4 LUXE DESIGN MATERIALS TO KNOW ABOUT IN 2023
4 luxe design materials to know about in 2023
January 13, 2022
The inviting bedroom in our Waldorf Astoria project
We don’t advise using trends as your design North Star. At Inspired Interiors, our number-one priority when designing a client’s home is carving out spaces to make memories. We believe in imbuing homes with personal touches, which allow us to create emotional connections to our spaces.
We’ll never give you a cookie-cutter home, but you can rest assured that we’ll keep up with what’s hot in interiors today, using state-of-the-art materials to make your space just as functional as it is fun. Good news for all of us: 2023’s trending luxury design materials are far from fads. Instead, they’ll allow for imaginative interior design that will stand the test of time and, most importantly, bring you one step closer to a space that feels uniquely you.
funky terrazzo placed here, there, and everywhere
A playful alternative to the Calacatta marble you’ve seen in everyone’s home, terrazzo was invented by the Italians 500 years ago, when clever Venetians used marble scraps to create affordable flooring. It’s made by flecking different-sized chips of marble, quartz, and other materials into cement, then polishing it smooth. The States became enamored with the trend in the 1970s thanks to epoxy, the perfect adhesive material to make terrazzo more efficient and durable for the modern day.
What does terrazzo look like in 2023? It still features recycled speckles of marble, quartz, and glass—but cut into much bigger pieces and reimagined with vibrant, unexpected colors. Your choice of materials—from pink and gold stones to blue and coral glass—can make a completely unique statement. Plus, terrazzo doesn’t have to go under your feet: Bring it beyond flooring with a kitchen backsplash or breakfast table, bathroom countertop, or entryway staircase.
The ideal way to channel an Italian villa through a 2023 lens, terrazzo offers a wow-worthy play on texture while feeling completely smooth to the touch. It’s also the perfect opportunity to anchor design trends with classic pieces: our specialty when working with clients who have an abundance of prized possessions to showcase.
bespoke METAL accents
Metal work by Sophie Mallebranche
On our team’s furniture- and art-hunting trips to Paris, we’ve fallen in love with the woven metal work by Atelier Sophie Mallebranche—and we’re not the only ones. These bespoke, handmade creations stand out when used as room dividers, sealed into glass panes to create a luminous, shimmering room partition.
We also love Banker Wire, the go-to American-made metal work we’ve seen everywhere from international airports and hotels to the Louis Vuitton store. In homes, the brand’s work adds an incredible finish to unexpected places, like kitchen cabinetry and wardrobes.
To make these kinds of pieces sing in your own home, it’s best to hire an interior design team that’s NCIDQ certified (like a lawyer’s bar exam, but for interior designers) and recognized by the American Society of Interior Designers—like us. Our award-winning team has the expertise to examine your home’s electrical systems and install your art piece so it looks even better than it did when you purchased it. For these spectacular metal partitions, we’d optimize their placement to reflect your home’s natural light and install some killer lighting to make them shine from within.
marble in dreamy pinks and purples
Marble is one of interior design’s longest loves—but it’s been long in need of a refresh. Enter pink and purple marble, here to romance you with serene, ethereal hues for anywhere in your home.
This trend is for those willing to be adventurous in their home design, daring to deck out their primary bathtub or kitchen island in pink-rippled marble. Not ready to commit full-on? Our clients have also been asking for pink and purple marble accents, from archway trimming to coffee tables, that still pack a punch without pulling all the focus. (One has a lilac slab that we’re pretty sure everyone will want to copy!)
Even when marble comes in colors so vibrant that they seem almost unreal, it’s still a natural stone unearthed from metamorphic rock formations—a fascinating reality that has made marble one of history’s most timeless and coveted design materials. It’s beloved for its unpredictable striations that are unique to each slab. In honor of that concept, why not forgo the obvious all-white look in favor of soothing lavender or stunning rose?
insanely cleanable white fabrics
The stunning sofa in our Wilmette Residence
Read this list of trends, and it’s clear that all-white minimalism is not the focus of 2023 interior design. Still, a pop of crisp and classic white will always have a place in even the most up-to-date homes. Add a gorgeous, bright white sofa to anchor a color-happy living room or clean white bedding to make your bedroom feel like a calming paradise, and you’ll never regret it. That’s especially true if you choose the cleanable luxury performance fabrics taking over 2023.
The brand to know: Perennials—the famously “kid-proof” fabric technology that’s fade-resistant and incredibly easy to blot and brush clean with everyday household bleach. That means you can use your couch for what you really bought it for: getting comfy and drinking red wine while your kids eat pizza on your left and your not-so-potty-trained dog lounges at your right.
Perennials carries a variety of fabric options in a range of colors, prints, and designer collaborations. If low-risk, high-reward white is on your wishlist, though, this is the best news you’ll hear all year.
Need help incorporating these luxe materials into your new build or gut rehab? Contact us to get started.