If you want to know which interior design trends 2026 is going to be celebrating, and are genuinely worth your time and money then you’re in the right place! As professional interior stylist and homes editor, I write about trends for magazines, and I style them on shoots, I see them coming through at press shows and events. So when I talk trends, this is not just Pinterest scrolling (although I do plenty of that too), I know exactly which ones are hot and which ones are not.
Here is everything you need to know: 6 interior design trends for 2026 I am completely obsessed with, and3 I think you should probably swerve.
Maxine Brady is a Brighton-based interior stylist and home decor edtior, and host of the How to Home Podcast . Find her on Instagram at @maxinebradystyling and at maxinebrady.com.
The 6 Biggest Interior Design Trends 2026
1. Laced Up
The look: Romantic textures, pretty details and handmade finishes.
Laced Up is all about bringing back the pretty. After years of hard edges and flat surfaces, people are craving texture again, and the numbers back it up. Pinterest has reported a 105% rise in searches for lace, embroidery and handmade finishes.
In practice this means sheer lace curtains that glow with light, scalloped lampshades, embroidered cushions, decorative trims on bedding and furniture. The colour palette stays soft rather than sugary: chalky whites, buttercream, faded peach, pale sage. Fabrics are cotton, voile, linen and muslin.
How to try it: You do not need to buy anything new. Sew a scalloped trim onto a plain cushion, drape a crochet throw over an armchair, or hunt out a vintage lace tablecloth from a car boot and use it as a throw at the end of the bed.
2. Neo Deco
The look: Art Deco gets a modern, earthy, glamorous reboot.
Art Deco is back, but this is not your grandmother’s Gatsby party. Neo Deco takes the bold geometry and drama of the 1920s and makes it liveable. Think rich earthy tones rather than over-the-top gold and black. The shapes are everything here: crisp chevrons, fan arches, curved furniture, and fluted details on everything from kitchen cabinets to lamp bases.
The checkerboard moment is also very Neo Deco. Tiles on floors and even painted onto ceilings. Materials are deep velvets, red marbles, leather accents, moody lacquers, dark woods.
How to try it: Swap your coffee table for something rounded. Add a fluted glass pendant. Switch your door handles for aged brass ones. You do not need to redecorate, you just need to swap a few details.
3. Cirque du Home
The look: Bold, playful, maximalist self-expression.
Maximalists, this one is for you. Cirque du Home is the full rebellion against years of curated, neutral, Instagram-perfect interiors. Wide stripes on walls that creep over the ceiling. Wavy shaped furniture. Clashing prints. Homes that feel joyful, expressive and completely individual.
The colour palette is brilliant: cherry red, butter yellow, cobalt blue, coral, clashing pastels. The philosophy is simple. Decorate for your own happiness, not for anyone else’s approval.
My own peppermint Victorian terrace in Brighton is basically a living example of this trend. I have been living Cirque du Home before it had a name.
How to try it: Wide stripes on a chimney breast. A statement scalloped lampshade. Painted furniture in a zingy colour. Pick one hero colour and a contrasting shade and repeat it around the room. That is what keeps it playful and cohesive rather than overwhelming.
4. Tile Drenching
The look: Immersive, high-impact, all-in tiling.
You know colour drenching, where you paint walls, ceiling and woodwork all in one continuous shade? Tile drenching takes that same all-in approach but with tiles. Walls fully wrapped, floors flowing seamlessly into shower enclosures, niches tiled to match. The result is a cocooning, design-led space that feels incredibly intentional.
We are seeing it in glossy emerald bathrooms, chalky neutral hallways that feel like a spa, and kitchen splashbacks that run all the way up to the ceiling.
The key details: Keep grout lines tight and match your grout to your tile for a seamless effect. Tonal grout is one of those small things that makes even affordable tiles look premium. For rentals or small spaces, peel and stick tiles in a cloakroom give you the drenched look without commitment.
5. It’s Giving Chartreuse
The look: The colour of 2026. Bold, confident, main character energy.
If you are not sure what chartreuse is, it sits somewhere between electric yellow and punchy green. Bold, impossible to ignore, and absolutely having a moment. What I love about how this trend is being styled is how grown-up it can feel. Pair chartreuse with warm woods, chocolate browns or brushed brass and it shifts from highlighter-bright to genuinely high design.
In kitchens it sings on cabinetry. In a living room, a chartreuse sofa or accent chair is an instant focal point. The key is to let it lead. Chartreuse is not a background colour, it is the personality in the room.
How to try it: A throw, a lampshade, the inside of a bookcase. You do not have to commit to a full wall. I am slightly intimidated by chartreuse as a wall colour but as an accent? Completely in.
6. Nocturnal Botanica
The look: Moody, botanical, theatrical. Nature’s dark side.
Light airy interiors are stepping aside in 2026 for something moodier and more ethereal. This is not fresh meadow energy. This is shadowy woodland. Fern murals. Creeping ivy. Butterfly motifs. Homes that feel cocooning rather than pristine.
Forest tones: mossy greens, inky florals, deep green, aubergine, earthy brown, charcoal. All paired with antique brass, dark wood, furniture with age and patina.
How to try it: Paint your woodwork in a deep green or aubergine rather than just the walls. Skirting boards, doors, shelving. It creates incredible depth. Layer in table lamps, wall lights and candles because this trend is all about moody layered lighting. Large-scale botanical wallpaper or a vine mural will do the heavy lifting for you.
And it extends outdoors too. Dark planters, lantern lighting, aged garden furniture. Your outside space becomes part of the same enchanted atmosphere.
And which 3 Interior Design Trends you need to Avoid in 2026
Bouclé Burnout
Bouclé has been everywhere for four years. Sofas, chairs, cushions, headboards, footstools. The saturation point has been reached. What once felt considered and design-led now just looks like you bought the whole room from one display in a furniture shop. Practically speaking, bouclé is also a nightmare to keep clean. It pills, it catches everything, it is not a fabric for real life with children, pets and the occasional red wine incident.
What to do instead: Invest in upholstery that will last beyond the moment: textured linen, good wool blends, mohair. Save fabric trends for accessories like cushions and throws.
Kitsch Food-Core Décor
The tomato-core, cherry-girl, croissant cushion moment is deeply amusing, and it dates incredibly fast. Viral trends have a lifespan of about six months and food-themed décor is peak viral trend. There is a difference between self-expression and novelty. A home built around cherry motifs says “I saw this on TikTok” rather than “this is who I am.”
What to do instead: Take the colours without the motifs. Cherry red with cream and chocolate brown is a beautiful, sophisticated palette that will last for years.
Cloud Dancer as a Hero Colour
Pantone’s colour of the year for 2026 is Cloud Dancer, a soft off-white they are pushing very hard. And look, a warm white used well is timeless and beautiful. But Cloud Dancer used everywhere strips all the warmth from a space and makes it feel flat and anonymous. It is basically magnolia with better PR.
In a north-facing room it will just look cold. And a barely-there shade as the hero of a room makes it very hard to layer personality in. There is nothing for your accessories and art and textiles to work against.
What to do instead: Use Cloud Dancer as an accent on woodwork or as a ceiling colour above a coloured wall. For your hero neutral, choose a chalky cream, a soft putty or a warm linen instead.
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