The year 2020 was unforgettable indeed. All the changes we put into our lives back then defined what our 2021 would be like. One of the biggest things we did was to spruce up our homes so that they would accommodate us better in the new normal.
From airy, open-plan spaces, we divided rooms again to be able to work from home. The minimalist concept slightly lost its appeal too, what with all the products we bought to entertain ourselves at home. For these reasons, trends in home improvement changed dramatically, and they may be here to stay.
Let’s have a look back at the top trends so far and see which of them can open up a business opportunity:
Exterior Trends
Starting with the exterior trends, here are the curb appeal details that stood out so far this year:
-
Native Landscaping
The stay-at-home orders got many of us into gardening. But this year, we leaned into native landscaping as opposed to designer ones that required extensive upkeep. Native landscaping allowed us to raise plants that worked with our area’s climate. We also used hardscaping through garden rocks, enhancing the organic appeal of our gardens.
-
Flowers
Flowers never went out of fashion, but the popularity of earthy tones made us limit the number of blooms in our yards. Now, as we needed a pretty sight to relax our minds, we brought back the burst of color that’s been absent in our yards. Florists should look into landscaping as their next gig if they lose events due to the pandemic.
-
Patterned Driveways
For the longest time, driveways were nothing but plain concrete slabs. Thanks to the pandemic awakening of our creativity, we swapped them out for an assortment of stampings, bricks, and other materials so that they’d form a pattern.
-
Unique House Numbers
Since we heavily relied on deliveries during the pandemic, our homes needed to be easily seen and recognized. And unique house numbers did that trick. If you’re into fabricating steel or acrylic, you can capitalize on this trend and invest in a high-quality laser cutting machine for acrylic or metal.
-
Front Yard as Gathering Spot
By tradition, the backyard has always been the gathering spot. But since the pandemic has kept us cooped up indoors, we needed every piece of the outdoors we could get, and that included our front yards. If your landscaping business needs something new on its portfolio, start advertising your front yard services.
Interior Design Trends
Interior design is always the most exciting part of home improvement trends. And 2021 has seen some interesting ones, such as:
-
Maximalism
As the opposite of minimalism, maximalism embraces over-the-top decorations, color palettes, patterns, and textures. It doesn’t mind an eclectic mix of furniture, unlike minimalism that sticks to a particular theme. This trend allowed maximalist homeowners to express their creativity and personalities without being called tacky or old-fashioned.
-
Yellow and Gray Palette
For the first time, Pantone named two colors as their shades of the year: Illuminating and Ultimate Gray. Illuminating is zingy yellow that you won’t usually see in homes, while ultimate gray may be a more usual sight, a pleasant pale gray tone. But thanks to maximalist going trendy, shades of yellow found a place in homes again.
-
Contemporary Country Look
Those who still love subdued tones weren’t left out at all. In the contemporary country look, typical minimalist shades such as white, beige, tan, and wood tones are widely used. They’re mixed with pastel-colored patterns or accents like peach, baby pink, or blue. More visual interest is added through organic textures.
-
Global Style
Since many of us missed traveling last year and this year, we incorporated international touches into our abodes. The global style mixes trends from different countries and, interestingly, fashion. It results in an eclectic, timeless look.
Home Decorating Trends
Our new lifestyles prompted a change of decor in our abodes, and these are the most common alterations we’ve seen:
-
Double-duty Furniture
Because of the work-from-home setup, we had to make our spaces able to accommodate our jobs. This urged us to buy double-duty furniture, which — for example — can act as both a nightstand and a work desk.
-
Indoor Plants
Those of us who didn’t have enough yard space took our green thumbs indoors. It might’ve made our homes look like a jungle, but at least we got closer to nature.
-
Statement Light Fixtures
If you’re good at handcrafting any material, consider making interesting light fixtures. Your designs could sell in big home decor brands, especially now that statement light fixtures are in.
The boom in home improvement helped many of us gain a sense of normalcy and stability in this uncertain period. So if you can grab a business opportunity from these trends, do so and help more people feel good.
