Stripes are coming in hot for Spring/Summer 2022 from walls to floors, ceilings to accessories. OYOY Living Design just launched a large collection of outdoor planters (see image with tip 6 below) and in the press release, I noticed all of their latest products for the home and instantly spotted a trend – STRIPES. And well, you know how it goes… When someone tells you not to look for a red truck, that’s all you see. Now, I’m seeing stripes all over, from many of the brands here in Europe, and also in Australia and the United States, and realized they are truly a trend for the Spring and Summer season – so let’s talk about how to use them in the home.
Personally, I’ve always loved a good stripe. They’re a lovely way to play tricks in design since they can be used to visually expand a space as they’ll stretch the appearance of walls, ceilings and floors either vertically or horizontally, depending on the direction in which you apply them:
Horizontal stripes elongate the room and make it feel wider.
Vertical stripes may ceilings appear taller and create the illusion of height and drama.
Wood paneling, wood applied to ceilings, paneling on walls, beamed ceilings… Consider the direction that they are installed because this makes a huge difference visually to any space. Also, the direction in which you lay your wood plank flooring matters precisely for this reason too, if you run the planks vertically, they will make the hallway appear longer, but more narrow. If you run the planks horizontally, they will give the illusion that the hallway is shorter but wider than it is. When I had my Eco-friendly wood floors installed in my current space, one of the questions I had to consider was the direction I wanted the flooring installed. I had to sleep on it, because it was quite a difficult choice to make, especially when the job was priced at around 15K.
Stripes as decor add personality and, depending on color, can be classy (think black and white), sophisticated (metallic gold and cream), playful (rainbow stripes or yellow and white for example) or Summer-y like a day at the beach (think blue and white which is synonymous with coastal living). I believe that stripes are loved by all, I’ve never met a person who hated stripes but I’ve met many who won’t go near a floral pattern to save their life. Also, stripes are very democratic, they are good for all people, all backgrounds, cultures, budgets, tastes… For instance, they’re great for the minimalist because they help to break up a monochromatic space so it goes from clinical to cozy, and for the maximalist, stripes are a great way to inject power, joy, and confidence. You can also easily DIY a good stripe as art work or with fabric paint on linen to create a pillow. Easy peasey!
Here are 10 simple ways to use stripes in your home decor right away – let me know which ones that you like the best:
