Something has shifted over the last few years, and most of us have noticed it. Maybe you have felt it too. A subtle yet undeniable craving for colour, warmth, and authenticity in home. For a few years our homes embraced the colour grey. But something shifted and I believe it is more than just a trend. With increasingly busy lives, many of us have been navigating new levels of stress, fatigue, and emotional overload. This has contributed to a collective shift that we can sense, even if we can't always name it. While I'm not a mental health professional, it's hard to ignore the mental load the world has carried.
The Grey Decor Era
In decor, even before technology overload and the COVID years, our homes had already drifted toward grey, a quiet default that promised calm without demanding attention. Many of us fell for this trend (it's even named after a whole generation😊). And if you didn't settle for—or at least consider—buying a grey sofa, I truly don't know where you were hiding. I, for one, had a grey lounge suite that I accessorised with white accents, a touch of blue and a hint of aqua. I chose this aesthetic because I wanted to come home to a space that would not overstimulate me. I was already going through a lot at the office, and I needed to feel relaxed and calm when I got home.
Looking back at that moment in history—and seeing how trends are now shifting away from grey—I couldn't help wondering: did those grey interiors, together with COVID isolation, also contribute negatively to our mood? And not just grey, but other sterile design styles too—where the desired aesthetic requires a clean look with everything pulled back. I'm trying to avoid using trigger words like minimalist and maximalist—we're not trying to divide nations here. 😅
— Anyway, back to the issue at hand —
Curious, I looked up the effects of grey home decor—and what I found was sobering. For some, those grey interiors may have had real drawbacks for mental wellbeing, including:
- Increased depression and anxiety
- Energy depletion
- Sensory deprivation
The good news? That cycle can be broken by adding colour and texture to support overall wellbeing.
The World We've Been Living In
So, could it be that there was an amplified, collective negative impact on our wellbeing during this period? Always-on technology turned our phones into remote controls for everything—banking, shopping, meetings, even whole businesses—and with it came continuous scrolling and endless feeds. COVID on the other hand, layered on isolation, anxiety, grief, and the mental load of working and schooling at home. Relationships shifted, jobs disappeared, kids missed friends. The ground kept moving. It makes sense that all of this may have affected our mental wellbeing. What began as a soothing baseline for calm and escape seemed to be found lacking when our world changed.
This is the heart of the dopamine shift: moving from numbing neutrality to intentional nourishment—bringing back energy and colour in ways that calm the nervous system rather than spike it.
My Personal Shift
I went down the "grey" rabbit hole because I wondered why—even before trends shifted—I had moved away from grey and started to embrace colour.
I began analysing my own life over the past few years. After COVID isolation ended, I lost my grandmother and then my mother. As the days went by, memories of them lingered. I started thinking about the things they loved, and I found myself cooking my granny's recipes and reminiscing about the 70s/80s look of her home—the wide range of indoor plants, the browns and dark woods.
When I thought about my mum, I was drawn to the way she used colour to decorate her home. She used rich colours and patterns even in small rooms—from deep blue and green carpets to warm lighting cast through lampshades. She had lots of those. 😅 Every time I thought about those rooms, I remembered how that house felt: cosy, homely, and restful.
I found myself drawn to those colours. And as I craved those feelings, I realised something: these are the colours that God put in nature for us to enjoy daily. Why are we not using them to decorate our homes? 🤔
A deeper dive into the psychology of colour—a long story for another day 😊—will tell you about the rejuvenating characteristics of colour and texture and their impact on our wellbeing. Perhaps before the pandemic, grey interiors weren't an issue because we spent more time outside and our brains were stimulated in many ways. But we came out of that period different. For some, the anxiety stayed. Depression kept people indoors. We shunned community activities and continued working from home, sitting in our grey spaces.
I know that so many people have gone through—and are still going through—similar struggles. And so, apart from being a trend, could the reason behind this colour revolution be that our minds are craving rejuvenation and healing?
Are We Looking Backwards to Move Forward?
It seems we're looking to the past to rediscover what worked then. A word that comes up again and again lately is nostalgia. Are we reaching for the colours that remind us of particular joys, particular smells, particular feelings of safety?
We seem to be craving environments that encourage genuine connection—spaces where technology takes a back seat, where community is welcome, and where what we bring into our homes matters. We are becoming more intentional, seeking:
- Quality over quantity
- Sustainable over wasteful
- Organic over mass-produced
- Handmade over factory-made
- A lived-in feel over a perfect showroom aesthetic
Maybe, through the hustle and bustle of everyday life, we are simply craving simple, beautiful, lasting, meaningful things—filled with soul and balance.
Maybe that's why we're visiting more thrift stores, looking for pieces with character, built during periods when life felt slow and meaningful.
Maybe that's why my friend took up sewing lessons—and why I looked into whether my daughter could join her too.
Maybe that's why so many of us are turning to gardening. It certainly seems like we're reaching back for the skills, textures, and rhythms of a life that felt more grounded.
The Soul Behind What I Create
Understanding this shift—in the world, in myself, and in the people around me—has made me intentional about every piece I design. Each item is an invitation: to slow down, to feel something, to bring warmth and joy into the spaces where you live your real life.
It's this craving for soul, balance, nature, and colour that inspires every homeware piece I create. Because home shouldn't just look good—it should feel like you.
Dopamine Decor: The Shift We're Feeling
Something has shifted over the last few years, and most of us have noticed it. Maybe you have felt it too. A subtle yet undeniable craving for colour, warmth, and authenticity in home. For a few years our homes embraced the colour grey. But something shifted and I believe it is more than just a trend. With increasingly busy lives, many of us have been navigating new levels of stress, fatigue, and emotional overload. This has contributed to a collective shift that we can sense, even if we can't always name it. While I'm not a mental health professional, it's hard to ignore the mental load the world has carried.
The Grey Decor Era
In decor, even before technology overload and the COVID years, our homes had already drifted toward grey, a quiet default that promised calm without demanding attention. Many of us fell for this trend (it's even named after a whole generation😊). And if you didn't settle for—or at least consider—buying a grey sofa, I truly don't know where you were hiding. I, for one, had a grey lounge suite that I accessorised with white accents, a touch of blue and a hint of aqua. I chose this aesthetic because I wanted to come home to a space that would not overstimulate me. I was already going through a lot at the office, and I needed to feel relaxed and calm when I got home.
Looking back at that moment in history—and seeing how trends are now shifting away from grey—I couldn't help wondering: did those grey interiors, together with COVID isolation, also contribute negatively to our mood? And not just grey, but other sterile design styles too—where the desired aesthetic requires a clean look with everything pulled back. I'm trying to avoid using trigger words like minimalist and maximalist—we're not trying to divide nations here. 😅
— Anyway, back to the issue at hand —
Curious, I looked up the effects of grey home decor—and what I found was sobering. For some, those grey interiors may have had real drawbacks for mental wellbeing, including:
The good news? That cycle can be broken by adding colour and texture to support overall wellbeing.
The World We've Been Living In
So, could it be that there was an amplified, collective negative impact on our wellbeing during this period? Always-on technology turned our phones into remote controls for everything—banking, shopping, meetings, even whole businesses—and with it came continuous scrolling and endless feeds. COVID on the other hand, layered on isolation, anxiety, grief, and the mental load of working and schooling at home. Relationships shifted, jobs disappeared, kids missed friends. The ground kept moving. It makes sense that all of this may have affected our mental wellbeing. What began as a soothing baseline for calm and escape seemed to be found lacking when our world changed.
This is the heart of the dopamine shift: moving from numbing neutrality to intentional nourishment—bringing back energy and colour in ways that calm the nervous system rather than spike it.
My Personal Shift
I went down the "grey" rabbit hole because I wondered why—even before trends shifted—I had moved away from grey and started to embrace colour.
I began analysing my own life over the past few years. After COVID isolation ended, I lost my grandmother and then my mother. As the days went by, memories of them lingered. I started thinking about the things they loved, and I found myself cooking my granny's recipes and reminiscing about the 70s/80s look of her home—the wide range of indoor plants, the browns and dark woods.
When I thought about my mum, I was drawn to the way she used colour to decorate her home. She used rich colours and patterns even in small rooms—from deep blue and green carpets to warm lighting cast through lampshades. She had lots of those. 😅 Every time I thought about those rooms, I remembered how that house felt: cosy, homely, and restful.
I found myself drawn to those colours. And as I craved those feelings, I realised something: these are the colours that God put in nature for us to enjoy daily. Why are we not using them to decorate our homes? 🤔
A deeper dive into the psychology of colour—a long story for another day 😊—will tell you about the rejuvenating characteristics of colour and texture and their impact on our wellbeing. Perhaps before the pandemic, grey interiors weren't an issue because we spent more time outside and our brains were stimulated in many ways. But we came out of that period different. For some, the anxiety stayed. Depression kept people indoors. We shunned community activities and continued working from home, sitting in our grey spaces.
I know that so many people have gone through—and are still going through—similar struggles. And so, apart from being a trend, could the reason behind this colour revolution be that our minds are craving rejuvenation and healing?
Are We Looking Backwards to Move Forward?
It seems we're looking to the past to rediscover what worked then. A word that comes up again and again lately is nostalgia. Are we reaching for the colours that remind us of particular joys, particular smells, particular feelings of safety?
We seem to be craving environments that encourage genuine connection—spaces where technology takes a back seat, where community is welcome, and where what we bring into our homes matters. We are becoming more intentional, seeking:
Maybe, through the hustle and bustle of everyday life, we are simply craving simple, beautiful, lasting, meaningful things—filled with soul and balance.
Maybe that's why we're visiting more thrift stores, looking for pieces with character, built during periods when life felt slow and meaningful.
Maybe that's why my friend took up sewing lessons—and why I looked into whether my daughter could join her too.
Maybe that's why so many of us are turning to gardening. It certainly seems like we're reaching back for the skills, textures, and rhythms of a life that felt more grounded.
The Soul Behind What I Create
Understanding this shift—in the world, in myself, and in the people around me—has made me intentional about every piece I design. Each item is an invitation: to slow down, to feel something, to bring warmth and joy into the spaces where you live your real life.
It's this craving for soul, balance, nature, and colour that inspires every homeware piece I create. Because home shouldn't just look good—it should feel like you.