We were honored to be one of a handful of designers recently featured in Redfin’s 2022 Trending Interior Design Styles report. Their round-up highlights so many of the great things on the horizon for this upcoming year in the world of home design, from textured walls to earthy neutrals to bringing the outdoors in.
Talk of trends always gets us thinking about how the backbone of our work is rooted in timeless elements. Don’t get us wrong, we’ve been known to incorporate a trend or two in our designs, but the overarching goal is always to create a space where you’ll feel at home today, tomorrow, in five years, in fifteen. With that in mind, we thought we’d share three of our favorite enduring trends.
1. Vintage rugs, chests, and art
If we could incorporate a vintage rug, chest or piece of art into every single design, we would. More than almost anything else, these three elements guide our design style. There is a reason these pieces endure – they have wow factor without being ostentatious, they bring character and patina to a space, and lend a collected look to even the newest build.
It can be fun to jump on a trendy material for something like pillows, but when it comes to the majority of upholstered pieces, draperies and rugs in the spaces we design, we like to stick with the classics: linen, wool, sisal, leather, velvet, silk.
You may have painstakingly sought out perfectly matching fixtures for a recent renovation, wanting to achieve just the right look for a kitchen or bath, or maybe even a living space. We understand! There was a time we’d have done something similar. But, lately, we are embracing a less popular option: go crazy, mix those metals!
If you examine the photos in the gallery below, you’ll see that by mixing metals in these spaces, we’ve created a more layered, textured look. Matching metals can read a little one-note; contrasting ones give depth, bouncing light in a different way, giving the eye interesting places to land. This can be a more difficult balance to achieve, needing to consider each element carefully – plumbing fixtures, light fixtures, cabinet hardware, accessories, even furnishings – but is worth it for the end result!
We’ve been gradually making holiday decorations disappear back into their bins. Bye-bye tartan plaid pillows. See you later fair isle stockings. Till next year Christmas tablescapes. But, anyone else find the emptiness left in the wake of the un-decorating to be a little bleak? Here are a few tips for sprucing up your winter decorating after the last strand of garland has been tucked away.
1. Plants!
Just because the tree and garland are gone, doesn’t mean you have to forego the green again entirely. Visit your local plant shop (here in Chicago, we love our neighbors at Good Roots!), and bring home some green that lasts forever. A plant adds life to a room in a singular way. Even the teeny-tiniest plant can liven up a room that’s feeling a little naked after the holidays.
Refer to our blog post on Houseplants for tips on how to care for those beauties once you’ve got them home.
2. Accessorize
When we decorate for the holidays, we are basically accessorizing to the max. While you’d eventually grow accustomed to the pared-down version of your home after the holidays, there’s no reason you can’t still embrace the winter season through accessories. Light a candle with a winter scent. Bring some cozy texture to your throw pillows with boucle, velvet or chenille. Drape a fur or cashmere blanket over an armchair or sofa, or at the end of your bed. Change out your artwork or display books. This may also be a good time to switch up the patterns in your accessories; a change of pattern can make the whole room feel like new again. Bring in the outdoors by using the warm rusts, greens and browns found in nature. Little changes can make a big difference!
Use that fireplace to create ambience in your home reminiscent of the inherent warmth and coziness of the holiday season. Add a basket with blankets near the fireplace so you can really settle in. Change up your mantle styling to help things feel fresh. This is often the room where we spend our down time, so focus your attention here if you’re really wanting to amp up winter style after the holidays.
You may have noticed … we like a moody room at Park & Oak.
Now, we have no beef with light and airy (see some of our favorite whites as proof), but some rooms call for drama. We like to walk into a home, spy a jewel box room, and think … oooo, what’s back there?
Below, we’ve shared some of our favorite dark and moody rooms. You’ll see that a large number of them are cocktail rooms, and with good reason. For us, a cocktail room is the ultimate place to inject a little mood. To settle in, let the room envelop you, and breathe easy after a long day. Oftentimes, in older homes, these cocktail rooms were once formal living spaces. Today’s families live a little differently, so instead of entertaining in a room you only use for guests, why not make it an inviting space for everyday? For reading, having your morning coffee, planning a vacation, or, of course, cocktails.
But, dark and brooding doesn’t have to be the domain only of the cocktail room. Teenager’s bedroom, perhaps? Or as the enviable real-life zoom backdrop of an at-home office? Touches of dark, rich hues in a kitchen are a bold departure from all-white. And in a pantry or mudroom, they can help disguise all manner of messes.
Phew. We spent two jam-packed days at High Point Market last week, and our feet still hurt! We’re excited to give you a recap of what we saw, but first, a little background on the market.
In spite of the fact that High Point is not necessarily a household name outside of the design industry, the twice yearly show is a massive event, occupying over 12 million square feet of showspace with 2000 exhibitors. The market has been taking place in and around High Point, North Carolina, in some capacity for over 100 years. It began in 1909 as the Southern Furniture Market, and while it has evolved over a century into the largest home furnishings trade show in the world, the primary purpose remains the same: provide an opportunity for those in the interior design trade to see the tools of the trade live and up close in beautifully styled vignettes.
This year, our two senior designers, Joanna and Vanessa, spearheaded our High Point trip. We are excited to have this opportunity to introduce them on the blog, and get their key takeaways from our trip!
Joanna
Background: In addition to her experience in residential interiors, Joanna’s extensive background designing for large hospitality groups gives her a unique perspective on creating a home environment that is welcoming for guests and built for entertaining. Originally an art major before turning to interior design, Joanna has an artist’s eye and loves to draw on her creative background when working with P&O clients.
Signature Style: Historical. Elegant. Give her all the vintage.
Thoughts on High Point: “Wear sensible shoes! We walked over 6 miles each day. The scope of High Point is hard to grasp until you are there…it literally spans several city blocks. But, the ability to see and touch so many different pieces is invaluable. There is just no substitute for sitting on a sofa or other furniture piece in real life; feeling the weight of the fabric, the quality of the seat, seeing the scale in person…this all contributes to a more positive experience for clients later, when we can choose a piece confidently to fit their overall design.”
Favorite Showrooms: Gabby, Ralph Lauren, Chaddock
Vanessa
Background: Vanessa is one of our most tenured team members. Her previous background working with commercial architects and contractors has been priceless to our clients undergoing large scale renovations and new build projects, alike. Before making a career change to interiors and subsequently earning her interior design degree, Vanessa’s specialty was marketing and communications. She has an easy rapport with clients, and her diversified experience makes her input valuable in many areas of our growing firm.
Signature Style: Classic. Preppy. Give her all the plaid.
Thoughts on High Point: “I love re-visting a showroom we’ve seen before at High Point. You can easily get a sense for which design houses are really putting some thought into their product designs. The best makers will always have something new and fresh: an unusual fabric, a new sofa configuration, maybe a subtle trim detail. In the Wesley Hall showroom, they were using the hide side of leather as the trim on a leather sofa. It’s such a simple, but brilliant, change from what is typical. I always come away from High Point newly inspired to create unique spaces for our clients.”
Favorite Showrooms: Gabby, Mr. & Mrs. Howard
Some of our Favorites…
📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak📷: Park & Oak
From L to R: Christina, Joanna, Renee, and Vanessa, resting up for Day Two
When you dream about a new kitchen, what do you picture? Marble countertops? Custom-stained cabinetry? A magnificent French range? You are probably not immediately besotted with a particular style of range hood, though, right? Ah, but that is the one element with the power to tie it all together. The range hood can be the difference maker. The focal point in a kitchen full of understated elements. Or the quiet place in a showstopper kitchen where special details abound in the cabinetry, fixtures or counters, or, the striking range or backsplash right below it.
Like many elements of a kitchen, the range hood serves a specific purpose and is restrained by any number of code requirements, depending on where you reside. But here’s the thing about range hoods. Beyond those codes, the options are, quite literally, endless. We start with a basic hood insert, and then will revisit the custom choices for the finished design dozens of times. Endless study goes into discovering the balance of the right shape and material for each individual kitchen. There is no one size fits all. And this is where our designers really shine. When we talked about this blog post, Joanna, one of our lead designers, called range hoods “a designer’s paradise.” It’s an area where our collaborative team delights in coming together to create *just* the right hood for your kitchen.
Will it be copper? Brass? Stone? Or designed as cabinetry? Plaster? Fluted? Squared? Should there be a trim detail? We have experimented with all of these materials and more for a completely custom hood for each project. This can be the functional art for your kitchen. Don’t overlook it!
See some of the custom range hoods we created for previous projects in the gallery below.
via Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oakvia Park & Oak
Checkered tile has appeared in interiors throughout history, from Egyptian temples to French chateaus. We love using this classic style in a foyer, bath, or mudroom. Tile is, of course, a practical choice in these spaces where high traffic and muddy feet (or paws!) may be a concern. But, as always at Park & Oak, practicality needn’t be the enemy of beauty. With so much gorgeous stone to choose from now, rooms with checkered tile can be both functional and beautiful.
Thought we would share some great before & afters we found while cataloguing photography this week. We truly love helping our clients make these transformations and creating rooms they love to live in!
One outcome of the past year has been a space reckoning inside our homes. Suddenly, homes that seemed plenty big enough to work, play, cook, entertain and study started to feel very cramped. Much the same time we started to reassess space-planning in our own homes, our clients also began to reach out, trying to figure out how to squeeze home gyms into a little-used guest rooms, children’s workspaces into closets and full-fledged offices into whichever nook and cranny that was available. Spy the desk peeking out from the corner of the laundry room in the photo above?
Helping our clients find space for the things mattered during a difficult year was incredibly rewarding. And like many of you, as our lives are starting to return to normal, we are so grateful to have transformed our homes into more functional spaces for the various needs of our families. Need some inspiration for a little creative space-planning of your own? See some our and others’ solutions below.
If you were getting ready to renovate your kitchen, what would you start daydreaming about first? A showstopper French range? An integrated double-door refrigerator? A coffee bar? Marble everywhere? Before we get too carried away, let’s pause for a moment. We’re here to tell you maybe you should be dreaming about…your faucet.
We know. It wasn’t your first thought. But consider the most used feature of your kitchen. It’s probably your faucet, isn’t it? Which means you are spending as much (or more!) time looking at it as that glorious range. So why shouldn’t it be beautiful, too? Fortunately, there are many gorgeous options available to upgrade the style of your faucet. Browse the gallery for kitchen faucet inspiration and then see our round-up below to shop a selection of our favorites.
