7 Ways to Update Your Home with Modern Design Ideas

What is modern interior design? It is a style that emerged in the 19th century that eliminates clutter and intricate details as much as possible to focus on a fuss-free look. It uses industrial materials primarily and typically consists of a monochrome color scheme- nothing too flashy or distracting. It is one step from minimalist, and with that basic definition in mind, we want to share with you our modern design ideas that can be incorporated into almost any home to give it an updated look.

Use Lots of Space in Your Design

When planning the layout of a room, make sure there is plenty of space that is not filled with furniture or clutter of any kind. Modern design takes a somewhat minimalist approach that allows each piece to stand out and be noticed. This can’t happen if your living room or bedroom is packed full of items. You need to space each piece of furniture and decoration out so that they have room to breathe. In rooms that have little area, just use a few small items and leave some open space. This allows for freedom of movement and helps to prevent feelings of claustrophobia and restrictive space. 

Create Lines of Décor

Think about how the room with its furniture and décor will look from different angles. If you want a unified, controlled look, then set up your room décor into lines, with all of the wall décor lining up with one another. Set up the furniture so that it is in line with each other piece of furniture. For instance, the rug in your living room should be set up so that it extends out from the couch at equal distances on both sides of the couch. The coffee table should be set in the center of the rug, and so on. By aligning each of the items of furniture in relation to one another, you create a sense of cohesion in the room, decreasing clutter and disorganization. 

Before you settle on a look for your room, step back and see how everything lines up with everything else. Consider rearranging some items to create that sense of unity until you get nice, clean lines throughout the room. 

Use Odd Furniture Shapes

Don’t settle for the usual shapes of furniture that can look kind of boring and just disappear into the average room. Use standout pieces instead that are shaped differently from the norm. This can enhance your room in interesting ways, creating fun looks that you can play around with. Furniture with drawers or doors is going to give you a different aesthetic in your living room or bedroom. Their unique appearance can be eye-catching, and they can offer some nice storage solutions to help you declutter the space. 

To help make your unusual furniture a showcase and point of focus in the room, take away any furniture that is cluttering the visual space nearby. Give that interesting piece of furniture some room to breathe.

A cluttered room makes it easy to hide dirt and stains, but as you move furniture apart from each other and make a lot of free space in your rooms, you will notice the unsightly spots and stains more easily. Consider calling in a professional home cleaning company to deal with the dirt and grime that is too much for you to handle according to Nick with Imagine Maids in Chicago. A clean room is just as important as one with plenty of space to move about and room for highlighting unique items. 

Go for a Transitional Look

Not all modern homes have to use completely modern items and design ideas. You can create a transition between the classic and the modern by integrating some older furniture and décor in with the modern pieces. This creates a look that is not stuck too firmly in one century or another, but you do need to be careful about making the different items appear complementary. 

How do you do that? Choose items with similar color schemes and design choices. For instance, a modern cupboard with brass handles will pair well with a classical ornate bookcase with brass trim. Look for visual similarities that keep the pieces from being too disparate, and then arrange them in the same room with enough space for them to stand out on their own. Be careful about filling the shelves of a classic piece while leaving the modern item almost empty. Think about how the entire room comes together as one and creates a sense of cohesive space.

Go Big with Shapes

How do you make a space look full and well used without cluttering it up? With modern designs, some poor choices can leave your room looking empty and unwelcoming. You can fill the space with large statement pieces, like a massive couch, a large wall hanging or an area rug. These take up a lot of visual space and make the room feel a bit fuller. 

To make these pieces work better as part of a modern décor motif, be sure to keep the room empty of clutter. Use large items to fill the space rather than lots of small ones. What this does is give your eyes something to focus on rather than create confusion by giving you too much to look at. Using large pieces helps to create a theme in each room, and you can focus on only the essentials this way so that your rooms have real personality that is neat and defined. 

Create Warm Contrasts

Modern homes don’t have to be cold and passionless. You can use primarily monochromatic pieces and colors, and then use a few very colorful pieces to add some pop to the look. A combination of warm colors and cold monochrome will create an interesting contrast that is visually appealing. Try using this design trick to make your rooms feel vibrant without the color scheme being too overpowering. 

We hope you were inspired by some of these ideas to give your home a striking modern look.