100% Design 2019

This week, our team headed to 100% Design at Olympia London to meet with new suppliers, keep an eye on emerging trends and get inspired for the upcoming season. Now in its 25th year, 100% Design is the largest and longest-running design trade event for industry professionals in the UK, and an unmissable destination for design and innovation. With a strong focus on established and emerging brands, its a great way to meet with new potential suppliers and industry professionals.

As with other trade shows we have attended in 2019, there was a huge focus on sustainability in the form of reused and recycled materials, sustainable business practices and a focus on British craftsmanship and buying local. Biophilia is still rife throughout design, with every aspect of nature being brought into the home in the form of houseplants, natural materials and raw, unfinished timber. However, we noticed a slight move away from greenery towards everlasting foliage; dried flowers and pampas grass were everywhere – the ultimate sustainable bouquet!

There was a noticeable departure from the bold bright colours we’ve been seeing lately, moving towards softer, duller, darker and more neutral tones. Lots of gorgeous brass accents were still evident but the shiny and antique brass we’ve been seeing over the last few years seems to be gradually being replaced by brushed brass, again in a duller tone than we’ve seen before. We also saw some really interesting bold moves in joinery – everything from Valchromat furniture, to bronze-plated MDF, velvet-feel joinery and sleek, minimal cupboard door pulls. The sky’s the limit when it comes to joinery in 2020!

We attended a lecture on the NCS Colour Trends 2020+ and learnt about their latest colour stories, inspired by current external factors including: urbanisation, climate change, digitalisation, a new conscious world and the influence of Generation Z. The stories are titled:

Evolving Eclecticism
Shades of Incognito
New Masculinity
HumAn Identity

All follow our own observations regarding the dulling of colours and tones, and signal the lingering of yellow and the growing importance of blues and greens. Echoed by the Dulux Colour of the Year, Tranquil Dawn.

Our favourite part of the show was situated outside Olympia itself, in the form of a refurbished Victoria Line tube carriage reupholstered and restored by one of our favourite fabric suppliers, Kirkby Design. Upholstered in Kirkby Design’s second collaboration with TFL & The London Underground, original London transport designs have been readapted in luxury velvets in a distinctly modern colour palette. With designs ranging from the 1930s to the present day, this Underground Vol II collection vividly commemorates an iconic aspect of London’s design identity. We had such fun aboard and can’t wait to get our hands on this new collection and start using it in our soft furnishings!

All in all, 100% Design was a wonderful opportunity for us to meet with new suppliers, keep and eye on emerging trends and feel inspired by what’s to come in the design world.

We’re really looking forward to utilising this inspiration in our upcoming projects. Keep an eye on our social media – we try to always keep our website and Instagram up to date with what we’re up to!