5 Interior Design and Decor Highs of 2021 and What Trends To Look Out for in 2022

After a difficult two years, in 2021 increasing, numbers of people longed for calmness, tranquillity and peacefulness. These prevalent desires spurred many to incorporate Japandi style into their homes, a trend that fuses Scandinavian and Japanese design.

In essence, Japandi seeks to merge the Japanese philosophy of wabi-sabi (the adoption of slow-living, embracing nature’s imperfections, and finding the beauty in the natural cycle of life) and the Scandinavian custom of hygge (uncovering the joy, contentment, warmth, and comfort in life’s simple pleasures). In doing so, one can create a functional, minimalistic, and natural space.

Think natural elements, calming muted colour palettes, sleek lighting, minimal accessories and cosy textures. We aren’t ready to say goodbye to Japandi style, so we hope to see it grow into 2022 and beyond.

If you haven’t heard of Chilly’s, then a) where have you been? b) you need to now. The award-winning brand is on a mission to reduce single use-packaging with their high-quality reusable products. After winning numerous awards for their eco-friendly designs last year, Chilly’s successfully launched their award-winning series 2.0 bottles.

In late 2021, Chilly’s unveiled a beautiful and exclusive collaboration with Liberty. Say hello to Jive Abyss, Summer Sprigs Blush, Summer Sprigs Pine, Brighton Blossom Granite and Brighton Blossom Whale. Each print perfectly signifies the essence of Liberty’s iconic British identity; whilst encapsulating Chilly’s sleek, youthful design. Available as a 500ml bottle or 340ml cup, take your drinking game to the next level.

To mark the release of this powerhouse collaboration, a creative and eco-friendly campaign swarmed London. Here, the city was embellished, with hand-painted murals and a fully recyclable window display in Liberty’s renowned store. Crucially, both brands showed the world that sustainable design and marketing campaigns have the power to be bold, unique and successful.

Unless you have cut yourself off from society for the last 12 months, you’ll likely have read about how world leaders, organisations and civilians are attempting to take action and protect Earth.

Although you may feel deflated and pessimistic about the current situation, and we still have a long way to go to conserve the environment, 2021 saw an increase in consumer demand for greener and more natural, sustainable goods. This was reflected in a 2021 study by Statista, with 82% of respondents answering that companies should prioritise putting people and the planet before profit.

So, what are brands doing about this? After a successful trial last year, John Lewis finally launched a rental scheme to combat throwaway culture. Meanwhile, IKEA inaugurated a Buy Back Service to give unwanted furniture a second life in a new home. This encourages people to look after the furniture and decreases the chances of it going to landfill.

Here are some of the key efforts we have made this year at Bokel:

• Improved most of our packaging by switching to 100% recycled materials.
• We only work with ethical brands.
• Switched to primarily using Royal Mail, which was crowned the most climate-friendly UK carrier in 2021.
• Created and implemented a sustainability commitment, which you can read here.

Truthfully, our efforts do not make us perfect, and we aren’t here to greenwash. However, we understand the importance of learning, evolving and improving our practices. Next year, we have plans to strengthen our impact, and we can’t wait for you to join us on our journey.

Earlier this month Pantone’s highly anticipated 2022 Colour of the Year was unveiled. The chosen colour, Very Peri is a beautiful violet-blue shade fusing together tranquil blues with an energetic violet-red undertone.

According to Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of The Pantone Colour Institute, Very Peri represents “…a spritely, joyous attitude and dynamic presence that encourages courageous creativity and imaginative expression”.

It’s the first time the company has manufactured a colour instead of delving into their pre-existing archive. With many longing for a fresh beginning after an intense two years, what better way to reflect 2022?

Biophilic design is a holistic strategy to design that embraces and incorporates natural elements to boost our well-being by supporting our innate desires to connect with nature. According to research, this can reduce stress, blood pressure and heart rate levels while boosting creativity, productivity, and well-being.

This nature-based design approach is not new. However, with urbanization increasing, more of us are losing our touch with nature. Likewise, on average Brits, spend a staggering 90% of their time indoors. Undeniably, lockdown, working from home and self-isolation this year have further exacerbated this.

With more of us longing to reconnect with nature, Biophilic Design provides the perfect opportunity to do so from our very own homes. Keen to learn more? Click here to find out how you can make biophilic design adaptable to the everyday home.

There’s something so tranquil and calming about earthy tones. Reconnect with nature by decorating or painting the walls of your home in warm shades of rust, yellow, deep navy and natural greens. Basically, colours found in nature.

This is supported by Dulux, who recently announced Bright Skies, a calming, light and airy, shade of blue as their 2022 colour of the year. Recognising the desire for many to feel connected with nature, their GreenHouse Palette shows people how they can combine Bright Skies with other natural colours to bring the outdoors indoors.

If you are going to invest in a trend, make sure that it is sustainable. This does not just concern how the brand or product affects the environment but also the impact on society.

Support sustainable brands, have fun upcycling, be thrifty and buy second-hand, sell unwanted goods and purchase good quality, timeless furniture that will stand the test of time. A furniture and decor business telling you to buy second hand or to upcycle may sound a little odd but, we aren’t here to fool you into only ever purchasing from us. Being trustworthy and transparent is crucial if we want to make any steps forward into a more sustainable world.

Sadly I am not talking about the sweetie kind, although installing a Pick ‘N’ Mix counter at home would be pretty cool. Instead, I am talking about Pick ‘N’ Mixing pieces of furniture. While there isn’t anything inherently wrong with matching furniture, a less contrived room eases the process of incorporating second-hand or upcycled pieces. A must if you want to create a more eco-friendly home.

On our website, we offer a wide range of collections, ranging from Capsule to Geometric, Woven, Prism, and so on. Have fun and treat it like you’re down at your local Pick ‘N’ Mix counter. You might get a couple of Nordic Bedside Tables and pair them with a Bone Inlay Chest of Drawers and a Scandi Blush Pink Dressing Table.

A trend on the rise is ‘emotional escape rooms’, a place where you can retreat to unwind, offload your worries, or anger. Out of sight from household chores and work. Sounds like heaven, right? If you are like me, living in a home with very little space for living and breathing, then this is going to be a bit trickier.

If this is the case, try delegating a safe space within your home away from your main activities in life. It might be a snug corner in your lounge or your bed. Somewhere you won’t feel burdened by chores that are to be done or haunted by your working from home setup, where emails are probably mounting up as we speak.