What's hot and happening indoors for 2013

Home Trends 2013

As it is much colder now, we tend to spend most weekends and evenings, indoors. Here in the Vaal Triangle it is especially so as I have noticed that people here like to entertain at their homes and don't really go out for dinner that often, only for a special occasions, end of the month treat or business meetings it or maybe after work drinks ... So your living space has to be homely, easy on the eye, equipped to ensure that you are comfortable, able to entertain, and just happy inside it. For me this also means my home has to be welcoming and a place of relaxation! Even though we are still renting, you have to make your living space your own and every so often I rearrange the furniture, add new colour, and pieces to my home for some newness. I like large floral prints or geometric prints, grounded in classic colours with highlights of bright colour, vintage pieces and wood finishes.

This picture just captures the botanical trend for 2013

So here is my take on what is hot in the home and garden for 2013, why gardening also? Because, well, my gardening is done indoors ... as I am living in a flat and need as many plants as possible for oxygen and moisture as there is so much air pollution here due to all the large industries and the dry climate!!
While we are on the topic of indoors and entertainment - we even have a little indoor golf set up with a 'target range' and the rubber balls are kept in a little leather vintage golf ball bag. I insisted my Sweetheart gets the rubber balls (less damage is done that way) and it took me quite a while to warm up to the idea of hitting some balls INSIDE the house ... but it is quite cool though. But I won't tell him that EVER :).

The Indoor golf set up

The target (a pipe with target print out stuck on top)

In terms of the trends I am not breaking it down separately into winter and summer, as there seems to be an overlap constantly of the themes. Retailers are also incorporating the themes/trends into the home ware at the moment but in winter there is chunkier, heavier weaves or knits in darker rich colour versions and in summer much more lighter summery colours, fabrics and textures are used. This is to ensure that it is seasonally relevant. I also went to see what is happening locally at the major retailers such as @Home, Mr Price Home, Boardmans, Woolworths, Sheet Street, etc. There is also beautiful antique and decor shops in Parys (Free State) that is worth a visit as it is not far from Sasolburg, and I also found inspiration and direction from our friends' homes and a few other websites.

Owls are big - Mr Price Home had a similar weathered ceramic owl for R69.95. (I want to get it for my mom for Mother's Day, she loves owls)

Home and decor trends:

Major themes:
Modernist monochrome
Tribal with inspiration taken from Morocco, Navajo nation, and Africa
Travel
Botanical and animal (where nature comes inside to play)
Country living
Pretty boudoir (@home has a whole bath range of this, along with cosmetics packaged in beautiful bird cages)
Industrial/loft living
Vintage (To give ornaments an antiqued or weathered look forms a strong part of the vintage theme that is still gaining much popularity).

Vintage binoculars I inherited from my mom's side, I don't know the story behind them but I love them. 

Another vintage piece is granny's kitchen scale in mint!

Some observations:
I noticed that there is a strong move towards hand made products especially for home ware and furniture. Products are labelled 'hand made' and there seems to be more of an appreciation and popularity for this type of product here, people are also willing to pay more if there is craftmanship to it or if it funds impoverished groups that makes these products by hand. Interesting to note that there is a lot of focus on DIY and the there are these handmade door knobs or handles available at stores.

There is a collective consciousness among people to buy only products from a sustainable source, with a focus of green living and eco friendly products. Thus to buy products that are made from waste materials and process in which it is made must not have a negative impact on the environment. Bamboo is also gaining much popularity due to its anti-bacterial properties, readily availability, it is light weight and functionality is used in a variety of kitchen products. We got our friends a bamboo snacks (for chips or nuts) bowl with handles and they love it.

I also noticed that many of the retailers offered 'affordable art pieces' that people seem to enjoy, in terms of printed canvass boards ranging from a seductive Marilyn Monroe, to a picturesque scenery to New York City. There were even white statues (baroque inspired) that caters for everyone's taste, especially for those with the taste for the theatrical. Wall mounted words such as: 'home', 'love', 'peace', joy, etc. are very popular here and are either in white, wood or bright red/purple - just saying I noticed it...Storage trunks are huge, sold everywhere and they are especially hard to find at antique shops as they are popular. Chunky knit or faux fur blankets and throws are still hot for winter!

Positive words very popular decorations here in Vaal homes

Major colours observed:
White (the entrance of Mr Price Home, made a strong white statement story), and black remains your classic colours. Bright bold saturated colours, emerald, indigo blue, mint and pink (pastels tones), red, naturals or nudes combined with a bright colour, cream, warm naturals/browns, teal, raspberry, yellow, purple, coral, jade and nectarine.
In terms of your metallics it is brass, pewter and gold.

Finishes & trims:
High gloss (lacquer), leather is huge, texture with print combinations, antiquing  weathered & cracked ceramics, quilting, crochet, wood, iridescence, feathers (guineafowl and peacock). Ceramic and wood combinations.

Prints:
Large floral prints, wall paper prints (70's especially), biggie best inspired prints (different block prints on duvet sets), computer generated graphic prints, houndstooth and snake skin (I saw a snake skin tray at @Home for R139). Forest critters such as birdies, owls, animal influences, and elephants (yes we do have elephants here in the Knysna forest made famous by novel called Circles in a Forest by Dalene Matthee) and butterflies.

In terms of furniture, collapsible (to be easily stored) and multi-functional furniture is popular specifically to flat dwellers with limited space.

Gardening trends:
Interesting to see the amount of faux plants available such orchids, flower bouquets, big roses and even ferns in pots. And these plastic plants look super real, I couldn't tell the difference ...
But back to real gardening, how exciting is this?! There is a big trend for windowsill potted herbs and veggies for the flat dwellers! These plants are potted for convenience and plant food bottles is best and easiest to feed them every second week or so, while off course watering ... I am so excited about this as my windowsill herbs are flourishing ... My ficus bonsai tree (it is a type of ficus tree I think) is doing well and also my Japanese Cycad. The reason I am so happy about it, is that I do not have my mom's green fingers and it usually takes a miracle for it to grow when left in my planting incapable hands. To note on herbs, micro herbs and small organic leaves are popular, all of these are available at Woolworths Food. So, if you can plant and grow your own you would save yourself quite a trips to the store and money.

Herbs from my windowsill garden, yay!

The herbies made even little blossoms, how beautiful is the basil and the coriander! Oh admire with some coffee in hand!

Planting and growing indigenous plants is becoming popular and most nurseries stock a good variety of these, which my Sweetheart's mom will love as she just plants indigenous trees, herbs, veggies, pretty much everything! Air plants are also popular and drought tolerant plants (I need to get some of those for here) as well as organic gardening and urban farming. My cousin in Midrand has his own little sustainable veggie and herb patch, he doesn't need to go to buy veggies it seems as he has got everything from leeks, peppers to potatoes in his backyard. So jealous...

Again conservation and always keeping the environment in mind is still key, so saving water on using more efficient irrigation systems such utilizing rain water from your gutters is key. Our friends are totally on trend in this regard as they even have sensors on their home garden irrigation system that senses when it rains as to whether to water the garden or not. DIY landscaping also hot right now, so design your own garden space and then it just needs to be maintained. In terms of flowers for the garden people opt for a mixed bouquet, and fragrant flowers (English inspired gardens). And for the kiddies in your garden, create a fun, learning garden to teach children on texture, smell and to cultivate a love early on for nature and all things green...

And that is all I have to share on the home and garden. I hope you have enjoyed and found some inspiration from this information.

Have fabulously stylish and creative week, even when you just at home :)

Bouf
xxx