Trend Watch: Pastels

Last week I was asked to give a presentation on some of the latest design trends at a fundraiser for The Canadian Shaare Zedek Hospital Foundation. While a trend talk is always a fun way to organize a lot of the inspiring visuals and products around me, I always have to preface any presentation with the fact that good style is timeless and to beware of jumping too hard on to any trend bandwagon.

Because my personal style is more eclectic, I often get enamored with the latest colours and motifs, but I am careful to indulge only in smaller hits of them while staying true to the more traditional foundation that grounds my aesthetic.

One trend I love this year, signified by Pantone’s colours of the year serenity blue and rose quartz, is pastels. This has been a long time coming for me, as witnessed by my den, which was painted a watery mint over 3 years ago. This palette has really seemed to crystallize in the past few months and I am loving seeing more and more spaces embracing these soft and pretty shades.

A big part of making pastels feel current and not too 80s Laura Ashley, is pairing them with strong neutrals like black and white, as opposed to creamy antiqued finishes that make it feel too precious and old. My biggest piece of furniture in the den, the sofa, is a deep charcoal and the art is all black and white abstract to balance the wash of mint on the walls.

Mixing in edgier shapes and forms also helps temper the sweetness of pastels. My den would not have as much successful tension if I had used an antique gilded glass coffee table instead of the angular marble hex tables from West Elm. Having some hardness mixed in takes it to a whole new level.

This bathroom shows how you can make pastels work by choosing pastels with a grey undertone. As the preferred neutral of today, grey will almost always feel fresher than beige and seeing this smoky lavender tile with the grey marble and cool white floor tile showcases that beautifully.

Here are some other examples of pastel items that bring these lovely pale colours into your home in modern ways. They all feel more contemporary thanks to the geometric shapes, sculptural forms and edgier metal details. (clockwise chair, stool, dining chairs, rug)

What’s your favourite pastel?