Say Goodbye to Gray, White and Stark
The ever-evolving landscape of home design continues to shape our living spaces. As we head into 2024, a blend of functionality, personality, and innovation takes center stage.
Before getting into the trends, it’s important to say that getting swept up in what’s popular should never override creating spaces that resonate with who you are and how you live. While a cozy reading nook might look appealing on social media, is it truly a space you’ll use?
Trends certainly offer inspiration, but the true essence of home design lies in infusing them with your personal narrative. After all, a home that embodies who you are should not only have the right vibe but function for how you move through everyday life.
First, let’s talk about what’s out. As with any industry, some trends begin to fade as new ones take their place. Here are some home design trends that will likely take a backseat in 2024:
- Gray everything—floors, paint, furniture.
- All white everything is also on the way out, especially in kitchens.
- Excessive minimalism. Turns out, people have stuff.
- Creating some sort of accent wall in every single room of the house.
- Modern farmhouse continues to tiptoe out, taking shiplap and barn doors with it.
- Mid-century modern has slowed its takeover as well.
- Matchy-matchy and mass-produced furniture sets.
As these examples show, designers and homeowners are moving away from using a singular design style. People are mixing up their approach—blending clean and modern lines with ornate, Victorian touches for example. Design is becoming more layered and even eclectic.
Perhaps a reflection of more restrained budgets, people are also moving away from adhering to any one trend in favor of timeless designs personalized to their own unique preferences.
Trending Home Design Styles for 2024
Now, let’s focus on what continues to be popular, which is quite the juxtaposition—smart home technology and a connection to nature.
While smart home tech isn’t necessarily decor, seamless integration is easier to accomplish when making changes to a home’s design. Adding smart thermostats, cameras, door locks, and even appliances, can provide energy savings, convenience, and even an increase in home value.
People also continue to crave eco-friendly and indoor-outdoor living. If it feels like something is missing in a space, adding plants does wonders. More and larger windows are also popular along with skylights and walls of glass doors that expand interior spaces out to a patio or deck.
So, let’s take a look at design trends that will gain popularity in 2024.
Relaxed Minimalism
While spaces will feature clean lines, uncluttered surfaces, and neutral color palettes, they will also include displays of curated art collections, statement furniture pieces, and unique (even eclectic) decor items such as souvenirs from worldly travels or family heirlooms. There will be a focus on quality over quantity, allowing each element to stand out and have more impact.
And while spaces will remain less cluttered, they will be more warm and inviting, as well as designed for everyday living and casual entertaining. Think curved yet linear sofas in a nubby bouclé fabric paired with a warm wood coffee table surrounded by bold, colorful art.
Statement Floors
Whether hardwoods or luxury vinyl plank, visually interesting patterns such as herringbone are gaining traction. In kitchens, baths, sunrooms and mudrooms, classic checkered floors and earthy terra cotta tiles will be in demand.
You'll see large-scale and unique tiles as well. And while terrazzo has been an expensive flooring material, a more affordable porcelain lookalike tile will be making its way into more home designs. If you love mid-century modern, this is a huge development!
Dramatic Countertops
Gleaming white countertops will be replaced with luxurious black and richly colored slabs, as well as ones with pronounced veining and more visual interest. Instead of a high-gloss counter finish, honed and leathered will take over, providing a more tactile feel. To replace a basic tile backsplash, the same countertop material will also be run up the wall and used to cap off the top with a shelf.
Handmade Tile
If you watch home makeover shows, you’ve likely seen handmade Zellige tiles that originated in Morocco. Their irregular shape provides an organic feel while the rippled glazing reflects light. In 2024, we’ll see more Zellige and for the budget-conscious, equally beautiful knockoff versions.
Speaking of tile, another trend is on the rise—mixing gloss and matte finishes in the same space which adds to the imperfect feel and creates a greater impact. And instead of the standard brick pattern, opting for a linear, vertical or horizontal stacked pattern has become more popular.
Natural Wood Tones
From wood cabinets to rattan and cane furniture (vintage pieces are even better), people are and will continue to gravitate back to natural wood tones for their warmth and timeless appeal. The modern twist will be reflected in unique shape choices—fluted cabinet fronts, organic curves instead of 90-degree angles, and other distinctive details, from waves to a honeycomb effect.
Bold Wallpaper
While this almost falls under the category of continued popularity, people are taking paper onto the ceilings and getting even more creative. The areas that are perfect for experimenting with wallpaper will expand from powder rooms to laundry rooms and mudrooms. Taking things a step further, 2024 will be a time for full-on wall murals printed on wallpaper or hand-painted vignettes if you can rustle up a great local artist.
Warm Neutrals & Saturated Hues
Deep eggplant cabinets and textural walls painted in an earthy mushroom shade? You bet!
With gray and white on the outs, paint colors will be heading in a very different direction in 2024. Walls are already being warmed with cream, clay and "greige" tones. Soft blush tones are also on the rise, as well as browns—yes, brown is making a comeback!
In the coming year, rich greens will continue to be big, along with shades of blue. And while a hallmark of 90s home design included a ton of maroon, similar shades with shiny new names are gaining favor–be on the lookout for burgundy, merlot, berry, and radicchio!
If you're looking for even more paint inspiration, check out this article featuring paint color predictions from all of the major manufacturers.
Hidden Storage
Along with defined rooms and spaces where you can tuck away messes and have privacy, smart storage is on the rise. Counters are being cleared thanks to appliance garages. Homeowners with enough space (and budget) will also opt for secondary spaces such as back kitchens and butler’s pantries, complete with dishwashers and coffee bars so that their open-concept kitchens can be kept neat and tidy for guests.
Mudrooms will also be combined with laundry/utility rooms and even outfitted with dog wash stations to keep everyday messes contained to one space and out of the rest of the home.
Dopamine Decor
We've done cottagecore and granny-chic, now here's the big style trend for 2024—dopamine decor. Sort of the opposite of minimalist but cooler sounding than maximalist, this is all about cohesively incorporating everything that makes you happy.
It's colorful, textural, patterned, playful and inspired. It's a bedroom painted all one color, including the ceiling and trim. It's wallpapering gone wild. It's bringing in that ridiculous gold cheetah statue you fell in love with at the thrift store. Here's a great primer if you're interested.
Etcetera
Other trends to look out for in the coming year include vintage and antique showstopper pieces, the return of stripes in wallpaper and textiles, a resurgence of chrome and silver finishes, more arches, more statement hood vents, and instead of ample can lights, unique wall fixtures and sconces to create a more intimate ambiance.
Planning to Update Your Home?
If you’re not on board with one or all of the above home design trends, that’s just fine. Blending or bucking trends and leaning into your personal touches creates a home that resonates with you and how you live. And that’s the most important component of home design.
After all, the ultimate trend in home design is the one that feels uniquely and beautifully yours.
