Clean Cleaning

The cleaning supply industry was an early target for the climate crisis and its environmental impact. Course correcting accordingly, big brands were born. As for the consumer, buying Seventh Generation cleaning products and the like was an easy fix and a step in the right direction for getting the chemicals out of the home and laundry and, subsequently, the septic and sewer systems. Now, we're making note of more provincial practices kicking in and doubling down on the effort to clear contaminants out of the cleaning process. Holding hands with homemaking's cool cousin homesteading, old-school cleaning agents, products, tools, and solutions are making a comeback. CD & Co. favorite, Boston General Store, features a complete section online and IRL for well-made brushes, bottles, soaps, and even clothes pins, with organic or vegan ingredients and materials, to help conscious consumers revert to homecare with a smaller footprint (but maybe a little more elbow grease). Complementing this consumption cut, a full department of sewing and mending items and an array of glass storage for the kitchen have a distinct returning-to-simpler-times message. Can cleaned-up be zhuzhed-up? Preston Lane would argue yes, with a line of luxurious home cleaning and care products, free of harsh chemicals and 1400+ ingredients banned in Europe. Knowing these chemicals are not restricted in the states is enough evidence for us to get tidying up.

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Countryside Chic is Chic

We’ve been quietly tailing the idea of pattern bombing. Be it a room, an event, or a brand blast, the impact is indisputable and automatically evokes the old English countryside décor aesthetic. At the same time, the English estate-as-resort experience is fully heating up, illustrating the wallpaper matching bedding, matching scones, matching window treatments concept to gorgeous effect and unlocking a growing travel directive. Visualize a gorgeous green lawn with a gracious pool, lush landscaping, and historical architecture in the French countryside, the Cotswolds, or the like. A couple on our wish list: Abbaye des Vaux-de-Cernay. Soho Farmhouse Cotswolds.

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2. Snowbird style ups the ante.

The beachy Floridian aesthetic has been firmly situated in kitschy home decor and tacky vacation wardrobing. But expect the category to elevate as more young creatives move to the south and pop-cultural influences like Palm Royale and Capote Vs. The Swans breathe new life into the aesthetic. Elements of modern whimsy and old-world nostalgia will gain traction and swiftly infiltrate mainstream markets, taking the look from cliche to creative.

Designers and aesthetic drivers to note:

• Marina Silva

• de Gournay

• The Boca Raton rebrand

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"Polished playfulness" is the next frontier for maximalist, mood-boosting interiors.

It started with tufted rugs, wavy mirrors, and saturated color palettes as people sought interior design pick-me-ups during the pandemic. Now, sophistication and subtlety smooth out the design sensibility that reads more mature than trendy. Timothée Leclabart, one of Maison & Objet's "rising talent" selects, stood out with refined whimsiness, presenting a new collection of colorful chairs that look like cute friendly ghosts. We were smitten with Addison Ross’s bubbly pepper mills, Lily Juliet’s pastel marble serving pieces, and did a double take at Jonathan Adler, who seems to be toning down his flashy factor with playful takes on proper home design in delicate pop colors.

Homemaking is white hot. Think: domesticity as design direction.

It's coming up cake stands and candlesticks as renewed interest in traditional home life commercializes “homemaker” activities and aesthetics. A new lifestyle brand to keep an eye on, Mas Creations debuted with a living room scene fit for Don’t Worry Darling or Mad Men. Italian glassware from Mario Luca Giusti and Ichendorf Milano set the stage for retro garden parties, and an exhibit of artistic ashtrays signal smoking's fashionable resurgence. Minval Living’s sculptural tableware gave us a feeling for a return to collecting silver. Participating in Design Week, department store Le Bon Marche curated an exhibition of Spanish brands transforming homes into surreal fantasy spaces—To:From caught our eye emulating retro kitchens and canned goods.

Retro living returns.

Perhaps a fan of The Jetsons, Elon Musk revealed plans for a new Tesla Supercharger station in Hollywood that will feature a 50s-inspired dinner and drive-in movie theatre for customers to enjoy while recharging. The space will provide quick-service food options and screen movie clips instead of full films, since the Supercharger can add 200 miles of range in just 15 minutes. Blending lightning-fast technological advancements with notions of nostalgia, this reminder of simpler times resonates as a dystopian future looms near. The Co. expects to see more cultural and aesthetic embrace of "retro-futuristic" sensibilities with touches of mod design. Think: Space Race era meets 2020. Don’t believe us? Check out Chanel’s latest pop-up concept.

Honey, I shrunk the house!

With home prices and construction costs hitting record highs, Americans accept that home ownership today means downsizing. Listing platform Livabl by Zonda reports that since 2018, the average unit size for new housing has decreased 10% nationally. Consumers adjust to tighter, more efficient living spaces, relying on multiuse rooms and furniture that does double duty. Brands in the home and interiors businesses are wise to start thinking small with furniture that works harder and pieces that convert and shape shift. Beyond business, these tighter living quarters support The Co.’s hunch that neighborly niceties and community values are primed for a return in the suburbs. We might just start having the neighbors over again!

Couch-potato products embrace the lazy side of life.

Rebranding for younger audiences, La-Z-Boy created The Decliner, an A.I. powered recliner chair that generates a cancellation excuse via text by pulling its handle and promotes "the joy of missing out.” The average American streams 3.1 hours of video per day, so in theory, this, and LG’s new “TV in a suitcase,” make sense. Tailgaters everywhere will rejoice over the 27-inch StandbyME Go, which supports Airplay, screen mirroring, and voice control. But marketing materials also show the TV in a campsite environment, where people traditionally disconnect from creature comforts like screens. While these products align with the numbers and make for good marketing fodder, they may have a shorter lifespan as consumer, healthcare, and government bodies endeavor to curb collective screen time.

"Quiet luxury" creeps into home and interiors, reviving old, sentimental things.

Since Instagram and iPhones made everyone a celebrity, there's a growing need for mementos that are more personal than performative. “Searches for custom oil portraits [on Etsy] have increased by 173% year-over-year in the last three months,” according to WJS Off Duty. Young art aficionados’ newfound taste for antiques has renewed interest in very old things, outlined in The New Antiquarians: At Home With Young Collectors. Tired of the throw-away cycle, consumers gravitate towards practices of safe-keeping and passing down—look to Gohar World’s embroidered lace envelopes, or new restaurant Gab’s mosaic walls made from broken plates the owner’s family saved for over 20 years. After years of fast fashion and overconsumption, it’s nice to see sentimentality reinvigorating the marketplace.