The beigification of nursery trends. Is it here to stay?

It’s evident that neutral, minimalist interiors continue to appeal to millennial homeowners. As this generation become parents, paired back Instagram aesthetics have heavily influenced product design and decor for the baby & kids industry.

But do the benefits of a beige-styled childhood outweigh the joy and boundless fun colour provides in the development of young children? Our Baby and Kids content lead, Anri Hamilton explores this topic and what this means for the future of nursery trends.

The rise of neutrals in the nursery

As millennials become homeowners and parents, we see the influence of Scandi interiors and Instagram aesthetics dominate the baby and kids market. The rise in parent-centric design sees this new generation of parents trying to balance their own style and decor tastes whilst catering to the needs of their children.

Some of our 2024 Baby & Kids interior and lifestyle forecasts reflect design trends that feature more muted, chalky neutrals and softer pastel hues for the nursery. These trends convey a calm energy and a focus on inner reflection as well as a wholesome connection with the natural world.

Embracing the chaos of colour

A broader shift towards more expressive and maximalist interiors is building momentum as a new wave of Gen Z parents steers a more open-minded, relaxed, anti-perfectionist attitude to parenting. In turn, this mindset will heavily influence décor and styling in their own homes and interior spaces for their children. A planet-conscious and considered consumption mindset remains a dominant influence on products and spaces for children, but innovations have moved sustainable design forward, from being predominantly neutrals to more vibrant and exciting recycled and sustainable material choices injecting playful colour and pattern into children’s nursery and play environments.

As explored in our Baby & Kids 2025 Macro Report we’ll see this colourful shift continue to unleash a kid-centric revolution centred around boundless fun, creativity and self-expression.

Identifying the right trend for your consumer

As with most trends there will always be an element of polarity taking place where an opposing or contrasting trend also emerges at the same time. The use of colour is crucial for creating a varied and balanced mix of soothing and energizing environments to support babies and children as they grow, explore and develop their imagination at different stages of life.

Our baby and kids trend forecasts for 2024 reveal a cross-section of design trends, from hyper-real metaverse-inspired settings featuring bold, dialled-up vibrant hues to earthy and raw road school journeys where sunbaked and earthy tones take inspiration from the great outdoors. All trends incorporate a balance and variety of brighter hues alongside neutral colours to support designers and stylists when making creative decisions for their collections and projects. The most important factor to consider is your customers’ tastes and styles and selecting the most appropriate colour trends for them.

It’s also important to remember the timelines at which trends such as this trickle and filter through to a mass market level, some trends are present for years, while others can last mere months or even days, the key is identifying the right trends at the right time for your target consumer.

For more nursery trends and kids bedroom design direction our full Nursery & Kids Bedroom – Trend Application: Spring Summer 2024 report is available when you subscribe to our Premium membership at Your TrendBible. Your TrendBible is our trend subscription service designed to inspire and spark ideas, give your teams confidence in actioning trends and provide validation from across the globe.