Editor’s Note: As ever-vigilant trend spotters, we’ve noticed a few ideas worth keeping our eye on in the new year. One of the trends to watch in 2013…

Image via smallshopstudio.com

More and more I’ve been seeing an increase in the use of bold patterns and bright colors. C. Wonder stores are a great example of this trend with their use of saturated green and an eclectic mix of patterns on the walls, floors and accent pieces.

Image via elle.com

Louis Vuitton’s red polka dot windows, designed by Yayoi Kusama, are another great example of a vibrant color used with a bold pattern. From a material standpoint, I have seen an increase in wallcoverings and fabrics with larger scale patterns and bolder colors—perfect for retail and restaurant applications!

Image via DL Couch, Maharam, Wolf Gordon

DL Couch, Maharam and Wolf Gordon have some great examples of this bright and bold trend, and I say, bring it on!

The inspiration and creative passion that comes out of NYC’s annual A.R.E. Visual & Fixture Market each December is what makes my new year all the more exciting! One of my favorite finds was the love and precision that went into the mannequins, from the fashion windows to the showrooms.

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Goldsmith/Windows Mannequin France

Image property of Chute Gerdeman

Hello, gorgeous; hello, genius! With the sweep of a magnetic pen, luscious lips and dashing eyes can be interchanged within seconds, making this one of the most flexible and time-saving beauty tricks out today. An array of color and pattern, feathers and lashes means it’s possible to complement virtually any fashion statement.

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Image via Chute Gerdeman

As CG’s resident Materials and Trend Specialist, one of my key duties is keeping our studio’s materials library up-to-date. With a focus on what’s new, there are items that inevitably get pulled off our library shelves. I’ve been hanging onto unwanted items, waiting for an opportunity to recycle them, rather than dumping everything into the trash. As it turns out, there are others outside of our industry who find value in my unused porcelain tile samples or a discontinued wallcovering binder. And IIDA has created a program to bring us together and reduce the waste.

ZeroLandfill™ is a wonderful event, hosted by IIDA in various chapter cities, where designers and architects can donate old library samples, binders and other items that are taking up valuable real estate in a materials library. This reuse program offers discarded materials to local artists, teachers, DIYers or anyone else who might be able to repurpose these products.

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Image via Emeco

Philippe Stark collaborated with Emeco to create a functional, sustainable and beautiful chair called the Broom Chair. For those of you who are not familiar with Emeco, they first manufactured the Navy Chair in 1944 to use on submarines, a chair that is still manufactured and used today! The Navy Chair is guaranteed for life as is the newest addition to the Emeco line, the Broom Chair.

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NeoCon is a conference for the design world to explore the most innovative products and resources for commercial industries, from corporate to healthcare to retail. For designers and architects, it’s an opportunity to become educated as well as inspired. As a designer and specialist of materials trends, this is one of the most exciting shows for me to attend. I can’t keep all the great discoveries to myself though, so I’ve compiled the Top Five Trends for you. Read more…

Image via Silestone

In our industry, we are always looking for beautiful products that will hold up to the demands and abuse of the retail and restaurant atmosphere. I love quartz solid surfaces because they have the depth and beauty of natural stone without the maintenance and upkeep. Plus, color consistency in quartz makes for easy specification and uniformity throughout a roll out situation. Read more…