Candice Kaye of Candice Kaye Design. (Photo courtesy of Ilich Mejia)
There’s no one more popular and buzzworthy in the design space right now than Candice Kaye of Candice Kaye Design. She’s referred to by many as the Wallpaper Queen. And her custom design work is everywhere.
For instance, her work with Maman Café in Soho, New York, gave the establishment a sense of authenticity, when she created four custom prints for their coffee cups. She's also worked with Planta, and Palm Lane’s custom wallpaper. And she even did a collaboration with Microsoft’s skins for their new Surface Book.
Her designs are unique. They’re memorable. They’re Instagramable. And they’re sought after by many.
With spring coming in hot, we sat down with Kaye to get a sneak peek of what trends we should expect when it comes to design elements. Here are her top five picks, in her words, for you to put on your radar.
Custom
Powder room. (Photo courtesy of Candice Kaye Design)
The shift to create custom pieces was an organic one that took off from Maman's success. Candice Kaye Design's clientele began and still remains largely within the commercial space. Most recently, however, the word has spread into residential as well.
Being part of someone's home, where they spend and create intimate moments of their lives is exciting. Above you'll see the powder room created for a couple living in New York's East Village. With a personal relationship to the willow tree, this couple wanted something non-repeated and bold. We created a print with the willow leaves coming down from the ceiling and branches with growing flowers coming out from the walls.
My goal was to shift the perception of wallpaper. It was generally an outdated trend that was largely overlooked when I first got into textile design. Custom design acts as art on your walls.
I've noticed a huge shift from my clients when they see their vision transformed into a print. It brings their space to life in a much different way. Their wallpaper has become personal as the process of creating a custom print is very hands-on on both ends.
Currently, my clientele is all custom. There has been a shift in the textile industry. This is definitely a new trend.
Colour
Planta. (Photo courtesy of Candice Kaye Design)
Don’t be afraid to use colour. Often, I’m asked if using a dark ground colour in a small space will make the space look smaller. Depending on the print, a dramatic dark ground can actually make the space look larger, as the colours in the print will create the illusion of depth to the walls.
Palm Lane. (Photo courtesy of Candice Kaye Design)
Scale
Sel Rose (Photo courtesy of Candice Kaye Design)
I’ve always been a fan of scale and I'm happy to see that trend continuing into spring/summer. There’s a special art to how to do scale right. It's textile designers biggest kept secret.
Playing with the scale on your walls immediately allows the eye to travel. Scale allows my clients to feel like they’re fully immersed into the design. They’re living with it, rather than it just being there for decor.
For instance, in Sel Rrose we tossed around oversized florals. When you stand in the café, the walls become part of your experience. They’re oversized but are painted a soft pink to eliminate the floral from being too overbearing.
Floral
I had a professor tell me, "If you could paint a flower well, you will succeed in the textile industry."
I didn't understand that statement at the time, but now years later and running my own company, I wished I had paid more attention and asked more questions. Floral is in for spring, and I really never see floral leaving. There’s a certain femininity and softness to them that will never be replaced by anything else.
Texture
Custom rug design. (Photo courtesy of Candice Kate Design)
Texture is everything. Candice Kaye Design is now offering bespoke rugs and tiles to our repertoire. Challenge yourself to think beyond the walls and see how this new trend of custom can be used on your floors, kitchen backsplashes, bathroom tiles and the like.
We’ve been experimenting with putting design on tiles, replacing wallpaper in areas where the walls would get dirty and need to be wiped down. Tile on the walls bring texture to a space, and playing with texture brings a certain kind of warmth.
We’re currently working with a client in both wallpaper and rug design. All custom. We’re taking elements from their custom wallpaper design and adding them to their rug. Cohesive design is in. Don't be afraid of the outdated "matchy, matchy" look. We’re bringing it back in a way that’s tasteful and clean.
Little known fact: Kaye’s first and only full-time job before launching her business, was designing custom rugs for Holland & Sherry in New York City, straight out of school where she attended the Fashion Institute of Technology (in the advanced one-year textile design program). She’ll also be collaborating with the custom table company on their newest flip table, launching soon.
