What we want to see more of in 2025

2025… it feels like an auspicious year, a quarter of a century! Over the last week I’ve had a lot of fun scouring the internet to get some insights into what this year may bring for the world of interiors. I am so inspired and so excited to let you know that one of the main themes seems to be individuality and authenticity. With everything that has happened over the last few years and with what the world is facing, our homes, more than ever, are our havens. They need to reflect our own unique style and be less cookie-cutter. Our homes should be filled with history, character and personality, a place to recharge and fill our cup.

Whilst we don’t necessarily like to follow trends, we prefer our designs to be timeless and ageless with a sense of permanence, there are definitely some slow-burning design characteristics that we are loving and will look to introduce, or continue to use in our designs.

The Pantone® colour for 2025 is Mocha Mousse. A warming, brown hue imbued with richness, it nurtures us with its suggestion of the delectable qualities of chocolate and coffee, answering our desire for comfort. Combining this colour with warm creams, dark chocolates, and burnt coppers is a beautiful answer for those who love a neutral colour palette.

We’ve been moving away from a palette of more cool grey based tones for several years now. The use of these warm tones is cosy and welcoming, like a warm hug.

There are no straight lines in nature and we’ve always loved to work with circles and curves in our designs. It’s a wonderful way to soften the lines and angles found in most architecture - walls, windows, doors - although even a lot of these are being created in arches and soft curves right now. We’re continuing to embrace this attribute as more and more of our suppliers are producing stunning curved furniture and accessories. With an amazing group of skilled furniture manufacturers and contractors at our fingertips we can custom design pieces if we can’t find exactly what we want. The curved and organic forms emphasise the warm, comforting environment that people are craving.

Alongside natural form we continue to love natural materials like wood, wool, linen, stone etc. But we’re juxtaposing those earthy textures with the gorgeous shine of metal and glossy, highly lacquered paint finishes.

Another thing that I’m so happy about is the normalisation of rich, deep colours in our interiors. This is especially exciting for those of us who crave a touch more colour in our homes. Colour can be just as sophisticated as the beautiful neutral palettes of above. I’m seeing a lot of rich reds, burgundys, and deep, browny pinks, as well as our favourite earthy greens and steely blues.

The high gloss paint finish on the cabinetry in this room is contrasted with the dryness of the velvet sofa and the wool rug. And take note of the built-in bookshelves, as custom built-in furniture is another feature we’ll continue to see in 2025.

Coloured kitchens are here to stay, no longer do you have to stick to plain white especially now we’re using a lot of integrated appliances that are hidden behind cabinetry doors. A lot of kitchen cabinetry is designed to look more like furniture.

Natural elements like wood and stone are still popular and look stunning surrounded by rich colours. Don’t forget that art isn’t confined to the living and bedrooms, bringing artwork into traditionally utilitarian space such as kitchens, bathrooms and laundries is a way to emphasise your personality and individuality.

Just another way we’re seeing curves used in our homes is the resurgence of bullnose bench tops. They provide a smooth, comfortable surface to lean against, accentuating a sense of warmth and safety in our homes.

In the bathroom below they’ve used a double bullnose bench top and repeated the look at the top of the splash back. In both images the combination of green with dark brown wood is divine and borrowed straight from nature.

Combining red and green together might be a scary concept for some, but because they’re complementary colours it makes perfect sense. I love the boldness and playfulness of the kitchen below, it’s a great example of the unique, personality-driven design we hope to see more of. The burgundy and cream glossy tiles surrounding the cooktop are the hero, and complemented beautifully by the sage green cabinets and peachy pink walls.

The use of scallops, ruffles and curved edges will be prevalent this year. Using them in small touches such as lamp shades and cabinet handles is a great way to introduce this look into your home. There’s an emphasis on hand crafted pieces, treasures and trinkets in your home that bring you joy and spark memories.

Built-in furniture will always make a home look more finished and intentional. We’ve transformed many of our clients’ homes by designing custom built-in pieces to fill nooks and small spaces. Storage is always welcomed, especially clever storage that utilises the space well. The cabinetry below in a child’s room is not only fantastic storage, but showcases what we want to see more of - bold colours teamed with pattern and personality. They key to mixing this much bold colour is to keep the palette reigned into three or four hues, in this case - red, green, blue and yellow.

Maximalism has been on the rise for a couple of years. The look we’re loving hints at maximalism… less cluttered, more brave and unique. The use of bold patterns; embellishments like ruffles, fringes and piping; sculptural forms and colour drenching.

To summarise, be bold but exercise restraint. Add curves, softness and fun into your home. Surround yourself with things that bring you joy. You do you! And if that means a disco ball inspired rangehood in your kitchen - go for it! I hope you leave this blog post filled with inspiration and excited about the possibilities.

Simple Interior Design Tips

When we're working with our Bibby + Brady interior clients, there are some basic tips and tricks that we use again and again. It seems many Kiwis own black leather sofas. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but they can dominate a room with their heaviness. If that is the case, cushions and throws are your best friend.




Layering throws, sheepskins and cushions will help to soften your dark sofa, as well as adding great texture.


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If there was one item of furniture I would recommend you invest in and don't scrimp on, it's your sofa (and your bed). You spend a lot of time on it, so you want it to be comfy, and you want it to last. With a more expensive sofa you're paying for quality - instead of foam cushions, which will wear out more quickly, you get feather and down cushions. A cheap sofa may have a plywood frame stapled together that just won't last as long as one made from hardwood and held together with glue and dowels, or tongue-and-groove joints. Effectively you will have to replace a cheap sofa a lot quicker than a quality sofa, so my argument is that in the end you're saving money.




We often look to use a light neutral coloured sofa in our interiors. If you do invest in a quality sofa, a neutral colour will not date and works with so many different looks. A new selection of cushions will transform it when you're ready for a change.




But, of course, we do love our colour at Bibby + Brady. This stunning soft pink sofa with wooden buttons is a winner. It's still quite a neutral tone, adding lovely warmth, and would work in a quiet Scandi room just as well as a more colourful space. It's also available in grey if you prefer.




If you do want to be a bit more dramatic and sophisticated, you can't go past this divine blue velvet sofa with elegant brass legs. It's a darker colour, but the velvet fabric means it's softer than leather. All four of these sofas are available to purchase through us at Bibby + Brady, contact me for more details.




Another of our favourite tips is to take your curtains right up to the ceiling. It will create the illusion of height, and will add instant sophistication.




Often people will hang their curtains just above the window, but you can see from the pic below what a difference it can make hanging them as high as possible.  It's an optical illusion, the window on the right looks bigger when in fact they are both the same size. As well as the height, make sure your tracks are wide enough so that when you pull the curtains back you're getting maximum light. This also makes your window look larger, and we all love natural light in our homes.




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My final tip for this post has to be about vignettes - my favourite thing in the home. A good vignette will tell a story, as well as make a room look beautifully styled, lived in and loved. The most basic thing to know when you're creating a vignette is to use different heights, shapes and textures.




Lamps, flowers and foliage are great for adding height to your vignette. Books are brilliant for grounding smaller objects. As well as books and vases, use more unusual or quirky pieces to express your personality - a camera, a spool of cotton... whatever makes you happy.




Don't just layer from the base upwards, you should also layer from front to back to add depth. Artwork hung or propped up on the wall behind is the best way to do this. Nature always adds amazing life and texture to a display. Sometimes the most beautiful is the most simple, like some branches in a jar.




Remember the space underneath. If it's a console table you can place a basket or a small stool below it. Some side tables have a lower shelf great for a stack of books topped with a bowl or dish. I love the repetition of orange in this vignette (below), it draws your eye up and down over the entire scene.


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These are just three tips to help create a stylish home, there are many more. If you want help with your home or workspace, we're here for you. You can send us photos of the area/s you want our advice and we can put together individual tips and tricks especially for you. Of course we can also help you source and purchase the perfect pieces for your home too, be it furniture, fabric, art or homewares. Drop us a line, we'd love to hear from you.

My Colours for 2016

Happy New Year everyone, I hope 2016 is off to a cracker start for you. I spent a week or so over at our family lake house and I really enjoyed the lack of wifi, and just good ole fashion 'chilling out'. But I'm back home now and really excited about what this year will bring. I have exciting plans for my home and for the growth of my business, Bibby + Brady (with Dael Brady), and look forward to sharing it all with you.



In 2016 I continue to (and will always) love white interiors layered with colour, pattern and texture. Shibori, denim and a contemporary take on tartan are favourites of mine. Zhush up your occasional chair by reupholstering the back cushion only in a gorgeous fabric.



This year I will also be embracing lots of dark walls - think glamorous not gloomy. Layer on warm wood tones, peachy pinks, and shots of brass and copper. Blue is definitely the new black. We use it a lot with our clients and I hope to bring you some of our examples in the near future.





Texture will never go out of fashion and I love the use of panelling on walls to add subtle texture and interest. There are so many fabulous examples that I think I'll have to do a whole seperate blog post to showcase my faves.




Mexico, India and Morocco have the most influence on my style and they do colour so well.




In 1956 fashion editor Diana Vreeland declared that "pink is the navy of India". I absolutely adore hot pink teamed with their slightly muddier tones of cobalt and aqua. The patina of those walls is divine!





If you're not ready to embrace that kind of colour into your home, don't feel you have to go black, white or beige. Try soft grey, dusky pinks and lilacs, chalky whites and mustard.



What ever you do in 2016, make sure it's "you"! Forget fads and trends, it's all about creating the best possible home for you. Somewhere you will be happy, somewhere you look forward to returning to, a place you love.

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