Our favourite Instagram accounts and their 2021 trend predictions: Part 2 

Is it an orange? Is it an oyster? Is it a teeny tiny woman? Oh, it’s a candle.

With a little something to meet everyone’s eye, unusual candles are probably the most sought-after trend of 2020. And by taking on so many different forms, it looks like they’re here to stay. As the most ‘grammable item to have on your side-table, candles in a myriad of moulds have been sneaking their way into homes and showing up alongside pastel matchas and fresh flowers on our home feed. But we can’t say we don’t love it. Try scrolling down your Instagram home page without coming across a contorted candle, we dare you!

Summer Morning Studios is an Edinburgh based brand selling a series of handmade candles that are ‘too pretty to burn’. Founders Ailidh and Robbie design and pour each and every candle using soy wax, natural dyes and essential oils. When burnt, these candles are known to smell sensational, although maybe you should stray from igniting them at first glance and bask in their bold beauty. The oyster, the petal, the cloud, even the squiggle. There are so many enchanting designs that stand out to your intimate interior goals, just check out their Instagram if you want to have a browse.

Want to try it out yourself? All the peaches please recently posted a short clip of her making her own, alongside an ‘all you need to know’ post on her blog that’s worth checking out.

Tired of this trend yet? It’s TUFT!

Now I don’t know about you, but I am a BIG fan of this tuft trend. I adore seeing its fuzzy boldness on my Instagram feed, whether it adorning mirrors like on Als Place or sprouting up from the floor just like that of Made By Erica Studio. There are so many talented tufters on Instagram, but definitely one of my favourites is The Shag Rooms. Check out our 2020 Conscious Christmas Gift Guide for Interior lovers for the lowdown on the brand.

I had the pleasure of speaking to Amy Gemmell design, who is a multidisciplinary designer based in Glasgow. “I began my tufting journey all the way back in 2016 where I began making latch hook/punch needle cushions and wall hangings and ever since then I have been creating on and off,” Amy noted before adding that she only really got the opportunity to create full time after losing her job in August. “With a lot of spare materials left over from uni and some amazing feedback, I was lucky enough to become self-employed selling my artwork full time,” she finished.  

I guess there really is a silver lining to this dreaded pandemic, and it comes in the form of mini tufted flowers that you can place on your tables or even on your walls, and some bigger flowers to brighten up a dull floor. But apart from tufted things, what else can we expect of the upcoming year? “I hope 2021 brings a new wave of interior exploration where people fill their homes with colour and textures and fun! I predict a lot of up-cycling with a focus on painting on ceramics/mirrors.”

A lot more vanity, just with a different edge

Oh, more mirrors you say Amy? There are a handful of accounts on Instagram that has ignited inspiration in me to paint over my reflection in the mirror. But my plain laziness during lockdown has overruled the boredom of seeing my unmade face in the mirror each day. There’s the ever-surprisingly talented Hairy Yetti who often showcases her painted mirror on her Instagram. Simone Hedal is another influencer who has dedicated an account to her Scandinavian mirror art that favours pastel hues of acrylic paint over reflections.  Now if you’re one that favours a full reflection? There are a collection of incredible brands on Instagram that really play with the borders of mirrors. Salt Studios, the recently supported Lotta Blobs and Kiosk48th for example. 

Not that you need reminding, but in June 2020 the foam mirror trend expanded tremendously all over the world. It allowed all the bored young women in lockdown to get up, grab some Polyfilla and upcycle some of their drab old mirrors. I for one completely missed the bandwagon, but I don’t think the trend is so much over the horizon just yet. Especially when new methods of upgrading this trend have already begun spreading. A recent video by All the peaches please (yes I’ve mentioned her again. Big fan, big fan) has truly started a rumble in my creative energy, making me want to grab some PU and make my own using some odd earrings, broken glasswork, loose pendants etc. Similar to the work of Memor Studios featured in part 1 of our favourite accounts and their 2021 trend predictions. But yeah, mirrors of some variety will sure be a big trend in 2021

Pottery that’s meant to look like that

Now I have been such a fan of Marie Jedig for the longest time, often catching myself drooling over her unique style that seems so effortless yet so detail-oriented. I started noticing that, like many influencers, Marie also has a knack for pairing her outfits with her surroundings; and in particular, pottery. In one photo she’s seen sporting a candy and lime striped shirt and three-quarters, with the most amorous frilled edging and a little baby-blue beret. 

Unknown to me, Marie’s knack for pairing pottery with outfits comes from launching her own pottery business with her mother. It seems that I wasn’t one of the 93.7k clued in on this fun fact, and will pinch myself for years having also followed Bettunika aweingly. The mother and daughter business is based in Denmark and is a true representation of Scandinavian design with its subtle yet stand-out shapes and soft pastel colours. An odd flower or cloud adorned on the side of a vase adds to its intrinsicness. 

These sell-out in seconds designs are sought out as they represent the idyllic handmade ceramics you envision your own creation turning out. Except it’s actually designed to look rough around the edges, whereas mine tends to just fall apart. Oh well. Bettunika definitely represents the ‘it’s handmade’ craze that will follow on from the hellish year of 2020. As more restrictions come our way, handmade pottery will be one of many ways we seek solace once again.

A stunning, staged doll house

I love me a little Kitsch. If you don’t know what kitsch is, it’s a cartoon milk jug shaped like a cow, it’s salt and pepper shakers that look like cowboy boots, it’s even has a phone in the shape of lips. Kitsch is continuing its comeback in 2021. Why? Everyone needs that piece of decor that brings them joy and makes them laugh, to lift the spirits of lockdown.

The Dahl House mixes kitsch with cool. Founder Hannah has recently left the residential interior design world and was in search of something a bit more creative when she founded her online dollhouse under a year ago. Since July it has attracted a whopping 36.4k followers, but what makes this business so unique? “My mom worked on the set design for Pee Wee's Playhouse in the '80s,” Hannah began, “I have been forever inspired from that funky and animated style, which has really influenced my decor style to this day!” 

Hannah mixes her knack of thrifting with her love of curating mini funky & whimsical sets inspired by colours and/or the music she’s listening to that day. “When I listen to music, I go into daydream mode and envision scenes like that in music videos, very odd but the truth!” Hannah said with glee. “Turning my passion into a small business has been so creatively fulfilling, and something I have fallen deeply in love with.” And so have we Hannah!

“We are experiencing a time of kitschy 80's & 90's vintage home decor revival along with crafty lockdown hobbies. It's almost like this time is bringing us back to our youth, an appeal to a nostalgic playful throwback of Candyland and dollhouse inspired trends with funky shaped furniture and bright colours everywhere.” How exciting!

Real, raw art that makes you feel good

Last but certainly not least, we had the pleasure of speaking with Miriam Dema, a 25-year-old artist based in Barcelona. Miriam has been painting since she can remember, but it was whilst studying Fine Art that so much self demand detached her from her love of painting. “I spent those years experimenting with other disciplines, approaching art in a more intellectual way rather than emotional,” Miriam said. Miriam soon graduated and moved to Lima to study Peruvian cuisine. Curiously enough, it was in Perú that she reconnected with painting in a different way. “I started to paint more freely and felt comfortable again with my work and eventually  felt the desire to share it with the world.”

Now, her emotive art, basking in taints of plush blue and apricot orange, can be adored by others and even take pride of place in their homes. “My paintings are colourful and vibrant, a celebration of joy and abundance,” Miriam began, “I seek to represent the human presence in everyday elements and nature, scenarios that evoke warmth and distension,” she noted before adding, “I like to think of my paintings as windows to happy memories, filled with flowers, shared tables and food… A source of freshness and light.”

Miriam would like to more people hanging art all over the house, even in unusual places in 2021, noting that we see ourselves spending so much time at home these days, it feels natural to fill it with beauty. “Paintings can bring so much joy, they can transport you and evoke so many emotions,” Miriam said, before adding that she’d love it if we lost the fear to painting furniture, walls and ceilings to interact with the architecture and interiors of the house. “Like in Jean Cocteau’s La villa Santo Sospir, the Museumsquartier in Viena or Nathalie Lethé’s house,” she gushed.