A love of colour, heaps of imagination and the belief there’s always time for one more game. Some things are simply too good to leave in childhood and we’re happily making room for all three.
Meet Playfulism: the colourful interior design trend bringing a little more fun into the home. Think bold colour, nostalgic details, playful shapes and unexpected touches, all balanced with a considered, design-led aesthetic. Because playful interiors aren’t just for playrooms. From bedrooms to living spaces, Playfulism is about creating a home that feels joyful, characterful and wonderfully lived in.
Credits: Lamp - Margo Selby at Habitat, Book Cart - Stocubo, Playmat - Totter + Tumble, Audio Player - Yoto, Editorial Image - Boden, Print - Custom Art Design AF, Planet Mobile - Zara Home, Light - Pin Lighting, Clock - Home In Fun, Shelving - Lego
What is Playfulism interior design?
Playfulism combines childhood-inspired shapes, muted primary colours and nostalgic references with considered, grown-up design. Architectural Digest introduced a similar term for the interior look earlier this year with ‘Elevated Elementary', saying “Kid-inspired design is on the rise—or should we say, having a growth spurt.” We’ve also seen it described as ‘Whimsymaxxing.’ Think thoughtfully applied primary-colours and playful furniture pieces, rather than simply designing your living room into a classroom.
At Totter + Tumble, we think about family homes constantly and we know that we all want our home to feel individual to us. We want it to be a place that is considered for our children, and for us as well. That’s why we design our playmats to look like beautiful rugs… because practical can be stylish too! The emerging Playfulism trend is ideal for family spaces. It leans into nostalgic references, adds touches of colour…you can be as brave, or reserved as you like! Plus it really encourages playing. And we are all about playtime.
Here’s how you can bring Playfulism into your family home.
Start with a little colour confidence
Whether it's as bold as a full sky blue painted room, a mismatch of patterned cushions on a yellow sofa or a few colourful prints hung on a warm white wall. Colour can be used a little or a lot! Try one unexpected pairing, then repeat a favourite shade elsewhere to bring the room together. There’s no need to use every colour in the wheel. Start with what you already own and add something you’ll love looking at long after the trend has evolved.
Give shapes and patterns room to play
Why not choose a new bobbin furniture piece, like a lamp paired with a colourful fluted lampshade or a colourful wooden crate storage on wheels, so you can take the toys or the books in and out as you need. We suggest letting one or two playful details do the talking, with warm wood or neutral tones around them. A useful starting point is your floor: pick out a colour from a multi-functional Totter + Tumble playmat and echo it in a cushion, print or lampshade.
Make the nostalgia yours
Give a childhood favourite a place on the bookshelf, frame your little one’s latest masterpiece or choose a print with your families motto.The aim isn’t to recreate somebody else’s childhood bedroom. It’s to find details that belong to your family’s story.
Bring the playful feeling down to the floor
Of course, we love a room that looks playful, but we’re even bigger believers in rooms that get played in. Our original Games Room playmat collection brought nostalgic, game-inspired motifs into family interiors. Now we’re back for another round, with three new designs: The Roller, The Counter and The Wildcard.
Our Games Room designs are a celebration of fun and play. Thick, bounce-back memory foam cushions every shuffle + roll. Generous, rug-like sizes give little ones room to explore and grown-ups space to settle in, for playtime and a little me-time, too. And with a wipeable surface, the everyday clean-up is straightforward. Our Roller and Counter designs, inspired by Backgammon boards, really encourage imaginative, playtime fun, while the reverse Wildcard design, with card suit motifs, looks like a warm neutral playmat, with a little decorative surprise when you come up close!
For us, considered family interiors has always meant making space for everyone, rather than choosing between children’s needs and grown-up style, and the Playfulism interior trend marries these ideas up perfectly.