Trendy vs. Timeless – How to Strike a Balance

Remember the pastels of the 1980s? If you owned a home in 1985, your living room may have been decorated in mauve and chintz, with chrome and glass accent tables. While you might have loved it at the time, its period of being “in” has definitely passed.

There are two ways trends can be a part of your home – decor trends and construction or architectural trends. Selecting decor trends is a satisfying way to express your style, yet they can easily be stripped away or painted over to start fresh with a new look for yourself or a new homeowner.

Utilizing architectural trends in your home (for example, arched doorways, tile flooring, or black-framed windows) may improve your home’s value – provided that you sell while that trend is hot. These structural trends are more difficult to remove and may date your home, requiring remodeling to keep your home in line with the times.

In contrast, timeless home construction and design can provide value that lasts for generations. Think about your current kitchen as an example. Years from now, when you’ve removed the concrete countertops, industrial brackets supporting open shelving, or the subway tiles – what will remain? What features would you expect to see in your home for decades or even centuries?

Whether you’re remodeling or building an entirely new home, it’s crucial to strike a balance between timeless and trendy.

Invest in Quality Materials

Plan to keep your home’s finishes and fixtures for a long time. Durable, enduring finishes like wood and stone can last for decades. Investing in quality materials can improve your home’s value, which can make it an overall better place to live, and also better when the time comes to sell.

When you’re thinking about installing new fixtures or luxury finishes in your home, think about the building materials you see in historic houses. Copper, wood, stone, iron – these materials have a long history and a reputation for durability. Even as you’re following home trends in decor, gravitate toward materials that can stand the test of time.

Stone, for example, has long been a fixture on hearths, flooring, and on countertops. Today, many homeowners install engineered stone (quartz) instead of granite or marble, but the look is the same, as is the value. Stone is safe to install in all rooms of the house, from the floors to the window sills. If you’re feeling tempted to install stone somewhere in your home: do it! You can’t go wrong.

Choose Trendy Items Carefully

Some trends come and go in an instant, others have staying power. A good example: white in the kitchen. While white is admittedly a trending color that will eventually be replaced, it’s been a preferred, and classic, palette in kitchens for many years now.

Avoid overdoing your use of trending items or colors. Incorporating bits of trendy items on a timeless backdrop is a smart way to approach your home. For instance, trendy blush velvet pillows on a Cabriole sofa is an example of mixing trendy with timeless. Not sure which trends are on their way out? Consult with an expert to get feedback on the trends that interest you for your home.

Focus on Comfort and Durability

Timeless fixtures and materials tend to be long-lasting and durable. Hardwood flooring, for example, lasts for decades, or even centuries. There’s a comfort in hardwood that comes from knowing it’s the flooring material of our ancestors, and likely to endure long after we’re gone. As far as classic, timeless materials go, there’s no better example than hardwood.

As you are choosing materials, focus on what makes you feel comfortable in your home. Maybe you love beadboard and chair rails. Perhaps marble floors make you swoon. Whatever says home to you is a good material to put in your house.

Partner With a Professional

The most important component when remodeling or building a home is to work with a professional, whether that’s an interior designer or a design-build contractor. Partnering with a professional is the best way to ensure that your luxury finishes find a balance between trendy and timeless.

At Simonini Homes, we provide our clients with help from in-house design professionals. With personalized consultations and consideration for your personal taste, our design professionals can draft designs that turn your home from ordinary into extraordinary.

Trends make your home exciting, cutting edge, and attractive to guests and buyers. Because they keep changing, trends also give you the opportunity to reinvent your home on a regular basis. Timeless features provide comfort and stability. They add value that stays with your home forever.

During your next remodel, incorporate home trends and timeless finishes into the design to get the most out of your home upgrade. Work with an award-winning design and construction team to pull it all together. Contact us today to make an appointment for a consultation.