Sam Simon’s Look Back at 2013

Each year around the holidays, many people (including moi) take stock of the year that has passed. These days, most of our lives are richly photographed and documented via social media, and I found myself taking a look back at 2013 through the images I posted to piece together my year in design. One thing is certain: 2013 was a year that was not just black and white.

Zebra Painting for Nursery Art

I saw a lot of colors blend together this year with an increased interest in painted ombre wall treatments. Also on trend was taking a classic motif like branchwork and filtering it through a modern lens. The project below comes alive with a mix of matte and metallic white paint and a bevy of Swarovski crystal-encrusted fruit.

Pink Ombre Girl's Room with White Painted Branches

People are very design savvy right now, and I like it! This year I observed an openness to brave, juicy bolts of color, as well as the mixing of bold graphic patterns—so cute, so chic!

Modern Blue and Orange Transportation Nursery

As I look ahead to 2014, I see the use of black and/or very dark hues within nursery and children’s room design. Furniture is going to continue to trend towards classic modern. Saturated colors will remain very important, as will the opposite end of the spectrum—very restrained color palettes. Abstract wall art will become more widely used like the happy pieces below (learn how to make these pieces in my next DIY post coming soon).

Modern Black and White Nursery with Colorful Abstract Art

With the new also comes the tried-and-true—I will continue to use metallic paint and glitter with abandon, lots of people will continue to buy gray and white chevron bedding, and we should all continue to keep reaching for the stars (and a third of those stars should be covered in glitter). Happy holidays, everyone!

Painted Silver Stars Nursery Wall Art

Sam Simon

Sam Simon

Sam Simon is an artist and designer living in NYC who creates beautiful murals and hand painted children's rooms. His beloved work and very recognizable aesthetic is influenced by mid-century picture books, Japanese super-cute aesthetic, French and American Art Deco, and Liberace's capes!

Comments

  1. Nicole

    January 28, 2014

    Love the “starry” wall! We are going to do our best to recreate it-this will be our first DIY project- any pointers would be helpful regarding color and technique!

  2. Sam Simon

    January 30, 2014

    Dear Nicole, thank you so much for the lovely comment about the “starry” wall! I cut my own stencils, and used varying shades of the wall color and a metallic white to create the graduated star pattern! Maybe this would be a good topic for a DIY project?! XOSS

  3. Bianca

    June 10, 2015

    Wow, I Love Love Love the “starry” wall, it looks fab, I will be trying to recreate this in my soon to be nursery, I just hope it looks half as good as yours!

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