One of the most interesting things about working behind the scenes in furniture is the opportunity to see new and emerging products enter the retail landscape. Among those trends are the latest styles and designs in modern platform beds and matching furniture. In this article I'll take you through some of the newest and most popular designs in bedroom furniture and we'll also take a look at some of the hottest colors available for beds today.
Heading into 2008 several manufacturers introduced new bedroom products which combined rich wood tones with an outer framework made up of steel/metal. In many of these products dressers, chests and nightstands feature wood construction on the main upper case units and a steel base introduced at the bottom of the unit. Many of these pieces use straight, clean lines and wood tones featured include cognac, espresso and java. Several manufacturers are also giving consumers the choice of steel finish color and with a variety of earth tones and metal finishes it really gives the opportunity to create a unique look all your own.
A popular design element from 2007 has continued into 2008 and consists of beds which feature a headboard design that have a slight angle towards the wall. Often shown in modern and contemporary designs these same features are starting to find their way into more traditional designs as well. When you're out shopping notice these beds as they move away from the typical headboard features which tend to be straight vertically. Most of the beds designed with this slight angle to the headboard can be measured away from the lower portion of the bed by no more than 4-5 inches. So these beds are not increasing the overall length of the bed by much and create a more interesting design. This design aspect really makes you think about traditional sleigh style beds with the curving features found in both the headboard and footboard and perhaps these new design elements borrow on this classic design.
Four poster beds are also getting a modern makeover and a well deserved one this year. European designs from the 16th and 17th centuries predominantly featured many of the traditional designs that furniture makers today draw from for inspiration. These timeless designs have their place in many homes but don't blend so well with modern contemporaries in today's homes. Several manufacturers have created and introduced new designs which give straight clean lines to the bed posts and have refined the look of the headboard and footboard to give us a more modern poster bed. I think folks who liked the idea of a poster bed but were perhaps discouraged by the traditional look can take great joy in knowing that a modern approach to this classic design is now available.
In 2007 a large majority of manufacturers in contemporary furniture were using darker wood tones in the ever popular cappuccino and espresso finishes. For those who aren't familiar with these finishes they are very deep finishes with brown tones that almost look black but have a strong brownish tint when exposed to direct light. Furniture manufacturers in the industry have been using these colors more and more over the last several years and I think a majority of the modern furniture you see in the marketplace are shown in these colors or at the least available in these finishes. In January 2008 though several manufacturers are introducing cognac or reddish-brown colors into wood tones and finishes much like the casegoods we talked about towards the beginning of this article. Look for these colors to start appearing in stores either showcased as floor models or available as special order.
In this article we discussed many of the new trends in design and finishes moving into 2008 for modern bedroom furniture. We looked at manufacturers combining wood cases with steel bases to create new bedroom furniture designs that bring metal and wood together. New design elements like slightly angled headboards are also becoming popular with today's platform beds designs. Four poster beds are getting a modern touch with designs featuring straight lines and refined headboard and footboard features. We also looked at some of the emerging trends in finishes and rich colors which include cognac and espresso. I hope this article has given you a inkling of the many trends that are happening in the bedroom today. I encourage you to visit your local furniture stores, watch the many home shows that are on television and read through furniture publications to keep up with what is happening in the world of furniture today.
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