From 21 to 26 April, Milan hosted the 64th edition of Salone del Mobile 2026. This year the fair welcomed back the two biennial shows that speak most directly to anyone building or renovating a home: EuroCucina, with its FTK section dedicated to appliances, and the International Bathroom Exhibition. Here are the main trends, and what they will change in residential projects over the coming years.

“A Matter of Salone”: material takes centre stage

This edition’s campaign was built around a single word: matter. It was more than a slogan. The stands were dominated by surfaces you want to touch: open-pore woods, stones with pronounced veining, matt finishes, ribbed and wavy surfaces.

Colours follow the same direction. Earthy tones are still the favourites, but they are becoming more saturated: ochre, terracotta, apricot, warm chocolate. The neutral beige of recent years is giving way to tones with more character, often paired with warm metals.

For designers this means one thing: material is once again a design decision, not a finish chosen at the end of construction. A wooden floor such as the Swiss parquet by Bauwerk, made to last for decades, or the porcelain stoneware surfaces by Mirage, which reproduce stone and marble with the durability of ceramic, define the character of a home from the very first sketch.

EuroCucina 2026: the kitchen becomes the heart of the living area

106 companies from 17 countries exhibited at EuroCucina and FTK. The clearest message: the kitchen is no longer a separate room but part of the living space. Islands that become tables, tall units that close like wardrobes, flush doors that hide appliances and pantries.

Three trends to watch:

• Wide, continuous fronts, sometimes with profiled frames, that make the kitchen look like a piece of living-room furniture.
• Stone- and marble-effect surfaces in porcelain stoneware, quartz and laminate, for a natural look without the upkeep of real stone.
• Invisible technology: connected, quiet, integrated appliances that you only notice when you need them.

On this last point, Swiss quality makes the difference. Appliances by V-ZUG are designed precisely for open kitchens, where oven, steam cooking and dishwasher must be precise, efficient and discreet, even when the kitchen is in full view of the sofa.

Bathroom Exhibition 2026: the bathroom as a home spa

The International Bathroom Exhibition brought together 163 exhibitors from 14 countries. The dominant theme is the bathroom as a place of everyday wellbeing: a small home spa, designed to last and to accompany the people who use it over the years.

The key words are wellbeing, water efficiency, hygiene, durability and longevity. In practice:

• floor-level showers and slim glass walls, such as those by Vismara Vetro;
• water-saving fittings that do not compromise the experience, such as the shower systems by Dornbracht;
• bespoke saunas and steam baths, increasingly requested in private homes too, a field in which Effegibi works;
• accessibility without a clinical look: a bathroom designed today must still work well in twenty years’ time.

Light becomes part of the furniture design

One last trend ran through every hall: light is no longer added afterwards but integrated into furniture, niches and shelves. Lighting is designed in layers: ambient light, accent light, task light. Signature lamps such as those by Davide Groppi become part of the composition, not just an object hanging from the ceiling.

What it means for anyone building or renovating

Fairs show trends; a project has to choose the ones that last. From Salone 2026 we take away three:

1. Choose materials early. Floors, wall finishes and worktops define the atmosphere of a home: they should be chosen together with the architecture, not at the end.
2. Think of kitchen and living area as one space. Services, ventilation and lighting must be planned at the design stage.
3. Invest in the bathroom. It is where wellbeing, water savings and property value meet.

This is the same approach we take with Architectural Things: bringing architecture, interior design and the best partners in the sector together in a single project. If you would like to bring these trends into your home, contact us for a consultation with our interior designers.

Read more: Architecture and mental health: how spaces influence our balance.

Sources: Salone del Mobile 2026 – Infobuild · EuroCucina and Bathroom Exhibition 2026 – Arredamento.it · Trend report 2026 – Blum