Did you know Dunelm started as a market stall in Leicester back in 1979? It was news to British-Nigerian multidisciplinary artist and designer Yinka Ilori MBE, too, and went on to inspire his new 40-piece furniture and decor collaboration with the high-street homewares brand.
The limited-edition range includes furniture, bedding, lighting, rugs, and soft furnishings, with prices starting at just £9 for a 100% cotton jacquard hand towel. Yinka was inspired by Dunelm's origins, which reminded him of his own childhood spent exploring the markets around East London with his family.
"We'd buy things like lace, curtains, and textiles to use for the home," he tells Livingetc exclusively. That shared story became the starting point for the collaboration, which draws inspiration from the textiles Yinka remembers finding as a child, as well as from the diverse and vibrant cultures that make up the community of Leicester.
Embroidery and lace motifs are a common thread throughout the collection — but playfully spun in Yinka's now iconic style. And yes, color is aplenty. "I spent a lot of time in Leicester watching the South Asian women wearing amazing saris and looking at the incredible lace and textiles in the shop windows — seeing how they were draped and how different colors layered," he shares.
The pattern on the Net Florals bedding set, for example, was inspired by the lace curtains that at one point draped across most windows in Britain, but has been reimagined to feature motifs of the national flowers of some of the Asian, African, and Caribbean countries that enrich the city of Leicester, including India's Lotus flower and Pakistan's Jasmine.
"This collection is celebrating individuals, communities, and culture," Yinka explains, recalling a specific conversation he struck up with some locals while admiring a mural in Leicester. "They were so warm, receptive, and inviting. I really felt like I belonged to Leicester just from that small interaction," he says. "I wanted to take those aspirations and that energy into the collection through the richness of color and embroidery."
Known for his kaleidoscopic use of color, Yinka also pulled his palette straight from the community. "When I look at Leicester, I feel a similar energy to when I'm in Nigeria," he explains. "The richness of the people and how what they wear reflects their personality. There are no rules; there is no manual for how you express your use of color. It is very original, fresh, and unique — that set the base and tone for how I wanted to use color."
As such, the collection is very eclectic and uses bright greens, yellows, and pinks. "What I love about color is seeing the effect it has on people and how it can tell stories about who they are and the richness of their communities," he shares. "I got really excited about how to take a precious place like Leicester — which is deep-rooted in culture, community, and individualism — and translate it."
Then there are the larger furniture pieces in the range, including the stunning Half-Log Sideboard (£599) pictured above, the Sweet Flows Swivel Chair (£299), and a bouclé ottoman bed (£799 for a king-size), to name just a few.
When tasked with picking his favorite piece, "It would probably be one of the cushions and one of the rugs, because both of those celebrate that explosion of color," Yinka shares. "The rug really reminds me of the energy of Leicester, the use of color, and the movement of the people."
But, of course, it's never a simple answer when a designer feels this close to a collection. He couldn't help but call out the Bell LED Table Lamp (£65), too. "I love the transparency of the materials and the silhouettes of the shapes," he shares. "It’s a classic and timeless piece that would feel at home in the 70s or 80s." But just as equally in 2026.
Most of the Yinka Ilori x Dunelm collection is available online and in-store now, with some products coming soon. In the meantime, you can get to know the designer a little better by discovering his Walk With Your Dreams mural at Milton Keynes' Station Square, which has been wowing passersby since October last year.
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