Inside Trends 2019

 Eager to escape the doldrums of winter as the days get just a little longer, spring cleaning offers us the chance to begin anew. Timelessness is a critical aspect in interior design, particularly with second homes. Changing styles, sustainability, and evolving lifestyles have their impact on inside trends. Homes designed to bring families back together are making a strong showing in Hamptons real estate, something interior designers and real estate agents alike welcome. 

Schedules are packed and often fractured in the modern family, making the occasion to have all members in the same place at the same time a bit of a rarity. To combat empty nest syndrome, older patrons and matrons are aiming to build inclusive environments with plenty of guest rooms or guest houses with a compound mentality to lure their children and grandchildren home for a weekend. 

Lynda Sylvester, interior designer and owner of Sylvester and Co. Modern General in Sag Harbor and now licensed real estate salesperson with Douglas Elliman, recently staged 18 Noelles Lane in East Hampton, which is co-listed by licensed real estate salesperson Barbara Lobosco. Here, the effort was collaborative with a homeowner living on his own that wanted his family to be more participatory in his life. Thoughtfully designed spaces with neutral backgrounds were livened up with fun, bold pops of color. The five-bedroom, 5.5-bathroom home listed for $3.795 million has enough space for guests to enjoy various activities simultaneously. 

 What Sylvester particularly loves about interior trends today is that older millennials are driving the market toward sustainable design. “It is kind of fabulous because they are more discerning than I was,” she explains. “They’re willing to pay 20 to 30% more for organic. They’re also buying in the Village so they can walk their kids to school, and buying smaller, one level homes leaving not too big of a carbon footprint.” 

Having family and friends gather in living spaces, particular the kitchen area, is something Hamptons real estate agents are finding to be more desirable for buyers. They’re looking for spaces that invite others to join the host as they entertain and make them feel connected no matter how those spaces are being used. There is also a trend for exteriors to be in line with traditional Hamptons architecture while the interiors offer a different feel all together. 

“I’m seeing a trend for traditional on the outside but super modern and sleek on the inside,” shares Compass licensed real estate salesperson Lori Schiaffino. “Everyone really wants that open feel and one of the rooms I’m seeing that is becoming really interesting to people is having that really large, open space kitchen with living area.” 

Coming soon to the market is Schiaffino’s luxury listing that embodies everything the modern buyer is looking for both outside and in. 8 Hither Lane is an eight-bedroom, 9 full and 2 half-bathrooms estate listed for $27.995 million that features this all-encompassing open layout concept, while also capitalizing on another popular trend of blending the outside with the interior thanks to expansive walls of glass. Here, the open kitchen concept is exemplified with multiple seating and living areas, all designed by Tony Ingrao. 

“It’s the perfect place for everyone to enjoy the Hamptons together,” Schiaffino says about this modern interior style. “Open space has been going on for a long time and brings everyone together. It evokes conversation. There’s nothing better than sitting around a table and just enjoying great conversation and family.”