TikTok trends are shaping how we live at home — from interiors and organisation hacks to daily habits. Many come and go in a blur of viral videos, while others stick around, resurface or quietly influence the way we live.
What makes these trends so compelling is their eclecticism, drawing on global design movements, historical references and personal lifestyle choices. We asked interior designers, colour experts and professional organisers to reveal which they rate — and which they’d happily scroll past.
Colour drenching
This one has been around forever, but does anyone actually do it in real life? As long as you choose your hue with care, Patrick O’Donnell, Farrow & Ball’s brand ambassador, thinks ‘drenching’ is worth it: ‘By extending one shade across walls, ceilings and woodwork, a room gains depth and unity, allowing architectural details and natural light to define the space rather than colour contrast.’
Sunken sofas
Waldorf 2 Seater Corner 1.5 Seater in Soft Sherpa Stone, Sofology
While it’s hard to imagine this trend in an average three-bed semi, it’s impossible to deny the allure of a cosy conversation pit.
Interior designer Ben Selby-Chase of Jewel Design Studio explains, ‘It isn’t just a trend – it’s rooted in mid-century design. When you have the space, it can be an incredibly effective way of creating a deliberately social space that also offers a sense of separation and intimacy without walls.’
Natalie Timmerman, lead product designer at Sofa.com, reveals, ‘Gen Z are installing them for a contemporary chic aesthetic. In the past, sunken sofas were quite geometric but now the designs have taken on more organic and curved shapes. This breaks up large, open-plan spaces, providing a bespoke social nest that offers maximum seating capacity.
‘If your room is on a smaller scale, this concept just won’t work, but it can be an architectural moment that creates visual interest and adds a playful element.’
Cottagecore
This look has been around for decades, reinvented by each generation in its own way. TikTok creators romanticise cottagecore to the max with idyllic rustic architecture, vintage furniture and traditional fabrics. Essential accessories in every video include copper pans, frilled curtains and freshly harvested carrots.
Interior designer Jenna Ellen loves it: ‘As a designer, I rate cottagecore. Its roots in comfort, nostalgia and craftsmanship give it real staying power. Done well, it creates spaces that feel warm, personal and lived-in – which is something people crave beyond trend cycles.
‘If you want to tap into cottagecore, focus on the feeling rather than trending items. Focus on craftsmanship and heritage pieces that have warmth and character rather than anything too obvious.’
Japandi
Japandi is minimalism turned up a notch: neutral, pared-back and highly functional. It blends the simple practicality of traditional Japanese design with the warmth and nature-led sensibility of Scandinavian interiors.
Clean lines and smooth surfaces could make it boring, if not for the principle of ‘wabi-sabi’ – the beauty of imperfection – which adds a smidge of character in the form of wonky ceramics or wrinkled linen sheets.
‘I like it,’ admits Martha Ferreira, senior associate director of interiors at Present Made. ‘It borrows from long-standing traditions rather than seasonal style cycles which makes it feel more timeless than many trends. It taps into the growing “slow living” movement which favours considered, meaningful pieces and a clutter-free, restorative environment.’
Interior designer Anna Wakeham, however, struggles with this bland-leaning look: ‘As someone that believes that using colour in the home can help create atmosphere and command mood, I don’t find Japandi overly appealing!’
Dopamine decor
pan for gold, golden-gate, glade-green-
Leaving the restraint of Japandi far, far behind, the dopamine trend is all about using bright, clashing colours, patterns and quirky eye-catchers – with no limits. Uplifting or overstimulating? That’s down to you.
Karen Haller, a behavioural colour and design consultant, explains, ‘The term “dopamine decor” can be misleading. It isn’t the colour or the decor itself that releases dopamine. It’s our emotional response to the space that can activate those reward pathways.
‘This is why dopamine decor isn’t just about using lots of bright or clashing colours, because we all respond differently. What supports one person can feel overwhelming or draining for another. It’s about creating joy through your personal connection to colour and design.’
Immersive dark-brown decor
Professional lighting and expensive furniture make this TikTok aesthetic look sophisticated and inviting, like slipping into a warm bath of chocolate.
Patrick O’Donnell is a fan: ‘Deep brown schemes reflect a renewed appreciation for warmth and comforting earth tones. We often recommend these colours for living rooms, dining rooms and studies, where their warmth enhances wood and aged metals, responding beautifully to candlelight and afternoon sun alike.’
From a colour psychology perspective, dark brown does have benefits, according to Karen Haller: ‘Chocolate brown can psychologically encourage positive feelings of stability and grounding, anchoring a space in a way that can feel reassuring, especially in our current uncertain times.’
However, she urges caution when it comes to using the colour immersively: ‘When an all-brown interior is used without being part of a broader, supportive palette, some of the adverse psychological traits can start to be felt over time. The sense of enclosure that initially feels comforting and cocooning can shift into feeling restrictive and overwhelming, not because the colour is wrong, but because of the proportion used along with the amount of time spent in the space.’
Ben Shelby-Chase warns, ‘Immersive brown can work beautifully if it reflects how someone wants to feel in their home – cocooned, calm and grounded. But I’d never use it simply because it’s trending. Without enough light, contrast and texture, it can feel heavy and a little lifeless. For me, it has to be client and designer-led, not trend-led.’
Time-lapse cleaning and tidying
Helen Dear, professional organiser at Sort & Order, posts timelapse videos to her TikTok channel. ‘They’re popular because they show satisfying transformations quickly,’ she says.
At the light end of this trend, you’ll have a bird’s eye view as a messy teen’s room is brought to order. At the heavier end, you’ll see professionals tackle part of a hoarder’s house, turning filth to sparkle one inch at a time.
They’re addictive and can be educational. ‘They can be very motivational,’ says professional organiser Anita Fortes of A Neater Life, ‘showing what can be achieved and how spaces can be transformed. They can also demonstrate good techniques for sorting, categorising and storing your belongings.’
Painted arches
A new twist on the painted panel behind a bed or sofa, this entails painting an arch of vibrant colour behind a desk, chest or sideboard to highlight it.
Farrow & Ball’s Patrick O’Donnell rates it: ‘Painted arches are a great way to acknowledge architectural form, as they guide the eye and articulate space, particularly in open-plan interiors,’ he says.
‘An arch painted in a nuanced white can gently contrast from the wall colour, creating definition without disrupting the flow of a space.’
Restocking ASMR
This trend can be beautiful and inspiring (think rows of immaculately labelled jars in the walk-in pantry of dreams). It can also be deeply eye-roll-inducing to watch a perfectly manicured pair of hands fill a guest bathroom drawer with high-end skincare, most of which will never be used, or restock a freezer drawer with 10 different shapes of ice cube.
Helen Dear points out, ‘Restocking videos are undeniably satisfying to watch, but they are very much an American thing, featuring large homes with walk-in pantries, deep open shelving and the space to display everything beautifully. That simply is not the reality for most UK homes.
‘For everyday family homes, I don’t usually suggest decanting things into jars. They require cleaning and restocking, and you still need a place to store the surplus. Organisation should support how you live, not create another job.’
Underconsumptioncore
While restocking videos often glorify consumerism, on the other side of TikTok, creators are busy showing off their ‘anti-aesthetic’ lifestyles. Touring their homes, we see outdated (but still serviceable) fittings and furniture, their three pairs of shoes (because that’s all they need) and 20-year-old items of clothing. Not all creators are this extreme, though. The #underconsumptioncore hashtag is boosted every New Year, when Project Pan comes back into play and creators pledge to use up their storage bins full of skincare products and make-up before buying more, usually with the caption ‘This was once money’.
Decluttering expert Imogen Murphy of The Little Organising Company approves: ‘The core of what I do is helping my clients keep only items which serve them now, and let go of what they don’t need. This means I see so much that is thrown away or rehomed.
‘Ultimately, the most important thing is to reduce what gets brought into a home! Our patterns of behaviour around acquiring stuff are key to keeping any home as we want. It makes me super-aware of waste and those “haul” videos. I feel a bit sick watching them – all that cheap stuff, sent back or not, will most likely end up in landfill.’
Intentional clutter
‘Intentional clutter’ is the latest upgrade on maximalism. It rejects the strict control of minimalism but also resists the maximalist habit of filling surfaces with stuff just for the sake of it looking ‘interesting’.
Interior designer Anna Wakeham comments, ‘To me, a home should honestly reflect the person or people living in it, which is why I find intentional clutter appealing. A well-placed piece of art and artworks from foreign travels, beautiful china or fabrics brought back from holidays all help our sense of belonging and create what I’d call home. These individual pieces when well curated can together achieve something really beautiful and help us create something that’s special to us.’
Bed rotting
Retreating to bed for an entire weekend is touted as a self-care trend for the overwhelmed. Social media creators post videos showing their setup, including snacks, entertainment and pets. Many include the meme, ‘Next to every girl rotting in bed there’s a little cat rotting with her’ (pans to kitty snuggled down in the duvet).
It sounds adorable (and restful), but anxiety therapist Jennifer Roblin at Better Your Life warns, ‘It is a slippery slope, and the more we disengage with society, the smaller our world becomes. I have seen it too many times with my clients. It can start with spending more time in bed, and end with that person no longer being able to leave their house.
‘Romanticising bed rot is a coping strategy to numb what is really going on underneath. It can become an addiction, and that will then have other consequences and impact relationships with friends and family. I believe we need to understand what someone who chooses to bed rot is trying to avoid?
‘I am very much in favour of taking time out to rest and recharge, but recommend that this is ideally done outside in nature. A walk in a park or forest, a beach – this will fill you up instead of drain your energy.’