What's on trend for 2011?
There are many trends happening in the world of interior design. Here are a few of the main trends that I am seeing.

TECHNO CHIC: Aims to provide you with one-of-a-kind products that are both functional and fashionable. Furniture and equipment recalls Working/Dressing: steel cabinets that mimic safes, but with stylish perforated panels and doors. Corrugated and perforated metal sheets are widely used in furniture and open shelves, partitions and other items. Chairs of bent pipe or sheet metal, stools, resembling the lunar rover – all with personalize technology.
High Tech Kitchen

URBAN ZEN:This trend will stem from consumers reassessing what they need to live comfortably, with minimal furnishings in natural materials. Each piece of furniture will be selected for not only it's purpose but it's visual desirability. British textile designer Claire-Anne O’Brien has created a collection of stools that feature a variety of knitted seat cushions. A clever rethinking of what form the ordinary stool can take.

ETHNIC ENVOY: All nationalities are celebrated in this trend. Lots of color and pattern reemerging this year. Ethnic pieces give your home instant history in this fast paced disposable world. African masks mixed with French antiques, Moroccan textiles upholster sofas.


CELEBRATION: This trend is towards levity in our all too serious global society. We are tired of the bad news and want to "create" our own good vibe. We want to believe all things are still possible. This trend is all about Over Sized Florals! Geometrics on Steroids! Every pattern that was tame in the past is now pumped up to a new volume! Let the celebration begin!





Benjamin Moore's Paint trends for 2011-2012

Preserve and Protect is the connection between human beings and their environment.
Our lives are enriched by conservation and enhancing the natural world. Preservation is a call to embrace the wonder of nature and the rhythms of its changes. The journey along the way becomes as important as the outcome.
For 2012, four key elements support the theme of Preservation: Heritage, Process, Protection, and Enlightenment. We are enlightened to move forward towards a kaleidoscopic vision for a sustainable future.

One purple to watch for in 2011 is Benjamin Moore’s Vintage Wine 2116-20," said Sonu Mathew, ASID, the company's senior interior designer, who also blogs about color and design at livingincolorwithsonu.typepad.com. It is an anchoring and rich hue with a deep brown base and a hint of smoky violet. Vintage Wine is the perfect foil for the latest wood finishes, leathers, linens and other textiles."

But, for anyone who wants purple with a little more punch, Mathew says, Royal Flush 2076-20 is a sure bet for 2011. This berry-kissed Benjamin Moore color can be grounded when combined with neutrals or fashionable grays, yet swings to the exotic when teamed with other brights.

Mathew also noted there’s a range of pale yet power-statement colors headed our way in 2011. A standout among this group is Benjamin Moore’s Smoke 2122-40. "It is a subtle blue gray that is best described as an update of spa blue with an injection of sophisticated and seasoned gray."
According to Mathew, a quest for balance is what’s driving our choices in life, and, thus, is the overarching trend that is influencing the 2011 palette.


Cues and Clues
for 2011 Colors. 
In arriving at its 2011 color palette forecast, the Benjamin Moore color team first tracked recent cultural, social, and even political conditions and how they are impacting fashion and design trends. Emerging from this analysis were the central Balance theme plus three distinct offshoot style movements—Soulful, Spirited and Dreamy. These were then defined by the following Benjamin Moore colors.


Soulful
…
A global balance is being achieved as communications technology shrinks the oceans and miles between us, and as what once was foreign blurs into familiar. On the style front, this is visible in "ethnic glam" designs, pattern-on-pattern, map motifs and hand-worked decoration such as beading and embroidery. Colors being called out to interpret this not only include Benjamin Moore’s Vintage Wine, but also Wasabi AF-430, Amulet AF-365, Casco Bay 2051-30, Hush AF-95, and Etruscan AF-355.

Spirited…
The antidote to stress is anything that makes you feel happy, joyful, playful. Striking that emotional balance can be a challenge. In fashion and furnishings it’s reflected in spirited designs featuring geometrics, stripes and cubes, dots and curlicues, studded or stitched outlines of shapes and silhouettes. Riotous colors are juxtaposed with lots of gray, black and white. Colors comprising this palette are the aforementioned Royal Flush, as well as Grape Green 2027-40, Wrought Iron 2124-10, Paper Mache AF-25, Storm AF-700, and Lucerne AF-530.

Dreamy…
Reality can be harsh and is best countered by a dreamy odyssey where wishes are nurtured. Translated into a design perspective, that means transparent and sheer materials, blurred decorative details and softened textures. As for the color palette, imagine Benjamin Moore hues that are pale, frosted and opalescent, such as Gray Mirage 2142-50, Genesis White 2134-70, Porcelain 2113-60, Etiquette AF-50, Kendall Charcoal HC-166 and the previously cited Smoke.
 
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