When furniture manufacturers and specialty retailers make their buying decisions for the 2018 season, they will be greeted by an amazing variety of casual fabrics, representing an outpouring of creativity from the industry’s leading fabric designers. No single trend dominates in this vast array of offerings, but the variety of colors and designs available is impressive.

Hearth & Home interviewed seven of the top designers working in the field of outdoor fabrics. As you browse the following 12 pages you will see 36 examples of their work this year. As you do so, consider the hours, effort, travel, and thought that went into the creation of these fabrics that should help you post a strong sales year in 2018.

Designer Kate Korten sees potential in the widely-hyped “Millennial Pink,” while home décor designer Richard Frinier continues to advocate for a classic neutral palette that spans tone-on-tone hues. Sunbrella designers have taken the basic principles of traditional hand weaving and applied them to modern manufacturing, creating fabrics with a hand-crafted look and feel.

Joe Ruggiero, whose home decor offerings include a signature Sunbrella line, continues to see growing popularity of the color indigo, replicating one of the world’s oldest dyeing techniques. The Outdura fabrics team has created collections ranging from the classic to the contemporary, the rustic to the refined, and the timeless to the trendy.

Seven collections from Phifer closely mirror the look of fabrics from the interior world yet take it up a notch to complement today’s outdoor color demands. And Tempotest Home designers see continued strength in blue, beige and gray, but have also identified rust as a potential new direction.

Millennial Pink was the hit of the Milan show.

Designer Kate Korten Sums Up Color Trends in One Word

When you ask Kate Korten to sum up color trends for casual fabrics in the coming season, she offers a one-word description – “color.” She sees color, other than beige, becoming increasingly important as evidenced by many different color trends coming to the forefront of fashion and home décor design.

“The Millennial generation, in particular, is not afraid to buy rather daring color combinations,” said Korten, who leads a full-service design consultancy for the home furnishings industry. “For retailers, this means if you want to attract Millennial shoppers, you shouldn’t be afraid of color either.”

Insights into the use of color by Millennial shoppers was evident during the Milan design week this year as so-called “Millennial Pink” became the most ‘Instagrammed’ color in furniture design. This new color trend has been described as a muted shade between blush and mauve and has become a trend color for fabrics and frames.

“Millennial Pink is kind of a mauve color, not as dusty as the 1970s mauve,” Korten said. “Consumers can pair it with darker fabrics, jewel tones and bright colors for a fresh new look.”

For the coming season, Korten sees several color trends that offer opportunities for specialty retailers in the hearth and patio segments.

“Color schemes start with a base of dusky jewel tones and are paired with upbeat mauves, bright shell pinks, powder blues and yellows that flare toward the mustard or deep cadmium,” she said. “Although still in play, Pantone’s color of the year ‘greenery,’ may have missed the mark by a few shades; emerald had much more visibility in Milan than any other single color.

“The important blues,” she continued, “are petrol blues, ranging in value from very deep to almost aqua. The reds are deep and heading toward warm claret. But what makes this color scheme new is the pairing with the new mauves, powdery blues and the punch of brightened pastels.”

Along with trends in color, casual fabric patterns are also shifting. Here’s how Korten reads the tea leaves:

“In terms of fabric trends we can finally put the old formula of ikat, animal prints, trellis, and big flat grid patterns behind us; we are also seeing fewer traditional patterns. Designs may incorporate an ikat style, but no more traditional ikats. The global theme hasn’t gone away and geometrics are strong.”

While fabrics are often the focus for outdoor furniture shoppers, Korten also sees several important trends in furniture design emerging with the new season: the severe rectangular modern look for outdoor furniture is being replaced by more organic or curvilinear forms; there is a trend toward string or string-like linear designs; furniture that is lit and lit accessories are still important, as is outdoor lighting; and the category of outdoor accessories is expanding.

With so many choices, what advice does Korten have for specialty retailers?

“Consumers have certainly embraced outdoor living as a lifestyle, and when you are dealing with the outdoors, shoppers are ready to have more fun with it, which means the use of unexpected, sophisticated color combinations. Specialty retailers know their markets well, so they can select fabrics based on their customers’ tastes and trends.

“You don’t want to overwhelm shoppers with too many choices, but retailers and interior designers want to be in a position to say, this is who you are and this is how your outdoor space should look. You let the customer know they have good taste and help them express it with their furniture and fabric selections.”

Glen Raven Launches New “Makers” Collection of Sunbrella Fabrics

While advanced technologies in yarn creation, weaving and fabric finishing are essential to today’s performance fabrics, Glen Raven Custom Fabrics is launching a new casual fabrics collection that reminds everyone of how essential craftsmanship and artistry are to textiles that add beauty and comfort to our lives.

“Our latest introduction for the casual market, the ‘Makers Collection,’ is an expression of values celebrating human creativity, craftsmanship and individuality through fabrics,” said Greg Voorhis, Design director for Sunbrella. “We have taken the basic principles of traditional hand weaving and applied them to modern manufacturing. The collection honors the beautiful imperfections of the handmade and preserves the traditional element of craft and art.”

The world is overloaded with uninspiring products of all kinds. Glen Raven has identified a trend in which consumers are looking for craftsmanship and artisanal designs in the things they purchase, including fabrics.

“Consumers are craving unique items that reflect their individuality,” Voorhis said. “Developing new yarns and weaves with artisanal flair empowers individuals to use our textiles to become makers of their own.” Examples of some of the fabrics from the new collection include:

Cast Sable and Cast Horizon
Introduces a soft texture woven with heathered yarns, casting a gray overtone to evoke a vintage aesthetic.

Gateway Fuse and Gateway Indigo
A combination of two different yarns gives this stripe more textured color and character; the Indigo colorway features the tonal blocking trend.

Blend Indigo
A textural solid woven with mélange yarn to give color and depth with the aesthetic of heavy wool.

Artistry Indigo
Mimicking a backstrap hand-woven textile, this fabric was inspired by Peruvian weavers, creating an authentic one-of-a-kind look.

Canvas Cyan
A bold, bright blue was added to the selection of Canvas fabrics to round out this collection.

Adaptation Indigo
Mixing matte colors with metallic accents, this pattern leans more toward the contemporary and showcases the influence of technology, reminiscent of hand-forged metal designs.

Midori Indigo
Inspired by traditional Japanese dyeing techniques, this textile has a handmade look.

“Performance is key for the casual market, but the design and hand of textiles is just as paramount,” Voorhis said. “Homeowners are creating luxurious outdoor spaces that are an extension of their homes; their outdoor spaces are a reflection of their individuality as much so as the inside of their homes. Our Makers Collection allows them to curate an outdoor experience that celebrates their creativity.”

---

Richard Frinier Fabrics Reflect Urban Influences, Neutral Color Palette

Internationally acclaimed designer Richard Frinier found inspiration for his latest collection of Sunbrella fabrics from the architectural style and play of light inherent in urban artisanal studios and lofts. His latest Studio Collection sweeps in the essence of wide-open spaces, high ceilings and walls of glass that allow natural light to fill a room.

“We mused over the trend toward a return to the urban lifestyle, and worked to capture some of the elements of that architectural style as well as its interesting layers and textures in the constructions, patterns and color ways of the Studio Collection,” said Frinier, whose textile, furniture, lighting and accessory designs are sold in more than 80 countries worldwide.

Frinier’s Studio Collection is a refined yet approachable mix of graphic grid and linear patterns presented in neutral shades, with interesting layers and textures. Designed to be mixed and matched for myriad of easy-to-style textile design solutions, these fabrics subtly capture the infusion of beauty and practicality inherent in today’s urban spaces. Patterns in the collection include Space, Studio, Urban, Graphic, City, Cityscape and Duck Stripe.

Space
Lightweight construction accented with the artisanal appearance of hand-weaving.

Studio
An evolution of Frinier’s popular Chino Twill textile design woven with chenille yarns and a diagonal pattern in an array of soft and tonal textures.

Urban
Exemplifies the dramatic appeal of performance fabrics designed with an artisan’s sensibility.

Graphic
Illustrates the softer side of modern lifestyles and living spaces with a raised grid pattern inspired by the energy of city dwelling.

City and Cityscape
Present distinctive and balanced grid patterns in a reversible jacquard weave, embracing the complex and compelling network that links people and places together.

Duck Stripe
Classic box weave and pinstripe pattern complementing Frinier’s existing Duck construction for Sunbrella.

In terms of color ways, Frinier continues to emphasize the use of a classic neutral palette that spans tone-on-tone hues and subtly contrasting color ways blended together for a rich and luxurious appearance.

“I continue to be an advocate of neutral and tone-on-tone, or low to medium contrast colors as they serve as a beautiful canvas from which to accessorize and personalize,” Frinier said.

“I put a lot of emphasis on the textural aspects of the constructions and also incorporate Sunbrella’s chenille yarns, which allow light to play upon the surfaces and create design elements of color, depth and texture.”

Frinier’s color palette spans whites, beiges, taupes, grays, various greens, a lighter soft blue, an indigo blue and also sun-washed accent colors to bring subtle complexity to the overall collection.

“In Milan during this year’s Design Week, we saw everything from minimalism to maximalism, neutrals and pastels, black and white, navy combined with neutrals, and a mix of secondary and tertiary colors,” Frinier said. “We also saw shades of red, yellow-oranges, and blues and greens that were very grayed and very popular.”

With Pantone selecting green as the color of the year, Frinier confirms that darker greens continue to be the new black. This trend, which first emerged in fashion, is growing in home furnishings and interiors, he said.

“Green is a leading color in everything from olive greens and medium hues to dark foliage greens,” he said. “We are also seeing a trend toward a much darker black ink green that’s so dark you can only see that it’s green when the light hits it the right way or if the textile has a chroma shift effect.”

---

Phifer Features Newest Patterns and Bestsellers in Seven Collections

Phifer’s 2018 color trends boast seven carefully-cultivated palettes featuring the newest pattern and color findings alongside industry bestsellers. Overall, the colors are cooler and cleaner, appearing more mindful and minimalistic as they are slightly moving away from the heavy, yellow-based palettes of the past. At the same time, there is optimism in the air, and playful brights remain important as consumers desire an element of surprise.

“Our color collections closely mirror that of the interior world then take it up a notch to complement today’s outdoor color demands,” said Monica Thornton, Phifer director of Design. “Monochromatic color schemes encompass five of the seven groups, where color builds from one base hue and extends into numerous shades. These same color groups are balanced by transitional neutrals with subtle gray undertones making these palettes relevant for today’s consumers. The remaining two trend collections celebrate optimism, nostalgia and adventurous outdoor living with coastal palettes pulled from the islands and the Cape.”

There’s definitely a push to more mid-century pattern styling. Geometrics and abstract patterns continue to grow in importance for the Phifer consumer as these looks are becoming more trusted and mainstream in the interior home. Below are descriptions from Phifer’s seven new outdoor fabric collections:

Into the Blue
Creating optic harmony, the Into the Blue Collection features monochromatic hues paired in a classic way. Traditional Navy pairs with Chambray and the use of bright white, and a gray-based neutral, feels clean and minimalistic.

Return to Eden
Embracing well-being, health and vitality, Phifer’s Return to Eden palette marks the natural transition of Blue as it moves into Green. Monochromatic pairings such as Spruce and Abyss are calming and seductive when paired with contemporary neutrals.

New Horizons
Inspired by vibrant sunsets and luxurious interior hues, the New Horizons Collection features monochromatic yet diverse colors that somehow complement each other. Burnt Orange and Tango pair with creamy citrus pearl and mushroom for a hint of liveliness that still offers a natural elegance.

Home at Last
Soothing blues with green undertones such as Surf and Mercer pair with warm, homespun golden neutrals for a comforting embrace. Blending the past with the future, this palette is perfect for the evolving traditionalist who seeks relaxation and familiarity.

Coconut Grove
Vibrant and expressive coastal island hues evoke a playful feeling. Bright white and pebble speak to optimism when paired with Blue Blaze, Persian Blue and Grass Green. Exciting and inspiring, this palette engages the adventurous at heart.

Distant Shores
This tranquil yet crisp collection evokes coastal-inspired images of seashores, fishing villages and weathered clapboard cottages. Soft surf blue is the anchor for this nostalgic palette and pairs well with warm weathered gray and bright white. Nautical accents in Salsa give this soothing palette a splash of the unexpected.

Luxe Life
Creating a sense of strength and dependability, the Luxe Life palette features industrious neutrals that are ready to work. Heavily influenced by mixed metal accents and organic brown, new heathered yarn introductions such as Mushroom and Sweater Gray speak to the intricacies of neutral color.

“Color is key but luster is a must for this season,” Thornton said. “Pearlescent Phifertex yarns are being used in combination with powdery neutrals to create a soft, glistening force. These subtle combinations will create unseen optic depth in Phifertex sling fabrics.”

---

Clockwise From Top: Tempotest Home Americano Cocktail; Tempoteststar Home in Cardamom, Curry, Pepper, Cinnamon, Cumin, Vinaigrette Designs

Tempotest Home Identifies Rust as New Color Way

While Tempotest Home predicts that casual market standards such as blue, beige and gray will continue to be leading color ways for the 2018 season, they are anticipating growing popularity for orange and green musk, in vogue from last season, along with a new addition, the rust color way.

“The rust color way was very popular during Design Week in Milan,” said Jeff Jimison, National Sales director for Tempotest USA. “This is a great new color that can be matched with neutral colors, such as beige and gray, or with brighter colors, such as yellow and orange.”

In terms of fabric patterns, Jimison says that block stripes will continue to be popular in a variety of iterations, including multi-line and multi-colored versions along with stripes in contrasting dimensions.

“A further variation on the block stripe will be popular using different textures and tone-on-tone colors,” he said. “Geometric designs, on the other hand, will tend toward squared lines and more rounded shapes. Two-color designs will also be popular, including black-and-white concepts.”

Based in Italy, Tempotest Home is well positioned to stay abreast of the latest in color and design trends internationally, including close contact with stylists in the U.S.

“One of the strongest directions for Tempotest is the creation of fabrics that are highly tactile without adding excessive weight to the fabrics,” he said. Examples of Tempotest Home’s offerings include the following:

Riga Pari
This fabric is a block stripe fabric of solution-dyed acrylic in indigo, inspired by outdoor lifestyles that range from seaside breezes to cocktails by the pool.

Riga Fantasia
Inspired by the elegance of a New York Penthouse, this fabric is a fancy stripe in colors of white, turquoise and beige and made of solution-dyed acrylic.

Ramage
If you can imagine breakfast in a country cottage, then you can imagine the inspiration for this all-over leaf pattern. Colors are white, gray and black.

Quadratinno
With metropolitan and contemporary influences, this small check pattern has the vibe of a business lunch. Printed on polyester, colors include white, green and black.

---

Outdura Fabrics Featured in Four Collections
for 2018; Blue Leading Color Way

Outdura brand fabrics are being featured in four collections for the upcoming season, offering a broad array of colors, textures and design trends for virtually every taste and setting.

“Our collections range from the classic to the contemporary, from the rustic to the refined, from the timeless to the trendy,” said David Meeks, director of Casual Furniture with Sattler Corp., the makers of the Outdura brand. “The mix of Outdura collections for 2018 reflect how we live today, celebrating life in the moment.”

The four Outdura collections for 2018 include Island Vibe (tropically inspired with fresh and fun patterns), Trad and True (timeless patterns that capture elegance with an edge), Modern Mix (a contemporary group with trendy details) and Crafted (hand-crafted motifs in electric patterns with rustic charm.)

Among the array of colors within Outdura collections, blue remains a leader, with each fabric showcasing its own blend of blue hue, chroma and lightness. Examples of the Outdura fabrics for 2018 include the following:

Key West
Key West is a stunning tropical pattern featuring silhouetted leaves and is part of Outdura’s Island Vibe Collection that was specifically designed with “escape ready” colorings. Striking designs pair well with varying textures to create a new take on tropical.

Tobago
Tobago is a combination of texture and tones that create a natural wood grain effect and is also part of the Island Vibe Collection.

Acapella
Acapella is designed with a graphic frame that produces a traditional quilted look. Acapella is part of the Trad and True collection that features bold and classic designs with timeless patterns and head-turning colorations that capture “elegance with an edge” for a new twist on traditional.

Jinga
Jinga is a multi-colored stria rib pattern that has quickly become a best seller for Outdura. Jinga is featured in the Modern Mix Collection that is comprised of “spot on” trendy designs offering a fresh perspective for the contemporary style.

Rumor
Rumor, part of the Modern Mix Collection, is a best-selling boucle plain that features remarkable texturing.

Solstice
Solstice is a graphic geometric that creates a patchwork design with ethnic flair. Solstice is part of the Crafted Collection comprised of hand-crafted motifs for a “less is more attitude.” One-of-a-kind rustic designs bring textures to life in this eclectic group.

“Our design team finds inspiration from a myriad of sources to create the most appealing designs possible,” Meeks said. “Inspiration comes from world events, nature, trends in society and the world of fashion. While the fabrics we are creating today are designed with the outdoors in mind, there’s growing recognition that performance fabrics are ideal for all parts of the home, inside and out.”

---

Designer Joe Ruggiero Forecasts Continued Popularity of Indigo

Indigo dyeing is one of the world’s oldest forms of adding color to fabric, and home décor designer Joe Ruggiero is forecasting continued popularity of these deep, rich hues in casual furniture fabrics for the coming season.

“I had the opportunity to visit authentic Indigo dyeing studios in Japan,” said Ruggiero, who has traveled the world for design inspirations and who supports a signature line of Sunbrella performance fabrics. “The look we’ve achieved with Sunbrella fabrics in Indigo is very similar to the colors created in Indigo studios using plant material. The color clarity is outstanding.”

Examples of Ruggiero designs for Sunbrella in the color indigo include the following:

Quilted Indigo
Medieval knights who wore jackets of quilted materials close to their skin under mesh and mail inspired the classic diamond pattern of Quilted. With a soft hand and textural quilted surface, it conjures a time-honored style, popular in fashion and upholstery.

Kuno II Indigo
Inspired by Japanese tie-dyes and the ancient art of indigo dyeing, Kuno’s simplicity of pattern recreates a rustic, hand-woven construction, including the imperfections of something that is hand-dyed or hand-woven. Kuno has a soft texture, and with its naïve dot patterns, it can be traditional or contemporary.

Medford Indigo
Blending the traditional French inspiration of 15th-century floral tapestries with a more contemporary comfort, Medford revives the simple elegance of the Loire Valley.

Kinza Indigo
Kinza was inspired by a Japanese Kimono design of the 19th century and is similar to a distressed herringbone. Highlighting an Ikat pattern throughout, Kinza has an intriguing optical effect.

“Design is universal, but to bring together high-end design, luxurious texture and performance, is an extraordinary thing,” Ruggiero said. “Our fabrics combine design and performance so you always get fade resistance, easy care and bleach cleanability.”

10 Casual Fabric Trends for 2018

Color

While neutral tones are likely to continue as the most popular, industry observers believe that color will be increasingly important, particularly with younger buyers who aren’t afraid to try new things, whether it’s color in the overall setting or with color pops from pillows and throws.

New color trends

Emerging color trends are likely during the new season, ranging from shades of rust to the eye-catching Millennial Pink that caused a stir during the Design Week in Milan.

Texture

Textural features will continue to be increasingly important for creating a more luxurious look and feel for casual fabrics; specialty yarns and innovative fabric formation techniques result in fascinating visual interest, reminiscent of hand weaving.

Indigo

One of the oldest forms of fabric dyeing, indigo continues to attract consumers who value its deep, rich hues; unlike indigo of ages past, today’s indigo fabrics are color-fast and long-lasting.

Outdoors/indoors

Look for casual fabrics that could be easily mistaken for interior fabrics; the design sophistication of outdoor textiles continues to improve each year as consumers are encouraged to coordinate décor inside and out. Homeowners are also increasingly turning to performance fabrics for use indoors to cope with sun-drenched interiors, pets, kids, and messy adults.

Blue

The color blue is expected to continue as one of the most popular in a broad range of hues from light to dark; blue is a classic that always looks great outdoors and seems to never go out of style.

Green

Pantone named a shade of green as the color of the year and experts predict that green indeed will be a popular color for the new season; one caveat, however, is the green you see in casual fabrics may be a bit darker than the one that Pantone selected.

Urban lifestyles

The country continues to embrace urban lifestyles, not only in the design of new residential communities, but also in the fabrics and other elements of décor selected for the home.

Performance

Advancing technology in textile manufacturing means that designers can let their imaginations run wild; if designers can dream it, manufacturing centers can create it to be beautiful and long-lasting.

Variety

In surveying the industry’s leading fabric resources, the one dominant trend is a broad variety in colors, patterns and designs. The opportunity for specialty retailers is to select fabrics that will resonate with their customers, all within a well-merchandised environment where touching the fabrics and seeing them in an outdoor context can be a winning sales and marketing formula.