Sweden and UK – With lockdowns fuelling global interest in home improvements and interior furnishings, Ikea and fashion designer Zandra Rhodes have joined forces to examine how design can bring an optimistic outlook into the home.
Using colour, patterns and textiles, the partnership is exploring how objects and furnishings can celebrate people’s personalities and local cultures, as well as the psychological effects of interiors on people and spaces. The result is the aptly titled Karismatisk collection for Ikea, which will be launched in September 2021 with 26 pieces including rugs, vases and cushions. Crucially, the collection also meets Ikea’s Five Dimensions of Democratic Design: form, function, quality, sustainability at an affordable price.
While a raft of high-low homeware collections have emerged this past year, including H&M and Diane von Furstenberg, Karismatisk displays an awareness not only of how interiors affect our moods, but the rise of unsustainable 'fast' homeware. In turn, Zandra Rhodes and Ikea are ensuring recycled materials are used in the collection where possible, while also seeking to keep prices accessible.
Strategic opportunity
Design-led brands should consider how colour, texture, sourcing and shapes can influence how people mentally respond to products – research into these fields could result in new directions for mood-boosting collections