Black Bazaar: Post 4: Blast From The Past

70s is back, baby. A prominent interior design trend of the year to come, the 70s look is luxe, it’s textural, it’s glamorous and it thrives off metallic detailing; what’s not to love?!

A modern interpretation of 70s pastels

As design icon Jonathan Adler notes, people should “capture the decade’s excess with over-the-top accessories,” (Adler, J. 2016). Muted metallics like brass are huge, appearing on everything from mirrors and tap ware to table legs and objet d’art. Geometric patterns appear boldly on textiles, whilst feminine curves and streamlined designs characterise many of the vases, sculptures and canisters adorning consoles and buffets.

Jonathan Adler Jacques Bench

As Pantone’s Colours of the Year for 2016 suggest, milky saturated 70s pastels will be a hit throughout 2016. The creamy fairy floss ‘Rose Quartz’ would look right at home on a fabulously 70s velvet-cushioned perspex ottoman, as would the divinely mauve ‘Serenity’, which reminds us of dreamily-hued hydrangea.

A 70s dining setting

As the resurgence of 70s style picks up the pace, it is obvious that furniture silhouettes are following suit, too. Legs are becoming finer and tapered, wire bases are popping up on tables and plinths, and sharp angular designs are being replaced by sexy, smooth curves. The current 70s reinterpretation is unabashedly feminine, utterly luxurious and dramatically artistic.

Pantone's Colours of the Year

But how do we interpret this look for a modern, Australian abode?

One of the easiest ways is by playing with colour. As Dulux’s Andrea Lucena-Orr explains, “Colour combinations can be used in unexpected ways to help create a more youthful and playful space” (2015, domain.com.au). So embrace the unique and opt for an element of surprise - take a leaf out of Pantone’s book and pair pastel pink and mauve in the lounge room, team brass accessories with classic dove grey in the bathroom, or opt for caramel furs cascading down burnt orange dining chairs in your entertaining space. I know I’ll be!