5 trends to know for 2023
WORDS Elizabeth Clarke
HAVEN The Pad PHOTOGRAPHY Dion Robeson
While home reflects our lifestyle and taste, it also speaks to current global events. With more time spent at home over the past few years, we have seen a significant move away from mass-produced homewares in favour of timeless, beautiful quality items that celebrate life through print, forms, and colours.
Next year, we look ahead with creativity and vigour, filling our homes with pieces that are as functional as they are stylish. Ready for a peek at what 2023 has to bring? Read on and take notes - your new year starts at home.
HAVEN Restormel PHOTOGRAPHY Jody D’Arcy
Mood Evoking Colour
While many modern-day design devotees shy away from using vivid swathes of colour at home and opt for timeless neutrals and natural shades, there’s definitely something to be said for making a statement. When splashed on walls, showcased through accessories, or wrapping joinery, bright, joyful hues imbue a space with positive energy that invigorates the senses. In 2023, more is definitely more. If you’re on the hunt for room colour ideas—especially on the bright side—look no further than artist Waldemar Kolbusz’s Perth home. Dominated by his collection of vibrant paintings, he has painted his walls in shades of deep blue, sage green, lime and teal that are grounded by moments of worn timber. It's a home that is a masterclass in applying the most joyful of colour palettes.
Interior Courtyard
The indoor courtyard is emerging as an important architectural element, particularly in modern homes and city dwellings. An interior focal point filled with greenery creates a tranquil, peaceful atmosphere that draws in natural light and breezes, prevents smaller spaces feeling closed in, and connects indoors with nature. For The Pad in West Perth, architect Suzanne Hunt created lush internal courtyards that gently divide spaces and create leafy sight lights between rooms. Fitted with frameless glass bifold doors that provide natural light and breezes inside, lush greenery offers a myriad of health benefits and a natural outlook that’s all inside.
HAVEN The Pad PHOTOGRAPHY Dion Robeson.
Characterful Armchair
The armchair has taken front seat (pardon the pun) as the design piece for levelling up any space from the living room and bedroom to the home office and stairwell. Italian designers, in particular, are finding inspiration in long-coveted iconic styles, 60s lines and colours, 70s curves and materials like stone, velvet and rattan. While sumptuous curves have dominated armchair design over the past few years, sinuous shapes will also be popular imbuing a more dynamic architectural language.
HAVENS (L-R) Eden Floreat Apartment, The Church Project and Restormel PHOTOGRAPHY Jody D’Arcy
HAVEN Eden Floreat Apartment PHOTOGRAPHY Jody D’Arcy
Statement Lighting
Statement lighting with an emphasis on sculptural form, mixed materials, and abstract shapes is set to light up 2023. For designer Mariia Gabriel, light fittings should be chosen like art. For her Eden Floreat project, pieces by Italian designer Davide Groppi were included in nearly every room acting as functional and decorative light. “Each light was beautifully considered in all aspects,” she says. “It was important to think about how it would perform at different times of the day.” Next year, look for styles featuring opulent mirror-finished brass reminiscent of the Art Deco era, burnt steel, industrial design, and styles featuring free-flowing form and softer profiles.
Biolific Design
With most of our daily life spent indoors, biophilic design encourages a connection with nature created within our home's interior spaces. Natural resources, like sunlight, natural colour schemes and plenty of lush indoor greenery, create a sense of harmony between modern architecture and the natural world. In 2023, the biophilic design trend will be more popular than ever, and the best place to start is with plants. "I decorate my house around plants - I don't have many other decor items, says Fesi Djojo who lives with over 550 plants in her Ardross home. Her West Perth plant mecca Bar Botanik caters to other fellow green thumbs. "I love sharing my knowledge and getting people inspired at the shop," she says. "The more nature in people's lives, the better!"
HAVENS (L-R) Fesi Djojo from Bar Botanik’s Ardross home and Restormel PHOTOGRAPHY Jody D’Arcy
