Sixties revival Mirrored furniture Contemporary country Many collections, such as Bo Concept, are going back to nature, offering opportunities to create a warm and comforting look with textured fabrics, wood, Bruno Allard, head of Ligne Roset, UK, who visited Interior Design Dublin for the launch of the collection at Haus, sees a '60s revival, with monochrome staging a comeback, and oranges, reds and yellows on-trend. "There is a lot of black and white around but for us, it only has meaning with a touch of some warm colour, with current looks going towards yellow, " he says.

Michel Ducaroy's 1973 allfoam Togo seating, with quilted covers, now comes in a settee with arms. Bretonborn, Paris-based brothers Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec have extended the Facett range to include upholstered dining chairs with twin-needle detailing.

There's also a carver chair.

The choice of colours includes ecru, anthracite, grey, red and blue. Also new is a variation on the Pam bar stool with seats in translucent grenadine, green, crystal or orange PMMA, and the Charleston occasional tables with brilliant-chromed bases and tops in MDF with inlaid horn and resin marquetry motifs, offering a choice of chequerboard or floral.

Building on the success of its mirrored furniture range, Marks & Spencer has added a wardrobe. Other light looks from M&S include cased glass accessories, a walnut and chrome bed on a ski base and occasional tables in smoked glass. These furniture pieces are perfect for enhancing the sense of space in a room and adding a touch of sophistication.

bamboo, wicker, suede and leather, earthy browns and luscious greens.

Watch out for storage boxes with brown cowhide, bamboo stools and wooden leaf sculptures from Bo Concept.

Marks & Spencer draws on the 'new country' look with cut velvet jacquards in upholstered fabrics.

Lots of spots and stripes are held together with a colour palette. Its Sononna range of freestanding kitchen units means you can get creative with your kitchen and take it with you if you move.

The new Autograph range includes a very contemporary four-poster influenced bed in solid ash. Crown Paints new 'Wildflowers' collection is the perfect way to bring a hint of summer hues into your home.

Choose from 'Wild Poppies' in the bedroom to 'Orange Lily' in the living zone or 'Common Snowdrops' in the kitchen. Presented in six palettes of complementary shades, colour combination is easy.

Coloured kitchens The hankering for vivid hues in the kitchen continues. The Scavolini range includes light yellows, dark blues and rich reds. There's a tendency towards darker woods with walnut, cherry, veneered teak and dark oak feature strongly in the collection.

Stripe it up Whether it's B & B Italia's Harry Large seat system (available through Haus), or KA International's fabrics in a colour palette of reds, yellows, blues, greens and naturals, stripes are showing the way.

Freshen-up a room with a striped Roman blind, sofa, chair, ottoman or even just a cushion. Alternatively, suss out your stripes with some feature wallpaper or a stair runner.

Dedicated spaces for dressing Dedicated dressing rooms are a great way of keeping master bedrooms free, for those who have the space. Many new builds and refurbishment are incorporating a dressing room alongside an en suite. Lomi Design's Nest dressing room systems are made to measure and cost from 2,200.

Designer kids zones Kids' spaces have gone all funky. It's out with cutesy cartoon characters and twee furnishings and in with designer chic.

Kilkenny-based Imagine wallpaper does creatively cool wallpaper that promises to catch children's imagination. Ligne Roset has also launched a 'Mini Glup' seat by Sophie Larger; a 'Mini Togo', 'Baby Togo' and 'Gregory' . . . a quilted rug that transforms deftly into a footstool or table.

Also new is the 'Tip Up', a relax chair on which the user sits astride, retaining balance, thanks to the 'tripod' formed by the chair's base and their own feet. Great for computer game-obsessed teenagers.

The digital home Media Centric, which exhibited at the Interior Design show, provides hardware, installation, support and training for entertainment and automation systems in the home. It designs a hidden Microsoft Vista network to dispense with the trappings of technology.

A single screen connected to the PCs in the house replaces separate TV, PC, phone, CCTV and audio equipment. "A series of computer devices are installed around the home that connect to the single screen so that you can do anything from view your security camera to look at your library of DVDs, select music or watch home videos, " says George Reynolds, managing director, of Media Centric.

The system, he says, offers a more powerful, cost-effective and upgradeable solution than other options and can be fitted in existing homes as much of the system is wireless. Hidden technology is now in big demand, Reynolds says.

"We are now working with designers on recessed plasmas and models that are covered with mirrors or that pop up at the end of the bed. We also do 'invisible' speakers that can be plastered over.

Expect to pay between 15,000- 30,000 for the system, which, according to Reynolds, is wooing lots of tech savvy women.

Carbon neutral furnishings More of us want to decorate our homes with furnishings that haven't literally cost the earth and that provide the producers with a decent living.

The two Marks & Spencer's 'eco factories' in North Wales that manufacture furniture upholstery are working towards being carbon neutral, using renewable energy and not sending any waste to landfill.

The announcement was made recently as part of the first update on 'Plan A', M&S' �200m 'eco plan' launched in January that sets a number of environmentally friendly targets for the company.

Stores sell Fairtrade cotton products and from autumn, all lighting will be compatible with low-energy light bulbs. Dublin-based Rug Art, suppliers of contemporary hand-made rugs, is also in on the act.

Its Jan Kath collection uses Tibetan highland wool, silk and natural fibres such as nettle and hemp. All production environments are certified as environmentally and socially responsible.

USEFUL CONTACTS
>> Bo Concept: www. boconcept. com
>> Haus 3-4 Crow Street, Dublin 2, 01-679 5155; www. ligneroset. com
>> Imagine Wallpaper Woollengrange, Thomastown, Co Kilkenny, 056-772 4760; www. imaginewallpaper. com
>> Lomi Furniture Unit 124 Baldoyle Industrial Estate, Dublin 13, 01-839 7001, www. lomi. ie
>> Media Centric Unit T30, 1st Floor, Rowan Avenue, Stillorgan Industrial Park, Co Dublin, 01-294 2121, www. mediacentric. ie
>> Scavolini www. scavolini. com