Modern Living Room Ideas

Modern decor has a beautiful, academic appeal that many homeowners want to emulate in their living rooms. Pulling off this type of decor style, however, can be tricky, which is why you'll need to know everything that there is to know about modern decor as you get started on your living room remodel project. Here are some simple tips to help you pull off the exact type of modern living room you're imagining.

Learn the True Meaning of Modern

Before you start redecorating your room in modern style, it's important to learn more about what this decor style is all about. Modern decor is an offshoot of modern philosophy, which dictated that form follows function.

As a result, most traditional modern decor styles featured pieces of furniture that were relatively bland and utilitarian. These days, however, the definition of modern decor has shifted somewhat to incorporate more embellishments and purely aesthetic elements. In fact, the delineations between modern style, which is stark and severe, and contemporary style, which is often lively and colorful while remaining minimalist, have started to blur to some degree, which means that modern decor is much warmer and more inviting than it used to be.

Today, the term "modern" is used to refer to any type of decor style that is sleek and sophisticated while remaining simple and uncluttered. As long as you've hit all of those points squarely on their heads, you can get away with calling your living room decor modern without worrying about making things too spartan.

Pick a Captivating Focal Point

Every room has a focal point, and picking out and accentuating your living room's focal point is an integral aspect of pulling off a successful modern decor theme. In many living rooms, the natural focal point is the fireplace, and if you already have a fireplace in your living room, it might be time to take things to the next level.

For instance, if you're going for a monochrome look in your living room, you might want to transform your existing brick fireplace into a dominating black steel monstrosity. Make the rest of your living room relatively light colored, but take an intimidating and dark tack for your fireplace if you want to impress your guests the moment they step into your living room.

In other living rooms, the focal point might be the windows. If you currently have curtains or shades on the windows in your living room, you might want to ditch them to accentuate these focal features even more.

Add Some Glitz to a Minimal Room with Bright Colors

Modern decor style doesn't spare much thought for copious colors or flashy accessories, but your living room might look too bland if you only use dull, monochrome tones. While you should still use color sparingly in your living room, you might want to pick one feature to be the designated colorful object in your otherwise reserved living room.

For instance, if you have white walls and a gray sofa, a couple of bright yellow armchairs might be the perfect things to spice things up in your living room. On the other hand, you might want to leave all of your furniture items monochrome and pick an electric blue rug instead.

However you decide to spice up your living room with a little bit of color, just remember not to overdo it. Sticking with one color in one area of the room is usually the best bet.

Make Your Lighting Dramatic

While you still might want to keep your recessed ceiling lights for supplementary lighting, one standby of modern decor is odd or impressive light sources. For instance, you might want to pick a huge, looming floor lamp that hangs over your favorite reading chair. If you have other brass items in your living room, a vintage brass lamp might be the perfect item to make your lighting unique.

In addition, hanging lights aren't just for your dining room when you redecorate in modern decor style. While a traditional chandelier would probably look out of place in your living room, there are plenty of other kinds of hanging lights for you to pick from if you want to create an offbeat and arresting lighting scheme.

Keep Everything Organized

Living rooms that are decorated in modern style all have one thing in common: They are immaculately cleaned and organized. True adherents to modern style recoil whenever they find a single speck of dust on their living room furniture; this type of decor revels in the meticulously organized and rejects anything that seems oddly placed or dirty.

At the same time, organizing things in a slightly offbeat way is completely in keeping with the tenets of modern decor. You might want to artfully stack your books on your coffee table, or the table behind your sofa might be the perfect place to set up your record collection between two geode bookends.

Let the Outside In

Amplifying the juxtaposition between the indoors and the outdoors is an essential aspect of modern decor. If you really want to accentuate your modern furniture and accessories, it might be time to ditch those waist-height windows and invest in full floor-to-ceiling windows across the length of your living room.

Give Your Living Room a Unique Personality

While the modern decor style isn't quite as eclectic as some other decoration disciplines, it definitely leaves room for you to express your unique spirit as a homeowner. Whether it's a huge crystal in the corner or a truly offbeat sculpture on your coffee table, pick at least one item to be the token oddball in your otherwise immaculately groomed modern living room setup.