Crate & Barrel Details ‘Livable Luxe’ Inspiration Behind Spring Lookbook

Spring is on the way. With that, Sebastian Brauer, Crate & Barrel senior vice president, product design, development and metaverse, told HomePage News that consumers are looking for luxury they can live with as emerging trends build off the functional, sheltering, slightly antiseptic sensibility that many people assumed as they dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic to one focused on bringing the natural inside as their lifestyles become more open and welcoming.

“Consumers are leaning towards livable luxe as a long-term result of pandemic confinement and desire for versatile spaces for relaxing, entertaining and working while still enhancing personal comfort without compromising style,” Brauer said.

Crate & Barrel recently released lookbooks for its namesake and CB2 brands that made statements about where the company sees consumers moving.

Of the new collection highlighted in the Crate & Barrel lookbook, Brauer said, “Our spring collection drew inspiration from the casual coastal vibe of California living and the Pacific Coast, pairing airy minimalist design with a mix of natural and honest materials, resulting in spaces that feel high-design, yet casual and lived-in. This collection offers consumers subtle ways to refresh their homes with striking neutral pieces across furniture, lighting, textiles, decor and kitchenware.”

Trends that are emerging can be diverse, with color, material and form influenced by social considerations such that Crate & Barrel is, in one example, responding to consumer demand for certified materials such as those approved by the Forest Stewardship Council.

“We’re seeing new trends filter into the living area and kitchen,” Brauer said. “Natural textures and surfaces in a range of stone natural solid FSC woods are finding new uses throughout the home. From walnut, acacia, oak, plaster, linen, and pure organic cotton, these textures are used in tableware in earthy, soft colors and speckled glazes, and simple wood silhouettes in functional decor like vases. We are also introducing upcycled and sustainable materials throughout the home, including premium and luxurious upholstery fabric made of recycled ocean plastics and recycled ceramic dinnerware collections.”

The Crate and Barrel lookbook took a variety of approaches to the larger trends. For instance, it promoted cooking with citrus, an approach described as bringing more zing to meal prep. Among the products featured in the lookbook were the Crate & Barrel Serrated Citrus Knife in green and, in yellow, the Crate & Barrel mini citrus juicer with cup, citrus squeezer with measuring cup, citrus reamer and Microplane grater/zester.

For consumers who developed their meal prep skills during pandemic stay-at-home requirements, the lookbook also featured Staub Eucalyptus heirloom-quality French cookware inclusive of a three baking dish set and a 5.5-quart Dutch oven in cool metallic colors exclusive to Crate & Barrel.

Serene green is a lookbook theme shade, applied by Crate & Barrel as a minty hue to the business end of a whisk and silicone spatulas featuring FSC wood handles. Other colors available include yellow, navy and orange. 

Rectangular Acrylic Kitchen Canisters incorporate FSC bamboo lids and bases. The lookbook also features a KitchenAid Artisan Series Steel Blue 5-quart Tilt-Head Stand Mixer with a Mermaid Lace Ceramic Bowl. 

The Sorrento collection offers servingware and tableware including a 28-inch platter, an olive oil cruet, a pedestal bowl and a 6-piece bowl set as part of what the lookbook refers to as the Italian kitchen in a soft white finish. In addition, Crate & Barrel throws a spotlight on a collection of Le Creuset dinnerware. In white, cream, chambray and ink, the stoneware includes plates, bowls and mugs. In a different turn, the new Cafe collection of hand-cast stoneware bowls is hand dipped in the rich modern hues dark teal, spice orange, desert taupe, cider burgundy and white. The Argila Dinnerware Collection complements the bowls.

Textiles include a collection dubbed The New Denim Project, while furniture includes the modern Dahlia collection constructed as metal supporting natural wood. Home decor items include the Regen Clear Blown Glass collection. Proof that the mid-century theme won’t quit appears in lighting. The Weston Mid-Century Table Lamp and Chandelier feature light gray and black tones and represent a new reading of the long-standing design theme. 

The lookbook for CB2 is themed Spring Alchemy, which is explained as how to bottle the intangible quality that is excellent taste. The answer by CB2: Start with thoughtful curiosity and add a mixture of unexpected eras, materials and influences to forge an enduring style.

Among the items featured in the lookbook are the new black and white Fynn Reactive Dinnerware; the Pave Red Marble Server; crimped Muse Smoke Barware; the lengthy Pin Shiny Gold Flatware Set; and the twisting Asha Black Knotted Double Taper Holder. Lighting and decor include the deeply curved Venus Dome Black Floor Lamp; the asymmetrical Organic Shape Horn Wall Mirror; the egg-shaped blue Steele Vase; and Ice Jade Marble bookend. Furniture included the Chale Teddy White Boucle Sectional Collection; the Ren Grey Mongolian Sheepskin Chair; the Isola Natural Fiber Chair; the Montara Rattan Tall Bar; the Pasar Black Marble Coffee Table; and the Vice Oak Media Credenza.

The CB2 spring collection makes heavy use of natural materials and looks, bringing the outside world inside with a modern styling that often features clean straight lines. However, shapes, such as the Organic Shape Horn Wall Mirror, are sometimes distorted to give the assortment a bit of eroded assertiveness. An overriding theme that shapes the collection is one of sophisticated comfort.

Brauer said fashion, as reflected in both the home and the closet, has become more consistent with larger dynamics generated by how people are living.

“In recent years, the intersection between fashion and home design has been driven by larger lifestyle trends,” Brauer said. “Today, both clothing and interiors that are livable and functional using classic and innovative materials continue to trend in parallel with the rise of the hybrid work environment. Consumers are interested in investing in pieces that have purpose and a greater sense of awareness when it comes to sustainable materials and practices. 

As the influence of the pandemic fades, lifestyle trends are evolving, which has a significant influence on how consumers are looking for housewares and home furnishings for spring.

“People are embracing newfound flexibility and have begun hosting more gatherings,” he noted. “With that, coziness and versatility have maintained importance for the pieces consumers are selecting and the overall aesthetic they want in every room of their home to personalize.”

Crate & Barrel, at its own and its CB2 stores, is offering consumers a chance to clean the ghosts of the immediate past out of their lives while still providing a setting for work and play that encourages them to let go of stress or at least not experience it as abundantly as has been the case given recent conditions. Whether home alone or hosting a dinner party for family and friends, the combination of utility and novelty creates an environment that’s engaging without being overwhelming, Brauer said. At the same time, he pointed out different rooms are subject to somewhat different trends. So, where a living room sectional might invite someone to stretch out and let go, another room might benefit from some elements that make tasks a little livelier.

“This spring, we’ve refreshed home furnishings with clean, airy designs and warm materials to recharge any space,” Brauer said. “This casually cool aesthetic also pulls through in housewares, with light, textural finishes like speckled stoneware in a range of serene, earthy tones,” he said. “There are also a few other trends in the kitchen this year, including pops of citrus and pastels and rich modern hues, perfect for layering.”

He added, “For our Spring collection, we wanted to help consumers use the season as a moment to refresh in simple ways. Pieces like the Staub Eucalyptus, a soft gray-green, and plateware and upcycled textiles like denim to lend a subtle pop across the home.”

Within the larger trends, retailers and suppliers alike should consider that enough variety exists to give consumers the means of personalizing spaces, according to Crate & Barrel. Some consumers might content themselves with inconspicuous neutrals, and others might prefer Flynn black on the inside and white on the outside of dinnerware with just enough highlighting to give it a weathered feeling. While different, they both have a natural connection whether to a wheatfield or a worn roadside stone.

“Your home should be unique to you,” Brauer said. “Find ways to personalize each room or space in your home by purchasing pieces that create a comfortable, livable environment for yourself.”