An interiors-flair revolution is upon us, shop the best pleated & printed lampshades now

Minimalism is out and our homeware colour palettes are pivoting. Farewell, Farrow & Ball Skimming Stone, hola, Viva Magenta. The latter – Pantone’s punchy 2023 colour of the year – showed an early-doors appetite for a ‘more is more’ interiors approach and, indeed, searches for ‘maximalist décor’ have increased by more than 500% over the past 30 days, according to Google search data. 

It’s not the first time buyers have been greeted with a flurry of postmodern home trends and the movement initially launched in the 1960s as a response to the direction that modernism, with its somewhat sterile, therapist’s office-feel, was moving towards. Over 60 years on, after a post-lockdown abundance of bouclé, neutral linens and eucalyptus planters, shoppers face a similar yearning for all things colour and life. Think: tufted cushions, bubble plates and pleated lampshades.

In the latest, flamboyant collection of pleated lampshades from lighting retailer, Pooky, brand founder Rohan Blacker discusses bringing “joy and colour in abundance to the homes of Britain.” The joy and colour in question? “Ditsy florals and bold squiggles in acid hues are the colours and pattern combos du jour.” Certainly, after a quick-off-the-mark start from Viva Magenta, homeware edits are being rejuvenated with vibrant corals, emerald greens and a whole spectrum of zingy shades. Be it a pendant bulb in a neglected student house, a floor lamp in your first rental or the sconces you installed in your blood, sweat and tears home renovation, a lively, pleated lampshade is a universally-accessible way to inject maximalist flair.

It’s worth noting, too, that the ongoing resurgence of maximalism is by no means exclusive to interiors. From the pattern clashes on the Gucci SS23 catwalk to Iris Apfel’s day-to-day dopamine dressing, we’re taking home inspiration from fashion as it joins in for a new wave of over-the-top styling. While clothes and homeware prints naturally lend themselves to fabric, early iterations of pleated lampshades were fashioned from paper and it wasn’t until Queen Victoria’s 1819 ascent to the throne that the lampshade underwent a textile makeover. Now, even the humble paper lampshade is seeing a modern revival and, from the likes of H&M Home and Anthropologie, retailers are casting their minds back in pursuit of that 19th century design charm. Who can blame them?

Whether paper or intricately creased silk, ScS‘ interior stylist, Vicki Foster, notes that “the key [to maximalist decorating] is making it your own and committing to the theme headfirst.” She elaborates, “[Pull] out bright tones such as yellow, pink and orange (otherwise known as sunset tones) […] through paint, coloured sofas, curtains, bedding, wall hangings and prints.” And, in this instance, lampshades. 

For me, the blueprint to maximalist styling comes from an old floristry practice: the rule of threes. The guideline teaches that florists arrange a trio of blooms – each a contrasting colour/texture – at different heights, doing so in the knowledge that such a configuration is said to be more aesthetic and eye-drawing. For lighting, this might translate to a table lamp (pleated lampshade in tow) paired with a shorter, lean-to art print and an elegant trinket tray or sculptural bowl. See below: