“A room should never allow an eye to stay in one place”. ~ Anonymous. 

Modern décor is a style of decoration that does not contain modern extravagances and over-the-top accessories. Modern decor is an approach to decorate your home with trendy, neat, and fine details. It has minimal clutter and mess, the right items at the right place. The concept of modern style decor originated at the beginning of the twentieth century and is a mixture, a perfect blend of German and Scandinavian decor. Scandinavian decoration adopts a minimalist approach with open spaces and excess light exposure to the place. 

The basic distinction between modern style and contemporary style décor

The main difference that separates modern and contemporary style is the timeline of these styles originated. Modern style decor has its roots and origin in the early 20th century. While contemporary style is basically the new and up to date style. Contemporary style has new innovations and technologies submerged in it. Modern style decor is more confined to a minimal approach with architectural design and more natural and simple elements. Contemporary style is newer and more recent with more unique and complex. 

Some elements and key points regarding Modern style decor are as follows

The right color for the right decor

Grey color

Grey is a color of timelessness, paradox, and depth with various shades. Grey is a popular choice for modern style decor as it can be paired with many colors of furniture and setting. Grey-painted walls might be a little boring for some people but that can be remedied by mixing it with other colors like olive and leafy green. Grey color does not get dirty easily and can blend with the surroundings and mask dirt better. Grey color works well with the light pink and yellow setting as well. 

White color

White is a color of brilliance, softness, protection, and light. It sets your mood right and makes you feel elevated. White can be mixed with many options to get a perfect twist of modern style decor and classic taste in fashion. You can have white walls with grey and purple-pink colors of the surrounding. The color combination can cooperate in cushions, pillows, chairs, and curtains. The white color also works well with orange and baby blue color. This combination will add refreshing zest to your setup.

Blue-ish colors

Blue is the color of health, healing, and inspiration. It would have a positive effect on your mind therapeutically and spiritually. Shades of blue are good options to choose from. Blue color can be paired with grey as a base. Add turquoise and dark blue in less proportion to get a unique contrast. If you have children running around to stain your walls, choose a darker shade of blue. You can also pair blue with light brown, grey, and white. This combination calls out versatility yet is appealing and modern.

Yellow shades 

Yellow is the color of happiness, an optimistic outlook, and clarity. Yellow can be paired with blue and white to get an exotic yet cute pairing. You can infuse yellow in lesser proportions in your curtains, rugs, and chairs. Yellow can also be paired with grey and green to get a natural yet chic element of decor to your place.  

Using just all gray and white together can also work well. Just these two colors might seem a bit pale and dull, you can rectify that with a plant for natural green. It would not only add a touch of raw and unfiltered freshness but also rejuvenate the white and grey combination. 

Choosing paint finish for modern style can become easy with my article on How To Choose The Best Paint Finishes For Your Home?

Lighting up your modern home

Three types of lighting are necessary to make any place, either your bedroom or kitchen, light up perfectly. A well-illuminated area that is neat and simple is the trademark of a modern setting. Let’s talk about the lighting guide about your place 

• Ambient Light to light up your whole room or area.
• Task lighting to focus on a specific task at hand.
• Accent lighting this is to add depth and detail lighting to your area. 

You can find the sources and types of layered lighting more in the guide to perfect kitchen decor. 

Some important kinds of lights and their characteristics

Dimmable bulbs

In modern style decoration, dimmers and dimmable lights are important because they provide a transition between different tones and intensities of lights. These can be used according to your mood and activity at hand. If you decide to have a movie night with friends, in the living room, it’s best to use dimmed and soothing lights. If it’s a party, then it’s a party! And you would need full gleaming and shimmering lights in your area. The same is true for your bedroom. You need dimmed lights to escape into the valley of dreams at night and full intensity lights to work.

The brightness of the bulbs

Before going for layered lighting, it is important to take into consideration the type of bulbs and lights you use. Usually for ambient light, high-intensity light bulbs I.e., high luminosity is necessary. As for task and accent lighting, it depends on your tasks and choices. The brightness of the bulb is measured in lumens and to light up a big living room area 2000 to 4000 lumens would be needed depending on how bright you want your area to be. It is important to adjust the intensity in levels so you can create actual layers of lighting.

Color of light bulbs

Lights are to illuminate a space but that is not their only purpose. Lighting can alter and increase the appeal of a place to many folds. Either for decorating purposes or simply lighting up a place, choosing the right color of light is also important. Different shades of light can have different outcomes on your mind and body. Halogen and LED lights give a pure white color and compact fluorescent light gives out white light with a blue tint. Blue and white colors are important when you are trying to stay focused and working on something important. This white light can hinder your mind and stop the sleep hormone production I.e., melatonin. Chandeliers and lamps give out yellowish golden lights that would put your mind at ease and help you sleep. 

All these features can be altered depending on the type of room you are decorating, and the activities being performed in that area. 

Furniture of modern style decor

A sharp minimal yet dapper and modest, these are the pointers for furniture of modern style decor. 

• One thing that is necessary for furniture to have, is geometry. Furniture of modern style decor needs to be straight and with clear lines and neat geometric shape. 
• Curves in furniture look cool but they are more confined under the contemporary style of decor than modern style decor.
• A new trend of metal-made furniture is being used to decorate homes under the domain of modern style decor. Furniture made of Aluminum, stainless steel, and brass is common. Lamps and light fixtures are also being made of metals to be used in this type of decor. 

• More natural and exposed furniture is also a part of modern style decor. Chairs and table made of wood, polished to perfection while exhibiting their imperfect yet beautiful natural patterns. It is the best example of this type of furniture. 

• The function and size of the furniture are the deciding factors for the items you keep. Keeping everything concise and to the point. The modern style focuses on the multiple functionalities of a single piece of furniture. A perfect example would be a table with roll-out drawers for stashing away important stuff. 

Generalized tips to decorate and make your place modern-themed

Open spaces 

All places spacious and open scream modern decor. The open living, kitchen, and bedroom seem soothing and grand. Avoid any confined places like a home office or private rooms. Instead, make use of empty corners for these activities as described later. Keep your rooms bigger with exposed walls I.e., Bricks and stones of the wall. This would also give a modern style to your place. You can paint over the exposed walls with light colors, two tones of a single color, or a combination of different colors. 

Trendy artwork 

Shower your place with some cool artwork and paintings. The colors of a modern are usually light-toned and easy on the eyes. So, these accessories are a much-needed addition to the place. With the right artwork, you can resuscitate any dull setting. You can even style your entrance with some modern pieces of art. 

Our recommendations

Make a spot

There are rooms for different purposes, but you can also compartmentalize your open space for different purposes. Create a separate reading space with a modern comfortable sofa and a small rack with your favorite books and snacks stashed on. This place should ideally be by a window to enjoy some nature as well. Place some related paintings and decoration pieces to allocate the area for a specific activity. 

Here are some useful _Tips For How To Pick The Perfect Accent furniture

Nothing close to minimalism than nature

Add decorative elements of nature. The closer to nature a place looks, the more modern it seems. Add wooden made lanterns to your side table. Use handwoven fabric-made baskets to keep your laundry. Small bonsai trees would pop out in grey and white setting. Some wooden furniture paired with the greenery of plants would look surreal and feel super fresh from the looks and the vibes. Sculptures and decoration pieces of ceramic, plastic, and glass are also included. Glass, ceramic vases, and candle holders with flowers and candles would go perfectly with the signature minimalist approach. 

Our recommendations

Layers of comfortable rugs

Rugs should be synonymous with the word comfort. Rugs are an important accessory because they not only add comfort but also friction to the floor. Different rugs have different textures depending on the material used. You can add up to 2 or 3 rugs of different sizes and materials to increase the comfort and texture variation of your floor. These rugs have unique patterns to increase the visual appeal of any place they are kept in. You can just sit on these comfortable rugs, play board games with your kids or friends, read a book with a cup of tea. 

If you are looking to Change your interior design, check 10 Interiors Styles That Are Going Trendy In Upcoming Year

Basic tidying up

Modern styling is all about freeing up space from general clutter. Anything can be made clean and clutter-free by simply cleaning it. Putting things in their designated space can free up a lot of space. Using concealed space to keep your stuff in secrets drawers and roll-out cupboards can also decrease the space taken by things. This can not only make room for things that are necessary but also make your place trimmed and snug adding a modern appeal.

Some tips to keep your home clean and modern

• Be on your toes, keep cleaning, picking things up, and putting them in their place while coming out or going in a room. It would decrease your workload with little effort. 
• Clean your metal exposed furniture regularly to avoid corrosion. It would not look good in the long run. 
• Get your wooden and stone surfaces polished. While wood can get brittle, stone can witheraway with time. Both need to be taken care of from time to time. 
• Show some love to your fireplace. Decorate your fireplace with cozy natural furniture to make a natural spot in your home. Throw in hand woven rugs and pillows with natural artwork.

• Re-paint your walls. It is important to rejuvenate your paint. No matter how good quality paint you use, it can fade out and can make your place look dull. 

Expert’s advice 

The home should be the treasure chest of living ~ Anonymous. 

A perfect home can be a heaven for you and your loved ones. Carefully decorated with efforts and love can make your home welcoming to your guests and family. Once you’re done after so much time and money investment, it would be totally worth all the efforts and struggles. Happy decorating!