Designers, graduates and well established brands are continuing to explore innovative ways of manipulating and experimenting with materials to create unique textures and effects for the interiors market.

Here are a few that we’d like to share with you showcased by Material Lab at the Surface & Materials Show in Birmingham. These specific textures and materials relate perfectly to our 2017 Surface Trends…

Evan James Design

This surface design company combines traditional quality craftsmanship with new technologies supporting & encouraging customer individuality for the commercial and residential sectors. They challenge whether a wall has to be flat and also, whether a wall has to permanently stay the same? This bespoke structured surface offers limitless possibilities of pattern, colour and texture. It’s designed to compliment any interior style.

Our 2017 Trend – In Motion – explores the power of the virtual world being integrated into our everyday life; consider high shine and glossy fluidity that creates dynamic light effects and surfaces with movement. Spirograph, optical grids and dark iridescence are key aesthetics  here.

Solomon and Wu

A luxury, surface brand crafting beautiful textures and contemporary architectural design features for interior spaces. Their unique collection of textured finishes and sculptured surfaces have been installed in retail stores such as Christian Louboutin and Alexander Mcqueen. We’ve also showcased their samples many times on our Trend Hubs around the world! Colors and finishes across the whole collection can be tailored to add stunning, bespoke elements to your design scheme.

2017 will see a favor towards refined luxurious rawness, combining gritty and distressed textures with blush silvered metallics. Desert inspired textures appear chalky and matte; parched linens, dried reptile skins and rustic weaves. Gradual colour shifts and tonal hombre’s in indigo tones and sunset shades compliment refined metallics and naturally raw surfaces.

Grace Gallagher

Grace Gallagher, a British designer, produces surfaces and objects for interiors, that demonstrate a preoccupation with materials and process. There is a mixture of traditional and contemporary techniques, with an honesty to the rawness and irregularity of the chosen material. The monochrome pattern was inspired by the Barbican building in London where each panel is hand crafted using a process of revealing layers.

The appreciation of everyday materials will be a key attribute of design in 2017, consumers will begin to see beauty in ‘the ordinary’ and value ‘time earnt’, slowly acquired skills. People will embrace traditional techniques with a modern twist to create surfaces that are unpretentious but precise with a hand crafted aesthetic. Think about using saw cut, end-grains and chiseled wood effects for retail outlet design, exhibition booths, kitchens, flooring and workplace furniture. Denim, leather and cork create mixed material surfaces that will look stunning and be desirable in all interior spaces including hotel lounges and restaurants. 

We are currently carefully selecting the most innovative and revolutionary surface materials for our 2017 International Trend Hubs. Subscribe to our monthly newsletter now to stay informed of our next events, or follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for daily updates from the team. Email Phil for more information about our ‘show reports’