Calico Designers Predict Six Color and Home Furnishing Trends for 2022
A version of this article first appeared in Connecticut Cottages & Gardens, January 15, 2022.
The last two years have been full of lessons, including that you can’t predict the future. Nevertheless, we’ve asked some of Calico’s top designers nationwide to forecast what exciting trends 2022 might bring. With 60+ retail stores across the country, Calico designers are great observers of what homeowners are craving for their interiors. Here is their trend report:
1. Fostering Serenity
“Clients want to create relaxing yet luxurious spaces that their families can enjoy,” states Bonnie LaRaus, designer at Calico in Chappaqua, New York. Added to that is a desire for tranquility. “After the past two years of upheaval and heavy home use, clients want calm,” notes Lisa Sisco, a designer at Calico in East Hanover, New Jersey. And customers appreciate the value of an interior upgrade, too.
“We see that customers are definitely reinvesting in their homes,” states Kimberly Scails from Calico in St. Louis, Missouri. Instead of a pass-through space between work, school and activities, homes have renewed importance. “Clients are redefining themselves with their home décor,” adds Scails. “A home tells the story of their family to friends and relatives.”
At Calico, customers can take the time to hone their vision. Our expert designers are available to work with you free of charge whether using iPads to design custom window treatments and furniture, or advising on fabric choices, colors, and patterns.
Soft celadon greens create a tranquil bedroom color scheme, with silk draperies accented with an embroidered tape trim. An upholstered floral print headboard and crisp white bed linens are the perfect finishing touch.
2. Going Green
The call for calm is evident in the choice of warmer neutrals and earthy greens for textiles and wallcoverings, notes Sisco. “Paint colors such as Evergreen Fog, Balboa Mist, and Cedar Key are favorite hues that we can pick up in fabrics for upholstered pieces and window treatments,” she adds.
The most recent Color Marketing Group forecast included Revival Green as a key color, adds Jan Jessup of Calico’s merchandising and marketing team. “This muted eco-green embodies our desire for a closer relationship with nature and also complements wood tones and brass finishes,” she notes. “Nature is resilient, and we also seek rejuvenation for our own well-being.”
3. Renewing Instead of Replacing Furnishings: Cue reupholstery!
Several designers note that reupholstery is a growing trend. With long lead times for new furniture, customers are discovering reupholstery for worn vintage chairs and sofas. Compared to new frames, good quality older furniture may actually be stronger and better, states LaRaus. “Sometimes all it needs is a fabulous new fabric and a cushion re-do. I love to mix an unexpected fabric on a traditional frame!” she enthuses.
Before-and-After images of a wing chair show the dramatic difference a snazzy new fabric can make! At right, a thrift shop chair takes on a new personality in two complementary fabrics.
Younger homeowners are often house-poor when it comes to buying new furniture. However, hand-me-down furniture—whether inherited, gifted, or thrifted—can be a mixed blessing. “The pieces from my family were interesting, but they didn’t fit my personal style,” said young designer Kelsey Daniel from Calico in Virginia Beach, Virginia. “With new finishes and fabrics, I’ve been upcycling them, making them my own.” These restyled pieces have sentimental value—plus a story that makes them unique.
With our convenient approval plan, customers can borrow large fabric samples to try at home to see exactly how they will look with their other furnishings.
Performance fabrics take the worry out of living with beautiful furnishings. Spills bead up on the surface and can be blotted up. If needed, a little soap and water will remove most stains.
4. Utilizing Performance Fabrics
The trend toward more fashion-forward performance fabrics also responds to customer demand. This is an area where Calico excels, with more than 1,500 performance fabrics in a vast array of colors, textures, and patterns. “Clients can now comfortably live with a velvet sofa or ottoman in the family room,” notes Scails. Plush fabrics are filling the need for a luxe look that’s not too formal, she adds. Performance fabrics shrug off spills and stains and clean up easily with a little soap and water.
As the largest specialty retailer of decorative fabrics in the country, Calico’s website and stores offer thousands of choices. After almost 75 years in business, we also have a network of professional workrooms that can fabricate custom products just for you.
5. Easing Away from Gray
Grays have peaked as prominent colors in home décor, states Jessup from her color research. Calico designer Kathy Thomson of Tampa, Florida confirms that grays can seem cold and dull, while navy and indigo fabrics have a rich warmth and depth. If it’s time to “de-gray the home,” designer Diane James of Dallas, Texas proposes print and woven fabrics that feature a little gray in a mix of colors to help add life to walls and windows.
Enliven a gray interior by using a strong contrast color in pillows, ottomans and accessories. Here, shades of daffodil in fabrics and golden yellow roses add style and warmth to this living room.
6. Natural Prints and Textures
Speaking of pattern, floral and nature-inspired prints are on the ascent, states designer Kendahl Albert of Calico in Sacramento, California. “They enhance monochromatic rooms, which can appear just too plain. We will also see more natural fabrics coming back—cottons, linens, and luxurious silks.” Why? Clients want to be surrounded by beautiful furnishings—luxe fabrics, window treatments with tape or trims, pillows with decorative cords and fringes.
The biggest trend of all is hopefully here to stay: Going with colors, fabrics, and furnishings that bring you joy. Life is short—so live it surrounded by styles you love. The Calico designers are here to help you cultivate stunning spaces and bring your imaginative ideas to life, especially since every shop offers free in-store and in-home professional design consultations. Whether changing a single pillow or remodeling an entire room, the options are limitless!
