Modern Home Styling

Homes that are decorated in a modern style focus on simplicity and use clean, streamlined designs to create a sense of tranquil, orderly space. Modern furniture is characterised by its use of modern materials such as polished metals and glossy plastics, and also in the reworking of traditional materials such as beech, maple and oak. Modern furniture and architecture designs use strong geometric shapes and asymmetry to create powerful stylistic statements, and these are complimented and enhanced by finishing the room in neutral colours, with white walls and tone-on tone soft furnishings and accessories.

The modern style can be transferred to your home in just a few simple steps, and the key is to keep everything simple, clean and streamlined. Start with the walls, and completely remove any wallpaper and unnecessary fixtures and fittings. Ensure the wall has a perfectly smooth finish (in older houses you may have to re-plaster or touch up rough sections), and then coat the walls in a neutral natural colour, such as white tones or perhaps something like a very pale eggshell blue. Remove any patterned carpet, and replace with a simple finish such as a natural weave carpet in neutral tones, or modern wooden flooring in a light glossy finish (maple or beech is ideal and also reasonably priced).

Next look at the furniture in the room. Aim for simple pieces with strong geometric lines, and try and incorporate modern materials such as polished chrome or glossy plastics. Modern sofas are now available in a huge range of designs and fabrics, so look for neutral colours with a clean, streamlined shape. Soft furnishings such as curtains can also be neutral, but you could also enhance the room by choosing subtle patterns and colour highlights, or if you want a bolder statement you could include strong colours such as deep slate greys or sky blues, to accent various key areas. The important thing when choosing curtains to dress a modern room is to keep the fabric and design simple and unfussy, such as understated eyelet linen curtains which draw back across a basic pole design.

There is a great selection of curtains and blinds for the modern home at The Natural Curtain Company, in a whole range of colours from neutral white and cream tones, to some wonderful deep charcoal greys and bright reds. You can select which fabric you want from a great range of natural materials including cotton velvet, linen, silk, and Kashmir Crewel (handmade cotton wool mix), and there is also a handy measuring guide to ensure you order the correct length/width curtains and blinds that you need.