Design solutions to utilize the checkered pattern within a space.

When one day the pandemic is behind us, many people will fondly remember a particular pattern that has made a strong comeback in recent times: the checkerboard pattern. From floors to walls, from bed linens to bath linens, it seems the checkered pattern has found its place on various surfaces of our interiors and beyond, greatly propelled by the world of social media.

Long before all this happened, the world seen through a checkered lens had already experienced a golden age, bringing joy and fun, filling homes with objects designed with a playful sensibility at the center.

As more and more people have abandoned a whole series of work or social constraints, there has been a significant shift in the collective consciousness around “wearing a bit more personality”… perhaps one’s own. The same attitude has been applied to the home, which many of us set out to redecorate during the first quarantine and are still pursuing as a project.

And while some use the checkerboard pattern in a more psychedelic range, others are considering a more subtle approach, perhaps using it for bathroom tiles, pursuing an idea of country chic, or perhaps through a harlequin print very typical of the medieval period, ultra-present for example in armor, flags, or heraldic crests.

In the great checkerboard boom, the first stirrings came from rugs, cushions, and paintings: now we find it in different forms, and it is very interesting to observe how trends in furniture and fashion increasingly overlap, how design products are much more related than they were in the past. Being bold through captivating patterns is one of the main reasons the checkerboard has become popular again.

Manifest statement

For this generation, the checkerboard pattern speaks of fun, offers a touch of softness in an otherwise dull and rigid world, and is also a highly accessible pattern to aspire to, which anyone can easily replicate at home, whether in Hollywood bathrooms or Italian kitchens, bedrooms, and living rooms.

In combination, we strongly encourage mixing patterns (polka dots, flowers, solid colors, etc.) for a playful setting, perhaps contrasting it with something very feminine: it’s like a creature of its own, it has a very big mouth that shouts ‘Look at me!’ but, like many other things, it is not meant to stand alone.

No matter which room you want to adopt it in, the checkerboard works everywhere. It is timeless in the true sense of the word, you can place it in a country-style home or a super modern home that has no color, and then suddenly… there’s a checkerboard in there! In the end, it’s just about finding your own way to use it.

One of the most fun things about design is reviving things, giving them new perspectives, new lives, new meanings, and new references. Don’t you think?