What's In and What's Out: Design Trends to Know This Season
Home design has a rhythm to it. Right when you start to get comfortable with one look, the pendulum starts swinging toward something new. If you're getting ready to sell, staging a listing, or simply refreshing your own space, it helps to know where things are heading. Here's our roundup of what's trending up and what's on its way out this season.
What’s In
1. Personality-Driven Details
Cookie-cutter interiors are losing their appeal. Homeowners are gravitating toward spaces that feel like them and are incorporating playful patterns, unexpected color combinations, and small personal touches that make a room memorable. The easiest way to try this out is by swapping in a bold throw pillow, a patterned blanket, or a statement rug. It's a low-commitment way to add character without repainting a single wall.
Fox Tip: If you're staging a home, a few well-placed pops of personality can make a space feel warm and lived-in without overwhelming a buyer's own vision for the room.
2. Bringing the Outdoors In
Natural materials are having a real moment. Wood grain, stone surfaces, woven fibers, and greenery are showing up everywhere as homeowners look to create calmer, more grounded spaces. This approach isn't just about adding a houseplant, it's about choosing materials that echo the natural world throughout a room.
Fox Tip: Natural textures photograph beautifully and tend to appeal to a broad range of buyers, making them a smart investment for listing photos.
3. Everyday Objects as Decor
Function is meeting form in a big way. Instead of hiding away kitchen tools or everyday essentials, people are displaying them intentionally. A well-designed set of utensils hung on the wall, a striking stand mixer left out on the counter, or open shelving that doubles as a mini display case.
Fox Tip: This trend is a great reminder that decluttering doesn't mean hiding everything. Sometimes it just means styling what you already own a little more thoughtfully.
4. Warm, Earthy Color Palettes
After years of cool, bright, all-white interiors, warmth is back. Terracotta, tan, mauve, and sage are replacing the crisp neutrals that have dominated for so long. These richer tones create a cozier, more layered feel that pairs well with natural textures and vintage-inspired pieces.
Fox Tip: A warm accent wall or updated paint palette is one of the most cost-effective ways to modernize a home before it hits the market.
What’s Out
1. Strict Minimalism
The stripped-down, ultra-sparse look is giving way to something more layered and personal. Homeowners want their spaces to feel full and lived in. Gallery walls, stacks of books, and collected objects that tell a story, rather than rooms that feel empty for the sake of looking clean.
2. Mass-Produced, Disposable Furniture
Fast furniture is falling out of favor as people shift their focus toward quality over quantity. Buyers are choosing pieces built to last. Furniture that can be reupholstered, refinished, or passed down, rather than items designed to be replaced every few years.
3. Pale, Bleached Wood Finishes
The light, washed-out wood tones that have been everywhere for the last several years are being replaced by deeper, richer finishes like walnut and espresso. These darker woods add contrast and depth, especially when paired with the warmer color palettes gaining popularity.
This season's shift is really about warmth, texture, and personality - a move away from stark, one-note interiors and toward homes that feel collected and lived-in. Whether you're preparing to list your home or just looking to refresh a room, leaning into a few of these trends can go a long way toward making a space feel current and inviting.