I can’t close out the month of January without spilling my thoughts on this year’s trend forecasts for home interiors! I don’t believe “new” trends (none of these are anything you’ve never seen before) are meant to replace current things you love, but they are an exciting peek into possibilities.
1. Intricate Detail Work is In
When I look at the trends that I’m seeing so far this year, a lot of them skew maximalist—but not always in the way you would think. In past years, we’ve been jumping on adding stuff to our rooms, and people are feeling the effects of that. Bogged down by stuff. But when the details are in the room’s architecture and permanent fixtures, you need less stuff! My bedroom is a really good example of this—we added the trim to the walls, and we don’t need anything else to make it feel moody & modern.
Shop The Primary Bedroom
The trim of the room, the curtains, the ceilings—those features can have a lot of personality. The trend is not about going maximalist with stuff. It’s about going maximalist with the details that are often built into the room.
For instance, if you’re updating your kitchen, consider how you could cut your countertop edge to make the biggest impact. Or what if my backsplash was curved instead of straight? Details, really special details that your grandchildren will drool over one day, and say, “Ugh, they just don’t make it like this anymore!” are very in. We lost those details for a long time, and we’re bringing them back.
2. Wallpaper on the Ceiling
One of the overarching trends that carries through a couple of my themes the ceiling is a blank slate. And what an opportunity that is! Wallpaper on the ceiling. I’ve only ever done it once. And I still don’t like a really large-scale pattern on the ceiling! But!! There is a way to incorporate a ceiling pattern that reinforces the color scheme that you want to add to the room. I even mentioned recently that I may try this in the playroom!
When I added wallpaper to the ceiling in Polly’s bedroom in our last house, I wanted to bring in a complementary color to the plum. Instead of painting a color on the ceiling, we installed this creamy, gold-hued wallpaper. It was love!
Two pieces of advice when it comes to ceiling wallpaper? It can’t be peel and stick (get that paste out!), and it should be multi-directional! You don’t want to only be able to appreciate it from one angle. And I like something that’s more subtle. I want to wallpaper the playroom ceiling and maybe bring it down a foot on the walls like a trim! I have a lot of blank ceilings in my house–and this doesn’t mean I’m going to wallpaper them all, but I am paying attention to them more this year.
3. Cabinets That End (Gasp) Before the Ceiling
Well, this one is unexpected! We were all for floor-to-ceiling cabinets in kitchens, laundry rooms, and mudrooms. But now I’m seeing more space between the cabinetry and the ceiling. Part of that is to accommodate architectural features such as beams or windows. But the reason why I love this is because it feels so historic and European. It’s the way it was done…it feels purposeful. It also allows a room to breathe and have more character. (But not in the cow plate/chicken figurine/faux potted ivy with 6 years of dust type of way.)
I have and love cabinets to the ceiling, but I think we’ll see a lot more gaps above cabinetry. To me, this stems from the parallel trend of free-standing furniture that is coming back into vogue. I mentioned this in last year’s trend report, as I kept seeing more islands designed as a furniture piece instead of built-in. This same vibe goes for cabinetry. It’s a way to give your ceiling some depth. Even if it’s a few inches, it creates shadow and interest. It takes a problem that a lot of people have (uneven ceiling lines) and makes it an asset. It lets the architecture of the room sing!!
4. Pleated Skirting & Cafe Curtains Everywhere
I love this romantic pleated detail that is appearing in more home interiors. We’re talking about under sinks with pleated curtains (which we did while waiting for our kitchen appliance!) We’re talking about pleated curtains behind glass in cabinetry. It’s behind doors. It’s a cafe curtain in your laundry room or mudroom window. You’ll see pleated skirting on ottomans—even coasters!
There has been such a focus on making sure curtains are tall and long, but now I’m seeing little curtains everywhere! I did this temporarily when our kitchen was under construction, but now I want to add skirted curtains to our pantry doors. Maybe our kitchen windows too…and the large picture window behind our tub. Or the windows in the bonus room! I’m so running with this trend.
When it comes to choosing a pattern or color, my preference is a cafe curtain with some sort of small-scale pattern on them. I’ll put together a round-up of some of my favorites as I’m shopping for our home!
5. Color Combinations with Contrast
Shop Greta’s Room
Last year was “the year of red” (I also predicted butter yellow, which is still having a moment). But instead of picking any one color for the year, I think this is the year when the application of color takes on a twist. There’s going to be a lot of color pairings—no longer just color drenching. It’s about the rise of color combinations for walls and trim. There are so many ways to do this: you can use complementary colors, analogous colors, a tone-on-tone with a darker version of the colors.
I’ve been saying for so long, “I want to do a contrast trim!” So I did it in Greta’s room last year and chose a color that’s not even within the wallpaper pattern on the walls. It feels so good and unexpected—her room is such a vibe! We’ll see more and more of this mix-and-match trim and wall color in 2025.
If you need some ideas of where to start, I paired our CLJ wallpaper with some of my favorite trim colors in this post!
6. Not-Your-Grandma’s Bold Sofas
It’s a pattern we all fall into: You know you’re going to have a sofa for awhile, and it costs a lot of money, so you buy something neutral. And yet! The navy blue sofa I got 6 years ago has been moved from house to house and room to room—I can’t imagine it not being a part of our home decor—it’s made that big of an impression on me!
Everything old is new again, and sofas in rich patterns and colors are back. I’ve been browsing for some new couches for the living room, and let me tell you: I’m not getting a neutral sofa!! They are a lot less risky than they would have been a few years ago. This is a chance to mix in some color tones that are on the wall. If you have a green room, consider a dark blue or patterned sofa. That $15,000 sofa that I added (firmly tongue-in-cheek) to our Sectionals for Every Budget post? I think we’ll see some knock-offs this year. And I’m here for it!!
7. Pattern Drenching
We’re all very familiar with color drenching now (painting all parts of a room, including the ceiling, trim and walls all the same color), so we’re raising the drenching to PATTERN drenching. This could be a mix of a bunch of patterns on the walls and textiles, or–what is REALLY trending, is matching wallpaper and textiles, including furniture and curtains. It’s coming back and it’s so sweet. Would you try it?
Shop Faye’s Room
I love how these trends weave the traditional and modern together. This year, details and charm will be the focus of interior decorating. And pattern! It’s about how many eye-catching details we can add to our rooms in a maximalist way.
What trends are you eyeing and loving this year so far?
