Our newest report, Trend Album™: Maison & Objet, January 2012, is shipping (or available for downloading) right now. View a few sample pages from the report below.

With so much fretting about Europe’s financial situation, some people worried that Maison & Objet would not deliver the kind of newness it is known for. Gratefully, their concern had no merit. The product-planning cycle, which can be quite long for many of the categories featured at this twice-per-year fair, was probably too far along to stop if anyone wanted to. The real test of how Europe responds, if a full-blown financial crisis unfolds, will come from the pace of change in color and design at the September 2012 event.

For the moment, evolutions in style and color were moving along nicely in Paris. On the color front, the emerging families of a year ago took their place as new leaders. Established hues held on—perhaps longer than they might have done without the looming specter of economic turmoil—but they were not a trend focus. Even neutrals shifted, with a warming influence that felt easy-to-live-with.

Buy this report now for all the trend directions that mattered from the halls of the January 2012 Maison & Objet trade fair.

View a few sample pages from this report:

That’s why The Trend Curve created First Look: European Color Trends from Heimtextil 2012. This new trend report puts a laser beam on the color shifts that mattered at 2012′s first European trade fair, Heimtextil. Michelle Lamb, international trend authority and Editorial Director of The Trend Curve tells you about the freshest color statements at this textiles and wall-covering trade fair, and shows you how they were used.

First Look includes a concise overview of each color family’s top tendencies, plus 60 images of products shown at Heimtextil.

View a handful of sample pages from this new report:

Sea Salt Neutrals™ 2013 – 2014 dissolve the myth that neutrals are boring. These new tones are anything but basic!

This collection speaks the international language of home décor in 20 neutrals inspired by salts from diverse geographies— the same salts that are on-trend in cuisine, natural cosmetics and upscale spa treatments. They are found in countries from Ireland and Australia to France and Brazil, and also originate in Hawaii, the Dead Sea, Nova Scotia and Baja California Sur. These differences cause salts to be tinged with complex hues, like peach, pink, purple or gray that are perfect for décor.

Four distinct values are barely there Essential Elements, mid-tone Gentle Fusions, hearty Plank Flavors and dramatic Bold Influences. Each one captures the art of infusion and nuance to put a trend spin on every product. The versatile shades in these four values compliment hues all around the color wheel.

Forty recommended trios show you how Sea Salt Neutrals also work brilliantly with other neutrals in the collection to blend, accent or make bold statements.

With  20 trend-forward neutrals in two paint-on-paper sizes (5 1/4″ square and 2 3/8″ square), plus 4 trend cards with 40 ready-to-use combinations, you’re sure to find Sea Salt Neutrals 2013 – 2014 as vital to you as salt itself!

Click to view Sea Salt Neutrals trend cards and the large color sizes:

Even though produce-sack fabrics had less exposure, vintage accessories were going strong, and many were updated with big scale. Case in point: framed art from Elizabeth Lucas. In these pieces, blown-up elements such as script, postage stamps and postmarks seemed to be viewed through a filter. They coalesced into a blurry backdrop for a single, fully colored songbird that wore a crown, was patterned with egg-shaped spots and took up most of the visual field.

When the subject matter was classic, larger scale provided another way to infuse designs with modernity. For example, a three-drawer chest from Hickory Chair was an attention-getter with a super-wide Greek key stripe running from the top down each side of the front. For contemporary pieces, going big emphasized the graphic aspects of any design. Rowe’s contemporary watercolor floral felt more like a series of loosely associated, oversized blossoms than an allover pattern.

Regardless of the style, large-scale design meant there was more to love in every design:

• An oversize tweedy plaid, made up of lines with the look of giant, running stitches, was new from Bernhardt
• Norwalk’s big, graphic peony floral stood out even more on a white ground
• The parrot on Michaelian Home’s square toss pillow was so large that only the head and torso fit on the front
• A single, oversized dragonfly appliqué on J. Douglas’ lampshade reached from the bottom of the shade nearly to the top
• A single, giant kilim-rug motif was enough for the seat or back of Dovetail Furniture’s chair
• Burton James’ giant ikat made a dramatic upholstery cover
• Sam Moore’s giant paisley floated over a mauve ground

There will be much more to come as the trend toward large scale ramps up throughout 2012. Expect it to dominate the landscape by 2013.

Click an image for a larger view and/or to start a slideshow:

This fresh collection includes Easter Bonnet, Parisian Rendezvous, Juiced-Up Samba, Perfectly Plum, plus six more trends to take your assortments from Valentine’s Day to July 4th and into the lazy days of August. Our signature Trend Cards give you bullet-point details, with volume-selling, accent and fashion-forward color recommendations for each trend. You get 25 colors and 5 pearl tones in two sizes of paint-on-paper swatches for a complete, easy-to-use trend package!

Click the image for a larger view:

Six times each year, The Trend Curve™ features:

+ An update on color direction for home furnishings
+ A discussion of fibers, finishes or materials
+ Forecasts for both established and emerging trends
+ Photographs of new looks and directions

Please feel free to request a free sample issue or immediately view or download one below. It will show you the straight forward reporting style offered each quarter in this top industry trade publication.

Who Subscribes?

Savvy manufacturers, retailers, interior designers and related industry companies subscribe to The Trend Curve™. They all need to know about the trends that will play a key role in their success going forward; they get that information and more six times each year from The Trend Curve™.

Major Markets Attended
The Trend Curve™ editorial staff and correspondents attend major U.S. markets and trade shows, all to bring you the most up-to-date trend information available. Here is a sample of the markets that are attended every year:

+ High Point International Furniture Market
+ New York Linens and Domestics
+ International Gift Fair & Accent on Design
+ Showtime
+ National Housewares Show

The Trend Curve™ also visits other markets cyclically, personally interviewing the most important product design and development leaders and reviewing top trendsetting exhibitors at each show.

View a Sample Issue of The Trend Curve™ Newsletter below:

Hall 8 also held a wealth of newness. Color had new preferences. Shape held different options. Materials and patterns were also on the move. The shifts and evolutions in those categories confirmed that outdoor living is not only here to stay, but also is still a big growth sector for home décor.

Order below and/or view a handful of pages from this 80 page comprehensive report.

Trend Album™ What’s In Outdoors for 2013™ includes bullet-point observations about the newest colors, forms, functions, materials and surface designs from this huge specialty show. Plus, it gives you more than 150 images so you can see the new colors, trends and styles right on your desktop, laptop or iPad.

View a few sample pages from this report:

But, along with economic recovery has come a long-awaited optimism at the international trade shows we attend. It’s a renaissance of creativity and ingenuity that has brought a much wider range of trend and color to the fore. And it’s just that kind of renewed energy that is reflected in the 10 unique trends and 38 new colors of The Trend Curve Colors 2013.

Our Brazilian Brights palette shows renewed bouyancy with such cheery hues as limey Guava Green and vibrant Espirito Orange; while our Rio Rhythm trend surges with optimism and innovation, as Brazil’s dynamic economy captures the world’s attention through the World Cup and the 2016 Olympics. Our 1920′s-30′s Cityscapes trend offers a solid sense of foundation, highlighting everything from Deco-style buildings to manhole covers, as our more-somber mid-value palette captures reliable urban colors, ranging from Armory (gray) to Red Brick.

Meanwhile, Glamour is back — always a sign of recovery — with a lot more personality in our Cheeky Chic trend with its 50s and 60s movie stars and overt use of jewels and luxury fabrics.

Although there is still an emphasis on refurbishing and making do, a sentiment captured in our Keep Calm And Carry On trend, the overall theme of 2013 will be a great push forward with invincible energy. And, even though consumers may feel as if they’re moving into uncharted territory, rooted trends like our Folklore and Trophy Room will remind them that they’ve done so before and that optimistic, reliable trends and colors are sure to attract corresponding outcomes.

Get more details about this diverse color and forecast here.

The Walker Art Center blog, one I highly recommend you follow if interested in any aspect of art and design, had this post which pointed to a highly interesting factoid about my own State of Minnesota:

“A new National Endowment for the Arts survey finds there are 2.1 million Americans employed as artists, including more than 42,000 right here in the Land o’ Lakes. Minnesota ranks fairly well: We’re among the top 14 states that have the highest percentage of the workforce employed in the arts: 1.5 percent, compared to the nation-leading New York, where 2.3 percent of the labor force is involved in arts industries. Minnesota leads the nation in the concentration of jobs in book publishing, with eight times more publishing jobs — largely in the Twin Cities — than the national average. Minneapolis’ concentration of theater jobs is twice the national average.“

Why should you care? The artists and designers among you are OK…if you have the strategic chops to see what’s coming next in your category or within the industry. If you are in product engineering, hopefully you are aware that your artistic and design skills most likely are pretty weak and you can make great product, but there’s just something missing.

If you want to ensure your products are embraced by the masses, then make certain you engineers and product designers are engaged and collaborating with people whose artistic and design sense is equal to your engineering abilities. Artists and designers, connect with your engineering and product design peers and connect.

Download the report here (PDF) and see how your State ranks.

A Complete Autumn

Color Forecast for

2012!

What sells almost as well as Halloween candy? Autumn decor, at a total pushing $2 Billion in annual sales for 2012. If you sell décor products, that’s a number you can’t afford to ignore! And if you want to sell those products during Halloween and fall, here are a few more questions you’ll want to answer:

• What is a Peepkin?
• Who is the latest phantom bride?
• Which are the best Halloween treats?
• Why is everyone so worried about birds?
• What has origami got to do with Thanksgiving?

Haute Halloween and Fall 2012™, The Trend Curve’s color-and-trend forecast for the autumn season, has answers to these questions and more! It comes with 25 colors and 5 metallics to help you create trend-right assortments for seasonal products of all kinds. Nine innovative trends, ranging from spooky to mystical and from heartwarming to fun, explore new territory for this important season. Each trend card gives you:

• Bullet-point details about the icons, finishes, details and materials for the trend
• Four pictures to inspire your own version of the look
• A dedicated palette of volume-selling, accent and fashion-forward color recommendations.

Add Haute Halloween and Fall 2012 to your shopping cart and start answering all your questions about autumn trends!

View Trend Cards (click on thumbnail to view a larger image):