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Interiors Expert: Design Tips & Trends For The Year Ahead

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Interiors Expert: Design Tips & Trends For The Year Ahead

January 11, 2022

Undergoing a home project can be daunting. From choosing flooring and paint shades to deciding which piece of timeless furniture is right for your space, there are plenty of interior design queries and crossroads to encounter. To help simplify the process, we’re debuting a new series—Interiors Expert—where our interior designer, Leah Cumming, answers our community’s most-asked questions. To kick it off, we asked Leah to share her interior design tips and trends for the year ahead.

 

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Interiors Expert: Design Tips & Trends For The Year Ahead

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Rip & Tan: What are some design elements you’re looking forward to playing with this year? Any lackluster trends you’re happy to do away with?

Leah Cumming: I’m really looking forward to thoughtfully layering rooms. There is a constant conversation in the design world of minimalism versus maximalism. I think people often tend to strongly side one way or another, however, I believe there is a happy medium and a hybrid that we have not really explored yet.

We have had to really adjust the way we live and work over the past two years, and I think we will continue to see more intention brought into our homes with design.

Beyond that, I also think we’re going to see people use more natural materials and surfaces that provide the illusion of bringing the outdoors in.

In terms of trends I’m tired of, I would love to see the overly done midcentury modern trend go away.

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Rip & Tan: What are a few easy changes to make that give your home a fresh look and feel? 

Leah Cumming: A fresh coat of paint always helps freshen up a space and makes it feel new again! A few of my favorite shades are Portola Plaster of Paris, Portola Gem, Portola Beachwood, and Portola Stone 2.

Rip & Tan: What’s your approach to editing a space? How do you decide on what stays and what should go?

Leah Cumming: This is one of my favorite questions. I think everything in a space should serve some sort of purpose or function in order to not overcrowd and clutter a room. That being said, I also believe it is equally important to bring things into the home that evoke memory, feeling, or simply bring joy. Whether that’s a beautiful ceramic bowl or an abstract marble sculpture, if you find it to be beautiful, it’s definitely worth keeping and working into your home.

There is a lot of research that directly links how home design has an impact on our mental health. With that in mind, I think it’s important to surround ourselves with things that make us feel in any way, shape, or form. After all, a home is what you make it.



Images: Kate Berry & Angi Welsch

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Photos by Angi Welsch