Between the Rainbow

This book consists of seven themes, all emerging from one shared question: how do you create distinctive collections within a zeitgeist in which almost everything seems possible. Colour palettes become saturated, materials and atmospheres drift closer together, and many collections begin to resemble one another. When everything is allowed, choosing becomes complicated. That is precisely where I see the core of trend forecasting: making visible where choices can be made. Not by adding more, but by selecting.

While working on my trend books, I noticed how difficult it had become to truly differentiate those seven themes. Colours began to overlap, almost as if every palette wanted to contain the full spectrum of the rainbow. From that tension, a phrase formed in my mind that gave this search its name: Between the Rainbow. Not all colours at once, but the space in between. Where colour is not an effect, but a consideration. Where choosing creates direction.

One of the first themes to emerge from this was Natural Shield. Soft and tactile materials have been gaining ground for some time. Wool, felt, fibrous textures, rounded forms and distinctly fluffy surfaces reflect a growing need for protection. War, threat and climate instability make the outside world feel unsettled, and that sense of unease filters into how we want to live and inhabit our interiors. Protection becomes tangible. Not as isolation, but as a filtering layer between inside and out.

At the same time, our attitude towards one another is shifting. The focus moves away from seeking attention, from the constant “look at me”, towards giving attention. Towards hospitality and receiving. Attention becomes an act: making an effort for a gesture, for a carefully chosen gift, for welcoming the other. Bonbon Salon translates this movement from individual to collective into objects and rituals of hospitality.

The search for meaning takes on an increasingly grounded form. Ritual objects gain ground. Incense holders, sandalwood burners and chocolate ceremonies appear in wood, ceramic and stone. Tactile and sensorial. At the same time, science makes visible what long remained unseen, such as neuroliths moving through space. This tension between the tangible and the intangible forms the core of Terra Halo.

Alongside this, there is a strong movement towards working in scale. Miniatures, maquettes and small worlds are used to gain grip on complexity. By reducing and framing, an overwhelming reality becomes manageable. Chessboards and backgammon sets appear as concentrated landscapes on the table. Designs often begin small before being scaled up into full-sized objects. Diorama Drama speaks to this need to bring the world back to a size we can comprehend.

At the same time, a desire grows for what is allowed to remain. Not everything needs to be fleeting. There is a clear search for new classics: products designed with care and craftsmanship, intended to last. Sometimes handcrafted, sometimes machine-made, but always driven by durability, quality and meaning. New Relics asks how we design today what the future will consider worth keeping.

Parallel to this runs a renewed longing for nostalgia. Even among generations who never lived through those times themselves. The idea that the past was more orderly, less complex. Not as a literal return, but as a counter-movement to an overloaded present. Within this context, Extra Vierge functions as a metaphor for ripening, layers and origin.

In contrast stands Nappé Doré, where seduction and material research converge. Experiments with sugar, glazes and resin result in rich, glossy, almost edible surfaces. Materials bubble, simmer and remain fluid. Abundance here becomes another way of investigating material expression.

Together, these seven themes do not offer a single answer, but a direction. They make visible where opportunities lie to create collections within this zeitgeist. Not everything has to be included. It is precisely through choosing that distinction emerges.

Between the Rainbow is therefore not a conclusion, but an invitation. To keep searching for what lies in between, rather than reaching for whatever shouts the loudest for attention.