7 TRENDS IN HOME DESIGN

How has the COVID pandemic impacted the priorities

in Residential Architecture

BLOG POST : 25 Aug 2020 | Pooja Narayan | Director Architecture NBMA

One universal effect of this pandemic has been that it has forced people all over the world to spend unprecedented amounts of time at home.
Has that resulted in a re-evaluation of homeowners’ priorities when renovating or building a new house?

Read on as we discuss the top 7 trends in Home design in a post COVID world…

1. Flexible or Adaptable Layouts – With the home functioning as school, office, gym etc among other things, there are new demands for spaces where children can play indoors, video calls can be held, online dance/ exercise classes can be attended, zoom parties can be signed in to, television can be watched etc.

2. Home offices and WFH set up – Ensuring that each member of the household has a separate workspace – no overlap between children’s study tables and their parents WFH spaces. Another popular trend has been to make office space in basements or on terraces.
* Read more about home offices and WFH requirements in our upcoming blog

3. Designed private outdoor areas and ‘Biophilic’ Design – The most beautiful of homes and the most luxurious interiors can still feel stifling if there is no possibility of stepping out into an equally well designed haven of natural beauty. We have had many queries from people looking to set up terrace gardens and designed landscapes to literally be the breath of fresh air in their locked in life. We have also had residents of farmhouses reach out to us to curate a better quality of outdoor spaces for them, that cater to different moods and activities.
* Read more about “Biophilic Design” in our upcoming blog

4. Re-imagining entrance lobbies as clean areas/ transition Areas – The entrance lobby is re emerging as a place to hang up outdoor clothing like coats and hats or PPE and masks, and change from outdoor footwear to indoor footwear. People are also looking to create some amount of storage in the lobby for packages, deliveries etc to be stored till they are ready to take them into the house.

5. Kitchen and storage – People are spending more time in their kitchens in the absence of cooks and helpers, and many are reorganising their kitchens to their own convenience and style. People are looking for greater storage for dry and nonperishable goods.

6. Choice of materials and technology – Right from easy to clean surfaces, hypo allergenic materials, automated taps and fixtures to automation for energy conservation and ease of living, people are making choices for their homes based on their experience through the strange new normal during the pandemic.

7. Wish lists – If there is one thing this pandemic and lockdown have taught us, it is that this time is all we have to live all our dreams and fantasies. We have heard so many requests from clients, ranging from a larger bar, to a tree house, to a gazebo on the terrace, to redesigning a swimming pool – so that they can get full pleasure from being at home.

Which of these do you find most relevant? Tell us in the comments below..