With London's Design Week and Fashion Week both just around the corner, the word 'trend' is hot on everyone's lips. Don't get us wrong – at Ideal Home, we won't follow every craze just for the sake of it. We'll always prefer a look that will last, or a 'permatrend' that can be built on year after year. But when a name like John Lewis flags up a surge in sales, we're going to pay attention.
Always on the cutting edge: John Lewis says this piece of furniture is going to be big in 2018
So what has got John Lewis customers so excited?
Patterned ceramics, that's what. Sales of bright colourful crockery are shooting up. And John Lewis thinks that Instagram is behind this sudden jump from everyday to embellished tableware.
'Sales of patterned and colourful ceramics at John Lewis are up 13 per cent this month,' reports Nicola Hattersley, Table Top Buyer at John Lewis. 'Our feeling is that customers are looking for the perfect backdrop for their foodie Instagrams as well as a talking point for their dinner party guests.'
It's a trend that Nicola expects to see run and run as we head into winter. Much like the move away from plain white bedding, the latest fashion for dressing a table is to layer up colour and pattern – ideally with a mix of motifs. And to illustrate how varied a selection John Lewis has in terms of design and price point, we give you these two plates.
Buy now: Alfresco Floral dinner plate, £12, John Lewis
Buy now: House by John Lewis Mini Spot dinner plate, £6, John Lewis
'We’ve also seen a growing interest for less traditional tableware,' adds Nicola. 'Customers are experimenting with different cuisines and investing in different types of crockery. Smaller tapas plates are rising in popularity and the sales of bowls for serving the likes of ramen and poke are up 87 per cent.'
Buy now: Jaipur dinnerware range, from £10 for a side plate, John Lewis
More tableware news: Trend alert! Asda predicts the return of the dinner set
If you want to go all-out playful and punchy, this doggy dining range is just the thing. British artist Sally Muir, a former knitwear designer, came up with the designs, inspired by a project that involved painting a puppy every day for a year. We've overcome with their cuteness!
Buy now: Anthropologie Sally Muir Dog-a-Day Dining Range, £14 for a dessert plate, John Lewis
So will you be taking on this trend? Or are you sticking with simplicity?
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