This Year’s Summer Home Decor Trend: Contactless Living

Interior architect Umut Mehmet Gürler says remote work, which spread in the pandemic and which many companies kept, opened the summer season early for people who already had a summer house. He set out this year's decoration habits: smarter summer houses, and less touching.

Less contact is one of the habits the outbreak left behind. People already avoid handling cash. They are also wary of shared switches, taps and door handles. Summer houses that used to be decorated only as a place to rest are turning into homes where the points of contact are fewer.

Kitchens are where the smart home starts, because people now spend more time there. Hands-free systems, switched on by a phone or by voice, lead the design. Lights and fittings, and white goods such as ovens and fridges, are being replaced with models that can be controlled from a distance. Layouts that give more room to move, and a little more space between people, are wanted too. Wall shelves that organise a room, and folding tables with more than one use, are the main pieces of furniture.

Summer houses also need a more considered outdoor room. They are no longer only a place to unwind. They are for work, hobbies and guests. While it is still hard to spend time freely in public outdoors, the garden, the roof and the balcony have to work harder. Roof gardens, small back yards and balconies are becoming real rooms, even in compact houses. Folding glass doors tie the interior to the garden. Outdoor work spots are one of the needs that grew fastest, and the furniture outside now includes a table and chairs fit for a working day.