Fashion is a fickle phenomena. What's in today quickly morphs into the the next new sensation. It doesn't matter if it's clothes or cabinets. Granted, interior trends are slower to transition but it works the same way.

Lately I've been giving a lot of thought to the huge love affair with contemporary design. The pendulum is deep into the greys, floating shelves, waterfall counters, clean lines, simplicity, slab style cabinet doors or wide stile and rail shaker fronts. Don't get me wrong, I love it and I think it's going to be many years before these looks become "outdated." If you've followed my advice in the past, you know I believe in designing to the structure. If you follow the styling and architecture of your home when designing your cabinetry your kitchen will never be dated. Then, of course, you have to have what you LOVE! That is numero uno.

But what's next? As sure as the sun rises the pendulum will eventually swing the other way and when it does it's going to be in a completely new direction. I just can't see us going back to the traditional looks of the past with glazes, heavy molding etc. Will the pendulum swing back to Traditional territory and what will the new Traditional look like? What's next on the horizon? “We are all familiar with consumers’ constant desire to see something new, yet they still want, in many cases, to have somewhat of a familiar comfort level,” said Leatrice (Lee) Eiseman – executive director of the Pantone Color Institute. I think she's right. We want fresh and new but we want to feel a connection to qualities we've enjoyed in the past. This kitchen by Rutt HandCrafted Cabinetry has got me thinking about what a "new Traditional" would look like.

Clean lines continue but now soft elegant detail makes an appearance

Darryl Minch, manufacturer's rep with the Baronet Group International, Inc., says "I'm seeing less extreme contrasts of color in the kitchen, think softer palettes , white and off -whites used in the same space". My own prediction is that we will see a big resurgence of natural wood finishes. I see hints of this all over. For quite a while white painted finishes and dark espresso stains have ruled. Neither shows the beauty of wood grain. Textured laminates round out the top choices at the moment but how about the real deal?

Take your paneling in a different direction. If you have an island in your plan, chances are you're going to need some paneling to tie it all together. Take the traditional vertical beadboard and turn it for a "new traditional" effect. I'm loving this option for a coastal look as it's reminiscent of ship lap. I started to use this design detail in my projects and now I'm seeing it more and more.

If you're a design lover or savvy pro I'd love to hear your predictions for kitchen and bath design 2017.

It's official. The "color gods" have spoken. Who are these "color gods"? They would be an organization known as Pantone. Pantone, Inc. is the authority on color, provider of color systems and leading technology for accurate communication of color. The market leader in color has officially named Emerald THE color for the year 2013. When I think of emerald a number of things come to mind including: my birthstone, mermaids, deep sea, summer AND then I think about all the other greens and how we use them in our interior environments. One thing I love about green is that it brings outside in. As Pantone notes here it represents regeneration, healing and unity.Just for fun I thought I'd share with you some of my fave Houzz.com ideabook finds containing the color green.

Contemporary Laundry Room design by San Francisco Interior Designer Artistic Designs for Living, Tineke Triggs

This is another kind of green that I love. It almost makes me want to wash clothes.

Contemporary Kitchen design by Hawaii Interior Designer Archipelago Hawaii, refined island designs

These green marble tops definitely bring the lovely outside in. Hints of brown tie in the warm wood cabinets.

Traditional Kitchen design by San Francisco Architect Boor Bridges Architecture

White cabinets are the rage and what better way to highlight them but with a clever shade of green on the walls?

Traditional Kitchen design by New York Architect Fivecat Studio | Architecture

Here's the same color palette, warm wood and green marble. As you can see, it works equally well whether the theme is contemporary or traditional.

Traditional Kitchen design by New York Interior Designer Marlene Wangenheim AKBD, CAPS, Allied Member ASID

This is a totally different green, almost grey suggesting elegance and refinement. So whether your taste runs to emerald or chartreuse, green is a great option. In fact there are two other greens on the hit parade for 2013, Tender Shoots and Grayed Jade. You can see the complete Pantone Color Report for Spring 2013 here.

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