Trends: Colors, New Products and Finishes: Are you seeing a trend? I am. Warmth and depth seem to be trending on a long-term arc. Paint manufactures seem to be going that way too.
Our take on it is this, the 2008 financial meltdown caused everyone to be more cautious in their color and material choices. Fearing if they had to sell soon, they didn’t want to get stuck with a property they over personalized. The result was a lot of white cabinets (70% of sales nationally at one point) and wood floors.
In the appliance world out went the bisque and any other color that wasn’t stainless steel.
Metal plumbing fixtures, faucets and such, it was Brushed Nickel, Brushed Stainless and if you had a tight budget, good old Chrome. Other fixtures, toilets, tubs and alike there was White. For kitchen sinks you had stainless, white cast iron or fireclay apron fronts and the occasional composite sink in charcoal or chocolate brown. By in large all very conservative.
The only variance I have seen in this was grays and brushed gold and brushed brass. More than one contractor has told me if they never saw another gray kitchen with brush brass or brush gold fixtures it would be too soon. I agree.
Now in 2025 we see the new Cambria Colors: Berkshire Steel, Brighton, Remington Steel and Remington Brass.
Cambria’s latest addition to their collection brings sparkling minerals, deep colors, finish choices and in the case of Brighton a translucence that can be backlit. Brighton is the closest Quartz product that I have seen to date that offers the look of Quartzite. These designs have a warmth and depth to them that is remarkable. You can see more of Cambria’s new designs here: Cambria’s New Designs
Plumbing Finishes: There are two trends grabbing hold in our opinion. Polished Nickel and Kallista’s Blush Brass.
Kallista’s Blush Brass finish is new, but in my mind has the same warmth and depth that we have mentioned but in a new color. You can see more here: Kallista Blush Brass
Polished Nickel has been available in the plating industry since the late 19th century. It lost favor in many circles to the more durable Chrome. But Polished Nickel is making a comeback. When you compare it side by side to Chrome the reason is obvious. warmth and depth.
Check out Moen’s Polished Nickel collection feature here: Moen Polished Nickel
The Next Frontier: Dual use rooms, some of the complaints I hear from homeowners are related to the location of their laundry area (machines) and the lack of sufficient surface area to sort, press, dry and fold the family’s laundry.
Doing laundry is never fun. And I don’t claim to have a solution for that aspect. But with a little forethought we can make it more functional for you. And if there is another family function or personal hobby such as crafts, maybe we can create a space out of a seldom used room that brings laundry and your hobbies out of the basement or closet and into the light. As in well light room with large bright surfaces.
This is an especially important need the older we get when carrying large baskets of laundry up and down stairs becomes increasingly more difficult.
Financially speaking, It’s a balancing test. Most realtors will tell you the more bedrooms you have the more your house is worth. However, for the sake of argument let’s say you have traditional two-story home with your washer and dryer in the basement. Save for a few items all dirty clothes are collected on the second floor and brought down two flights of stairs to the basement. Laundered then hauled up two flights of stairs to be folded on a bed and dispersed to a bedroom or closet waiting for the cycle to repeat.
Now for the sake of argument, let’s say you are the one making all those trips up and down the stairs. The decision to sacrifice a bedroom may seem easy. Besides if done carefully the room could be converted back for the next owner. Assuming their knees and back are in good shape.
Let’s talk about your dirty laundry, shall we.
