Key Trends from the Decorex Design Show 2023
Discover what ideas and innovations were inspiring brands and designers at this year’s event
There were informal, playful and luxurious designs aplenty at 2023’s Decorex, which took place at London’s Olympia from 8 to 11 October. With more than 200 exhibitors and 80 speakers, Decorex is one of the key events in the design calendar. Read on to find out the key themes and products at this year’s show.
Maya lighting collection, Curiousa.
Ceramic lighting
Bone china featured in quite a few of the lighting designs on show at Decorex, with this fine, fragile material bringing a delicate quality to the illumination on display.
Original BTC’s Alma collection, created by Swedish interior designer Beata Heuman, features practical coloured bases supporting ethereal-like ceramic shades. Holes cut into the bone china resemble little glowing stars at night, according to Beata.
Similarly, Curiousa’s Maya lighting range (pictured) has a soft, curved design and is made from hand-blown glass and bone china in a 1950s-style pastel palette.
Ceramic lighting
Bone china featured in quite a few of the lighting designs on show at Decorex, with this fine, fragile material bringing a delicate quality to the illumination on display.
Original BTC’s Alma collection, created by Swedish interior designer Beata Heuman, features practical coloured bases supporting ethereal-like ceramic shades. Holes cut into the bone china resemble little glowing stars at night, according to Beata.
Similarly, Curiousa’s Maya lighting range (pictured) has a soft, curved design and is made from hand-blown glass and bone china in a 1950s-style pastel palette.
Quirky Bloom carpet collection, designed in partnership with Kate Watson-Smyth (pictured), Alternative Flooring.
Fun floor coverings
Carpet and rug brands were showcasing designs that put the fun into functional at this year’s show. Roger Oates, for example, has moved away from traditional stripes with its new, hand-tufted Arc rug, which features circular patterns and an undulating border.
Always happy to go against the grain, Alternative Flooring showed off its Quirky Bloom carpet collection (pictured), designed in partnership with Kate Watson-Smyth. The fun, British-wool carpet features a floral pattern in a few different colourways.
“I particularly love the new palette of muted colours, so you can have a flamboyant design, but in muted colours, so it’s not terrifyingly full-on,” Kate says on the company’s website.
Fun floor coverings
Carpet and rug brands were showcasing designs that put the fun into functional at this year’s show. Roger Oates, for example, has moved away from traditional stripes with its new, hand-tufted Arc rug, which features circular patterns and an undulating border.
Always happy to go against the grain, Alternative Flooring showed off its Quirky Bloom carpet collection (pictured), designed in partnership with Kate Watson-Smyth. The fun, British-wool carpet features a floral pattern in a few different colourways.
“I particularly love the new palette of muted colours, so you can have a flamboyant design, but in muted colours, so it’s not terrifyingly full-on,” Kate says on the company’s website.
Stratford table and Kenilworth chairs, Neptune.
Autumnal hues
While balmy temperatures made it feel like summer in London during the Decorex show, the colour palette inside Olympia felt wonderfully autumnal. Tones of ochre, sage green, terracotta and plum were popping up on many of the stands, giving the event a calm and cosy feel.
At the Neptune display (pictured), the colours were soft and earthy, while at other stands, there were similar hues ranging from the brighter to the paler ends of the spectrum.
Autumnal hues
While balmy temperatures made it feel like summer in London during the Decorex show, the colour palette inside Olympia felt wonderfully autumnal. Tones of ochre, sage green, terracotta and plum were popping up on many of the stands, giving the event a calm and cosy feel.
At the Neptune display (pictured), the colours were soft and earthy, while at other stands, there were similar hues ranging from the brighter to the paler ends of the spectrum.
Kupoli table collection, Cameron Design House.
Circular table bases
Four legs were replaced by circular bases on many tables being exhibited at the event. Wewood’s Amos coffee and side tables, for instance, feature a conical, solid wood base that provides a stable structure for the wood surface, while RV Astley’s Zitelle dining table consists of a timber-panelled circular base supporting a marble table top.
The fluted design of the latter was replicated in products from other brands, such as Graham & Green’s Parker dining table and the metallic tubes that make up the circular bases of Cameron Design House’s Kupoli table collection (pictured).
Circular table bases
Four legs were replaced by circular bases on many tables being exhibited at the event. Wewood’s Amos coffee and side tables, for instance, feature a conical, solid wood base that provides a stable structure for the wood surface, while RV Astley’s Zitelle dining table consists of a timber-panelled circular base supporting a marble table top.
The fluted design of the latter was replicated in products from other brands, such as Graham & Green’s Parker dining table and the metallic tubes that make up the circular bases of Cameron Design House’s Kupoli table collection (pictured).
Dusk rug by Natascha Maksimovic, Knots Rugs.
Marbling everywhere
Marble has been adorning the walls and surfaces of many kitchens and bathrooms over the past few years, but at this year’s show it was seen in some other guises.
Knots Rugs, for example, displayed its Dusk range of rugs (pictured), designed by Natascha Maksimovic, who specialises in suminagashi marbling, a fusion of traditional techniques and contemporary colour palettes.
Bert & May’s Marbled range of encaustic tiles are handmade using a pouring technique that creates a mottled effect, while Tigermoth Lighting’s alabaster Compass wall light has a natural marbled texture that gives out a beautiful diffused glow.
Marbling everywhere
Marble has been adorning the walls and surfaces of many kitchens and bathrooms over the past few years, but at this year’s show it was seen in some other guises.
Knots Rugs, for example, displayed its Dusk range of rugs (pictured), designed by Natascha Maksimovic, who specialises in suminagashi marbling, a fusion of traditional techniques and contemporary colour palettes.
Bert & May’s Marbled range of encaustic tiles are handmade using a pouring technique that creates a mottled effect, while Tigermoth Lighting’s alabaster Compass wall light has a natural marbled texture that gives out a beautiful diffused glow.
Dungeness from Rest Time collection, BA Textile Design x Coordonné.
Naturescapes
We’ve been bringing nature into our homes more and more over the past few years, and it seems wallpaper designers are making it even easier. Brands at Decorex were showcasing wall coverings that allow the homeowner to immerse themselves completely in a natural setting.
Kariokas, for instance, has a wide range of wall panoramas, including Aleteo, an intricate design of cranes and swallows on the shore of a lagoon, while Coordonné exhibited its Rest Time collaboration with 10 students from Central Saint Martins. One of the nature-inspired wall murals features an evocative image of Dungeness beach (pictured) that allows the viewer to imagine themselves there at sunset.
Naturescapes
We’ve been bringing nature into our homes more and more over the past few years, and it seems wallpaper designers are making it even easier. Brands at Decorex were showcasing wall coverings that allow the homeowner to immerse themselves completely in a natural setting.
Kariokas, for instance, has a wide range of wall panoramas, including Aleteo, an intricate design of cranes and swallows on the shore of a lagoon, while Coordonné exhibited its Rest Time collaboration with 10 students from Central Saint Martins. One of the nature-inspired wall murals features an evocative image of Dungeness beach (pictured) that allows the viewer to imagine themselves there at sunset.
Fold light shade, Karen Henriksen.
Origami reimagined
A number of products on display at the show took inspiration from the ancient art of origami, with designs that featured folds.
Karen Henriksen’s lighting collection in the Making Spaces area of the show included the Fold light shade (pictured) made from banana fibre, while Roger Oates displayed its Fold rug, which looks like a sheet of paper carefully folded over at the corner.
Elsewhere, Original BTC showcased its Christie pendant – a delicate bone china ceiling light that resembles a circle of softly pleated paper.
Tell us…
Did you go along to Decorex this year? Do any of these designs appeal you? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
Origami reimagined
A number of products on display at the show took inspiration from the ancient art of origami, with designs that featured folds.
Karen Henriksen’s lighting collection in the Making Spaces area of the show included the Fold light shade (pictured) made from banana fibre, while Roger Oates displayed its Fold rug, which looks like a sheet of paper carefully folded over at the corner.
Elsewhere, Original BTC showcased its Christie pendant – a delicate bone china ceiling light that resembles a circle of softly pleated paper.
Tell us…
Did you go along to Decorex this year? Do any of these designs appeal you? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
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Squishy, sumptuous seating
Upholstered chairs and sofas were big on comfort at this year’s Decorex, with brands showcasing curvy shapes wrapped in luxurious fabrics.
Graham & Green launched its Alba sofa (pictured), for example, which has a cosy design and is covered in soft faux sheepskin for a gorgeous, tactile feel.
Wewood, meanwhile, displayed the Nido range of armchairs and lounge chairs from Studio Christian Haas, with its curved design that envelops the user like a nest. The chair can be upholstered in a variety of fabrics including wool and linen.