The Block 2019: Darren Palmer on the top trends showcased on this season

In this season of The Block, we’ve seen five similar homes delivered with five very different approaches, which clearly demonstrates more than ever before that there is an endless supply of style and inspiration there for you to consider.

Trends exist to inform and inspire you but, most importantly, to interpret through your own requirements, experiences and desires. Across all the homes, here are some of my favourite trends that can be applied to your homes now and into 2020.

Multi-generational homes

You’ve seen us all bang on about the idea of homes having to service the needs of their occupants across many generations. This can mean considering the needs of infants and young children as well as the requirements of the elderly‚ and homes have definitely evolved to reflect that.

From more defined and separate spaces to having fully contained mini-dwellings within dwellings, as well as the need for larger kitchens with a five-zoned approach to their design, multi-generational homes are influencing design and planning trends and will continue to be a consideration.

A focus on materials

We’ve moved on from white, grey and oak. There’s still a place for this palette of course, but what we’ve seen across this season of The Block is flooring in herringbone or chevron patterns, brick being used as interior wall features, new materials making big statements in benchtops and more approaches to Venetian plaster than you can poke a trowel at.

Wallpapers have been used as custom art pieces, timber profiles used as bedheads and fireplace surrounds and an array of different approaches to lighting. The inclusions and materials in homes are overwhelmingly more diverse than they have been for decades, interestingly being influenced by design periods that were on-trend decades prior.

Texture

In line with new and innovative material use, there’s also an overarching trend to embrace texture. From textured loop or Berber carpets to boucle and velvet fabrics there is a focus on tactility and texture. Woven natural fibres like cane and rattan have been a recent focus, also brought back from decades past. Andy and Deb’s house has shown just how important texture is to an otherwise white and oak scheme.

Mosaic tiles reinvented

Mosaics are nothing new, but the finger-shaped form Tess and Luke used in their main bathroom (that made me almost lose myself in excitement) is definitely one of the trend shapes I’m most interested in. Whether as a splashback, used as a small feature or in large swathes on walls, they’re a lovely linear element that brings a contemporary edge to tiled areas.