How COVID-19 is Shaping Interior Design Trends
Updated: Aug 29, 2021
The New Normal: How COVID-19 is Shaping Interior Design Trends
Would you have thought a year ago that a virus could change the way we live our lives? COVID-19 has literally created a new design trend almost overnight!
As we have had to adapt to working, schooling and spending more time at home, so our living spaces have been changed to accommodate the new way of life. Our homes have become multi-functional areas - bedrooms are no longer just for sleeping in, but are for working and exercising, and our living rooms have to do double-duty as schoolrooms.
Rising Demand for Easy-Clean Materials
It’s not just at home that design changes are being put in place. Due to the virus and social distancing, more people are becoming health-conscious. The need to stop the virus spreading is leading to a change in the type of materials used in homes and businesses.
It will come as no surprise that a lot of the materials used are going to be non-porous so that they are easily cleaned - especially in businesses like hotels and restaurants. Old-style menus may wellbecome a thing of the past, and there will be more face shielding implemented.
Airline seating will have to be adapted, as well as restaurant chairs, masks, sunglasses, and cashless payment as we move forward and become more used to living with COVID-19.
Higher-Quality Materials
Because of the need for easy cleaning with higher hygiene standard, sanitisation is become a necessarity. Many materials need to be of higher quality in order to be durable and stay looking good after come in contact with harsh chemical
Many of us are rightly looking towards using more eco-friendly materials, which are not only important to the environment but for improving indoor air quality.
The quality of the air we breathe indoors is sometimes overlooked, but because we are now spending a large amount of time indoors (either at home, in the office, or other buildings), it has become an important issue.
The chemicals, gases, and other pollutants build up indoors and can cause headaches, eye irritation, allergies, and fatigue - or even certain types of cancers and other long-term health complications.
Because of COVID, we need to also reduce as much bacteria build-up as possible in our living and working spaces, which is where high-quality, durable wallcoverings can help.
Materials in non-woven wallcoverings don’t contain plastics (better for the environment) as they are produced using a blend of natural and synthetic fibers. This kind of material doesn’t trap mold or bacteria and doesn’t release as many volatile organic chemicals (better for you and your family).
However, not all eco-friendly wallcoverings can withstand the higher hygiene and maintenance demands of life with COVID-19 or after. Not all wallcoverings marketed as eco-friendly are able to withstand harsh chemicals and vigorous cleaning.
Our Frekkles wallcovering collection is not only eco-friendly, but because it is made with a different and high quality materials, it is able to withstand the harsh cleaning chemicals and regular sanitization which will be a regular feature of life even after COVID-19.
Kitchens Become Science Labs
Our kitchens have changed purpose too - no longer are they just for cooking the family meals. They have become cooking classrooms for parents and kids, as well a “science laboratories” for children to experiment with creating color dyes, making slime, and giving us more opportunities to bond as families.
Our special collection of wallcoverings can deal with anything the kitchen can throw at them. It’s been designed to withstand multiple cleanings with normal detergents to get rid of grease and grime. Other types of wallcoverings will react badly if there are any strong chemicals used on them.
Colors Help to Combat Negative Feelings
Many countries have had over two months of the circuit breaker, and the isolation and disruption can have a bad psychological impact on mental health.
The pandemic has caused us all feelings of unrest, anxiety, and grief as well as making issues like depression get worse. To beat those negative feelings, we need colors that give us reassurance and comfort - happy colors should surround us.
Customized wallcoverings are a great way of blending this need for soothing our senses with our changing interior design requirements.
Working from Home
Those of us who can work from home have had to adapt our living spaces and our way of working because of COVID-19. This is a trend that is likely to be ongoing, along with online conferencing and digital presentation of work.
Choosing the right wallcovering design and materials for your workspace (whether at home or in an office), can help put you in the best mindset to work and focus on what needs doing. Because many of us are also doing video calls and conferencing, having a good-looking wall in the background is also a good thing to have (no more boring, bland backgrounds for your colleagues to see!).
Again, the materials used in your workspace wallcoverings need to be able to withstand a lot of cleaning and sanitizing, yet still look beautiful. The materials Frekkles use are robust and cleanable without sacrificing the aesthetic form of your chosen design.
What Does the Future Hold?
None of us know for sure what other changes the pandemic will make to our everyday lives, but it’s reassuring to see how we - and our homes and businesses - have adapted to the massive changes in lifestyle so far.
