Typography is now as much a part of the pattern trend as florals and stripes, but I wonder when we got so comfortable with written expressions of how we feel emblazoned on our home interiors?
Maybe it has something to do with the development of social media and the ease with which we now post about our lives and emotions on Facebook and Twitter, plus the relentless tapping on a computer or phone key pad means we’re also very familiar with Times New Roman, Arial and other fonts these days.
It’s hardly surprising then that words and expressions have made their way into our homes as decorations.
Vintage bus and directional signage is sought after for home interiors — but these originals can be hard to come by, unless you’re lucky enough to find one in a salvage yard.
Now, of course, shops have started to stock reproductions to create conversation points in a room, but if you don’t fancy a sign pointing from your sitting room in Ireland in the direction of New York, consider letters in your favourite font and colour that can easily make the leap from the pages of a paperback to the walls and furniture in your home.
Choose elegant fonts that will float across the eye and not cause distraction. It could be an inspiring motto or a line from a favourite poem.
The trend has been around for several years now and is showing no sign of going away but the look and application changes with the fashion season.
Lisa Read, design co-ordinator at Marks and Spencer says: “At the moment, we are seeing more of the bold, vintage style monochrome numbers and words but as this trend develops, expect to see more detail and colour.”
M&S has a new selection of cushions for spring which are lush with colour and contrasting trims emblazoned with individual letters.
Lisa suggests having fun with these.
“Why not play with the letters and build up words and sayings that make your interior completely individual to you?”
DFS has gone for a more permanent approach or, at least, one that requires more investment so you’ll want longevity and not something that is just a passing trend.
It’s Ranch sofa (€3,478) is finished in a soft dove grey, dotted with a mix of cushions with text, checks and stripes.
A large footstool (€1,158) which can triple up as an ottoman and table also has text based upholstery to pull the whole look together.
Interior designer Roisín Lafferty of Kingston Lafferty Design is a fan of the typography trend too.
“It’s about being personal and adding personality,” she says, “and it removes taking yourself too seriously.
“Try the shop display approach and add text to walls as it’s easy to remove. Something like printing the rules of the house and hanging it in the hall works really well.”
Most print companies will take on this sort of project and it doesn’t have to be applied directly to the wall like wallpaper.
Try applying it to a panel so it can be moved to other walls at random.
But Roisín advises caution when introducing this or any trend.
“Don’t follow a trend too closely, keep it simple as trends don’t last. With this one, my preference is to use it on cushions and walls,” she says.
A simple approach is to try moulded letters made from wood or metal that can perch on a mantelpiece to create words or even the initials of the home’s occupants.
Neighbourhood Object makes letters in a 1960s style, vividly painted with even a little rust thrown in for authenticity (€260).
For something very personal, Surface View ( www.surfaceview.co.uk ) will blow up the pages of a well-loved book or even a favourite comic to create an eye-catching wall covering.
But for something more sophisticated, a development in the text trend is drawing on vintage, obsolete letter press woodblocks that are perfectly intact and arranged.
The eye-catching Letter Press wallpaper from www.shop.miltonandking.com plays to this theme and may just be your type (€128 p/roll).
[“source-Irishexaminer”]
