Do you love to follow all the latest trends?
Do you consider yourself a trend-setter or a trend-follower?
I was jotting down a bunch of ‘all things kitchen’ ideas to muse about in 2020 as I rang in the New Year, and stopped to realize that not once did I consider anything to do with ‘trends‘.
Nowhere do trends appear more (than perhaps in Fashion) than in Home Decor, Home Reno, etc. And, personally, I find it e x h a u s t i n g. ‘White is IN! Everyone should paint everything WHITE!’ (snore), ‘BLACK is the new White! Let’s all go dark!’, ‘Grey is the best! Who DOESN’T have grey?!’. Magazines, blogs, instagram, pinterest – they all feed us information every minute on what is the ‘latest and, therefore, the greatest’.
What I’ve seen with my own Arch / Interiors Clients, however, is that it can be confusing and paralyzing. You can follow the crowd to strive and pay for that white-on-white-on-white Kitchen, but in a month the crowd has moved on and you’re left … where, exactly? A Client will pick out a perfect of-the-moment appliance, but in the next magazine a new appliance is hailed King and now they can’t decide.
Honestly, once I’ve personally seen anything slathered on Instagram more than 3 times, I’m already bored of it anyhow. So, then what?
The real question, perhaps, is – what is YOUR STYLE? Trends will – and do – come and go as often as the monthly magazines come out, and it’s fun to see and contemplate some new ideas, but it only works if it’s JUST THE RIGHT idea that INCORPORATES into your own personal STYLE. Only then will it stand the test of time.
Interestingly, one of my close friends who would be considered ‘a living trend’ that people look up to, is really just on point with his own personal style. Many don’t get that, try to copy him, and ultimately fail due to inauthenticity.
If you find your personal style, especially in the most expensive room in the house – your Kitchen – then you’ll instinctively know which trends you can incorporate into it that will be long-lasting. I find it most important in the Kitchen because NOTHING in this precious room is cheap. Countertop, cabinet, appliance, backsplash decisions all require an investment in money, so why not also invest your heart? It is the heart of your home, after all.
Just some food for thought!
From my KITCHEN to yours.
