Top 2020 Design Trends

By Student Cribs | June 9, 2023 | Reading Time: 9 minutes

2020 is upon us, Pantone have release their colour of the year and AW19 trends feel an age old. There is a sense of reinvention in the air, and for us that means fresh design trends to bring to life across our UK Portfolio of student properties.

Trends are always changing with a constant flow of transient fads, the resurgence of ‘timeless design’ ethos, and new-to-the-world trends for our Development team to assess and incorporate. As we do each year, we’ve gathered some of our, and the industry’s, top 2020 design trends to keep an eye on. We have even included photos where we have implemented these design aspects in to our student properties!

1. Colour of the year: The Classic Blue

Pantone has recently chosen it’s well anticipated colour of the year. This year they went for Classic Blue. You may be wondering how they determine which colour will dictate the first year of the new decade; we definitely were.

Pantone has explained that they have sensed a feeling of worry in the world, a feeling of instability throughout different populations across the globe. The Classic Blue was chosen as it represents calm and reassurance, essentially the optimism we all need. This colour will be one to include in your 2020 home decor sketches!

2. Japanese Inspired Interiors

The art of Japanese interior design lies in the omnipresence of minimalism. This design style embodies the zen philosophy by using natural materials, notably wooden furniture that creates a soothing effect. There is little room for mess in a Japanese styled home.

This decoration strategy focuses on being simplistic by keeping furniture to a minimum and strictly functional. Through this process, the overall aesthetic provides space for a natural blend between both interior and exterior. In recent years, we have been seeing the simplicity of this technique inspire designs across multiple fields and in various cultures. Design forecasters believe this trend will continue to be adopted in 2020.

In-line with this design trend, newly renovated Cribs favour fitted furniture, optimising the use of space and maximising free space for students to make their own.

3. Fun Chromatics

After the 2019 trend of fully white kitchens, incorporating chromatics may seem like a stretch to your interior. However, adding a pop of color to your decor whether it be on your walls, furniture or decorative objects is a way to add personality and particularity to your home. Flamboyant decor is making a comeback!

This is a tricky trend to get right so make sure you color in moderation by sticking to a handful of colors in a large room. Make a statement with an object or wall(s) of color you decide to incorporate in to this scheme. Expressionism is going to rule 2020, with its bold color palette and accents.

2020 is the year for risk, so get out of your comfort zone and play around with colors! You can see how we are integrating this trend into our newly refurbished homes.

4. Flower Power

While Grandma’s pattern flower wallpapers are clearly not returning this year, or so we hope, a millennial adaptation of the classic style is set to emerge. Floral patterns consisting of green, yellow and red tones are slowly appearing across decorative objects.Groovy! We expect this timeless classic print to re-emerge throughout 2020, as we we become nostalgic about this old-school design.

Center and team it with more neutral tones and you will make your otherwise simplistically styled room into an optimistic, uplifting and artsy space. Again, we’re seeing vibrant colors featuring heavily in the top 2020 design trends. Don’t hold your breath for floral features in our Cribs anytime soon though – we expect this one might be shortlived!

5. Nude Tones

We’ve definitely seen a gravitation towards the concept of bringing the outside in over recent years. Beginning with the resurgence of indoor plants, and culminating in 2020 with the preference for organic undertones and neutral colours.

We’ve seen a neutral green invade design magazines: the incredibly popular sage, which Student Cribs have already been incorporating into our student houses and flats. Did somebody say trendsetters!? Yellow based neutrals are also at the epicenter of these new year decoration trends, as are light pinks like Pale Dogwood and Peach Whip which are fail-safe choices for bringing your earthy palette together.

6. Sustainable Thinking

This movement towards more earth-like colors, as well as the Japanese nature-inspired design styles, are linked to a philosophy change in the population particulalry among University aged students. Society in recent years has grown to adopt more eco-friendly lifestyles. Purchase consciousness has been more and more present in the consumers’ minds.

We believe design brands will have to, and should, lean into this trend. In 2020, we will observe a use of sustainable materials and a harvesting of old furniture in home decoration providers. Our design team is leading from the front with sustainable design choices by ordering through Get Laid Beds who plant a tree for every bed purchased. Providers take note!

7. High Contrasts

It seems like the white on white kitchen trend has (finally) died down and has left room for a more creative approach: a clash between light and darker pigments. While there are plenty of options to consider when striving for distinctiveness in your projects, this is an easy to execute and sure-to-impress trend to hop on in 2020.

Pictured below is part of the communal space of one of our Cribs where we have featured this design trend.

8. A Velvet Comeback

Vintage velvet is back! Velvet couches are rapidly becoming all the rage, experiencing a recent revival. Sofas of vivid hues and soft exteriors will have their moment in 2020, with jewel tones being the colors to watch out for this year.

Classic design styles have been rolled out and fitted with new luxurious shades in the fabric that we all know and love, blending oh-so naturally with this years aesthetic. While velvet couches may not be as durable as other materials, ruling them out of mass incorporation across our portfolio, we anticipate (and welcome!) a rise in students bringing smaller items like cushion covers, foot stools and lamp shades dressed in the trendy material.

9. Black is Back

For sometime black has been a colour that designers shy away from, scared of it’s reputation of making rooms look smaller than they are. But enough is enough with the lies! Black is back!

Introduce lighter coloured features to create striking contrasts, or pair with a dark shade for those cosy spaces. Counter tops, sinks, walls; the possibilities are endless. Choose your features well and sparingly, and watch the magic happen.

Pictured below is part of the communal space of 60 Langton Road, Liverpool.

2020 is set to be an exciting year for design! A healthy mix of emerging trends and resurging classic approaches, gives our Development team exciting options and combinations to keep our student houses on the pulse of interior design. With hundreds of Cribs set for refurbishment in 2020, many of these trends will be in place before the end of the Summer – lucky students!

Want to live in one of the UK’s best student houses next year, or want to share your own forecast or opinion of emerging design trends? Contact our team here, or reach out via our social channels. Remember, with Student Cribs you enjoy more than just modern student houses; all bills are included, there are no fees, no deposits, and we offer 24/7 tenant support!