Andrea Rickerby tracks the trends from Milan Design Week 2024. Minimalism, the design trend with all the warmth of a morgue slab, is out. The design gurus of Milan have decreed we are now allowed to dress up the rooms we live in so they look less like an Insta shoot and more like a ... home. April’s Milan Design Week brings together the world’s top tastemakers at an event that each year signals what is to come. Interior designers and fashion insiders pore over the exhibits, taking away their take on the latest trends. Softening the edges of minimalism with a healthy dose of eclectic individuality is the broad trend. Whether it’s making the most of your collection of salt and peppers or ceramic plates, go for it! Statement furniture pieces – sure. Even if you are mixing periods – say, Modernist table with an Art Deco vase. A bit...

Can you feel it? I can. With one foot in the city’s real estate market and the other as publisher of the city’s best trendspotter, I can sense a rising tide of business and property confidence that will make 2024 Christchurch’s time to shine. Intuition is one thing; the data backs it up. After two years of softening activity, Christchurch's median house price rose 2.4 percent in the third quarter as increased demand pushes prices back towards their peak.The city’s economy grew 2.4 percent in the year to September 2023. By comparison, the country’s economy grew only 1.7 percent in the same period.Consumer confidence in Canterbury continues to improve while nationally, consumer confidence is falling. Inside the Four Aves, the population continues to increase as young couples and their downsizing elders take advantage of the high-quality apartment and townhouse developments on offer. Data shows that the number of people living in...