7 Popular Home Trends This Summer

Blog posted On July 18, 2024

The summer heatwave is rising, and so are these hot home décor trends! Whether it’s the Scandinavian and Japanese “Japandi-style” minimalist sensibilities, the “dark academia” reading rooms, or the growing popularity of dopamine design, there’s something for everyone in these home trends. Let’s walk through the seven trends taking the home design world by storm.

Dark Academia

The desire to have a library wall or a reading corner has compelled many book-loving homeowners. The ‘dark academia’ library décor trend is a direct reflection of the literary genre of the same name – evoking themes of intellectualism, scholarly pursuits, and a dark and gothic aesthetic. The home décor style similarly embraces tall bookshelves, brown leather, and vintage and antique furniture, opting for dark tones of classic colors like navy and burgundy.

Dopamine Décor

Nicknamed the “Feel-Good Interior Trend”, dopamine décor utilizes brilliantly bold colors, eclectic patterns, and a nostalgic wash over everything. This trend is supposed to unlock childhood memories of bedroom walls plastered with posters, eccentric lights, and bright colors of orange, pink, yellow, lime green, and cobalt blue. This trend can often mix with the vintage style, repurposing older pieces that tie into one’s personal history. Family furniture and art can play key roles in this style.

Japandi Style

Minimalists are loving this new hybrid home design. A mashup of Japanese and Scandinavian interiors, the Japandi style combines themes of tranquility, minimalism, and functionality. Both Japanese and Scandinavian design elements are focused on simplicity, natural elements, comfort, and sustainability, leading to a perfect blend of aesthetics. There is an emphasis on organic shapes, greenery and nature, and neutral colors.

Natural Textures and Materials

Raw wood, linen, and wool have all made a big splash this season. Antiques, hand-crafted furniture or décor and natural home building materials can help many homeowners shape their houses with a distinct personality. This trend appreciates good craftmanship: carved wood, layers of real wood grain, hand-forged metal, and a distinct lack of particle board and plastic are touchstones of this style.

Vintage, Retro, and Antiques

Interior design has embraced the vintage style recently, adopting aged furniture into the home. This style celebrates pieces belonging to different eras, usually made within the last 20 to 99 years. Vintage, retro, and antique styles are easily lumped together because they represent reviving the fashions of the past – whether that’s fashionable nostalgia or old-fashioned décor. These styles are interlocked with many of the other popular trends this season, fitting in with dark academia and dopamine décor nicely.

Biophilic Design

Incorporating natural elements into interiors, the biophilic trend is another major style homeowners are embracing this summer. The idea is to reconnect the outdoors with the indoors, offering serene sanctuaries with lush plants and raw wood and stone. The wellness trend is also linked to biophilic design, improving overall mental health and heightening creativity.

Maximalism

The aesthetic of excess, maximalism celebrates the opposite of all things minimalist, the antithesis of Japandi and Marie Kondo. Rather than “less is more,” this style follows a “more is more” approach. Relating to the bold wallpaper patterns of dopamine décor, maximalism likens the home to a private museum, showcasing treasures stuffed on shelves and every surface covered with something. Chaotic prints, objects, and textures represent this trend, creating an over-the-top space and rejecting the shackles of restraint and order.

This summer is buzzing with décor creativity, with styles representing all ends of the design spectrum. If these home styles have ignited a desire to renovate, our renovation loans offer exclusive savings for a design-driven homeowner, looking for a new biophilic upgrade in the kitchen or living room.

Reach out to learn more about our refinancing options!

Source: DecorMatters, National Association of REALTORS®, Southern Living, Better Homes & Gardens, The Spruce