Trade shows and “market” are distinctly insider business, and one of my favorite parts of my work as a design writer, editor, and self-professed forecaster of home trends. So when a friend of mine texted me last minute that she was going to be at High Point Spring Market this past weekend, I sorted out my credentials and hit the road. Luckily for me, the city of High Point, North Carolina—a.k.a. the furniture-making mecca of the United States—is just over an hour away from where I am in the Raleigh area.

I hadn’t set foot in that city for close to a decade, since I relocated to the West Coast, but before that, it was a twice-yearly visit to check out what new things furniture companies were cooking up. Retail buyers, interior designers, and media people such as myself walk the floors of the endless parade of showrooms in their sneakers and business casual, lanyards around their necks, shoulders weighed down with free tote bags stuffed with brochures and brand swag. It’s exhausting but exciting, a design sensory overload in the best way.

Unlike in previous years when my calendar was full of appointments meant to schmooze, I meandered around at my leisure, stopping in showrooms and booths that caught my eye. And after clocking nearly 15,000 steps, I quickly turned to my friend and rattled off all the details I noticed were common throughlines between the companies we visited that Sunday.

And today, I’m sharing what I found. In retrospect, I was too busy chatting to take a ton of photos, but between my camera roll and that of my friends, I could piece together enough to give you a sense. Before diving in, I do want to say that everything felt very fall-adjacent. Typically, when I’d go to the spring market, it was bright, peppy, and playful. But it’s clear we’re knee-deep in design that feels rooted, authentic, warm, and full of deep, earthy colors. I’m not mad at it, but let’s all not forget to have a little fun in our homes, right?

Home Trends: Suiting Textiles

Far and away, one of the most obvious trends I saw at High Point this season was what I would call “suiting” textiles. Specifically, plaid, tweed, and pinstripes. Knowing that so much of what we see in our homes started first in fashion, it’s not a surprise to me that this is the direction we’re headed in. Trousers and tailoring, especially in women’s fashion, have been front and center for several years now.

Taupe stripes and tweed where everywhere, from bench-cushion sofas to comfy armchairs. I’m a bit on the fence about the tweed, not for aesthetics, but for comfort. Some of them were a little itchy, and I can just imagine trying to stay cool on an August afternoon on a prickly tweed seat.

My friend proclaimed that she found her dream sofa (left), and in person, it really was awesome. This was a super dark showroom of a magnificent brand I only just recently discovered called Rowe Furniture. Every single thing in there made us both swoon. The photo on the right is from Cisco Home, another one of my favorites, with some fun houndstooth wingback-esque armchairs.

Again, as I was too busy discussing my dream home aesthetic with my friend and catching up (we used to work together three years ago at a furniture company and hadn’t seen each other since), I didn’t snap any of the plethora of plaid upholstery items or decor pieces. But she luckily had this photo of some plaid poufs at Cisco Home.

Home Trends: So. Much. Faux. Fur.

Bouclé is out, faux fur is in, people. And I don’t just mean on throws or pillows. They are having a full-on moment in accent seating. I was pretty dubious at first, imagining, yet again, a sweaty swamp butt sliding down this thing mid-July. And my leggings-only wardrobe is also not very compatible with something so slick and soft. But I have to tell you, it’s very cozy and comfortable.

It’s an acquired look, that’s for sure, but hey, I spend my life as a design writer begging people to be original and take risks, so this is most certainly one of those moments. Plus, if you have kids or someone incredibly blunt in your life, you will get interesting questions such as the one I just got from my 4-year-old, when she came in to ask me what I was doing: “Mama, is that a bear or a chair?!?” I laughed so hard.

Home Trends: Blockprint Fabric & Bedding

Block print fabrics aren’t new to the scene. Since everyone decided they wanted to decorate their homes as if they were jamstresses in the English countryside, they’ve been around. And actually, just to inject an addendum to my previous comment, the block print technique originally arose in China and was later perfected in India (not England).

History lesson aside, sweet, delicate florals in particular can be seen on large upholstery pieces, drapery fabric, and bedding. I love seeing how it was mixed and matched, most successfully with stripes and a floral print of an opposite scale.

Home Trends: Metal Detailing

This one came to me as a bit of a surprise. Ironwork is everywhere! I noticed it across lighting, hardware, and, most interestingly, as a juxtaposition to the softness of seating. We’ll be seeing iron and metal detailing on the arms and even legs of armchairs, chaise lounges, and sofas/sectionals.

Brass took quite the backseat, though it could still be found in small doses in a lot of showrooms. But don’t be shocked when you see oil-rubbed bronze making a huge comeback. In general, we’ve been moving away from brass, with polished nickel, chrome, and pewter coming into the picture more and more. I prefer these mixed with other warm metals to keep things interesting and collected.

Home Trends: Rounded-Off Everything (Wood Included)

Round, soft, sinuous EVERYTHING. Even wood, which is such a gorgeous detail and just makes me want to run my hand along every surface. That table at right, by Ethnicraft, had my whole heart. I stood at the head of it, rubbing the edges, dreaming of future dinner parties. 🙂

As you can see, there’s an arch in nearly every part of the above image: The bookshelf, the sofa chaise, the doorframe, the settee, and the giant case good in the background…the curve can’t be stopped.

Home Trends: Warm-Undertones & Earthy Color Palettes

Gone are the days of gray and blue sofas galore. Olive green, chocolate brown, terracotta, and mustard reigned supreme across basically everything. Upholstery, decor, soft goods, and even tilework were installed in the showrooms.

We’ve been talking about warm neutrals for about a year or two now (honestly, maybe more), but everything, even the bolder colors, all leaned to warm undertones. Cool-toned greens were nowhere to be seen, and olive was the star. Honorable mention goes to oranges and reds, and mustard yellow.

I mostly noticed blue (except for when leaning deeply into the coastal vibes—keep reading for more on that) as an accent as opposed to the main event, which was an interesting turn of events. Though I’m sure you’ll have to pry the blue out of Emily’s tight fists ;).

Home Trends: Nautical Blues

I’m sorry I fell down on the job in getting photos of more nautical and beachy blues. Even my buddy had none, and she was the one who pointed it out to me (she works for a major fabric manufacturer and distributor now and knows her stuff). Lots and lots of coastal references with soft blues and creams. There are even some very overt beach callbacks, but that depended brand to brand. I wouldn’t bank on anchors and rope buoy wall hangings being overly mainstream.

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This is where I leave you for today. With a neon sign that stopped me on my way to the restroom to snap a photo. It made me chuckle, and goodness knows we all could use a little silliness these days. “May your delulu come trululu.” From that neon sign to God’s ears. 🙂

Until next time, friends…