What is the new meaning of elegance in design? How is an elegant home defined in this upcoming year that promises even more advancements than we ever thought possible a mere ten years ago?
Let’s take a look at the new definition of elegance in 2015, it is much more sleek and minimalist than your grandmother’s version of elegance:
Clean Lines and Minimalism
We are all familiar with a modern home, filled with…well, filled with very little. It seems we have gone to the opposite end of the design spectrum, shunning everything ‘fussy’ and going bare bones. This minimalist aesthetic has its benefits: no clutter, very little dusting and cleaning (since there are few items to collect dust), simple hard-surface floors, and perhaps a feeling of relief when one walks in the door after a hectic city commute.
We believe that elegance in 2015 is all about clean lines, and clean lines can be achieved within most modern homes by avoiding clutter and keeping furnishings simple (think: the extreme opposite of baroque styling). Minimalism makes a lot sense, not only does it offer a reprieve from our hectic lives, it allows design elements and architectural elements to stand out. We are a design-savvy bunch occupying the world right now (perhaps thanks to Pinterest and places like Freshome), and we want the clean lines and quality of our furnishings to take center-stage, avoiding all the extra fluff.
A Tech-Savvy Home is Sleek and Elegant
We can’t escape it—cords, iPads, iPhones, tablets, chargers— there is no better way to ruin an elegant design than by cluttering it with all these tech devices. Of course, we ‘need’ these devices, they are quite literally a bodily appendage.
How do you maintain elegance with all these extraneous wires and cord clutter? By making your home as tech-savvy and sleek as possible. Home builders are jumping on the tech bandwagon by designing homes that have it all: smart automation, energy efficiency, built-in charging stations, virtual climate control, virtual security…essentially enabling everything in the home to be controlled from anywhere with the tap of a button. Now that is elegance in 2015!
Elegant Colors for 2015
We can’t talk about elegance in design without touching upon color. While color is a very personal choice, there are some hot colors hitting the market that embody elegance.
Some of you may already be aware of the Pantone color of the year—Marsala. The reddish-burgundy color is said to be ‘subtly seductive; one that draws us into its embracing warmth’. Well, that sounds elegant, right? Some in the interior design community disagree, citing it made them feel ‘blah’.
If you tend to agree with the latter opinion, then look to some of the other elegant colors that seem to be on the tip of everyones’ paint brush such as Sherwin-Williams predicted top 40 colors for 2015. We think they hit elegance spot-on with their Chrysalis palette— a palette of muted, soft grayish-greens.
What is elegance in 2015? We suggest that all of these above-mentioned modern aesthetics embody the new meaning of elegance: minimalism, clean lines, eclectic mixes, and muted color—they are all parallel when it comes to creating an elegant home in 2015.