With emphasis placed on eco-friendly and environmentally sound practices influenced by the COP17/CMP 7 climate change conference held in Durban late last year, elements of nature and refurbished furniture arepredicted to be two of the most prominent trends in 2012. According to Laurence Brick of Laurence Brick Creative Direction, trend consultant to Decorex SA, “with the economic downturn consumers are taking pride in bargain hunting, almost a backlash against mass consumerism, and it is chic to be price conscious. Here,people go back to what is honest and good so items which appear humble, paired down and textured have a new appeal”.

‘Loud’ textures have also regained their popularity, especially those fabrics with oversized textures such as crochets, knits and felting. Brick also believes that nature-inspired prints will be in high demand this year. “Floral prints will be popular, ranging from oversized flowers to the more romantic pretty blooms and to warm things up we will find exotic flower prints like the Lotus flower, tropical palm prints, leafy prints as well as the more traditional Victorian flowers. Our feathered friends are also all over this season – flamingoes, peacocks and smaller creatures such as beesand beetles also make their way into prints, celebrating the playful side of nature”.

Speaking about the colour trends for the coming year, Bricksaid, “this season the mood in colour is definitely easy and playful. We see the mix of hot neon's with soft pastels, whilst colours found in nature still dominate. Naturals are versatile and calming, yet also offer some of theseason’s brighter more vibrant colours”.

Visit Decorex Durban at the Durban Exhibition Centre between 21 – 25 March 2012. The Decorex SA portfolio will see exhibitions held in Cape Town (26-29 April 2012) and Johannesburg (8-12 August2012).

Decorex Durban is sponsored by Plascon, with Mnet asmedia partner.

For more information, visit www.decorex.co.za, like ‘Decorex SA’ on Facebook, follow @decorexsa or hashtag #decorexdurban on Twitter.