Welcome to an elegant age

Bag a butterfly, splash out on blues, whip up some wallpaper and show a well-turned leg if you want your home to be bang on trend this year.

While that might sound like a surprising recipe for dazzling decor, they’re just a few of the ingredients from themes which will feature in the homes collections over the coming months.

The good news is that embracing a look shouldn’t mean a complete revamp, unless you have the budget and desire to do just that, because the trends are, in the main, fresh and interesting developments of existing decor interpretations.

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So French-style furniture with pretty, carved legs; florals; botanical designs featuring birds and butterflies; colour and wallpapers will continue to star.

If they’re already to your taste you may only need to add a few more accessories or a new statement piece to refresh a room and show off your style credentials.

“French elegance is a key trend for spring,” predicts Caroline Hodgson, home accessories buying manager for Barker & Stonehouse.

“To create this sophisticated look, combine understated wood with pale linens. Try adding neutral table lamps and multi-panelled mirrors to create a cool ambience.

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Our love affair with florals endures, she says, and the new collections will range from vintage-style faded blooms through to watercolour effects and small prints with dainty daisies or camellias.

“Whatever you do, don’t miss out on the blues,” she advises. “Denim, cobalt and sky blue all blend well and will create a cool and calming atmosphere.

“In general, whatever your taste, the aim should be to conjure an atmosphere of tranquillity, serenity and sophistication so rooms are a sanctuary and retreat from the pressures and stresses of the outside world.”

Follow the experts’ guide to key looks for 2013.

Turn back time

Nostalgia is always heightened when times are tough and continues to inspire present-day designs whether it’s vintage style or the fashion for mid-century modern furniture.

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Spring is all about reviving eras, from the 1920s through to the 1940s but with fresh interpretations,” says Alice Duggan, head of home buying at Debenhams.

“Designer Matthew Williamson creates a bright and eccentric take on a forties country manor house style, whilst Julien Macdonald has keyed into 1920s art deco style and teamed it with vivid colour.”

Pioneer collection with retro MissPrint mountains wallpaper, £59.95 a roll, and sleek Livingstone sideboard, £799.

Flower power

Florals feature in all the major interiors collections, but in tune with our growing enthusiasm for colour and pattern they will be even bolder and brighter in 2013.

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“This season, the trend for floral vintage pattern will be strong,” predicts Josephine Bennett, senior design manager at Laura Ashley.

“Our Palace Garden collection features an unapologetically glamorous design of lush red blooms and teams well with black cabinet furniture, luxuriously upholstered sofas and chairs, and crystal chandeliers and mirrored accessories.

“There’s a strong trend for opulence and sophistication and layering of textures in interior.”

Spot the trend: Palace Garden Chiswick wallpaper, from £28 a roll, and Chiswick Printed cushion, £40, from Laura Ashley. Marks & Spencer’s Colourfield collection features a rug from £75 and flower cushion, £19.50.
Natural world

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Decor fluttering with birds, bees and butterflies and designs featuring leaf prints reflect our passion to bring the great outdoors into our rooms, as well as a desire to blur the boundary between home and garden.

“Our Botanist collection draws on our national obsession with gardening and it has a nostalgic element, as well as a feeling of nurture,” says Theo Williams, head of the design studio at John Lewis.

“It’s about rediscovering the pleasures of life’s simple things and reconnecting with nature in the digital age.

“Natural motifs feature with ladybirds, bees and butterflies on pretty pressed glass and enamelware. Blocks of pale colour are accented by pretty florals.”

Bed linen in the range is printed with hand-drawn birds, and knitted throws have a hand-crafted feel with layered patterns and textures.

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