Modern

Simple Yet Stylish Modern Wall Decor Ideas

When creating a modern room, you want to keep the space looking sleek, clean, and clutter free. This includes your walls. When it comes to modern wall decor ideas, this post will show you how to keep things simple yet stylish.

Gallery Wall – Use matching frames that are either black or white, with black and white art or photograph pieces
Texture – See if you add texture to your walls. This can be done by painting your walls two different shades of the same color (say grey) and using a sponge to create a marble effect or a thick brush to create a linen effect (Textured Wall Painting Ideas). Or check out the living room in modern living room in picture (2) that has the marble veneer covering the wall. Modern wall paper is also a option (A Fine Selection of Modern Wallpaper Designs).
Hang up a modern clock
Modern wall lights are another item to put up

Put up floating shelves and decorate them with plants (3) or lean framed pieces on them (5). Add a different colored backing to the shelves to create a unique design element, just like the shelves in picture (4)
Crown Molding – You can get modern crown molding with a simple sleek shape
And have a look at my post here (The Finishing Touch: Wainscoting Ideas and Designs) for an example of modern styled wainscoting.

Here are some other modern posts to get more ideas from:

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April 18, 2016 in Decor, Modern

Under Your Feet: Modern Flooring Ideas

The type of flooring you use can really set the style and look of a room. When it comes to modern flooring ideas, there are quite a few options to play with. From stamping concrete, to more modern and renewable materials such as bamboo.

Playing With Concrete

Concrete gives you a nice cool grey shade. This is ideal since modern rooms use a mostly neutral color palette (grey, white, black).

And you have a lot of different design options to play with when it comes to concrete flooring. You can create different shades of grey in the cement mix, just like the dining room in picture (6), or you can create different subtle textures (5). For a clean and sleek non-industrial look, you’ll need to have your concrete floors polished.

A unique flooring design idea using concrete is to have it stamped. You can make a concrete floor look like hardwood flooring much like the floor in picture (3), or tiled floors.

You can also stain the concrete, changing its color completely. Or you can create graphics and designs with the staining. Stick to neutral colors for a modern look (white, cream, grey, black).

Tile Designs

If you want to go with tiling, say in the bathroom, stick to neutral colors and subtle textures and designs. The blue grey tiles in the bathroom in picture (4) creates a modern looking floor.

Large rectangle tiles can create a luxury and modern home flooring design. They are more expensive, and harder to install, but with less grouting you are left with a clean and modern looking floor.

The Classic Chevron Pattern

A chevron patterned floor is more associated with vintage style homes. But as you can see from the modern kitchen in picture (1), this design style can be updated.

Why it works in that kitchen is because A) the color of the wood is more of a neutral grey color, and less of a traditional brown shade – so it blends in well with the black color scheme of the kitchen. And B) the overly modern design of the kitchen, from the cabinets and light fixtures to the countertops and appliances, offsets any vintage feel of the flooring pattern.

Renewable Materials

When it comes to renewable modern flooring options, bamboo is the way to go. It is durable and a fast growing grass making it highly renewable. Harder that most hard woods, bamboo can also be stained to change it’s color. Have a look at the flooring in the living room in picture (2) as an example of bamboo flooring.

Have a look at these other posts for more flooring ideas:

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April 18, 2016 in Modern

Style Guide: Modern Garden Design Ideas

There are a few design techniques to keep in mind when creating your own modern garden design. You can see some of the similarities in the gardens in the pictures above.

Rectangles

You’ll notice that modern gardens are very boxy in their design. There are no round corners. Everything from the grass areas, to the borders, and seating are very rectangular – creating a minimalist look and feel in the garden space.

Isolated Greenery

All of the grass areas in modern garden designs are very isolated, meaning they are bordered off. You can see from the photos that each garden has a very specific area just for greenery – bordered off from other areas in the garden. While other areas are specifically built for other activities – patio, deck, etc. This helps create a clean, crisp look in the garden.

Outdoor Living: Modern Patio Design Ideas

Color Scheme

And like most modern spaces in a home, a modern garden will make use of natural and neutral tones. You can see a combination of greys, black and white being used for the flooring, the garden walls, and the furniture. To add some warmth to the space, try and infuse wooden pieces.

Modern Lighting

A modern space is a well lit one. In the garden you have specific task lighting – these will be for pathways, steps, dining areas, and on the side of the house. While other lights are more for ambiance: uplights by trees and bushes, or light fixtures used to highlight any water features in the garden.

Have a look at my post for more ideas and tips on creating modern outdoor lighting: A Bright Safe Space: Modern Outdoor Lighting Ideas.

Here are some other outdoor posts to get more ideas from:

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Ideas on how to create a modern garden design

April 16, 2016 in Modern, Outdoors

Creating a Stylish Workspace: Modern Home Office Ideas

The best way to create a modern home office is to focus on the main areas and focal pieces of the space. This includes: the overall color scheme, the main furniture pieces (desk and chair), and the lighting.

Color Scheme

In the home office pictures in the mood board above, you can see that all of the home offices use a neutral color scheme – such as white or black. A dark grey could also work.

A good way to add color into a neutral home office space is to infuse it with natural materials. Try and infuse wooden pieces, such as a wooden desk or chair, or add some greenery by having potted plants around.

Another way to add color is to use colorful stationary, just like the home office in picture (5).
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Using Your Walls

Here are some ideas on how to use and style your walls in your home office:

Built in shelves will help maximize the space you have in your home office. If you put up cabinets, then opt for ones that don’t have handles (this creates a sleeker and more modern look) – just like in pictures (2) and (5).
Hang up some pictures or art pieces in matching black frames (3) to help you stay inspired while working

The Command Center: A Modern Desk and Modern Home Office Furniture

The main focal point in a home office is the desk. In the pictures above you can see that all of the home offices use a wooden desk, except one office that uses a white desk. To give yourself a lot of desk space, why not use a built in desk – just like in pictures (5) and (6). Built in units, whether it is for the desk or storage, is a modern design element and helps make the most of the space you have in your home office.

And check out the chairs in the pictures. Again, all are a neutral color – black, white, or grey. They all range in different styles – yet all compliment the modern desks in the space.

Modern Home Office Lighting

For general lighting around the home office use recessed ceiling lights. These are lights that are fitted inside of your ceiling, hidden away, create a sleek and modern look.

If you want to add more lighting for your desk, look at installing some hanging pendant lights (just like in picture (3)), or use a modern desk lamp (just like in picture (4) or the anglepoise lamp in picture (5)).

Decor Pieces

When it comes to decorating a modern home office, I say keep it simple. Some good options include creating a gallery wall. Or use good looking stationary and storage containers that will double as decor pieces – such as wicker baskets, wooden containers, or glass jars.

Invest your time and money in getting good looking pieces for everything mentioned above – the desk lamp, table, chair. These feature pieces will help create a modern style in your home office.

Here are some other home office posts to get more ideas from:

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