There’s a reason fashion designers look to animal prints for inspiration. Creatures have evolved a dizzying array of patterns: stripes, spots, diamonds, chevrons, hexagons and even mazelike designs.

As Country Living’s home and design trends reporter, I’ve always got my nose to the proverbial ground, sniffing out the latest trends. Lately, I’ve been watching stripes. This beloved pattern is ...

Some patterns arise simply or randomly, but others develop via complex, precise interactions of pattern-generating systems. Their beauty aside, the intricacies of these systems are inspiring the ...