Ideal Home Show 2022: Interior and garden trends

Our styling team draws back the curtains on what’s hot right now.

Amongst 600 exhibitors, full-scale show homes and talks from experts at Ideal Home Show, our styling team discovered the latest inspiring ideas, innovative products and on-trend home decor and garden solutions. 

Read on to find out we discovered.

How to inject bold colours, paint effects and techniques throughout your home.

First stop: the Interiors Stage to see a talk from Crown Paints.

Surrounded by the beautiful Good Homes ‘Update Heritage’ room set, Interior Designer Chrissy Baldwin talked the crowd through a few top tips and techniques.

• Pick your most expensive item in the room and work your colour scheme around that. Paint is the easiest and cheapest way to update a room scheme. By choosing tones that complement your key investment pieces, you can create an impactful space without breaking the bank.
• Metallic paints are making waves in the market. These can be useful for creating unusual kitchen designs; for example, by pulling rose gold tones out of hardware on a small feature wall, they can also be used to help mask tech in your living space. 
• Use a grey metallic paint on a wall with a flat-screen TV to help bounce the light and soften the edges of what is otherwise a large black box in the wall.
• Suede effect paint can hide a multitude of wall sins. Using a paint mixed with crushed olive kernels creates a crushed finish effect, similar to when you brush against suede. For homes and walls that haven’t received much TLC, this can be used to elevate the textures and create an interesting and unusual finish. This effect would work well as a headboard feature or within a small downstairs bathroom to bring depth to the space.

Sustainable interior solutions

Within the interactive areas, there was a real focus on sustainability and the future of living environments. The ‘Home of the Future’ tour included a whole room dedicated to preloved pieces, using vintage wall hangings to tie the scheme together. The kitchen was full of sustainable storage solutions, ranging from tin storage units and glass jars. We also fell in love with the brass sink details, a simple but effective touch.

Bold colour for maximum impact

A small nook room was given a bold and impactful design using graphic soft furnishings and a deep blue wall colour. Technology also played its part with integrated solutions around the space, and even a workout mirror in the bedroom, bringing the gym very firmly into the home environment.

The yellow trend that has been making the recent rounds was displayed in a bedroom, using a colour blocking technique to pull together the vibrant tone with a soft and cosy feel. We also loved the modern take on a four-poster bed with integrated curtains that created an intimate and contemporary look.

Solutions for space-saving 

The other big ‘future of living’ installation was the portable conker units. These self-contained or integrated pods can be used as office space, individual accommodation, or linked together to create a complete home experience. Whilst they’re not suitable for anyone over 5 ft 9, they provided a real insight into how a simple base unit can be adapted to house different lifestyle needs. 

These are being seen around the country as Air BnBs and home offices. And, with their adaptable designs, they’re sure to become more popular to people seeking additional space outside of their homes.

 In the garden sets, it’s clear that zoned outdoor living is still going strong for 2022. Breaking up spaces into defined areas for eating, socialising and relaxing within the garden allows you to get the most from your outdoor spaces. The use of natural materials and tropical foliage really help embrace indoor/outdoor living (for when the weather allows!)

We hope you enjoyed our round-up of Ideal Home Show 2022. Stay tuned and follow us for more take-overs, behind the scenes insights and upcoming trends.