Bronxville designer Patti O’Shaughnessy sees a shiny new trend in the home. Her take on metallics:
“Metallics have been on the fashion runways for a number of years, ubiquitous in both day and evening attire. And now this glittery trend has spread to the world of interiors.
Fabrics, wallpapers and even carpets are now using metallic materials to give bounce and shine to embroidery, patterns, and surfaces that are usually thought of as matte.
Window treatments can now be found with metallic threads dancing through sheers, draperies, or even solar shades. Light will be intensified as daylight shines through so think through how much reflection you want. Metallics on a south-facing window might be blinding but perfect to softly amplify daylight for northern light.
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We’ve just seen two trends collide in wallpapers by Thibault. Ceriman on Raffia is a large scale, all over, leafy pattern, printed in gold metallic on Grasscloth. Grasscloth is really back in vouge (think, Madmen) and provides a variety of organic textures as background for printed patterns. Patterns can be printed in colors and now we are seeing printed metallics. When printed on grasscloth metallics provide a good juxtaposition, organic feel, metallic glam. Another source for metallics on grasscloth is Phillip Jefferies.
Metallics in rugs or carpet is really unexpected and a very new trend. Traditionally rugs were woven with wool or cotton. In the last 20 years silk has been used, particularly in Tibetan rugs, to give carpets shine. Stark Carpet has given new life to many of their traditional patterned rugs by weaving metallic threads in with wool and nylon. Metallic threads add glimmer, highlighting or outlining a pattern without adding much color. Depending on how the light plays on the surface of the carpet, the pattern will shine. A subtle way to brighten a room.”
