18 Aug Design Uncensored with Patti Carpenter
Ready for another inspiring discussion on trend & design with Stacy’s weekly live series Design Uncensored? On the thirteenth episode, Stacy hosts an intriguing conversation with Global Trend Ambassador, Patti Carpenter. With years of experience walking design shows and traveling to other countries for sourcing and inspiration, Patti gives her incredible insight for trends in the coming years as well as why travel has been so important for her and her career!
See 3 Key Takeaways From the Conversation Below!
1. An Accelerating Market
As a Global Brand Ambassador for Maison et Objet, Patti not only gives numerous speaking presentations and tours for newcomers as well as returning attendees, but she gains an incredible amount of insight to trends that we’ll see in the years to come. Typically, it takes these trends around three to five years to come over seas and really penetrate the U.S market as Europe tends to be a bit ahead. However after attending the January 2020 show, which was probably one of the first and last shows of the year, Patti explains how she believes the trends she saw will be popping up much quicker as a result of the world being on this whole sort of “lock down” mode both mentally and physically. She makes a good point when saying “we’ve never experienced the entire world all being impacted by the same thing at the same time”. We are now at a time where we’re craving a sense of connectedness, comfort & relief, and we can acheive this by surrounding ourselves with things that make us feel good.
2. Trends to Uplift Body, Spirit & Mind
Patti gives us some incredible insight to trends she sees already happening and expects to have longevity. Nature inspired patterns, colors, and materials are becoming super relevant and a staple in our homes. Materials such as natural fiber, grainy woods, organic formed ceramics and copper will take over retail space. Aside from the earthy tones, Patti mentions two major colors she expects to flourish throughout the market which is a washed denim blue and a nourishing olive green. These are both colors that are becoming somewhat of a neutral in our lives as they pair well with just about any color palette you can imagine. Neoclassicism not only will we be looking to this beautiful nature infused product to uplift ourselves, but she also mentions the acceleration of smart design as these products can help with safety precautions by using antimicrobial properties and other features to enforce a clean & healthy environment.
3. Back to the Roots of Design
Patti looks to travel as one of her biggest inspirations for design & trend. In fact, she has traveled to work in over 57 countries in order to expose the U.S. to the true beauty and passion that goes into artisan craft. Because these third world countries don’t have access to all of the capabilities we do, Patti sets out to help these artisans in the development process while keeping the culturally inspired colors, patterns and materials as part of the design elements. Although we aren’t able to travel to most of these places right now, Patti explains how she sees these artisan crafted products becoming a major trend across many different markets right now as consumers are gaining more sense of virtue, wanting products in their homes that speaks to their core values. She says, “People want products that tell stories. They want things that they can feel a connection with.” After experiencing this feeling of “isolation” for months now, it makes sense as to why people are craving to surround themselves with things that have deeper meaning and what better objects than those created by hand. One craft Patti recalls in particular are Alpaca Throw Blankets which are woven in Bolivia on pedal looms which at one time were sold in ABC Carpet and Home and Neiman Marcus.
More About Patti Carpenter
Patti is Principal of carpenter + company/Trendscope and an award-winning Creative Director in globally sourced home décor, personal accessories, fragrance and gifts. With extensive experience in product design and development, merchandising and color + trend forecasting, Patti is a Micro-Enterprise specialist with U.S. presidential recognition for domestic and international expertise in artisan development, small producer and entrepreneurial training and economic development
No Comments