Looks to Look For

By Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 9/16/2008 12:00:00 AM

At the New York Market —

Early on in the NY Home Fashions Market week, there are clear fashion and product trends emerging, spotted by Home Textiles Today editors:

The big news: prints are back, and in force. They are dramatic, some panel print effects covering an entire bed, with robustly colored florals, large single motifs and graphic designs. Definitely not ditsies or vintage in origin.

Color is key. Look for yellows, from rich golds to sunflower, goldenrod and cornsilk; a range of purple-influenced hues; the berry family; and fuchsia for bold accent or "pop" in a print or woven design. Orange has managed to move to all levels of the price spectrum and now is as pervasive as brown/aqua and gray.

Ombre, spelled as we do here, or ombray as the French do, is an important element in the world of stripes, as well as the ground for patterns.

Low profile beds are an emerging fashion category, bringing with them an adjustment in decorative bedding — skirtless bed ensembles. It's a new category with a fashion forward appeal.

Metallics, not just your everyday gold, silver and bronze, but an array of metallic sheen effects created with opalescent and luminescent finishes.

Sophisticated stuff for kids with good design and colors, less reliant on character tie-ins.

Quilts take on a new life — as a freestanding category — proving once again that things are cyclical. This cycle, look for classic motifs, but more importantly, contemporary designs.