It's obvious that we are a nation of pet lovers! And our love for furry companions increased manifold during the pandemic, with Brits buying 3.2 million new pets over lockdown last year.
Add that to our newfound love for the work-from-home culture and we are now making interior design choices keeping our beloved pooches in mind - enter Barkitecture.
Tipped as the hottest interiors trend for 2022 by Pinterest, barkitecture is the concept of designing your home with your pets in mind, rising massively in popularity, thanks to Millennial, Gen X and Boomer pet owners.
According to Rightmove, demand for pet-friendly homes increased by a whopping 120% from July 2020 to July 2021, making them a priority over having a balcony, parking or a garden.
This year, owners are going a step further and creating stylish spaces for pets to nap, relax, purr and play. Data from Pinterest reveals that phrases like 'catify your home' saw four times more searches from October 2019 to September 2021, while searches for 'luxury dog room' was up by a whopping 115%. Online searches for ‘dog beds made from furniture’ have also doubled since last year.
You just need to look at #DogsofInstagram and #Petstagram to understand how strong the #petparent community is and how fast it's growing.
The days of hiding grizzly litter boxes and tucking away lumpy beds and blankets are gone. Barkitecture is all about animal-first architecture, with your furry, feathered, or finned friends at the forefront of any home redesign, renovation or room makeover.
Here’s how you can incorporate barkitecture into your own house. What’s more, you don’t need to have masses of extra space to embrace this luxurious trend.
Recycle or upcycle furniture to create a dog bed
An old table, unused wooden crates or a long forgotten vanity - with a little love and DIY, all these can make an excellent bed for your pet. You can even use a pull-out drawer from under the bed frame to keep your pets close, without sharing your bed.
Inbuilt dog beds will keep furry friends cosy and you can make sure the snug space fits in well with the rest of the interiors too. Just layer it up with cosy blankets, colourful throws and cuddly toys for your pups to enjoy.
Create a pamper parlour
If you have a spare room, you can turn it into a luxurious haven for your furry friends, such as a dog-washing station or a cosy cat corner. Cushioned windowsills can create a comfortable space for your pets to relax, while clever shelving can be transformed into a bespoke cat climbing wall.
You can go a step further and decorate it with their favourite pictures or add an underfloor heating mat for a cosy nap space. If you’re looking to update your flooring to make it dog-friendly, solid bamboo wood flooring is a durable and scratch-resistant option.
Catifcation using racks or bookcases
Most homes either have a bookcase or racks for storing stuff - so using these to catify your home will be absolutely free!
Whilst bookcases might be a bit tricky to hang things, with some modifications, you can turn them into an effective piece of furniture for catification. With racks, you dont need much work - just put stuff on them like cat beds, hammocks or scratching pads and turn it into a nice cat resting or play area.
Chris Dance, Director and Head Designer at InHouse Inspired Room Design said: "It's a good idea to get ahead of the curve before other property owners invest in barkitecture to give your property an edge, as the interior design trend is already on the rise."
"Interest in barkitecture could rise even further as the recent publication of the Renters Reform Bill proposes preventing landlords and estate agents from having a blanket ban on living with pets.”
