Expressive Home Design Trends
Livingetc Style Awards 2026 Crown Highgate House for Bold, Family-Friendly Design
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Key Points
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In Highgate House, designers include meticulous detailing such as beaten metal edging on the entry desk and Wasabi granite cut around power outlets in the kitchen splashback, underscoring craft and family-friendly design.
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Ambiguous Tiger’s standout status is supported by high-profile collaborations, notably a lighting partnership with Porta Romana and a finishing-touches collaboration with Samuel & Sons, culminating in five new wallcoverings plus cushions and throws.
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The winning kitchens feature an invisible hob that keeps the worktop uninterrupted and a pantry that doesn’t require bespoke joinery, alongside Neptune’s Borough collection as examples of flexible, stylish cabinetry and furniture.
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In sleep, the Build Your Own Bedding Bundle offers personalisation by letting customers curate a coordinated look (two pillows in one color, two in another, with a matching duvet), expanding beyond single-set linen configurations.
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The bathroom category highlights donut-shaped Milazzo baths and basins for sculptural form, alongside S-Range showers that offer programmable presets for each family member via app or voice control.
The Livingetc Style Awards 2026 have named their first-ever House of the Year: Highgate House by London studio A New Day. Livingetc called it a bold, colour-rich home that balances creative ambition with real family life — and it sets the tone for an awards season celebrating interiors that are as livable as they are beautiful.
Across six categories — decorating, kitchens, sleep, bathrooms, furniture, and tech — the 2026 winners share one common thread. Layered colour, texture, and finish are now the primary tools designers use to give a home its personality, according to Livingetc.
Highgate House Wins Inaugural House of the Year
A New Day's Highgate House took the top prize for its meticulous craft and family-friendly zoning. The details are striking: beaten metal edging on the entry desk and Wasabi granite cut precisely around power outlets in the kitchen splashback. Small moves, big impact. Livingetc praised the studio for making every inch count without sacrificing comfort.
The house shows how bold design and practical living don't have to fight each other. Zones for different family activities sit alongside richly detailed finishes. It's a blueprint for how high-design homes can still work hard every day.
Ambiguous Tiger Leads a Maximalist Decorating Revival
In the decorating category, Harris Reed's Ambiguous Tiger wallcovering for Fromental took the spotlight. The design brings metallic finishes and bold tiger stripes together in a maximalist statement. It launched alongside five new wallcoverings, plus a cushion and throw range. A lighting collaboration with Porta Romana and a trimmings partnership with Samuel & Sons rounded out the collection, according to Livingetc.
The win signals a broader shift in how decorating is judged. It's no longer just about a single hero product. The judges rewarded the full ecosystem — wallcovering, lighting, and finishing touches working together as one coherent vision.
Kitchens Prize Clever Design Over Bespoke Price Tags
The kitchen winners focused on solving real problems stylishly. An invisible hob keeps worktops completely clear — no interruptions, no visual clutter. A winning pantry design requires no bespoke joinery at all, making it far more accessible. Neptune's Borough collection also featured, praised for flexible cabinetry that works as furniture, not just fitted storage. Livingetc highlighted these as examples of kitchens that earn their place through daily use.
On the appliance side, Smeg's new espresso and cold brew machine won for streamlining both entertaining and morning routines in one compact unit. The judges rewarded products that do more without taking up more space.
Sleep and Bathrooms Go Sculptural, Smart, and Sustainable
In sleep, Secret Linen Store's characterful linen stood out for its texture and natural feel. The Build Your Own Bedding Bundle went further, letting customers mix and match — two pillows in one colour, two in another, with a matching duvet. That level of personalisation is new. Coordinated bedding no longer means identical sets, according to Livingetc.
The bathroom category went bold and smart. The Milazzo collection introduced donut-shaped baths and basins — pure sculptural form. Aqualisa's S-Range showers added programmable presets, letting each family member set their preferred temperature and flow via app or voice control. A Hudson and Drummonds collaboration also featured, pairing two heritage brands in one refined fixture range. Livingetc framed these as a category evolving fast — from functional room to personal retreat.
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