back to it soon.

The very large living room, without a table around which to gather family and friends, will have to undergo some changes

The most spacious living room was the obsession of the past years. In not very big apartments in apartment blocks, the dream of a spacious living room was realized by knocking out walls and joining the living room with the kitchen and pantry. The table was eliminated because it took up too much space. Eating was done on islands, bar-like poles or coffee tables. Parties meant Swedish buffets and socializing in small groups.

Many believe that such organization pushes away rather than brings together. "Save the dinning room!" is the designer's cry Janie Molster which urges us to do away with huge living rooms and leave room for the traditional table around which to bring friends and family.

Furniture in cool, metallic colors is no longer to designers' taste. Bar trolleys are leaving interiors to make way for bookcases and consoles

Gone from interior design in 2019, along with cool grays and industrial design and metallic accents on furniture, will be the new industrial design. Furniture will return to warm tones, rounded edges and comfort.

The bar trolleys with all their metallic arsenal are out of the picture, giving way to bookcases, poles and consoles. Are we being subtly hinted at a return to books and reading? Who knows, but I like to think so!

Themed designs or designs with folk, Moroccan or tropical influences will no longer be among the designers' recommendations

There was a trend a few years ago to decorate home interiors based on a theme. This trend will disappear from 2019 with the subtle mix of styles being preferred.

Gone are the days when homes were decorated in the traditional Moroccan style, when shops sold framed miles, ebony figurines or other decorations specific to exotic countries. In 2019, designers recommend mixing styles to avoid monotony.

Local or other countries' popular culture will no longer dominate the whole room, but will only be accented by a specific object. The recommendation is that the objects should be authentic, avoiding copies and imitations.

NO decoration for decoration's sake, art gallery style walls or huge words on the wall

The same recommendation of having one authentic, valuable piece of art and not lots of other small objects cluttering up the look of the house applies here.

"Better leave the walls white, clean, if you have nothing to say. Being eclectic doesn't mean putting pictures all over the wall, no matter what. To me it's about channeling your personality in such a way that you create a wonderful space that you can breathe in" - says the New York designer Nicol Fuller.

The same idea applies to "art gallery" walls, with many frames framing photos or thematic paintings. Everything will be replaced by a single large piece, possibly a picture divided into 2-3 paintings.

Another trend that has had its heyday is decorating walls with large numbers or letters that make up a word. For example, in the dining area, the wall is lettered in half-meter letters "EAT". In this case too, it's better to leave the wall white.

The ideal place is the place that represents you, where you feel at home

Designers have always been the ones who have made or broken trends in decorating spaces. They have shown us how we can combine materials, styles and colors so that our interior design is as harmonious and effective as possible. But we make our own choices. And we make them because they represent us and make us feel good. So, if you like to have framed photos of the best family holiday moments on your wall, you're not going to take them down because it's not in trend. The important thing is that where you live, you feel "at home".